Immortal Mortals

A Mouthful of Wine

Mo Yuan arrived at The Peach Tree Woods early, having already prepared himself for another rejection.  There was little under an hour before she was due, and wanting desperately to return as soon as possible, he would not allow her a second longer.  Punctuality was as important to him as breathing, and because he had already given so much of his time to The Queen of Qing Qiu already, he was no longer going to tolerate her exceptional lack of manners. 

Now seated beside the Jade Stream outside the small guest hut drinking tea that Bai Zhen had been kind enough to prepare for him, they sat and chatted amicably, while they waited for Zhe Yan and Bai Zhi who would also attend the meeting.  Though Bai Zhi insisted her mother not attend as the woman would not be able prevent herself from taking over the meeting altogether.

"I must apologize for my sisters poor manners Mo Yuan." Bai Zhen said.  "But I can assure you, she will be attending the meeting today." he added, though going by the look on his face, Mo Yuan thought he looked more hopeful than confident.

Nodding his head with as much confidence as her brother, he merely stared straight ahead.  He would not allow any more excuses and nor would he accept what he considered to be childish antics from a woman who held such a high degree of prominence.  

He actually wasn't expecting her to arrive, in fact he was hoping she wouldn't.  Not when his mind kept flicking back towards the Mortal Realm and a woman he was beginning to have strong feelings for.  But he was here as agreed, and he would give it everything he had, and if fate was to move him towards his sister, then so be it. 

"Ahh, Mo Yuan, you're early." came Zhe Yans voice from behind him.  

Noticing that Bai Zhi was also with him, Mo Yuan rose and greeted Zhe Yan and then her father, his lifetime friend and brother, cordially.  Though this was an official meeting, the two men saw no need for formalities.  Especially when it came to Bai Qian, who had already caused so much angst, the last thing her father wanted, was to make Mo Yuan even more uncomfortable.  When his daughter did show, she would be the one on the back foot, not his best friend.  He was just grateful Mo Yuan had allowed a fourth meeting, but he knew, if she didn't show today, the marriage arrangement would be cancelled, and there would be nothing he could about it.

Sitting themselves down, they waited patiently, her family hoping desperately for her arrival, while Mo Yuan sat impassively staring at the stream and the hundreds of goldfish that swam just below the surface of the water.  They were fish he himself had gifted the Peach Tree Woods as a repayment for the years of healing he had received from Zhe Yan after his many battles, and after hundreds of years, they had bred sufficiently to spread throughout the whole stream and into the many waterways and inlets that surrounded the Grove. Their beautiful exotic coloring added an ambiance to the air around them, that he was thinking of introducing a new species he had found in the Mortal Realm just recently.

Suddenly Bai Zhens voice cut into his thoughts.  "She's here!" he breathed a sigh of relief, followed by even louder ones from her father and Zhe Yan who also felt her essence enter the Grove.  But looking around, they realized she had  gone deeper into the woods and completely bypassed them all, including Mo Yuan much to the disgust of her father, whose anger rose significantly.

Losing his patience and not wanting to be present during a Fox family argument which he knew would soon follow, Mo Yuan rose to leave.  "Enough!" he said angrily, before Bai Zhen rose and took hold of his arm firmly.

"Mo Yuan please.  She wants to meet you away from the rest of us.  This is her way of telling us, that she doesn't want any interference." he said, before drawing a quick breath.  "She is by the Jade Pool waiting for you." he added, having already followed her essence and being as close to her as he was, he was the one who understood her the most.