Lei Yirui does an awful lot of sleeping on the trip. They stop occasionally, for food and so the drivers can rest, but there really isn’t much to do. It’s just as boring as the bus ride on a school trip!!!  Lei Yirui realizes about halfway into the trip that her and Lei Shunyuan’s hometown is farther than she thought it was, and that it’s even farther than the Shen Tan Kingdom’s capital. 

 

When she leans out of the carriage to ask one of the drivers if she can see the map, she sees that the western half of their own kingdom curves up beside Shen Tan’s border, extending further north on that half, while the western half stretches southward. The capital city is in the southwest, and the city, not town, apparently, that she is from now is in that northernmost area of the kingdom. 

 

Lei Yirui had remembered descriptions of the kingdom’s shape from those strategy scrolls she’d read out of boredom, but she hadn’t quite been able to picture it. She’s happy she’d sat by rather passively as the maids helped her pack, because the closer they get, the colder it gets, and when they stop to rest she happily watches as Jia Zhenzhen leaves to approach the luggage carriage and bring back their respective winter cloaks—Jia Zhenzhen’s is brown and basic looking, while Lei Yirui’s is an expensive and heavy feeling white fabric with a white fur lining at the neck. 

 

At one stop, Lei Yirui drags Lei Shunyuan over into their carriage. He’s been sitting alone in his for the majority of the trip, and he seems a little unsure about joining them in their carriage at first. Lei Yirui soon realizes it’s because Jia Zhenzhen is glaring at him from behind her back during the entire conversation, and Lei Yirui pouts at her before shoving both of them into her carriage together and climbing in herself. There will be no bickering on this vacation, alright??? It all turned out fine, anyways, because Jia Zhenzhen eventually asked him if he knew rock paper scissors and then proceeded to teach him how to play, beating him every time. 

 

Lei Shunyuan had eventually returned to his own carriage that night, but it ultimately didn’t matter because when Lei Yirui had fallen asleep, she was woken the next morning by Jia Zhenzhen shaking her awake gently and informing her that they’d arrived at Lei Yirui’s home.

 

“Gah, really??” she exclaims, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. It’s even colder than it had been the day before, and her hands had turned yellow with the temperature!! Why does it have to be worse here???

 

“Your hair is a mess,” Jia Zhenzhen points out awkwardly, and Lei Yirui huffs, reaching up to pull out all of the pins to let it fall loosely. Alarmed, Jia Zhenzhen extends her arms out. “Wait! No, that’s not what I meant for you to—!”

 

“Too late!~ It’s already happened. Besides, my ears are already cold!! My hair will warm them a bit. You should let your hair down too,” Lei Yirui says, and at Jia Zhenzhen’s flat look, she offers a coy little smile. “I like how you look when your hair is down.” 

 

Mission success!! Jia Zhenzhen blushes and sputters incomprehensibly, and Lei Yirui giggles, leaning over to kiss Jia Zhenzhen’s cheek before she pulls open the curtain to the carriage and hops out. Lei Shunyuan is conversing with someone who looks like they might be part of the house staff, and he turns to look at her as they walk away. He tilts his head, and gives her a dubiously genuine smile.

 

“Did you just wake up?” he asks, and Lei Yirui shrugs, running her fingers through her hair. So straight and silky… her old hair had been a little wavy, at least…

 

Jia Zhenzhen steps out of the carriage a moment later, hair still pulled up, but she seems to have recovered from her embarrassment and places her hands on her hips, looking back and forth between the two siblings and the staff bringing their belongings inside. 

 

“Do we intend to stand out in the cold forever?” she asks irritably, tilting her head. Lei Shunyuan gives her a somewhat critical look, before some semblance of a friendly look overtakes his face. 

“Hardly. We must greet our pare—”

 

“Shunyuan. Yirui.” interrupts a voice, deep and sudden. Lei Yirui jolts, before whipping her head around. Ah! Two new people!!

 

A man and a woman are standing side-by-side, and Lei Yirui is guessing they’re both in their 40s. Their both attractive, with the gentle lines of age showing in their faces, with some gray streaks at both of their temples. Lei Yirui has the striking realization that the man looks a lot like she does, and the woman looks an awful lot like Lei Shunyuan. Oh shit, she thinks, her eyes widening, and she whips her whole body towards them, waving her hands excitedly. Okay!! New parents!! Got it!!

 

“Hi mom! Hi dad!! I, hah, sure missed you two!!” she exclaims, and both of their eyes widen slightly, and they exchange glances, and after a moment, her mother’s eyes soften. 

 

“I hadn’t expected such a warm welcome from you, Yirui. I missed you as well. Goodness, you’re so big now… you were just a child when you left…” she mutters, placing a hand gently over her heart. 

 

“Shunyuan,” the father says, turning his gaze from lei Yirui and towards her brother. “You look tired. You haven’t been sleeping well.” he says, and Lei Shunyuan’s smile wobbles slightly. 

“One can hardly rest easy with the current political situation.” he says. 

 

“And you are a scholar, not an advisor. I don’t understand why you agree to—” their father continues, his eyes sharpening. 

 

“Who’s this?” their mother interrupts, turning her gaze to Jia Zhenzhen. Their father stops speaking, looking towards her as well. By the immediately suspicious expression on his face, Lei Yirui is assuming he didn’t even notice her until this moment. Lei Yirui wonders how exactly that is, because Jia Zhenzhen remains the most attractive woman Lei Yirui has ever seen. It’s hard to miss her, okay??

 

“I am Jia Zhenzhen. I am Yirui’s girlfriend.” she says, and Lei Yirui chokes, pounding on her chest to recover. Jia Zhenzhen shoots her a look, swinging her open palm towards Lei Yirui and smacking her back so hard that she stumbles forward. 

 

“Oh Heavens.” mumbles Lei Shunyuan under his breath, and Lei Yirui straightens out, feeling embarrassed. Both of her parents are staring at her like she’s an alien, and she winces, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly. 

 

“Well. It’s… nice to know that you’re making friends. You hardly ever write to us about the important things.” her mother says. Jia Zhenzhen opens her mouth, and Lei Yirui is overcome with a sense of foreboding. 

 

“Actually, we are not friends. We’re—”

“Best friends!! Best friends forever and ever!!” Lei Yirui shouts, slinging an arm over Jia Zhenzhen’s shoulder and squeezing tight. Shut up!! Shut up, Jia Zhenzhen, please!! Lei Yirui knows the drama tropes, and these types of parents always hound their daughter about marrying a wealthy, high-status man! She doubts they’ll take well to knowing her partner is a commoner and a woman at that!!

 

Jia Zhenzhen is looking sort of alarmed, and Lei Shunyuan’s eyes flutter shut, and his jaw tenses like he has a migraine. Sorry, bro…

 

“I’m glad you have found such a loyal companion,” their mother says uncertainly. 

 

“Surely you have met some worthwhile men, as well.” says their father, looking over Lei Yirui with what is obviously disapproval. Lei Yirui shoots a somewhat desperate glance at Lei Shunyuan, but it’s apparently unneeded because he balls his fist at his side and steps forward. 

 

“Meimei is not old enough to marry. I’ve certainly seen no men that are worthy of her. I don’t mean to be cruel, but… they are lecherous scum, all of them.” he says, impassioned. Lei Yirui blinks in surprise. O….kay. She wonders what kind of guys the OG was hanging out with if he’s so wigged out… and, in a way, is he defending Jia Zhenzhen??

 

“She’s 18. She should’ve been engaged years ago.” their father says. Lei Yirui feels her entire face twist up in annoyance, and Jia Zhenzhen sighs beside her, 

 

“Rich people…” Lei Yirui hears her mutter, and she wants to nod her head along. Agreed, agreed!! 

 

“Well, if there are no prospective suitors….” their mother says, sounding rather eager. Lei Yirui hears red alarms going off in her head, and slowly turns to look at the older woman, beginning to shake her head. No… no… no! “Oh, I must attend to something. Yuan, join me.” she says. 

 

“Um!” Lei Yirui tries to protest. Nobody hears her. Their father, Lei Yuan apparently, gives his children a last once over, before nodding curtly. 

 

“Yes. Meals have been prepared for you in the kitchens. Eat and re-familiarize yourself with the grounds. Shunyuan… I wish to speak with you. Join us in the main courtyard as soon as you finish.” their father says. Lei Yirui watches helplessly as they depart together.

 

“I don’t like them.” Jia Zhenzhen says suddenly, and Lei Yirui barks out a laugh in surprise. 

 

“They’re a little much,” Lei Yirui admits, and Jia Zhenzhen smiles crookedly. 

 

“You shouldn’t speak about them that way.” says Lei Shunyuan, but even he looks somewhat pained.

 

“You should speak your mind, bro. It’s part of Yirui’s Grand-Slam Zen Vacation Plan!!” Lei Yirui announces, nodding resolutely as she speaks. If anything, the look Lei Shunyuan sends her seems slightly more despairing. 

 

 

…

 

 

Lei Shunyuan eats fast and hardly at all. He’s out of the kitchens quickly, and Lei Yirui wonders if he is aware of whatever their father wanted to speak with him about and is wigged out over it, or if he’s on a mission to convince them to not set up Lei Yirui like it’s The Bachelorette. 

 

“It’s refreshing that your home is smaller than the palace. But it’s still so large compared to what I’m used to… I worked for a wealthy family before I was ever a guard, and even their home was not as nice as yours…” Jia Zhenzhen says after a long thoughtful chew on some noodles. They’re very hot, and very good, and Lei Yirui is in bliss right now. 

 

“I’m not a fan of all of this extravagance either,” Lei Yirui says, and the look Jia Zhenzhen sends her is doubtful. “I’m serious!!! I prefer a humble life. When I think of my future, the thought of lounging like a princess isn’t ideal. Isn’t that miserable sounding?? Zhenzhen, you’re a woman of action! It doesn’t sound nice to you either, yeah?” she asks, leaning close to the other with wide curious eyes. Jia Zhenzhen looks a little shy, but she nods briefly. 

“No. But I grew up poor, and it was expected that I work. You seem to like your laid back life. You don’t do much…” Jia Zhenzhen says, but her words trail off uncertainly at the end. Lei Yirui huffs. 

“It’s true that it’s nice to relax and be tended to, but isn’t that too boring in the end?? I want to do things, not be stagnant. I want to read interesting stories and learn things I actually care about. I want to… work, one day. Not just marry and have children.” she says, pouting as she places her chin in her hand. Jia Zhenzhen furrows her brow. 

 

“You really want to work? What would you do?” she questions. Lei Yirui lights up. 

 

“Cosmetology!!” she exclaims, and elaborates at Jia Zhenzhen’s lost look. “I could start a shop in the capital, and I could do ladies make-up and hair… it could serve the women from the palace well, but it could also serve the common people!! Everyone likes to look nice, and gosh, I could even offer lessons!!” Jia Zhenzhen watches her carefully as she explains, though her expression is rather neutral. Lei Yirui gives her a tiny grin. 

“Say I really end up doing that in the future, and I have you with me. What’s your ideal life like?” she asks. Jia Zhenzhen blushes, and looks away when Lei Yirui leans towards her. 

 

“You speak like we’re going to marry.” she mumbles. 

 

“Can’t we?” Lei Yirui wonders, laughing at how quickly Jia Zhenzhen whips her head over, looking at Lei Yirui like she’s just told her that the Heavens are real and she has the proof of it.

 

“Shut up,” Jia Zhenzhen mumbles, her hand coming up to cover the bottom half of her face. She’s looking away again, and her face is crimson red. Gah, she’s so cute!! Doesn’t she look too much like the fanart depictions of her that Lei Yirui has seen online?? Lei Yirui almost says, ‘Make me!’ like the love interest in any good fanfic would, but she has self control, and there are other people in the room who are already looking at them like they’re going at it in the middle of the kitchen. 

 

Lei Yirui rolls her eyes, pulling away from Jia Zhenzhen’s face—and gosh, she had been pretty close!! Just about 3 cun!!! She crosses her arms, tilting her head with a smug grin as Jia Zhenzhen tries to recover. Maybe the girl can pass off her red face as a response to the cold. 

 

“Well. I’ve never thought about it. I would just be happy to be your… wife.” Jia Zhenzhen says, voice quiet enough so Lei Yirui is the only one who hears it, and she shuts her eyes like she’s trying to hide as she speaks. Lei Yirui feels Cupid shoot the arrow through her heart at the image of Jia Zhenzhen in a modern frilly apron cooking breakfast. Another arrow hits when Lei Yirui has the domestic image of her coming home and wrapping her arms around Jia Zhenzhen’s middle!!! Gah—the possibilities!! Why couldn’t Jia Zhenzhen have come to her world?!

 

“I will never marry a man.” Lei Yirui says seriously, and bores her eyes into Jia Zhenzhen’s. Nngh… if she tries hard enough…. maybe… she can project her seriousness… to her… through telepathy!!

 

“You probably have to.” says Jia Zhenzhen, though she doesn’t seem happy about saying it. 

 

“If I have to, then I’ll kill my husband!!” she announces, with fire in her eyes. Jia Zhenzhen raises a brow, looking a little amused. Her gaze flickers meaningfully between Lei Yirui’s hand cast and the (fading) scar on her cheek. 

 

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep.” Jia Zhenzhen says, and Lei Yirui wouldn't have been able to tell it was a joke if she didn’t know the other so well. The intonation is just slightly different!!! Lei Yirui pouts, tucking her hand behind her back. 

 

“I’ll have time to learn. It’s not like mom and dad will try to marry me off today!!!”

 

 

…

 

 

“Wu Tian.” the man says in lieu of a proper introduction. He’s male lead levels of gorgeous, with a narrow, handsome face and a straight nose, with perfect skin. His long black hair is down and half pulled back with an elaborate silver haircrown, and his entire outfit is white. He looks like a snow prince. 

 

Lei Yirui is still feeling frazzled. She had been (trying) to give Jia Zhenzhen a tour, sort of just making shit up along the way, when her mother accosted her, shoved her into a room for tea with some dude, and shut the door and abandoned her with him!!! Wu Tian’s face is as unreadable as anything she’s ever seen, and if she had thought Jia Zhenzhen was stoic…

 

“Yes. Um, hi there, Wu Tian!! I’m Lei Yirui!” she says, lifting her tea to her lips and taking a panicked sip. Hnngh…! It’s too hot! She wheezes, slamming the cup back down onto the table and squeezing her eyes shut. She’s embarrassed, but it’s probably for the best that she looks like a loser to this guy her mom most likely wants her to get hitched to. When she opens her eyes, he’s not giving her that regretful look that guys would have on their faces when they spoke to Ren Wenqian, but the exact… same… stony… expression. 

 

“You fight,” he says, and it’s not a question. Lei Yirui blinks at him absently. 

“I do?” she responds unsurely, and he takes that as an affirmation. He nods, a movement so brief she wonders if it’s detectable only under a microscope. Who the fuck is this guy??? She doesn’t do well with these OCs!!!! 

 

“Battle wounds are honorable.” he says, looking briefly at her cheek. Lei Yirui continues to look at him, waiting for him to continue that sentiment. He doesn’t.

 

“Sure, I guess some people see them that way… I wouldn’t call these battle wounds, though. I sort of got my shit rocked both times, haha… I might be suited to a peaceful life. Fighting is way cooler on TV than it is in real life.” Lei Yirui says to fill the space. 

 

“Yes. Honorable.” says Wu Tian. Lei Yirui feels like she’s talking to a cube of ice. What the fuck is going on????

They spend the next half hour in mostly silence, Lei Yirui drinking her tea, refilling it over and over despite not being able to taste it with her burnt tongue, and desperately wishing it was alcohol. Not that her track record with alcohol is good at this point, but… gah!! Send her back to the real world, if you have to!! This is so awkward!!!

 

Lei Yirui tries to talk, tries to start any kind of conversation, but Wu Tian doesn’t say a word other than the occasional grunt. Eventually, Lei Yirui starts listing off fanfiction tropes she likes in growing astonishment as Wu Tian just looks at her blankly, nodding and humming when prompted.

 

After a miserable while, the window snaps open, and Lei Yirui yelps, whipping her head around in surprise. Wu Tian looks over, looking remarkably unaffected. Jia Zhenzhen crawls through the window, landing on the ground with a soft thump. She looks between Wu Tian and Lei Yirui with critical eyes, before she walks over and sits on one side of the table like she was invited. Lei Yirui isn’t bothered, per se, but she’s so fucking confused that she feels like her head will explode.

 

Wu Tian doesn’t look bothered at all either, is the thing. He looks down to where Jia Zhenzhen is trying to tuck her hands under her sleeves. 

“Cold.” he says. Jia Zhenzhen looks at him.

“Yes.” she confirms. Wu Tian slowly slides his cup of tea over to her. Jia Zhenzhen looks at it, and wraps her hands around the hot cup. She sighs softly. 

 

“Better?” he wonders. 

 

“Yes.” she says again. Wu Tian’s eyes squint just barely, and Lei Yirui wonders if that’s supposed to be a smile. Apparently, yes, because Jia Zhenzhen nods at him in solidarity. Are they cavemen??? What is this?!

 

“You seem sensible.” Jia Zhenzhen says after a moment, and she gives Wu Tian a look of approval, which he returns. What??? What??? Jia Zhenzhen seems to dislike everyone Lei Yirui talks to, but not this guy?? Someone tell her what’s going on!

 

“Jesus Christ.” Lei Yirui groans, dropping her head onto the table.