Chapter 15. Return of Mei Feng
A FEW HOURS LATER
EMPEROR LIANGWEI POINT OF VIEW:
I was working on my paperwork hoping to finish faster so I could see Mei Shen. A servant knocked at the door and walked in quickly. I knew he wasn’t bringing good news.
"She’s gone, Your Majesty."He said.
The words echoed louder than the soldier’s voice. The air stilled. My pen stopped mid-stroke. I turned slowly.
"Gone?"I asked.
"She left before dawn. Took her horse. We only realized once the stable boy found this."He explained.
The soldier held out a folded piece of parchment. I snatched it. No seal. Her handwriting, precise, sharp, like every stroke had something unsaid behind it. I unfolded it and read.
Lianwei, She’s here now. Mei Feng. The one everyone’s been waiting for. The one the stars were supposed to send you. I understand now. I shouldn’t have stayed as long as I did or event wanting the wedding between us. I shouldn’t have believed I could be anything more than a placeholder. But I did even when you stopped our wedding. I was foolish. Don’t come after me. Let her have the place she was meant for. It was never mine to begin with. Mei Shen
My hands didn’t shake, but something cracked inside me. Something old. Something I had barely started to believe in.
"She saw her?" I muttered. "Already?"
The doors opened behind me before I could breathe.