Rebirth and Reincarnation 1st Arc

Age 13. The Imperial Spring Competition (Day 2)

The following day, the whole family accompanied me to the grounds of the competition, setting up a pavilion for themselves while they waited. Today I would be competing in calligraphy and Go, not exactly flashy, but they were certainly challenging.

Heng Li and joined my family in watching the bouts where I participated.

Calligraphy was by far the strangest competition I had ever been in. 

We were given rolls of parchment and ingredients to make ink with, then we were told to draw a certain ideogram. Points were given or deducted according to the direction and thickness of our strokes, as well as the cleanliness of our overall piece.

I smiled, expertly drawing out the words I was given: Dragon, Heaven, Empire, Honor. The words flowed out of me, as if I was in a trance, and I found myself humming an old song I had heard my father sing many years ago. It spoke of the legendary Yellow Emperor, the forefather of the nation.

When I finished the last stroke, I put my brush down and sat in silence, waiting for the judge's decision. I'm not worried, but I don't think I'll attempt this event again. However, I think I might end up taking calligraphy as a hobby. I felt myself entering a state of near-meditation as I wrote down the words.

After a few minutes of deliberation, the judges declare a tie between me, and a lady named Bai Fan. We were taken to the emperor to be congratulated for our eforts. On our way there I couldn't help but praise her work. Calligraphy is, often, a subject for males, since females are given very few chances to practice, since at this time, they are expected to be perfect wallflowers.

And while Bai Fan's beauty was exceptional, so was her talent, and I oppenly admitted it to her.

She smiled tenderly and offered me a slight bow. "High praise coming from the Emperor's favorite."

I chuckled. Apparently, my suspicions were founded. "Will you be competing in another event, milady?"

She glanced at me with a slightly mocking tone "In which events are you not competing, milord?"

Snorting "Then I will root for you in half the events."

She raised an eyebrow "rooting for the competition?"

I smiled at her "there is no competition when the talents are complementary. I will look forward to watching your events, milady."

She bit her smile, but I saw it none the less.

Trying to be a gentleman, I offered her my hand so she could mount the steps toward the emperor.

Disregarding the servant's hand at her side, she chose to take mine instead. "You milord, are a dangerous man."

I returned the smile. "I am only dangerous to my enemies, milady. I have yet to find one here."

Bai Fan raised an eyebrow, staring haughtily at me but with half a smile on her face. "Friends, then?"

The way she asked, it made me think of another time and another place. To the time I met my best friend in a bookstore in the future.

"It would be my honor." I answered with a slight bow before climbing the steps and standing at her side. "Shall we?" I motioned forward and was rewarded by a blinding smile.

"We shall."

Kneeling in front of the Emperor's golden pavilion, I saW Heng Li sitting at the old man's right, and Meiling beaming at me from behind them.

"We meet again" the emperor beamed at me, and without losing his smile, he looked at the woman beside me "and you are?"

"To answer the emperor, this subject's name is Bai Fan, daughter of General Bai from the western border."