Free My Fair Concubine by Jeannie Lin Page B

orders.
    Yan Ling stepped carefully, trying to concentrate on keeping her head up, her steps fluid. By the time she reached the rock sculpture at the end of the garden, she felt as if she’d been running tea from table to table during the afternoon rush rather than strolling like a lady in a tranquil garden.
    ‘Again,’ he commanded.
    She tried to turn around as elegantly as she could.
    ‘Not so straight,’ he complained with an impatient up-down wave of his hand. ‘Sway a little. Like a young bamboo in the breeze.’
    What was he talking about? He kept on telling her to look natural, which became impossible when she was concentrating so hard. Her muscles were tense and aching. The more she tried to follow his instructions, the more awkward she felt.
    Bai Shen rubbed a hand over his chin thoughtfully as she came towards him. He stepped down from the pavilion to intercept her.
    ‘Where did Fei Long find you?’ he asked.
    Find her. As if she were someone’s discarded shoe.
    ‘In a teahouse.’ She dabbed at her forehead with the edge of her sleeve and wondered if ladies were allowed to sweat. ‘I was a servant there. I fetched and carried, brewed tea, swept the floors.’
    His expression grew intense. She could see why audiences were drawn to him. Every movement of his body was graceful, controlled and compelling.
    ‘I would make myself as small as possible if I were playing a tea girl,’ he went on. ‘She would always be placed at the back of the stage and only appear when needed. Most importantly, she would never, never draw attention away from the leads.’ His eyes lit up. ‘You don’t like being watched.’
    ‘Not at all.’
    ‘Your fear shows in every movement. You have always been the mouse.’
    ‘Well, I am afraid.’ She threw her hands onto her hips in agitation. ‘I can’t walk, I can’t talk. I don’t even know how to drink tea, which is the one thing I should know. And in two months I have to convince everyone that I’m fit to be a princess.’
    Despair gripped her and held on tight. She should tell Fei Long it wasn’t possible and that he needed to find someone else, but the thought of disappointing him sickened her. She’d sworn to Fei Long that she wouldn’t abandon him.
    ‘You need to become something grand.’ Bai Shen puffed out his chest.
    She tried imitating him by pulling her shoulders back and lifting her chin up.
    ‘Not just outside, but in here. In spirit.’ He placed a hand over his heart and miraculously seemed to grow in presence before her. ‘Become a phoenix.’
    A phoenix? He was mad. ‘You’re mad,’ she said.
    ‘There is a light that comes from you when you’re angry.’ He tapped her nose impetuously. ‘Why only then? Don’t you know, my pretty lady? There is a pleasure in watching a woman move. There is a joy in being that beautiful woman, admired by all.’
    ‘But I’m not beautiful—’
    He hushed her with a raised hand. ‘Do you think Fei Long would choose an ugly girl?’
    She considered telling him that Fei Long had simply chosen her because he had been desperate and she had been scared of being in the streets.
    ‘Convince me that you’re beautiful,’ he said in a tone that would not be refused. ‘Not by trying to hide the servant girl, but by overshadowing her with the woman.’
    She laughed, part in disbelief, but part in hope. The heaviness within her lifted just listening to him. ‘How did you do that?’
    ‘Li Bai Shen is the best,’ he boasted.
    Bai Shen was a quintessential performer. He knew how to act the part on stage and that was exactly what she had to do. She needed to make the world her stage.
    He worked with her for the rest of the morning, walking beside her and demonstrating the ‘water sleeve’ techniques he used on stage. Her robe swirled about her feet while Bai Shen stepped around her, sometimes nodding, sometimes frowning.
    ‘The silk is a banner,’ he instructed. ‘Drawing attention to you.’
    Yan Ling followed