The Prince of Travelers

The Prince's Right Hand

“You swore allegiance to the Eighth Prince?” Yun Jili frowned upon hearing the story of her best friend. That's pretty shocking news in between their breaks. The Silver Fox Scholar added his question after Wang Hongli nodded, “Are you not too hasty? The Eighth Prince is still a child. There is a possibility we will be replaced someday.”

“I have reported my oath to the emperor. He also agreed. So, I will not be replaced until my soul flies into the sky,” Wang Hongli replied with his leisure. Yun Jili laughed when she heard it. His laughter sounded mocking.

“You're serious? I don't understand the world of warriors at all. Is it that easy for you to give up your life to someone else?” Yun Jili solemnly asked. His typical thin smile was on his face, looking a little leftover laughter there.

“Ngak dong. I'm an idealist, not a Cuanist. It is not that easy to swear loyalty. Well, just did not expect to be able to meet a suitable person this fast,” Wang Hongli got up from his seat and walked out of the saung. He also picked up a twig. With the twig, he wrote the character hanzi which means ‘fidelity’.

“In general, the warriors do not swear allegiance. They each have their own ideas. There are those who join a justice union, become mercenaries, or pursue a career in the military,” explained Wang Hongli, “There are also criminals, thieves, and leaders of other dangerous groups. They are ruthless people who pollute the martial world.”

Wang Hongli made a concept map on the ground. He drew a hanzi, then circled it. There are several circles that each explain the idealism of different warriors. He drew it neatly after it was his long-trained hobby.

Yun Jili sat silently watching the Twins Swordsman's revenge from the saung. His arm pegged the fence while holding his chin. Occasionally his brows frowned when he heard Wang Hongli's words.

“They are cuanis,” Wang Hongli pointed to the chart of the mercenaries, escort bureaus, and others of the like. He also diverted his branch to the left side, charting the thieves, murderers, and other sickly, “They are trash that must be cleaned.”

“Hah? What kind of classification is that? There are no teachings like this in the Sky Sword College,” Yun Jili criticized. He firmly believed that the concept map was just the fruit of Wang Hongli's mind that was made carelessly. As far as he knew, the world of warriors was not like that.

“Of course not. We learned the steps and the practice. This is the result of my own observations so far,” Wang Hongli's words confirmed the alleged Silver Fox Master by accident, “This is the reality. If you read the legends, then you will find the names of magical moves and changes of type or what it is. The moves that he said make the user can spout fire, destroy continents, cut oceans, or even split the sky.”

“I know that, but .. isn't that fun to read? The imagination of the authors is amazing,” Yun Jili spread her fan, a thin smile remains on her face as usual. Praise to them is as sincere as the ocean.

“Yah .. I do not know. I am not a connoisseur of such legends,” Wang Hongli shrugged.

“Oh .. are you a fan of western fiction and knight stories? Is that why you're following the knight's oath? I admit, the fairy tale of the people of the western continent is indeed quite interesting,” guess Yun Jili who was reciprocated firmly by Wang Hongli.

“It had nothing to do with it at all,” refuted Wang Hongli, “I just ... feel a little similar to the Eighth Prince.”

“Hah? Similar what? You are clearly very different from a genius child like a prince,” joked Yun Jili with a body that is ready to retreat in case the Swordsman Cenangkas Twins is about to catch him. It showed a hint of his childish nature hidden behind the scholar's faint smile. Unfortunately, Wang Hongli did not respond to the joke.

“We are similar,” Wang Hongli said as he stared at his big hands wistfully, “I was born in a big family. There was a lot of turmoil going on there during the succession and generational transition. My mother was a victim in that turmoil. Hence, I was determined to become stronger and avenge myself. I entered one of the great colleges, trained there for many years, and became strong in my favor, even to the point of being famous throughout the empire. All of that was solely to avenge me.”

Wang Hongli was silent for quite a while. The dashing youth was as if he was thinking about many things at once holding back tears. He looked at his hand with a piteousness. After a moment of silence, he continued, “I once left with my senior. We are both vengeful. He is a child who was driven from his village because of the greed of an elder.”

“I joined his journey, observing his demdam retaliation from a distance that is neither near nor far. Win becomes charcoal, lose becomes ash. He managed to complete his revenge, but he became empty of heart to the craze of regret after that.”

Wang Hongli's story came to a standstill. There was a bitter smile on his lips. The memories he told me were as if they happened back in his eyes. He continued, “Hend him to one man, but he slaughtered his entire village. When he came back to see me, he had already lost his mind. He didn't want to go on living and asked me to kill him.”

“You really killed him?” yun Jili asked curiously because again Wang Hongli stopped in the middle of the story. The Swordsman Cenangkas Kembar also looked over. His bitter smile became clearer, “Yes, I was forced to kill him in order to defend myself. He attacked me so suddenly that I had no other choice. When my sword pierced his heart, I saw only regret on his face. He cried blood in front of me, so it will be efficacious that I do not follow in his footsteps.”

“Wah .. what an interesting fairy tale,” Yun Jili responded to the long story with a thin smile of disbelief, then gave advice with a joke, “Friends, your imagination is very high like the authors. Try writing a legend. I'm sure your story will be remembered all the time.”

“Ck, whether you want to believe it or not,” Wang Hongli resigned, “For me, the experience is a stern warning from God that I bury deeply in my vengeful intentions. That grudge only leads to loss and destruction.”

“Then, how do you look like the Eighth Prince? Obviously once you guys are much different,” Yun Jili returns to the original topic.

The smile on Wang Hongli's face turned friendly. There's a ray of hope there. He also answered the question of his best friend, “The mother of the Eighth Prince is like my mother. He was swallowed by the intrigue of the palace bastards. I want to guide and make sure the Eighth Prince does not hold grudges over the tragedy. Therefore, I swear allegiance to him.”

“Hm, your intentions are glorious. I'm waiting for your next story,” the thin smile on Yun Jili's face so it looks annoying. However, it did not make Wang Hongli lose his patience.

“The Eighth Prince does not want to be emperor, but Emperor Yung Wei hopes he will be emperor. At least, that's what I've observed so far. May the Eighth Role not be dark hearted in the future,” said Wang Hongli who was met with laughter innuendo by Yun Jili

“Truly interesting,” Yun Jili said after finishing her laugh, “Destiny of the Emperor of a Wasted Prince. It will be a suitable title for your legend later. Unfortunately, the main character prince rejected the fate of the emperor. He wanted to escape the clutches of the palace as soon as possible. The boy was afraid of having to bleed his brothers. So, he desperately went away from that damned mahligai. Such is the figure of our little prince, the Eighth Prince. Hows it? Isn't my scenario much better?”

“Yeah, yeah. The Silver Fox Master was indeed an expert in making legends. Don't mix me up in your wild imagination,” Wang Hongli resigned himself and threw away the twigs. He also looked at the clear sky. Seen the sun has been leaning to the horizon sinking. Swordsman Cenangkas Kembar also took his best friend away, “Ayo, our rest time is almost over. Prince must have finished his class today.”

...***...

“Prince, do you understand my explanation?” ask the old monk named Lao Bao. His face was filled with wrinkles. His hair and eyebrows had completely bleached. He came in a simple and distinctive all-white robe for a hermit figure like himself.

“Yes, Teacher. Help each other, be honest, and be compassionate,” Li An replied in a lazy tone. He understood this basic concept of virtue without being taught. Therefore, his eyes became increasingly narrow as Lao Bao taught. He preferred exciting things like the trade Yun Jili taught him.

“Prince, greed is the most foolish fallacy,” counsel Lao Bao after hearing the outpouring of the Eighth Prince's heart. Li An also replied without any spirit at all, “Iya, Teacher is right.”

Inwardly, Li An grumbled. He likes trading does not mean he is greedy. If in this empire only lives Sufis who no longer care about worldly things, then this empire will be weak and backward, both in the economic and political sectors. It was a major disaster to be avoided. Li An was very upset thinking about it, but he could do nothing. Well, after all the monk was teaching instead to stifle the economic growth of the empire.

“We're done?” asked Li An limp. He held his hands and breathed every few minutes. At times his eyes stared outside, waiting for Yun Jili to come pick him up. He could not stand sitting in this class.

The boredom of that little prank is not incomprehensible to Lao Bao. He felt natural and remained patient just teaching the Eighth Prince. The other sons of the emperor were even more severe than him. When compared to them, Li An was nothing.

“Hah .. alright, Prince. You can rest now,” Lao Bao also stopped his private class when Li An really started sleeping. He immediately left and left the Aixin Pavilion. On his way out of Consort Ai's residence, the old monk was determined that he would make the Eighth Prince interested in his lessons.

“You are free now,” Li Huanran appeared from behind the door of Li An's private room. He walked in with a gentle smile as usual. Seen by the little prince lying languidly on the floor. He approached her to comfort the little prince.

“This is all because of Brother!” Li An blamed it as soon as it sat in its place. Li Huanran who was already sitting next to his sister tilted his face. His face was as if wondering, “Indeed, what's my fault?”

“Already, you just need to be patient and accept as is with gratitude,” Li Huanran pulled Li An into his lap. He stroked the boy's head gently to make him feel better. A beautiful poem was slanted softly from her lips.

Li An only snorted after that. His eyes slowly closed. He was swept away in Li Huanran's affection. Little by little, his life evaporated. He fell asleep in the lap of his brother after tired of studying in deep boredom.

“What? Scholar Yun has arrived?” Li Huanran confirmed the news that Mimi reported. After the head of the lady-in-waiting nodded, she said, “Please tell Master. This afternoon, the Eighth Prince was extremely exhausted. He's taking a nap right now.”

“Good, Princess,” Mimi salute. As he was about to exit, Li Huanran gave him one more message, “Deliver my apology to him. Next time, An’er will change its class this afternoon.”

Yun Jili did not bother about that. The scholar nicknamed the Silver Fox could understand the still-little Eighth Prince. He returned with Wang Hongli to relax for a while. There will be a lot of work from Emperor Yung Wei waiting for him this afternoon.

“Silver Fox, how do you plan to become a prince teacher later?” w.a.n.g Hongli asked, shaking off the silence that covered their trip to the city. Yun Jili did not immediately reply. He thought for a moment with his narrow eyes that looked almost closed.

“Entahlah? I'm not a person who likes to be tied up like you. Depending on how the prince moves later,” Yun Jili replied without turning her head, “I want to get married and have a happy family. If I keep following the prince for life, I might be single forever.”

“Pft! Married!?” Wang Hongli could not help but laugh because he always remembered the tragic story of Yun Jili's romance in the past when his friend discussed marriage, “I told you, girls are afraid of ghost men like you. They always run away whenever they see your long white hair.”

“You!” Yun Jili clocked the head of her short friend, “As you know, I have found the edge of my heart.”

“Wah, there's a new one. Poor girl where is it?” tempt Wang Hongli while avoiding the second rank of the Silver Fox Scholar. Yun Jili replied, “A charming girl from Aixin.” Pavilion

“What!? Don't expect you to be able to ask for the emperor's daughter,” whispered Wang Hongli warning. They have arrived in the crowd. It would be bad if the warrior suddenly shouted.

Buk up!

Again Wang Hongli's head was picked by his best friend. Yun Jili also explained with an annoyed face, “Not the Third Princess, but the girl who always gave it to her. Ah, what's his name?”

“Mimi, the lady-in-waiting head of the Third Princess,” Wang Hongli explained as he rubbed his head. The part that was hit twice was already broken now. Although he is a reliable swordsman, it does not mean he can avoid all sudden attacks.

“Oh, her name is Mimi. What a beautiful name,” Yun Jili smiled happily, “Huh, your statement is wrong. She never feared or avoided me. She always smiles kindly at me.”

“Well, to me too,” Wang Hongli understands that Mimi's friendly attitude is just a formality. So, there was nothing special about getting a smile from her. Yun Jili looked at her best friend. His eyes stared as if faced with a heavy rival.

“You're after him too? No, I will not lose to you,” said Yun Jili confidently, “I will propose to her in the near future.”

“You better not be bragging or I'll really get ahead of you,” Wang Hongli joked as he heated up, “We see, how did Miss Mimi react when she received a proposal from a ghost like you?”