Chapter 16

It took them 2 extra days to finally reach back to the capital. The group had gone towards the Chan Manor first, to return the Master to its den.

“We’re here.” Boran said as he hops off his horse in front of the small carriage.

Lushi opens the curtains dangling over the exit of the carriage and hops down first with Boran's help. Weiting’s father then scrambles himself forward with the help of Yang Sun, who came out behind him, and off the carriage he went.

“Here,” Boran had reach his hands towards Weiting’s father. “Let me help you down,” He supported him down the steps, carefully.

Boran then reached his hands off to Yang Sun to help her down but she refused it and hops off herself. He quickly pulls his hands back to his side feeling a bit left out and turns to face Weiting's father.

"Commander,"

"Call me uncle. We're not on the battle field anymore." He told Boran as he leans on Su Tang for support.

"Y-Yes, Uncle." He carved a smile.

Yang Sun felt a little bit uneasy as she stood there in front of the Chan Manor. Her heart begins to beat quickly and her hands trembled. Why? She was so nervous. Weiting's father takes a peek at her and noticed her sudden pale expression.

"Are you okay? You look sick." He said and everyone rolls their eyes towards her.

"I-I'm fine," She lied, not being able to look up and over to everyone else. She was feeling very nervous.

"You do look a little pale," Boran approached her. "Are you sure you're okay?" He asked and reached over his right fingers to place them on her forehead but she turned away quickly to avoid his touch.

Weiting comes rushing out the front door entrance, "Father!" He calls out for his father with Lu Geng following after.

Boran turns his head with his fingers in mid air while Yang Sun hesitated to look up and over.

Weiting runs over to his father and noticed his leg wounded, "What happened to your leg?" He asked him and grabs his father's arms.

"It's nothing. Let's go inside and talk." His father's horse voice whispered.

Boran turns his body to face Weiting and his father. "Weiting,"

"... Thank you," Weiting thanked his friend.

"No problem." Boran smiles.

They stared at one another for the next minute.

"If you guys aren't too busy, how about coming inside and taste some of the famous Chan family's tea?" Weiting's father asked Boran and his group.

He wanted to thank them for saving his life by serving some tea, this was what he could do at least. Weiting had quickly shifted his father's body weight onto his shoulders.

"Hao ah, it's been a while since I last tasted it..." He became over joy and then turns around to ask Yang Sun but she had disappeared. "Miss Yang Sun?" He looks around the carriage.

Lushi and everyone else also roams their eyes around the area but no sight of her was found.

"Where did she go?" Boran pondered. No one saw her leave.

"She was just right behind you," Lushi frowns cutely.

Weiting looks around too, "Who are you looking for?" He asked out of curiosity.

"Miss Yang Sun," His father replied to his question. "She saved me,"

Weiting slowly nods, "Where is she then?"

"I... I'm not sure, she was just right here behind me." Boran scratched his head. "She must of headed back to my manor first."

"Maybe," Lushi crossed her arms on her chest.

"Since Miss Yang Sun left first, I think I should try to find her and take her back to my manor to rest." Boran said.

"I'll come with!" Lushi grabs his right arm like a child clinging on its mother.

"No, didn't you say that you wanted to visit Weiting? Take this time to enjoy some tea here for a few hours and then return with Su Tang." He said and removes her hands from his arm. "I'll go look for Miss Yang Sun first,"

"Hao," Weiting nods, "I'll visit you tomorrow. Thank you again!"

Boran smiles and turns to hop onto his horse and rides back to his manor first. Lushi pouts in anger and jealousy, and she felt hurt by his rejection.

Weiting's father smirks and takes in a deep breath, "Are you going to stand there all day?"

Lushi peeks over, "Let's go inside," She said and walks into the Chan Manor first.

Weiting helped his father through the doors after Lushi. Meanwhile, Yang Sun was seen walking her way down the path way into the market staring into space. Why did she leave just now? Weiting wouldn't been able to recognize her with her new face. Why was she so nervous? Of course, it was because she has never seen how Weiting looked like. She was afraid to see something she has never set her eyes on before. Especially because he was someone she once loved.

She stops in the middle of the road while listening to all the noises and chatter going on around her. For another moment, her eyes closed for a moment as she thought about what happened 2 nights ago.

Flash, 2 nights ago;

"I ask you... Where did you get that pendant?" Weiting's father asked her again.

Boran walked right into their conversation that night after scouting the area, staring at her then back to him. She frozed there gripping onto the jade palette pendant in her chest.

"I...  It belonged to my Shifu." She whispered and tucks the pendant away into her chest pocket.

Maybe he doesn't know? She thought to herself.

"Shifu?" Weiting's father thought. 'It can't be...' He looks gazes into the fire with questions in his mind.

Yang Sun peeks at him and noticed a strange look on his face. Did he really know the witch? her heart began to pump quickly, what if he knew her? Then he would know of her secrets! Before another word was to be said, she takes a few steps forward and passes Boran to head towards the stream nearby.

"Yang--" He tried to stop her but she walked right pass him, not even noticing that he was standing there.

He was confused as to why she was looked so nervous all of a sudden and watched as she headed towards the stream.

Back, 2 days later;

She pulls out the jade palette pendant from her chest and takes a closer look at it. The word carved on the jade started to fade away with the cracks around it. Maybe he didn't know the witch? She thought to herself for the next few minutes.

"Miss Yang Sun," Boran caught up to her as he rode by on his horse and stops a few feet away from her.

She looks over her left shoulders and saw him hopping off his horse.

"General Dong?" She was surprised at how fast he caught up to her.

"Why did you leave?" He asked and walks over to her.

"I... I wasn't feeling well." She replied and tucks away the pendant.

"Are you sick?" Boran looked worried.

"I think I caught a cold." Her voice became weak.

He chuckles at her for a second and brushes his fingers onto his nose. Something was funny to him.

"... What's so funny?" She asked him with a blank face. "Do I have something on my face?"

"Nothing, you just remind me of someone." He said and her eyes shook a little. "You remind of a friend who used to get sick during the summer too."

She then looks away with a flustered face. She knew who he was going to mention.

"... You're not curious to whom I'm talking about?" He shuffles his hand to side as he stares at her.

He was trying to spark a conversation with her to break the awkward silence.

"... Who?" She asked to make him feel better, looking up to his level. Of course she wasn't curious, she already knew who it was.

"She was the only one who I knew that got sick in the summer. Believe me or not, she was my friend's fiancé, the late crown princess of our kingdom."

"... I see,"

He noticed her looking tired all of a sudden, "Hao le, let me take you back to my place. It's been a long travel for you, you'll need some rest."

"That sounds good." She agreed and followed him the rest of the way back to the Dong Manor.

Chan Manor;

Weiting's father was changed into a dark colored robe and sat in the living halls of the Manor. He had a small table tending to his leg as it held it up in the air for comfort. Weiting sat to his right while Lushi sat to the left, they all were enjoying tea that morning.

"How long did you say you and Boran know this girl?" Weiting's father asked Lushi suddenly after placing his cup down to his side table.

Lushi paused for a second, "... I'm not sure how long Piao-Ge has known her for, but I only met her twice before he decided to take her on this trip with us." Lushi replied as she held the cup of tea in her hands. "If you think about it, I've only met her not too long ago."

Weiting's father nods, "Where is she from?"

"I'm not sure." Lushi thought for a moment, "Ah! She lived alone near the bamboo forest... It was a few days ago when her house burnt down to the ground."

"Her home?" Weiting looked over and his father fidgeted with his fingers as he leans on his arm rest.

"Yes, that's the reason why Piao-Ge let her traveled with us. She didn't have anywhere to go... I told Piao-Ge not to take her with us, but he didn't want to listen to me... I thought that maybe it was this guy who she had argued with in the market who had set fire to her house."

"Why?"

"Because he blamed her for selling rotten herbs to him. Piao-Ge had saved her again that day, and that was the first time I met her."

Everyone sat in silence, "And! She told me that he had previously saved her before from a wolf!"

"A wolf?" Weiting's eyes sharpen suddenly.

"Um, it's strange isn't it? A wolf here in the capital... Honestly, I found it to be quiet strange at first, but a wolf is a free animal that likes to travel into far places. I just told myself that it was possible for it to travel here." She explained and takes another sip of the tea.

"But... It's been so long that a wolf would wondered around the capital." Weiting's father said, "The last time I saw one was 20 years ago, during the war with Liang State."

"Yes," Lu Geng nods as he stood to Weiting's side. "It's really weird. most of the wolves traveled to the desert after that war..."

"Perhaps... Some didn't leave." Weiting whispered and takes a sip of his tea.

Although Weiting didn't get to meet her today, he felt so curious about who she is and how she looks. He wanted to meet her, not just to thank her for saving his father, but to see how she looked like.

"Uncle, can I ask you a question?" Lushi asked and places her cup down.

"Go ahead." He gave her a half smile.

"... You mentioned that she reminded you of someone. Who were you referring to?"

Weiting peeks at his father and he smirks, "A friend's daughter." Was all he said.

Weiting was super curious now! Even his father took a liking to this 'Yang Sun' girl.

Lushi frowns with a sad look, "Ho~ I thought that you were embarrassed to say it in front of her that day, that's why I didn't bother with it... But in the end, you're still going to keep it a secret from me." He shook her fingers at him cutely.

Weiting's father sighs, "Yes, it's nothing... Why get all upset about it?" He swayed his voice sweetly.

"I guess," Lushi shrugs her shoulders and enjoyed the rest of the morning with them.

Later that day, Lushi had gone back to the Dong Manor to get some rest as well, and before they realized it, the very next day arrived. Weiting showed up at Boran's family Manor alone, like he promised to do yesterday.

 He walks down the corridors towards Boran's study room until he was stopped by a familiar back scene in the garden. There was a young woman sitting in the middle of the yard by the white marble stone table. It seems she was bathing under the morning sun.

He takes a few steps into the garden and stops a few feet behind her, pacing his breath back and forth. He has seen this scene somewhere before, but where? He knew he has! It looked all too familiar to him. She was dressed in an all white cotton robe with her hair neatly tied half up with silver pins and jewelries dangling on her high bun.

He begins to feel like the universe is one giant pattern repeating itself over and over within, and that his mind and senses begins to interpret random images in his head. He felt the need to see her face, so he proceeds towards her quietly, making sure not to startled her yet.

She takes in a deep breath and raised her face up to the sun to gather energy from it with her eyes closed. She smiled brightly and felt the burning sensation on her skin. Weiting fickled his eyes a bit, going in closer.

"Yang Sun Jie!" Lushi's voice pops out from the side suddenly and causes her to look over. "Oh, Weiting Ge!" She also noticed him standing literally a feet away from Yang Sun's back.

Yang Sun's eyes grew big as she frozed there. 'Weiting?? Chan Weiting?? Standing behind me? But why'

"What are you doing here?" Lushi ran pass Yang Sun and over to Weiting who was still staring at Yang Sun's back. "Does Piao-Ge know that you're here?" She asked with a cute smile.

Weiting turns to look at Lushi for a second, "Yes, he knows that I'm coming to visit him today." He said and peeks back to Yang Sun. "That is... The girl that you were talking about yesterday?"

"Yes! Let me introduced you to her, Yang Sun Jie!" She waves to her and Yang Sun didn't budge from her seat.

Lushi noticed the stillness of yang Sun and scratches her head, "Why is she like that?" She whispered and frowns, "Eh! Yang Sun Jie!" She yells out again. "Come over here,"

Weiting waited for her to turn around, but she was still sitting in the same spot frozen. Yang Sun finally came back to reality after Lushi decides to call her again and cleared quickly. What is going to happen now? Should she stand up and greet him, or should she run away?

'No! I can't run away....' She told herself, still sitting there like a rock.

She told herself it was going to be okay. He wasn't going to figure her out anyways, with her new face and all. She slowly takes her time to stand up from the stone seat and turns around to finally face him.

"Greetings," She kept her head low as she greeted him.

"... Raise your head," He ordered her as he ties his hand behind his back with his strong looking shoulders spoofing up.

Yang Sun was feeling uneasy, but she decided to keep calm. She knew there was going to be a day when had to face this situation, but never would have she imagined it to be this day. She had always wondered how Weiting looked! Her curiosity was getting ahead of her and although she was scared to face him, she couldn't wait to finally get a good look at the man she fell in love with.

Besides, she needed to get her job done. As she slowly raises her head, their eyes finally met. She was finally able to see him for the first time in her life. His visual was way more than she had expected. He was handsome and tall; he had sharp features indeed, just like how Cui Feng had described him to her back when she was still the crown princess.

She smiles sweetly at him and he took noticed of it. She had fallen in love with a great man, she thought to herself as she looked into his eyes. Just by looking at him, gave her a little warmth. It brought back the old memories from her past and she saw the memories in his eyes glittering and lighting up like fireworks.

A brief silence of chimes came in between them.

Weiting felt a little flustered at her beauty.