One Year

Gift (5)

"15 minutes?"  Yelona scoffed at the waitress.  "I am about to marry Crown Prince in five days and you want to insult me and make me wait 15 minutes?"

The waitress immediately knelt on her knees and kowtowed profusely.  She did not want to offend the Crown Princess Consort nor did she want to offend Prince Ryu and Princess Siri.  She was stuck between a rock and a hard place.  What should she do? 

"Let me talk to the owner and see what he says."  The waitress said as she stood up. 

"Did I give you leave to stand up?" Yelona said as she said coldly to the waitress. 

The waitress was already half way up when Yelona said this and went back down on her knees and kowtowed again.  Another waitress who saw everything went towards the guards who stood by the stairs and whispered to them the dilemma.  One of the two guards went upstairs to relay the message.  Suddenly the door to the best tearoom was opened by the owner, everyone watched as the inside was revealed and everyone saw a vision of two heavenly people who sat next to each other.  One in a devilish black while the other one was in an captivating red.  They were a match made in Heaven. 

Siri withheld her smile as she saw her sisters standing by the door below the tearooms. 

"What is the problem?"  Prince Ryu said in a bored tone. 

The owner of the tea establishment bowed and repeated what was said to him. 

"It seems, Princess Siri's sisters would like a room upstairs, Prince Ryu." 

"It seems they do not know what it means to reserve the whole floor."  Ryu said as Siri sipped on the tea in front of her.  When she set it down, he took her teacup and drank the rest of it down. "Even though they are my Princess Wife's sisters, we do not want to be disturbed.  Seek another place to rest." 

Siri couldn't hold her smile back any longer and ate a pastry so she wouldn't laugh in their faces.

"Close the door."  Ryu told the Mayer. 

Mayer quickly closed the door, but deep down his heart hurt.  He couldn't afford to insult anyone of them, so he had Prince Ryu handle the situation.  But the Chen daughters were regulars at his establishment.  However he knew that while he would lose business from the daughters, Prince Ryu could end his life for this offense. 

"Siri!  You get down here this instant!"  Luna yelled from the doorway. 

When Luna's eyes saw the vision before her, the only person who ruined it was Siri.  How could that toad ever be anywhere near the dark Prince?!

"You better let us have a room up there or else!"  Luna yelled before Yelona could pull her away to stop talking. 

"Or else what?"  Ryu said coldly.  These three words made the already quiet room even more quiet. 

"Shut up!" Yelona said as she finally pulled Luna back from her tirade. 

"No!  Siri doesn't get to deny us what we want! Come down here so we can teach you a lesson in manners! We are Father's favorite daughters.  Who is Siri to Father? She is nothing to him, but a burden who he hid away.  Father favors us, why shouldn't we get one room out of the eight up there?"

"Because--" Yelona was about to tell her when she was interrupted by that very sister they detest. 

"Because my husband is Prince Ryu.  And I am his wife."  Siri said softly through the door screen.  Even though her tone was soft and airy, it traveled through the whole teahouse.  "With the expensive education our Father paid to educate us and teach us, the two of you have no manners nor brains to understand the situation." 

"You--"  Luna began to say, but was pulled back by Yelona. 

"If my Prince Husband doesn't want anyone up here, that is how it is going to be.  No matter who you are, if it is what he wants, it is what is going to happen.  You, older sister Luna, the second daughter to a concubine.  And you, older sister Yelona, the first daughter to a concubine.  Who are you to say my name so freely?  You both want to teach me a lesson? Ha!  As if a daughter of a concubine can touch a single hair on a legitimate born daughter.  What would people say when they hear how poorly older sisters, Second Wife and Father treated me when I was a maiden in the Chen household. How can the Chen household treat their legitimate born daughter this way? Is it because my mother, the legitimate wife to Prime Minister Chen died when I was young?  Is it because I don't have a mother to shield me from you both, Second Wife or Father that I was bullied so badly?"  Siri sipped on some tea before she continued.  "To think I endured the mistreatment and kept these things to myself, so the Chen's name and honor wouldn't fall.  To think Prime Minister Chen's own favored daughters brought on this calamity down on themselves.  I guess the education Father paid for the two of you was a waste of time and money.  What do you expect when the two of you are daughters of Second Wife. They do say that the apple does not fall far from the tree and in this instance, you both proved that right." 

Siri paused a moment before continuing.  "Not only that, I married into Prince Ryu's household.  I am now a part of their people.  Are you to tell me that, you two low born concubine daughters are going to teach Prince Ryu's people a lesson?" 

If the door was still open, she would see Luna and Yelona's face flushed pink in embarrassment.  Siri's words cut through them like hot knives, not giving them a way out.  Siri insulted their intelligence and ruined their reputation along with Mother and Father's reputation. She was the one who revealed their secrets and were now blaming them for revealing it!  And everyone believed her.  With Luna's uncouth words and dealing with Siri, it caused them to lose face.  Now Siri can spill out all her grievances that she held inside her heart and make them the ones a fault. 

Yelona knew they made a grave mistake by trying to bully their once powerless younger sister.  Now she has Prince Ryu's favor, she has a strong backing behind her.  Siri had verbally given them several slaps in their face without giving them or their Mother and Father any face. 

"Older sister Yelona, you are engaged to Crown Prince Morgan. Isn't your marriage to Imperial Nephew in five days?  Shouldn't you be preparing for it instead of accompanying your sister around the city like a maiden? Second Mother should have kept a better eye on you and keep you inside your courtyard so you wouldn't have cause such calamity on your household.  You wouldn't want any bad things to happen before your marriage to Imperial Nephew."  Siri said as she handed over the half empty tea for Ryu to drink.  On his face as a slight smile as if he was indulging her whims of her lecturing her sisters.  "What would happen should Queen Yuna hear about your lack of education and lack of manners.  What would your precious Crown Prince think if he could see and hear your uncouth words and demeanor? As your future Imperial Aunt, I suggest you run on home and hope that no rumors about your behavior... or lack there of... reach Father and Second Mother's ears...better yet, let us hope it doesn't reach the King, Queen, and Crown Prince's ear of your behavior and the behavior of older sister Luna who is yet unmarried.  Who would marry her now, knowing how uncultured and uneducated she is?"