Fan Fiction |
by Naomi
F3, Xiao You, Xing Qing and Aisha had just arrived at the Dao Ming mansion and was immediately greeted at the front door by the familiar newspaper face of the famous Dao Ming Cheng.
“I know what you’ve all come here for,” Dao Ming Cheng stated authoritatively, “But the only thing you’ll get is disappointment. It may have been a much more pleasant day for you all if you did not feel the necessity to intrude into my business.”
“Uncle, we don’t mean to make you feel like we’re intruding into your business,” Xi Men said politely, with a hint of defiance in his tone, “But it happens that your business is equally as much OUR business.”
Dao Ming Cheng mocked a smile of appreciation. “Of course,” he agreed sarcastically, “I am sure it is a pleasure to you all to witness and celebrate an engagement between two of your closest friends. I know you are here to congratulate them but you can do that later at the engagement party. Right now, there is still important business to be discussed.”
“Cheng.” Dao Ming Feng appeared behind him, glancing knowingly at the visitors standing on their doorstep. “Why don’t you let them in first? They can join Shan Cai and make themselves comfortable upstairs while we take care of our business. They’ve come to congratulate Ah Si.”
So early that morning, locked with Shan Cai in her bedroom were six other strong-minded young persons, apprehensively offering each other all the comfort they could manage in speech and expression. Meanwhile, in the main lounge room downstairs, Dao Ming Si, his parents, Jing and Jing’s mother settled their disgusting business engagement plans.
“I’m so sorry and it is very unfortunate that my husband is held up in France at this time,” Jing’s mother explained apologetically, “He planned to return last night, but his plane turned out to have technical difficulties just before boarding, which deferred his flight till tonight. He sends all his regards.”
Dao Ming Feng smiled uneasily. “Mrs Teng Tang, I’m sure everything will be fine and we can meet him another time.”
Jing’s mother pushed a document file across the table towards Dao Ming Cheng and suggested, “Mr Dao Ming, why don’t you run your eyes through the papers once more? I’m sure you will be particularly pleased with the new amendments.”
“Mum,” Jing whispered, nudging her gently, “I...” At the sight of her mother’s worried eyes and weary countenance, she fell silent.
“We have decided to increase your benefit in the deal,” Mrs Teng Tang continued quickly, “The new joint business will prosper to even greater heights in no time.”
Dao Ming Cheng skimmed through the file before turning to his wife and telling her in a voice of slight disappointment, “It was a bit distressing that we couldn’t get the deal with Hong Kong’s electricity company. But this seems to be benefit on your side, Feng. The Teng Tang’s hotels in Europe are in most ways quite compatible to your lovely Maple hotels in America, Asia and Australia. A global hotel network sounds promising, doesn’t it?”
Dao Ming Feng nodded. Negotiations were confirmed. Contracts were signed. Hands were shook. Dao Ming Si and Teng Tang Jing were engaged.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A man of Dao Ming Cheng’s standing was no less overpowering and intimidating than the situation stood itself. When the engagement was over, Shan Cai remained silent, Dao Ming Si was repeatedly silenced, and even F3 succumbed to his authority. With a new soon-to-be mistress of the Dao Ming mansion in existence, Shan Cai had no choice but to move back to her little ‘hut’ and live with her parents. Nothing more could be said by those who had no say in the matter. Even Dao Ming Feng was only a complying housewife in the presence of the almighty Dao Ming Cheng.
Shan Cai moved out that morning, and until after the wedding, she was forbidden to enter the mansion and Dao Ming Si was forbidden to leave it. It was agreed among F4 that arguing with Dao Ming Cheng would be useless at this point in time. The only possible way to thwart the engagement was to confront Jing and uncover her reasons for allowing it in the first place. While her mother continued chatting with Dao Ming Si’s parents, F4 took Jing to another room, giving the parents their sugar-saturated excuse of letting the ‘couple’ spend some quality time together.
Once Jing entered the room, she was immediately met with Xiao You, Xiao Qing and Aisha’s tear-stained faces. She sat down on the sofa with them and held Xiao You’s hand, close to shedding her own tears. In one corner, Dao Ming Si picked up a wine glass from the shelf and held it in the air. “THIS,” he yelled, smashing the glass against the marble floor, “IS OUR FRIENDSHIP!”
“Jing, cancel the engagement now,” Hua Ze Lei said solemnly but firmly, “This is not a request. It’s a command.”
Jing looked hopelessly at the distressed faces of her seven friends, four of whom she had known for twenty years, and her heart sank as she thought of the one missing among them. Shan Cai.
“Can you at least give us an explanation?!” Xiao You questioned her frantically, “Why did you betray us?! Why did you betray Ah Si and Shan Cai!? What have they done to you to deserve this?!”
“If there were any other options,” Jing replied gravely, closing her eyes for a few seconds, “I honestly wouldn’t have taken this one. I don’t want to marry Ah Si. I don’t want to hurt him or Shan Cai. But I had no choice.”
“Just get to the point!” Mei Zuo demanded fiercely.
“I came back to Taiwan to do two things. Firstly, I had to take on the position as CEO. Secondly, I had to secure a business deal with the Dao Ming Corporation…through marriage.”
Xi Men stomped his feet against the floor, stood up and yelled into her face, “THE QUESTION IS ‘WHY?’!”
“STOP ASKING ME ‘WHY?’! IT WON’T MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE EVEN IF I TOLD YOU WHY! CAN’T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT I’M A VICTIM OF THIS AS WELL?! IT HURTS ME MORE THAN YOU CAN IMAGINE!” She left the room abruptly and ran into another one, slamming the door behind her before sinking onto the carpet, breaking down in tears. Moments later, she heard the door open again, followed by some soft footsteps, then a hand landed gently on her shoulder. Hua Ze Lei knelt down next to her.
“Jing, I’m sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry.” She inched away from him, refusing to look at his face. “Xiao Qing’s right. I’m cruel and heartless.”
“Please, Jing. Please tell me what’s happening,” Hua Ze Lei pleaded desperately, “It’s not too late. Don’t wait till it’s too late.”
Jing looked into his eyes and saw no conviction or malice. If there was anyone she could trust in this situation, she could trust him. “I love Pierre.”
Instantly, his eyes were filled with compassion and forgiveness. He understood. He did not know what compelled her to agree to marry Dao Ming Si, but he understood enough to know that she was definitely a victim as well. He slid his arms around her and pulled her into his brotherly embrace, letting her bury her face into his shoulder.
“Is it really not too late?” Jing asked with a hint of hope in her voice.
He gave her a reassuring smile.
At that moment, Xiao Qing appeared at the door and saw Hua Ze Lei holding Jing in his arms. She clamped her hand over her mouth just in time to restrain a gasp, afraid to make her presence known.
“I won’t let you marry Ah Si,” said Hua Ze Lei, his smile unwavering, “You were always there for me when I needed you. Now, I’m here for you.”
Xiao Qing turned around and walked back into the other room, bringing back the box of tissues she had intended to give to Jing. Who needs tissues when a shoulder is available?
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Shai Cai, it’s almost midnight! Where are you going?!” Shan Cai’s mother watched in horror as her daughter ran out of the house and flung open the font gates.
“I’m going to Dao Ming Si’s house!” Shan Cai yelled back.
“Oh! But I thought you were kicked out!”
“Mum, I have to talk to him! If he’s going to marry another woman, we at least need to break up!”
“Sweetie, you can’t just rock back up to their house like that! They kicked you out!”
Shan Cai gave her mother a desperate look. “I really need to talk to him!”
“OH MY GOODNESS!” Mrs Mu Ye gaped at her daughter triumphantly, grinning from ear to ear. “Are you pregnant?!”
“MUM!”
“Am I seriously the grandmother of the future heir to the Dao Ming enterprise?!”
“For goodness’ sake, I’m a VIRGIN!”
“I didn’t know virgins rock up to their boyfriends’ houses at midnight!” Mrs Mu Ye huffed sarcastically. Turning around, she closed the door and began muttering to herself, “Young people are so hard to understand. They’ve lived together for almost six months. How long does it take to…” In mid-sentence, she threw open the door again and popped her head out in sheer delight. “Shan Cai, did you bring any protection? I think I’ve got some in the –”
“MUM, IF YOU SAY ONE MORE WORD TO ME, I’LL GET PREGNANT TONIGHT!”
“Sure!”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Shan Cai ran and ran, and did not slow down until she turned the corner into the Dao Ming’s street, panting heavily as she caught her breath. The street was dark and quiet, and its great length wholly occupied by the expanse of the one majestic property. Without the interference of the lights from the highway, Shan Cai looked up at the sky and smiled to see that it was indeed sprinkled full of stars, bright and watchful in every direction she could view. With refreshed hope, she crept up to the main gates of the Dao Ming mansion and her petite figure was instantly targeted by two burly private security guards. “STOP! What do you think you’re doing lurking around outside –”
“Guo Xiong! Wei Qiang! It’s me, Shan Cai!”
The two men stood before her on the other side of the gates and shone their torches at her, immediately recognising the cherished face of the girl they loved to call their mistress. “Miss Mu Ye, it’s good to see you,” said one man in a friendly voice, “But it’s a bit late.” He held out his arm and showed Shan Cai his watch.
“It’s midnight now,” said the other man in a regretful tone, “We can’t let visitors in at this time.”
Shan Cai’s eyes widened in shock. “Visitors?! I live…I used to live here!”
“I’m sorry, Miss Mu Ye,” the two men apologised in unison.
“Please, let me inside,” begged Shan Cai, “I need to talk to your young master. Please, Guo Xiong? Don’t you remember I’m your ‘Little Miss’?”
“I’d love to let you in,” Guo Xiong explained with a cheerless smile, “But we’re both simply obeying orders.”
Shan Cai shifted a few metres away and gazed up at the veranda of Dao Ming Si’s bedroom. The curtains were wide open and light was shining through the glass panels; he was definitely still awake. She could see a few figures moving around in his room. “Could you please ask your young master to come down? I really need to talk to him.”
“I don’t think that’s possible,” replied Wei Qiang, “We can’t let you in. And we also can’t let him out.”
“Little Miss, please…please go home,” Guo Xiong urged her anxiously, “It’s very late and there’s nothing we can do.” The two security guards turned around and sauntered away, resuming their nightly surveillance of the Dao Ming property.
Shan Cai curled her fingers around the bars of the tall, white gates and shook them with all the strength she could muster. “Dao Ming Si…” she whimpered, tears welling in her eyes as she continued shaking the gates in hopeless desperation. A warm draught swept her hair to one side and ruffled the thin fabric of her white dress. “Dao Ming Si…” A stronger wind began blowing ruthlessly against her face, carrying her soft cries into the distance. Her hands slowly slid down the bars as she sunk onto the ground, closing her eyes as tears began rolling down her face. She pulled her legs up to her chest and buried her face in her arms, while her heart was unwilling to give up or give in.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Meanwhile, F4 emerged from the front door of the Dao Ming mansion and began walking along the sandstone pathway of the front garden.
“Ah Si, you better go back inside,” said Hua Ze Lei, “Didn’t your dad say that you can’t leave the house?”
“Don’t worry,” Dao Ming Si replied, “He’s gone to his room and will be asleep soon. He rarely stays up past midnight.”
“Ah Si, I’ll come back at 2am,” said Mei Zuo, “We need to be as quick and quiet as possible and leave before your dad or the security guards can react.”
“Are you SURE this is going to work?” Dao Ming Si asked for the zillionth time.
Xi Men gave him a sneering grin and huffed sarcastically, “The worst case scenario is breakfast with the mermaids.”
Mei Zuo rolled his eyes. “Trust me, nothing will go wrong. I’m fully licensed and qualified. And I’m bringing Aisha with me.”
“Ah Si, be careful,” Hua Ze Lei added with a hearty smile, “And take good care of Shan Cai.”
Dao Ming Si returned his smile. “Lei, I don’t need you to tell me.”
“IS THAT SHAN CAI?!” Xi Men hollered in shock, pointing towards a small, white patch beyond the main gates. F4 sprinted towards the gates and Dao Ming Si took the lead in no time, his heart almost ready to fly out of his mouth to her.
He unlocked the gates and jolted them apart, taking Shan Cai by surprise as he knelt down beside her. He scooped his tear-stricken girlfriend into his arms, showering all his love and compassion in the priceless protection of his warm embrace. Shan Cai clung onto his coat and gave a brief smile of relief as she sobbed quietly against his shoulder.
“I knew it!” Xi Men exclaimed indignantly, “I knew they wouldn’t let her in!”
“Ah Si, you really have to go back inside,” Hua Ze Lei reminded him urgently, “Just in case your dad is not asleep yet and looks for you in your room.”
“I’ll drive Shan Cai home first,” Mei Zuo offered, “We’ll get her again later.”
Dao Ming Si shook his head. “No, I’m taking her up to my room. It’ll be easier, safer and quicker that way.”
Mei Zuo furrowed his eyebrows. “How? She’ll get caught once –”
“I have my way,” Dao Ming Si cut him short. He looked at his three best friends and gave them his most sincere smile. “Thanks for everything. I really do appreciate it a lot.”
Xi Men chuckled in amusement. “Ah Si, shut up. When did our leader become so mushy?”
“Besides,” Mei Zuo chipped in, “We’re the biggest ‘Dao Ming Si and Shan Cai’ fans in the world. And you also have Aisha, Xiao You and Qing Qing’s full support.”
“Wrong!” Xi Men retorted, “Xiao You and I are whole-hearted ‘Xi Men and Xiao You’ fans.”
Hua Ze Lei shook his head incredulously. “Ah Si, just ignore those two idiots and bring Shan Cai inside before you both get caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
F3 turned away and headed towards their cars. Dao Ming Si stood up and pulled Shan Cai to her feet before engulfing her inside his oversized floor-length coat.
“What are you doing?” Shan Cai mumbled against his chest as he buttoned his coat up to the top, sealing her whole body, including her head, inside.
“Smuggling is the only way to get you into my bedroom without being too noticeable,” Dao Ming Si replied with a silly grin, “Don’t you remember? We’re one body.”
In a very awkward manner, Dao Ming Si slowly waddled with Shan Cai along the sandstone pathway, continuously stumbling back and forth while Shan Cai hoped with all her heart that she would not suffocate. He waddled his way up the front doorsteps, into the mansion, through the living room, up a long flight of stairs, across the hallway and finally into his bedroom, safely delivering himself and his girlfriend as one great package without a single scratch. Phew!
When the bedroom door was locked and Shan Cai was released from his coat, she could only smile at him in disbelief. “Pighead! It’s not that easy having the two of us walk around in one body, you know?!”
“Yeah, I know,” he replied somewhat worriedly, “It’s so hard just for us to be together.”
Seeing his change of expression, she slid her arms around his waist and cuddled him affectionately. “It’s hard, but it’s not impossible,” she promised, looking up at him with an assuring smile, “We’ll always be together.”
Dao Ming Si’s gaze penetrated her deeply as he studied her heart through her eyes. “Then will you leave this place with me?”
At that moment, Shan Cai glanced out the glass doors and saw two large suitcases fully packed and piled up on the veranda. She let out a gasp as she took in the tiny preview of the journey she was about to embark on; one that would change her life forever.
Suddenly, they heard several knocks on the bedroom door, followed by Dao Ming Cheng’s voice. “Ah Si, who are you talking to? Why do I hear voices coming from your room?”
Without a second of thought, Shan Cai threw herself into the wardrobe. Dao Ming Si opened the door for his father and raked his mind for a plausible lie. “Umm…dad…umm,” he stammered, “I was just…umm…watching some DVDs.”
Dao Ming Cheng looked at his son with an expression of gentle rebuke before shaking his head slowly. “You shouldn’t be staying up so late, Ah Si. You’re doing photo shoots with the wedding attire tomorrow. I’m sure Jing doesn’t want you to look like you didn’t sleep all night.”
“I’m sorry, dad.”
“And next time you watch movies in your room, turn down the volume. Even if you don’t find your sleep precious, your mother and I do. Good night.” With a sleepy smile, Dao Ming Cheng turned around and went back to sleep.
Dao Ming Si and Shan Cai lay on the bed and waited apprehensively for the clock to strike two; the hour which would bring Mei Zuo and Aisha to their rescue. As they lay side-by-side in mutual anticipation, the comfort they managed to offer each other consisted of their peaceful silence and frequent little kisses. And in this opportunity of silent musings, several memories from the past few months flooded into Shan Cai’s mind, but she lingered on one particular event that seemed to speak her heart:
*FLASHBACK*
Hokkaido Maple Hotel, Japan
“Dao Ming Si, can we come here again?”
“Of course we can,” he replied softly, patting her beanie, “But there are so many other places we need to leave our footprints together. Like London, Paris, New York, Barcelona, Sydney and even closer places like Beijing and Hong Kong.”
Shan Cai smiled and stood up on tiptoes to kiss him. “Look,” she held up her left hand and pulled back the sleeve of the coat, revealing the meteor bracelet, “You tied me to you. I’ll go wherever you go.”
Dao Ming Si reciprocated her smile and unzipped his coat down the front. Then he quickly took Shan Cai’s coat off and pulled her tiny body against him, zipping up his own coat with her inside. “You promised,” he whispered, wrapping his strong arms around her, “We’re one body and we’ll go everywhere together.”
*END OF FLASHBACK*
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Two o’clock. Strange noises could be heard coming from outside.
Click! Click! Click! VAROOO-ooo-ooo-mmm-woosh…
Click! Click! Click! VAROOO-VAROOO-ooo-ooo- mmm-woosh…
Click! Click! Click! VAROOO-VAROOO-VAROOO-ooo-ooo- mmm-woosh…
“Uh-oh,” Dao Ming Si muttered beneath his breath, “That doesn’t sound good.”
Shan Cai looked at him in utter confusion and began feeling panicky. “What’s happening? What noise is that? It sounds like a screwed up engine.”
“Don’t say that! Don’t jinx it!” Then he began mumbling, “Come on, Mei Zuo! You can do it! You’ve got to hurry up! Everyone can hear you!” The colour drained from his face as he held his breath.
Click! Click! Click! VAROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
“YES!” Dao Ming Si lept off the bed in a moment of rapture and rushed to pull open the glass doors to his veranda. “Come on, Shan Cai! We have to be quick! We can’t waste a single second!”
Whoop!-Click!-Clack!-Swoosh!-Whoop!-Click!-Clack!-Swoosh!
As Shan Cai joined him at the veranda, a gigantic helicopter rose up before them, hovering at a height just above the railings. It was the helicopter Mei Zuo had given her as a birthday present; the one that had been hibernating in the Dao Ming carpark for four months. The side door of the helicopter slid open, revealing Aisha’s one-hundred-megawatt grin and her outstretched arms. Dao Ming Si raised the suitcases one-at-a-time up to her, and with all the might in her noodle-like arms, she hauled them inside the helicopter. As Shan Cai ogled at the scene unfolding before her, she felt light-headed and her surroundings spun in and out of focus. Was she dreaming? Were she and Dao Ming Si seriously escaping – eloping – in a helicopter?
Whoop!-Click!-Clack!-Swoosh!-Whoop!-Click!-Clack!-Swoosh!
Aisha stretched out her arms again and Shan Cai felt Dao Ming Si securing her waist with both his hands. In one swift movement, he lifted her into the air as if she was weightless, and Aisha pulled her into the helicopter. Shan Cai and Aisha both stretched their arms out, and in another swift movement, Dao Ming Si was pulled into the vehicle. The door was slammed shut. Mei Zuo spun his head around from the pilot seat and gave them a quick wink before…
Whoop!-Click!-Clack!-Swoosh!-Whoop!-Click!-Clack!-Swoosh!
Goodbye Dao Ming mansion!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Passengers, listen up!” Aisha exclaimed once they reached a safe altitude and velocity. She gave Dao Ming Si and Shan Cai a perky grin before announcing, “We’re heading from Taipei directly towards China’s border, which will take around two hours. The Chinese province you’ll be landing in is called Xiamen and we’ll drop you off by the harbour. Mei Zuo and I will go back to Taipei immediately. A large cruise from Beijing would have stopped at Xiamen tonight and will depart again at 9am. And guess what? We’ve even got tickets for you two to hop on the cruise!” She pulled the tickets out from her pocket and handed them to the couple.
Dao Ming Si rolled his eyes. “Mei Zuo, get your girl to shut up. I know the plan better than she does.”
“Dude, watch your words!” Aisha yelped, “I’m NOT his GIRL! And I’m just telling Shan Cai because she looks pretty clueless.”
“But…how did you guys organise this?!” Shan Cai asked in astonishment.
“Nothing is impossible to F4,” Aisha replied with a pleased smile, “Xiao You, Qing Qing and I left Ah Si’s house soon after the engagement this morning. But the guys stayed there and they’ve been planning it all day, making many phone calls and car trips to get everything ready for the escape. Everyone agreed on the idea of Mei Zuo flying the helicopter to steal Ah Si from his bedroom, since he can’t leave the house. And originally, Shan Cai, we were going to fly past your house to fetch you, until you turned up at Ah Si’s gates instead.”
“Yeah, we didn’t know you were so desperate!” Mei Zuo teased, looking back at Shan Cai with a grin.
Aisha flared her suddenly monstrous eyes at him. “Concentrate, you idiot!” Then she smiled sweetly at Shan Cai and continued, “So the air-lifting part was settled. But the hardest part was planning how to travel away without being discovered by the police or private investigators, which meant no planes or booking tickets for cruises or anything like that.”
“What about these tickets?!” Shan Cai asked, intrigued.
“It was quite a lucky coincident,” Dao Ming Si explained, “Mei Zuo knew that two of his ex-girlfriends were going to join the cruise in Xiamen the next morning. This was perfect because the short distance between Taipei and Xiamen meant that Mei Zuo could fly back to Taipei straight after he drops us off. That makes it harder to trace our path. He got the tickets from the two girls this afternoon through private express courier. And in exchange, he offered to buy them a holiday on any cruise of their choice.”
Aisha added with a smirk, “At first, they wouldn’t give him the tickets unless HE joined them on their holiday as well. But knowing Mei Zuo and his innate abilities to sweet-talk girls into doing anything for him, he still got the tickets without needing to sacrifice half a month in the ocean with two girls he probably can’t even recognise.”
“Enough, Aisha!” Mei Zuo snapped, his tomato face hidden behind his headset. “If you tell them any more, I’ll fly the helicopter into the sea and you can all have breakfast with the mermaids!”
“That’s Xi Men’s line!” Dao Ming Si scoffed.
“Shut up before he really dumps us in the sea,” Shan Cai whispered, poking her boyfriend playfully. “Oh, and where exactly is the cruise taking us?”
Dao Ming Si lowered his head and secured a lengthy kiss on his girlfriend’s lips before answering, “Hong Kong.”
01-Apr-2005