The Untamed Princess

Chapter Seven: The Senseless Death

As the sea of fighting men parted, Zhao Weisheng saw a figure in a light-coloured dress lying on the ground.  Three arrows were in her back.  She wasn't moving.

"Ming Yue!" he shouted, rushing forward without any care for the carnage around him.  "Ming Yue!"

The sound of the fighting was deafening, but to him there was only silence.  Until one voice broke through.

"Zhao Weisheng!"

He looked to the right of the fallen woman and saw her.  She was kneeling on the ground, with a sword by her side, a look of despair on her beautiful face.  He was so relieved to see her alive that it didn't even register to him in that moment that she had called out to him by name.

"Ming Yue!"  He ran towards her, almost slipping on the soil that was now slick with blood. Finally reaching her side, he knelt down and swept her into his arms.

"Are you hurt anywhere?  Let me see."

He ran his hands over her shoulders, her arms, and finally took her face in between his palms.  By this time, Luo Jian and the royal guards were finishing off what remained of their attackers, and the area around the two of them was clear.  Ming Yue looked up at him.

"I'm fine.  But Bai Mi...is she?"  He looked across at the unmoving figure a few feet from where they were kneeling.  She was clearly dead.

"She's gone, Ming Yue. I'm so sorry."

A single tear formed, and rolled down the woman's cheek, breaking Weisheng's heart.  He brushed it away with his thumb, and held her to his chest, not caring who saw them, and many more tears started to fall.

The princess had seen death before, had even taken lives herself, but that was in combat, where everyone on both sides knew the risks they were taking.  Bai Mi was her friend, and had just been an innocent, terrified woman.  She had not deserved to meet such a violent end, and, despite her best efforts, Ming Yue had been powerless to prevent it.

She cried silently until the pain from her injuries combined with exhaustion overtook her, and she slipped into a deep sleep.

They stayed like this for some time, until Zhao Weisheng heard someone clearing their throat above him.  He glanced up to see Luo Jian looking down at him, somewhat embarrassed.

Finally realising that he was holding Ming Yue tightly in full view of his men, he rose swiftly. Lifting her up as if she weighed no more than a feather, he started walking back towards the carriage.

"Are there any other casualties?" he asked.

"Two guards as well as the maidservant."

Weisheng sighed.

"Find out their names and where they were from.  Put them inside the carriage for now.  Eunuch Wang can ride up front with the driver.  I will keep Ming Yue with me.  When we reach the town, I will send some men back to the capital with their bodies.  Make sure their families are compensated and told that they died bravely."

He glanced around.

"Also, have our men sweep the woods.  Make sure there aren't any other hidden surprises waiting for us."

Luo Jian nodded and went about his solemn task, while Weisheng approached his horse.  He placed Ming Yue gently on top of it and swung into the saddle behind her.  He gripped her firmly around the waist, and slowly pulled her back to rest against his chest, with her head on his shoulder.

A few minutes later, Luo Jian took his usual place alongside Weisheng.

"Your Highness. About the bandits..."  The prince stopped him mid-sentence.