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'Never undermine your enemies...even the MEEKEST of them' the words resounded in his ears as he momentarily reflected on the absence of his tutor Bairam Khan in his life. Though generally astute with strategies and cautious with battle-plans, he had misjudged the ferocity of his enemies. Rubbing the dust off his murky brows, the handsome young emperor jumped off his horse and handed over the reigns to its keeper. Unmindful of the inquisitive stares around him, Jalal boldly strode through the splendid palace grounds.
The onlookers studied the whelmed group of soldiers following their ruler. Their 100 mile trek home had felt more like 1000 - what with their emperor having galloped back to Agra at breakneck speed.
'What happened? The shehenshah does not seem happy...' one bystander whispered
Ensuring the emperor was out of earshot, another continued in horror 'Was the conquest unsuccessful? But it was only...'
Suddenly, one of the weary soldiers halted in front of the curious nobles with a cynical frown 'Beware! Do you want your head off? Why do you think the Shehenshah would NOT be successful in a conquest as small as this?' he lowered his voice 'Someone misled us...so, he is frustrated that we ended up losing more men than needed!'
The peaceful surroundings of his familiar home had failed to calm the enraged emperor yet. With his chief commanders being away on various pressing missions in Kandahar and Rajputana, he had decided to take up the matter in his own hands.
'It was only a small uprising of armed farmers' he'd been misinformed.
Rounding up a small regiment, he'd rushed forth to thwart the uprising, hoping to be done in a matter of hours. How was he to know that his opposition were a large group of trained soldiers in disguise. Being the mighty warrior that he was, he'd eventually managed to overcome the larger force. However, only after losing more than half his men. As if THAT was not enough, his side was unprepared and this made him appear weak.
Now, he hated NOTHING more than being unprepared or appearing weak!
Pausing on his way to his personal chamber, Jalal removed the iron helmet from his head and ruffled the sweat off his shoulder length hair. Numerous ministers and courtiers had already flanked the king's retinue. After all, many issues still needed the emperor's attention. However, one glance at the Mughal Shehenshah's face and they realized the time was not right.
Suddenly, the bustle in the crowd came to an instant halt when his voice thundered through 'Before I hear one word come out of any you...get me the brazen fool who dared to misguide me with such information...' Jalal tightened his fist 'I've had plenty of time to think of a suitable punishment for him!'
Word had reached the harem by now and a bevy of over-enthused ladies gathered around the balcony with the Royal Hakim in their presence - all of them ready to tend to the Emperor at the slightest sign of a hint.
Intrigued by the commotion and the noises emanating from outside, the solitary queen alighted from her plush chaise and hastened towards the entrance of her chamber. Partly shrouded by the sheer curtains, the curious young lady peeped outside to watch the ongoings.
There was no mistaking - he definitely stood out - even in the midst of a large group of powerful soldiers and majestic courtiers.
She hadn't cared to find out what the upheaval was about. However, Jodha could see the anger on Jalal's face as he meted what seemed like instructions to his nobles - his vehemence evident from the blood pulsating through the veins of his tightened fists.
Unwittingly, the beautiful girl continues standing there for a few moments longer - her attention now fixed on the warrior king.
Sweat was dripping down his face that carried marks of battle - both, blood and mud! She didn't know what had happened at the field that day, but his dishevelled wavy brown hair and heavily scratched armour gave away signs of a tough fight. It was the first time she'd ever seen him in this form - and for some reason she didn't dislike it very much. Her eyes then gingerly rolled down to study the heavy armour that clung to his chiselled persona. Understandably, she'd never bothered noticing his physique so far - something that remained well concealed in his Mughal finery. He had an admirable physique indeed - broad shoulders, strong arms, a sculpted chest... there was something about him - a radiance that was difficult to overlook.
She suddenly placed her hand on her heart - the unfamiliar flutter she'd started feeling thereafter had brought her back to her senses.
Swiftly finding herself very frustrated, she amended her stance at once 'A man who loiters most of his youth, plundering others on the battlefield is bound to be - for want of a better word - well built!' she pauses angrily 'Silly girl...you hate him...then why did you just...why did you just...Kanhaji would never forgive you for this...for..'
She couldn't get herself to complete the statement...to admit that she'd just been admiring her husband's persona!
Fuming to herself, Jodha decided to get back to the confines of her chamber when her predicament was suddenly worsened! She realized that the emperor had spotted her gazing at him.
'NO! I wasn't gazing, I was glaring at him' she corrected herself
The furious Jalal had just been about to leave for his personal chamber, unconcerned by the numerous people vying for his attention - when he'd realized that he was being watched. By HER!
Briefly slowing down in his tracks, he looked up through the balcony to study her confounded expressions. Unmindful of the watchful eyes around him and unaware that his rage had begun subsiding, he stared back at her. The frowns on his brow mellowed down as he looked on for a moment. He felt a sudden rush of something - but he didn't know what it was. Just as his lips were about to break out into the slightest hint of a wry smile, her mesmerizing face abruptly disappeared behind the curtains of her chamber.
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