"RUAN CAIHONG!!!" a voice echoed across the compound.

The sling of the quiver across Caihong's back trembled, as if in fear of the thunderous voice and snapped. The quiver fell with a clatter, and the remaining arrows fell out.

Caihong froze, as the arrows just released by her hit the targets, and a black shadow hovered over her own.

A couple of fingers wrapped around her right ear tightly.

"M-M-M-Mom?" she breathed. She didn't dare turn.

The fingers yanked Caihong by her ear, turning her to face the shapely figure of her mother, dressed in the imperial green and gold of their sect.

Caihong's tea tinted eyes finally travelled up, only to wince at her mother's glowering countenance. Her eyes looked like they would spit fire any moment, and Caihong could've sworn that she had seen thick smoke blowing out of her ears. She gulped.

Neither of them said a word. The woman checked out her grubby appearance. She was waiting for her daughter to say something, and the latter didn't know what to say.

The fingers twisted the ear painfully.

"AAH, MOM!" Caihong yelled as she tried to free her smarting ear.

The tense heavy silence that was looming over them became overly taut, only to get strung up higher by her scream.

Caihong's elder sister couldn't take it anymore. So she broke the silence, in an attempt to defuse the situation.
"Oh Mom, ah, haha, you should have seen Caihong just now, she is doing so well, I can't -" she began.

"YOU BE QUIET, RUAN ANBAI !" the woman snapped.

Zhang tried again. "Lady Ruan," he bowed.

"ZHANG TAIO!" the woman gritted out.

Both of them fell silent, looking crestfallen.

Lady Ruan turned to give her full attention to her younger daughter. "Well, well, well, Ruan Caihong," she began, pausing for a dramatic effect.

Caihong swallowed nervously. Emergency sirens began to blow in her head all at once.

' Uh oh.
Warning bells go jingle jingle,
Mom's calling me by my full name, not single.
Full name means double trouble,
And double trouble means *gulp* BIG TROUBLE!'

Lady Ruan wrenched the ear more, her face flushed with fury.
"AAAHHH!!!" Caihong squealed, trying to squirm her way out.
She quickly started counting on her fingers, almost frantically, the tasks that she had been assigned, very carefully.

While the older woman just perked up an eyebrow and simply squeezed the pinna tighter.

"AH AAAAAH MOOOMMM!!" The other wailed, " MY EAR WILL COME OFF!!! AH AH OUCHY OUCHY OUCH!! AIYAA LEAVE MY EAR, PLEASE... MOMMY!!! MY EAR!!! JIE, SAVE ME, AAHH!! A LITTLE, AHH, HELP, AIGO, ZHANG AH GE?!?!"

Seeing that the wrenching grip on her ear was unrelenting, she rambled on, "MOM... PLEASE... MY EAR... AAHH PLEASE LEAVE IT. AIYA... I SWEAR, I DID ALL THE WORK!! I cleaned up my chamber, arranged my books, did my homework, and sent them to be graded, and... and... umm...uhh. Yeah, I also-"

A couple of metallic clicks were heard, effectively cutting her off. Caihong suddenly felt her body go light, and the armour she had been wearing fell off with a clang.

Anbai almost facepalmed herself and Zhang quickly averted his gaze.
Well... Caihong was just in her undershirt and pants and... she had turned 10 this year.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN JUST YOUR UNDERSHIRT, RUAN CAIHONG ?!?!?!?!!!" Lady Ruan screeched. Her fearful glares flitted between Zhang and her daughter.

"Oh, that? Nothing much, just practising archery," Caihong shrugged nonchalantly. " It's so hot today, so I took them off before training. How would I keep them on while practising on such a day anyway, Mom? Why? Something wrong?"

The woman began to almost tremble with rage. " HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU NOT TO TAKE OFF YOUR ROBES UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES?!?! DO YOU NEED TO BE REMINDED EVERY DAY, THAT YOU ARE A PART OF A ROYAL FAMILY?!?! THAT YOU'RE A GIRL TO TOP IT OFF?!?!"

"Mom, I- I don't understand," Caihong frowned. "Why aren't you scolding Zhang gege? He is in his undershirt too. Why aren't you telling him off too? He is also part of our family."

"Caihong," Anbai said quietly. "I won't deny that it's scalding today, but you really shouldn't be just in your undershirt."

"But Jie-"

"By the way," their mother interrupted. "Didn't you say that you had done all your work?"
Caihong nodded vigorously.

"Have you done your sewing?" She stared blankly.

'Ah... Bitter gourd..'

"You did everything, didn't you, Second Mistress Ruan Caihong?" Lady Ruan grinned.

Caihong became visibly pale and her eyebrows almost disappeared into her hair.

'That grin... stinks of danger from hell... Super duper rotten slimy bitter gourds.'

"Aahhh... Hahahaha ha ha ha...ha.... ha...ha... Mom?" she smiled sweetly, the best winning smile, she could muster in that stranglehold, or rather EAR HOLD.

But rather, unfortunately, that just earned her another sharp twist on her ear.

"AAAAAHHH, MY EAR!!! OUCH!!!" she screamed. "My right ear will become long like an FAE!!! AHH AAAAHH!!! AIYAAAAA!!! Leave my poor little ear, Mom... Please!!! ZHANG GE!!! What do you call cute baby girls who have one fae ear and one human ear? Jie... AH AH AIYA... OWW... OW... what do you call? OUCH... them? AIGOOOO..... OUCHY OUCHY... MOOOOMMMM... LET... AAHH. GO. OUCH... OUUUCCHHH!!!! MOM!! AAA AAA... My ear... Poor... OUCH...ear."

Anbai, who felt sorry for her darling little sister, tried to dissuade her mother before she completely wrenched Caihong's ear off. "Mom, please, Mom, she will do it later. I promise she will do it. Let her go, please?"

Caihong quickly agreed, " Oh yeah, yeah yes, yes, yes, Mom, I-i-I will do it! Yeah, absolutely!! See? I swear!!" She held up three fingers of her right hand next to her head in a promising gesture.

Lady Ruan didn't pay heed to anything. Instead, she just hauled her off along with her, still holding her by the ear, towards the flight of steps leading to the royal quarters.

Caihong stumbled after her, still trying to unsuccessfully free her scarlet ear. She cried, "OUCH, MOM!! Ooowww... Aiyaa... Where are you taking me now??"

"Mother wants to speak to you," Lady Ruan replied flatly.

The three pairs of eyes widened at the mention of this person referred to as 'Mother'. Well, 'Mother' was the Elder Lady Ruan, the mother of Sect Leader Ruan. In other words, the paternal grandmother of Caihong and Anbai.

Anbai mentally facepalmed herself and shook her head. 'Oh Caihong, baby girl, you are sooooo screwed.' She sighed.

Zhang and Anbai could only watch helplessly as she clung to her mother's hand while being dragged off.

Poor Caihong.

She was still trying her best to free herself from the steel-like hold, to go back to practice with Zhang Taio.

"BITTER GOURD!!!" she wailed before the mother-daughter duo disappeared.