Huan Zhu Ge Ge

(Love vs. Friendship)

By: Princess Pearl

(Fang Ci)

Chapter 4

"Are they gonna leave me too? Will they go back in the palace and leave me here all alone? I knew this day would come. Then one by one will leave me; first is you then who’s next? How come you so cruel? You want to play on me? You want to see how I suffer? You so cruel! Please stay! I’ll be good! Just don’t leave me! Please! Just don’t leave me!" She cry uncontrollable and close her eyes, Yong Qi feel so hurt by those word he couldn’t control himself but bend his head down and plan a kiss on her. But then he immediately looks away. ‘What am I thinking? I leave because I don’t want to see her and now I and to kiss her?’

"I have to go now." He said and push her out, look at the other direction not dare to look in her eye

"Please! I beg you! Please!" try to hold on him and he pushes her out again which make she falls on the ground. He was worry and run to her try to get she up and she hug him tightly afraid to lat go. "Please don’t go!"

"I’m sorry Xiao Yan Zi." He look deeply at her eyes can’t take off anymore. He raise his hand touch her face and wipe all the tears, but there are too many. ‘Should I go? Should I leave a lovely girl crying like this? Or should I stay and forget everything about Mei Ling?" His heart aching ‘Stay or leave?’

Xiao Jain saw them and drag Xiao Yan Zi back, "Xiao Yan Zi, let him go! Anyway he can’t stay here with you forever!"

She tries to escape from Xiao Jain embrace but she can’t and fall on the ground again, "Get of me! Yong Qi! Please don’t go!" Yong Qi knew that if he stays here for one more minute he’ll will decide to stay here so he run to the horse and rode away.

"No! Don’t leave me!" she shout, Yong Qi on the horse could hear her sweet voice, a single tears drop down from his face.

"No. Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me." Her voice drop down

"Xiao Yan Zi, he has to go. You can still play with Ziwei, Qing’er, Erkang and me." Xiao Jain said tries to comfort her

"No. If someday you loose me you can still have Erkang, Ziwei, Yong Qi and Qing’er. Is that the same?" she said while crying then she walk to her room.

She closes the door and crying. ‘Why do you have to leave me? Will everybody else will leave me too?’ She crying and sobbing all day. Qing’er and Ziwei was worry and try to talk to her. They knock on her door and Xiao Yan Zi went to open it. They were shock! Her big beautiful eyes were all swollen she still crying.

"I miss Yong Qi so much!" then she hug them

"Um… Xiao Yan Zi, Yong Qi said that he will be back soon. Like about… um, one or two weeks." Ziwei lie, Qing’er widen her eyes and take a glance at her.

"Really?" Xiao Yan Zi exclaim

"Yes. Really. The as soon as he finish the task, it… it won’t take him long." Ziwei said nervously, signal to Qing’er that she’ll tell her later.

"Now, stop crying. I think you need to rest now." Qing’er said and the two of them went out.

Outside,

"What are you think you doing?" Qing’er said angrily

"I have to! I can’t let she cry like that! I’m sure you can’t stand there and look her crying too, right?" Ziwei said seriously

"But she shouldn’t lie to her! What if after one or two weeks Yong Qi didn’t get back here yet?"

"I’d said that as soon as he finish the task. One or two weeks are what I think." She said

"I don’t think it would be good to give her any hope."

"I know! But look at her! Her eyes all swollen! She’s been crying! She must be missing him a lot."

"Do you think she likes him?" Qing’er ask

"I won’t cry that much for a people I don’t love." Said with a smile on her face

"Ziwei you always the best! You understand everybody’s feeling! You the smartest one I gotta say. You always think clearly before you do anything!" Qing’er said admiring

"Oh stop all the praise. I’m not that good! If Xiao Yan Zi really likes Yong Qi then that would another problem for us."

"Why you said so?" confuse

"Yong Qi hasn’t forgot about Mei Ling yet!"

"Yes he did! He did already forgot about her! And he likes Xiao Yan Zi now! That’s why he leave!"

"If he really forgot about her then he doesn’t have to leave! He don’t have to run away from Xiao Yan Zi!"

"But he did likes Xiao Yan Zi right?"

"Yes. He does. But he still have feeling toward Mei Ling!"

While Xiao Yan Zi in her room, she was happy with joy. She don’t know why she so happy just because he’ll be back early. Every morning before Yong Qi leave she always want to wake up early to see his face, to see his smile, to listen to him talk. It just a strange feeling that she never had.

Back in the palace

Huang Shan was surprise to see Yong I back so early, his face look sad, it like he had missing something.

"Yong Qi! Why you back so early?" Huang Shan ask

"Um, um… I don’t feel good so I come back here. I think I need to r… relax." Yong Qi said hesitantly

"Are you ok? Do you need to summon Tai Yi?" Huang Shan ask concernedly to his favorite son

"No. I think I just need some rest."

************

Everyday Xiao Yan Zi keeps asking about Yong Qi. She misses him a lot. She cry almost everyday. She miss him so badly and she got a high fever.

"Xiao jain, had Yong Qi finish his task yet?" Xiao Yan Zi ask

"Um, I don’t know. But if he finish he’ll be back." Xiao Jain said

"I miss him so much!" She said and lean toward Xiao Jain, a few tears roll down from her face

"I know. Now don’t cry. Look Xiao Yan Zi, you got to get use to it. Even if Yong Qi comes back soon, he still has to go back to the palace one day. Remember, this is just a vacation."

"Oh, I don’t want to think about it now. Tell him to come back soon and tell him that I miss him a lot. Please!" she said

"Xiao Yan Zi! You’re hiding from a problem now! You know that that day will come!"

"I know! But I don’t want to think about it. It hurt me a lot! You can’t imagine how lonely I am when no one here." She crying

"I’m sorry Xiao Yan Zi. I should brought them here."

"No. It not your fault, I want them here. If they not here you’re still mean to me, you’re still hitting me. And I won’t have any happy time like those days. I won’t regret to be their friend. Even if they have to leave one day I still won’t blame them. They are great friends." Crying and sobbing

"But you’ll be lonely again."

"That’s ok. I already get use to it. Anyway I don’t want to talk about it ok? I just want to have a great time with them, with Yong Qi."

"It seem you like Yong Qi a lot."

"Yes. He’s the greatest!" she said innocently

"So now he’s the greatest." Joking

"I didn’t mean that. But I gotta say that he can make me happy more than you. You only can make me feel better that all."

"So you’re telling the truth now huh? You shall be punishing!" He starts to tickle her

"Stop it!" laughing, "You always teach me to tell the truth and now I’m telling the truth and I got punish?"

"Ok. Now get serious, what I mean is do you like Yong Qi." Said seriously

"Yes I like him!" she said

"Do you know what I mean?"

"Of course! You ask me that do I like Yong Qi, right? That’s a simple question, I guess everybody already know except you. Gosh! I thought you are very smart!"

"Hey! What do you mean? I don’t think you understand what I mean. Or else you will blush."

"URGHH you make me furious now! Than what do you mean?" angrily

"What I mean is not the like, like friend like, it like… like… you knows."

"I’m lost."

Sigh and take a big breath and talk fast, "I mean do you love Yong Qi in boy and girl not friendship or brother and sister."

Xiao Yan Zi blush deeply, she lower her head shyly. She’d never thought about this. She only know that she like him a lot, more than the way she likes Erkang, Xiao Jain, Ziwei and Qing’er. Can that call l…love? She feels great around him, she happy when he happy.

"I… I don’t know." She said softly a light smile appear on her face and Xiao Jain saw that and became worry

"You don’t know?"

"Xiao Yan Zi! Xiao Jain!" Qing’er called

"Qing’er!" both of them said

"Hi! What are you talking about?" Qing’er ask saw Xiao Yan Zi red face. Actually she over heard everything.

"Xiao Yan Zi, can I have a talk to you?" Qing’er ask then push Xiao jain away "girls talk"

"Xiao Yan Zi. Tell you the truth. I heard everything."

"Y…you did?"

"Yes. And your answer is ‘I don’t know’ right?"

"Y… yes." Said shyly

"Ok. I can help. I need to ask you some question and you need to answer me honestly. Ok?"

"Ok." Nervous

"What do you feel when you get near him?"

"Great! S…sometime nervous."

"Ok." Smiling, "Does your heart beat faster?"

"Absolutely! How did you know that?"

"Of course, I already had that feeling. Does your face blush?"

"Yes."

"Do you always want to see him, and miss him a lot if you don’t see his face?"

"Yes. That’s what I feel right now!"

"Ok that’s enough." Feel a little sad, "The answer is you do love him."

"Y… you mean it? I do love him?"

"The answer is right in your heart Xiao Yan Zi."

************

Back in the palace

Yong Qi couldn’t concentrate to anything. He keeps thinking of Xiao Yan Zi, her innocent, her beauty and her talent. Huang Shan notice this and he ask him but all he said is he don’t feel good, he summon Tai Yi and all Tai Yi said is Yong Qi need more sleep and he need to eat more. He didn’t eat much, he was a healthy person when he on the first day but now he is much thinner. He didn’t do much thing; all he does is sit on a corner and thinking about Xiao Yan Zi. Thinking of what she do right now, is she happy, is she thinking of him too?

Huang Shan became worry about him but there is nothing he can’t do about it. Before whenever Huang Shan ask him anything he usually answer respectfully but now he doesn’t care if he respect Huang Shan or not (I mean just a little impolite). Sometime while he thinking of Xiao Yan Zi and Huang Shan ask him something and he didn’t answer at all. Huang Shan is really furious but he tries to calm him down, he doesn’t want to punish his favorite son. Huang Hou is really jealous of that, of course!

Once Ling Fei Naing Naing come to Jing Yang Gong to talk to him.

"Yong Qi can you tell me what’s wrong with you?"

"Um, nothing wrong with me Ling Fei Naing Naing."

"There’re must be something. Come on tell me. Is there something wrong while you at Xiao Jain?" he kept silence

"Look Yong Qi, you better tell me or I summon all of them here to ask. Are you guys had a fight?"

"No it not that."

"Then what is it?"

"I… um I…"

"You what? You’re made Huang Shan really angry these days. He is very unhappy about you. He don’t want you to be like this. Ok? Now tell me."

"I’m in love with someone."

"Y…you do?" smiling, "That’s great! Then why you have to be so sad? Is it because that girl is Han? Is she a commoner girl?" ask worried

"No." he shakes his head, "She’s Xiao jain’s sister."

"She doesn’t like you? If yes then you don’t have to worry because you an Ah Ge, Huang Shan will make that girl marry you."

"No. First of all I don’t want to force her, second I don’t know if she like me or not, and third I don’t want to be with her."

"W…what? I’m confused now."

"I’m confused too! My head is so hurt and my heart is so hurt too!"

"If you like that girl then why do you come back here?"

"I don’t want to be unfaithful to Mei Ling! But now I know that I love Xiao Yan Zi so much! I thought I can forget her if I stay in the palace! But I can’t! I keep thinking about her! I miss her a lot!" he lower his tone, ‘In the palace I have nothing to do and I keep thinking of her. I couldn’t take her of my mind. I miss her so much! Ling Fei Naing Naing please helps me! I’m really tired of this."

"So her name is Xiao Yan Zi. Yong Qi, you don’t have to be faithful with her. She’s dead. If she know you like this she will be very sad. I believe that she would like you to be unfaithful with her rather than this. Look at you now! I can tell that you really love Xiao Yan Zi. No matter what you do, no matter where you hide, you’ll never get away from your heart. Listen to your heart. Follow your heart."

"But I’ll be wrong with Mei Ling. How come I so unfaithful?"

"It’s love. You can’t tell wrong or right, it the most selfish thing and it the most beautiful thing too. You’re the most faithful person that I’d known. Look at all the man in the palace, none of them have one wife," giggle, "You’re faithful enough. You always think of Mei Ling, have you ever think for Xiao Yan Zi? What if she loves you? You can’t hurt her too. But Xiao Yan Zi is alive and Mei Ling is dead."

‘She’s right! I love Xiao Yan Zi then why don’t I be with her. Nobody can be too faithful! She might love me now!’ he smile, ‘It was so great to be with her. I didn’t feel great like this while I’m with Mei Ling. Only she can bring me happiness!’

"Ling Fei Naing Naing, you’re right! I should go back to Xiao Yan Zi!"

"Great! That girl must be very pretty to make our Ah Ge to be like this."

"She’s very attractive! She’s intelligent, kind, gentle and sometime quite playful."

"Oh! Then I must meet that girl!"

"I want to see her now. I’m gonna go right now. I miss her so much that I’ll be crazy if I don’t see her soon." Just then eunuch come in and give them a letter from Qing’er, it said:

Dear Yong Qi,

I have some news for you, it about Xiao Yan Zi. I know that you love Xiao Yan Zi and it no time for you to hide anymore. You have to come back here immediately. Xiao Yan Zi has a high fever because she misses you too much. She didn’t sleep much or eat much. She wants you here. She always asks about you. So come back hurry up. IF YOU LOVE HER NOW THEN FORGET ABOUT MEI LING!!! SHE’S DEAD!!! YOU CAN HAVE XIAO YAN ZI NOW OR ELSE YOU LOOSE HER TOO!!! SHE IS IN GREAT DANGER!