Rising Phoenix

While Chunyu Hong was considering the right time to tactfully voice his concerns, a figure rushed forward, yelling as he ran, “General! General! It’s not good…”

“Calm yourself! What are you doing, yelling here!” Chunyu Hong’s face fell with icy anger. Yelling like a fool in front of His Highness, abandoning all decorum and composure, was this vice general trying to embarrass him by showing a lack of training in his subordinates?

Chunyu Hong’s rage swelled, and he was just about to order the fool whipped when Ning Yi raised a hand and stopped him.

Ning Yi was still considering the empty horizon that Feng Zhiwei and her Steel Battalion had rode down — the same direction the vice general was rushing from.

“What happened?”

The vice general finally recognized Ning Yi and the man’s face abruptly shifted. Ning Yi watched as the officer’s expression changed, and the prince’s eyes narrowed.

It was at this moment that soldiers carried in Zhu Shirong’s corpse, and Chunyu Hong’s face fell even further.

The vice general quickly explained what had happened, his eyes constantly darting over to examined Ning Yi. Chunyu Hong swiftly pulled the man aside, whispering quiet curses as he said: “Idiot! Why did you no explain that he was Prince Chu’s…”

“I did!” The vice general whispered back in a bitter voice, “But as soon as I said that…”

He turned to glance at Ning Yi again, no longer daring to speak.

Chunyu Hong stilled, turning to eye Ning Yi.

Ning Yi sat calmly atop his horse, seemingly ignorant of their whispered exchange, his eyes on Zhu Shirong’s corpse.

Zhu Shirong was his man. Grand Secretary Hu had introduced him, and Ning Yi had arranged the easy and prestigious post of Northern Expedition Camp Quartermaster.

And just as before he arrived, the man had died.

Was this a message?

A single stab through the heart. He could just imagine her unhesitating voice as she ordered the vicious execution.

When the blade punctured the chest, was she imagining his face?

Her swift departure… not from fear, but because she had no desire to see him?

Ning Yi gazed down at Zhu Shirong’s bloody wound, slowly lifting a hand and placing it on his own chest.

He suddenly felt as if a bloody hole had appeared inside him, and the fierce steppe wind was howling through.

Pain, emptiness… and memories fading into dreams.

…

In the end, Wei Zhi was not punished for Zhu Shirong’s death. Ning Yi later said that General Wei’s merits far outweighed his crime, and Zhu Shirong would not have escaped death for his defiance of military orders. Ning Yi only had Chunyu Hong dispatch a message, ordering Wei Zhi to return to camp to receive an Imperial Order and accept a small scolding.

But Feng Zhiwei did not show her face even for the Imperial Commendation promoting her to vice general — Chunyu Hong’s scouts could not even find her camp. Wei Zhi sent back word that his men had discovered a mountain pass in the south of the Geda Mountain Range, and he planned to develop the pass until he could move his men to attack the rear of Da Yue’s main camp. Such an important and urgent mission could brook no delay, and he would return for the Imperial Commendation when time allowed.

When Yao Yangyu delivered Feng Zhiwei’s message, Ning Yi could only smile helplessly and silently set down the Imperial Order.

“If His Highness has no other orders, this humble officer begs leave to withdraw.” Yao Yangyu said, all of his youthful playfulness gone. The young officer made a clean, vigorous military salute and hurriedly turned to his escort.

“Yangyu.”

Yao Yangyu stilled by the tent door.

Small motes of dust flew inside the tent, obscuring Ning Yi’s face; Yao Yangyu could only see His Highness toying with a brush, seemingly troubled with a difficult decision.

Yao Yangyu waited, but his heart was already on his brothers miles away. Anxious, he began to open his mouth.

But Ning Yi had made his decision.

“General Wei… is well?”

Yao Yangyu let out a relieved breath, his imagination running wild at what manner of question His Highness could struggle with for so long. The young man smiled in relief, easily answering: “The General is doing very well.”

“Well in what way?” Ning Yi asked after some hesitation, silently cursing Yao Yangyu — the brat used to be such a gossiper spouting the most inane and trite words, and now he decided to be as miserly with words as Feng Zhiwei?

“Ah? He is just well.” Yao Yangyu replied without understanding, his eyes widening with his surprise at the question.

“I mean!” Ning Yi exclaimed with some anger, slapping his brush down on the table, “How are her spirits? Is she eating willing? Has she thinned or gained weight? Is she wounded? Where is she?[1]”

“Oh.” Yao Yangyu nodded, frowning. He knew that His Highness was often concerned with the wellbeing of his subordinates, but he had never known the prince to be so wordy.

Ning Yi met the young officer’s eyes, the prince’s expressionless face sending shivers down Yao Yangyu’s spine.

Yao Yangyu hurriedly replied: “His spirit is high, but he does not eat much. I do not think that the general enjoys steppe food, but he has never complained. It only happened once, when a new grain supply arrived. Our quartermaster handed out cheese bannocks, and the general broke off half a piece to eat in front of everyone before disappearing. I was a little worried and followed, and it turned out…” at this, Yao Yangyu hesitated.

“It turned out what?” Ning Yi pinned the man with a glare. This brat had been by Feng Zhiwei for so long that he had even picked up her habit of hiding her words?

“It turned out that the general was kneeling behind a hill, gripping his neck so that he wouldn’t vomit. He… it looked so painful, that I felt terrible just watching…” Yao Yangyu bit his lips, his eyes red.

Ning Yi fell quiet, slowly leaning his head into his hand.

You… you’ve never forced yourself to eat things ou did not like, but now… even in such a small thing, you’ve learned to force yourself.

Or has someone taught you that you must be ruthless even to yourself?

Ning Yi leaned his elbow into his desk as he listened to the wind outside, his chest filling with hollow pain. His long, dark hair draped around him like flowing water, covering half his face.

Yao Yangyu fell quiet, barely daring to breath in the heavy silence.

After a long moment, he heard a quiet sigh, and a light voice once more sounded in the incense smoke.

“And then…”

“And then Master Gu came,” Yao Yangyu replied after another moment of silence. “Master Gu patted the general’s back, and… and then I left.”

Somehow, Yao Yangyu felt that he should not describe the easy and well-practiced manner in which Gu Nanyi had comforted the general.

[1] in case you’ve gotten this far without realizing, 他 he and 她 she are pronounced the exact same way