One More Step

"Children you look so thin. Come let us feed you properly. Come... eat, eat..." The two old people stuffed so much food in front of the two girls that all they could do is sigh and eat.

This is how their day passed. They were fed taken care of hugged until the breath was almost gone and on their way out million of concerns hit their ears.

"Yes. We promise we will live a good, eat good and sleep well. The winter is coming so we won't come anytime soon to the town. Please be healthy so we can see each other in spring. " The girls waved their hands while promising the elder people.

They sat on their horses and rode through the crowd of people under the eyes of many interested eyes. Soon new story about two proud girls spread trough town and made rounds in commoners' homes.

But in the palace, the Emperor was not happy at all. "You traitors! Ministers, nobles my royal behind, that is what you are. The foreigners slapped my face so much that it turned into a patty by now. What kind of excuse do you have? Foreigners that live in that village are living only from what they get from their lands. But instead selling it to earn some extra cash they gave the food to people that don't even accept them. Not only that, sorghum water porridge? What the hell is that? Ate you people so poor that you couldn't buy the rice abs feed the people?"

He started yelling, cursing and even trowing all kinds of things at them hitting even the head of Lord Jong that just endured quietly. He didn't say anything to protect himself or complained about injustice. He just lowered his head and quietly endured making the rest of nobles even more nervous.

If he couldn't say anything against the Emperor's rage, what could they?

So they all quietly endured together with him. His head bled, and covered his face and was about to drop on the floor but he held his hand open and let it drop there. After his lament, Emperor sat down huffing and saw Lord Jong countenance. His silent enduring made him even angrier so he threw his edict towards him.

"You, don't you even dare to look so modest. Go proclaim the edict. The foreigners will have the same rights as our people legally. And if any of you say one word I will take foreigners in our government. Hmmm that idea us not bad at all. It could help us with relations with other countries. Should I do that?" He smiled maliciously at them while his eyes were icy cold making all if them shiver in fear.

He then left angrily while they still kneeled all dazed. Lord Jong was about to stand up but struggled and with help from Lord Jiang left slowly the main hall.

Nobles passed him silently while looking at his pale face covered with blood. On one hand, he held the edict and in the other, he still held the blood so it doesn't spill on the ground.

Slowly step by step he passed the servants and finally when he was in the carriage and the door closed he sighed in relief. He took a handkerchief and slowly wiped the condensed blood on his hand. He left the blood in his head for now and smiled lightly at Lord Jiang.

"Did you had to go so far?" He was staring at the ugly looking wound and his white face.

"If other people can endure so can I. Those two girls fed our people until they fainted and I should faint from just getting a bit hit by the Emperor? Our people became almost laughing stocks because some of our people were too cheap to feed refugees with normal food. If I didn't go out and almost emptied all our food storage how could I watch straight at my children's eyes when they grow up?"

His voice was hoarse but resounded throughout the walls. Those that suppose to hear it heard it and those who held grudges against him had to hide their faces as they got hit soundly.

His smile was calm while he spoke. The carriage slowly exited the Palace while new information started running in town. Foreigners finally had the same rights as them and will be under the protection of the Emperor from that day on. And no one can look down on them, wait does that mean they can go to school and join their army?

Soon discussions could be heard everywhere. People would sit in their warm homes and have their own thoughts while the Emperor just smiled while listening to reports.

"Let them talk about it. It is after all the time for some changes." He sipped on tea and looked at the first snow falling over still greens trees.

The refugees on end got their new homes near the capital, the food was provided and the winter came. But this winter was something no one expected.

Snowstorms, ice storms, white everywhere. Luckily the girls prepared to forage for the animals. They even bought small stove the people call "dragon stove" where you just put ember in it and you are cozy warm even if you sit outside.

The snowstorm was over so now just snow fluttered from time to time down. The girls sat in the winter house in their recliners that they patted with different kinds of furs and over them thick down blankets.

Looking outside at the white landscape but inside sitting with green plans s was a nice balance.

"Kyra, I feel too lazy to move and I need to go to the outhouse. Next year let's add an outhouse near our house for winter use and enjoy the winter. I feel like I pee small mountains of ice every time." Anna stood up lazily from the recliner and stretched like a cat.

Kyra stared at her with open mouth speechlessly. Those words came out the mouth of a most sophisticated little girl so far, in this world. But it is ok. If she feels free with her to talk about such things its a good thing. So she just lazily nodded and continue to watch the snow falling play.

They would wake up early in the morning, clean the snow from paths and then go feed the animals and add more snow for warm water. Yes, they invented something on their own. They made something like oven outside with the stones and some mud. Then had big cauldron on top of it that had a hole on the side. That hole was connected to the barn where the animals could walk freely. In the barn was another set of bowls by the size where animals drunk and the water would then go out the stall and with contraption go to the outside wall towards the small pond.

As the snow was high, it made natural isolation against freezing so the water would slowly drop without going cold into the pond where now a bunch of fishes lived.

The girls had no idea that so many fishes chosen to live in this small pond just because the water was always nice and warm.

So every day the girls would put a huge log under the cauldron, fill it up with snow three times a day and just let it burn slowly so the water is not too hot when animals drunk.

That kind of thing was actually heating up the barn as well so the animals felt comfortable and happy. In such an environment the female pig even got a bunch of small piglets that were squeaking and playing around the whole time.

They would clean the barn two times a day, putting the dung mixture into an enclosed corner far from the house and barn and would just run back to enjoy the rest of the day.