maidservant

Chapter 158 An old friend returns

The sound of the water clock was especially clear at midnight, and Yunshan was awakened by a series of light footsteps. The cicadas had stopped chirping sometime earlier, and only the babbling of the stream echoed in the silence with a cool, clear sound. She wrapped her plain white undergarment tighter, her long, loose hair falling over her shoulders, and looked out the window by the moonlight.

Suddenly, a slight noise came from the courtyard. Zhan Qian darted out the door with the speed of an owl, the short blade in his hand gleaming eerily.

"Who?" he asked in a low voice, his tone wary and guarded.

"Zhanqian, it's me." A familiar voice pierced the night, tinged with weariness.

Zhanqian's hand trembled violently, and the short blade nearly fell to the ground.

"General?!" He staggered toward the courtyard gate, the rusty hinges creaking and groaning, breaking the silence of the night.

Yun Shan's heart leaped into her throat. She held her breath and peered through the crack in the window frame.

Under the moonlight, a tall figure slowly walked into the courtyard. The person wore a black cloak soaked by the rain, and his face was hidden in shadow, but it instantly brought tears to Yun Shan's eyes.

Memories flood back like a tide; those days and nights of separation, those longings and worries, all now turn into tears welling up in my eyes.

Her feet seemed nailed to the ground, and she could only stare blankly at that familiar yet unfamiliar silhouette, her heart pounding like a drum.

In the courtyard, Lin Xiao solemnly handed Zhanqian half of a sword hilt. The hilt was engraved with unique patterns. Yun Shan saw Zhanqian grip the hilt tightly, her knees buckling as she slowly knelt on the ground. This man, usually as resolute as iron, now trembled like a child, his suppressed sobs echoing in the night air.

Lin Xiao crouched down, his broad hands gently patting Zhan Qian's back, as if comforting a wounded cub. His voice was low and hoarse: "He was not humiliated."

Inside the room, Yunshan's tears finally broke free.

The moment the door opened, a warm embrace, carrying a familiar scent, enveloped her tightly.

"You're back?"

Her voice trembled violently, and she gripped Lin Xiao's clothes tightly with both hands, as if afraid that this was just a dream.

"I'm back! I'm late!"

Lin Xiao's voice was filled with undisguised guilt and longing, and his warm breath brushed against her ear, making Yun Shan tremble uncontrollably.

"The corpse belonged to a Southern Barbarian. Although he died from malaria, his body must have reached the dangerous mountain before he died. The government discovered that he had managed to cross the border defenses and reach Nanzhou, so they sent people to investigate. They found the tunnel in the dangerous mountain and me. The tunnel was winding and stretched for several miles, and the malaria came from the land of the Southern Barbarians."

"Are you alright?!" Yun Shan sobbed.

"With your life-saving charm, I am incredibly lucky."

In truth, Lin Xiao and Yan Lie had already used up all their life-saving abilities. He had been infected by miasma and only managed to walk for two more days thanks to his strong physique since childhood before collapsing outside the tunnel entrance. If the guards had searched a day later, he would probably be dead by now.

After the separation of life and death, all the rules and regulations seem insignificant.

At this moment, all the waiting and torment turned into a surge of emotion, and the two embraced tightly, as if trying to make up for the time they had been apart.

Moonlight streamed through the window and fell onto the bed, illuminating their intertwined figures.

The moonlight flickered, and the flimsy bed groaned under its weight. With a sharp crack, the locust wood pillar supporting the curtains collapsed to the ground, and the gauze curtains embroidered with twin lotus blossoms cascaded down like flowing clouds, enveloping the two embracing figures.

Yun Shan leaned against Lin Xiao's chest, listening to his strong heartbeat, and finally believed that this was not a dream—the person she had been waiting for had really returned.

Lin Xiao stood shirtless by the window, moonlight streaming down his back along the jagged whip marks, like congealed blood and tears. He picked up a small celadon bottle with a broken rim from the table, his fingertips tracing the lotus scroll pattern etched on its surface—this had once been Yan Lie's personal treasure, and now the jagged cracks at the rim resembled the wounds torn open by fate.

“Yan Lie is dead.” His voice seemed to come from the deepest part of his chest, carrying a rusty, metallic taste.

The brown stains on the bottle were either old medicine stains or burnt ink; "This is his only keepsake."

Yunshan sat up, pulling her slipped-off clothes around her neck. The tassels of the bed curtains swayed gently in the night breeze.

She stared at the broken bottle in Lin Xiao's hand. The person she had known since childhood, the person who had once said he would carry on the Yan family line, was now forever left in the miasma-ridden land of Nanyi.

"Someone in the imperial court sent a message to the Southern Barbarians."

"Our whereabouts were exposed deep in the forest, and arrows whistled through the air."

That day, a torrential downpour raged, rainwater mingling with blood and splashing along the edges of the shields. "We fled all the way to Dali, but the miasma of the Southern Barbarians clung to us like venomous snakes. In less than three days, all twenty-seven of our brothers perished."

Yunshan reached out to grasp his fingertips.

Lin Xiao continued, his voice gradually becoming hoarse: "In the cave at Eagle's Beak Cliff, Yan Lie and I hid against the rock wall. He had a high fever, but he still smiled and talked about his childhood, saying he wanted to drink the rice wine his aunt made."

His Adam's apple bobbed as he clutched the shattered bottle tightly in his palm. "That night, he asked me for the Eagle Eye Jade Pendant, saying it was originally his. He said he wanted to take the pendant to see her."

“I returned the jade pendant to him, and he gave me this small medicine bottle he was carrying, saying that it was better to exchange one thing for another and not to owe each other anything. There was originally a pill inside, but the bottle was broken and the pill fell out.”

"This pill has an auspicious name, the Longevity Pill. I was able to escape from the fire, but Yan Lie risked his life to block the enemy for me."

Outside the window, a warm night breeze rustled against the paper windowpane.

Yun Shan took the broken bottle and brought it close to her nose, wanting to try to restore one of the pieces to be buried with Yan Lie.

A familiar medicinal fragrance mixed with the stench of blood wafted over. It was made with a strong longevity elixir, snow lotus seeds, and agarwood, but now it carried a chilling bitterness.

“Ah Xiao,” her voice trembled, “this herb of longevity also has another name, called Angelica pubescens.”

"He had already made preparations to send you away from the Gate of Death alone."

Lin Xiao suddenly gripped the broken bottle tightly, sharp shards of porcelain piercing his palm, and beads of blood slowly seeped out along the lines.

He gazed towards the direction of Nanyi, where Yan Lie had fallen, now perhaps overgrown with weeds. Moonlight shone on their clasped hands, the scent of blood and medicine mingling in the night, blurring the line between life and death.

He coughed. Yun Shan's fingertips touched his pulse: "Your health needs careful treatment. What are your plans for the future?"

"I must return to the capital to see His Majesty first." He turned around, aggravating his wound, and groaned as he leaned on the corner of the table for support. "The secret letter about the Southern Barbarians' treason is still in my possession, and I must present it to His Majesty in person."

Lin Xiao grasped her hand, his palm burning hot: "After dawn, come with me to pay respects to Father and Aunt."

His thumb stroked the back of her hand. "I don't want to wait any longer for our marriage. Father has already given permission for us to return to the capital to get married."

Suddenly, the long cry of an owl swept past the window, and the candlelight flickered a few times, casting the intertwined shadows of the two people onto the mottled brick wall.

Lin Xiao buried his face in her neck, his warm breath brushing against her skin: "When I go back this time, I'll need to recuperate for a few years. I'll be in trouble with Manager Song to take care of me."

"it is good."