Natural Rivals

“Feng Yu and Liu Renqing.”

“Exactly. I see you’re starting to catch up,” Gui says and points at the man on the left, who is the one I jumped away from to fall into the water. “This is Feng Yu, third son of the Feng family. They are the most wealthy trade family in Xiyang, working in importing goods for daily use, but they are also in the luxury business and import silk, jade, fragrant incense and other items. He’s…”

“...the playboy of the Feng family,” I add. “In the drama he was irreverent and flirty, didn’t care much for social norms and made things worse before they got better. The female lead didn’t care for his antics, but was charmed by him anyway… until the city was attacked and she sided with Liu Renqing.”

“Which brings me to him,” Gui says and points at the other man.

He’s the one who ran towards me just before I fell into the water. He is no less handsome than Feng Yu. It’s more of a matter of taste, really, not of looks. Feng Yu is taller than him, but he is more imposing with his sharp glare and cold demeanour. His hair is long, tied up closely with no loose strands, a dark turquoise which shines slightly blue in the light. His eyes are silver with a purple shine, and he fits right into the watery world I am currently in. He couldn’t look more different to the playboy Feng Yu, who is clad in white, orange and red flowing robes with accessories and ribbons. Liu Renqing wears more closely fitting clothes in white and dark blue, with a dark leather armour around his chest.

“Liu Renqing is the only son of Xiyang’s general and has been trained as her successor. He is not without controversy, but that’s only because he’s a male heir.”

Ah, right. In the world of [The Ballad of Falling Snow], the women are in power. The head of every family is a woman, the military is led by women and the large businesses as well—for example Feng Yu’s mother Feng Ruoyi leads the Feng family trade. Liu Renqing will be the first male general in generations… he is the best candidate for the job, but in the drama he had to struggle a lot against public opinion. Even his mother’s soldiers are not all in his favour.

“He was a sympathetic character in the drama, in a way Feng Yu wasn’t. The fandom generally rooted for him and loved it when he got the girl in the end by always standing for what he thought was right,” I say. “I also rooted for him.”

The water around me flickers and the depths disappear. Instead, I see a birdseye vision of Xiyang. Yet it isn’t the vibrant city I remember from the drama, the orderly roads and buildings, the lush green of the trees along the canals. No, the city lies in ruins, houses collapsed, the roads deserted. The palace walls are partially destroyed, most wooden structures burned. From this high up, no people are visible, the city looking like a ghost town.

“That’s the city’s future, if the events depicted in the drama come to pass. That’s what will remain of Xiyang, and in its wake the rest of the empire will fall. That’s why it’s imperative we intervene in a way that will assure the future will look like this.”

Gui waves his hand again and the city transforms into a vision out of a dream, alive and vibrant, with striking colours, gleaming in the sunshine. The contrast couldn’t be more different. I look at the so-called god.

“And all that’s going to take is for Feng Yu and Liu Renqing to fu—”

“To get together!” Gui talks over me, a blush appearing high on his perfect cheeks.

Huh, so this god gets embarrassed too? Good to know.

“What’s in it for me?”

“For once, I’ll return you to your homeworld. Also I’ll be able to change one thing about your destiny in your original world, whatever you want it to be, as a treat. It can’t be a big, world-changing event, otherwise my intervention will get noticed by the higher-ups, but other than that…”

“You could make my cat immortal, for example?”

“Things that are actually in the realm of the possible for your world. Think about it. You’re going to win this one for me, aren’t you?”

“How?”

“Get them together! You’re in the best position for it!”

“Get them together?” I yell. “I don’t even know if they both like men??”

“Well, find out.”

“How?”

“You’re Murong Zhiyu. You’re in the best position to find out.”

“WAIT? I’m Murong Zhiyu? The one who got together with Liu Renqing in the end? The one who flirted with Feng Yu all drama long? That Murong Zhiyu??”

“Perfect, right?”

A mirror appears in front of me and I can see myself for the first time. I’m wearing a practical outfit with trousers and fitted sleeves, which are fastened with leather bracers. Over it there is a light blue robe with layered collar, the ends of which sway in the water when I move. On my belt are several accessories made from what I assume must be white jade. But most of all I admire my face. I’ve never been this pretty, with such delicate features. Not even Murong Zhiyu’s actress was this pretty in the drama. I turn my head to see a long ponytail of black hair, fastened with some silver ornaments. The person looking back at me seems both strong and elegant, like a flower refusing to break in a storm.

“This is real?” I ask. “Is this actually me?”

I touch my face and the sensations seem to confirm what I see. I look down at my clothes and they match the reflection. This is…

“All real. I’ve been telling you. Now go back up there, make those two idiots fall in love with each other and save this world for me.”

“For the people in it.”

“Well, yes, for them too, but mostly for me.”

“If everything you told me is true, this is really not the right attitude.”

Gui shrugs. “What does the attitude matter if I get results? The lives of the people will get better regardless.”

“I guess…”

“I’ll send you back now. You have your assignment. Oh, one last thing. Since your soul is currently in Murong Zhiyu, her soul is lying dormant, but it’s possible she may make contact.”

I can barely contemplate Gui’s words before the world starts moving again and I swallow a whole mouth full of water. Instinctively, I panic, but before I can properly flail about, someone grabs my arm and drags me to the surface. I blink into the brilliant sunlight to see a very wet and very concerned man looking back at me. His turquoise hair seems black when it’s wet, shimmering in the reflection. His eyes shine silver, with flecks of purple. He seems not only concerned… He is also annoyed.

“Feng Yu! Is it your hobby to throw people into water?” he yells.

Ah, so he isn’t annoyed at me specifically. That’s lucky. He is terrifying when he’s angry, even more so than the person I remember writing about. He reminds me of a shark, unblinking.

I look up to see the other man stand with crossed arms at the side of the canal, the crowd surrounding him to get a piece of the drama up close. Because that’s what this is shaping up to be: A drama between the two main characters. Well, three, since I’m apparently one too. This is too comical to be real, honestly.

“If you hadn’t spooked her, she wouldn’t have fallen! I caught her before she fell into the water when she fainted, may I remind you. But considering your kind, you probably would’ve dragged her under by choice!”

Liu Renqing actually hisses at Feng Yu, showing his teeth briefly. Is it just my imagination, or are they pointier than teeth should be? I have about two seconds to stay on this train of thought before he turns us around and swims to the other side of the canal, dragging me along. I look back at Feng Yu, who is fuming behind us—some older lady knocking on his arm and trying to convince him of something I can’t make out over the noise of the crowd.

We reach the bank quickly, and Liu Renqing lifts me out of the water to sit on the stony edge. And then I witness something beautiful. His face transforms from an ever-present scowl into a gentle smile as he regards me, picking some water plants from my trousers. Ah, right. That was his whole thing as a love interest character… The stern general in front of everyone else, but a kind and gentlemanly friend for Murong Zhiyu alone, showing just her his real smile. It’s why I fell for his character in the drama, and being subjected to his smile in (what I assume is now my) real life, hits completely differently.

Hits harder, I should say.

He reaches for the ledge and pulls himself up with ease, coming to sit next to me. I let him pick some smaller leaves from my hair, before he brushes his fingers past my cheek in their retreat. Oh, I get why Murong Zhiyu chose him in the end. Being on the receiving end of such attention is a heady thing, and having a man like Liu Renqing for yourself is even more special.

Just then I hear people on the other side of the canal shout and look up just in time to see a red streak of fire across the sky. It’s Feng Yu, who jumped the length of it in one go, coming to stand on light feet right next to us. He sits down on my other side and I can’t help but admire the small flames that fizzle out in his aura. That’s right, these two are at odds in every conceivable way.

Liu Renqing, of the dragon fish people, the embodiment of water, of floods and streams and lakes, dark and deep, drawing you into calm and deadly depths.

Feng Yu, of the phoenix people, the embodiment of fire, of flames and lava, of a heat so intense it can scorch rocks and burn you just by standing close enough.

And there’s me in the middle, a regular human, trapped in the body of a humble disciple of a small martial arts sect in Xiyang, who has to bring fire and water together.

I don’t know how I’ll manage.

I know only one thing for certain: There will be chaos.