Crocodile Tears

My heart drummed to the beat of a thousand racing horses, threatening to break free from my body. I could only guess at what wild expression must have been frozen across my face. Luckily, the fan blocked all but my eyes from view.

And it was my very eyes that collided with his. Those tea-colored orbs were all but too familiar.

Before he could react, I quickly averted my glance. No, it cannot be.

Words describing the Prince of Jin flashed in my mind: proper, polite, serious. And as hard as I tried, I couldn't draw any vague parallels between him and the arrogant court musician.

It was impossible. Unless he was the prince's identical twin, there was no way for two people to have such indistinguishable identifying features. Yet, then again, how could they be the same? Perhaps it was just a trick of my eyes.

"Rise!" The eunuch's long call drew me back to reality. I wanted to sneak another peak, but the threat of the truth deterred me. To be honest, I no longer knew what I hoped the truth to be.

"Let's hear the poem!" An unknown boyish voice cheered, soon corrected by the empress for the lack of manners.

"A'Mo, what poem did you prepare for the bride?" She in turn asked.

There was a pause. "Father Emperor and Mother Empress, the poem is titled 'Song of JiangLing,' a tribute to my beloved consort's homeland," His deep voice rang throughout the room, an exact replica of the musician's, and I shuddered at the thought. "Rain fell from the Heavens above, and water swept under the bridge. Stumbling across the girl's ribbon undone, it knotted two hearts into one."

To read it was one thing. To hear him recite it was a whole other world. His voice was rough but strangely soothing, telling of a promise that I found myself more inclined than ever to believing. For a moment, it brought me back to the coursing streams and prose-filled home that I had known and missed. A sudden pang of yearning hit me, harder than ever since I arrived here.

Accompanied by a round of applause and cheering sounded the words I dreaded, "The groom may now remove the fan."

Thud. Thud. The world and the celebrations around me tuned out, and all I could hear was the strumming of my own heartbeat. As the shadowy figure cast over the fan grew in size, I knew he was coming closer...and closer.

His hand touched mine gently, almost as if asking for permission to take the fan away.

Candlelight flooded my eyes, and I blinked. Dressed in a crimson gown that seemed to be radiating light, he lost that sense of otherworldliness from the previous meeting. Instead, ignoring his stern expression, he took on the appearance of a seducing demon straight from the depths of the abyss.

What would happen now? My thoughts became a jumble of words. Would he hate me for how I treated him and say bad things about Liang?

He flashed a toothless smile, directed more towards the crowd than me.

But not a flicker of recognition or emotion ran through his eyes as they met with mine. They were the same that I looked at a few days ago, but this time, the arrogance was long gone, replaced instead by a conforming one that was unfamiliar at best. Perhaps he really had a twin.

"Wow, Second Brother has quite the fortune!"

"I told you the new sister-in-law is gorgeous!"

"I wish Mother Empress would arrange such a breathtaking bride for me as well!"

All around me, the hall was thrown into commotion by the reveal, but I only saw him.

"To the marital suite!" He reached for my hand one more, and I reluctantly took it. Only this time, I inched away at his touch, leaving a sizeable space between our hands that was not visible from an outsider's perspective.

Following a scarlet carpet, we made our way to the marital suite hand in hand. A crowd followed closely behind us, chanting and shouting words of encouragement. Even the Empress and Emperor were enjoying themselves, joking that we would be a match made in heaven. The royal wedding almost seemed similar to the one I could have had with Brother Liu, the only difference being the setting. Back home, we would never wed in a giant tent and embarrass ourselves as such.

Seeing the tent, however, I immediately regretted my words. Green cloth dr.a.p.ed around the outside danced with the wind, giving a near-heavenly touch of being united with the world around us. Glowing candles lit the interior of the spacious tent that proved to be more like a separate private room than anything.

Our entourage left us at the doors of the tent, and we walked in with a few old servants carrying various platters. A'Wu and a younger boy also followed us, skipping from the excitement.

We seated ourselves facing each other, our backs straight and our composture rigid. "To share future joys and wealth." A maid presented us with a plate of meat, and we each took three small bites. I was careful not to smear my lipstick, and he was watchful not to be disrespectful.

Next, a split in half gourd was brought up in a platter along with a pitcher of rice wine. The two halves were knotted together with a red ribbon, signifying eternal bonds. I poured him a cup, and he mirrored my acts. "To be bound through woes and sorrows," the maid chanted.

Since the strings tied to two halves together, we were forced to break our distance. I could feel the hotness of his breath spilling onto me, and I closed my eyes. The rice wine was bitter, and I tried to hide my grimace.

After gulping the liquid down, his face became flushed, a rosy color adding to his sinful looks. His perfect composure cracked a bit as his face contorted from the vile taste, and I couldn't help but let out a snicker. Of course, I hastily muffled it with my sleeve.

He stared at me, a hint of warmth creeping into his eyes. Opening his mouth, he—

"Father Emperor and Mother Empress hopes that you will have as many children as they, so we were sent as good luck charms!" A'Wu and the younger child exclaimed simultaneously, shattering the moment. "They say to seize the night and produce them a grandchild as soon as possible."

I doubted that they truly understood the words that were coming from their own mouths, but I blushed for them.

"We shall take our leave now." Seeing that we were done with the customs, they excused themselves, and the maids trailed after them.

The last maid filed out the tent opening, draping the curtains down. In just a few moments, the tent became empty. Outside, the festivities were still continuing, characterized by the shouts and revelry. But inside, I heard nothing but my uneven breathing.

He suddenly stood up and approached me.

I stared at him, wide-eyed, unable to properly process the information as I saw the gap between us closing.

He was so close that he nearly touching my ear. "What? Are you that shocked by how dashing I look in red?" he whispered, and a tremor rippled through my body.