Legend of Fei

11. The Story of Xie Yun and Feng Feihui

Xie Yun, ever since first discovering of White Tiger being after A'Fei, was able to relax today. The inn was nothing ordinary but knowing that A'Fei had an advantage against the invasive technique due to her Wither Bloom energy, gave him some peace. He suspected that A'Fei must have been practising with that energy for her to develop such ability but he didn't ask. 

It was likely A'Fei didn't know herself. His wife loved the martial practice, not the things that entailed after. He had never met someone who would practice because they wanted to practice. For A'Fei, advantages didn't matter only her level of martial arts did. Xie Yun looked at his wife, unpacking her bundle over the small shelf and shook his head. Her back still held her sabre and the short-hand sabre he had given her.

He had a mischievous idea. He snaked his arms around her middle and let the sabers press into his chest, he lowered to her ear and whispered, "I want to try something."

As soon as she nodded once, he dug his fingers into her side and tickled her.

He jumped back and her elbow met air. 

"Xie Meimei." she exclaimed, fist raised and glaring when she turned around. He burst out laughing. With her WitherBloom so developed, she should have been able to sense his movements too but it seemed like she was still thick towards her conscious environment. How talented and how simple... He gave her his best smile between huffs of laughter and held her fist in his own after she marched up to him. She hit his side with her other fist only making him laugh harder.

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and let her head be buried in his chest.

"I love you." he whispered and A'Fei relaxed. Being able to say the word without inflicting pain on each other felt like a blessing every time. He had never failed to say the words every single time he felt them after he had recovered from the poisoning. He could never forget the time he wanted to say them again and again but could never. Had A'Fei not chased after him with her single-mindedness, where would they be today? She had defied his fate for him.

Suddenly, she stiffened and pulled back. Xie Yun wasn't ready to let go yet but he understood the meaning. Someone was in the room. He looked at the open window and cursed himself for being careless. He looked around the room and found an anomaly. This one wasn't invisible. It was like a bump on the wall. Like a sheet. A'Fei probably wouldn't even notice it. But this also meant that the inn was scouted before they arrived and the person had prepared before their arrival.

He looked down at her and jerked his head towards the wall where the person was hiding.  She looked puzzled and as suspected, did not notice, not immediately.

Instead, he asked, "Let go and check the festival preparations."

Without waiting for her answer, he pulled her along, outside the room, outside the inn.

Once in the open air, he asked, "Is there any stronghold secret service in Sanming?"

She nodded and led the way. Not far, they found a herbal food shop and A'Fei led them in. She flashed her Stronghold token, the man bowed and led them to a corner table, far from everyone.

"There is no one here?" he asked just to be sure. When she shook her head he began to talk.

"This will might be the first and last time we get to talk in peace." he sighed slightly and started.

"White Tiger is an expert in disguise and qi manipulation. Feng Feihui wasn't the white tiger, his uncle was. I came upon him while fleeing from the battlefield." He paused, gathering once more, what he had to say.

"You have seen qi manipulation already. They can align their qi with their surroundings turning naked to our eyes. He seemed to have taught it to some of his disciples. His qi manipulation is devious. Something like what you found in ocean sky scrolls, only worse. It has serious repercussions on the body. "

Xie Yun tried not to remember that day in the forest but failed, "I was hiding in the forest. My master's disciple had recently died giving me his qi, there was poison in my system and I couldn't process the thousands of dead on the battlefield. I thought it was too much until I came upon Feng Feihui and his uncle. The man and his uncle were fighting. They both manipulated their qi. I saw them vanish right before my eyes. When I came upon them again, Feng Feihui was standing over his uncle's body and the body was looking shriveled as if he had aged a 100 years and had been in the grave for a few more." 

Xie Yun remembered the events and shivered, "And Feng Feihui looked younger, much much younger. I still don't know if it was an illusion or reality but I could tell that it was something very bad. It felt like the very air was wrong."

The words quivered on his tongue. A'Fei was frowning as he tried to explain something even he didn't understand. Apprehensive that someone might overhear, he leaned and whispered.

"Whatever devious method he used, he seemed to de-aged while his uncle... I am afraid of whatever he wants of you. It is definitely not what the humor says. It can't be anything good. Let us keep the fact that you are a Descendent of the Southern Sabre, hidden for now. We can use this to our advantage."

A'Fei nodded in understanding, not fazed at all. Xie Yun reminded himself that his wife never was. That thought made him smile. Whatever more he had to share didn't seem as important anymore.

"I will not use Pouxe skill before we have to face him but you also, don't use your qi or skills," she paused," maybe only Qing Dong. We can use it as a surprise also."

Xie Yun was impressed and smiled proudly, "you are getting better with strategizing. My wife learns fast."

He quickly flicked her forehead and leaned back before he could be hit but did not count the sabre lying on the table which she used to jab his stomach.

"Ow." she laughed at his grumbling and he mock-glared at her. The weight, he didn't know he had, felt lighter. All these years he had feared but no word of White Tiger was heard and he began to ease. Now, having A'Fei know and not bother with whatever devious skill it was, seemed like he had worried for nothing. He felt lighter.

On the other hand, A'Fei could see a visible change in Xie Yun as he laughed, joked about, told stories of the harvest festival, of Feng Feihui and of all the other disguise skills he had heard over the years in the name of White Tiger. She learned that none but one and only disguise skill was true to the white tiger, others just came and went and were associated with the 4th mountain god due to common traits and nothing else. His words flowed more easily. It felt right to see his burden lighten, whatever it was.

"In the room, what disguise was it?"

"A coloured sheet, clothe, something. It shows that someone scouted the area, the inn, ahead of us and made preparations to hide in the room."

"But how would they know where we would stay?"

"They couldn't. Which means they scouted everything in Sanming."

"That means a lot of manpower." Xie Yun only nodded to that conclusion.

"Do you want to deal with that man in the room now or do you want to go see festival preparations?" Xie Yun asked and she contemplated for a moment.

"Didn't you want to show me the preparation of the harvest festival? If we go to the inn, won't we miss it?" A'Fei had learned just the right thing to say in such times. She couldn't joke around like Xie Yun could but she knew how to perk up his mood. Just talk about enjoying the worldly pleasures and he would brighten up immediately.

"Let's order some lunch. I heard that even the medical soups taste sweet in Sanming."

He was already calling the waiter over before even finishing that sentence and the inn was all forgotten.

A'Fei felt that small awareness again but she was accustomed to it now. She ate her noodles, drank her soup, which was a little bitter, let Xie Yun pile up her bowl with anything he wanted and went about eating and listening to his stories of the festival. Master Tong had taught her to see through the disguise using her qi while Xie Yun was busy. It wasn't a conspicuous method. She might have to find a way to use this Wither Bloom to her advantage.

She must have gone tense, lost in her thought because Xie Yun waved a hand in front of her eyes and quirked in brow in question. She darted her eyes around the room and knew he had understood. They thanked the good food and left the shop, mingling into the festivities, losing the trail.

They were determined to enjoy themselves and enjoy they did.