"Loneliness, regret, betrayal, pain... I have been through it all, but I never lost hope. Survive, fight to gain your freedom—do it, for there will always be a door opening for you."
A full year had elapsed since that dark day. I was now a slave, with Li Wei remaining as my sole companion. Her brother had succumbed along the way. Only the two of us remained, bound together in endless suffering.
We were in the service of a man named Mo Junwei and his son, Mo Yang. There was also an adopted daughter, Mo Hao—a spoiled, fickle creature who harbored a venomous hatred toward me.
Mo Yang was a young man of letters—kind-hearted, charming, and remarkably approachable.
Our labor was neither clean nor easy. Mo Junwei and Dai Mei, the mistress to whom my fate had been auctioned, subjected us to constant abuse. Floggings were a daily occurrence, and to them, Li Wei was little more than a toy for their cruel amusement. I couldn't take it anymore. Suffering, being beaten, eating leftovers, and watching my best friend be treated as mere entertainment—all of it drove me to pure rage. So one evening, I made a decision. It was time to set things right for Li Wei and me.
We had just finished our evening work. Sitting together in our small hut, I turned to Li Wei and said: "Li Wei, it is time for everything to change. It is time for Mo Junwei, Dai Mei, and Mo Hao to pay for all their misdeeds and their crimes against the Empire."
Li Wei looked exhausted. She replied: "My Lady, how are we going to pull this off? We can't even escape this place... There are guards everywhere, and we are stuck in a village cut off from the rest of the world."
I took her hand and said: "Wei Wei, trust me. We will make it. We are going to escape this horrible place and make Mo Junwei and his whole gang pay. I have a plan to get us out, and I know who is going to help us."
"My Lady... speaking of the person who can help us, do you mean the young master?
"Yes, he is our only way out. Tomorrow morning, I will speak to Mo Yang and share my plan with him. Li Wei, get ready—we will be leaving this place soon."
Morning came so quickly. Suddenly, there was a knock at our door. Li Wei went to see who it was and, caught completely off guard, came back to wake me with a trembling voice: "My Lady, wake up! You won't believe it—the young master has just arrived. He is right here."
I told her: "Li Wei, calm down. I will speak to him alone. Go to work as usual, and if Dai Mei or Mo Hao ask where I am, tell them I caught a cold and will be late. Keep everything normal."
I got out of bed and stepped out under the eaves. Mo Yang was standing there, waiting for me. Li Wei left for work as if nothing were amiss.
"Yue, it has been a long time since my departure. How are you holding up?"
I replied: "I'm fighting the best I can."
"I heard that Mo Hao mistreats Li Wei even worse than the other slaves. She also tried to burn you. Yue, I am so sorry that my adopted sister is a cold-hearted woman who only lives for the luxuries provided by my father and her mother. If only my father weren't so corrupt and a lawless man, you wouldn't even be here."
I looked at Mo Yang with a sorrowful yet rage-filled gaze. I knew that all of this had begun because of my stepmother and the murder of my father... If only.
Gathering my courage, I knew I had to tell him about my plan to escape this miserable life. So I told him: "Mo Yang, I need your help."
His eyes widened in sheer astonishment as he echoed: "My... help?"
"Yes, I need you... and I know your mind is sharp enough to already guess what I am asking of you."
He sat down and said: "Yes, Yue, I know very well what you're getting at. You want to escape from this place. I had thought about it, I wanted to help you do it, but I didn't have any status before. That's why I didn't dare do anything."
"Mo Yang, now you can do it... With your position as the keeper of the accounts, you have the power to help me. I need someone who can take me and Li Wei to the capital. I have to meet someone there. It's been a year, and I have to go. I promised my father before he died."
"I just hope that person is still alive..."
Mo Yang looked at me gravely: "The capital has been in turmoil ever since the Emperor passed away two months ago. The new emperor is young. Traitors are everywhere, and wars will soon rage. Yue, life in the capital won't be easy, and the journey to get there will be just as dangerous. But I will help you. When do you want to make your escape?"
"I plan to do it tomorrow night, so as not to alert your father's and stepmother's men."
"Agreed. I will arrange everything by tomorrow morning. I'll make sure my father suspects nothing—they won't even realize you're gone. Don't worry."
Mo Yang was about to leave when suddenly, a slave approached running and panicked: "Yue, Yue, Yue, Li Wei is in big trouble!"
"Young Master... your sister... it's Li Wei! She crossed Lady Mo Hao's guests, and now they mean to make an example of her—to flog her mercilessly before the entire courtyard of slaves. Yue, you must come at once! If we don't move immediately, they will beat her to death!"
Mo Yang took me by the hand: "Yue, let's go!"
As we burst into the stifling slave quarters, the air turned ice-cold. There she stood, flanked by Dai Mei and her ruthless personal guards, while the trembling servants huddled in silence all around.
Mo Hao's eyes locked onto me, her voice cutting through the tense silence like a blade: "Mo Yang! Step away from that worthless wretch this instant. I said, move!"
Beside her, Li Wei was bound with ropes around her hands, weeping: "My lady... I am sorry... It was an accident, I didn't mean to disappoint you."
I looked at her with eyes filled with tears and anger, trying my best to reassure Li Wei through my gaze. In a loud voice, Dai Mei cried out: "An accident? Do you take us for fools... Your job was simple. You only had to entertain my daughter's guests. But instead of that, you spilled wine on one of them and you say it's an accident... Pathetic."
Mo Hao glided forward, her fingers clawing roughly at Mo Yang's sleeve to pull him away: "My sweet brother, why waste a single thought on such a worthless wretch? She is nothing more than a slave. Both she and that sniveling servant of hers do nothing but vex me and mortify my guests. I loathe them with every fiber of my being."
Mo Yang snatched his hand away and, with fury in his eyes, shoved Mo Hao back. Incensed, Dai Mei stepped forward, her voice sharp: "Mo Yang, watch yourself! Mind your actions in my presence."
Mo Junwei didn't take long to arrive... Mo Hao put on her pathetic act as the adored only daughter: "Father, Father! Mo Yang hurt me just for this slave, this idiot Yue and her useless servant... You must punish them! Li Wei has disappointed my guests."
In a fit of rage, Mo Junwei slapped Mo Yang across the face and growled: "Yue, ever since you arrived, you and your servant have done nothing but bring us trouble. Today, you will be severely punished without mercy—you will receive 30 lashes, and Li Wei 25, for the insult committed. Those guests were of the utmost importance, and yet you dared, you ungrateful little wretch..."
Mo Yang stepped forward to intercede, but I caught his eye and shook my head ever so slightly, signaling him to hold his tongue. I knew we only had to endure this one last night. The heavy lashes came down without pity, tearing through the air before the silent, horrified crowd of servants. While Dai Mei and Mo Hao mocked us with cruel, echoing laughter, Mo Yang stood frozen across the courtyard, his fists clenched so tight his knuckles bled, his eyes burning with a dark, agonizing blend of grief and helpless fury.