Chapter 5: The Shadow That Follows
The following days passed like quiet ripples on the surface of a dark lake. Peaceful on the outside, but something restless stirred beneath.
The entire palace was tense after the murder of the maid. Whispers rushed through the corridors like frightened mice. Eyes watched Mei Lian wherever she went — some curious, some suspicious, some hungry.
But none were more constant than **his**.
Prince Rui.
He sought her out often now. Never publicly enough to cause a scandal, but enough to spark murmurs behind fans and narrowed eyes.
Their conversations were soft, and their glances lingered. There were no declarations or open confessions, but something simmered between them, something neither dared to name.
And yet, it wasn't his attention that unsettled her most.
It was the truth.
> "You don't move like a noble lady."
His words haunted her.
How long could she keep up the illusion? The assassin's instincts lived in her bones. They whispered with every step she took, every glance she exchanged, and every person she measured as a potential threat.
And now, the first true threat had arrived.
The encounter came two days after the murder.
Mei Lian was returning from a quiet afternoon at the lotus pond when she sensed it — the faintest shift in the air.
A step out of place. A breath too quiet.
The shadows between the bamboo trees trembled.
She walked calmly forward, appearing unaware, until the narrow path curved away from prying eyes. Then, in a flash, she spun, her silk sleeves snapping as she hurled a concealed blade straight into the thicket.
A soft grunt. A figure staggered from the shadows, clutching their shoulder.
**A man. Not a palace guard. Not a servant.**
He wore plain clothing, but his stance was unmistakable — poised, trained, dangerous.
Their eyes locked.
"You've grown sloppy," the man rasped, smirking despite the blood soaking his sleeve. "The Crimson Veil I knew would've pierced my throat, not my shoulder."
Her blood froze.
That name.
**Crimson Veil.**
Her past had finally arrived.
"Who are you?" she demanded, her voice deadly calm even as her heart pounded.
The man's smirk widened. "Did you really think you could run forever, Mei Hua?"
Her old name. The name she had buried.
The man took a staggered step forward, one hand still pressed to his bleeding wound. "You were the best of us. The most feared. And yet here you are, playing noble lady, dressing in silk like a caged bird."
Her voice was ice. "I asked who you are."
He bowed mockingly. "Jin Xu. We served the same master, once."
Li Zhen. The man who betrayed her. The man who sent her to her death.
Her stomach twisted.
"What do you want?" she hissed.
Jin Xu's eyes glittered. "I came to deliver a message."
She stayed perfectly still.
"The master knows you survived," Jin Xu continued. "He knows where you are now. And he wants you to remember who you belong to."
He pulled something from his robe — a thin strip of black silk embroidered with a red veiled emblem.
Her old assassin's insignia.
A ghost of her past thrown at her feet.
Mei Lian's hands clenched into fists.
"Tell your master," she said softly, dangerously, "I am no longer his blade."
Jin Xu chuckled. "You always were naive, Mei Hua. You don't get to leave us. You *are* the Crimson Veil. And no amount of silk or noble titles can change that."
Before she could respond, he dropped a smoke pellet and vanished into the mist.
Her pulse thundered as she stood alone in the clearing.
**He found me.**
Somehow, across worlds, Li Zhen had found her again.
The dream of peace and a new life cracked at its edges. The weight of her assassin past loomed heavy. She had blood on her hands. She always would.
But this world, this second chance, had offered her something she never thought she would feel.
Hope. Warmth. And him.
She barely made it back to her courtyard before Prince Rui arrived.
His voice was sharp with concern the moment he saw her pale face. "What happened?"
She tried to compose herself, but the shaking wouldn't stop. "Nothing. I—"
"Don't lie to me." His voice was low, but firm. "I know someone approached you."
The air between them vibrated with tension.
For a moment, her instincts screamed: *Don't tell him. Trust no one.*
But then she looked at his face, the unmasked worry. The raw honesty in his eyes.
He had offered her protection. Not control. Not ownership.
**Protection.**
She took a slow, trembling breath.
"Someone from my past found me," she whispered. "Someone dangerous."
His expression darkened instantly. "From before your illness?"
She nodded.
"An assassin?"
Her silence was answer enough.
His jaw tensed, but his voice remained steady. "Why would they come for you?"
She hesitated. Then, softly: "Because I was one of them."
He stilled.
The confession hung in the air like a blade.
Her heart hammered. She waited for his disgust, his withdrawal, his judgment.
But instead, Prince Rui stepped forward, closing the distance between them.
"You're not that person anymore," he said, his voice quiet but fierce. "I don't care who you were. Only who you are now."
Her throat tightened painfully. "You should care."
He shook his head. "I see the steel in you. I see the shadows. But I also see your heart."
His hand reached up, cupping her cheek. His touch was warm and grounding.
"You are not broken," he whispered. "Not to me."
Tears she hadn't allowed herself to feel threatened to spill.
And then, before she could stop herself, she leaned into his touch.
For the first time, she allowed herself to simply **feel**. To be held. To be seen.
Her whisper was barely audible. "I don't know how to be anything else."
"I will help you," he promised. "If you let me."
And in that fragile, dangerous moment, Mei Lian did something she never thought she would again.
She trusted.
To be continued.....