“My lady, he is dead.”

“Good riddance, I can finally take some breath! And Yu’er, you told me he was also there?”

“We were late, my lady. He had already taken his own life. Master’s apologies to Matriarch. He hadn’t thought him capable of such grave passion. He also apologizes for not informing my lady of his existing presence in our midst – it was a promise which he had already given to Master Wei Houyu, he said and told me to relay this knowledge in kind consideration to your present loss. Condolences.”

“Oh, I see. Tell him to not grieve his heart on my part, Hong Tao, as he, my son had done nothing that his mother can’t be proud of. Nothing unexpected as well, if he had ventured through all these events in the past years of harrowing investigations, and tracking’s and what-not sort of assassinations – all of which he did with his honor intact, and on his own, as you appear to tell me, Hong Tao, grieve not for his proud mother. Who would have thought a mother and son would unite in such a fated manner, and all in good misapprehension of one another, for blood of their liege.” 

In the mottled silence, with wind billowing somewhere above the roof, sat Matriarch Wei in all of her imperious deportment. She looked very much like a tragic mother who had settled the debt of her son’s blood as she had done with all her daughters, or made a pact with the world to not grieve her loss any more, as there was no tear in her proud face.

In the quaint chamber filled with the remnant of acacia scents and some dusty fragrance that emanates from old places, old people and old thoughts – all giving this place a shadowy look, with the wind raging aboveboard on the roofs and flames of torches and hundreds of night candles on their holders and candlesticks, candelabras shaking feverishly in their places as if trying to hold to their last. Along with that all these small details spoke of how much less the old lady’s inner chambers had not suffered in the grappling kind of storm that was raging outside.    

“Go, tell Master An Lin to make his way back as soon as possible. There presence in these premises any longer is fraught with possible discovery, and my aching body cannot allow them any more ways out of this house than which of I already had given a clear outline of; not to forget the elder’s council must have been alarmed by this point and must have taken their precautions. Leave, as soon as possible, bless you that your journey might be in good fortune. I will take the rest of the family out of here soon, through the opposite route that you all are to take. Jiang mama, please bring me my cloak. It doesn’t seem like the roof can take the wind for a while longer. Order through the servants to gather in the middle courtyard. The fire must have alerted everybody for now and we don’t want to see them running around like headless chicken any longer, do we? Amitabh! What a day to see in Weijia, my dear husband mustn’t have even dreamt it in his nightmare all that has come on him.”

Raising herself from the seat, taking a look of her surrounding which told of old memories and the next carnage that might follow – she looked at things strewn in piles, overturned, trodden by unknown feet, there might even be some smudges of dirt. Rain water was trickling down little by little in some corner seeping to the parlor's wooden ground. There were already signs of being confronted with the nature’s fury.

Matriarch Wei tucked her cloak carefully in the sudden gust of billowing wind, that ran a shiver in her worn bones. Mama jiang hurriedly tucked a hand-held brazier in her lady’s hands to keep some warmth inside. There was not a single hair out of place in her lady’s appearance, appearing to be in stark contrast with her parlour.

“There might be no time later. Gather the children in front of the main hall. It might burn still, but it is a place they can easily spot. From there we can make our way out. Are the two young masters in good health?”

“Mistress, they are being taken in the chamber of the second mistress Zhang. She looks at both of them along with miss Wei Lina. Though no outside help has reached at this moment, people have already been sent out through the passage to look for a place to take care of them later, while arranging for a physician. We can begin our departure, as soon as possible. The fire will soon ignite throughout the weijia, it is no longer safe to parry.”

“Do as you think right. Be safe.”

* 

Wei Ziya was staring at the lines running down in her palm. In the well-lit chamber, well protected from the outside chaos, she laid on her back looking through the fate-lines. Each of those deep lines faced her scorning face, as she raised her hands high above to glimpse them a bit deeper. She wasn’t ready yet. She wasn’t ready for the world to change so much than her own thoughts – to lose the last bit of her control.

Unfortunately, the world didn’t seem to revolve on her wishes. A sigh, rang deep in around the bed post, shaded from view with beads and flimsy muslin curtains that blew in the wind that came from somewhere, outside, where she didn’t care or wanted to know of. Her eyes looked drunk, a languid ease that her self could never allow to appear on normal times. 

But the night in question was such an uncertain night when it happened when she was very much not drunk. She gripped her long flowing hair and smiled and laughed and then ceased to look for her control in her palms - as they were absent like the past life.

She didn’t know what to do to make it all better. She should have died in that stinking pig stay. She should have died with her soul scattering to millionth of pieces to never be held back again. Even the underworld messengers will not be able to put it all back – such was her wish; she didn’t want to exist. Never had, never will. 

But look. A giggle spilled through her rose like tender lips curling into a heartfelt mirth in the depth of her misery. Without noticing when, her hand had increased their grip over her long hair and started to pull, resulting in sudden pain that awakened her giddy ponderings. She didn’t want this. She didn’t want to be unable to stop this carnage. What had she done in the past weeks since she was born again?

Meddled in useless businesses she had no idea where its roots were. And now laid on this bed, so morose in her self-deprecating mood, so indulging in her merciless fancies that she had no other love to hold in her heart. Should she die once more to atone for her helplessness and powerlessness? At least, that one who drove her back to this corner and gave her another life, won’t achieve the things her life might give. 

The big doe like eyes, filled with water and reddened in distress turned languidly as if looking at each trace of anything happening upon the roof. There were traces, there were. There was the water trickling down, the rooftile tingling in the surging wind, the fire in the brazier laying snuffed out and many candle flames in their holders shaking frantically. Yes, there was a storm. Which shouldn’t have come at this time. Which did because she had been reborn, she was certain of this fact.

How good would it have been if she hadn’t been born in this world? Spared her dead mother the pain of dying so miserable, in fear of being mocked by the world. Spared her father the shame of being a spot on his already well-settled life, a danger over his familial bliss. She shouldn’t have breathed.

There was another of those giddy laughter’s echoing in the morose night. As if the night blanketed outside stole a way inside the chamber, was mingling with her shadows cast on walls and silhouettes of that miserable creature groping for light mottled further and further. 

Wei Ziya didn’t shed a single tear. She raised her body looked at the roof and pondered gravely whether there was a chance – in between her maid out looking for news, and her being left on her for the moment – was there perhaps, a moment more to steal away and end this miserable story.

She had that courage when it came on about this. Unlike the world from which she wanted to seek a way out for all those people whom she loved, and couldn’t seem to ever get that bit of alms, she was very strong when it came to her own self. At least in her last life no one had complained on her being a coward in the face of all those tragedies. Hadn't she beaten them with falling to her death in front of their faces? 

Another bout of laughter emerged.

She stood up on her bare feet and looked through the curtain, touching its softness, caressing the cold wood, caressing her falling and sprawling hair; she seemed to be searching for something at the same time she didn’t know what she sought.

Her figure wandered in the inner chamber adorned with love and care she wouldn’t have gotten if she weren’t the eldest child of this family – the daughter of Master Wei Houyu, but she wasn’t. She in fact, had always been the stain on her dead mother – she knew, however much her grandmother kept it tucked in the darkest corners of heart – she knew, she had been made aware of her lineage as she crawled on her feet eating pig feed and awaiting her moment of death like a beast insensible of all human sensibilities just groping for something, something incomprehensible, very much like the search at this moment.

She had fallen so far from the highest position at that moment that this reality had been but a slight notice of her deserving the worlds harm – for being such a bastard, an unwelcome illegitimate child! 

Wei Ziya looked slightly disconcerted as she tried to recall her state of mind in those dark days. She was overthrown from her role as the queen mother of this wide spreading land in favor of his highness’s childhood sweetheart – who had always been so cherished that the world would wonder why she, Wei Ziya had even entered in those imperious walls of palace at first– perhaps to take a fall headfirst, and then tumble down, keep tumbling down till she was no more than an animal. 

In those dark prisons and amongst those animals what kind of sin had she not suffered. But that was so far removed from the now of her. She had wanted so much to steal her grandmother a nice grave and keep her honor intact as the lady Matriarch, not some mother of treasonous courtier!

Tonight, happened to be that chance night when the Wei family had fallen so badly, and she tucked in a garden since her birth, innocent of the worldly ways, didn’t know when she begged the prince for his support, for his help that she might have been pretty much even selling the last source of coming out from all this evil plots intact as a human. 

Wei Ziya really wanted to dance.

His highness loved to see his women adept in the four arts, from decent blood, from long standing families – by the end of her life when she was sent to that so called ‘cold palace’ after banishment, she had none left to her name. But she had learned to make herself less unbearable in arms of those heinous men, and she had learned, learned and learned. How to be seductive enough to be spared the pain. How to be mellow enough, innocent enough to steal their heart and give herself a way out in cold, prisoned halls where food and water had to be earned through a nights exchange. She had really turned herself in a prostitute.

Who would have thought, that wasn’t even the end of her fall from humanity – at that moment she hadn’t thought there might be anything worse than that, falling in the hands of some rogues. How wrong. How innocent she had been of human misery and conscienceless depravity. There was no worse, but the worst. She was to be an animal in soul and body. Left with pigs, eating their food, being of amusement to palace-ladies and to Lady Ou who chanced upon to not like her face. 

Wei Ziya twirled in an absent tune, waving her graceful hands to an unknown rhythm, still entrenched in her reverie.

She had been so torn between betrayals, then more betrayals that she had lost the time to account any possible good things she could do to save it all. She thought deeply, pondered it with precise emotions, looking at each angle and each position; yet, she found not a single point, save her beauty, that would allow her to face the heaven like high enemies and their strangling chokehold, and beauty was nothing to anyone of their caliber.  

How could she allow the prince to back-down and not imprison her grandfather? How could she salvage the stain that her father had caused, must have already done this night – by raising arms against the elder council and his own family? What could she do to save her dying brothers? What could she do to save the whole family from being banished on some trumped-up charges? She knew nothing of this matter. Knew nothing of why her father was so adamant on killing his grandfather that he joined hands with bandits and even attacked the Holy order's envoy in the elders-council.

Or her maternal grandmother, her lovely granny from taking up arms and revolting against his highness the second prince, after listening to the fate of her son and grandsons? All of this was already happening, some have already taken place in a set motion following a general trend. Her knowing about it all changed nothing – yes, a weakling like her was better dead than alive. But could she leave it all? What if there was something, something that actually could be changed through her hands, she always clung to this faint hope. 

The twirling figure stopped as the languid back straightened a little and the swan like neck emerged as long hair were taken to front laying upon the maiden’s bosom. 

Wei Ziya recalled. She thought painfully, concentrating on all the past events. There was something! Yes, how could she have forgotten the fire in the main hall that alerted the whole town and the next burning and killing that happened when his father failed to assassinate grandfather.

Yes, there was something. Her figure tumbled over a wooden stool, as she hurried past making her lose her balance and fall on her face. It hurt a lot, as she broke her nose which started bleeding. But she didn’t stop from where she was going. Her steps were carrying her life’s spirit – betting on this last chance to emerge from the future hell. She would die but won’t fall to those devils – this life – this life was another chance – 

*  

There was a sound of swords clashing and people yelling. The storm hadn’t abated a bit but another force had penetrated the thick walls of Weijia successfully. There was now an ongoing battle between two forces besides the northern gate of Weijia. One was adamant on escape, while the other was biding its time against the clock to deal them a blow and wait for more reinforcement.

“An Lin! There is no time. Leave some people behind and go! you have to go first we all will follow soon as we have dealt with them.” Lady Chunhua held a dagger in her hands as she ducked under the arms of the perpetrator who was aiming at her chest with his knife and spinning upon him, gave a fatal blow on his head from behind his head.

She took a look huffing, at the masked leader struggling with three men, all on his own as they tried to drag him under their bodies or hurt him fatally through their weapons taking turn. They must be aiming at wearing him down. “Hurry! Leave, your presence will only incriminate many others here!”   

After shouting this much Chunhua launched herself on other black figure and pinned him down taking him by surprise and cut off his throat. 

There were many such dead, groaning men lying about. The skirmishes had been going on for about half an hour and at any moment the reinforcement could come. That would be really the death sentence for all of them. Chunhua threw her dagger at the man who was going to surprise attack the weak spot of fighting An Lin, giving An Lin a chance to knock out his opponent from his front and the one lunging at him from left. He was swift in his actions cutting the throats of the enemy with his silver dagger. 

“You look after them I will go forward and see whether I can clear the way ahead! Take care.”

“Be fast!”

Suddenly there was a surge of alarm amongst the fighting men as fire started burning on the north gate, raging much worse than the main hall. Soon there were many retreating figures. Chunhua looked at the burning gate and the inconspicuous safe corner, quite safe from notice, a shed that was usually used for storing winter fodders, coals and wood.

She signaled at her men to proceed discretely a little back and then steal their way into that shed, because it was there where their leader had just gone on to clear their path. 

It was their luck that fire started so suddenly taking the men by surprise. The fire seems to start from the northern watch tower. With the surrounding of back-gate burning so badly, the forces will shift their attention and approach the main entrance to open it for the army to enter. Till then the small number of them will be able to clear away without arousing any more distasteful confrontation.

With this thought the figure of lady Chunhua could be seen ducking down near the buildings adjacent to the shed, waiting for a while and then signaling the men who were still engaged in arms to retreat and find hiding spots. It may appear as if they had decided to hide in the Wei house, wanting to approach another route. By the time, that shed entrance was discovered they will be so far away that, those white haired bastard's wouldn’t be able to reach them even in their dreams! Thinking of this Chunhua didn’t wait for long, she took out a silver whistle from the folds of cloth of her bosom. 

 A whistle blew and black masked men hurriedly retreated into nearby buildings. Their attackers pursued yet, soon couldn’t find any traces of them as if they had melted away in the night. 

“Don’t search! They are still here. Move to the main entrance and open it for the reinforcement. His highness only ordered to open the Wei house for further attack. They will be captured sooner or later, fucking rats! Hurry, hurry, Move!”