The Untamed Princess

Chapter Forty-Eight: The Looming Departure

The following day was perhaps the most frustrating since Ming Yue had entered the palace.  One of Luo Jian's most trusted guards had delivered a sealed message to the Li family so that they would not receive an almighty shock when a casket arrived at their home, and no doubt they would contact the two Jin soldiers disguised in the capital.  Arrangements for her departure in hand, the only thing left to do was for the young woman to wait in her small room until the final part of the plan was put in motion.

When she took a moment to think about it, Ming Yue was almost amazed at the cards that life had dealt her over the course of the last year culminating in this, most unusual situation.  Still, she supposed, given that she entered the Han palace without any thought as to how exactly she would depart, it was not as though the current situation was defying expectations.  It was hard to do so when there were no expectations in the first place.

Nevertheless, she was currently extremely bored.  This was not how she would have wanted to spend her last day in the Han palace.  Of course, she knew that she would be returning before long, all being well, but at that time she would be restricted by the weight of etiquette on her to act like a princess and future wife of a king ought to.  Thinking about it, it was ironic that she would most likely have less freedom in the palace using her true identity than she'd had while there as a spy.  Still, Weisheng's parents seemed fairly forward-thinking.  Fingers crossed she could win them over to her way of doing things, or at least behave herself enough so as to not shock them completely.

She sighed and used her teeth to pull a piece of candied hawthorn off the stick in her hand.  Luo Jian had delivered it earlier from Lin Yang, together with a message of encouragement and also some news.  It was a shame they would not have the chance to see each other again before she left, but it was simply too risky.

She read the letter again.  The Lin siblings had taken on a new assistant just over a week ago, and he appeared to be settling in well.  Lin Yang had taken pity on the man, who had newly arrived from the south, where he had been tragically caught up in the fighting between the king's army and the rebels, and had suffered terrible facial scars as a result.  Lin Yang had offered to treat him and give him room and board until he was back on his feet.  In return, he had insisted on offering his limited skills to help out around the clinic.  Ming Yue smiled.  It was just like her friend to take in a random stranger out of kindness.

Suddenly, there was a light tap on the door, and it opened slowly, revealing Xiao Yu's face as peered hesitantly inside.  Ming Yue smiled and beckoned him in, and he closed the door quickly behind him.

Of course, the physician and the Lin siblings had been told of the plan to smuggle the patient out of the palace, but they had not been told the real reason why.  All they knew was that Ming Yue's life would be in danger if she stayed, so it was safer for her to leave the palace until the mystery of the assassination attempt was solved.  Weisheng knew that it was not the most convincing of explanations, but luckily, his friends had chosen to trust him, and now Xiao Yu was here to play his final part in the show.

Never one for small talk, he got straight to the point.

"I've brought you a drug that will render you unconscious for four hours.  That should be long enough to get you out of the palace and back home.  It will also slow your heart rate and breathing, just in case someone checks the casket, but there should be no long-term side effects.  Luckily you're pale enough at the moment that you look half-dead anyway"

By now, Ming Yue was more than used to Xiao Yu's bluntness so, rather than answering back, she simply took the small bottle gratefully.

"Thank you, Doctor Xiao, for everything you have done.  Having been strangled, stabbed and poisoned," she took a deep breath after rattling off the impressive list, "I would have died many times over if you hadn't been there."