Lei Wanxi came to the chamber of Nianzu with a heavy heart. The things were placed as usual in their respective places. Nothing was cleaned. The Brush, inkrone and sheets had been put on the table. It seemed that Nianzu would enter and sit around the desk to do his work. Lei Wanxi started to cry seeing all that.
"Why did you leave without even meeting me, Brother?" Lei Wanxi lowered his head and sobbed. "Can't you even wait for me?" He complained while crying.
Eunuch Chung came to him. "Your highness, the Prince did not inform anyone… not even me," Eunuch Chung cried as he stood by the Sixth Prince.
Lei Wanxi turned and walked out of the chamber. Unlike the other days, today his walk was lethargic.. He used to smile every day but today he was not. There were two reasons: First, Hu Jingguo's loss and second, Brother Nianzu left the Palace.
He looked at the fan in his hand and again broke into tears. "Brother gifted me this," he mumbled and went towards the practice ground. "If I learn archery then he might return. Brother once told me that if I excel in this then he would fulfill my wish," Lei Wanxi wiped the tears off his eyes and descended the stairs.
He looked for a bow when the soldier came to him. "Is the Prince searching for something?"
"I need a bow and a few arrows," Lei Wanxi demanded. The soldier for a second looked at him in amusement.
"What are you looking at? Do you also think that I am incapable of doing this?" Lei Wanxi was in a bad mood. This was the first time he talked this way with a person in the Palace.
"Forgive me, your highness. It is rare to see you…" he paused as he found the narrow gaze of the Sixth Prince at him. "I am bringing a set for his highness." The soldier swiftly went down the platform and after a few minutes, brought a bow and arrows for the Sixth Prince. He placed them on a table behind Lei Wanxi.
Lei Wanxi picked up the arrow and put it on the bow string. He pulled the string and released the arrow. The string broke while the arrow fell down. "Why?" He mumbled. "Did you give me a broken bow?" Lei Wanxi's mood ruined more.
"I do not dare to," the soldier replied. "I will bring the other," the soldier stated and quickly brought another bow for the Sixth Prince.
Lei Wanxi's eyes were filled with tears. His hands were trembling as he again put the arrow on the string. He released it and the arrow fell a meter away from his feet.
He kept doing that and none of the arrows could not go travel more than a meter away. It discouraged him more. "I am not made for this," Lei Wanxi mumbled and almost threw the bow when Zhu Lin grasped his hand.
"You shall not disrespect the bow this way," Zhu Lin pronounced. She had put on a maroon Hanfu dress.
Lei Wanxi frowned and pulled his hand back. "Do you always keep an eye on me? Why are you always around?" Lei Wanxi was irked by her presence.
"I was here earlier than you," stated Zhu Lin. "Emotional imbalance will not take you anywhere," she asserted.
"You cannot understand. Brother Nianzu left without a trace," Lei Wanxi proclaimed. "He told me if I learn it then… then he will fulfill my wish. I will ask Brother Nianzu to return back," he was on the verge of crying.
Zhu Lin chuckled. "You will not learn it in a day. The state you are in, clearly shows that even if you practice it for ten years, you will not excel in it," Zhu Lin affirmed.
"Do you have to be this harsh?" Lei Wanxi complained.
"I said the truth. Ask your Brother Sheng if you do not believe me," Zhu Lin stated and picked the arrow from the table. "Your Fourth Brother will not return. He wants to spend his life with his lover. The Palace will not allow him that kind of life, that's why he preferred to leave." She released the arrow that hit the target. She retreated back and peered at him.
"Did you converse with my Brother? Did you know that the Fourth Brother would leave?" Lei Wanxi waited for her answers.
"Do you know what your brother did?" Zhu Lin asked him.
"Brother Nianzu requested father to let him go from this Palace," Lei Wanxi stated. "And he compared father with that traitor," he added.
"Your Brother was aggressive in the Hall. He hurt me because he did not tell me that he had someone in his life. Your Brother told me that he would have to marry me even if he did not want to. Suddenly, he decided to leave and angered your father. However, the Emperor is kind enough to agree with him. Instead of punishing the woman of your Brother, the Emperor sent them away," Zhu Lin explained to Lei Wanxi.
"You mean that Brother Nianzu should not have stayed here," Lei Wanxi stated.
"Yes. It was for your Brother's good," Zhu Lin replied. "So, do not try to find him. It will bring problems only. Moreover, your Brother is not a Prince anymore and he is not allowed to enter Luoyang. Follow the Emperor's order because it is for everyone's good. Also, you wanted your brother not to marry me," Zhu Lin asserted.
Lei Wanxi was dejected to learn about that. "I only wanted to meet him for the last time. Brother did not even leave a message for me," Lei Wanxi said with a broken voice. Zhu Lin lifted her hand and wiped the tears off his cheek.
Lei Wanxi looked at her in bewilderment. "You shall be happy that your elder Brother is free from this Palace life," she put her hand down and patted his shoulder. "Do not force yourself to do something that you do not intend to do," Zhu Lin advised him and then walked past him.
Lei Wanxi touched his cheek and turned back. Zhu Lin had left the Practice Grounds. "Ahh, how could I cry before her? She will consider me a weak person," he mumbled.
