Wu Meiying found herself thinking about cultivation methods several days later. She sat on the porch and stared at the garden spread out before her, its plethora of colors set in a vibrant array designed to be aesthetically pleasing to the eyes, though her eyes were unfocused and dull. It only looked like she was admiring the garden to others.

Her mind was far away.

Unlike Wu Jian and Hou Jingshu, who would have to eventually find a cultivation method that suited, Wu Meiying already knew what cultivation method she needed to use. She had known for as long as she’d been alive, since her very first cognizant thought.

Nine Heavenly Time Continuum Manipulation Method.

It was a cultivation method wherein the cultivator compressed time within themselves to better manipulate the flow of time. Of course, the building of chi, the gathering of yin and yang, and the increasing of one’s awareness was important, but all of that was secondary to the compression of time.

Wu Meiying did not know how she knew this cultivation method; she did not know where it came from, or how the knowledge of it became locked inside of her. All she knew was that she possessed knowledge of it and always had.

That was all she needed to know.

If she was being honest with herself, that scared her. Knowing she possessed something this powerful but not knowing why was frightening. However, a part of her knew she could not learn any other cultivation method. It was more than just already having one. She physically could not use any method except for the one she already knew.

Who am I? Why do I know these things? Is this cultivation method the reason I can see into the future?

Wu Meiying had always wanted to know this about herself. She had always wanted to know who she was and why she was born with these powers. Unfortunately, since she did not have the ability to control her powers, she was unable to figure out even that much. It was an incessant worry that always remained in the back of her mind. She wondered if she would ever discover her origins.

As she sat there, gazing at nothing, someone called out to her.

“Wu Meiying!”

The voice was young and refreshing, vibrant and lively. It snapped Wu Meiying right out of her daze. She blinked once. Then she smiled and turned just her head to watch the approaching girl. She didn’t say anything until the other girl was sitting down next to her, bare feet dangling over the side of the porch.

“Jingshu.”

Hou Jingshu was dressed in a soft pink gown that reached her ankles and was made from a light fabric. With the days growing longer and warmer, everyone had taken to wearing more breathable clothes. Even Wu Meiying was wearing rolled up pants, a short-sleeved shirt, and no shoes.

She briefly considered donning a dress like her friend. Wu Jian would no doubt love seeing her in a dress. Impressing him always brought her joy. She discarded the thought seconds later, though, since there was no reason to impress him right now. Wu Meiying would rather wow the boy when it really mattered. She’d pick the right opportunity to leave him speechless.

That was a fun thought.

“What are you doing here? Are you sitting around because Wu Jian is with his father?”

“Hmmm. I suppose.” Wu Meiying turned back to the garden and furrowed her brow. “I often find myself thinking about things I’d rather not when Jian is not with me. For some reason, it is easier for me to just not things about anything unnecessary and simply be myself when he’s by my side, but lately, he’s been getting called out by his father more and more.”

“Well, his father is raising him to become the next Wu Clan head. I heard the decision was unanimous after his victory in the Three Clan’s Tournament,” Hou Jingshu said.

“It was, and I know teaching him is important. I do not begrudge Uncle for doing what is best for the clan.”

“But you wish Wu Jian was here instead of with his father, right?”

“I do.” Thoughts of Wu Jian filled her chest with warmth. She placed a hand against her breast as if to capture this warmth as she closed her eyes. “I wish to always be by Jian’s side. I do not ever want to be apart from him, though I know sometimes, partings are inevitable.”

That’s right. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try to stay together, you will be separated in the end…

For just a moment, fear raced through her, traveling up and down her spine. It was a sense of dread that she couldn’t place, like a bad premonition. She sometimes got those like the time when she saw Wu Fei attempting to kill Wu Jian. However, no vision came to her this time. She merely felt some strange and unknown fear that she and Wu Jian would eventually be forced apart.

There I go again. I’m being irrational. Calm down, Meiying. Nothing is going to happen. Just keep helping Jian get stronger. That’s all you need to do right now. It’s all you can do.

Wu Meiying gave herself a pep talk and the anxiety, fear, and uncertainty soon settled down. She wished Wu Jian was here. His presence would keep those incessant fears silent.

“You really love Wu Jian, don’t you?” asked Hou Jingshu.

Wu Meiying tilted her head and considered the girl sitting next to her. “Where is this coming from? Are you feeling insecure again?”

“N-no! Well… maybe.” Hou Jingshu heaved a deep sigh as her shoulders slumped. “I’ve just been thinking about the relationship between you and Wu Jian and the one between him and me. I know I haven’t been together with him for as long as you. I know you two have a special relationship. I’m not… against it. But I guess… because of that, I wonder if I’m really suited to being his bride. I’m not sure my feelings for him are as strong as yours, and I’m pretty sure his feelings for me pale in comparison to how he feels about you.”

Wu Meiying didn’t say anything at first, instead opting to ponder the other girl’s words. She looked at the garden, really looked at it. A colorful array of blossoms was interspersed through patches of finely raked sand and boulders. This zen garden was part of her personal building. Since she was considered important to the Wu Clan thanks to her foretelling ability, she had been given her own living space.

“I guess I understand how you feel. It must be difficult trying to find your place in Wu Jian’s life when he and I are always together. I know that, were our situations reversed, I might be feeling the same as you. But I think you’re looking at this the wrong way,” she said at last.

“I am?” asked Hou Jingshu.

“Yes.” Wu Meiying nodded, then paused to collect her thoughts. “The relationship you and Jian have will always be different from my relationship with him. We are not the same people, and so his feelings for us will not be the same… but I don’t think that makes his feelings for either of us any less powerful. It just means the way he feels about each of us is slightly different. However, love is love no matter what form it takes, and I know for a fact that he loves you very much.”

“Y-you do?” Hou Jingshu stuttered as she looked away from Wu Meiying and placed her hands on her cheeks. Although she tried to hide her blush, it was plain as day to Wu Meiying, who could see the redness spreading to her ears, neck, and even reaching her hairline.

She smiled. Hou Jingshu was such a cute girl. She often got embarrassed when discussing emotions and feelings, even though she was more often than not the one who brought them up. It was like she wanted to talk about these things but couldn’t be honest with herself when the time came. Wu Meiying believed it was because Hou Jingshu was a person of action instead of words, but even when it came to expressing her feelings physically, she was unable to. Perhaps that was because she simply thought about it too much and became embarrassed.

“Of course I do. I’m the person who knows Jian the best,” Wu Meiying said proudly. “I can tell you with complete certainty that he loves you.”

Hou Jingshu twiddled her fingers. “Then how come he, um, hasn’t… you know…”

“Hasn’t… what?” Wu Meiying knew what Hou Jingshu was trying to ask, but she suddenly felt like teasing this easily embarrassed girl. The young Shang Kingdom princess was just too easy to mess with. Her straightforward and naive personality made Wu Meiying feel like bullying her.

Just a little.

“Y-you know… how come he hasn’t… k-k-kissed me yet?”

It looked like Hou Jingshu’s embarrassment had reached critical mass. Her entire face and even some of her chest was flushed a deep scarlet, to the point where Wu Meiying wouldn’t be surprised if she could fry an egg on it. Adorable was the best word she could have used to describe her friend at this moment.

“Because you haven’t asked him for one?” Wu Meiying shrugged. “Jian would be more than willing to kiss you if you asked him to, but by that same token, he’s not likely to initiate anything because it’s not really his style. He also hasn’t had many opportunities since they began posting guards around his building.”

Even I haven’t kissed him in a long time…

A frown crossed her face. Ever since they began stationing guards around his building, she had been unable to sneak in. It didn’t matter if she could see into the future. If all the guards did was rotate every four hours, then she would never be able to sneak past them.

It was a huge problem for her. Wu Meiying’s dreams had become strange and unsettling ever since she stopped sleeping with Jian, and even though she never remembered them, they always left her in a cold sweat. Several times, she had woken up crying and couldn’t even remember why she was shedding tears in the first place. That was what disturbed her the most.

Deciding to change the topic, she asked, “Have you thought about what kind of cultivation method you want to learn?”

“I was thinking about learning something that enhances my physical abilities to the limit,” Hou Jingshu admitted. “I don’t want to end up like those muscleheads I’ve seen in the army, but I really do think something that would let me fight people up close and personal is more my style.”

Wu Meiying nodded. “I don’t think we have many cultivation methods, but I do know the Wu Clan has some that focus on strengthening the body. That said, you’re probably not going to find any that are better than what you can find at the Imperial Palace.”

Just then, a vision appeared before Wu Meiying. She blinked rapidly as images flashed past her mind. She saw Hou Jingshu, older, more mature, and wielding a spear as she practiced a unique cultivation method that she had discovered inside of an ancient temple. Her clothing was torn. Blood leaked from cuts on her arms, legs, and chest. Yet her fierce expression gave her the appearance of a warrior queen.

“Ying… Meiying… Wu Meiying?”

“Huh?” Wu Meiying blinked several times as she came back to herself.

“I was asking if you think I should contact Father and see if he can send me a suitable cultivation method,” Hou Jingshu said with a weird look.

Shaking her head, Wu Meiying smiled. “I don’t think you will need to worry about that. I’m sure a suitable cultivation method will appear before you in due time. You still have four years before you need one anyway. Just be patient for now and wait.”

“What do you… ah!” Hou Jingshu glanced around for a moment, then leaned toward Wu Meiying and whispered in her ear. “Did you see something just now?”

“I did,” Wu Meiying whispered back. “Don’t worry about the future. You’ll get a suitable cultivation method when you need it.”

“Well, if you’re the one telling me this, I guess I have no choice but to believe it. Haaah. I really am envious of your ability to predict the future.”

That’s only because you don’t know how much trouble it brings me. If you knew how it kept me up at night, how it haunted me, you would not think this way.

Being able to predict the future might seem like a blessing to some, but it was a curse for her. There were many times she wished she didn’t have this power. Being able to see the future did not mean she could change the future. That sometimes left her feeling powerless, like when she saw a vision of one of their clanswomen having a miscarriage. She had known it would happen and kept silent because she knew nothing she said would change anything.

It had hurt. She remembered crying into a confused Wu Jian’s chest when it happened. And that was only one incident. There were many similar incidents where she had been powerless to change their outcome despite knowing what would happen.

However, like everything else about her, the ability of foresight was a part of who she was. She could no more deny that part of herself than she could one of her arms or legs.

“It’s getting hot out. Do you want to get something cool to drink from the dining hall?” asked Wu Meiying.

“Yeah. Now that you mention it, I’m beginning to sweat a lot.” Hou Jingshu pulled at her dress as though to unstick it from her body. She grimaced. “Training in this heat is going to be so tough.”

Wu Meiying didn’t say anything. She just giggled quietly as she stood up and walked with Hou Jingshu to the dining hall.

***

Wu Jian sat with his feet tucked underneath his bottom under the watchful eyes of Wu Taohua and Father as he practiced his penmanship. He dabbed his bamboo brush into some ink, then used careful and precise strokes to draw out letters, staying mindful of any smudges or uneven lines that might appear. It was harder than it looked to maintain a perfectly straight line.

“A clan head must have perfect penmanship. We are often required to send out missives and letters to businessmen and other clans. If your calligraphy is shoddy, it will reflect poorly on yourself and the clan,” Father was saying, arms crossed as he stood over Wu Jian. “Of course, calligraphy has always been more than simply a tool for communication. It incorporates elements of artistry and has even been used as a tool for cultivation. It is perfectly possible for a strong cultivator to infuse their intent and understanding of a concept through their brush strokes. This is how cultivation methods and techniques are passed down. The more precise your calligraphy work is, the easier it is for you to infuse your intent onto the scroll. Do you understand, Jian?”

“I understand, Father,” Wu Jian said with a nod as he continued to diligently practice his brush strokes.

Technique scrolls and cultivation methods were created by infusing one’s knowledge into the scroll. Say Wu Jian wanted to create a scroll that taught a technique to create energy palms that could flatten his opponents. He would need to create the brush strokes while channeling his chi into the brush and ink. A cultivator with enough talent could then learn the technique by studying it.

Of course, there were many factors that went into the creation of a technique or cultivation method, not the least of which was having the ability to use chi. From Wu Jian’s understanding, a vast amount of chi was required. Only someone who was at least at the Asura Realm would be able to create techniques.

That said, none of that would matter if someone had poor penmanship.

Wu Jian continued to work on his brush strokes for another half an hour, then Father lectured him on what his duties would be as a clan head. A lot went into being the head of a clan. Every decision he made must benefit the clan in some way. He made decisions on trade policy, who they would and wouldn’t work with, what businesses they would focus on, patrols on the lookout for magical beasts, and so on. He was honestly amazed his father still had time to cultivate considering everything he had to do.

“I believe that is enough lectures for today. You are free to go,” his father said at last.

Wu Jian was all too happy to leave. However, he did not reveal that and instead simply stood up, bowed to his father, then Wu Taohua, before exiting Father’s domicile.

He journeyed back to his building, where he found two familiar figures sitting on the porch with three glasses of chilled tea and some black sesame rice balls.

“Has Uncle finally let you go for the day?” asked Wu Meiying.

“We have rice balls and chilled oolong tea if you’d like some,” added Hou Jingshu.

“I’d love some,” Wu Jian said with a smile as he sat down between the two. He spent the rest of the day with his two favorite people.

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