Phoenix Rising

090

"My lord, they are here," the owner said, knocking on the door.

On the other side of the door, someone coughed. Zi-ning's heart skipped a beat.

"Let them come in," a hoarse voice called out.

The door swung open.

Zi-ning stepped across the threshold, her eyes gradually acclimatising to the dim candlelight in the room. It was a small space, enough to fit only a single bed and a small square table. Her gaze fell upon the figure lying on the bed, now slowly trying to sit himself up. A lump rose up her throat.

"Zhenghuan."

He turned, familiar eyes meeting hers. His lips curved in a smile.

"Zi-ning, you're here."

Three simple words to send every ounce of self-control and sensibility crashing down upon her. She ran across the room and flung her arms around his neck, tears streaming down her face. The mere warmth of his arms around her felt comforting.

"It's okay. I'm fine. No need to cry," he said, gently patting her on the back. He buried his face against the crook of her neck. "I'm really okay."

"Don't lie!" she scolded. She separated herself from him, wiping away the tears that stained her cheeks. Then, she studied him carefully. Other than looking a shade paler than his usual self, there didn't seem to be any detectable injuries–at least Mingshen hadn't been lying on that account. "Have you managed to purge the poison from your body?"

Zhenghuan placed a hand on her cheek, stroking it gently. He nodded. "I already said, I'm fine. It took a little while to recover from the side effects, that's all."

Zi-ning narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Somehow she sensed that he was not revealing the complete story. Reaching for his wrist, she quickly did a check of his pulse. It was a little weak, as expected of someone recovering from poisoning, but there was nothing else out of the ordinary. Her heart settled back down.

Perhaps she had been overreacting after all.

"What happened?"

"We were double-crossed. By Princess Xuan."

"What! Didn't she die? It was all an act?"

Zhenghuan nodded, proceeding to recount the entire story about what had taken place in Hua and on their journey back to Duan. Alarm rippled within Zi-ning as she listened to the harrowing encounter. After what she had experienced in her past life, she had thought that she was immune to the callousness of the world, but to hear of how the princess had turned on her own to help an enemy kingdom still shocked her nonetheless.

"It was my fault. I shouldn't have trusted her. Ru-quan's death is on my hands," Zhenghuan said, shaking his head ruefully.

"No, it's not. No one could have expected the princess to pull off such an act," Zi-ning replied, giving Zhenghuan an encouraging squeeze of the hand. "If anyone is to blame, it's her. She's committed treason!" The more she thought about it, the angrier she became.

Treason. The crime that had been wrongfully pinned upon her and Ru-wen in her previous life, leading them both to their tragic ends. Yet in this life, Hong Xuan would get away with committing that very same crime.

"How did you manage to escape then?" she asked. If the princess was in cahoots with Situ Zhiren, then the entire assassination attempt must have been a set-up. Situ Zhiren did not seem like the sort who would leave loopholes in his plans.

"I had some help. From Ambassador Caron."

"The Shon ambassador?"

"He'd already suspected that something was amiss—perhaps he had chanced upon something in the Hua palace—so he sent a group of men to tail us on our way back to Duan. I crossed paths with them while on the run from Situ Zhiren's assassins. They were the ones who helped me escape."

"Why would Caron do that?"

Zhenghuan shrugged. "Who knows? In exchange for a favour that he'll no doubt call for when the time is right," he replied. "Doesn't matter. We can worry about that when he actually comes knocking."

Zi-ning made a mental note about this ticking time bomb. Nothing was free in this world, certainly not from the hands of a seasoned politician like Caron.

"What's your next move? Mingshen reminded me several times not to reveal your whereabouts to anyone. Are you not intending to return to the capital yet?"

"Since everyone thinks that I'm either dead or on the run, I thought to use this opportunity to head to the southern wastelands."

"You want to investigate the Eagle Warrior?"

"Clever girl." Zhenghuan smiled, pinching her affectionately across the nose. "Although Situ Zhiren is clearly the main driver behind this entire set-up, I'm not entirely sure that the southern tribes don't also have a hand in this. The tribes have been a little too restless as of late, and I'm tired of coming up against a faceless enemy."

The poison that had been used on the crown prince, Wang Chuan, came from tribal territories, as did the gu-du that had plagued Zhuiya not so long ago. It was evident that the Eagle Warrior had bigger plans in store, but the limited knowledge of who this mastermind actually was would make it challenging to weed out the problem from its source. Situ Zhiren was an enemy in the light, while the Eagle Warrior was an enemy in the dark.

Zi-ning was lost in her own thoughts when Zhenghuan suddenly took her hands in his. "I'm sorry, Zi-ning," he said.

"Sorry? Whatever for?"

"I promised you a wedding, but it looks like that might need to be delayed."

"How about delaying it indefinitely then?"

"What! No!" Zhenghuan yelped.

The look of distress on his face made Zi-ning laugh. She leaned in, resting her head upon his shoulder.

"You're just pulling my leg, right?" he ventured hesitantly.

"If you dare land yourself in such a dangerous situation again, then maybe I'll reconsider whether or not that should be a joke," she said.

They sat quietly for a long while, fingers intertwined, listening to the sounds of each other's steady breathing. It was peaceful, harmonious—something that Zi-ning thought she might be able to get used to.

"You don't have to come with me. The southern wastelands is not like any of the three kingdoms. It's unpredictable. Dangerous," Zhenghuan said.

"Then all the more we should go together," she replied quietly, with a firmness that reflected her resolve.

A soft, mirthful laugh escaped from his lips, and the arm that he had wrapped around her shoulders tightened ever so slightly.

"Mmm. Together. I quite like the sound of that actually."