From the Ashes of Love

Chapter 85

Guihua finally sat down at her desk after a long day in the fields. It was good to get off of her aching feet. The three Flower Chiefs were sorely missed. They still had not awoken from their healing sleep atop the Sacred Mountains.

The most pressing issue at hand was sheltering the plants of the Flower Realm from the seasonal cold. The Water Mirror had been brought down in winter. None of the plant spirits here had been acclimated to cold. She alone had any cold tolerance, and that was because of her time in the Mortal Realm.

She had mulched the flower beds of the unawoken, and insulated the houses of the awoken. Those Spirits were wearing several layers of clothing for extra insulation. Everyone was miserable in the cold, but they were all surviving.

Thankfully, Spring was about a month away. Spring Festival would be soon, and the Cherry trees would be blooming. Guihua thought back to how she spent the last Spring Festival, and her cheeks reddened. She missed the Heavenly Emperor! She hadn't seen him since he appeared to her in the Dream Realm over a month ago.

She put her head down on her arms on the desk, feeling fatigued, and her elbow hit something hard disguised by a stack of papers. Curious, she dug it out from underneath them and looked at it. It was a wooden case. Inside the case she was surprised to find a long strand of pearls, with a note.

"Beauty from Pain" she read aloud, puzzled. "Runyu!" she yelled, recognizing the handwriting, then shrunk down in her chair, covering her mouth. It was late at night, she didn't want to wake the palace.

How had this gotten here? Did Runyu deliver this himself? Surely he would have spoken to her if he had been here. Someone else must have brought it.

She took the pearls out of the case and draped them over her neck. They almost touched the floor! She twisted and looped them around her neck again and again. Now she had a triple strand of pearls that hung down her chest in tiers.

"Runyu, I miss you" she whispered to the pearls, rubbing a strand against her cheek, holding back tears.

A flash of white light streamed outside her window, startling her. Lightning? She got up from the desk and peered out of the window, into the dark. She heard steps coming in her direction.

The door to the garden opened, and a familiar figure walked into the dim light of the candle in her study.

"Your Majesty!" she whispered in shock.

He closed the door behind him, and then stood there looking at her.

"I'm so glad to see you!" she told him, once she had found her voice again.

He appeared to be relieved after she said that. He walked over to her, and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close.

"I have missed you too" he told her emotionally, petting her hair.

She looked up into his face, and then brought her hands up to the sides of his head. She pulled him down to her, placing her lips on his. He deepened the kiss, his strong lips parting hers, his tongue penetrating her mouth. Guihua's heart skipped a beat, and then accelerated. She pulled away from him, backing up towards the desk.

"Water" she said, breathing deeply and pointing at him, "nourishes Wood" she continued, pointing to herself. "You haven't watered me in a long time" she pouted.

She provocatively untied the sash that held her dress closed, and then dropped it on the floor. Then she slowly peeled back the layers of her dress, and shrugged them off, tossing them aside, until she stood before him completely naked except for the pearls. She sat on the edge of the desk and crooked her finger at him, gesturing for him to come to her.