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xiaogesword · 3 days ago

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“The Oath of the Peach orchard.”

So earlier I talked about a fantasy story I've been writing based off Romance of The Three Kingdoms, I posted the prologue and character profiles here , and below are the first two chapters!

Chapter One

The Eternal Winter

Shanwen forest

The Border of Liaoshi

The wind blew fiercely, shards of ice and snow carrying with the gusts.

The huangshan pine trees were blanketed with thick layers of white….which served as a reminder that this land hadn’t felt warmth in over a decade.

The snow fell continuously…burying the ground in a never ending abyss.

Though, this adversity…..often referred to by the locals as the ‘Eternal Winter.’ didn’t stop a specific young Prince from completing his mission.

His wooden bow creaked as he pulled the string back tightly. The arrow fletching brushed against the cold-flushed skin of his cheek.

His lungs — filled with the icy air— held a breath for a moment, his keen eyes steadying at his target; a glowing red fruit which hung from the high branches of a tree.

In one exhale, he released the arrow…sending it soaring through the sky.

With a sharp impact, it severed the stem of the fruit, which then fell to the snow with a crunch.

The boy rushed to get it out of the cold. He gently picked it up, his flushed lips forming a thin smile as he bundled the warmth in his palms.

The fruit held a delicate smell, like that of burning cane sugar.

He placed it in his pocket and continued through the forest of pine.

“The only tree growing these rare fruits would be deep in the forest of Shanwen , nearing the border of Liaoshi territory…”

Trudging through the deep layers of snow, the words of the Imperial physician returned in his mind. Like a reminder that he was disobeying a direct order from his father, the late emperor.

A sigh left his lips as he paused.

Was this right? He had disobeyed orders and crossed the border into a land that had once ravaged his own home decades ago, risking breaking the ‘Peace.’ Treaty that had been signed.

But, then again…he was doing this for his mother. A frail woman who had fallen sick a few months prior. Like the Physician had said, this fruit was likely the only thing that could make her feel better.

‘It's fine…as long as I get back undetected…there's nothing to worry about.’

He gave himself a small nod to assure his reasoning. Then, he removed his fur hat and shook off the crystals forming on the top, revealing his inky hair that was messily pulled into a knot at the back of his head.

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew forth, taking the hat with it. The boy outstretched his hands, trying to catch it before it got too far, but he missed.

The hat fell into the icy river below the hill he looked over, getting carried with the strong currents.

He frowned, his brow furrowing slightly as he tightened his fur collar against his neck.

“Rongyuan!”

He swung his head around at the sound of his name being called, and quickly spotted his brother, Wu Hao, trudging through the snow. He wore a white hanfu cloak with gold accents and white fur, and his dark brown hair was pulled loosely back into a half pony-tail and secured with a tie, leaving some pieces out in the front around his face.

His uncle followed behind, the same worried expression furrowing his brow.

“Are you alright? What are you doing out here?”

His older brother quickly pulled him away from the edge of the hill.

“Rongyuan, Are you hurt?” Wei, The Royal adviser, and brother to the Empress Dowager, followed closely behind.

The boy shook his head.

“I’m fine, don’t worry.”

He reached into the layers of his wrapped clothes, under the fur and silks, and gently pulled out the fruit he had managed to find. His smile widened when placing them in his brother's cold hands.

Wu Hao’s worried expression quickly shifted to one of surprise.

“Xiao-Yuan…” he chuckled and placed his hand on Rongyuan's head, giving him a pat.

“You really found them…”

The three hurried back using the horses that they had left at the border, and though the palace was far, they managed to reach it before the night settled in.

They arrived at the edge of a snowy hill, one that overlooked Baijing City…a city built in a large dip in the mountains. For further protection from outside threats, a wall was created hundreds of years ago. It went for miles. stone by stone, encircling the whole city.

Now, the sun was nearly hidden behind the mountained horizon, casting a glow across the stone houses and illuminating the bright yellow tiles on the palace roofs. These palace grounds stood loftily in the middle of the city, on a manmade platformed hill.

Uncle Wei led the two princes down a slope and through a mountain cavern, one that had lanterns strung from side to side every so often. Though, they were old, faded and mostly broken from a lack of proper upkeep the last few years.

Eventually, they arrived at a pair of tall crimson gates. The lookout towers on either side housed torches that had been lit by the guards standing in front.

“Welcome back, your highnesses. Let us open the gates.” One of them spoke, earning a nod from Uncle Wei.

“Thank you.”

Rongyuan watched as the looming gates creaked open. The ones that he had snuck past early that morning. With only a rope, his bow and quiver full of arrows, he had managed to somehow distract the guards and slip past them.

“Come on, Xiao-Yuan,” Wu Hao motioned for him to follow closely, as their steeds continued at a steady pace into the city.

They passed by vendor carts, people selling their crops, porcelain wares and other materials.

Everyone looked to them as they strode through the city toward the palace, muttering and whispering among themselves as they moved out of their path.

“Second Prince!” A young woman called out, pushing her way through the crowds carrying a woven basket full of something.

Wu Hao halted his horse and looked down to her, brow quirked as she held out the basket to him.

“Please take these, your highness. They’re some of the best of this year’s crop, so naturally they should go to the Emperor and his family.” She spoke, her arms trembling as she held it up. Her face was pink against the harsh cold, and she wore merely a thin linen robe.

He took the basket gently, looking inside to see a bunch of glistening, freshly picked small oranges. His gaze shifted to her as his smile widened.

“That’s very kind of you, miss. But I can’t take them without giving something in return. How about a trade?”

He hooked the basket onto his saddle, then went to untie his Hanfu cloak.

She watched, eyes widening as he held out the heavy white cloth.

“Will this do?”

She grasped it from him gently, feeling the soft fur lining and delicate embroidery.

“Thank you, your highness!” she beamed, earning a laugh and nod from the male.

A small smile tugged at Rongyuan’s lips as they continued down the path once more.

“Wu Hao….how do you always know what to do and say in those kinds of situations?” He marveled, genuinely curious.

“I don’t know. I just….saw she was freezing and thought she’d appreciate it,” he shrugged, smiling.

Uncle Wei chuckled from his spot in front as their horses' hooves clopped against the stone.

It seemed like Wu Hao could always say or do the right thing, while he, Rongyuan, was still trying to find his footing in this world.

As they approached the guarded palace gates, they handed off their horses to the stable hand and continued up a set of stone steps, which led into a large courtyard.

The bustling sounds of the city gradually dissolved, now replaced by the crunch of their footsteps on the barren path. The moon reflected off the small pond in the middle of the bare courtyard. It was usually frozen over, but since this time of year was the warmest, the Koi swam about freely. Rongyuan wondered if there would ever be a time he’d get to see the lotus blossoms he heard of in poems and paintings from his ancestors.

His gaze lingered at the pond, before he hurried forward once more. He followed his brother and Uncle Wei through the courtyard and up another set of steps leading to the main veranda.

Lanterns hung loftily across the awnings, illuminating the waxed lattice walls as they approached the entrance to the emperor’s study.

After a moment, Wu Hao gently knocked on the door twice, which was followed by the stern voice of their eldest brother.

“Come in,”

His tone was harsh and carried a sort of coldness that sent a shiver down Rongyuan’s spine.

Wu hao slid open the door, revealing a large room with tall bookshelves on every wall. Lattice partitions stood at either side of the room, and behind them, In the middle, a low desk sat with papers and books stacked high.

The emperor, oldest brother to the two, sat behind it. His gray eyes glinted in the warm light that emanated from his candle. Despite being young, at the age of 29 he had two pure white chunks of hair that stood out amongst the rest, near his temples. They were pulled into a bun at the back of his head, which was held by a thin metal hairstick, one that resembled a tiger.

Rongyuan never openly questioned why his appearance was so…unusual, but he had always wondered why his eyes and hair took on this color.

After a moment, he set his thin inked brush down beside the scroll laid out in front of him.

“Wu Hao, I must ask you to leave, as this is a matter that only concerns young Rongyuan.” He started, finally looking up at the two.

Wu Hao clenched his jaw, then brought a hand to Rongyuan’s shoulder.

“No, Xie Lei, you’re wrong. ” His expression shifted…becoming more serious than before.

“This is a matter that concerns all of us.”

The man sighed, though he said nothing. He then cleared his throat, his attention shifting to Rongyuan. His brow furrowed in the slightest.

Scooting forward a bit, Rongyuan held out the fruit like a piece offering, something to appease his anger toward him.

The man’s eyes widened, a mix of surprise and something like anger creeping onto his face. He slammed his fist on his desk at the sight of the fruit, causing the books and porcelain teacup to rattle.

“You crossed into the neighboring territory? What were you thinking? Do you know how hard father worked to settle things with them? You’ve seen the crimson bounds…you know what they did to us all those years ago…do you want history to repeat itself?!”

His words echoed through the study, creating a tense atmosphere between the three brothers.

“I’m….sorry… I-I thought…” Rongyuan began, tears stinging in his eyes as his heartbeat quickened.

“I thought…it was ok, since it’s for mother….”

He looked up, meeting his stern gaze briefly. His face tensed.

“She’ll die without them,”

The room went silent.

Xie Lei sighed and rubbed the space under his thin rectangle glasses.

“…Tomorrow is your ceremony, so I will not instate a punishment just yet…but know, your actions are always followed by consequences, dire or not. Do not forget. Now, Both of you leave.”

With a small sigh, Wu Hao bowed his head respectfully, then turned around, headed toward the door without a word.

Rongyuan swallowed the lump in his throat, turning to leave the study. He hesitated, looking back at him for a moment, before dropping his gaze and exiting the room.

Chapter Two

Fragile as Glass

Wu Hao and Uncle Wei offered to take the berries to the imperial kitchen to be made into tea for their mother. Meanwhile, Rongyuan went to visit her in her room.

He made his way around the corner, where a short veranda led to his mothers sleeping quarters.

He gently pushed open the door, revealing a large room with lattice walls and partitions that displayed porcelain vases and books.

“It's me. I’ve come to see how you’re doing, mother.”

Rongyuan announced his entrance as he walked toward the large bed his mother rested on. Her pale features stood out from the dark blankets and fur that laid over her frail body. Despite this, a smile graced her face as she sat up slightly against the wall behind her.

“Ah, my dear… it's such a comfort to see you. Would you relight the incense for me? It seems to have gone out.”

Rongyuans lips tugged at a smile, and he quickly made his way to the small side table with an intricate design depicting a dragon pressed into incense powder.

A line of delicate haze trailed up into the air as he re-lite it with a candle.

He turned and made his way to his mothers bed.

The woman's smile widened as she looked over his features. She reached out of her blanket and grasped his hand, cradling it in her cold yet soft grip.

“Rongyuan…” she mumbled, the skin near her brow wrinkling slightly.

He looked down, too ashamed to meet her gaze.

“It’s your duty to obey your eldest brother .” She continued, her expression softening.

“But also…it’s good to think for yourself sometimes. I wont be mad at you for what you did, so don’t worry about that. All I ask is that you try your hardest to get along with your brothers….alright? Although they express it in different ways, they both want the same for you…to be out of harm's way. They witnessed things unimaginable during the war… things that they never want you to have to go through as well.”

His eyes widened as he heard these words. He himself had been born the year that the peace treaty was signed, so he didn’t know of the death and chaos that went on.

All his life, he had wondered why things were as they were. Why was it that he had never once seen the green grasses and gentle blue skies that his ancestors described in poetry and paintings? Or why they spent their days in fear…fear that their neighbors would attack once again, perhaps leaving them with even less than they did before.

He remembered one time when he was much younger, when Wu Hao was nearly the same age as him now…he had asked him about why the peach blossoms never bloomed.

“The peach blossoms, Xiao-Yuan…” he’d began, pausing as though searching for the right words, “…they need warmth to bloom. But our lands have been cold for a very long time. When we learn how to bring back the warmth, they’ll return, don’t worry. You’ll see a summer day sometime, I promise.”

Rongyuan had held onto that hope, clutching it tightly as the winter dragged on year after year. Now, standing in his mother’s dimly lit room, looking over her frail features, those words resurfaced.

“Do you understand, Xiao-Yuan?” The woman continued, her tone soft as it broke him out of his thoughts. “Tomorrow, you will be 16. You will be given a spot in the court, and those around you will begin to treat you as an adult. You need to work hard, and do your best, ok?”

He felt her squeeze his hand gently, and he nodded, lips tugging at a smile.

“Yes…I’ll try hard, mother. I promise.”

A knock then came to the door, followed by a voice.

“It's me, Wei, your majesty, may I enter?”

“Yes, you may come in,”

The door opened, and Uncle Wei walked in alongside Wu Hao. He carried a tray with tea and a peeled orange from the girl at the market earlier.

The woman chuckled slightly as they made their way to Rongyuans side.

“After all these years of me telling you otherwise, you still insist on calling me by those honorifics? We are still brother and sister.”

The man laughed.

“Forgive me….Caomei…force of habit,” he stated, pouring a steaming serving of tea in the porcelain cup. Wu Hao handed it gently to the woman.

Its sweet yet bitter scent floated around the room. The mixture of the green tea and the flame berries created an unusual flavor.

“Thank you, Wu Hao.” She turned to him, cradling the cup in her hands.

With a smile, she gently lifted the tea to her lips.

“Of course. How are you feeling, Mother?” He asked, watching her intently as she took a sip of the warm liquid.

“I’m feeling much better, Now that you three are here.” She stated, setting the cup back down at the side table. After sitting up a bit more, she lifted her hands and cradled the sides of their faces with her palms.

Their smiles grew as she spoke further, her tone quiet and fragile as glass.

“I’m so lucky to have precious boys like you….”

A heavy sigh left the male’s lips as his candle light flickered beside him.

He had been on the same paragraph of the same archive-texts for the last 15 minutes.

His brother’s words from earlier played over and over in his mind, alongside his pleading eyes.

“She’ll die without them.”

He removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, shutting his eyes for a moment.

Of course, Rongyuan’s actions had been a big risk, but for whatever reason, he felt the slightest amount of guilt that the boy wanted to take things into his own hands.

He was the emperor. It was his responsibility to take care of his family and his people…so why did he feel as if nothing he did was enough? No matter how hard he tried to deal with and fix the things in front of him…there was always more. It had been like that for the past 16 years, when he had been robbed of his childhood at the age of 13.

It was exhausting.

Finally, he blinked his eyes open, looking back down to the writing on the paper.

Another sigh left his lips, and he stood.

Making his way to the wall in the corner of his study, his gaze glided over the books and scrolls stored on the shelves.

Finally, he pulled out an old worn scroll. It was wrapped tightly with a string and fastened over a small carved stone. It was their family crest, a torch-like symbol that carried three jewels resembling a flame.

He brought it over to his desk and sat back down. His eyes narrowed as he untied the scroll, revealing faded brush strokes on the brittle paper…it all flowed into a shape faintly resembling a dragon. This was a map, marking their borderlands and the agreed areas of safe passage.

He sighed once more, scanning the map’s intricate details and lines of text. The forest of Shanwen was right at the border of their two lands. Liaoshi and Baijing. Well, technically, it ran through three lands. Liaoshi, Baijing, and at the very tip, or ‘tail.’ Of the land was Tashkar. Though the smallest of the three, it was just as rich in trade and culture.

Qilong once lived peacefully as these three countries, that is, until a war broke out.

The warriors of Liaoshi marched on horseback across the continent, wreaking havoc and destruction. Leaving trampled cities, burnt bridges and rivers running red with the blood of their neighbors.

All because of something known as the Wuxing. Thought to be legend, this stone pendant granted unique powers to those that wielded it. Though only a few could use those powers safely, it was sought after and eventually split into five shards. Four of these shards were hidden and scattered across the continent by the late emperor…soon to be forgotten and never talked about.

The male extended the scroll out further now, and a small folded piece of paper fell out onto his desk.

He set the scroll down, then reached to pick up the paper, brow quirked slightly.

‘This is odd…’

He unfolded it gently, revealing another map of some sort. It seemed hurried, but successfully conveyed the whereabouts of something. Well, four things, to be specific, each one marked with a circle, all placed in different areas across the lands.

There was some text, as well. As soon as Xie Lei read over it, he knew immediately what this map was for.

“How could this be?” he muttered.

Surprise and confusion flashed in his eyes as he stood from his desk, still scanning the paper. He hadn’t opened this map in years, but still, how could he have overlooked such a thing?

‘A map…to the remaining four shards of the Wuxing? Did Father do this? ‘

He swallowed a lump in his throat, then sighed after a moment. Even if he did have a map to the four shards, there was still one that resided across the border, at the palace in Liaoshi… the Shard of Water.

The whole reason that Qilong was in this ‘Eternal Winter.’ was because this stone had been in a constant, untouchable state of function since the end of the war. And of course, it was consistently under close guard by the Emperor Zhang's men.

Without bloodshed, there would be no way to retrieve it. So it was still hopeless.

After another moment, he placed the paper in the fabric of his hanfu and sat back down, pushing the scroll aside for the archive texts from earlier.

Yet another heavy sigh left his lips.

- Footnotes

Baijing City is the largest and one of the only settlements in the country of Baijing, as the others had been destroyed during the war.

The Wuxing, a stone pendant that was once one, is now split into 5 shards and scattered across the continent of Qilong. If all 5 shards are united, who knows what could happen?

#ITS HEREEEEE #Eeeeeh I love this story sm #chinese fantasy #original story #cheng yi #hou minghao #liu bei #chinese history #XIE LEI MA LOVVVVVVE

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xiaogesword · 7 days ago

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I am spending my last free time filling out a prompt for Wu Xie Birthday Week 2025 (thank you @tiesanjiaoshenanigans for organizing this!) because that's what you do when you have to leave in 30 minutes but feel like you need to thrash out this one heartbreaking idea you had about Ten Years Later but also make it snappy.

So here goes.

March 6 - Day 4: Relationships / Post-Ten Years

Wu Xie remembered the cold. It came to him from memories of a past life, where he had huddled for warmth at the foot of Changbai Mountain, twisting himself into a pretzel inside his sleeping bag, because he was determined not to let any weakness show. What if he actually complained that he was cold and Xiaoge just left him there?

Xiaoge did actually leave him there, but Wu Xie would like to believe that it wasn't because he was cold.

No, it was cold then, but not as cold as it was now.

Someone had thrown an insulation blanket on top of him, and Wu Xie didn't have to open his eyes to know that it was Pangzi, towing supplies from the camp to the entrance of the cave where they were waiting now.

It had been ten years. Ten years since they had been here, Pangzi and him, after Xiaoge had disappeared.

The Bronze Door. It was still there, looming over them, gleaming faintly green from the flashlights. For one unguarded moment, Wu Xie had wanted to fit all their shaped charges onto that blasted door and see what came out of it. Because he could not stand the waiting anymore. He could not. He could not sit and do nothing, and hope that the doors would open and spit out what they had swallowed all those years back.

A person. A living, breathing person.

Wu Xie shivered, pulling the blanket all the way up to his chin. The glowing digital display on his watch told him it was sometime after midnight.

He had probably dozed off, when he felt someone standing behind him and he started, whipping around and pulling out his kukri from his belt where it was always in its own sheath now. It was a part of him, like Hei Yanjing had told him it was going to be. You cannot wield a blade if you're afraid of it, he had drawled, looking over at Wu Xie behind dark-tinted glasses. Are you afraid of your own limbs? Your own hands? If you can't become one with the weapon, you might as well give it up right now. I can't teach someone who's afraid of their own shadow. Okay, maybe Hei Yanjing hadn't said the last part, but Wu Xie had heard the echoes of it in his voice when he had knocked the kukri cleanly out of his hand.

But as he now took a practiced step back, his foot landing softly on the ground, gaining distance, gaining traction, and gaining momentum, if need be, Wu Xie looked up, and saw a man standing there.

It was Xiaoge.

The kukri slipped out of his grasp in slow motion, but Wu Xie was unable to stop it from falling to the stone floor with a clatter that seemed to resound for ages.

"Wu Xie," Xiaoge said, taking a step forward, his hair falling in a slant over his eyes, and face glowing gently in the light. "You have grown old."

Wu Xie stared, unwilling to believe his eyes, his ears, and felt his hands hanging loosely at his sides, waiting to do something, anything.

"Xiaoge?" he said finally, but it came out as a croak. "It's you. It's really you."

"You came," Xiaoge responded, stepping into the light properly, and Wu Xie could see the threadbare clothes hanging off his body, some of the strips peeling off in ribbons and falling softly onto the ground.

"Of course," Wu Xie said breathlessly, walking forward, trying to intercept Xiaoge before he walked away... like before. "It's not just me. Pangzi also came, don't you want to see Pangzi? Pangzi, hey Pangzi—"

Wu Xie could hear the echoes reverberating in the caves, but there seemed to be no one else there.

Xiaoge took another step forward.

"You are not supposed to be here," Xiaoge said calmly, and Wu Xie recoiled from the words like he had been slapped.

"And you are?" Wu Xie gritted out, swaying on his feet because of the sudden rush of rage pouring through him. "I was the one always supposed to come here, but you took my place, you came here without even telling me... you have no idea what you did..."

"Wu Xie," Xiaoge said, and he felt the words rather than heard them, because Xiaoge was almost in front of him now, within touching distance, his skin glowing like pale jade in the yellow light from the flashlights they had left on the wall. "Your hair turned grey."

Wu Xie touched his hair, feeling a strain behind his eyes as he tried to see what Xiaoge was seeing. "What do you mean?"

"You are not supposed to be here," Xiaoge intoned gently, and Wu Xie just wanted to reach out and touch him, but his hands seemed to have turned into stone at his sides. "You have to go back."

"Just come with me now," Wu Xie replied, feeling his tongue getting heavier in his mouth and tried to stomp his feet to snap out of this strange inertia that was taking over him. "Come with me, and let's get out of here. We'll go home, Xiaoge."

And Wu Xie reached forward, trying to scramble for a hold on Xiaoge, but he seemed to recede into the distance slowly. "Xiaoge! Xiaoge!" Wu Xie yelled, feeling his throat get rubbed raw, and he darted towards the disappearing shadow, but he couldn't reach it anymore.

All his strength seemed to leave him suddenly, and Wu Xie felt his knees crumple under him. The next thing he knew, he was on the ground. It was cold and hard and smelled faintly like moss.

"Tianzhen, Tianzhen!"

Someone was shaking him awake, and Wu Xie opened his eyes blearily, feeling that they got crusted over in sleep. He blinked and saw Pangzi looming over him, waving his arms wildly.

"Wha..." Wu Xie tried to speak, but Pangzi just pulled him up to his feet and turned him around.

"Tianzhen, look who's here," Pangzi remarked, his warm breath, his loud voice waking Wu Xie up better than anything else could.

There, in the exact spot where Wu Xie had seen him before, was Xiaoge, in tattered clothes and eyes that seemed to smile as they looked at him.

"Wu Xie," Xiaoge whispered, his voice like a soft caress in the silence of the cave. "You have grown old."

Wu Xie cried, feeling his cheeks grow wet.

#dmbj #Wu Xie Birthday Week 2025 #Oh this...#This is just heartbreaking 😭#AHHH so many emotions 🥹#Love this op 🥰#queue'r coming with me

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