Chapter 3 When all is lost

The strange young woman couldn't stop pointing her arrow at Yun, and he feared the worst. Suddenly, he noticed something unusual: the girl's mouth was full of water, making her cheeks look inflated. It seemed strange but not threatening.

He hadn't given much importance to that detail and continued with his defensive posture until he felt a wet touch on his forehead, and instantly his face was soaked with water. He expected an arrow, but instead, the girl had practically spit at him and then laughed at him.

"But how amusing..." he frowned, wiping the water off his face and removing his coolie, which was dripping. "I was about to attack you with a weapon, don't do that again, you're crazy!" he scolded.

"Well, you're the intruder here; I'm where I usually am, living in a village nearby," she replied, crossing her arms.

"Well... you shouldn't be wandering alone or talking to strangers, let alone pointing arrows at peaceful people like me," he retorted, but the girl continued smiling, which irritated the young man even more.

"I couldn't guess that," the girl defended herself. "Hey... what are you doing here? Almost no one comes around these parts, and if they do, they are ruffians. Not to brag, but I've always known how to defend myself from those people," she said with a proud chuckle.

"I noticed that you use weapons... I'm just passing through; it's not important where I come from or where I'm going," he said curtly, crossing his arms.

With a nimble movement, the girl emerged from the water, revealing an incredible figure, her worn red qipao sticking to her skin from the water. Her fringe dripped small drops that slid down her finely featured face, shimmering like crystals in the sunlight-it was a magical sight.

In the blink of an eye, the prince felt his cheeks burning like fire, and he turned his gaze away. He put on his coolie again, but immediately he noticed they were not alone. He looked at the girl, and she was already in an attack position, pointing her arrow again.

Yun was on alert; they could be harmless people, but their appearance... definitely indicated otherwise. All were young and poorly dressed; some had tattoos on their skin, but it was their looks that radiated malevolence, and they might even be carrying white weapons.

"And what do you want?" the prince spoke with a furrowed brow.

"Calm down, calm down... you know, we're hungry; we just want some coins, and then we'll leave," one of them replied.

Yun didn't have time to respond because one of the ruffians was rummaging through the carriage, perhaps looking for valuable items. As he laughed, he had already been hit in the arm with an arrow, and the girl smiled triumphantly.

"You scoundrel, I'll give you what you deserve!" the man shouted while pulling the arrow out of his arm with a painful groan.

"I want to see you dare," Yun responded defiantly, moving to stand next to the girl, and she smiled bravely.

The entire group attacked them with their sharp weapons, while Yun and the unknown archer began to defend themselves with kicks, punches, and the white weapon he had with him, but it wasn't enough. They were ten men against two individuals. While some were injured by the pair of warriors, others hit them with great force.

One of the men jumped quite high and aimed a knife strike at Yun, who immediately used his own weapon to block the blow. Both of them were locked in a struggle with their weapons until, with a kick to the face, the girl sent him flying, and Yun smiled at her victorious laughter.

Yun and the girl smiled at each other for a moment, but someone grabbed his combat partner by the neck and lifted her up to choke her. He immediately hit a couple of opponents who tried to block his path and jumped quickly over their heads to reach the other side and hit them from behind.

After knocking them out, he ran to help the girl, who was sitting, breathing heavily to catch her breath. He offered her his hand to help her up, and once on her feet, she brushed off her qipao, which was covered in dirt.

Before they could engage in conversation, he realized that it was all an ambush to take away his carriage. The leader of that group had fled with everything Yun had to survive, which infuriated him greatly.

Suddenly, the men who were still there, upon turning to where the two were, Yun sensed fear or maybe panic in their looks. They tried to flee like cowards, and he was perplexed by their actions.

"But what the hell! Did something scare them?" The prince couldn't continue with his thoughts as, in the blink of an eye, the ruffians fell to the ground with arrows in their backs. He turned to look at the girl, who now had her face covered in sweat and flushed from the exertion of battle.

"I told you I know how to defend myself," the girl said, breathing heavily.

"I noticed; indeed, you know how to fight," Yun replied with a smile, which immediately faded as he thought about everything the man had taken from him.

"For Buddha's sake!... now I am truly lost," he lamented with desperation, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "I came here completely alone, with time running out, and the nearest village is so far away that it would take days to return there."

"You're in such a hurry?" she approached to talk.

"Too much, to be honest," Yun took out the scroll with the riddle and stopped to look at it. "And now, I'll have to start over with my mission."

"What kind of mission? Maybe I can help you," the dark-skinned girl tried to encourage him.

"I promised not to talk about it, and part of the mission is to figure this journey out alone."

"I understand, but now you need help; you've been left with nothing," the girl looked at him with concern that puzzled Yun.

"Well, if you want, I can guide you back to your village since you said it's nearby. After that, I'll continue on my way, and maybe your people can give me some directions," Yun said gently.

"That would be great, then we can get to know each other better," the girl seemed excited, and Yun felt a bit uneasy about her attitude.

The two young people began walking along those dirt paths, surrounded by nature and fresh air. Under different circumstances, a walk through these places wouldn't be so bad.

They didn't walk too far; the girl's village was just past a small row of bushes.

Literally, that village had five wooden huts and only one rice plantation. It was clear that they lived in poverty, and Yun couldn't believe such a place existed, but his map marked it as Yumai Village.

"Well, we've arrived," the young man said, while still observing the place.

"Thank you; you are very kind and polite. By the way, what's your name?" she showed a wide smile while tidying a strand of her straight hair.

Yun hesitated about revealing his real name since it would reveal his social status. However, he decided to do it since this place was so remote, and no one would think a prince arrived in these parts, let alone dressed as he was.

"Yun... my name is Yun," he extended his hand as a courtesy.

"Nice name, unusual, and you dindn't tell me your last name, but is ok... mine is Wu Siu." Yun was surprised by the girl's confidence.

"It's been a pleasure," Yun shook her hand politely.

"Siu! Who is that man?" a worried-looking woman called her from one of the huts, and other faces peered out to see what was going on.

"Go with her, I'll go now," he told the girl.

"Are you leaving so soon?" Siu's big eyes seemed to be asking him not to leave so fast.

She had something mystical and captivating, or something in her words that emanated trustworthiness, and he still couldn't explain why he felt that way about someone he had never met before.

"Excuse me, what can I do for you?" a man approached Yun to question him.

"I'm a traveler; I just guided the young lady back, and now I'll continue my way and won't disturb anymore," he said, bowing respectfully, and immediately, the man softened his stern gaze.

"Father, this young man was just ambushed at the village's exit; they left him with nothing," Siu said, almost pleading with her father to help him.

"Damn ruffians, those people look for secluded places to rob travelers," the man replied with disappointment, and his wife nodded.

"Although sometimes strange things happen with those ruffians, it's a matter of waiting," the woman said.

"What kind of things? Like the fact that they ran away for no reason? That was strange," Yun thought.

"I know; if only I could get my transport back, but I'll think of something. For now, I'll continue on my way," Yun said.

"Young man, if you need shelter from the cold night, don't hesitate to ask for lodging here with us. We don't have luxuries, but we do have warm food and shelter," the woman offered with a smile.

"Thank you very much. Believe me, I will reward you generously for your kindness. Now, I must be on my way," the prince said, bowing goodbye, smiling at the kind family, and turning around.

"May the spirit of the Fenghuang protect you," Siu said, and Yun immediately turned, surprised by those words.

"What did you say?" he asked the girl, feeling his heart racing.

"Will it be closer than I think?"