A Dragon in Disguise

“Wow,” I say to myself. “That went extremely well. Well done, me. Way to screw up a whole relationship with one of the characters.”

I fill both tea cups and toast with myself, downing one after the other. I’m an idiot. This isn’t going to work. If I can’t make them fall in love with each other, because I screw everything up (which is likely), I have to take steps to prevent the fall of the city on my own. Once the enemy marshes on Xiyang in full force, both the Liu family with the military at their disposal and the Feng family with their wealth and resources need to stand together and with the queen, to repel them. If they still fight over Murong Zhiyu, the unity will be broken and the city will suffer the consequences. No, if they fight in general, the city will suffer the consequences. It doesn’t even have to be about me. And I just gave Liu Renqing an argument for one hell of a fight.

Great.

Marvellous.

You idiot.

So if I don’t manage to get them together, I need a plan B. And that plan hinges on my knowledge and Murong Zhiyu’s hidden power. A power, which I need to examine closer, so I know how to use it when it counts. I glance at the tea, hoping it doesn’t actually put me to sleep right away, when the sun has just set. I should be more careful in what I eat and drink here, because I don’t know this world at all.

As I get dressed in a fresh uniform, carefully wrapping and binding it in all the ways I remember from earlier, I feel tired but not in an unusual way. Good. I take a look outside my door, where a fellow disciple is walking around lighting the lanterns as night falls over the compound. The air is still warm and I take a deep breath, enjoying the unique scent of my new surroundings—dry desert air, incense smoke and underneath it all, somewhere in the distance even the smell of someone cooking dinner. Food, yes. Food would be good at some point, but I have other plans for now.

Since I can’t see Liu Renqing anywhere, I smooth down my clothes and step outside. On my way back to the central buildings, I pass several people, but we exchange nothing more than polite greetings. I let them talk first, so I can respond with a proper address, trying to remember the faces, knowing I will ultimately fail. Then I stand in front of the building, into which Dai Xuan has disappeared and clear my throat. I knock, once, twice.

“You wanted to see me, Sect Leader? Is it a bad time?” I ask loudly.

I hear footsteps inside and then the door opens. It’s Dai Xuan, smiling at me.

“Come in, we were just chatting,” she says and ushers me into the building.

Sect Leader Dai’s rooms are more lavishly appointed than Murong Zhiyu’s, though not ostentatious. It’s a homey space, which speaks of having been lived in for decades, scrolls, books and keepsakes collected on the shelves. There is a sweet aroma in the air and I can see an incense burner next to the bed, where Dai Qian sits and waves me closer. She looks bad, if I may be so frank. Pale skin, a sickly blue tint to it. She’s sweating, shivering slightly as she nods at me. I felt bad for her in the drama, but the reality looks worse. I really need to figure out if I can do anything about the poison.

“Sect Leader Dai,” I greet her and bow slightly.

She waves at me. “Don’t be so formal. Sit, sit.”

I take a seat on a low chair opposite the bed, Dai Xuan hovering somewhere near me, looking for something on a shelf.

“Your organisation is terrible, mother…” she mutters.

Dai Qian laughs, which ends in a cough. I motion to stand up, but she waves again, telling me not to bother.

“I’ll get through this. My genuine qi is strong enough, it’ll just take some time. This isn’t why I wanted to talk to you. I need you to take A-Xuan and go to investigate the reports of monster sightings along the stream south of the city.”

Suddenly, I know exactly where I am in the timeline. There was a plotline around episode 17 or 18, about monsters near the city. It was a short, yet very important part. Murong Zhiyu discovers the monsters and takes a group of Huoyun people to eradicate them. This leaves part of the Eastern approach to the city unguarded… which will later aid the attackers, since they can plant their traps during this time.

“The stream which flows from Yueji Lake?” I ask and Dai Qian glances at her daughter.

“A-Xuan, can you go and fetch me something for my throat?” (*)

To her credit, Dai Xuan puts down the scroll she was holding with a mere sigh and nothing more. She nods towards her mother and then looks at me for a moment before leaving. Dai Qian waits until the door is closed to sink into herself and cough again. It sounds rough. My own throat hurts just from listening to her. Suddenly my hands grow warm and I feel a surge of power from within me. My body seems to have a reaction to her pain, automatically readying itself to help. I’ve seen enough of these stories to know what I’m supposed to do, but won’t it do more harm if I do it without the proper procedures? Dai Qian coughs again and this time there are a few drops of blood on her lips.

“Can I try to ease your pain?” I ask, the power literally dancing around my fingertips.

Dai Qian looks up at me and shakes her head. “I can’t accept your power, you know that. If anyone recognises your genuine qi on me, they will know who I harbour in Huoyun Sect.”

I want to bite my tongue. What a stupid reason. But then again… if a wallpaper colour can change the course of a whole world, everything can potentially be—No. I won’t be held down by ifs and could bes.

“You will most likely rest here for some weeks yet. No one will examine you this closely. Please, I can’t bear to see my master suffering like this.”

Dai Qian smiles. “You really are different from the rest of your family.”

“That’s because I was taught by my master,” I say with conviction. Dai Qian was essentially Murong Zhiyu’s mother in the drama, and the way she smiles at me, I don’t think it’s much different here.

“What’s come over you today?”

“Sometimes you need to say things out loud so they don’t get lost in thoughts and glances, never voiced and only assumed.”

Dai Qian laughs softly. “A-Xuan tells me you fell into one of the canal’s today. Were you enlightened in the water? Your words are very different.”

Enlightened? Well, in some way I was. But I shake my head.

“Your condition just made me realise I need to cherish the people I have while they are still here. Now don’t be so stubborn. Let me help you.”

“That’s no way to talk to your master,” she replies, but it is with fond exasperation. “Then go ahead.”

She was always one of my favourite characters—the calm, supporting mother figure of the cast. Her health decline was also one of the reasons the drama got hated on, calling it just a plot reason to get a powerful figure out of the way so the bad ending can happen. The only reason she refused help was pride, which might be right for her character, but senseless to a degree. I certainly won’t stand for it now. Besides, having her aid Xiyang’s defence is one of the safeguards I need to have if the ‘Make the two Idiots fall in Love Plan’ fails.

I take a seat behind Dai Qian and put both hands on her back, hoping my body will remember what to do. Where the warmth goes, I try to follow it up with more. I can feel Murong Zhiyu’s genuine qi flow from my stomach, though my arms and into Dai Qian’s body. At first, her body is stiff against my hands, but soon she slumps, the tension bleeding from her. The coldness I felt at first fades somewhat, though it’s still there like a foreign thing.

“That’s enough for now, thank you,” she says and I take my hand away. I don’t feel less powerful now. Either I haven’t connected to the power well enough yet, or Murong Zhiyu is much more capable than I thought.

Well, she is of the dragon people lineage, after all, which is the most powerful one to exist in this world. And this is the reason why Dai Qian sent her daughter away. Only the sect leader is aware of Murong Zhiyu’s actual identity, keeping it secret for her, so she can train at Huoyun Sect like a normal person. And the genuine qi of a dragon can help cleanse poisons, so I figure why not curses? The least I can do is try.

“To come back to your earlier question: Yes, it’s Yueji Lake,” Dai Qian confirms. “They are likely attracted to the power flowing in the water, closing in from the south to chase it. I haven’t had the strength to properly keep up the wards around it recently.”

I return to my chair and am delighted to see that Dai Qian’s skin colour has shifted from blue to a faint pink. It’s still not ideal, but it gives me hope. When she coughs again, it sounds less painful, too.

“But your mission tomorrow is not about that. You just need to identify the threat and report back so we can deal with it properly. Since you are attuned to the power that flows from Yueji Lake, you will be able to track its path best, leading you to the trouble faster. A-Xuan will accompany you to collect herbs for me.”

“Ah, a good cover.”

Dai Qian smiles. “You catch up quickly. While I actually need those herbs, the cover is necessary to not draw attention to our actions prematurely. These monsters could be anything.”

They’re a planted diversion, my mind supplies immediately. But I can’t tell her that. How would I already know this in advance?

“I won’t disappoint you,” I reply with a nod.

Dai Qian nods as well, and just then we hear footsteps outside. Dai Xuan is back. She carries a tray with a bowl of soup and I can spot chicken, red dates and other berries in it when she sets it down on the table next to the bed.

“Are you finished with your secret talk?” she asks and Dai Qian laughs.

“Yes, yes. All done. Hand me that soup, will you?”

-

(*) A-Xuan = Dai Qian calls her daughter Dai Xuan as A-Xuan affectionately. The A- prefix is often used for people you love, like children, good friends and partners