When the army returned to the Imperial City, all the soldiers had their armor stained red with blood. Many of the injured were carried into the city, and not one among them had clothes free of mud and blood.
Sitting on a bench, An Sun gratefully took the canteen of water passed to him. He gulped so largely, trails of water fell along his moving throat. When he finished, he simply savored the cooling of his body, wetness playing on his lips for the first time in hours.
Looking around, all the men were being assisted by physicians. Clearly not enough to help everyone. With no other choice, An Sun chose to bandage his own wounds. They hadn't been severe anyhow, only minor scars and scratches.
Shedding away his armor and shirt, he grabbed a piece of cloth to wipe the dirt from his body. As he extended a hand out to reach for the wrapping, he hissed. He had stopped to catch his breath and ease the pain in his arm when he heard the scuff of boots on stone and came face-to-face with Jin Yue.
Her hair was black, not an ink or ashy color of common black, but a deep burnished auburn of red that shone in the evening sun. Even her eyes glowed bits of red within the iris. Slender she was, gaunt, taller than most soldiers, with full breasts and a narrow waist, and a heart-shaped face. Men's eyes that once found her did not quickly look away.
"Let me." She grabbed the bandages from the table. Her voice was cold with command.
"Thanks." An Sun shifted himself in his seat.
While Jin Yue wrapped the bandages around his shoulder, the man's gaze was scanning the other faces that came and left. When his eyes fixed on a certain person, his spine straightened.
Those sharp pair of emerald eyes peered through the crowd. She pressed her soft, rosy lips together, her figure moving past the group of men. To his disappointment, they had not once landed on him. Instead, they lit up on someone else. Bai Han and General Guo. Rin marched to the two men and began examining them from head to toe. When she saw they were fine, she offered to help clean their wounds.
"I see the way you look at my mistress." Jin Yue's dull voice sounded beside him.
An Sun's eyebrow raised. "Oh? And what way is that?"
"The same way that muscled fool looks at me." She said simply, rolling up the remaining cloth.
An Sun held back a smile and cleared his throat. "I guess I better work on that."
"That would be best. I wouldn't want rumors spreading about my mistress. I doubt you would either." Jin Yue said before walking away to help tend the wounded.
The corner of An Sun's lips twitched. He sighed and glanced in Rin's direction. She was meticulously bandaging her uncle's hand, her pale face etched with worry. So badly did he want to reach out and smoothen his thumb between her brows.
Recalling the last words he said to her before running off into battle, An Sun ran a hand over his face and groaned.
"Dumbass..." His deep voice muttered under his breath.
...
That night, the Emperor congratulated everyone warmly. They were to be fed a magnificent meal of honeyed lamb, fragrant with crushed mint, and served with small green figs. Their cups of wine were filled to the brim, served to them by female servants with sweet, lovely voices.
Every man drank, ate, and admired the beauties around them as if it was their last night. For some, it was. Until then, they celebrated the dead and ravished themselves with pleasant offerings.
"Look at all of them. Like pigs in a slaughterhouse." General Donghai said as if it left a bitter taste in his mouth. "I don't see why the Emperor thought to host this for everyone. It's just a waste."
