A Marketplace

Yue Xiaolu takes a deep breath, shuddering. I will not allow those leeches to touch Mother's treasury!

After cleaning the yard, and eating, Xiaolu can feel the Lily space again, and quickly enters.  Xiaolu kneels beside her mother, gently undresses her. After the soiled clothes are gone, Yue Xiaolu washes Wei Luo's body. Head to toes, it took three basins of water to clean her mother up.

After discarding the dirty water, Yue Xiaolu dries and combs Mother's hair, french braiding it.

With that done, Yue Xiaolu picks up the golden hanfu and dresses Wei Luo.

Yue Xiaolu was panting, her whole being trembling from exhaustion by the time she finished. So weak. I need to train this body, quickly. Yue Xiaolu frowns at Misty who was sniffing Mother. "Leave Mother be, Misty." Yue Xiaolu warns.

    Xiaolu picks up the tunic her Mother died in by the tips of her fingers and leaves the Lily Space. Going out to the yard, Yue Xiaolu tosses it into the burning hearth.

      Once it burns away. Xiaolu banks the fire returns to Lily space. Yue Xiaolu kowtows to Mother.

"Mother, I'm going to find you offerings." Yue Xiaolu says than exists Lily before she can waver.

Yue Xiaolu leaves her small courtyard, observing her surroundings. The reactions of the servants she passed, varied. Some smirked, others looked at her with pity but none of them bothered speaking to her.

        Princess Nan Yue was invisible in her own home as far as the servants were concerned. Yue's memories of hovering nannies, and maids who panicked when she stubbed her toe contrasted sharply with how none of these servants even bothered greeting her as they would even Father's illegitimate children.  

Yue Xiaolu waits by an outer wall for a lull in traffic and climbs over the wall. Yue Xiaolu wonders alleys, and streets until she finds herself in a bustling market place.

"Move it, beggar" A girl sneers, knocking into Xiaolu her hands full of packages. Xiaolu lowers her head. Her dress was the one Yue died in. It was torn, damp, and stained with blood, sweat, and mud. Her hair was tangled as she'd focused fully on taking care of Mother and hadn't the time or attention to spare for it.

Xiaolu shrugs and shuffles into the crowd aiming for an ally across from her.  By the time, Yue Xiaolu enters the ally, a half-full basket had appeared on her arm. It held nothing but coin purses. Xiaolu casually yawns and shifts her loot into Lily.

            Entering the crowd again, Xiaolu locates a stand selling joss paper and incense. They even had a few braisers for sell. Xiaolu stands by a wall, waiting until a middle-aged man starts selecting a large amount of joss paper and incense. Yue Xiaolu walks out and exposes a fist full of copper coins, and a single silver coin to the seller. The right amount to buy a decent braiser and a single package of joss paper. "Mister I want a braiser and joss paper," Yue Xiaolu says anxiously, biting her lip.

  The seller just smiles. "Of course, young miss" He wraps both up and passes it to her. Yue Xiaolu smiles softly, giving him the money. Putting her purchases in her basket, Yue Xiaolu brushes past the man who just paid.

She disappears into the crowd hearing a shout of anger. Yue Xiaolu just smiles, joss paper, incense, and a braiser filling her basket to the brim.

After shifting it to Lily, Yue Xiaolu's gaze falls on a chunk of gorgeous wood being wrapped for a boy with golden eyes. Gold eyes pays with a gemstone, proving the wood was valuable.

Her eyes sparkle. Perfect for Mother's tablet. Yue Xiaolu thinks, striding toward a food stall, her skirt brushing against the boy.

      She snags the wood, and a piece of purple jade hanging conveniently on his waist. These ancient people are all so oblivious. Xiaolu shakes her head.

It was much later that Xiaolu discovers most people simply put a thread of consciousness on their valuables so they could track it, and her Lily conveniently severed these threads. Without Lily, Yue Xiaolu's little body would have been caught within minutes.

All I need is some wine, now. Xiaolu purses her lips. I can probably find that at the manor. Okay. Let's head back. Yue Xiaolu shifts everything into Lily, and leaves the market, not noticing the glare of a certain 10-year-old boy.  

      Back in her cottage, Xiaolu takes out the wood she stole from the golden-eyed boy and examines it. Looks like rosewood, but... She tilts her head. "It seems a little different from normal rosewood," Xiaolu says.

       In the end, Yue Xiaolu begins to carve it without minding the small difference. Rosewood or not, Xiaolu thought it would serve well.

         Yue Xiaolu was carefully carving her Mother's memorial tablet when the presence of a little lord and his guards appeared in her house. Unfortunately, Xiaolu simply didn't have the cultivation to sense them.

Huo Ming's eyes bulge, seeing the dirty little girl humming as she cut up HIS Blaze Rosewood. 'What is that little fool doing? Doesn't she know this entire manor couldn't pay for that wood?'

        A fireball appears on his palm but the little idiot's words make him freeze.

"Once I get Mother's tablet done. I need to sew mourning clothes." Xiaolu sighs. "Should I steal the fabric from Concubine Yan? She should have some stored from her Stepmother's passing" Yue Xiaolu tilts her head, pausing to look over the tablet.

"Roses or lilies" Xiaolu ponders, unaware of the confusion of the little lord watching her. She stole HIS treasure, but...

Such a small child preparing her Mother's own ancestral tablet. It simply was beyond his belief, yet she sat there covered in flaking blood and bruises, her hands adeptly carving.  

Huo Ming watches her, dazed.

If I kill the little fool, will anyone even notice?  He wasn't stupid. Although this manor was trashy by his standards, it was nice for humans.  But this child whose scent revealed she shared blood with the pampered child of this manor went out to steal and make her own Mother's ancestral tablet.

Her every being was full of dark secrets.

Before Huo Ming can decide, Yue Xiaolu finishes the tablet and sets up an altar, setting the braiser up, along with some pieces of jade she'd stolen off people.

    Huo Ming's eyes latch onto a piece of purple jade. His identity emblem! Huo Ming touches the empty spot at his waist. I wouldn't have even known. His face twitches stiffly. Luckily I followed her scent, or else. Huo Ming shuddered to think of his Mother's reaction to his losing that.

          Yue Xiaolu burns joss paper and incense. She settles into a kowtow, her mouth moving silently.  Watching her scarlet eyes, Huo Ming sighs. Forget it. I'll just take my emblem back, and forget this ever happened.  Huo Ming settles in to wait for her to leave, or sleep so he could take his emblem.

  In the end, Huo Ming stood guard over her until late dawn when she finally stood from her kowtow. She lights some incense and joss paper than goes into a closet.

Huo Ming picks up his purple emblem and pauses, looking at the tablet. Wei Luo. The little idiot's mother. Huo Ming inclines his head. "I offer you blessings in your next life," Huo Ming says softly before disappearing from the entire Prince Nan Manor.