LEGEND OF THE GOLDEN TIGRESS

The maid who brought the salt wondered when did the punishment in the Huang Manor got changed from canning to whipping. She knew this one always acted arrogant and called himself Lord and she expected he"ll be punished one day but she felt bad seeing him lying there wallowing in pain, grunting and cursing.

"Everyone leave", Xing said in a commanding tone and everyone left leaving Xing and Ming Anshen. He recognised Xing"s voice and helped himself to sit up.

Xing could see his disdainful look turning into bewilderment when he looked at her.

"Ah...! You are a girl...! I forgot completely!", he snorted at Xing and his eyes trailed over her from top to bottom making a.s.sessment of every part of her. She sure looks d.a.m.n delicious! Just because of the way she dressed and the way their brother treated her, he had forgotten the fact that she is actually a fine speciman of a woman!

"There it is! The weird look men give me when I"m in female clothing", Xing cringed. She almost forgot about this as she got used to her brother and others she met lately who don"t look at her that way and look at her like a human.

"Nice to meet you as a servant", she sneered making him clench his jaws.

"You are no...! ", he paused and seeing Xing smirking at him, realisation hit him. "She should be the Huang daughter everyone is talking about!" No way! How could that be!

"You realised, how sweet!", Xing sneered and picked the bowl of rock salt and got near him but seeing him looking at her with a delighted expression that he could be touched by her, she halted her steps and called Xu mama in and asked her to rub the salt in his wounds.

Xing felt a good relief seeing him squirm in pain and he could not stop cursing and there was a guard who hit him more for cursing and then his mouth was stuffed with cloth so that he could not speak.

Xing mama"s not so gentle and inelegant rubbing of the rock salt made the wounds much bigger and Xing felt like all her childhood bad memories were cleansed. This is the guy who forced her and Haru to drink a bowl of soup that had more salt than water. That night both Haru and Xing felt their chest hurting and they felt thirsty and were unable to sleep. He deserves this and more!

Just as she was watching, another unexpected thing happened,

"Look at that!", Xing clapped, " Tarred with the same brush", she smirked, "Concubine.... Nope! Not anymore right?... Maid Lan?"

"You.. How dare..", before she finished, a loud slap landed on her face,

"You should address your master properly, maid Lan. Twenty flogging!", Xu mama told the servant there and she was dragged out of there.

Xing saw the look on Ming Anshen"s face, an utter disbelief and exasperation and that made her feel better as for almost two years this one and his brother cruelly bullied her and Haru for no reason and just because they had power.

Xing would be lying if she said she didn"t want to have a big background at that time, and she had imagined that suddenly her father appearing in an expensive carriage who is more powerful than the Ming family and to see the same look he now has on them.

But learning sword and being out in the world taught her power is what you make of it to be and t.i.tles are expendable. Money is power and information is power. Families fall and families rise and only the smart ones with money stands tall at all times, a well example are the Huang and the Zhong families. And the royal family is the worst place to be and all the rich families are harmonious only on the outside.

It"s a wonder Huang family with three sons are actually harmonious with each other minding their own businessess and not fighting among themselves. It must be the leaders.h.i.+p of Huang Zedong as it would be impossible otherwise.

Still Xing had a reservation towards her uncle as she could never understand how could a father just abandon his son and not even search for him for a month after his disappearance? How could someone who treat his brothers with fairness abandoned his own blood just for the sin of his mother? It"s highly contradictory!

That night after dinner Xing decided to take a walk and actually got lost inside that Manor bigger than her village. She saw a tower like pavilion and there was a lantern hanging upstairs indicating someone was there. Xing got curious and went up to see her Uncle silently drinking in there.

Seeing her there, his page asked her to leave but Zedong stopped him and asked Xing to join him. Xing sat with him and relished the good wine wordlessly. As she looked around she could see the entire Huang Manor illuminated by the lanterns. It could very well serve as a watch tower, Xing thought.

"Those two are leaving tonight and you even arranged for their escape from the Manor?", Zedong asked.

Xing knew he was talking about Ming Anshen and that Lan woman and nodded, "They are going to pa.s.s information to s.h.i.+hong about me. I dared them"

"Dared? ", Zedong was confused. What would she gain from that?

" He said I"m depending on the Huang family and I wanted to prove him wrong. Also Shengli wants to trap s.h.i.+hong and this can very well be used. Ask your men to stand back ", she said.

Zedong sighed," You are a Huang! What"s wrong in relying on your family? And what if they succeed in pa.s.sing information? "

Xing chuckled," Uncle! They cannot. Shengli wanted to kill that woman that day she talked about me. And Ming brother, he has to die in his hands. Your men will only be a nuisance and give them easy deaths", she remembered that woman is her brother"s birth mother and she felt a little bit conflicted but even today she hadn"t changed her ways and decided to act against her and stepped outside the Huang Manor to help s.h.i.+hong , so she deserves it and so does Haru"s brother.

" He won"t be too cruel to a woman", Xing told to Zedong to comfort him but it seemed like he was in different thoughts.

"I don"t care about her. She"s unworthy!", Zedong waved his hands.

Xing saw the small lanterns moving around the walls of the Manor and the security of this place seemed impeccable and even better than their Prime Minister"s Manor"s security evident by Zedong"s knowledge of Shengli"s people in here.

As she was thinking about it, she realised if that is so, there is no way Zedong wouldn"t have known that her father left with Rijun back then, right? So her uncle let her father take his son purposely? Is that why he didn"t search for him as he knew he was safe with his brother?

"Uncle, you knew when my father left with my brother, right? He didn"t steal but you let him take, right? ", Xing asked with her usual bluntness. She always thought this uncle had the look of the one hiding many sorrows.

Zedong stared at the little girl with the darkest eyes he had ever seen," Mingxia! What"s the use in talking about the past? In the end I cannot call him, my son!", he rubbed her head.

Xing saw the sorrow laced in his words and decided to not probe further. He did confirm her suspicions. This is a sensitive matter and digging it up further would only leave in heartbreak. So it"s better the current status quo is maintained. But she also felt like her brother must know the truth and he should know his biological father did not hate him but love him still a lot.

"That day... ", Zedong spoke rubbing his eyes, he was slightly drunk. " That day I learnt that my sons are bullying their two year old brother just because their mother encouraged them!", Zedong said and Xing was perplexed. Surely her cousins don"t look at Rijun with animosity now but that Lady Huang... It is believable that she"d do such despicable thing.

" As I was thinking what to do, Feiye informed me that AoTian was planning to take MingXuan with him. I thought until I resolve the affairs in my home, he"d be safe with his uncle... But...", Zedong buried his face on the table.

MingXuan? That was brother"s name before? So uncle was planning to make him a legal son, before father took him? Xing thought. So father became over-dramatic and changed his name and adopted him before Uncle resolved the issues here? That makes more sense.

"Lady Huang didn"t agree to make him a legal son. I"m glad AoTian raised him...almost the same as glad as he didn"t raise you! He"d have ruined you by over-pampering. But Rijun, AoTian stood right by him. Do you know there is a law that only the legal sons of the Four n.o.ble families has the right to attend the court exams? So I"m glad AoTian raised him as his own and I will not claim him as my son ever. He is my nephew! ", Zedong said and Xing could sense his throat closing in sorrow.

Xing knew of the law pa.s.sed by the Tians.h.i.+ Emperor to reduce the influence of the four n.o.ble families in the Imperial Court. She knew her brother belonged in the court serving the Emperor.

" You did good! You held on very well, Uncle little bun", Xing patted her uncle"s head and she could feel him shaking. Xing didn"t bother him and just stood by his side and Zedong who went through all the hards.h.i.+ps just to keep the promise made to his mother somehow felt his efforts were rewarded.

After that incident, he had raised his two sons with utmost sincerity and taught them good values and took away the needless hate in their heart by properly educating them and separating them from their mother"s influence and they didn"t disappoint him.

Xing had learned these days that even though those old people are over bearing and stubborn and seem unreasonable at times, they sacrifice a lot to protect the people around them and give up a lot for their children. May be that is the definition of an elder, someone who protects everyone even though his efforts aren"t rewarded or appreciated or some times even won"t see the light of the day. No wonder they say elders should be respected!