Golden Thread

Their Exchanges

The letters kept coming and going between the two and kept going on for days. Sometimes the replies would come late by a few days, sometimes they would come every few hours. At first, Leah wasn't exactly sure about what was going on. The letters just kept coming and the contents were so infuriating that, by the time she came to, she was already putting another of her letters down the box's throat in anger. 

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Excuse me, who the hell are you ? And that letter was most definitely not destined for you !  How could you just enter a woman's house like that and steal a freaking letter, out of everything ?! I swear if I ever see you in my house, you'll spend the rest of your days behind bars ! 

Worst regards,  

Leah

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Hell ?  The only hell I know of is the one I'm going to send you to if I ever find you near me ! Are you a handmaiden ? A servant ? Doesn't matter, I have your name , even if it looks very peculiar. I'll find you and make you disappear. No rumors of a relationship between a commoner and a prince such as myself can leak out and I will personally make sure of that ! Just you wait ! 

Zhu Ming Lei, Second Imperial Prince

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As she learned through them, her interlocutor was either an ancient Chinese prince that must have lived a few hundred years ago, or someone who knew how to magically make a letter appear out of thin into her box without opening it. She wasn't sure which one she was more inclined to believe. 

At first, the impression she had of him was of a rude, conceited and arrogant man who thought he was the centre of the world and made sure everyone around him knew it. He was quick to assume things as he did with her letter but actually had a very warm and lonely heart. 

One day, she received a letter were she could see large droplets of dried tears on the old parchment paper. The writing was obviously ragged and unpolished, the brushstrokes uneven and abrupt. It had been his mother's death anniversary. On those days, he would drink himself senseless to forget the fact that his Father was probably warmly snuggled in another concubine's bed. That day was no exception. The only difference was that he suddenly felt the urge to write to Leah, to spill his heart into the paper. 

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She used to read me stories of long forgotten legends, stories where dragons populated the Heavens and celestial beings roamed the earth. She had a hear accessory she particularly cherished. It had been a gift from my father at their wedding ceremony. She loved to read and write poems, sitting besides the lotus pond. I once slipped into that pond while playing and she jumped in the water to save me. She was pregnant. She ended up with a fever and lost the baby. Since then, her body became weaker and weaker, until it wasn't anything but a hollow shell for an exhausted soul. My father did not come visit her the whole time she was sick. I could hear the whispers of the handmaidens about his nocturnal visits to his harem. I wasn't expecting much from an absent father who found happiness in quenching his lust, but I did hope he would come see her just once, just once to make the shadows that slowly took over her gaze disappear. She was his only Empress. 

I just wish

she had found a little bit of happiness in my presence before her passing.

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Leah never mentioned that letter in their future exchanges but it stayed in the back of her mind. That man, no matter how many ridiculous layers of confidence he laid on himself, had a very vulnerable heart. 

As they continued to exchange letters, Leah slowly started becoming more open with him, telling him about her life and dreams, laughing at his weak attempt at consoling her about her love letter he had mistakenly read. As they started to get into more and more intimate conversations, she recognized the prince had a very sharp and alert mind. He knew exactly how to react when facing life-threatening danger and always kept his guard up apart from those people he truly trusted such as his nanny. Leah told him about the design competition and he quickly expressed his desire to see some of her designs. She, of course, readily agreed to send him some. She first made sure they were all already digitalized into her computer before rolling them up and putting them delicately into the box with another letter.

Ming Lei was very impressed by Leah's drawings, looking over them as he if he was analysing an accounting report. The utensil she used to draw left some soft and other darker places, creating a strange sense of perspective. The dresses were long, way past the feet of the women drawn, yet there was something missing. The prince picked up a smaller brush compared to the ones used for calligraphy and drew on another blank paper. A few moments later, a beautiful phoenix appeared, resembling strongly to the one that was on the side of Leah's jewelry box.

As Leah received the letter accompanied with the sheet of paper, she suddenly yelled out, excitement filling her. "You're such a genius !" She didn't even write a reply letter before she locked herself in the workshop again, seemingly having gained new inspiration.

Hours later, she emerged from her cave, her hair disheveled and her face weary, but her big smile lightened up the entire room. In her hands, a single sheet where figured a young woman wearing a long oriental-styled red dress with one of the long sleeves made out of mesh. A golden phoenix embroidery stretched its wings on the side of the bustier, its head resting on the woman's chest. Leah wasn't sure whether this would be the final design, but she was already much more satisfied with it than with all her past drawings. She just needed to add a few more details, draw sharper curves and then she would be able to start on making the dress itself.

Excited as a child, she quickly wrote a reply letter and left it in the box, thanking the prince for his insightful help. 

In his Imperial Chambers, Ming Lei was copying down the Doctrine of the Seven Great Virtues, a cup of warm tea and snacks besides him. An attendant was besides him, standing so still the prince wondered whether he was frozen in time. As he was writing down another character, he sighed and put down the brush, his eyes wandering to the shelf where the jewelry box was hidden. 

"Get out, I want to be alone." He gestured to the attendant, waiting until he bowed and left before standing up and taking out the box. With his heart pounding in his chest, he slowly opened it, his eyes lightening up when he saw the folded paper inside it. 

At first, she was nothing than a rude maid with an unusual name who had dared to enter his chambers and rummage through his belongings. But he soon realised she was a very bright and optimistic woman who wanted nothing more than to achieve her dreams in the 'fashion industry', as she put it. 

Everyday, he looked forward to reading her letters, to learn about her life, so far away and different from Ming Lei's. He felt as if he was reading a novel where he could directly talk to the main character. 

He wondered whether she ate that delicious cookie she had seen on her way home in a store. He wondered whether she was able to finish the design for her dress. He wondered what the weather was like where she lived. 

He wondered how much time he had left with her.