Capítulo 23: Goodbyes and Till We Meet Again
It was time for Lu Yanlin to say her goodbyes the following morning. Yang Xun must have had a hangover from the previous night as he squinted at those painful rays of the first morning light. Still, he bore his headache to see Lu Yanlin off, standing with Zhao Mei, Lu Qinyi, and Fei Li, who stood some distance away from the others, silent with his arms folded over his chest, subtly hugging the warming stone hidden beneath his robes to himself.
Zhao Mei had a glimmer of sadness showing on her cold features. "Must you go, Mingyu?" She asked reluctantly.
"Sadly, yes. I must." Lu Yanlin responded lightly, comforting her friend with a hug goodbye. Zhao Mei surprisingly returned the hug before standing aside, nothing more to say.
Lu Yanlin then turned to her brother who was pretending to be uninterested, staring up at the bare branches that arched over them. She raised an eyebrow slightly. "Are you sad to see me go?"
Lu Qinyi scoffed. "Hardly. It's impossible to get any work done in peace with you around."
Lu Yanlin only responded with an uncaring "Oh?", amusement in her eyes as she opened her arms in offer. Sure enough, it only took Lu Qinyi a moment to drop his act to accept her offer of a hug. She lightly ran her fingers over his hair. "Be safe. Don't cause trouble."
"Fine, fine. I will do my best not to cause trouble." Lu Qinyi half heartedly promised as he stepped back, straightening out his robes. He stared at her before sincerely wishing her well, "Travel well and take care." Lu Yanlin smiled lightly and nodded assuringly.
She then glanced at Yang Xun who stepped forward to give a polite and respectful salute. "I wish you well, Miss Lu." She had reminded him a few times now that as Lu Qinyi's childhood friend, they had known each other long enough for him not to have to speak so politely. But he continued insisting on addressing her respectfully so Lu Yanlin didn't bother correcting him this time.
"Thank you Yang Xun."
Finally, it was Fei Li's turn. Lu Yanlin glanced at him, offering her usual polite smile. Fei Li merely nodded his head in acknowledgement. Lu Yanlin returned the gesture before cupping her hands to give a respectful salute, bowing her head slightly.
Just as she was about to turn to leave, she seemed to recall something and turned back to Lu Qinyi with a mysterious smile. "Oh, I nearly forgot. Maiden Chen sends her well wishes and says she eagerly awaits your return."
Lu Qinyi started laughing, Zhao Mei let out a small breath of amusement and Yang Xun wore a tilted smile. The look they all shared was like they were in on some joke no one else understood. When Lu Qinyi finally calmed his laughter, he wore a devious smile on his face, finger laid on his cheek, tilting his head slightly with a thoughtful look. "Send well wishes in return. Say I miss her terribly and can't wait to return home, or something like that."
Yang Xun clicked his tongue. "That won't do, tell her that he thinks of her every night and yearns to return to her side."
Lu Qinyi burst out laughing again, pointing his finger to Yang Xun. "That. That's brilliant, say that for me." Zhao Mei nodded her approval and Lu Yanlin laughed lightly. As Fei Li watched on, he felt something was amiss but he couldn't tell what.
"Alright, I will," Lu Yanlin agreed before turning to leave in a graceful swish of skirts.
Following her departure, a quietness settled in the courtyard. Lu Qinyi and his two lieutenants kept to themselves as they attended their business and Fei Li was left to his solitude, with far too much time to think while he watched the snow beyond his window. Fei Li finally couldn't stand the stifling peace and quiet any longer. He found he was finding it harder and harder to fall asleep, restlessly tossing and turning. Having had enough of this, he decided to walk around the courtyard to clear his head. The snow that blanketed the ground glimmered faintly in the moonlight that poured into the empty courtyard. A few snowflakes lazily drifted about in the night air. As Fei Li was wandering about aimlessly, occupied with his own thoughts, he paused, noticing the soft yellow glow that was cast onto the ground below his feet. It peeked out from under the door of Lu Qinyi's room, indicating the other was likely still awake.
Fei Li decided he had enough waiting and chose to confront his fate directly, raising his hand to knock on the door.
"Come in."
Although the guards in the courtyard watched him, as per their orders, they didn't stop him, only watching closely as he entered the room and slid the door shut behind him. Although there were multiple light cubes placed around the room, including on the low table, Lu Qinyi wasn't actually in his study. Fei Li's hand hesitated at the screen that split the room but he could hardly back out now so he pushed it aside, talking a few steps into the sleeping quarters. Lu Qinyi was sitting up in bed, illuminated by the warm glow of the light cube beside him. His hair was lazily pinned up with a red sandalwood hairpin and a soft robe was draped over his shoulders, a look better suited to going to bed than receiving guests. He glanced up from the book in his hand, surprised to see Fei Li was the one who had come to visit him in the night but he didn't raise any objections, at ease as usual.
Fei Li glanced around the room as he searched for the words to say to the other. He hadn't paid much mind previously but the wall of Lu Qinyi's room had short shelves that sat at various levels with an odd arrangement of objects on them.
Lu Qinyi followed his gaze. The first object was a delicate but plain vase. Inside it was a small blossom branch made of white jade and gold. A slightly odd thing to find in a general's room at a military estate. "It was a present from Yanlin for my first deployment. Our family home has winter blossom trees in the courtyard. She was worried I would miss home so she gave it to me as a reminder." He explained, kindly letting the other have some time before he stated his business here.
Fei Li nodded slightly, his gaze shifting to the next shelf where a strange object that was a combination of wooden pieces combined at awkward angles sat.
Once again, Lu Qinyi offered an explanation. "Birthday present from Yang Ye. He tries to find me creative gifts each year. This was one of my favourites, it's a strange puzzle box of sorts. Once you get it open, inside is a tiny carved horse. Or maybe it's a donkey, it's hard to tell."
Strange was the correct word for it Fei Li silently thought, looking over at the last shelf which sat a refined looking tea set.
"Since I displayed a gift from Yanlin and Yang Ye, I also wanted to display one of Zhao Mei's to complete the set. She only gives practical gifts however. Most of my weapons are sourced by her, I originally displayed one of the black steel knives she gave me. She wouldn't stop scolding me over it, saying it was a waste of a perfectly good weapon to use it for decoration. So I had to swap it for one of the tea sets she's given me," he said with a light sigh, the gleam of the black blade made a far better decoration.
Fei Li's gaze finally fell to the last of Lu Qinyi's room decor, a painting that was hung up. But his brows started to furrow the longer he looked at it. It wasn't the snowy mountains, winding rivers and proud forests of the South but the warm, sweeping grasslands of the North. The edges of the scenery were dotted with trees thick with green leaves, their leaves scattering onto the tranquil lakes and ponds below. The familiar scenery left Fei Li speechless, a slight itch in his throat as he turned to Lu Qinyi for an explanation. The corner of Lu Qinyi's lips rose slightly. "I've visited the North before, it's quite nice. I rather liked it so I purchased a painting on the way home."
Fei Li remained silent for a moment longer, staring at the painting. Finally he spoke up, no emotion evident in his voice. "I've had enough. It's been long enough that there shouldn't be any use in keeping me here any longer. If you're going to kill me, I'd like you to get it over with."
Lu Qinyi hummed thoughtfully in response. He then shut the book in his hand, tossing it onto the bed behind him as he got up. He pulled on his robes properly and tied them, grabbing his cloak before passing by Fei Li, gesturing for him to follow. Fei Li frowned slightly but followed without a word.
Lu Qinyi walked over to Zhao Mei's room, giving it a couple of clear knocks. After a few moments, Zhao Mei opened the door, robes pulled tightly around herself as she blinked tiredly, looking unamused at having been disturbed. She let Lu Qinyi and Fei Li into her room, closing the door against the cold before turning to question "General Lu?"
"Are the arrangements for the new camp complete?"
She nodded slightly. "They should be complete by tomorrow."
"Alright. We'll start preparations to move out tomorrow then. Have a message sent to the Northern Army. We'll use the arrangements we discussed last time for the hand over." Lu Qinyi then turned to Fei Li with a light smile. "You'll be going home in a few days, General Fei. Please bear with it until then."
Zhao Mei had nothing to say to this, making a vague sound of acknowledgement as she gazed at Fei Li coldly.
Fei Li on the other hand looked utterly bewildered, staring at Lu Qinyi in disbelief. He pressed his lips together. "Surely you're kidding?"
"If you don't want to go home, you could always switch allegiances."
"General." Zhao Mei reprimanded in a low tone.
Lu Qinyi sighed. "Fine, fine. We'll keep to sending him back to the North then. If that's all you needed, General Fei, I'll be going back to bed."
Fei Li wanted to force him to confess what he was truly planning but part of him wondered if General Lu truly did live up to his eccentric reputation. Was there a chance he would actually let him go, just like that? It was beyond stupid but then again, so was saving enemy soldiers and treating an enemy general like an old friend. In the end, Fei Li couldn't find any words to say, returning to his room silently with his turbulent sea of thoughts remaining unspoken.
It seemed Lu Qinyi had really been serious however. A few days of busy rushing about later, the estate had been packed up and the soldiers were ready to move. Moving the soldiers and prisoners had been left under Yang Xun's care while Zhao Mei accompanied Lu Qinyi and a small number of Division One soldiers to handle handing over Fei Li.
Fei Li still didn't quite believe it, even as he walked with each step crunching the snow underfoot, open skies above him and quiet, sparse forest around him. His last visit outside had been too eventful to appreciate being out in the open, no longer enclosed in the four walls of the courtyard. This time however, Fei Li walked with his head tilted up slightly to gaze at the unrestricted expanse of icy blue sky and white drifting clouds above him. He didn't pay mind to the quiet chatter of Lu Qinyi and his soldiers, nor the pressure of the metal bands at his wrists. He felt an odd sense of peace, his expression neutral even knowing the reality might be that he would die here in this world of pure whites, pale blues and muted browns.
His death didn't come however. Lu Qinyi stopped walking, turning to face Fei Li who met his gaze fearlessly. Lu Qinyi stepped forward and Fei Li braced himself, his mind whirring with the hundreds of plans for escape that he'd thought of while they walked. But after Lu Qinyi slotted in the thin piece of metal and his restraints fell away with a click, Lu Qinyi stepped back again. Fei Li narrowed his eyes as he rubbed at his wrists. Lu Qinyi only offered a smile, pointing ahead of them. "Walk in that direction until you reach a rocky outcrop. If you turn left there and continue on, you should reunite with your men before night falls." He cupped his hands and saluted respectfully. "It's been a pleasure, General Fei. I look forward to sharing a battlefield with you once more."
Fei Li was struck into silence, unable to think of a single thing to say. Lu Qinyi wasn't looking for a response however, turning to walk back without a second thought. Zhao Mei gave one last glance at Fei Li before she fell into step beside Lu Qinyi, the soldiers following along behind.
Zhao Mei looked displeased. "I understand that you couldn't seriously injure him out of fear he would be replaced and you'd lose your advantage, but why did you have to leave him completely unharmed?"
Lu Qinyi rolled his eyes before responding seriously. "If I'm going to injure General Fei, then I'm going to do it on a battlefield. I don't need him to be bound and defenseless to injure him." He seemed to be in a good mood, his arms swaying slightly as he walked and there was a brightness to his eyes. "Besides, it's more interesting this way. Did you see how confused he looked? He was truly waiting for me to draw a blade against him."
Zhao Mei sighed lightly but there was no winning with this general of hers.
Lu Qinyi grinned slightly, lightly poking at her arm a couple times. "Aren't you excited Mei Mei? This is where the fun really begins."
"Enough of that." Zhao Mei brushed away the offending hand, wearing her usual cold exterior but Lu Qinyi could see the determined light in her eyes. Even if she didn't admit it, she appreciated a good challenge as much as he did. Killing an opponent like General Fei without a fight would truly have been a loss.
PENSAMENTOS DOS CRIADORES 
mehasacupcake
mehasacupcake Let the games begin!
Unfortunately, I'm really not that skilled at writing wars so it's taking a long while and it will only be a handful of chapters. This novel will be going on a pause until I finish writing this tough part so there's no pressure and I can go back and edit my in progress chapters as needed.
I'll be back, I promise!
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