When Kairi awoke, she felt someone's hand wrapped tightly around hers. She turned her head and found Zhang Sheng sleeping in a sitting position by her side.
It really wasn't a dream. She had returned to Liu Sect at last.
Her movement caused Zhang Sheng to wake and he instantly greeted her with a smile.
"Are you going to kick me again?" he joked.
"I'm still debating," she replied. He helped her up into a sitting position then walked over to the tray of food that sat on the table. He then handed her the bowl of rice porridge.
"Mei Er and Da Shi Xiong has been very worried. They've been coming in to check on you every hour," Zhang Sheng said.
"Where are they right now?"
"Da shi xiong is handling the lessons and Mei Er is probably cooking you food right now," he replied. She looked down at her bowl but didn't feel hungry at all. She had so many questions.
"Why didn't you tell me anything? I... I said so many horrible things to you," she said feeling extremely guilty. He chuckled and patted her head.
"I don't blame you. I should've been honest with you from the start. It would've saved us many heartache," he said. Kairi suddenly gasped. Her hand reached up to her face and she realized what was wrong.
"You...!" He looked confused at her sudden outburst. "But I'm not...! I don't even look... how did you...?"
She couldn't seem to form a full sentence. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently. He then finished her sentences for her.
"You're not Xiao You and you don't even look like her yet I knew who you were. Is that what you wanted to know?"
She could only nod in reply.
"I've known who you were long ago. Remember when your core was sealed?"
"Grandmaster Liu, he told you, didn't he?"
"Correct. Why do you think I've never once called you Xiao You?"
Now that she thought about it, he really never did call her Xiao You.
"Why didn't you say anything?" she asked. Her annoyance with him suddenly grew. He always kept her in the dark whether it was for her own good or not and she hated it.
He sighed as if he was struggling to find the right words.
"I figured you would tell me once you trusted me enough but I guess it didn't go exactly as I planned. My secrets ended up pushing you away instead," he breathed.
"So tell me everything," she retorted. He chuckled and grabbed the bowl of porridge from her hand.
"I'll tell you everything once you eat," he said instead.
That wasn't what she wanted to hear. She pursed her lips and wrapped her arms together in front of her chest.
"I should've known. Keep your secrets. See how things turn out for you in the end," she hissed and looked away. Zhang Sheng grabbed her softly by the chin and turned her head back to face him.
"My secrets don't come cheap. Do you think you can afford it?" he asked slyly.
That womanizer was definitely back. She slapped his hand away and muttered, "That line may work on others but it won't work on me. I'm still mad."
He let out a laugh and it made her only angrier.
"I see you've haven't grown up all that much after ten years," he joked.
She was about to throw back a retort when he suddenly leaned in and captured her lips. It was the strangest feeling as he nipped at her lips. Kairi had always heard that kisses were sweet and she couldn't understand why anyone would describe it like that. She finally understood at this moment. She awkwardly tried to kiss back and eventually let her instincts take over. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she pressed herself closer against him.
Was she in heaven?
Just then a chuckle erupted from the kiss and Zhang Sheng pulled away.
"If we keep this up, I'm afraid I might just pin you down and ravage you," he teased. Kairi's face burned and she quickly put a bit of distance between them. She remembered him telling her that Wei Xing and Mei Er constantly came in to check up on her.
What if they walked on them kissing? Do they even know about her strange relationship with Zhang Sheng? Is it even okay for them to have a relationship?
She pondered over these questions only for everything to slip away when she felt a peck on her cheek.
"I promise I'll tell you everything after you eat," Zhang Sheng said as he handed her the bowl of porridge again. She sighed and reluctantly spooned some into her mouth.
As soon the food hit her stomach, she realized how hungry she was. She finished the bowl but it wasn't enough to satisfy her stomach.
"Mei Er should be done cooking soon," he said as he stroke her hair affectionately. He put the bowl away and pulled her into his embrace despite her protest.
"Stop. What if Master or Jie Jie comes in?" she whispered as she tried to push at him.
"Weren't you clinging helplessly to Why so bashful?" he laughed.
"Argh. Seriously. Enough. Aren't you supposed to tell me everything that you hid from me?" she snapped.
"I'm just making you more comfortable before I tell you everything," he lied.
"Right, cause this is so comfortable," she said sarcastically.
"So you admit it," he said teasingly.
"I'll scream for Master. Let's so how he deals with you when he sees you," she threatened. He suddenly released his hold on her while laughing nervously.
"Alright. I was just teasing you," he said.
She suddenly found the person who could scare Zhang Sheng. Secretly laughing in her heart, she smiled in triumph.
"Where should I start?" he asked.
"At the beginning from when we first met. You already knew then that Xiao You was the girl of destiny, didn't you?"
"I did."
He explained how he was given the sight to see the mark of the goddess on the girl of destiny and had been cursed to not fall in love. He had purposely left the jade hairpin to her to keep an eye on her. Unfortunately after their first outing together, someone had been tailing them. He knew then that someone had realized that he had found the girl of destiny. He then had Grandmaster Liu keep her locked inside the sect to protect her. To make matters worse, after helping Mei Er and Wei Xing escape, the enemy started to close in on the identity of the girl of destiny so Zhang Sheng tried to keep his distance. Things didn't work out well as General Feng suddenly wanted Kairi to leave Liu Sect. He figured she would be alright as long as he kept his distance and didn't keep contact but he didn't count on Grandmaster Liu to seal her core leaving her vulnerable. He had no choice but to appear before her and find the reason for her seal. That was when he learned about the reason for the seal. The soul of Xiao You had been trapped to keep them both alive. Things became worse when a traitor appeared in the sect.
"Who was the traitor? I thought Master was the one who attacked the sect?" Kairi asked feeling confused.
"You could say that it was Da Shi Xiong or at least the traitor looked like Da Shi Xiong. It was actually Jiang Liu disguised as Da Shi Xiong," Zhang Sheng said.
"Er Shishu? Why? What reason could he have to attack Liu Sect?" Kairi exclaimed. Jiang Liu, the second disciple of Grandmaster Liu, had always been a calm and kind person. He was the last person she expected to betray the sect. "What happened?"
"He was secretly working with Xing Luo Sect. Despite his calm demeanor, he must've been secretly harboring ill intent toward Da Shi Xiong for a long time. He killed Madam Liu and heavily injured Grandmaster Liu who also died. Da Shi Xiong arrived in time to help capture Jiang Liu but in the end, someone helped him escaped."
He went on to explain how the person who saved Jiang Liu looked like the person who had attacked him the night of the lantern festival and raced back to Lan Manor to see Kairi heavily injured. That was when he decided to keep her close to him in order to protect her.
As always, things didn't turn out the way he wanted. Kairi ended up getting kidnapped. During those years, he secretly searched for her whereabouts until the camp that he had been staying in was attacked by the White Tiger Bandits. He injured Zhao Chen then disguised himself to enter the hidden village.
After bringing her back, he learned that someone was tailing them and was most likely someone from Wan Yi's side, he had to hide his feelings. He figured as long as he pretended that she was someone who took a liking to, she'd be safe beside him which was why he had brought in so many women into his palace. He ended up pushing her further away from him.
Each time he saw Wan Yi approach her, his jealousy grew and he could no longer keep quiet about his feelings. He didn't even care about the throne nor his revenge. He was even secretly glad that she knew that she was the girl of destiny that way he would have even more reason to keep her close but her words that night struck something within him. He finally stamp down his ego and had a long talk with Wan Yi. The two of them secretly planned his execution to bring out the real perpetrator.
"You were right. I'm a curse. Everything I did to make you stay by my side pushed you further and further away. We ended up separated for ten years." His voice shook and his hands went cold. Kairi always thought that nothing would shake the man who sat next to her. She was completely wrong. Zhang Sheng was only human. She wrapped her arms around his waist and placed her head against his chest.
"No. You're not at fault. It's all mine. When my soul ended up in Xiao You's body, I accidently bound her fate to yours," she said.
"Bound my fate to yours...?" he repeated. Kairi nodded and went in depth with her explanation.
"I met the Goddess. She told me that Xiao You was supposed to meet Wan Yi and marry him. Wan Yi was always supposed to become king and you were supposed to leave the palace. Xiao You was the person who cleared the feud between you two and in turn you were supposed to become a renowned cultivator who led your own sect but because of me, the future changed. The Goddess said that as long as the three of us were tied together by fate, Xiao You and I would eventually die together. I... I became selfish. I've struggled to survive all my life and I got scared. I tried to correct the future by hurting you."
She remembered the day when she heard that Zhang Sheng had died. She couldn't stop it and to make matters worse, her soul finally left Xiao You's body. Ten years quickly passed and when she awoke, she as alone again. "I'm sorry I didn't trust you."
"I'm sorry too. I've caused us quite a lot of heartache." With that said he held her closer and placed a kiss on her forehead to show his sincerity. "It's all in the past. We're both alive and together at last."
Kairi smiled and nodded. She relaxed in his warmth and suddenly remembered the day she confessed.
"I do have one more question," she said.
"Mhm?"
"What are we? Master and disciple? Friends? Or are we more than that?" she asked. He grabbed her by the chin again and grinned.
"Should I show you what we are?" he teased. He leaned down for a kiss and she found herself eagerly expecting it.
BAM!
The door slammed open and Xiao Huo raced inside.
"Master! That clingy Feng Jiang is here!" he exclaimed. He blinked multiple times wondering what had happened in the room. His master's face flushed bright red while Zhang Sheng face planted on the floor. "Master...?"
"Ah, right. I'll be right out," Kairi said and threw the covers off of her. She got up to her feet only to fall forward. Zhang Sheng's reaction was lightning fast as he caught her in his arms.
"You don't need to go out and see him. I've already told him that you are not his," Zhang Sheng said sternly.
"Zhang Sheng, there must be a reason why he came to visit. I need to go out and see him," Kairi said.
"No. You need rest. You can't even walk properly," he argued. She huffed and pinched him.
"If you won't take me there I'll crawl there by myself," she threatened. He groaned and muttered, "I finally get to you to myself and that clingy female looking man has to show up."
"I always disliked him!" Xiao Huo agreed. Kairi furrowed her brows at Xiao Huo.
"What's this? You're taking Zhang Sheng's side?" she asked curiously. Xiao Huo grinned at Zhang Sheng.
"Boss knows how to capture this one's loyalty," Xiao Huo chirped. She saw the slight bulge on his stomach. This stupid bird's loyalty had been bought using food. She huffed and yanked Zhang Sheng roughly by the ear.
"Take me to go see Feng Jiang or I'll call Master out to deal with you," she hissed. At the mention of Wei Xing, both men flinched.
During the entire trip to the main hall, both Zhang Sheng and Xiao Huo traded insults about Feng Jiang.
The trio entered the main hall where Feng Jiang and Wei Xing had been exchanging pleasantries.
"Master," Kairi called out. Both of them turned around at the sound of her voice. The moment Feng Jiang's eyes fell upon her, he teared up immediately. His lips trembled and he slowly got up to his feet. Kairi suddenly felt an urge to escape the room. Feng Jiang raced across the room and threw himself on her.
"Xiao Xiao!" he cried as he brushed his cheek against her head. She cringed at his touchy behavior but let it slide as she knew he was always like this.
"Um... Young Master Feng...?" She wasn't sure what to call him. Before at Lan Manor she had called him Jiang Ge in the spur of the moment now she realized that she shouldn't have done so. She was no longer Xiao You.
He stepped back and wailed loudly.
"Are you not going to call this Gege?" he cried.
As annoying as he was, she felt like her heart would burst. She was no longer Xiao You yet he treated her like so. She almost teared up as she shook her head.
"I couldn't possibly... I'm not your sister," she said glumly.
"Xiao Xiao!" he shouted sternly. "You will always be my Xiao Xiao and Father says that you will always be family no matter what had happened in the past."
She couldn't believe her ears.
"But I..." She couldn't continue further as she burst into tears.
"There, there, Xiao Xiao. Gege loves you very much," Feng Jiang said as he wrapped his arms around her and patted her back like a child.
Earlier not either