Aladdin led her towards the village.
Carpet rode into the sky to hide, carrying Abu and Mirage.
***
A few minutes later,
Aladdin and Mulan arrived before a large gate.
The surroundings were filled with people glancing at them and whispering to each other.
"Can't they be discreet?" Mulan muttered, trying her best to ignore the villagers parading her with their gazes.
Aladdin remained silent. He wore a nonchalant expression as he surveyed the surroundings with interest. But inwardly, he felt a little shy.
Mulan calmly knocked on the gate.
"YES! I'M COMING!!" An old, cranky voice emerged from the other side of the gate.
Mulan quickly let go of Aladdin's hand.
Moments later, the side of the gate was pulled open, and an elderly woman with a short build and round, wrinkled face, dressed in a long-sleeved dark blue shirt with a dark teal wrap and matching skirt, and a white apron with a black headband with a green circle over her head, stood on the other side of the gate.
The instant she saw Mulan, she froze. Her hand clamped over her mouth as though to stop herself from screaming, her gaze shifting between Aladdin and Mulan.
"Grandma!" Mulan threw herself into the old woman and hugged her.
"Mulan, welcome home!" Grandma Fa reciprocated with a hug. She calmly brushed Mulan's hair.
"Your parents have been worried sick about you. Don't ever run away without telling me next time, okay?"
"I won't ever again. I promise," Mulan whispered through her tears. After nearly losing her life and thinking about how her family would grieve her, she decided never to attempt such a thing again.
"Since you have promised, I know that you won't," Grandma Fa smiled.
"Aren't you going to introduce me to this fine young man you brought with you?" She narrowed her eyes at Aladdin.
Brown skin. Handsome. Strange attire. Wearing a cloak. He looked like he wasn't from around here, or anywhere in China. Grandma Fa trusted her senses and knew that she was correct.
Mulan slowly pulled back and introduced Aladdin. "This is Aladdin. He is..." Mulan wanted to say, but suddenly halted, realising that she didn't know how to introduce him.
"He is what...?" Grandma Fa asked curiously, her interest piqued. Her wrinkled lips slowly curved into a smile.
Aladdin? He certainly wasn't from around here?
"Ahem! I will take it from here," Aladdin stepped forward and said, noticing Mulan's dilemma.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Grandma Fa. I am Emperor Aladdin, ruler of the Great Empire of Ababwa. I have just finished my meeting with Emperor Chen of China and decided to escort Mulan back home before leaving for my hometown." Aladdin held her hand and kissed it elegantly.
Upon hearing Aladdin's words, Grandma Fa's smile froze. Her mind came to a stop, her body stiffening.
Then, her mind quickly went into overdrive, her lips hanging open in stunned silence as she tried to process the information that she had received.
"I need to see Father and Mother to inform them of my return. I will properly introduce you to Aladdin next time, Grandmother," Mulan said. Then, she quickly grabbed Aladdin and walked through the gate.
Grandma Fa stepped out of the way, her eyes drifting towards Aladdin and Mulan with rapid attention.
Just as Mulan was a distance away from the gate, she heard a scream behind her.
"FA LI!! FA LI!!"
Mulan hastened her steps with her teeth clenched.
"What did you do that for? Now everyone in the village will know that I brought an Emperor to my house," she said to Aladdin.
"Wasn't that what you wanted?" Aladdin asked, confused.
"No," Mulan shook her head in response. "I just wanted to introduce you to my family. And by you, I meant Aladdin. I don't usually bring friends back home, you know."
"Now you have done it. Just stay silent and let me do the talking. You aren't familiar with them like I am." She wanted to find her father, but the news had already spread.
Aladdin wanted to respond but closed his mouth.
"Okay," he nodded.
"Thank you," Mulan exhaled in relief.
Mulan approached the garden at the back of her house and spotted a tall and slender man dressed in a light green robe and trousers sitting on a stone chair under the cherry trees.
It was her father. He leaned on a walking stick. His expression was forlorn and heartbreaking.
Mulan halted.
"Wait here," she said.
After taking several deep breaths, she stepped towards her father.
Seated on the stone bench, Fa Zhou sighed, pondering his daughter's well-being. Every day, he sat here to regulate his thoughts and emotions, and hope for his daughter's safe return. But that hope dwindled day by day.
'It's my fault,' Fa Zhou thought wearily.
If only he could still swing his sword, then perhaps his daughter wouldn't have run away to take his place in the army.
He was too weak!
Too pitiful that even his daughter had more courage to protect his family than he did.
If only...
Unfortunately, there was no room for regret. He had to prepare to face whatever was coming.
"Father."
Now he was hearing things. Fa Zhou closed his eyes, deep in thought. But the voice called out to him again.
Fa Zhou snapped his head to the side.
He trembled.
"Mulan."
"Your daughter has returned." Mulan knelt before him. In her hand was a long, double-edged broadsword, with a medal on top of it.
"Father, I've brought you the sword of Shan Yu. And the crest of the Emperor. They are gifts to honour the Fa Family."
She bowed her head and raised the items, presenting them to Fa Zhou.
But surprisingly, Fa Zhou pushed the items aside onto the ground and pulled Mulan into his arms.
"There are no greater gifts than you. The greatest gift and honour is having you as a daughter. I've missed you so much."
Fa Zhou knelt before Mulan as he gently stroked her hair.
"I've missed you too, Father." Mulan returned his hug, collapsing into his arms.
Aladdin watched from afar with a relieved sigh. Despite the twists and turns, it all worked out in the end.
Aladdin glanced at the two women staring at them from the building behind them. He sighed once more and shook his head, ignoring their antics.
"Stay back! He caught us!"
"Are you sure he is an Emperor? Why is he dressed like that?"
"Yes. I can't lie to you, can I? Our Mulan not only brought back a sword, but also the Emperor's crest and an Emperor. She got the whole package! Even the matchmaker couldn't pull this off!! She's better than you!! She's amazing!!" Grandma Fa said with a tone filled with excitement and happiness.
"As for why he's dressed like that? Isn't it obvious? You don't want the entire village to know that we are hosting an Emperor, right? We will wait till he's gone before we make the announcement. I can't wait to see the look on the neighbours' faces."
Fa Li furrowed her brows as she looked at the young man dressed in a cloak. She knew her daughter well enough to know that any man willing to fall in love with her was going to be eccentric because Mulan herself didn't portray the kind of style most men wanted in a wife-to-be.
So she was sceptical that Mulan had actually found a suitor willing to marry her, and not only that, but that man was also an Emperor of a foreign nation.
How could going to war accomplish something that not even a famed matchmaker could do?
Even the Emperor of China couldn't do it. It was impossible!
"You don't believe me. Look, they are almost done. Let's go find out." Grandma Fa grabbed Fa Li and pulled her forward.
They walked out from the corner of the house and halted beside Aladdin.
Grandma Fa winked at Aladdin.
Fa Li took note of Aladdin's foreign features. It was obvious that he wasn't from China. She became dazed, her mouth slowly hanging open as she realised that Mulan had truly done the impossible.
Aladdin pretended as though he hadn't noticed the two women. He focused on Mulan and Fa Zhou as they rose to their feet.
They approached them.
"Who is this?" Fa Zhou pointed at Aladdin curiously.
"Father, this is Aladdin..." Mulan took a deep breath and continued, "...Emperor Aladdin Ababwa, ruler of the Empire of Ababwa. But you may also call him Emperor Ali. He played a big role in our war against the Huns and has allied with China. And it's because of him that I was able to return home safely."
The instant Fa Zhou heard that Aladdin was an Emperor, he immediately straightened his back, his posture becoming ramrod straight.
How did Mulan come into contact with a foreign Emperor? How had she managed to bring him home with her?
Countless questions ran through his mind, but he was unable to come up with an answer.
And although he was too stunned to speak, he quickly bowed towards Aladdin. To him, this was comparable to hosting the Emperor in his humble estate.
Though both figures held different places in his heart, the fact that Aladdin had saved his daughter's life and brought her home was enough to earn his respect and gratitude.
But Aladdin quickly held his shoulders and pulled him up before he could bow.
"You don't need to." Aladdin shook his head with a stern frown.
"But I must. Please allow me to do this," Fa Zhou insisted, his resolve steeled.
Aladdin looked at the man and then nodded with a silent sigh. Since he insisted, Aladdin could only allow him to do so to keep his conscience clear.
"Thank you." Fa Zhou fell to his knees before Aladdin and prostrated himself. "For bringing my daughter back home and aiding China in defeating the Huns."
Witnessing this, Fa Li and Grandma Fa quickly fell to their knees and paid their respects to Aladdin.
Mulan also didn't hesitate. After flashing a playful smile at Aladdin, she fell to her knees and prostrated herself.
After paying their respects, they rose back to their feet.
"See, I told you that he's the real deal," Grandma Fa whispered to Fa Li.
"He is. My Mulan has finally brought a suitor back home," Fa Li replied, still dazed by the revelation.
"Not just any suitor, but an Emperor," Grandma Fa quickly corrected her.
"Would you like to stay for dinner, Emperor Ali? We may not have much, but I promise that it will be the best we have," Fa Zhou said.
"Oh, please, how about you ask him to stay forever?" Grandma Fa quickly spoke aloud. "Or we could move to the palace?"
Mulan covered her mouth as she suddenly broke into a fit of coughing.
"Grandmother Fa?" Fa Li quickly grabbed hold of Grandma Fa and pulled her back.
"What? We need to go straight to the point and not waste our time on frivolous things," Grandma Fa snapped at them.
"Ahem! Please forgive us for this," Fa Zhou quickly said.
"It's not a problem," Aladdin waved his hand dismissively.
Fa Zhou sighed in relief. The last thing he wanted was to cause a diplomatic crisis because he had failed to entertain a foreign Emperor in his home.
"I will take you to the dining room," Fa Zhou said, gesturing for Aladdin to follow him forward. Since Aladdin hadn't stated that he was leaving, he took his response as a 'Yes' and opted to show him the way.
Aladdin nodded and followed behind.
Mulan stood beside him.
"Sorry about that," she whispered almost quietly.
"As I said before, it's not a problem. You don't need to apologise." Aladdin shook his head in response.
Mulan nodded. "I've been meaning to ask. Could you do me a favour?" She looked forward with a normal facade. But inwardly, her emotions were in chaos.