22 THE JOY DERIVED FROM BEING LOVED BY SOMEONE

It was a beautiful morning and the birds of the sky were flying around as they were feeling happy for seeing another day. The trees and the plants were dancing as the breeze blew them. The beauty of nature was pleasant to the eyes.

Prince Gen was sitting in the kingdom's beautiful garden. His hands were on his cheeks as he was deeply thinking about princess Fen.

Even though prince Gen felt disgraced the day their marriage was fixed with princess Fen, he still loves her. He wasn't ready to give up on her. Prince Gen considers it an arranged marriage, and he was already punishing himself, thinking over someone who doesn't care about him. But now that she has even disappointed him, the love he has for her has increased.

There are many gorgeous girls prince Gen would have gone for, but he didn't. Instead, he was willing to wait until the day princess Fen agree to marry him. He couldn't figure out why she rejected him. Although she said she wasn't prepared for any marriage, Prince Gen didn't see it as a concrete reason for her to say no. Prince Gen was also avoiding forcing her to marry him. Because she might harm him one day for forcing her to marry him.

The image of her face keeps appearing in his mind like a dream. If only she would understand his feelings for her, she wouldn't have thought of rejecting him.

"No matter how handsome or beautiful you are, when someone doesn't love you, your beauty won't change anything. Not everyone must love you because of your beauty." That's what prince Gen was thinking at the moment.

Prince Gen has come in contact with many princesses from different kingdoms, but none of them was able to hide their feelings from him. Even when they try to, they end up confessing their love for him. He was every woman's dream, but prince Gen wonder why princess Fen didn't see what other princesses sees in him.

Prince Gen sat quietly in the garden. His thoughts were so far away that he didn't notice that someone came into the garden.

"Your highness," a maiden called out, but he didn't hear her.

"Your highness," the maiden called again, and prince Gen quickly answered, "yes!" As he jumped off from his thoughts.

"I'm sorry if I scared you." The maiden apologized.

"No. No problem. I was just thinking of something. So, it's okay." Prince Gen responded.

"Thank you, Your Highness." The maiden appreciated him.

"You're welcome. So, why are you here?" Prince Gen asked her.

"I'm here to inform you that, your breakfast and your bathing water are ready." The maiden replied.

"Oh, alright. Thank you." Prince Gen muttered.

"My pleasure." The maiden said as she bow down to him.

"You can go, or is there anything else?" Prince Gen asked her when he noticed that she was still standing, waiting for what he doesn't know.

"No, Your Highness." She responded as she turned her back and left.

After staying in the garden for a while, prince Gen left for his room. He took his bath and headed to the dining room. He found his father already sitting at the dining table, and he joined him.

"Good morning father," prince Gen greeted his father as he took as one of the servants drew back a chair to create a space between the chair and the table, so that prince Gen could sit down.

"Good morning, Gen. How was your night?" King Wang Lei responded to the greetings.

"My night was great, father. How was yours?" Prince Gen asked.

Hmm. King Wang Lei sighed and said, "well, a bit stressful, I guess."

"Why was it stressful?" Prince Gen asked as he gently raised an eyebrow to look at his father.

"All sort of nightmare that can't be explained." King Wang Lei replied as he sipped the hot tea he was holding in a cup in his hand.

"Oh, nightmares? They seem to be normal dreams to me. They are meaningless, and they never come to the past." Prince Gen said.

"Sure. But I guess, some do come to past, but we don't notice it." King Wang Lei spoke.

"I can't say much about that." Prince Gen responded as he took some loaf of bread and bite, making the crumbs fall on the table.

While they enjoy their breakfast, one of the gatekeepers came over to prince Gen and delivered a letter to him. The letter was from the Neville kingdom.

In the letter, they first apologized for what happened the previous time they came to the kingdom before going into greetings and deep into the main reason for the letter.

King Wang Lei paused as he watched prince Gen moving his lips as he reads the letter. After prince Gen was done reading the letter, a smile appeared on his face, and king Wang Lei was wondering what the smile was for.

"The letter is from which kingdom? And what's making you smile?" King Wang Lei asked, confused.

"Father, this is from the Neville kingdom. King Dingbang sent it." Prince Gen answered.

"And what's the letter all about?" King Wang Lei asked again.

"Is about the arranged marriage. He apologized for being disappointed by the princess the previous time. But now, she has agreed to marry me. Although she only has one condition." Prince Gen responded.

"Which is?" King Wang Lei asked as he listens attentively.

"That, she pleads for her handmaiden to come along with her to our kingdom. That's her request." Prince Gen replied and dropped the letter on the table.

Prince Gen was still smiling. He was happy deep inside of him that he would finally get married to her.

"Why would she make such a request?" King Wang Lei asked with an angry tone.

"Father, I don't care, and I'm not complaining. As long as she is going to marry me, then am ready to grant her anything she requested of me." Prince Gen smirked.

"Oh, is that so? Well, you are free to go on with the marriage if you don't have a problem with that. I'm not the one to make choices for you." King Wang Lei said to prince Gen.

"Thank you, father. We're sending them a reply tomorrow." Prince Gen said to his father.

"Do as you wish. Everything is in your hand." King Wang Lei replied and smiled at him.

"But father, please don't get yourself drunk again. This is my plead." Prince Gen said as he joined his two hands as a sign of pleading.

"Common on; it was because of joy, I mistakenly got drunk. I haven't gotten drunk before, if not for that day." King Wang Lei explained.

"Alright then. I'm just informing you to avoid being sick." Prince Gen said.

"I have heard you. I won't." King Wang Lei accepted.

They happily enjoyed their meal together. This was what prince Gen has been praying for, and he is seeing it come to pass. The happiness prince Gen has lost in the previous days has finally been revived.

Prince Gen didn't think twice about why princess Fen was bringing her handmaiden. The only thing he needs is for her to get married to him, and that's all. Every other thing is a counterfeit.

When prince Gen got to his room, the best thing for him to do was to lock himself inside and dance until he was sweating. Even when it was still morning, he was sweating like someone who is doing farming work under the hot sun. Only those who know what love is that can understand his feelings. A small child who never knows what love is will look at him as a fool.

"The joy derived from being loved by someone can't be explained by words. Happiness is free when good things come your way. This is what money can't buy!" Prince Gen mumbled and fell to the floor to take a rest.