Chapter 76
It was nearing the end of Aurora's studies in the East.
Only a day remained before they would sail home.
The three ladies decided to spend one last afternoon wandering through the bustling markets that had become so familiar over the past two years.
The streets were alive with colour. Silk banners fluttered gently in the breeze, merchants called out to passing customers, children darted between the stalls laughing, and the rich aroma of roasted chestnuts, tea, and freshly baked pastries filled the air.
"It almost feels wrong to leave," Katherine said softly, looking around.
Aurora smiled, "It does."
Emily nodded in agreement, "I'll even miss getting lost every second day."
"You never got lost," Aurora teased.
Emily folded her arms, "I simply explored... unexpected routes."
Katherine laughed.
"That's a very polite way of saying you have no sense of direction."
Emily gasped dramatically.
"I'll have you know I once found my way back all by myself."
"After asking six merchants and following a little boy," Aurora reminded her.
"...Details."
The three burst into laughter. As they wandered through the market, Katherine suddenly stopped in front of a jewellery stall.
"Aurora! Look!"
She held up an elegant jade hairpin decorated with tiny silver blossoms.
"It's beautiful."
Aurora nodded, "It is."
The merchant smiled warmly before quoting a price.
Katherine's eyes nearly fell out of her head, "That costs more than my riding boots!"
Aurora stepped forward with a gentle smile.
She began speaking fluent Mandarin. The merchant answered rapidly. Aurora replied just as quickly. The conversation became faster and faster.
Katherine looked from one to the other in complete confusion.
"...Are you two arguing?"
Aurora smiled sweetly, "No."
The merchant laughed loudly before wrapping the jewellery.
Aurora handed over the payment.
Katherine blinked, "Did... did you just buy everything for half the original price?"
Aurora smiled innocently, "Not half."
She held up the receipt, "Thirty percent off."
Katherine let out a dramatic sigh, "I've lived here for two years and all I've mastered is 'tea' and 'dumpling.'"
Aurora laughed, "You forgot 'thank you.'"
Katherine's face lit up proudly, "See?"
She straightened her shoulders, "I'm practically fluent."
Emily, standing behind them carrying several shopping bags, couldn't stop laughing.
"Watching two duchesses negotiate is more exhausting than cleaning the manor."
Aurora grinned.
"I learned from the best."
A little later, hunger finally caught up with them.
Emily pointed toward a busy restaurant.
"My ladies... before either of you bargains for cheaper food, may we please eat first?"
Aurora laughed, "I agree."
The three entered the restaurant and sat near the window.
Emily smiled confidently at the waitress, "I know this one!"
Aurora immediately became suspicious.
"Emily..."
Ignoring her, Emily proudly spoke the Mandarin sentence Aurora had taught her.
The waitress froze.
Then burst into uncontrollable laughter.
Several nearby customers began laughing as well.
Aurora slowly covered her face with both hands.
"Emily..."
"Yes?"
"I think I know what happened."
Emily frowned, "What?"
Aurora looked at her with the most innocent smile she could manage.
"You just asked the chef if he would marry your goat."
Silence.
Then Katherine exploded into laughter.
Emily stared blankly, "I..."
"What?"
"I only changed one word!"
Aurora laughed so hard tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Yes..."
She tried to catch her breath.
"...Unfortunately, it was the most important word."
Even the waitress couldn't stop giggling.
Once Aurora finally managed to compose herself, she ordered their meal correctly.
When the waitress left, Aurora looked at the two women with amusement dancing in her eyes.
"Tell me honestly..."
"How did the two of you communicate with people whenever I wasn't around?"
Katherine pouted, "We used hand gestures."
Emily nodded proudly, "And smiling."
Aurora imagined the two of them enthusiastically waving their arms while speaking broken Mandarin.
The image was so vivid she burst into another fit of laughter.
"I wish I had seen that."
That evening, after returning to their residence, each woman quietly packed her belongings.
Aurora carefully wrapped every medical book she had collected over the past two years.
Between the pages were countless handwritten notes, observations, and sketches.
She packed dried herbs, carefully preserved medicinal plants, tea leaves, silk, medical instruments, and several bundles of seeds that would hopefully grow well back in the Duchy.
Most of the larger crates had already been sent to the harbour over the past few weeks, together with Lady Selena's famously endless shopping list and countless gifts for family and friends.
Only a few personal treasures remained.
Aurora gently folded the last of her sketches before placing them inside her trunk.
She walked toward the window.
The city stretched endlessly before her, glowing beneath thousands of lanterns.
A soft smile touched her lips.
"This place..."
She spoke almost in a whisper.
"...gave me another home. It gave me teachers who became family. It gave me friends I never expected to find. It gave me the chance to become the person I wanted to be."
Katherine quietly stepped beside her.
"And now....we're going home."
Aurora nodded.
"Home."
********************'
The following morning, the harbour was alive with activity.
Merchants shouted final instructions while sailors loaded the last crates onto the ship.
Aurora's medical master approached her.
He looked at her with unmistakable pride, "You came here as a curious young lady."
He smiled warmly, "You leave as a physician."
Aurora bowed deeply, "I could never repay everything you taught me, Master."
"You already have."
He gently patted her shoulder, "Use your knowledge to save lives."
"I will."
Her language teacher approached next.
Aurora greeted him in flawless Mandarin.
The elderly man laughed happily.
"Your pronunciation is now better than some of my own students."
Aurora smiled.
"I still have much to learn."
"A true scholar always believes that."
Several merchants also came to bid farewell.
One elderly trader clasped her hands warmly.
"Lady Aurora, because of you, trade between the East and the West has become stronger."
"You built more than business."
"You built friendship."
Aurora bowed once more.
"The honour belongs to all of us."
As the great ship slowly pulled away from the harbour, everyone on the docks waved until they disappeared into the morning mist.
Katherine leaned against the railing with an exaggerated sigh.
"I'm going to miss the men."
Aurora raised an eyebrow.
"The handsome men," Katherine corrected.
Emily burst into laughter, "I knew it!"
Aurora shook her head, laughing, "I'll miss the food."
Emily nodded vigorously, "And I shall miss neither."
The two women looked at her.
"I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed."
They all laughed.
Aurora walked to the bow of the ship.
The cool sea breeze lifted her hair as she looked west, toward the distant horizon.
"Home..."
A gentle smile settled on her face.
"I wonder how everyone has changed."
For a long moment, she remained silent.
In her previous life, she had never been able to travel.
She had only dreamed about distant lands while watching anime, Korean dramas, and historical documentaries.
Never—not even in her wildest imagination—had she believed she would one day live through history itself, learn another language, study medicine in the East, and build friendships that would last a lifetime.
She closed her eyes and breathed in the salty sea air.
"Thank you..."
Whether she was thanking fate, destiny, or God, even she did not know.
Then she opened her eyes.
Ahead lay home.
Ahead lay her family.
Ahead lay a future she had yet to discover.
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