RIN

Six Months Later…

Amongst the street merchants, vendors, and citizens roaming the Eastern Empire's capital city - Shongo, a single youth was strolling around. From a distance, the youth appeared to be a young man, but upon a closer look, one could see the feminine features on his small face.

Dressed in a loose fitted hemp shirt, pants and a bamboo hat on their head, the youth turned to the direction of a food stand. After a few seconds of deep thought, the youth walked toward the stall.

"One [1] Bing tanghulu please." He passed the stand owner three silvers.

Accepting the money, the stand owner passed the candied fruit to the youth with a polite smile. The youth nodded in thanks and stood to the side of the food stand. It broke between his teeth with a soft crunch.

The sweet scent of hawthorns drifted through his nostrils. A sour sweetness filled the youth's mouth and for a moment, he enjoyed the calmness around him.

A few feet away from the stand, two merchants spoke to one another in hushed whispers.

"Did you hear?"

"Hear what?"

The youth took another bite of the candied hawthorns, their right cheek bulging. It was even sweeter than the first bite.

Looking around, the merchant lowered his voice. "I overheard a few soldiers talking, and apparently there's tension between the eastern and western powers."

The youth continued to chew, their eyes focused on a pair of children playing in the distance. They swallowed and took another bite with a crunch.

"What kind of tension?" The other repeated, his voice filled with uncertainty. He seemed uninterested in his friend's words.

"I don't know. But it seems to be big since many of the soldiers have been moving around lately. They even have soldiers patrolling the other side of the city."

"Pah! That's just a bunch of nonsense!" The other man scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Even if that were so, the eastern power is strong enough to defend itself against other empires. Our emperor is a clever man. I'm certain he knows how to evade this situation."

"Maybe so…maybe so…" The other spoke quietly and went back to his work.

The youth swallowed the last of the candied hawthorns and took out their pouch.

"Another please," They handed another set of silvers to the stand owner.

Taking the second stick of candied hawthorns, they walked away and blended through the crowd. A second later, the youth's figure was out of sight.

At the top of the Fa Mountain, a middle-aged man stood at the top of a rocky hill. He stared down at the Eastern Empire's city with a silent gaze.

The man was none other than Wei Jingyi.

"What took you so long?" He asked without withdrawing his gaze from the view below.

"I was hungry," Rin chuckled, now standing beside Wei Jingyi.

Glancing at the girl, Wei Jingyi sighed.

"Master…"

Rin suppressed a laugh and glanced down at the city. Her emerald eyes flowed like a calm and still lake, a hint of a smile on their lips.

"I heard some interesting news while I was down there. Care to hear?"

The edge of Wei Jingyi's brows raised. He nodded his head.

"It would appear there's some conflict between the eastern and western empires at the moment. To ensure it wasn't merely a rumor, I looked into it. The words seem to be true."

In an instant, the expression on Wei Jingyi's face stiffened, his eyes wide.

"Will there be a war?"

Rin gave out a small sigh. "I don't know."

There was silence for a while before Wei Jingyi broke the silence. "Then what do you plan to do about the situation?"

Even though Wei Jingyi's appeared calm on the outside, it did not escape him that the girl's expression changed ever so slightly to his question.

Taking a bite of the last candied hawthorn, Rin chewed in silence. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes couldn't hide the hint of joy as she ate. A moment of silence passed before she finished and swallowed. Licking her sugar-coated lips, she admired the stick in her hand from the candied hawthorns.

"The enemy of my enemy is an ally. Naturally, I will do what one does when such an opportunity is provided." Rin's voice was calm and steady, revealing no emotion.

After a minute, she shifted her gaze to Wei Jingyi and gave her usual smiles.

"How do you feel about going on another long trip, Wei Jingyi?" She asked softly.

When he heard her words, Wei Jingyi's mouth couldn't help but twitch in response.

"With this worn-out body of mine, I can't be too certain. But if the master requests it, then I have no choice but to try." He sighed heavily.

Rin's lips pursed before she broke out into a laugh. She tilted her head up towards the sky as her eyes sparkled at the sight of the familiar bird in the sky. When the brown falcon landed on her shoulder, she gently rubbed its head.

"Then let us go."

Wei Jingyi nodded his head and turned away from the hill. Rin stayed for a moment and peered down at the view below. Her eyes almost seemed to get colder, but in the next instant after a blink, they were back to normal.

Shifting her head slightly to the sky, a smile played on her lips. It had been three months since she left the Bai Manor, and finally, there was an opportunity at success. Perhaps she would achieve her aim sooner than she thought.

She wondered…if An Sun was close to achieving his goal.

When she recalled his last words to her before he left, her eyes lowered. As if her soul was pulled, she looked down at her hand quietly.

"Come to your side, huh?" Rin's voice was soft with unknown emotions.

After a while, she lowered her head and turned away from the hill to follow behind Wei Jingyi. Commencing on her long-awaited path.

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[1] Tanghulu also called bingtanghulu, is a traditional Northern Chinese snack of candied Crataegus pinnatifida, also known as mountain hawthorn, Chinese haw, Chinese hawthorn, Chinese hawberry, or shanzha in Mandarin Chinese.