The Legendary Female Strategist

Chapter 21 - Behind a Mask Hides Another

Long Yi.

The name struck a faint bell in Feng Yao's mind from a memory long, long ago.

Inside a small room of silence sat a young child around seven years of age. She stayed so still that you could not even tell she was a living and breathing creature. Around her were scattered piles of broken board games and stones of both black and white meant for playing go. 

Suddenly, the child turned her head in the direction of the only window in the dark room. Seeing a pure-white owl appear in the horizon, she slowly stood up and walked over, ignoring how broken shards of the game boards stabbed harshly into her pale feet. 

As she stood on her tiptoes and opened the window, the owl silently flapped its wings and gracefully landed inside as if it had done this action many times before. This entire time, the expression on the little girl's face hadn't changed. Within the owl's clear eyes, her blank gaze was reflected back. 

Wordlessly, she reached out and untied the small letter that had been attached to one of its legs. The white parchment had blended in perfectly with the owl's white feathers. If you didn't know what you were looking for, you would have never been able to pick it out. 

The moonlight piercing through the night clouds and the darkness of her room was her only source of light. Quietly, the owl watched as she brought the letter up towards her face to read. 

[   Something has happened in the Wei Kingdom.  

The Imperial Physician of the Wei Emperor's palace suddenly fled. Yesterday, their Emperor angrily sent men to find him, yet no news has come up yet. 

Of course, I'm sure you must already be aware of this. Who knows? Maybe you've already figured out the entire thing.

But I do not have a good feeling. Something about this is strange, and the Emperor's persistent pursuit only proves my suspicion.

Although we have never met, you have helped me greatly once before. I will share this other piece of information with you as my gratitude.

It is not their Emperor that I truly fear. It is his youngest son.  

Something has changed about that child. He was not this way before. Despite having the same face, there is something about him that makes me uneasy. He has barely reached fourteen years of age, yet his eyes have already learned to take on the sharpness of battle-hardened general's blood-thirsty sword. 

The 5th Imperial Prince of the Wei Kingdom--Long Yi. Do be careful if you ever meet him. It does not matter to me if you trust my words or not. But I do know that I trust my own instincts.

May you take care.

Signed, 

Z  ]

The letter ended there as the unknown sender signed off using the simple letter of "Z". With experienced hands, the girl quickly destroyed the paper until not even a single piece was larger than a sliver of grass. Wordlessly, she lifted a secret component in the ground and disposed of the remains underneath the wooden board. 

When she turned back around, the owl's large and unblinking eyes met her unreadable gaze. She gave it a short nod and immediately, the noble creature soundlessly took flight back into the night sky. 

As soon as it disappeared from view, the girl calmly walked back towards the center of the room and sat down among the mess. It was as if nothing had even happened.