My Sister's Demon - Chapter 3

Pingyang was the only lady in this dynasty to hold the title of junzhu.

The emperor had granted her a fief, supported by its people.

Her exalted standing came not only from her father, the Great General Who Pacifies the Distant Frontiers, who commanded a powerful army and struck awe along the border. More than that, she had saved the Crown Prince’s life as a child.

Years ago, while the two of them were visiting Jiangnan, assassins attacked them.

At the critical moment, she shielded him with her own body. Several arrows struck her, leaving her covered in blood.

She narrowly survived, but the arrows were poisoned. Where one had grazed her face, it left a deep scar. They sought famous physicians throughout the realm. None could remove it.

For such a sacrifice, the Crown Prince swore never to fail Pingyang for as long as he lived.

Everyone said Lady Pingyang would one day preside over the imperial harem as empress.

…

Now this exalted lady looked at me with fury burning in her eyes.

A demon’s senses were different from a mortal’s—far more sensitive.

I could feel the scar on her face deepen with the violence of her emotions.

How could I mistake that look?

She’d only just got rid of one woman, and here was another. Even more alluring, and she’d bewitched the man Pingyang adored the instant they met.

“My dear prince…” Pingyang called in displeasure.

He seemed to realize he’d lost his composure. He stepped back, putting a little distance between us, then told a guard to find me some clothes.

I stayed exactly where I was.

While he spoke to the guard, I deliberately glanced at Pingyang.

Looking at her scar, I gave a contemptuous smile, my eyes full of disdain and provocation.

With all her privileges, she’d probably never been looked at that way in her life.

She stared at me in disbelief.

Shock, indignation, and jealousy struck her all at once.

Almost instantly, she strode over and tore the robe off me.

Her voice twisted with rage.

“The Crown Prince is exalted! You’re a stray girl from who knows where. What right have you to wear his clothes?”

She was strong, and in her pent-up anger she shoved me on purpose.

The riverbank was already slippery. With the robe violently snatched away, I stumbled and lost my footing again.

I fell to the ground, hitting a large stone beside the river.

Blood sprang from my forehead.

Pingyang still didn’t seem satisfied. She was about to come at me again.

“Pingyang!” The Crown Prince caught her, reproach in his voice. “She’s a woman alone in the mountains. I gave her my robe because I pitied her. Why take it so much to heart?”

She looked at him in disbelief.

“My dear prince, you’re… scolding me for some wild woman in the middle of nowhere?”

“We don’t know where she came from. Who knows what evil intentions she might be hiding?”

“When we were children in Jiangnan, it was strangers who attacked us!”

That successfully stirred his tenderness toward her.

Guilt rose in his eyes. With a gentle tug, he drew her to his side.

“My Pingyang is always the one who cares most for my safety.”

“I’m no longer a child. I can protect you now. Don’t be afraid.”

He soothed her with the utmost gentleness. After his reassurances, her anger seemed to abate a little.

“Then, my dear prince, what do you intend to do with her?”

Only then did he look at me again.

Half my body had fallen into the river. My soaked gauze dress clung tightly to me. Blood streamed down my forehead.

I looked wretched… and all the more pitiable.

“Do you have family?” he asked. “Why are you here alone?”

I explained softly, “Your Highness, I have family in Qingniu Town at the foot of the mountain. My sister often comes here to gather herbs. She went missing yesterday, so I came to look for her.”

At that, Pingyang looked interested.

Wasn’t the sister I mentioned the very woman she’d dragged into these mountains and tortured to death yesterday?

Pinching her silk handkerchief, she covered her mouth and laughed at my misfortune.

“Perhaps wild beasts tore her apart. Who knows?”

Her laugh was playful.

“Pingyang…” The Crown Prince gently pinched her cheek.

The cheek with the hideous scar.

He did it so naturally, as though the scar didn’t exist.

Yet beneath the fondness on his face, I sensed the threads of revulsion he struggled to conceal.

I was curious.

Was he disgusted by the scar beneath his fingers?

Or by Pingyang making sport of a person’s life?

Of course she couldn’t sense his disgust. She went on coaxing him.

“My dear prince, send her away. Let’s go on looking for the treasure.”

He nodded and ordered someone to help her onto her horse. Then he told a guard nearby to escort me home safely.

As I followed the guard down the mountain, warmth pressed into my hand.

The Crown Prince had slipped a jade token into my palm.

As if he’d sent the guard to protect me on the way down.

He wanted the man to follow me and find out where I lived.

The jade token was a sign of his interest in me.

I didn’t expose him.

A gift deserved something in return. As we parted, I looked back and gave him a bashful smile.

He was very pleased.

…

On the way down, I asked the guard, “Sir, the lady and the Crown Prince said they came here for treasure? I only know these mountains have plenty of herbs. I’ve never heard of any treasure.”

“A wandering Daoist priest said there was treasure here,” he replied. “That’s what brought His Highness.”

Then he kindly warned me, “Miss, the imperial family’s affairs have nothing to do with you. Don’t ask too many questions. You’re certainly an extraordinary beauty, but take my advice: the Crown Prince’s side is no good place for you. Cross Lady Pingyang and you’ll be dead before you know what hit you.”

“Is that so?” I smiled. “Thank you for warning me. You’re a good man.”

He was right.

This was certainly not the time to provoke Pingyang.

I still didn’t know who the men who’d violated my sister that night were, or where they were.

Only Pingyang knew. And she had the Crown Prince protecting her.

Even for a demon like me, the imperial family was dangerous territory. I didn’t dare act rashly.

I would need patience to deal with her.

But now that Qingniu Town was in sight, I feared my patience for other people was running out.

Suddenly, I was so hungry.

Following my sister’s memories, I pointed to a rather dilapidated house.

“Sir, that’s my home.”

The man sitting outside was cursing at a little boy in front of him.

“Damn it! Your sister said she’d earn more silver serving at the polo gathering. It’s been days! Why isn’t she home?”

“You’re a useless sickling, too. Always falling ill, just like that dead wife of mine. Wasting my silver!”

“If you weren’t a boy, I’d have drowned you the day you were born!”

He kicked the child.

The boy looked ill. He sat on the ground with his head bowed, saying nothing.

Having noted the house, the guard sighed and left.

I, however, was excited.

I searched all around.

Something wasn’t right. There should have been a stepmother here, too—the one who forced my sister up the mountain to gather herbs in the bitter depths of winter, and burned her with hot coals at the slightest displeasure.

Where had she gone?