Empress (A Tickle Commission)

Hard Work

A lone rooster crowed, flaying its feathers, as the sun began peeking over the Xian hillscape. The village was its usual temperate calm. A cool breeze rushed through, scattering leaves down the interwoven pathways like clusters of visitors going about their day. Farmers toiled away to their gardens. Pigs and chickens woke and began their restless sauntering through their pens. Women carried large baskets of crops between stalks and stalls. Truthfully, Xian was quietly bustling in the way that only villages of its size and notoriety could balance. Rushing and calm like a flowing river.

In her own garden, Tian had her knees pressed into the shapely plowed soil, digging up cabbage heads. She threw the small bundles into a basket by her side. Tian wiped a layer of sweat from her head. Her hands were dark and stained from the dirt. An apron around her waist was covered with many days worth of grime and mud. Her skin glistened and burned in the morning sun. Small splotches of dirt had been, unbeknownst to her, scattered across her face. From around her house, Meiling walked out carrying several baskets of freshly gathered eggs.

"Hey, how mad would you be if I dropped a few?" Meiling asked. Tian continued to work without looking up.

"Depends on how many," Tian said. Meiling set down her load carefully.

"Just a few," said Meiling with a short pause, "... baskets." Tian smirked and looked back at her.

"I'd tell you to get to scrubbing the pigs clean," said Tian.

"Anything I can do to help," Meiling said, playfully. She walked over to a full basket of plucked cabbage heads and brought it to a nearby irrigated stream of water that cut through the yard. She took one head out and began to wash it off.

"Sounds like you've just got nothing better to do," said Tian. She looked over to Meiling sitting and washing quietly. The strong and playful loudmouth sat with a gentle smile on her face. Her hands toiled away at the work while her eyes seemed distant, her focus fluttering freely. Even through the dirt and sweat of the morning work, her smile was as radiant as the sunrise itself. Tian smiled at Meiling's inattentive expression. "Been a while since you've been by to help. I really appreciate it." Meiling said nothing, continuing to wash off the heads of cabbage as she tore strands of roots still hanging off of them. Tian gave her a moment to respond. "Mei?" Meiling blinked and turned around.

"Hm?" Meiling asked. "Oh, did you say something?" A wise smile stretched across Tian's lips. She looked away and chuckled. "What?"

"Just saying how much father and I appreciate you stopping by," Tian said. "It's a big help, especially with how hard everything's been on him."

"Of course," Meiling said. "It's hard on you too, you know? Don't undersell yourself. I want to make sure that you're not doing too much, even though we both know you will anyway."

"I'm fine," Tian said. She dropped the last ball of cabbage in a half-full basket. Tian brushed her hands off on her apron and walked over to where Meiling had sat the baskets of eggs. "It's been hard on us both, sure, but I know that I'll be fine. It's him that I'm worried about."

"He's a tough old stone, that one," Meiling said. Tian nodded.

"Just wish he would come home," said Tian. "I know how good he is and how much honor and pride he gets from serving the village and royal family..."

"But what matters most to him, what should matter most, is you," Meiling said.

"It's a nice thought," Tian said, almost defeatedly. "Really I just want him to be safe and happy."

"Sure, but you matter too. And if you miss him and want him home, tell him that. I'm sure he'll understand how much your time together means to you." Meiling cleaned off the bundles of cabbage one at a time, tossing them in another bamboo basket lined with a white cloth. Tian carried the eggs one basket at a time into her home as they conversed.