The bright morning light irritated Mei's eyes while Ling'er covered her own, lying on Mei's lap to avoid the brightness. "Maybe we shouldn't have drunk as much as we did," Ling'er said regretfully. "Even though, as ghosts, we won't be experiencing hangovers and headaches, we will have a problem with the bright sun." She shifted her head closer to Mei's torso.
"What did we do last night?" Mei asked.
"I don't know," Ling'er replied. "Why do you ask?" Ling'er opened one eye to peer at Mei. "These ghosts are looking at us weirdly," she said, and Ling'er just closed her eyes, shifting to a comfortable position in Mei's lap. "Let them," she said.
"Ugh," Ling'er groaned. "Why am I worse than you when we drank the same amount? If you ever see me drink wine again, please kill me." She paused. "Oops, I'm already dead," she said, finding herself funny and laughing. "Mei, let's just go somewhere with no sunlight," she pleaded. "Let's stay indoors, please. We can stay in the sun tomorrow; it's not like we have blood to warm," she added.
Mei, feeling bad for her friend, agreed. As they floated from the roof, they met the ghost boy they had hired. "Sister Mei, Sister Ling'er," he said. "The Princess is dressing to go out," he informed them. Ling'er's eyes popped open, then she groaned and closed them again. "Why today?" she grumbled, frustrated.
Mei immediately removed some joss paper from her bosom to give to the boy. "But Sister, I have been paid already," he said.
"It's okay, take this. You did a good job," she said, then dragged Ling'er, floating rapidly towards the Duke's estate.
"She is a nuisance, this Princess," Ling'er complained, but Mei didn't pay her any heed and dragged her faster. They reached the Duke's estate. Mei hadn't been here since the day the Princess got the letter, and being back again brought back all the bad memories. She let her mood drop, especially after seeing her former mother-in-law's face. Mei saw that she no longer had her rosy look and appeared a bit aged. She was curious, but now the Princess's issue was bigger, so she headed to the Princess's chamber.
She reached there to find the Princess coming out with her maid in tow. Mei heaved a sigh of relief and followed her, still dragging Ling'er, who hadn't opened her eyes yet. The Princess first passed by the hall. As they entered the hall, they found the Madam seated there, having tea, but the atmosphere was not as cheerful as it was the last time she was here.
"Good morning, Mother," the Princess said, bowing.
The Madam just gave her a nod.
"Where are you heading dressed like that?" she asked snappily.
"I'm heading outside today to clear my head, since it has been a while since I went out," the Princess replied.
"You know the Duke is in a bad mood, and you are going out to play? Plus, he is in all these problems because you were the one who suggested the drowning, and now the General is after my son's life."
"Mother, I mentioned to you yesterday that I have sent my brother a letter to get in touch with the Emperor and make him agree to our marriage and to send a lot of dowry. Once the edict is sent out, all this will be forgotten," she said. "And also, remember we caught her in bed with a man in front of a lot of the nobles. No one will support the General," she added.
The Madam nodded, her face less clouded. "Okay, you can go out. Ask the butler to give you a carriage and take care," she said.
The Princess left, and immediately she was out of the hall, she was muttering curses. Ling'er, who had refused to open her eyes all morning, now had her eyes wide open. "When did you open your eyes?" Mei asked.
"Ooh, right now, during the exchange," she said. "It hasn't been that long, and now they hate each other," Ling'er observed.
"These superficial people. What united them was their hatred for you and your suffering, but now that you are not around anymore, they are turning on each other," Ling'er said.
"Seems so," Mei replied.
They followed the Princess as she entered the carriage and headed to a hotel establishment. She entered, and the manager ran to her, asking her to follow him. It looked like the Princess was a regular visitor, as he knew her and led her into a private room. He asked if she wanted something to eat, and the Princess replied she would send her maids if she wanted anything. The manager left, closing the window behind them.
Princess Hua walked around the room and then stopped at a scroll hanging on the wall. She stared at it for a while and then pushed it up to reveal a small hole in the wall. She inserted her hand there, and with a crack, the room on the wall started to separate as Mei and Ling'er watched with their jaws open.
"How did she do that?" Ling'er asked, but Mei had no answer. The Princess looked behind her, startling Mei and Ling'er. "Ooh, she can't see us," Ling'er said, laughing. "For a moment, I thought she did," Ling'er added.
The Princess instructed her maids to stay, and then she went inside. Mei and Ling'er followed her, and the door shut behind them, scaring them.
"We're the ghosts, and we're the ones scared?" Ling'er said, patting down her chest. "This Princess is weird," she added as they followed her down the stairs into a room. Once they entered, their jaws dropped. The whole room was covered with drawings of the Emperor.
"What is...?" Ling'er asked.
Mei, shocked as well, moved her head side-to-side. "I don't know. It looks like a shrine," she said.
"This is very creepy!" Ling'er said, and shouted, frightened, jumping behind Mei as the maniacal laughter of the Princess rang out, echoing throughout the empty room. They watched in horror as the Princess completely morphed into something different and walked to the Emperor's drawing, putting out her hand and tracing her fingers throughout the Emperor's face.
"Why, she said, why do I have to settle for that loser just to see you? Why is there a dumb rule that an Emperor can't marry a Princess from other empires?" she said. "I found you first! Why can't I be with you?" she added, tears now streaming down her face.
Mei looked at Ling'er for answers, and Ling'er shrugged, still afraid. "I might know a lot of things, but I don't know everything," she said. "But what I know for sure is she is crazy."
The Princess had a dazed look in her eyes as she took a purple overshirt for men, smelling and hugging it.
"Mei, I'm scared, let's get out of here," Ling'er suggested. But Mei wanted to know all, so she asked Ling'er to wait for a moment. But seeing Ling'er's frightened look, she agreed. They floated up the stairs and left through the wall.
Once out, Ling'er patted her chest. "She is crazy," she said. "I might be a ghost, but she scares me. I don't want to be near her ever."
"The Emperor is in danger with a woman like that in the empire," she said, and Mei agreed. Everything about the Princess was becoming more
Complicated, and with no answer, Mei didn't like what she saw there. She needed to come up with answers soon, before it was too late.