CH.3: THE ANONYMOUS TRAVELLER

The townspeople had been listening intently to the story being told, entranced by the young man’s words, their eyes glimmering with curiosity around the fire.

Throughout the telling, they exclaimed and gasped in surprise, some even secretly brushed away a few tears.

And just when the storyteller had finished narrating the tragedy at the Ascension Bridge, the sky cried too; small droplets started falling on the hissing flames, soon after followed by bigger ones that consumed them.

Everyone hurriedly got to their feet and ran to their homes to take shelter from the incessant rain.

The storyteller was lost in his thoughts, observing the campfire being reduced to a pile of grey ashes, when a boy came running to his side, cursing.

“Damn it! The Mayor left without giving us the keys to the Shrine… I’ll go get them, wait for me Your Majesty!” he exclaimed as he left in a hurry, stepping on puddles and splashing mud everywhere.

Jie Xiang sighed; he had long ago given up on trying to convince Yu Yun to call him anything other than 'Your Majesty'. It had already been three years since they had left Chuan Xia and the boy insisted on reminding him of a past he wished to leave behind.

Jie Xiang recalled how at first it had been difficult for Yu Yun to speak to him casually and how they had slowly opened up to one another along the way, developing a mutual trust that had turned into brotherhood.

With time, Jie Xiang had grown to like that scrawny little boy that had tagged along on his journey, perhaps because, in a way, he reminded him of Zhong Hei…

He tilted his head to look up to the night sky from underneath his hood as the rain soaked his clothes.

He had been long enough on the road to fret over a little storm.

Closing his eyes, he felt the raindrops tapping on his skin, cold water running down his face. The hood slipped down, drenching his silver hair.

But suddenly, the rain stopped.

Jie Xiang opened his eyes to find that the stars he had just seen had inexplicably disappeared from the firmament.

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He blinked a few times, trying to clear his vision, but the sky remained starless nonetheless.

In that moment, he heard a soft chuckle right next to him.

Startled, he turned abruptly to face the person that had been holding an oil-paper umbrella over him.

A young man locked eyes with him, his face hovering inches away from above.

In the blackness of the night, with only some dim lanterns shining in the distance, the stranger blended with the surroundings, his handsome features the only part distinguishable; a smile was painted across his pale face exposing all of his teeth and Jie Xiang could have sworn that he saw a flash of irony in his dark eyes.

“Oh… Well… Thank you! …” Jie Xiang stuttered, trying to clear his throat.

He hadn’t seen anyone around after Yu Yun had left and thinking he was alone, he had lowered his guard. Worst even; this person had seen his face! Jie Xiang could already hear Yu Yun’s scolding tone he used when giving him lectures on the dangers of the road and why it was necessary for the Prince to keep his identity a secret.

The stranger kept staring intently in silence.

Jie Xiang nervously tried again, “I guess you were at the gathering from before…?”

Thankfully, a gentle voice finally answered in a low tone, “Indeed… What a pity it had to rain, I was intrigued by how the story continued…” He then looked like he had just woken up from a dream as he said, “Please forgive my bad manners, I have yet to introduce myself; I am but a lone traveller from a faraway land in the search for someone I lost long ago.”

Jie Xiang was reminded of himself, a coward who had been running away from his past for years on end.

He replied in a faint voice, “… Sometimes, people don’t want to be found.” Then, feeling as though he might have been a little too discouraging, he quickly added on a lighter note, “But, maybe I could be of help since I’ve been on the road for a long time. Who is this person you are looking for?”

The traveller didn’t answer right away, seemingly at a loss for words, before cryptically muttering, “… I don’t know…”

How was that even possible? Jie Xiang thought, confused.

He was about to further inquire when the stranger said, “May I ask for your name, tale teller?”

“Hmmm…” Jie Xiang was visibly struggling to remember the unnecessarily long name Yu Yun had invented as his new identity to be used in situations like this when luckily, the aforementioned came running towards them, a pair of keys dangling from his hand.

Upon discovering the scene, Yu Yun gave Jie Xiang a hard look. It seemed like they would be having a lecture after all…

“We have to leave now before the storm worsens.” he coldly said to Jie Xiang, clearly ignoring the man holding the umbrella.

“Oh? I didn’t know you already had company.” the traveller interrupted, unbothered by the hostile atmosphere around Yu Yun. He further added in a somewhat condescending tone, “And who might you be, little boy?”

Unfortunately, good temper was not a virtue Yu Yun possessed. His face quickly turned red with anger as he exploded, “I am not a ‘little boy’! And for your information, I am his brother!”

Silence.

Even the rain stopped falling.

“… Is that so…?” the traveller slowly dragged his words, glaring mysteriously at Jie Xiang, an unreadable expression written across his face.

Not knowing how to break the uncomfortable tension between the two of them, Jie Xiang tried to divert the topic by saying, “… Well… We are travellers too! What a coincidence!” He let out a nervous laugh before becoming serious again, “The storm could return in any minute so if you don’t have a shelter for the night, you could stay with us at the Shrine we’ve just been lent…”

He even offered a smile, purposefully ignoring Yu Yun’s open-mouthed stare.

Suddenly, the traveller’s grim expression disappeared as he happily declared, “Perfect!” He closed the umbrella swiftly, casually stating, “Oh, and as you seem to have forgotten your name, I will call you brother too.”

He proceeded to walk down the town road, leaving a speechless Jie Xiang and Yu Yun behind.

He turned around calling for Jie Xiang, “Are you coming or what?”

And that was how the Prince and the Beggar found themselves with the Stranger infiltrated in their ranks.