Lovely Blossoms

Liang Lian stared at his younger brother. He could feel the calm coming off him from the moment he entered the room. Normally he would do his best to not get involved in these types of situations, especially when it involved his half-wit of a brother, but he was too tired for that right now. He had been traveling for weeks after his unwanted trip to the Neutral Territory, which took way longer then he wanted, and he never even found what he was looking for.

The Neutral Territory in itself was enough to make him feel angry and upset. Seeing the way these people lived, the pain and suffering they felt, it made him feel helpless. He hated being there. He went this time only because his father demanded. The rumor was that the young prince of Jin Rao, who had not been seen in at least ten years would be there. There were often rumors about this elusive prince, some said he was dead, others claimed he lived on as an outcast in Quin Dong, his father however believed that he was working for Jin Rao under some sort of guise. Though when asked, his father never had an answer for his suspicions, and he never had an answer for where he heard these "rumors". It frustrated Liang Delun to no end, but he was a dutiful son, and he did as his father asked not because he agreed, but out of respect.

Liang Delun felt weak and his stomach growled, he had only stopped here to make it easier on the servants when he made it home. If he didn't tell his mother that he had eaten. The entire household would be up preparing a full meal for him no matter what time of the night it was. He glanced around the room taking in the spectators. His eyes landed on Li Li and Da Chen.

A moment of surprise rose in him, 'why are they here?'.

His gaze attracted the attention of Liang Wenqian, who turned to the table as well.

It's hard to describe what Fen Hua felt when Liang Wenqian turned his eyes towards her. It was a feeling she had never felt before. It was like that feeling you get when you are alone during the middle of the night trying to make it home and you hear someone behind you. Or maybe closer to the way you would feel if you heard someone rattling the doorknob to your bedroom while you were in bed. What ever that feeling was, how ever you had to describe it, the result was that it was horrible.

She curled into herself trying to become as small as possible. His stare was like calloused fingers scratching against her skin. A simple line played through her mind over and over 'don't touch me, don't touch me, please don't touch me'. Despite all the trials in her life, this moment was the first time that she had ever felt too scared to speak or even move.

"What are you doing here?" Liang Wenqian asked.

"We were sent by Madame Shu, Young Master. She asked us to bring back a new slave to handle the needs of the little Miss." Li Li answered. Fen Hua was honestly amazed that this old lady was able to speak to this overwhelming man.

"We just returned today," Da Chen continued. "We hoped to spend the night here, then finish the journey in the morning."

Liang Wenqian turned his furry away from the innkeeper and to the thin servant before him. "And who's money do you plan to spend sleeping here? Whose money are you wasting? Are you that worthless that you can't travel another half a day home?" His large hand came down hard against the side of Da Chen's face. Da Chen fell to the floor like a sack of rice, his body barley reacting at all.

Li Li made a whimpering sound but made no move to help him. Fen Hua could suddenly see that this was something that happened often, something that these two people had grown used to. This realization somehow vented the feelings of outright fear she had felt earlier before, shifting into outrage. Even with this feeling however she was not stupid, she knew that she was not able to defeat such a man, and the chances that she would only make it worse were not small. Instead she pulled herself up sitting straighter in her chair. Her eyes flickered to the abrasive man before her and met his like fire on ice.

Liang Delan stepped between his brother and the table of servants. He placed a hand on his shoulders, a feeling of resentment filling him as he did. He could never figure out why his father was ever willing to marry such a woman as Lady Suyin, Liang Wenqian's mother. To have any relation to that woman was unwelcome, to have to share the same blood as her child was even worse.

"Come home with me Wenqian," Liang Delan said in a soothing manner, "Lets go home and have a few drinks. I heard that Madame Baozhai has a new group of women and from what I hear," he leaned in a little closer, "a few of them even asked about you."

Liang Wenqian easily falling for the silky words of his brother. "Yea?" He asked, his body untensing, a slick smile ticking up the side of his lips. There were not a lot of things that Liang Wenqian cared about. He was a man who had no goals, and no ambition. He lived his life as carefree and wanton as he pleased. But there were a couple of things that could get his attention. One was women, he was a sucker for a beautiful woman, the other was his brother. He would never admit it, especially to Liang Delan, but his brother was the only person who had ever made him feel loved. As a young boy his mother was very cruel to him, his father had no time for him. It was only Liang Delan who visited him. It was him who took care of him when he was sick, who brought him birthday presents and sang him songs. It was Liang Delan who taught him about the beauty of make believe and adventure. It was Liang Delan that held him that night that he cried for hours, and it was him who had given him the corded leather necklace that he always wore around his neck.

It was because of these reasons that Liang Wenqian loved his brother, and it was because of these reasons that he hated him. He didn't want to feel these feelings. Inside of him was a boiling cauldron of hate. He had little empathy, his mind was filled with thoughts of death and torture, his eyes hunted for things he could take or destroy. Liang Delan was always in the way of that. His d.e.s.i.r.e to still be loved by this brother was always in the way, it disgusted him. He hated feeling weak because of it. He hated that whenever he saw Liang Delan, he didn't want to be the way he was. He hated that he would feel guilt and shame, and more then anything he hated that Liang Delan didn't even realize how much he meant to him.