Emeralds and Enemies

Chapter Forty-nine

The wedding banquet tipped into the excesses one might expect from families anxious to prove their status. The procession of ornate dishes the quality of the musicians and the quantity of the liquor, were all aimed to impress even the most jaded courtiers. Unfortunately, it also came with an air of striving just a bit too hard. At least, that is what the uncle of the bride thought as he attended to his companions needs.

For her part, the Widow Kim Haneul was impressed with Knight-Master Lie Wen-Hou's gentle courtesy. She saw nothing in his demeanor suggesting he had the rash temper others had tried to warn her about. He had been forthright about his needs and intentions and while some women might have been insulted by his bald statements, Haneul was relieved to be offered friendship and a handy escort to help ward off other advances.

Wen-Hou's only drawback as an escort was that he was no dancer. He told her this had been true before his injury but she doubted it. She could see how his foot tapped in rhythm to the music. It took her completely off guard when he excused himself and then returned with an elegant young man, he claimed needed her guidance to learn partner dances properly.

Go San Jin had been grateful be able to do this favor for his mentor. It also gave him a break from the not-so-subtle hints he had been getting from the girl he had been promised to when they were both just twelve years old. She had spent the evening talking about what she liked about the celebration and what she wanted for her own. Different types of bouquets were not a topic San Jin found even remotely interesting but he put on a brave face.

Haneul could not help chuckling at how seriously San Jin took his assignment. The young man's precise steps were clear indications of how demanding his dance instructor must have been. His touch was light but firm, like she was a precious glass ornament he was afraid of dropping. She could not help wanting to see what could happen if he allowed himself to break free and just enjoy the moment. Unfortunately, the song ended far to soon for her to coax San Jin out of his shell so she could only thank him for the dance.

San Jin returned to his table to find a few of his former classmates had made their way over. Their drunken antics had scared off the girls so he counted this as a favor, or at least until they started to attract disapproving looks from the older set.

"You're not going to finish this, are you?" Ja-Kyung leaned over and grabbed San Jin's wine.

"Uhm, I think that was supposed to be for the toasts," San Jin said while trying to gently reclaim his glass.

"I am pretty sure we are all done with the toast and speeches," Ja-Kyung countered as he polished off what was left of the wine and then signaled a server to bring a refill. Then he narrowed his eyes and leaned in. "We waited over an hour for you at the restaurant last week. Why didn't you show? You know I even checked into your class schedule at the dojo to make it easier for you to meet up with us."

San Jin shifted uncomfortably. In all honesty he had forgotten their tentative appointment and tried to apologize. One of the other boys interrupted saying, "Guess going to the championship means your old school friends don't count."

"Not true, and you know it. I just have a new training regime and have been off kilter from tuning in a new stone." San Jin covered his ring as he spoke.

"Really? I mean we promised to stay in touch after graduation but it is getting harder and harder." Ja-Kyung sounded sad.

"Yes. Well. I also have an out-of-town training session coming up so am going to be away for while. Have you decided on a training yard?" San Jin tried to turn the conversation over to the others but they were full of questions about is new training regime. When he explained how the family's master-at-arms insisted he become more combat ready after the ambush, the boys all pressed for further details about the incident. San Jin did his best to playthings down by admitting, "I am just lucky Me Yan's new friend was with us."