Xiang Feng, The Scarred King (1)

Once upon a time, there was a young orphan boy.

His mother had abandoned him, and his father died at an early age. When he was seven years old, he was rescued by a beautiful fairy. This fairy raised him like a son, and told him that one day, he will become the king of the land.

But the kingdom where the orphan boy lived had a wicked witch for a queen. The fairy used all of her magic to defeat the evil witch, and finally crowned the boy as king. But in the struggle for the throne, the beautiful fairy had died.

The orphan boy was then crowned as King.

The boy married an ordinary girl as his queen, and had no other concubines. The queen was quiet and kind, and they lived their life like an ordinary couple. The whole kingdom adored them, and sang praises about their love.

The young king was a kind ruler, the queen was a caring wife, and the two of them led the land to prosperity and peace. Every day, a courier from the castle would boast about how the young ruler treated his wife with care and affection, never getting mad at her, and always caring for her needs. Anyone could see, their marriage was a destiny set from heaven, and the two of them were made for each other.

But this golden age didn't last long.

Before the evil witch died, she poisoned the young king with a powerful potion. The young king was renowned to be blessed with a handsome face, and anyone who saw him would be bewitched by his beauty. The poison turned his fair skin into wounds, and it spread all over his body, scarring him for a lifetime.

The kind and lovely queen was so sad for him that she cried day and night, never leaving her chambers.

He was so ugly and deformed that, when he rode through the streets of the kingdom to perform an inspection, the children ran away crying.

Therefore the young king decided to place himself on the battlefield. In the battlefield, scars and wounds were a badge of honor. In the battlefield, no one would be repulsed by him.

The young king therefore defended and fought for his kingdom with his flesh and blood until he became old and gray. He had not returned to his kingdom for years, but his queen guarded the land for him. In the end, the scarred king died in battle, and when he was about to close his eyes, he once again saw the beautiful fairy that raised him.

He could hear her sigh, "Beauty is loving the flowers and the leaves, but when roses stop blooming and everything has withered, only those who love the roots would love them forever."

The beautiful fairy had raised the king, and more than anyone, she loved his roots for she was the one who watered him.

The beautiful fairy held out her hand, and although her hand was fair and smooth, she did not show a trace of disgust for his scarred skin.

The king smiled and took her hand, saying softly, "Jia."

'Jia'—meaning beauty.

For she was truly beautiful, both body and soul.

In that golden light, the two people stood next to each other. The king became young and beautiful once again, his smile radiant like the sun.

Thus, the two people disappeared into the golden light, living happily ever after.