Light and Shadow

29 - The Banquet

Xun Yu wore a black paofu with a dark grey underlayer and sighed as he braced himself for the event. A dull throbbing sensation filled his head and he winced as nausea filled him. Please, no, not now. He placed his hand on the wall and leaned against it to steady himself as his vision blurred and swirled.

After a few moments of standing there, Xun Yu's vision returned to normal, and the headache subsided; however, he still felt nauseous. He waited for a few moments to make sure that it was okay for him to move, and once he realized that it was dangerously close to time for the banquet to begin, he rushed out of the house and to the palace. At the gate entrance to the palace grounds stood Sima Yi, waiting for him in the same white paofu with seafoam green underlayer that he was wearing earlier. Sima Yi gazed at Xun Yu with a stunned expression.

"Wow Minister, for a moment I thought that you were a fair maiden. You look great!" Sima Yi gushed. "Oh, but don't tell Chunhua that I said that."

Xun Yu chuckled at the man's words.

"Thank you for your odd compliment, and don't worry, I won't tell her." Xun Yu replied playfully, winking at the man.

Sima Yi blushed slightly and frowned. This late afternoon sun is making me delirious. Did he just wink at me? He stared at the man, feeling awed by his beauty and his disbelief of what just occurred.

"Sorry, was that too much? I'm just trying to make this more bearable for both of us." Xun Yu said meekly.

"N-No, it's okay, it just shocked me. We should head inside." Sima Yi replied.

He grabbed Xun Yu's hand and the two walked up the steps to the front doors of the palace. Sima Yi released Xun Yu's hand as the two entered and walked down the hallway towards where the banquet was being held. As they entered the room, silence washed over the room as everyone stopped and stared. Some eyed Sima Yi with jealousy, others looked at Xun Yu with eyes full of desire, and some paid no mind to the two as they were deeply engrossed in quiet conversation.

Cao Cao gazed ahead from his seat behind the table that was situated in the center of the room and froze as he was about to take a swig of wine from his cup. His eyes darted from Sima Yi to the ethereal creature that stood beside him. Is that Xun Yu? He looks stunning. Cao Cao looked back down at the cup of wine and swirled it around a bit. I don't think that I should drink anymore of this. He placed the cup on the table and Xiahou Dun and Cao Pi both gave him confused looks. They were both seated to the left of Cao Cao, with Xiahou Dun seated closer to him than Cao Pi was.

Xun Yu nervously glanced around the room. He felt as though he was a deer caught in the sight of many ravenous wolves. As he looked toward the table where their Lord was seated, he noticed that he was also looking at him with similar eyes. He blushed slightly and looked down, wanting to turn invisible or hide; however, his wishful thinking was interrupted when a familiar voice called out to him.

"Minister Xun Yu, would you care to join me?" Cao Cao inquired, causing Xun Yu to look up at him. "You can bring Sima Yi too."

Sima Yi nervously looked at Xun Yu, and several people in the room gasped once they realized that it was Xun Yu who they were ogling over. They then returned to talking amongst themselves as Xun Yu approached Cao Cao, with Sima Yi following close behind him. He motioned for Xun Yu to sit beside him and Xun Yu did as the man asked. Sima Yi quietly sat down next to Xun Yu and politely nodded at Cao Pi and Xiahou Dun, who did the same.

"You look ethereal, truly breathtaking," Cao Cao said softly. Xun Yu could faintly smell the wine on his breath.

"Thank you, my Lord, but I think that you are a bit drunk." Xun Yu replied just as soft.