Three months passed and the chill of winter was finally, officially, on them. Out of all the states of the Huo Empire, the state that Meifen lived in, State Zhixing, was known to have the coldest and longest winters. Meifen rubbed her arms as she slipped out of the bed. Sunlight seeped through the window and spilled over her wooden floors. It was early afternoon but since she had a long night, she was waking up later than usual. She had just gotten home from a task that nearly shaved a few years off her life. She had to steal important documents from a man, which she did, but she didn't expect him to chase her down and fight. It had dragged on and she was able to defeat him and escape, but not without bruises and a few cuts on her body.

    She rubbed her face and tightened the robes around herself. Before she could even think about breakfast or what she would do for the rest of her day, there was a soft knock on her door before one of the girls poked her head through the doorway. Meifen didn't remember her name but vaguely remembered seeing her around. "Lady Meifen, Lord Hongqi is requesting for you to come to his office immediately. It's urgent."

    Her jaw almost slammed the floor. Again? When was she ever going to have a break? It was back to back missions over and over again! If she didn't know any better, he was trying to overwork her. She grumbled a response before she hurriedly changed her outfit into a simple modest dress. She didn't bother tying her hair in an elaborate style and simply pulled it back with two pins. Once presentable, she marched to Lord Hongqi's office, ready to give him a piece of her mind.

    Mad as she was, she had half a mind to knock on his door before sauntering inside. The various weapons adorning his walls glittered in the sunlight as she stepped inside. The door clicked behind her softly and she blinked back as she saw Manchu sitting in one of the seats across from Lord Hongqi. Instantly, her already sour mood soured further. She had been adamant when she told Lord Hongqi that she refused to handle any further missions with Manchu. She had explained to him how rude, pretentious, and overbearing he had been.

    "No," she said, backing away and ready to spin on her heels. "I refuse—"

    Lord Hongqi stood from his seat. It screeched against the wooden floor. "Meifen, at least listen to what we have to say."

    She narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. She didn't even look at Manchu. "I told you I don't want to work with him ever again. He disregarded my life during the last mission! Why should I even think about working with him again?"

    "Meifen, please have a seat," Lord Hongqi said, motioning towards the seat across from him.

    "Lord—"

    "Meifen." His tone was abrupt and sharp. Even though he had a thin smile on his face, Meifen knew that there were no smiles in his plans. Her shoulders stiffened and she had no choice but to cross the room and take a seat. Once seated, Lord Hongqi sat down as well. "Lieutenant General Manchu has come for you and you alone for this mission. You are the only one who can do it, he believes so."

    Her dark gaze flitted over to him. He was garbed in his military attire and was sitting stiffly in his seat, his chin raised and his scraggly white hair brushed back into a topknot. He cleared his throat. "As you know from the last mission, it was very important for us to retrieve Xia Zengguang—"

    "Actually," she interrupted, earning a sharp glance from Lord Hongqi, "I didn't know. Why? Because you refused to tell me."

     His shoulders became taut and he shifted in his seat uncomfortably. "Ah. Well, yes," he said. "Anyway, Xia Zengguang's retrieval was very important because we need his superb military sense and strategic mind. It has been three months since he's been living in General Hung's home and we have been doing the best we can to heal him and make him healthy enough to join the battlefield once more. He is, surprisingly, still a brilliant man but he's not the same as he was before and he's still in no condition to join the battlefield. He has night terrors, he screams all through the nights, he has delusions every now and then, he shivers nonstop, he attacks people randomly, and he doesn't have control of himself sometimes. This is where we need you."

    She drummed her fingers against the armrest of the seat. She wasn't sure what she thought of this whole situation and where this conversation was going. Of course Zengguang wouldn't be miraculously healed and back to the way he was in a matter of months. It would take years and years for him to have a semblance of his old self, and even then, there was no guarantee he would ever go back to how he was.

    "You see, the General thought it would be best to give him a woman servant to assist him with his needs and to coax him into a healthy state, since a woman's touch is better than a man's in this type of situation. Anyhow, all the maids that were given to him were injured by him at one point or another. He has shown great remorse and says he vaguely remembers attacking them. These attacks usually happen at night time during one of his nightmares. He feels as if he is running away and attacks the first person that approaches him because he thinks they're going to imprison him once more. He isn't aware of his actions and it isn't until morning comes that we see the aftermath. Since you were the only one that caused him to have a hint of improvement and because you know how to fight, you're the perfect match to help him."

    Meifen closed her eyes. He seemed to be more trouble than not. There was a chance she could get attacked because of his delusions, she would have to tread carefully around him, and she was essentially going to have to babysit. None of this seemed interesting. "Essentially, you want me to baby him."

    He blinked back. "Not necessarily—"

    "Take care of him, help his pain, etc." She stared at him levelly. "You want me to babysit him, basically."

    "When you put it that way, yes."

    "Since you said that he commits all of these actions at night, I'm to presume that I have to take care of him during nights as well," she said. "Where will I be staying?"

    "You will be given a room in General Hung's house. You will be given proper full course meals, you will be given days off, you will be given liberties around the house, and you will be paid well."    

    "For how long?"

    "One year."

    On one hand, it seemed like a bad idea. What was the fun in babysitting a full-grown man? She would be playing as his servant for an entire year. That didn't sound appealing. On the other hand, didn't she want to have a break? She could relax all day and not have to worry about anything. Taking care of him couldn't be that hard. After all, he was a full-grown man!

    Another thought came to mind. "Wait, one year? You think he'll be ready to join the battlefield in a year?"

    He shook his head. "No, but we think in maybe three or four years he'll be ready. We're just asking you to try it for a year and see if you can do it. If you don't want to continue after the year is up, you will go back to Lord Hongqi and continue your activities. If you want to continue to help Zengguang, General Hung will pay Lord Hongqi to sever ties with Spring Lotus."

    She almost giggled. This was becoming rather interesting. They were truly pinning all their hopes on Zengguang. The war between Ki and Huo was raging on terribly and everyone was feeling the effects of constant war, but did they truly think that a single man was all it was going to take to overturn the war? There needed to be at least half a dozen men that were just as brilliant and amazing as Zengguang. Zengguang himself couldn't put much of a dent on this war.

    Contrary to what some people might have thought, she wasn't keen on severing ties with Lord Hongqi and going her separate way. She was a seductress because she believed she was making small changes in the war. Her father had been a soldier, as were her five brothers. They all died in the war, leaving her behind at such a young age. To be making some sort of change, by acquiring information and passing it along, spying on people, and simply assassinating political figures that had ties with Ki, she felt like she was a part of this war without being on the front lines. She didn't care if she would be 'free' from this life. This was the life she had chosen.

    Though, one year of relaxation was too much of an opportunity for her to let slip by. "But won't you miss me?" she asked Lord Hongqi. Her lower lip jutted out as she gave him a pout. The corner of her mouth twitched when he answered, "Don't be ridiculous."

    She chuckled. "I'll do it."

    Manchu visibly relaxed. "That's good news."

    "No thanks to you," she said with an eye roll. "If I wasn't so tired and longing for a break, I would refuse since you're the one asking. My longing for a vacation is stronger than my dislike of you as a person."

    "Now, Meifen, he's still a Lieutenant General. That's a very high position. You should show him respect—" Lord Hongqi started.

    "How can I respect a man that almost let me die?" She rose to her feet. "I've accepted to go along with this mission, so I hardly see a point in arguing. I won't hide my displeasure for him. He may have a respectable position, but he has given me no reason to respect him." She gave a small bow. "Lord Hongqi, when should I leave?"

    "Two days."

    "Perfect," she said. She gave another small bow. "Am I dismissed?"

    He nodded.