Wu Meiying waited until she was sure Wu Yong was gone, then turned to Wu Jian. She knelt and gave him a kind smile.

Despite being the same age as him—eight years old—she seemed so much older. The way she stuck up for him was just one example. She was a lot better than him at their lessons, was better than him during their combat training, and she acted so mature most of the time. She always knew what to say and what to do. It was like she could do anything she put her mind to.

That was why he looked up to her. It was why he always relied on her for protection, even though he felt ashamed doing so.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“I’m…fine…”

Wu Jian wiped his nose and tried to suck in his tears. The truth was that he felt pathetic. Wu Yong might have been a bully, but he was right about one thing: Wu Jian was always hiding behind Wu Meiying for protection. Whenever someone picked on him because of his girly appearance, because he was weak, for being a coward, or for any other reason, she was the one who saved him. He was happy that she cared so much, but he also felt weak because he needed her to protect him.

Wu Yong is right. I am pathetic. How can someone as weak as me be the clan heir? Maybe it would be better if I let Wu Yong become clan heir.

“Come on. Let’s go to the hospital wing and get you patched up,” Wu Meiying said as she stood up and held out her hand. Despite his conflicted feelings, Wu Jian took her hand and let the girl lead him away.

While everyone else in the clan looked alike, Wu Meiying stood out. Her face, hair, and general appearance bore none of the characteristics shared by members of the Wu Clan. That was because Wu Jian’s mother had found Wu Meiying one day, abandoned in a basket, and taken her home. She was then adopted into the clan and named Meiying.

The name Meiying meant “beautiful flower.” It had been his mother’s hope that she would grow up to be a beautiful young woman, and it looked like her wish was coming true. Wu Meiying was easily the prettiest girl in the entire clan. Even the people who didn’t like her because of the odd things she said often expressed admiration for her appearance.

The hospital wing was located in a building not far from where Wu Yong had bullied him. It was a big building. Their clan consisted of a lot of members, so buildings needed to be large, and bigger buildings were also seen as a sign of prosperity and wealth. Wu Jian had read that buildings in the capital were even bigger than theirs, and that clan compounds consisting of thousands of clansmen were in abundance. He wondered if that was true.

They walked across the walkway, entered through the sliding rice paper door, and came into an empty room with beds and medicine cabinets. Nobody was there at the moment, but Wu Meiying didn’t let that bother her as she led Wu Jian over to a bed, sat him down, and walked to the medicine cabinet. Wu Jian said nothing as she rummaged through the cabinet. He sat there with his head lowered.

She came back moments later with cotton pads and ointment.

“Hold still, okay?” she instructed.

Wu Jian nodded. “Okay.”

Wu Meiying dabbed the cotton in the ointment, then applied some, first to his elbow, then to his face. He flinched when an itchy sensation spread across his elbow and cheek, but it was soon replaced by a soothing warmth. As she applied ointment to his face, Wu Meiying spoke again.

“Did those three hit you anywhere else?”

Wu Jian shook his head. “Just my face.”

Wu Meiying huffed. “It’s not ‘just’ your face. It’s the ultimate disgrace to slap someone like they did, and they did it to you. I cannot believe they would hit their clan heir in the face like that. Hmph. The nerve of them! I’ll show them what happens when you hit my Jian next time we spar. I’ll beat them to a pulp.”

Wu Jian looked down and said nothing. Since he was so small, his feet didn’t even reach the floor. He kicked them listlessly and let Wu Meiying continue spreading ointment on his face. She finished by placing a patch made from bamboo leaves over it. His elbow was similarly tended to.

“You know…maybe if you learned to stand up for yourself, they would not pick on you so much,” Wu Meiying said hesitantly.

“How can I do that? Wu Yong and his friends are so much bigger than me. Even if I did stand up for myself, I would just get beaten more. That’s what happened the last time I tried to stand up for myself,” Wu Jian said. It wasn’t like he hadn’t attempted it before, but the last time he had done so, it had resulted in a much more violent beating. He had learned his lesson and never tried to stand up to his bullies again.

When was that? It had to be just after Wu Yong began picking on me…

Wu Meiying bit her lip. “But…isn’t it frustrating to be looked down on like that?”

“It is frustrating…it’s really frustrating,” Wu Jian admitted, and as he did, the tears he had been carefully keeping in check flowed down his face. “I hate it. I hate being so weak. I hate being a coward. I don’t want to be weak anymore. I don’t want to be afraid. I don’t want to be a disgrace to my father. I want my family to be proud of me…but I just…I just…!”

As bitter tears of frustration poured from his eyes, Wu Meiying pulled his head toward her and hugged him tight. She rested her cheek against the crown of his head. Wu Jian stifled a sob as he wrapped his arms around his best friend and cried out all of his frustration.

“Do you feel better?” asked Wu Meiying.

“Sniff…sniff…a little.”

“Good. Wu Jian, you don’t want to keep being like this, right? You want to change, right?”

“Of course I do. I want to be stronger. I want to be more courageous.”

“Then would you listen to my suggestion?”

“What is it?”

“Right now, you’re not doing anything to get stronger. You only train during Instructor Lan’s lessons, but that’s not enough to get stronger.”

“So, you’re suggesting I train outside of our classes?”

“If you want to get stronger, this is the only way. I know for a fact that Wu Yong and the others are training outside of class. I’ve seen them.”

“Okay. I’ll train hard. I’ll train really hard so I won’t bring disgrace to my family anymore.”

“That’s the spirit! And I’ll help you! I…I…”

“Hm? Mei? What’s wrong?”

Wu Jian looked worried as Wu Meiying trailed off. Her eyes had become vacant and glassy. She swayed where she stood like she was dizzy. Wu Jian had seen her get like this before. While not frequent, it happened enough that Wu Jian understood what was going on.

A shiver ran down his back.

He waited for a few minutes, but when she just remained standing there with that glassy look in her eyes, he became worried. It had never taken her more than a few seconds to come back. That she was staying like this made him worry that she might have lost her soul.

“Mei? Mei, are you okay?” He placed his hands on her shoulders and lightly shook her.

Blinking several times, Wu Meiying’s eyes regained their original clarity. She looked at him and pinched her lips into a thin line. Her expression made him worried. It was like she was trying hard not to cry. He didn’t know why she was staring at him like that, but then she cupped his cheek and stroked it with her thumb.

“Did you see something?” asked Wu Jian.

Wu Meiying bit her lip, then pressed their foreheads together. Tears threatened to break from her eyes.

“I…did…” she confessed.

“What did you see?”

“I don’t know if I should say…”

“Is it that bad?” Wu Meiying nodded. He took a deep breath. “Then I think you should tell me. Maybe I can help?”

“Okay,” Wu Meiying whispered. She took a deep breath. “I saw…you…you were lying on the ground in a puddle of blood, and you weren’t moving. I…I screamed your name out over and over, but you didn’t respond, and I couldn’t reach you. Someone was dragging me away, and I…I… I’m so worried, Jian. What does this mean?”

Wu Jian said nothing as Wu Meiying began crying openly. This time, he was the one to pull her into a hug.

Wu Meiying often made predictions. They usually weren’t serious. She had once told Wu Hao that he would break his arm climbing a tree. He didn’t believe her, and several days later broke his arm after climbing a tree. She had told Wu Yéyé that he would suffer a back injury if he kept overworking himself. He had laughed her off and told her not to worry, that his body was stronger than it looked…only to suffer a back injury that put him out of commission for a week because he had overstressed his spine. Just now, she’d had a vision that made his blood run cold. Was that in his future? Dying as the girl he loved was taken away?

I refuse to accept that.

Wu Jian felt something begin burning inside of him. He didn’t know what this feeling was, but it was warm, and it ignited feelings he had never experienced before. He latched onto those feelings.

“I don’t know what it means, but I won’t let it come to pass. I promise you, starting now, I’ll train hard and become stronger. I’ll become so strong that the future you saw will never happen.”

Wu Jian was sick of being weak, sick of being a coward, and sick of being a disgrace to his clan. He wanted to make his father proud. He wanted his clan to think highly of him. He wanted to be stronger for himself, but more than anything, he didn’t want to see this girl cry.

Wu Meiying’s smile reminded him of the cherry blossoms that bloomed during the new year. It stole his breath. For the sake of that smile, Wu Jian would gladly walk through fire and lava. He would tear apart the heavens themselves if it meant he would get to see her smile like this all the time.

“Thank you, Jian…really…thank you so much. I don’t want to be separated from you.”

“I don’t want that, either.”

Wu Meiying pulled him into another hug that he happily accepted. As he and his best friend in the entire world held each other tight, a single thought occurred to him.

I have to get stronger!