Chapter 2
I fought against the threatening yawn, though it seemed like a losing battle. The meeting was boring me to death, but the others didnt need to know that. Although, how couldnt they? After an eternity of them, everything had been said. Now, it was just nonsense after nonsense, a farce to pretend that we hadnt lost power and influence over the years. It wasnt just us either, it was gods in general who had lost power.
My attention shifted to Long, the ornate dragon carved into the decorative wall opposite me. His jade scales were so detailed, he looked like he could come to life at any moment. Now that would liven up our meeting.
Chiguo?
The sound of my name snapped me from my thoughts and I sat up straighter. Yes?
We were just discussing the entertainment for this months banquet, if it might interest you. Duowens voice dripped with disappointment. He never liked it when I didnt pay attention.
Arent they all booked already? I asked, not sure why we had to have meetings about these things. Back in the day, we sat around this round table to talk about war, conflict, poetry, music, things that mattered. The mundane running of the palace definitely wasnt that.
We were talking about the singer, Guangmu said, somehow sounding excited. Her name is Mimi, have you heard of her? Apparently, shes a xian who is incredibly famous amongst humans. And beautiful.
I cant say Ive been paying much attention to whats going on nowadays, I admitted. There were so many acts around that it was too much to keep up with them most of the time.
Duowen scoffed. Why am I not surprised? Music gods. Good for nothing.
Youre not much more useful either. How many wars did you lose again? I bit back.
Lets not fight, Zengchang said, diplomatic as always. If it wasnt for him, this council would probably have already fallen apart. He closed his notes and smiled. Since everything is booked, lets conclude the meeting before this turns ugly.
Thats a good idea, I said, eager to get away from here.
Yes, lets call it a day, I have better things to do than to discuss things over and over again with you lot, Duowen said, nodding as if he was the one who made the decision.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. The only person who thought Duowen was in charge was Duowen himself.
I stood up and we all bowed to each other, but the gesture was hollow. The respect we had for each other had eroded over the years just like our power. I left before one of them tried to talk to me again. We seemed to keep picking fights about silly things, not that it was a surprise. We were used to being busy, having things to do. Sitting around while our power waned was making us all cranky.
The servants kept their heads low as I made my way past, none of them daring to look me in the eye. It was a strange kind of loneliness to be surrounded by people who couldnt see past my status and position.
Instead of going back to my chambers, I decided to step out into the gardens. It was lovely weather and perhaps a bit of meditation would help me with the unrest in my heart. I settled on the bench under my favourite ginkgo tree, its leaves eternally golden here in the god realm. It was peaceful and quiet, perfect to ponder the meaning of life.
After sitting for a few minutes, I felt bored and uninspired. Meditating just didnt have the same appeal as it once did. Many things didnt anymore.
I pulled my phone from my pocket and clicked on the Jinx dating app. A bit of distraction was just as good to put me in a better mood.
After swiping left and right for a bit, a profile picture of half a womans face caused me to pause. Even though there wasnt much of her, her smile intrigued me. There wasnt much in her description either except a challenging message me and find out.
I swiped right without thinking about it. Almost instantly, a shower of sparks filled the screen.
Jinx! Youve matched with Mei!
With a grin, I tapped the button to start a chat and her picture appeared again. From what I could see of half her face, she was stunning.
My thumbs hovered over my keyboard as I considered what to send. A pretty woman like her would be getting flooded with generic compliments and shallow remarks. If I wanted to stand out, Id have to come up with something more original than that.
lt;Pick a colour and Ill tell you a fun fact about it.gt; It wasnt one of my strongest openers, but if I was lucky, Mei was bored and overwhelmed by unsolicited pictures that my quirky line would grab her attention.
Three dancing dots appeared at the bottom of the screen and a message popped up. lt;Blue.gt;
Interesting. No questions, no-nonsense, no waiting, just a straightforward reply. Promising.
With a smile, I typed my reply. lt;Blue is one of the most common colours for toothbrushes.gt;
lt;Is that true?gt;
I adjusted my posture, folding my legs under me. lt;No idea, I read it online.gt;
Three dots appeared and disappeared, which made me worry that Id blown it already. I shouldve come up with something more interesting or engaging. Maybe a picture without my shirt on wouldve gone down better.
Just when I thought of closing the app, a new message appeared from Mei. lt;I was promised a fact!gt; The emoji she sent along with it made it clear she was teasing.
lt;Blue is a colour. Thats a fact.gt; I added a winky face of my own in return. This certainly wasnt going badly for a first conversation.
My phone vibrated with another message from her. lt;Well played! Is this why youre on Jinx, to distribute facts?gt;
lt;Yup. Heres another fact: youre beautiful.gt;
lt;Wow, what a line. Massive flirt alert.gt;
I chuckled at her response. She was hitting the nail on the head but she didnt seem upset so I decided to push my luck. lt;Oh, I am massive. A flirt, I mean. Isnt that the point of Jinx?gt;
lt;I think the point of Jinx is to find love?gt;
lt;I dont mean to disappoint, but Im not looking for love.gt; It was a bold statement this early on but it was better to be upfront instead of wasting my time. If Mei was looking for something more, then I didnt want to keep her on the hook either.
A new message appeared in our chat. lt;Me either. Im too busy for love.gt;
A golden ginkgo leaf fell on my knee and I picked it up, twirling it between my fingers while I typed my next reply. lt;Too busy doing what?gt;
lt;My job. Please dont say something corny like I bet youre a model.gt;
I laughed out loud at her comment. From just our short back and forth, I could tell Mei was feisty and fun. My favourite combination. lt;I think it would be pretty hard to be a model with just half a face.gt;
lt;Says the man who has three pictures without a head or shirt.gt;
lt;Youre the one that swiped right on my shirtless pictures.gt; Not that I was complaining.
lt;Looks like neither of us is very picky.gt; She added a winky emoji and one with its tongue stuck out. Id normally not like them as much, but they were helping me work out her tone pretty well.
A shower of sparks filled my screen with a new notification from the app.
Jinx! You matched with Fen!
Instead of starting a new chat, I stayed in my conversation with Mei. I had a good feeling about her and I wanted to see where it would take me.