Chapter 83 (1/2)
Chapter 83 Remembrance: Selfishness
Feng Luodi never expected Situ to do that for her. Yes, she did know that he had feelings for her, but she knew that such feelings were nothing in the face of the greater good. She was not one to put herself down, but neither was she overconfident of her own charm. She thought she'd understood Situ: a clever man whose every move is calculated and carefully examined. That was the General of the North she knew.
But this time, his actions were not calculated nor examined in advance. Suddenly, she felt the weight of his unspoken feelings on her shoulders.
The army slowly started to redraw from the maze, under orders from Cheng s.h.i.+fei. The entrance of the maze was slowly getting submerged by the quicksand flowing into it, but Situ was yet to be seen. Everyone watched the entrance carefully, worry apparent on their faces.
Finally, the long awaited figure appeared in view.
Feng Luodi looked at him. Other than the dust in his hair and his ruffled clothes, Situ seemed fine. In one hand , he held Remembrance.
“General, are you alright?” Cheng s.h.i.+fei and the Covert Guards rushed over quickly.
Situ shook his head, and walked over to Feng Luodi, pa.s.sing the Guqin to her. Without stopping, he continued onwards. “Let's head back. It's been a tiring day for all of us.” The soldiers followed behind him. Feng Luodi looked at the Guqin in her hands, a mixture of feelings welling up in her.
“General! You are injured!” A soldier cried out.
Feng Luodi's head shot up and looked for Situ. Indeed, his entire back was covered in wounds. Some were deep gashes, and some were puncture holes where black fluid oozed out slowly, the injuries from the poisoned arrows and darts.
Suddenly, she could not hold in her tears any longer. How could I be so selfish? All I'd been thinking about was if I could get back to the 21st Century – I never thought of him at all! Why did this have to happen to me? Why do I have to come to this world at all? Why am I the one who always had to make such difficult decisions? Why must I be in such pain?
Remembrance suddenly felt heavy in her hands, so heavy that she felt herself falling to the ground along with the Guqin.
“Miss Feng!” Quattor, who stayed by her side all the while, cried out. Situ spun around, just in time to see Feng Luodi fall to the ground like the heart-breaking sway of a willow tree in the wind.
The neighbouring countries that had stationed their troops to watch over the movements of the Northern Army were irritated by the three days of inactivity of the troops, then surprised by the sudden withdrawal of the Northern Army. Their surprise quickly turned to shock as they felt the ground rumbling beneath their feet, tremors caused actually by the sinking of the maze. Believing it to be the result of Situ's discovery of the “invincible weapon” that he was rumoured to be looking for, the generals of the other armies panicked and were at a lost of what to do.
Before they could report the situation to their kings, Zhang Xin appeared before their armies with a mere troop of ten thousand strong. The generals quickly questioned him.
“General Zhang, what is the weapon that General Situ had discovered? Are you not willing to share it with all of us?”
“Hmph! There is no such weapon, and even if there is, why must we share it around? This is in the lands of the Xuan Kingdom, and the territory of the Northern Army.” Zhang Xin's face darkened. “If you think you can best us, go ahead and try by all means. But I can tell you that your attempts are futile, even if you combine forces with each other. Our General Situ is back, and you can tell that to your kings. Tell them that the General of the Northern Army is back, and it's time for them to snuff out their shady plot themselves.”
Now the generals understood. Whoever it was that had spread the rumour of Situ looking for the “invincible weapon” had been used by Situ in a demonstration of power and confidence. Indeed, they wouldn't dare to go against the Northern Army now that Situ is back, even if the surrounding kingdoms joined forces. That was the show of power that Situ had promised the Emperor, and he had delivered.
Feng Luodi knew that she had fainted, and she did into enter the spiritual plane as she'd wanted to previously. But this time, Phantom did not appear even after a long time. How she wished for someone she could turn to for advice, not knowing how to face Situ when she woke.
When she woke, the first thing she saw was the white canvas that formed the top of her tent.
“Cough cough!” Feng Luodi struggled to sit up. She had a splitting headache, and her throat felt as raw as sandpaper. Her limbs were deadened and weak, just as how she'd felt when she first entered the body of Feng Luodi. She dressed herself painfully and shuffled to the tea table, wanting to pour herself a drink. However, her unsteady hands failed her and she knocked over both the entire set of tea, staining the table.
The loud sound attracted a person outside her tent. Situ entered to see the mess she was in.
“What's wrong?” He stopped her from trying to clean the mess up. “We'll do it later.”
“I have no strength in my hands anymore!” Feng Luodi stared at her hands, aghast. Her throat felt even tighter than it already was.
“It's just a minor cold. You'll be fine in a day.” Situ comforted her. “There's some ginger soup prepared for you; I'll go and get it.” He stood up and turned to leave the tent.
“Situ.” Feng Luodi called out. Her gaze swept over Remembrance, sitting in a corner of her tent. “You didn't have to do it. It wasn't worth it.”
Situ did not turn to look at her. “I'll bring in the ginger soup.”
Feng Luodi stared at the familiar figure in front of her, and tears welled up in her eyes again. She raised her head, trying to stop them from falling. When Situ returned, Feng Luodi had already tidied up the area.
“Drink it while it's still hot. You'll recover quickly enough.” Situ sat down beside her and watched as she slowly drank the soup.
Drops of tears splashed into the bowl, causing ripples over the surface of the hot soup.