11/7/2025, 5:58 PM
the girl came towards him, and then yunxu recognized her bearing- it had an echo of shenlei's stance, the same he'd seen on royals before. a calm, careful poise and confidence. the stance of someone who had power, knew it, and expected to be obeyed.
shenlei hadn't mentioned family, had he? certainly yunxu would have remembered that.
the same way you remember the last month? said a little voice in his head.
he hastily quieted it and dipped into a low bow.
"my apologies, princess fen. i wasn't aware that- that the emperor had found others of the royal family." but something hopeful kindled in his chest. could that mean he might not be alone? what if his sister had washed up on that beach after him? what if he just hadn't waited long enough-
he swallowed. no, he could think about that later.
"i am jiang yunxu. i came upon the emperor some few days ago...he told me he was rebuilding tianlong, and offered me a place here." he smiled, faintly. "...i'm pleased to know he was able to find his children as well."
he straightened up, carefully picking his way onto solid ground.
"they...aren't the most talkative." a little laugh. "back where i'm from, some of the wiser men and women could use them to predict the weather, but i was never... too skilled in that area. i was better at catching them..."
then he remembered who he was speaking to, and his jaw clicked shut. this was far beyond what he had a script for, and he was no master of small talk even among others of similar status. was he being too casual? he had nothing to draw on here- whenever he had seen the imperial family in the past it had been from a distance. shenlei hadn't cared, but yunxu hadn't bristled at him.
maybe she wouldn't mind. he tried not to appear too anxious.
shenlei hadn't mentioned family, had he? certainly yunxu would have remembered that.
the same way you remember the last month? said a little voice in his head.
he hastily quieted it and dipped into a low bow.
"my apologies, princess fen. i wasn't aware that- that the emperor had found others of the royal family." but something hopeful kindled in his chest. could that mean he might not be alone? what if his sister had washed up on that beach after him? what if he just hadn't waited long enough-
he swallowed. no, he could think about that later.
"i am jiang yunxu. i came upon the emperor some few days ago...he told me he was rebuilding tianlong, and offered me a place here." he smiled, faintly. "...i'm pleased to know he was able to find his children as well."
he straightened up, carefully picking his way onto solid ground.
"they...aren't the most talkative." a little laugh. "back where i'm from, some of the wiser men and women could use them to predict the weather, but i was never... too skilled in that area. i was better at catching them..."
then he remembered who he was speaking to, and his jaw clicked shut. this was far beyond what he had a script for, and he was no master of small talk even among others of similar status. was he being too casual? he had nothing to draw on here- whenever he had seen the imperial family in the past it had been from a distance. shenlei hadn't cared, but yunxu hadn't bristled at him.
maybe she wouldn't mind. he tried not to appear too anxious.
english | mandarin