Sun Chen was also about to speak his mind, but the Princess' gradually-higher-pitched voice drown his yet-unspoken thought,
"A lowly person who wants to climb higher branches!" the Princess hissed, now remembering how everyone seemed to think highly of this very unassuming person in front of her. With the envy taking hold and the clear defensive stance the two young scholars had expressed on behalf of Bai YuLan, she only grew more irritated,
"All you can do is seduce men!"
YuLan sighed inwardly. She really did not want to waste her energy battling in words with the Princess. For her, it was just a rambling of an anxious rich teenager. For her, it was a rambling of an immature child. It was nothing to be angry about. She lightly shrugged her shoulders and was about to ask the servants to lock the gates.
If they had to also reject the carriage containing gifts from the Emperor to drive away the Princess and Chao MeiHua, then so be it. It was up to those two young women to explain themselves to the Emperor and it was not YuLan's problem.
A crisp sound was heard, and when everyone realized what had just happened, the Princess was already holding her reddening cheek.
Ji LanBai, who just had slapped her, still had her right hand in the air before slowly lowering it.
Princess Zhang XiuYa glared at her while still holding her cheek, but her eyes widened in anger.
"You!!"
"If you think YuLan is lowly," Ji LanBai lifted her chin at the taller Princess, looking at her square in her eyes, "Then I should be more than enough to put you in your place!"
The Princess gaped her mouth feeling the injustice,
"How...- How dare you!"
"Oh you don't think so?" Ji LanBai sneered. Her usual childish expression was replaced by undiluted fierceness. There was authority in her haughty expression and straight bearing.
She was the smallest of everyone present, but her aura was currently the most majestic. She put herself in front of YuLan,
"I am the Yong Prince's future wangfei. You will have to address me appropriately as I will be higher in rank than you in the future," she spoke slowly with a cold small smile on her face,
"You tell me, my dear future cousin-in-law..., Am I not worthy enough to discipline you? Am I also... 'lowly?'"
Princess Zhang XiuYa now had tears forming in her eyes, still clutching her throbbing left cheek,
"You are not even married to GuoFu-ge yet! How dare y-..."
"XiuYa!!!" A booming voice was heard from behind her. Zhang XiuYa turned on her heels to see the owner of the voice, whom she knew very well.
Third Prince Zhang GuoFu already dismounted from his horse, having handed the reign to the servants for their care.
Behind him, the Crown Prince and Second Prince Zhang JunLi walked closely.
Even if they did not hear or see the full event, they clearly had heard how their younger cousin had disrespected Ji LanBai.
"GuoFu-ge... ," Princess Zhang XiuYa bowed quickly along with Chao MeiHua.
He Shan and Sun Chen also bowed in their greetings. But Ji LanBai suddenly hold onto YuLan's hand, not allowing the latter to also bow her body.
Prince Zhang GuoFu was taken aback, seeing his expressionless fiancee who was now glaring daggers at him. He did not even know what his fault was. It was the first time Ji LanBai had ever exuded the might of a general's daughter.
When he was closer to Ji LanBai and YuLan, Ji LanBai coldy spoke,
"Royal Princess Zhang XiuYa was impolite towards YuLan and me. As her future older cousin-in-law, it is my responsibility to put her in order."
"Put her in order...", YuLan felt like laughing all of a sudden. Ji LanBai sounded very military-like. YuLan suddenly felt very apologetic towards the Princess who was already holding back sniffling sobs. Despite how Chao MeiHua was trying to console her, everyone was clearly not planning to speak on her behalf.
Prince Zhang JunLi immediately ordered one of the accompanying Imperial Guards to escort the Princess and Chao MeiHua back to the palace and residence respectively. The Crown Prince took over to order the servants to empty the carriage, bringing whatever had been bestowed by his Imperial Father inside.
"GuoFu-ge." Ji LanBai looked up at Prince GuoFu's eyes. There was no usual cheerfulness in her eyes, "Do you also think I am out of line?"
Zhang GuoFu blinked his eyes at the sudden question, but soon his lips were lifted in a wide smile.
"Not at all. Bai-mei is good."
"My future wangfei is definitely a tiger."
*** *** ***
"Zhen BuFeng just need to report to General Zhen first before coming here." The Crown prince explained about vice-commander Zhen's absence to Ji LanBai and YuLan.
Zhang KongJing proceeded to remove his outer robe and rolled his long sleeves up while walking towards the bed, "I will start transferring my qi1inner energy to SongLi for now." He beckoned, "YuLan."
YuLan also followed him, understanding his request.
As usual, the giver would transfer his qi from behind, while YuLan kept Ji SongLi's body straight from the front.
Though in any other circumstances, either Zhang JunLi or Zhang GuoFu would probably be a better option to take YuLan's position, the Imperial Physician recommended a female, most preferably a non martial arts practitioner, to hold SongLi's body, while another person constantly expend their qi from behind his back.
YuLan did not understand fully, but it had something to do with the qi being distinctly different between male and female, and also for martial artists.
If another martial art male practitioner hold Ji SongLi from his front and somehow accidentally also expend their qi, there could be a recoil of energy from both sides, causing internal injuries to Ji SongLi as the qi recipient. With a female, and as someone who did not know how to regulate her qi, she was less threat as her qi would not obstruct the flow of qi from the giver or Ji SongLi's own.
Sometimes Ji LanBai also volunteered herself to help, but more often it was YuLan as she was stronger.
The Crown Prince sat behind Ji SongLi, folded his legs, and pressed both of his palms onto the latter's back. Closing his eyes, he started to concentrate the flow of his inner qi, and the warm current started to surge through his veins towards his fingers.
Nothing was out of ordinary for some moments, then suddenly his mind was blank.
His qi surged out of control. It was not apparent from the outside, but his veins were taut, his blood recoiled in the sudden explosion of the qi inside him, surging towards his fingers connecting to the younger man's body.
"Kill him. Kill him. Kill him."
In the blankness of his mind, in his effort to stay in control, he battled with the voice,
"Give your mortal vessel to me. She will bloom for him again."
"She? Who?"
"You know. We know. You want it, too."
"I don't understand."
"If you don't have the slightest trace of.... desire towards my little flower... our little flower... I would not have been able to bind to your soul."
"Bind...to my soul?"
"Troublesome. Troublesome. Why can't your soul just obediently go to your next life?"
The surge of qi was getting stronger, almost tearing his muscles despite his effort to hold it back. But if he let loose, he knew Ji SongLi would be internally hurt. The sudden flow of qi was much stronger than what he knew he possessed.
He should not possess this kind of inner energy. He knew he did not have this kind of inner energy.
In the darkness inside his mind, Zhang KongJing had several flashes of still pictures. It was like memories that belonged to him, but also to another person.
Both memories long forgotten.
*** *** ***
A moon. Endless sky.
A white tree. Endless water.
The same white tree.
A moon. Endless Sky. Thunder and Lightning.
The lightning and sky was dark and mad, it was out of control. The moon god could only observe from behind the cloak of the darkness of the night.
The Seer could only observe from the bank of the endless water.
No immortals must intervene in another immortal's matters.
The lightning god had just passed his first mortal incarnation, bringing all kinds of mortals' attachment. In that first incarnation, the lightning god was a war bringer, bathed in blood and cursed by a lot of souls. He brought all that darkness with his soul as he left his mortal body and returned to the sky.
The manifestation of his power - a mighty serpent, a dragon - danced in the sky, projecting lightnings every time it howled.
Only when the lightning god safely passed this tribulation, the moon god could retire to allow the sun to shine again.
All immortals possessed no emotions. Their personalities, their emotions, the visages they chose to have were formed from the various incarnations and tribulations they must undergo in the mortal worlds. The lightning god had to calm his soul.
Then the white tree bloomed. When the first lightning struck, the flowers petals were released to the sky, as though wanting to calm the lightning god.
A visage, a spirit of the flower could be seen, forming a silhouette of a translucent being. It was female in appearance.
Her soft translucent eyes fluttered as she reached her fingers towards the sky, wanting to soothe the wrath of the lightning god. Wanting to help him to overcome his incarnation's tribulation.
The Seer should have understood. The moon god understood.
The new flower spirit had always been watching the lightning god. She bloomed for him.
Then in his effort to contain his distortion of emotion, still, one of his sparks accidentally hit the white tree that was her body.
As he watched in horror her newly formed spirit began to disperse, the lightning god left the sky and embraced her falling petals, imparting part of his own immortal soul to her.
At least, with a bit of an immortal god's soul, she could then be reincarnated in the mortal worlds. And he would follow her throughout her lives.
The moon god was silent.
The seer was silent - his palm reaching to the sky to catch one of the falling petals, the whiteness turn into dust before it reached his skin.
*** *** ***
The qi burst into Ji SongLi's meridian points in a surging heatwave. Prince KongJing opened his eyes and pushed his left hand to guide the surging qi that he just injected to safely be regulated. Utilizing the foreign power inside his body and mind, he guided any leftover qi into his own body through his right palm.
"YuLan!" He felt the recoil from Ji SongLi's own qi, "Step away!"
YuLan's eyes widened in surprise. She did not notice anything out of ordinary, despite Zhang KongJing's inner battle. But she noticed Ji SongLi's face reddened as his throat moved.
She quickly shifted her body aside, still holding on to his body from the side.
From his lips, red blood - specked with black - burst forth.
It was a similar occurrence to when Zhen BuFeng first transferred his own qi. After that, none of their effort worked. This was the second time that the energy transfer expelled the poison in Ji SongLi's body. More over, the dirty blood that came out was more than the first time.
Having heard of the loud commotion and the earlier shout from the Crown Prince, Zhang JunLi, Zhang GuoFu, and Ji LanBai hastily opened the door and walked inside the room.
Zhen BuFeng had also just arrived, still in his military garb, trailing behind them.
Initially puzzled, everyone's expression soon turned to delight seeing the black blood on the bed.
Zhang JunLi helped Zhang KongJing off the bed, the latter's face had become as pale as Ji SongLi's.
"BuFeng, would you mind fetching a fresh robe for SongLi?" YuLan addressed Zhen BuFeng briefly, "Ask one of the servants."
Zhen BuFeng immediately acquiesced and quickly headed out.
"LanBai, please ask the kitchen servants to prepare some refreshments for the Princes." She looked warily at the Crown Prince who was now leaning his weight on his second younger brother, "Prepare some ginseng soup for the Crown Prince as well. And please also prepare a room for him to rest."
Ji LanBai nodded enthusiastically and led the Royal Princes outside, leaving YuLan inside the room alone with Ji SongLi.
"Despite having so much poison expelled from your body already," YuLan muttered while patting a damp cloth around his face to clean the traces of blood,
"Why are you not awake, yet?"
She paused her movement, blankly staring at the now red cloth.
She noticed the young man's eyebrows knotted in a frown again. She reached out and smoothed out his forehead with her fingers,
"What are you so worried about?" She mumbled, half-irritated, half-exasperated. Her fingers kept trying to smoothe out his taut painful expression.
"We are the one who have been worrying."
"I... have been worrying... ."
Unbeknownst to herself, a trickle of tear fell on her cheek.
"Why ... do you make me wait?"
