3.Missing Tuesdays

A week had passed in much the same manner. Edina awoke just as the sunlight threatened to pierce through the window. She reached for her cane and slowly rose from her bed. As she approached the door, it swung open, and Xiao Min entered with a frustrated expression. "So, you woke up on your own today, huh? Good. I don't want to keep nagging Mistress Li Mei again. Get ready quickly and be on time for Arithmetic Class!" With that, Xiao Min departed.Edina was puzzled by Xiao Min's comment. After all, she had woken up on time yesterday, just like every day. She brushed it off as another one of Xiao Min's taunts and focused on getting ready. She made her way to the bathroom and took a bath with moderately warm water. Unlike on the day of the breakfast banquet, she didn't receive any special treatment. Every day, she prepared herself alone. The only reason the water was warmed for her was because her Aunt didn't want her to fall ill and miss the classes scheduled by the Administrative staff of the Sect. Struggling with much difficulty, Edina managed to get dressed on her own. With one of her legs broken, wearing a hanfu alone was a challenging task, but she somehow managed it every day. After dressing herself, she grabbed her cane and made her way into the hallway. It took her a few minutes to reach the great hallway, then she proceeded down the corridor connecting to the Mu Mansion. Along the way, she observed martial artists heading to their classes in the training fields and open areas.Finally, she arrived at the gate of the Mu Mansion and entered promptly. After a few more minutes of walking, she reached the classroom for Arithmetic. Taking a deep breath, she opened the sliding door. Unfortunately, to her dismay, her cousins were present, seated in their respective seats for the class.Seated in the first row, with black hair cascading to his shoulders and a wooden sword at his waist, was Wei Cha Mu, her first cousin and Aunt Li Mei's son. Beside him sat his younger sister, Lin Cha Mu, adorned in a beautiful Hanfu with a delicate face. Despite being younger than both of them, Edina was obligated to attend the class as she was in line for succession after her parents' death."Huh... look the cripple's here," Lin remarked to her brother with a grin, casting a glance at Edina. Her brother chuckled and replied, "She was boasting about her linguistic skills in the ancient Han class yesterday. Today, I'll teach her a lesson in Arithmetic, and who knows, I might even tie her to a tree after class," he added, laughing.Edina felt a chill run down her spine as memories of being tied to a tree for a whole night flooded back. It had happened once before, when she had tried to excel in class, and she had ended up with a severe fever afterward. She had felt like she was on the brink of death at the time. She didn't respond and quietly took her seat behind them. However, she couldn't shake off her confusion. She didn't recall boasting about her linguistic skills, especially since the linguistic class was scheduled right after Arithmetic class on Tuesdays which is today. That's when Edina noticed the date and day on the board, written in bold characters: Wednesday. This left Edina even more confused. Wednesday? How could it be? Yesterday was Monday... Had she forgotten an entire day? How was that even possible? As these questions swirled in her mind, the teacher arrived. He was a head staff member in the sect's finance department. After an hour of class, Edina grabbed her cane and hurriedly made her way out. However, Wei and Lin easily caught up to her."Where do you think you're going, half-blood?" Wei sneered, placing a hand on Edina's shoulder. "Let's go to the Mu Mansion's garden," he commanded, glaring at her, while Lin giggled behind him. Just as Edina began to lose hope, resigned to the idea of spending another night tied to a tree, a voice echoed down the hallway."Oh, you kids seem to be getting along well," the voice called out. Wei and Lin's demeanor instantly changed as they turned to see who it was. Edina also turned to look, spotting a man in an imperial merchant uniform standing in the distance in the open training fields. It was Keith, who had been in the Mu Mansion for sightseeing. He wore a warm smile on his face. Approaching the three children, Keith greeted them, "Greetings, Young Master Wei, Young Miss Lin." He continued in a more sincere tone, "This humble subject greets the princess, your highness Edina." Edina simply nodded in acknowledgment. Wei and Lin performed martial arts greetings with a bow. Wei then inquired, "So, you are the foreign merchant who is staying in our sect? Mister...?"Keith smiled warmly and replied, "Yes, Young Master, I am indeed honored to be a guest." Lin, feeling a bit shy, asked, "So, what are you doing in the Mu Mansion?""I was simply sightseeing around the sect, young miss," Keith answered. "Madam Li Mei informed me that Master Wei would accompany me around the Mu Mansion after class. I hope I am not intruding on your playtime."Wei, though disappointed that he wouldn't get to bully Edina and would have to help the merchant instead, conceded, "So, Mother asked this? Well then, let's go, Mister. There are many things to see in the Mu Mansion."Keith smiled and replied, "Of course, Young Master. But first, allow me to pay my respects to the princess before I leave." He approached Edina and bowed, speaking in Leonese, "Priyamaina princess, miru sahayam kavalani aashistunnanu. Nenu vaarini vidipinchataniki avakasam ivvadam ledu." (I hope I was of assistance, princess. I will keep them busy. You can escape to your room.) Edina, somewhat surprised by the merchant's gesture of assistance, understood that he had noticed the bullying and was trying to help her. With a bit of clumsiness in her Leonese, she replied, "Dhanyavaadalu, Keith Garu" (Thank you, Mister Keith) and slowly grasped her cane, making her way to her room. Meanwhile, Keith accompanied Wei and Lin, guiding them around the Mu Mansion.Once back in her room, Edina simply lay on her bed, utterly exhausted from both the class and the interaction with her cousins. While she felt grateful to Mister Keith for his assistance, she also felt a deep sense of embarrassment. In his eyes, she was a princess deserving of respect, yet she was subjected to bullying by her own cousins.As she lay there, she intended to drift off to sleep, but her mind couldn't shake the oddity of the situation she had experienced earlier. The missing Tuesday nagged at her thoughts. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't recall anything from that day. It was as though she had slept through Monday and awakened on Wednesday. Yet, she knew this couldn't be true, as Xiao Min had mentioned her waking up late on Tuesday, and Wei had accused her of boasting in class. Clearly, something had happened, but why couldn't she remember it?This wasn't the first time such a thing had occurred. Last week, she had experienced a similar lapse in memory. Her Aunt had even remarked on it, suggesting that Edina had thought She was dead. However, Edina had never made such a statement. It was as though these two Tuesdays had simply vanished from her memory, leaving behind a void.As she pondered these mysteries, her eyes fell upon a paper on the cabinet table. In clear Leonese characters, a message was written. Though Edina only knew a bit of Leonese, she looked at the words :నేను భవిష్యత్తులోను. అది త్రాగడం లేదు, కానీ నేను మంగళవారంలో పునర్జన్మ పొందుతాను.Then she slowly deciphered the words and read them out in a low voice ."nēnu bhaviṣyattulōnu. adi trāgaḍaṁ lēdu, kānī nēnu maṅgaḷavāraṁlō punarjanma poṇdu tānu." (I am from the Future. Don't panic, but I think I reincarnate on Tuesdays.)

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