Summer Festival - Part 1

Content Warning: Some profanity

The next day, after partaking in multiple skewers of cumin lamb and slices of watermelon, and washing everything down with cardamom-spiced tea, Leiyu joined the crowd leaving the luncheon. Attendants directed the guests down the outdoor corridor toward the main courtyard.

As Leiyu strolled down the corridor with the crowd, he passed by many gardens resplendent with variegated flowers, manicured shrubs, and flowing fountains. Sparrows flitted from branch to branch amongst the many trees.

“Leiyu!” a voice called out. Leiyu turned and saw Chen Yun weaving his way through the sea of humanity. He waved as the merchant approached him.

“Haven’t seen you around much lately,” Chen Yun said. “You got back late last night and then left very early in the morning.” Leiyu shrugged in response. Chen Yun sighed. “You’re heading to the performance too?”

“Seems like everyone is,” Leiyu said. I wonder if the prince will really be there, he thought.

“Were you at the luncheon? I didn’t see you. But it was also really crowded.”

“I was there.” Trying to keep a low profile.

Chen Yun frowned. “Are you avoiding Fusheng? I honestly don’t know what’s wrong with him.”

Leiyu shrugged. “It’s fine. I’ve dealt with people like that before.”

Chen Yun sighed. “After you left yesterday, I told him he was acting like an asshole.”

Leiyu laughed. “Did you really?”

“Yeah. I hope he can behave for the rest of the journey. As group leader, I might have to kick him out of the caravan if he keeps up the hostility. Since we’ve already delivered the merchandise, we’re no longer obligated to stick together. He can find his own way back East.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah, I’d rather not do something that drastic so hopefully it doesn’t get to that point. Yihui and I have no issues with you.”

Leiyu smiled. “That’s good to know.”

“Looks like we’re almost at the entrance.”

The crowd slowed to a crawl as the guests made their way through the main courtyard’s doorway. After Leiyu and Chen Yun walked through, they stared at their surroundings in awe.

The main courtyard was far more spacious than the other ones Leiyu had passed through earlier. It was lined with marble columns that were decorated with fluttering silk streamers. Tall wisteria trees were in full bloom. The dangling clusters of purple and white blossoms reminded Leiyu of hanging lanterns. Rose petals floated in the many bubbling fountains.

At the far end of the courtyard was a stage lined with vine-wrapped pillars. A thick curtain hung in the back of the structure. To the side of the stage sat three musicians crossed-legged over intricately patterned carpets.

The guests gathered before the stage. Leiyu and Chen Yun moved to the middle of the crowd. The people around them dressed in many different types of garb and some spoke languages that Leiyu could not decipher.

“Do you have any idea what this performance is about?” Chen Yun asked.

Leiyu shrugged. “Nope.” He scanned the crowd. No sign of the prince. He sighed.

The hubbub of the crowd was silenced with the sudden drumbeat. The musicians began to play. One of them tapped rhythmically on the doira drum, while the one in the center strummed the dutar, and the third one played the oboe-like surnay. The curtain pulled back and a group of female dancers glided out.

Chen Yun’s eyes lit up. “Oh, how pretty!”

The dancers wore ornate headdresses with gold pieces that jangled as they moved. Their long dark braids swayed behind them, and their colorful embroidered dresses twirled as they spun. They moved with the music, striking graceful poses with each drumbeat. In between the rhythmic beats, their arms flowing like gentle ocean waves.

The performance went on for many minutes. As the music crescendoed, the dancers twirled in unison and the hems of their dresses levitated from the stage floor. They looked like blooming flowers, and the crowd held their breaths. The musicians then stopped abruptly and the dancers held their arms out in a graceful finishing pose. The audience burst into applause.

As the applause died down, the dancers glided toward the back stage curtain and disappeared behind the folds of the fabric. The drummer struck the doira again. A group of male dancers wearing colorful striped chapans leapt out from the curtain and took their positions on the stage. The musicians started another song. In contrast to the soft, graceful moves of the female dancers, the male dancers’ movements were bold and dynamic. They held their arms outstretched like the boughs of a tree, and they spun like whirlwinds.

At the end of the male dancers’ routine, more dancers emerged from the curtain. They ran around the main performers bearing large silk banners, obscuring the audience’s view of the stage. After they completed one circle and returned to the curtain, the group of male dancers was gone. In their place was a single dancer clad in silks and dangling gold and silver jewelry.

Leiyu strained his eyes to get a better look. When he focused on the dancer’s kohl-lined amber eyes and auburn hair done up in a half bun, he gasped.

The dancer was Prince Thallios.

Leiyu felt his heartbeat quicken. There was something otherworldly about the prince’s gaze, the way he was looking out at the audience without really focusing on anyone. It reminded Leiyu of scroll paintings he had seen back home, where a celestial being stood upon the swirling clouds while glancing at the mere mortals on the land below.

The drummer struck the doira and the surnay player played a lilting melody. Prince Thallios closed his eyes and began to twirl in place. Tiny silver bells jingled on his bracelets and anklets. He held one hand up while the other hand swept out to the side. Every time the prince spun back to face the audience, the drummer tapped the doira. As the drum beat quickened, he spun faster and faster, and the silk tassels and the hem of his robe twirled with him. It was a beautiful sight to behold. Leiyu was so focused on watching that he did not even blink.

With a final tap of the doira, Prince Thallios leapt into the air and bent his torso backward. His arms were stretched outwards and his hair flowed gracefully. Leiyu felt his heart stop and his breath catch in his throat.

The prince landed softly on the stage, his arms in a graceful pose. Looking up, he scanned the audience and found the person he was looking for. His amber eyes were warm as he smiled at Leiyu before taking a bow. The audience erupted into thunderous applause.

Leiyu felt like time had stopped within him, and the audience’s clapping and cheering sounded muted and faraway. It wasn’t until Chen Yun nudged him on the shoulder that he finally blinked.

“Hey Leiyu, you look like you saw a ghost,” Chen Yun said. “You haven’t moved at all this whole time.”

Leiyu’s cheeks flushed. “Oh…I was just admiring the performance,” he uttered.

“Haha, I never thought you’d be into watching dance, but those ladies were really pretty, so I’m not surprised.”

Leiyu decided not to reply, and just nodded. He looked back at the stage, but the prince had already disappeared. The attendant from yesterday had mentioned that the prince would meet with him after the performance, so he just had to find him in the crowd. The people around them were starting to head toward the exit.

“Are you coming back with us?” Chen Yun asked.

Leiyu looked around. No sign of the prince. “I might stick around and explore this area a bit more.”

Chen Yun frowned. “I can talk to Fusheng and tell him to tone his language down, if it helps. I don’t want you to feel unwelcome.”

“If you want,” Leiyu replied.

“Well, I’ll see you around then,” Chen Yun said as he slipped into the crowd.

Once Chen Yun was out of sight, Leiyu began to walk around the courtyard. He was not sure how long he could stay there, since the attendants would probably want everyone out so they could clean up, and it would look odd if he was the only guest left. As he walked behind a marble column, he heard a soft shuffling of feet behind him. He turned and faced Prince Thallios.

“Leiyu,” the prince said, beaming like a flower blooming in the sun. His cheeks had a rosy hue. Perhaps he was still settling down from the physical activity of the performance.

“Your Highness,” Leiyu said. He dropped to a kneel.

“Oh, you don’t need to be so formal,” Prince Thallios said. “Please stand.”

Leiyu stood up. “Your performance was excellent, Your Highness!”

“Thank you! My mother used to perform this dance at the start of the Summer Festival. I now perform it to honor her memory, although I’ve added my own moves. I’ve been practicing for many days.” The prince sighed. “Even though I’ve been performing it for the last three years, I get nervous every time. I could barely eat this morning.”

Although Leiyu had only known him for a little over a day, he noticed that the prince never ate much of anything, and he had a hunch that it was due to more than just nervousness over performing in front of a crowd. However, he felt like it was not his place to comment, given that he was prone to saying the wrong thing.

Prince Thallios then had a twinkling in his eyes. “Leiyu, have you been out to see the city yet?”

“Not yet, Your Highness,” Leiyu replied. The prince grinned, and Leiyu was unsure what to make of it.

“Would you like to accompany me?” the prince asked.

Leiyu blinked. “Um…Your Highness, are you allowed to leave the palace? Don’t you need guards?” He winced when he remembered the two guards from the other night and their hostile expressions.

“No need. You are the great bodyguard of the trade caravan, are you not? You can be my protector.”

Leiyu’s jaw almost dropped.

“Don’t worry, I’ll put in a good word for you if the palace guards catch us,” the prince said with a half smile.

Leiyu did not find that reassuring at all. “But, are you allowed to leave the palace just like that, Your Highness?”

Prince Thallios grinned mischievously. “I won’t walk out just like this. I’ll disguise myself. Meet me outside the palace gates in half an hour.”