Lan and her husband were overwhelmed with joy when she said yes to their request. They were overjoyed and literally walking on the sky.Lan hugged her passionately as tears of joy freely flowed down her cheeks.
"Well, Mom and Dad I'm quite hungry now. Can I start eating?" Said ling mei
Her parents were so excited when she called them Mom and Dad.
" Of course! You can"
The way she ate the food like a hungry rabbit showed how famished she was .
" Hmmmmmm! I've never tasted a dish this tasty before. This is absolutely unique"said ling mei with a mouthful of food in her mouth.
Indeed, the taste of the meal lingered on her taste buds. Her new mom was definitely the best cook she had ever witnessed. This was a fact!
Li wei and lan grinned slightly the way she looked funny while trying to talk despite having so much food in her mouth.They were satisfied and happy to have such an adorable daughter.
They treated her like a rare treasure. Her life became much sweeter since she encountered them. She usually helped her mom in the kitchen in preparation of dishes. It was not far fetched when she became an exceptional chef like her mom. She also taught her the hidden techniques of her profession as a doctor. Ling mei learnt every single tiny detail and assisted her mother in attending to patients. She was an exceptional physician at her young age.
Li wei was getting older and he needed assistance at his work place. Ling mei volunteered to help. Though her mom didn't agree completely with the suggestion.
" It would be better if you hired someone to help you. I don't want my little treasure to go through that work. It's for males and not females" said lan with a sullen look.
Anyway, he later convinced her to release their daughter. Ling mei was very helpful to her father and didn't mind in exerting all her energy into the job. Her father was satisfied with her devotion and strength.
It happened that Li wei was a great martial artist who was well known all over the world. He was known for his exceptional skills. He was sort for far and wide by different people. But, this didn't make him proud. Even royalties wished to learn from him. Unfortunately,he never accepted to teach anyone. He didn't want to pass on his skills to someone who would turn out to be greedy and cruel in the future. He lived a secluded and quiet life. Most people didn't know his true personality. He disguised as a sword maker and lived at the far end of the town with his family. Some people who didn't know his true identity looked down on him because of his very poor status.
He decided to teach his skills to his only child Ling mei, he was certain that she would excel.He really wanted her to learn this so that she could defend herself in the future when the need arose.Bit by bit, they started training together. Ling mei made mistakes initially but he noticed she was a fast learner, she was ready to accept all corrections, she was resilient and determined to be the best despite being limited by her physical strength as a female. Most times, when everyone had retired for sleep; she would stay out practicing alone in the dead of the night.Ling mei held the hilt of her double edged sword and swung it like a fluid in any direction to hit the target with deadly impact and accuracy. She gripped the sword effortlessly like it was part of her body spinning and hitting strikes mid-air. Her beautiful long black hair bounced freely down her waist due to the breeze that lonesome night. Her black gown was flying in the air each time she leapt and lounged her fierce attack. The sight was totally captivating as though she was a fearless warlord. Her pretty face glistened under the moonlight.She was very swift and precise in her movements. Her father admired her devotion, consistency and determination to be the best. She had an unwavering spirit. Due to her constant practice she even surpassed her master slightly. He had never seen anyone as gifted as she was. Li wei was super proud of her though he didn't praise her so much openly.
"You've not yet put in your best. There's still so much hidden potential inside you. Work hard so that it will show forth. Hmmm! Don't be satisfied with this minor achievement" Li wei would always say this smiling when she did well in the training. Actually, he didn't want her feats to get into her head.
He was amazed at his daughter's ability, she surpassed his imagination. He never envisioned that a fragile delicate girl like her would have such great strength and capacity. Ling mei had attained mastery in Archery, Sword techniques and Kung Fu. She was absolutely excellent and most kids her age couldn't compare to her.
Though from the very inception, Lan was averse to the idea of her only child learning sword fighting. She believed it was meant for males alone but she was surprised that her daughter was actually capable.
There was shortage of rice in the house so Lan sent Ling mei to the market to purchase some. Ling mei was glad to go on this errand. She put on one of her pretty dresses with a cute smile stamped on her face. She walked briskly to the market and purchased the rice. But on her way back she encountered those group of beggar boys that beat her before her parents saved her. The street was quite narrow. She scanned through the boys with her eyes, they were ten in number and they were much bigger than her in size. They were holding clubs and woods of different sizes and their leader a sturdy macho tall boy was holding a dagger in his hands. They grinned wickedly as they approached her. They split themselves into two groups; five at the entrance of the street and the other five blocking the exit of the street.
"So you think you could leave us and be frolicking around huh? You are from the streets and you cannot live above it. Just have it in mind that no matter what you do, you will still remain a beggarly dog that licks my toes"Said Feng ming their leader who scoffed at her . The boys laughed at the insults hurled at her
" I see you didn't die right? You now have the liver to walk freely around our domain eh? I see you don't have fear"chipped in another.
" Boys ! Snatch that rice from her and beat her till she forgets her name. We'll teach you a lesson today. Loser!"said their leader.
At this point they all furiously lounged to attack her. Unfortunately,no one was passing that street so she was all alone. Her instinct told her not to pass that street but she waved it because it was a shortcut to her house. Little did she know she would meet these boys. Her face contorted in pain as though she swallowed a very bitter pill.She remembered their wickedness in the past as a dark frown appeared on her face. She looked steadily at them because there was no escape route.She was blocked at both ends.