I have no excuse for being so late - I mean, I do have an excuse, but I feel to ashamed to use it...
Honestly, I don't know if I should even write anymore, since I don't feel motivated at all... Maybe writing isn't something for me anymore...

Ah well, the chapter is short, but I focused more on Lien and Jian this time. I hope, you guys like it!

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Lien had been through a lot ever since she had joint the world of politics. The men around her always looked down on her and made fun of her. It was hard, especially in the beginning. So many nights had she cried herself to sleep until she finally was used to the unfair treatment. Over the years things got a little bit better. Some men finally accepted her – the emperor and his closest advisors held her in high regards. Hakuyuu and Hakuren held her in high regards. It was still hard, but she wasn't alone anymore. She had felt like she could made it in this men ruled world. This feeling vanished when Hakuyuu died and people expressed their doubts towards Hakuren. A struggle for power was nothing new inside the palace. Everyone wanted to rule the empire – to rule the world – but they couldn't openly oppose the emperor, so they used every dirty trick possible to gain more and more power. Now that the crown prince was dead, they hoped to be able to get on the throne by marriage or even have the emperor select one of their sons into the royal family. If they succeeded than Lien would face the same treatment as back then, when she first entered the political world – not to think about the empire itself. Hakutoku loved the empire and so did Hakuyuu and Hakuren. All they did was for the country and its people, but those nobles didn't care about anyone or anything but themselves and their selfish desires.

Hakuren's little plan had worked, luckily. After finding Hakutoku and the king of the unknown country, they were able to convince the emperor to talk with his guest about Hakuyuu's death. Despite calling for the other king and appearing to believe in the story Jian had told him, he actually didn't believe in people coming back from the dead. However, Lien explained that even when Hakuyuu couldn't come back anymore, the other king might know what that strange sickness was and how to prevent it or even cure it. What if Hakuren was the next to get it? In such a case they needed a way to cure it! At the moment Hakuren was the only heir to the throne. Hakuei was a princess and her right to the throne was there, however her uncle Koutoku had a higher right to it, since he was male and the younger brother of the current emperor. Although Hakutoku had nothing against his younger brother, he knew all too well that this man was not fitting for the throne. Furthermore, he didn't want to lose another child.
Now the emperor and his family had dinner together with their guest, while Lien was sitting in her room looking quite listless. Jian was with her, walking up and down in her room. It wasn't the first time that he visited her in her room, however there were a few changes since the last time. Those two knew each other for a long time now.
Hakuren and Hakuyuu were princes and so they were treated differently than normal children. Having fun with each other wasn't as carefree as it was with other children. Jian, on the other hand, was just the son of a soldier. Moreover he had a personality that was easy to like and get along with. Lien's father looked down on Jian, so the latter wasn't welcomed at Lien's place, yet she dared to bring him over from time to time – everything was fine, as long as her father didn't know.
Right now her father was busy with pitying himself and his bad luck, so he didn't care about the doings of his daughter.

While Lien sat at her desk and stared into the void, Jian was pacing up and down behind her. He wanted to be at the dinner of the royal family. Of course, he knew that even when they came to a conclusion or whatever, nothing much would happen today. Yet he wanted to hear good news and he wanted to hear them right now!
"Say, Jian, do you really believe that a dead person can come back to life?", Lien suddenly asked in a hushed voice.
"Of course! That's why I told the Emperor about the story I found in the first place! And when you think about it, it isn't that strange. I mean, not so long ago we didn't think that magic could be powerful and now we also seek after the magic of a djinn to increase our strength. We don't know what magic is capable of and just because the magician in our country can't do it, doesn't mean that magicians in other countries also can't do it. I believe it until proven otherwise."
"Your confidence is reassuring and worrisome likewise."
"What about you?"
"Me? Well, I don't believe that people can come back from the dead. Death is final and unchangeable. I wish it would be possible, but it isn't."
"Then why did you help us to convince the Emperor?"
"Because I wish it would be possible. Because I wish prince Hakuyuu would come back to us. Because, as I explained to the Emperor, we need to know what kind of sickness had killed prince Hakuyuu and how to avoid or cure it."
A long silenced followed.
Lien started to play with a hairpin Hakuyuu had given to her before he had set out with his father many months ago – back then no one would have even dreamed that Hakuyuu would get so horrible sick during this journey.
Many of her accessories were gifts from Hakuyuu. They were small things like hairpins or jewelry, so barely anyone notice anything. It was expected of a noble woman to have a lot of accessories and change them daily and since Hakuyuu never went over the top with his gifts no one notice anything. In retrospect there had never been a reason for those gifts. Hakuyuu had made her gifts for her birthday, but most of the time he gave her something when nothing special was going on. He wanted to make her smile and she always had smiled. Well, who wouldn't be happy about a present? For some time Lien had tried to also give gifts to Hakuyuu, but she never really found anything suitable for him. As the crown prince there as nothing he lacked! Whatever he wanted, he would get it in the blink of an eye. In the end she had tried to knit him a few things and he had thanked her, but there were just so many thing one could knit and her skills were relatively poor in this regard.

"In case Hakuyuu stays dead, what will you do, Jian?", Lien asked.
She tried her best to hold her tears back. She was quite happy that she didn't face Jian at the moment. Although they were close friends with each other, she didn't like to cry in front of others. Too many times had people made fun of her because of this.
"Um, then I will support Hakuren."
What simple answer.
"And what, if those old … men are able to put one of their sons on the throne? What will you do then?"
"Um… Well, you know, I became a soldier to protect this country. So, I will protect this country and its citizen. What about you?"
Lien understood what Jian wanted to say. Supporting Hakuren was different from supporting the country. It meant, in case someone else than Hakuren took the throne, Jian would oppose said person, in case that person did anything questionable or harmful for the country or the citizen. However, if it was Hakuren, he would do everything to support his friend to archive Hakuren's goal – whatever this was. There was no way that Hakuren would do anything that may harm the country or its citizen, so there was also no reason to oppose him. Maybe this thought was a little bit naïve.
"Same. For me it's the same. Hakuren will be a good emperor. He just needs people around him that believe in him and support him. I hope, the Emperor never stops believing in Hakuren."
Another moment of silence followed. Lien wiped off her tears and turned around to face Jian, who now laid on her bed, cuddling with her pillows. That guy… When had she given him permission to occupy her bed and cuddle with her pillows?

"Feifei, do you remember the first time we've met?", Jian asked before Lien could lecture him on how one should not enter the bed of another person without permission.
Dumbstruck by the sudden question, Lien needed a moment before she replied: "First of all, don't call me Feifei. You know that I don't like it, when you call me by my last name! We're friends, right? And second, yes I do remember. How could I forget that little boy that cried his eyes out, because he got lost? Really, you were such a crybaby."
Seeming offended Jian sat up and turned around on Lien's bed, so he could see her.
"Oh, sorry that little four year old me was scared, when being separated from his parents, wandering around alone in a foreigner city of a foreigner country. I was hungry, lost, scared and helpless! Crying in such a situation is just normal. And by the way, I was cute!"
With that Jian, once again, laid down on her bed, burring his face into her pillows.
"Yeah, I have to admit, you were indeed a very cute child. However, with your last remark, are you trying to say that I wasn't cute? That I am not cute?"
"Yeah!"
Jian sounded unbelievable heartbroken and offended – the crybaby comment had really gotten to him.
"Out!", Lien firmly ordered, while pointing towards her door.
Honestly, neither of them was offended or mad at the other one. It was just a little game – a little bit of teasing each other. Calling someone a crybaby, just because said person cried in a situation, in which probably every little child had cried, was exaggerated and unreasonable. And why should a grown up and confident woman like Lien be offended, just because Jian may think she hadn't been a cute child or wasn't cute now? She may want to be pretty, but pretty and cute were two different things and she did not care much about the opinion of others. As long as she thought of herself as pretty everything was fine. Jian calling her Feifei offended her more than him saying she wasn't and hadn't been cute.

As a good soldier, Jian followed the order given without delay or questioning it. It was already late anyway and he needed to get back to his room – it would cause some problem for Lien, when someone saw him this later in her room. People liked to gossip! Somehow people like to gossip and forget that a man and a woman could also be just friends! This was kind of sad.
"Then I will take my leave. See you tomorrow, Lienlien", Jian bid his farewell.
However, he didn't come far. Before he even could reach the door, Lien had jump out of her chair, the hairpin – Hakuyuu's last gift to her – still in hand.
"Wait!"
The atmosphere changed again. When they had come here, the mood had been quite gloomy and heavy, despite the fact that their plan had more or less worked out, after their little joke everything had lighten up a bit, but know it suddenly was turned heavy and dark again. It had to be known that Jian really wasn't good with such things. He was more of an optimistic person, a little ray of sunshine. Of course, he could be serious, but serious didn't automatically mean depressing and negative. The reason, why he had brought up their first meeting was because, he couldn't bear the dark atmosphere anymore. Unfortunately, his effort had been for nothing in the end.
"Jian, promise me, that you will take care of Hakuren and that you will support him no matter what! You… We, we cannot let those… those… people take over the empire and destroy it. We have to make sure that Hakuren knows that we are on his side. That he has us as his friends and supporters."
"Of course! I had no other intention! You should stop worrying so much about this! Hakuren has been through worse and never fell. And the emperor is already used to those people and their scheming. He has made his decision and won't back down from it. You should have more faith in Hakuren and the emperor."
"I have faith in them. I trust them with my life. But I don't have any faith or trust in this creeps! You know yourself how they can be!"
Only a few steps were between them, a few steps that Lien easily overcame to give Jian a hug. It's been a long while since the last time she had given a hug or received one. Her family was not a touchy one and her father even seemed to greatly dislike any kind of body contact with others – even or especially with his daughter. So the only people around her that were open for hugs were Jian and the princes. However, due to their status Hakuyuu and Hakuren barely hugged others – it was more common with their younger siblings or their mother. In the end, there was only Jian left for her, who was out of the country more and more often to fight in the war between the three countries Kou, Go and Gai. Jian was someone, who loved hugs to no end. He loved to give hug and to receive them. Not even the two princes were safe from him – of course, he made sure to not hug them in public or when someone else was around. Hakurin also received many hugs from him, whenever there was a good chance. Although they weren't that close with each other, it was obvious that they liked each other a lot. Hakurin liked Jian simply because he was nice to her and seemed care about her. It was hard to find someone that was willing to listen to her childish babbling about her dreams and wishes and so on. Jian, on the other hand, like Hakurin simply because she was a child. He liked children. To him children were pure and simple. They were what he wished the world would be. Children didn't plot against each other or murderer or betrayed. Children were simple and sweet. Also, Hakurin was an optimistic person, just like him. His relationship with Hakuei was different. For him this little girl never had the aura of a child. She was too stiff and uptight – way too stern and serious for a child. Not cute at all!

Gently Jian hugged Lien back. Tenderly stroking over her back. Lien had already started to cry. Normally when a person died, those, who were left behind, would mourn together or at least had someone they could go to. However, Lien was alone. Her father only cared about the lost opportunity, not about her. Who knew, if he even cared about the fact that the crown prince had died?
It also wasn't very helpful that she even questioned her own sorrow. Was she sad because of the lost opportunity or was she sad, because she had lost a dear friend – had Hakuyuu and her even been friends –, or was she sad, because of the lost opportunity and because she had lost a friend?
"Jian, I am so confused. Why is this all happening and why does it seem that those nobles don't care about the fact that the crown prince has died? And why am I sad? Am I sad, because I lost a friend or am I sad because now I cannot marry prince Hakuyuu anymore and become the empress? I don't even know what prince Hakuyuu was to me all these years. Were we friends? Or was he just my opportunity to receive my father's love? Why has this all to happen? Why did prince Hakuyuu have to die? I feel so lost and lonely and I am confused! What should I do, Jian? What should I do?"
Lien had buried her face into Jian's chest and cried her eyes out. She really was confused and Hakuyuu's death was still fresh on her mind – not surprising considering that it only happened yesterday. Yesterday it had felt more like a bad joke, a bad dream. She didn't feel like mourning back then, because it didn't feel real to her at all. But since this morning, when Hakuyuu was still dead, a deep sadness has overcome her and she didn't know where to go to or what to do with it. Her tight schedule didn't allow for a break and on one side, she was happy, because then she hadn't had to think too much about Hakuyuu, but on the other side, she really needed a moment or two for herself. This moment was now.
While Lien cried, Jian was lost. He wasn't really good with crying people. Whenever he had to deal with someone crying he felt overwhelmed. "Calm down", was the response to Lien's question in his head, but he knew he shouldn't say that out loud now. Calming down may be the best thing for now, but wouldn't it hurt her feelings, when he said it? Wouldn't it sound like he didn't take her and her feelings, her worries, serious? But he took her serious. He could even understand her. Although he had never been in a similar situation, to him it was something logical to feel confused right now. Who wouldn't be happy about marrying the future emperor? An empress had a lot of power and wealth. Becoming the empress also meant a rise in the social status of the family. Lien suffered like many over female nobles from the lack of love and recognition from their parents, especially from their fathers. They were more like tools than humans. Being selected as the bride for the future emperor would gain them the love and attention from their family, even when said love and attention was bond to a condition, even when said love and attention was not real and honest.

Softly Jian moved Lien and himself to her bed, so she could sit down.
"It's fine, Lien. Everything is fine. I don't know about you and your feelings, but I can assure you that Hakuyuu saw you as a dear friend. Sometimes, when we were out on the field, he would talk about you. Well, he mostly wondered about what you might think about this and that. And whenever we were on a market he looked after nice stuff for you. He cared about you and wanted you to feel good, even with that arranged marriage. I think, what you are feeling right now it pretty normal for someone in your position. After working so hard for so many years, your father finally started to pay attention to you. He finally seemed to care about you. And despite knowing that his feelings were only superficial, you accepted them. You have waited for them for so long. You fear losing his love, while knowing that he had never loved you. Yet, children only want the love of their parents. No matter what. I understand that. I think you are sad for losing such a great and precious friend like Hakuyuu, but you're also sad for losing your father's love and attention. You are sad and afraid that things may return to the way they were before your engagement with Hakuyuu. However, you should know that this cannot happen, because many things have changed since then. You have the support of some of the council members and emperor Hakutoku is still very fond of you. Hakuren also sees you as a precious friend and ally. You may not become his wife, but I am sure that he will make you into his first advisor and right-hand man… woman. Don't doubt you feelings! To me it looked more like you liked him for who he was, not for his position and power. You're not that type of person!"
If she truly only cared about Hakuyuu, because he would increase her status, she wouldn't act like that. She wouldn't even doubt herself. Jian knew Lien for a long time now and everyone knew that she didn't care much about a person's status. If she had ever cared, she wouldn't be where she was right now. She would have long given up on fighting her way to the top. Of course, she wasn't complete immune to things like the status of a person, since in the world of the palace status meant a lot – it could decide life and death! The reason she had endure all the suffering, was to gain her current status, not because of the power that came with it, but so her father would finally accept her. However, she didn't care about being empress or not. As long as she could help the empire, she was fine. At the same time, being the empress would ensure her father's love for her – something she was longing for since she was a little kid. It was complicated.
"And now go to bed, will you. It is already quite late and you look tired. Here, take this very soft and fluffy pillow and drift into the magical world of beautiful dreams."
Jian took the hairpin out of Lien's hand and after placing it on top of the nightstand, handed her one of the pillows he had cuddled with before. Afterwards he got up. Despite their close relationship with Hakuyuu, they were not allowed to slack off. So Jian had to go to his daily training and follow his duties as soldier, while Lien had to do her job as advisor and minister. A good rest was important for both of them – let alone all the stupid rumors that may spread, when someone saw Jian this late in her room.
"Jian, before you go, give me some tissues."
Silently Jian got her some tissues from her nightstand, then he left. Unseen he was able to leave the mansion – feeling like a thief, since he had to hide from the servants and needed to watch where he walked to avoid being seen by someone.