Capítulo 38: The Higher They Rise
"General Fei, I must say I had never thought I'd have the honour of meeting you. If it isn't beyond my station to ask, I'd like to know what made a place like this worthy of a visit from the esteemed General Fei himself."
Fei Li held in a sigh, giving the guard who stood at attention before him an uncaring glance. "I'm here to see General Lu. I sent a letter beforehand."
"Yes! Of course! I've already sent someone to fetch him for you. It's just… I wanted to know why. N-nevermind, it isnt my place to ask such a thing, please forgive me."
"I've heard he has been difficult to handle." Fei Li replied calmly.
The guard's expression became awkward at that. "My apologies. Ive been incompetent in disciplining him and troubled you because of it."
"It's no matter. It's not like you had any chance of disciplining him, he wouldn't give in regardless of what you did to him. Not until he gets what he wants. Can you confirm that he is unharmed?"
"Yes, General Fei. No punishment was used that would cause permanent harm."
Fei Li frowned slightly but his attention was taken by the entrance of two guards, and one Lu Qinyi with his hands bound in loose restraints. He had looked rather disinterested in wherever he was being led, probably having thought he was being taken for another punishment. He froze however when he locked gazes with Fei Li. They stared at one another for a long time, neither saying a word. The tension in the air was thick enough that it could have been cut with a knife. Even the accompanying guards could feel it, not daring to speak either as they watched the silent stand off between the general and the once general.
Lu Qinyi finally seemed to recover from his shock, a mix of emotions flashing over his face. Disbelief, anger, hate, displeasure, irritation, and… relief, followed by shame. He averted his gaze to the side as a cold settled over his features.
"Leave us." Fei Li stated to the guards. They promptly saluted, stepping back to leave. Just as the lead guard who had been accompanying Fei Li was about to exit the room, Fei Li called out again. "The key to his restraints." The guard paused, seeming a bit hesitant as he looked at Lu Qinyi. But he could hardly disobey an order and General Fei could best Lu Qinyi even at his peak, so the guard tossed the key to his general, saluted once more and left.
Fei Li caught the key from its graceful arc through the air, glancing at the cold metal in his palm before turning back to the only other remaining soul in the room. "You wanted to see me."
Lu Qinyi's gaze snapped up, anger blazing within it and it seemed like he wanted to curse him out. In what fucking life would I ever want to see you again? But he bit it back, remaining silent even as Fei Li walked closer to him.
Fei Li could see him clearer now that he stood closer. Although the other no longer wore blood stained and tattered clothes his new robes weren't much better, poor quality and covered in dirt and dust. He was thinner than he used to be, having lost weight and muscle in the passing months. But at least he was no longer sickly pale, standing tall despite seeming tired from the hard work he endured from sunrise to sunset now. As Fei Li undid the restraints at his wrists, he noticed the fresh and vivid bruises that coloured his skin, continuing up beneath his sleeves. If he looked closely, he could see marks beneath the collar of robes, and another on the underside of his jaw. These were likely the remnants of Lu Qinyi's punishments for his repeated resistance. What was truly surprising however was… despite all this, there was still that life that burned brightly in him, one that refused to extinguish even in these circumstances, even when he had fallen into such a state. Even after all that had happened.
The moment the restraints came away, Lu Qinyi shoved aside Fei Li's hands, backing away from him. "My friends and family. I need to know how they are. So long as I know, I'll live quietly and I won't seek any more trouble." Seeing Fei Li didn't respond immediately, Lu Qinyi added with underlying threat "Refuse to tell me and I won't ever stop, so long as I live and breathe."
"Your lieutenants walked free, as I promised. They fled the capital immediately after their sentences were lifted and have likely been laying low since. There has been no further news of them. There is no further news of your family either. There's nothing more I can tell you about how they're fairing."
Lu Qinyi's shoulders eased slightly and he nodded faintly "And Yanlin? What about Yanlin then?"
This time, Fei Li's expression waivered and he pressed his lips together. It was clear he was hesitant to continue. This only made Lu Qinyi look more alarmed, his voice more pressing as he took a step forward. "Yanlin. How is she? You said you would look after her."
"I didn't say that. I said I would try. Her circumstances were complicated. The feelings towards her were quite intense and the demands for her to be punished… I was limited in what I could do for her."
Lu Qinyi's voice dropped and his gaze became sharper. "How. Is. She?"
Fei Li sighed quietly. "She's fine. She married into a prominent and respected Northern family to separate her from her crimes and… her family's crimes. An associate of mine offered the marriage. From what I'm aware, he has a respectable character. I doubt it's a perfect life but she should be safe and taken care of at the least, a better outcome than the alternative she would have faced."
Lu Qinyi's brows knit with concern and his lips pulled into a frown. "Yanlin… married?"
"Yes."
"Did she want this? She truly agreed to it?"
"Would you have rathered for her to face her original fate?"
"..." Lu Qinyi went silent, seeming deeply concerned as he stared blankly at nothing in particular. This was better than lashing out at him for marrying off his sister, which Fei Li honestly thought might happen. They continued to remain in silence until Lu Qinyi suddenly looked up. "Take me to see her."
"What?" Fei Li said, more in disbelief than because he hadn't heard.
"Take me to see her. Just once. I have to see her." Seeing that Fei Li didn't respond, just staring at him expressionlessly, Lu Qinyi seemed to get more heated. His expressions reflected his flaring emotions like clear glass, that careful control he held before shattering and everything he held inside spilling out. "Don't you owe me this at least?! After everything you've done, the horrific deeds you did, you fucking bastard, don't you feel any guilt? Do you feel anything at all? All I want is to see her, that's it. After everything I've been through because of you, you can't let me see her once?" His voice fluctuated, nearly straining towards the end.
Fei Li froze on the spot, the pain squeezing his chest making it hard for him to breathe.
Lu Qinyi's head lowered and he grit his teeth, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. He then dropped to his knees. Fei Li's eyes widened at the sight of the defeated general in name but not in spirit bowing to him with his forehead pressed to the ground in a display of sincerity. "Please." Lu Qinyi forced the word out, it was hardly more than a whisper but Fei Li had heard it.
Fei Li stared down at the man who once more threw aside his own pride and honour to lower himself to sincerely beg him and he couldn't say anything for a long time. He felt deeply uneasy, his brows furrowing. "Get up."
Lu Qinyi didn't move, clearly intending to stay in that position until Fei Li agreed.
Fei Li only felt more uncomfortable. He swore under his breath as he turned away so he didn't have to look, but it didn't help. His brows furrowed deeper and deeper until finally he swore under his breath. "...I'll do it, just get up already. You'll get to see her once. That's it. You return here after and that will be the end of it."
Lu Qinyi shut his eyes against the threatening sting of tears of relief. He pulled himself up from the ground. "That's fine by me. That's all I need."
This was insane… Even Fei Li was shocked he was really doing this. Yet he walked to the doorway, waving over the lead guard who had been waiting outside. The other respectfully saluted. "General. If you're finished here, I can have someone serve you tea while General Lu is returned to his section."
"That won't be necessary. General Lu will be temporarily transferred into my care from today. I'll return him to continue his sentence at a later date."
The guard paled with fright, looking like he might faint from the shock, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head. "General, that's insane! Why would you do something like that?!"
Hadn't Fei li just been thinking that? He didn't need it to be repeated by some guard in charge of overseeing a labour camp, he already knew. But he was committed to this decision now and the best way to achieve it was to take General Lu from the camp into his supervision so he could visit his sister. Lu Yanlin was married into a prestigious household now, she would hardly leave her family's estate now. It wouldn't be considered acceptable to take her from her family, put her through the journey and finally bring her into a labour camp where only those working as guards for the camp or high military could access. Lu Qinyi also seemed to have understood this when he made his demands. So he could only make a vague excuse. "I have some business I need him for."
"Y-you can't do that Sir! You can't just take a prisoner into your care like that!" The guard tried to reason, sweat pouring from his brow from how anxious he was.
Fei Li only gazed at him coldly. "Why can't I?"
The guard gaped at him in disbelief.
"Do you have a position to question me?" Fei Li asked cooly, raising his brows slightly in challenge.
The guard hastily bowed his head. "N-no Sir! I'll see to it right away!"
Lu Qinyi glanced at the open door, watching as the guard hurriedly ran off, before turning his gaze forward again.
PENSAMENTOS DOS CRIADORES 
mehasacupcake
mehasacupcake Many thanks to my alpha reader Rae for helping with the chapter!
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