When Zhang Yao arrived at the cave by mid-morning, he found it to be empty of its inhabitant. Frowning, he quickly understood that his patient had wandered away from the cave and into the forest below. At first, anger swept over him upon seeing the empty pine needle bed. After anger, however, disappointment fell onto him like a waterfall.
Zhang Yao was used to being completely alone. He had always taken care of himself and kept his distances from other people because of his wild, solitary nature. However, these past few days had changed something deep inside of him. Sure, Wang Xiao was annoying, childish, irresponsible, useless, and weak, but there was something about having a companion by his side that Zhang Yao didn't mind at all.
He had been surprised to find that he had been yearning for companionship without him ever noticing it. Perhaps Wang Xiao wasn't the best companion, but casually talking with someone had felt nice.
Maybe this was why Zhang Yao just couldn't bring himself to abandon him, especially after he had fainted and been struck with a terrible fever. Zhang Yao had combed the forest in search of plants that could help alleviate the other's pain and had even spent the night by his side, feeding him spiritual energy to revive him.
As he sat by the injured, sleeping man, Zhang Yao noticed how his spiritual energy seemed to flow into an empty black hole whenever he gave it to him. Zhang Yao thought that this was very strange. He had never met anyone else who had this type of symptom. It was as though Wang Xiao had Qi residing within him, but it laid dormant, only absorbing other energies without actually awakening itself.
Nevertheless, Zhang Yao had spent the better part of the night pouring his own energy into the frail, broken body of Wang Xiao. Just before dawn came, Zhang Yao had left him to go and fetch some food and water, thinking that the other would just continue to sleep soundlessly.
Little did he know that Wang Xiao would try to leave on his own, completely oblivious to his condition and the situation out in the woods. Indeed, while searching for herbs, Zhang Yao had come across a promising lead on the wolves' whereabouts. He was sure that their lair was very near to where he and Wang Xiao were resting, which only unnerved him more. What if they came back again to finish him off?
Hurrying back to the cave, Zhang Yao had felt relief flood through him--a strange and new sensation--as his eyes took in the shape still lying on the floor, breathing evenly and left undisturbed.
Now that it was daylight, there were fewer risks of Wang Xiao being ambushed again, but Zhang Yao still felt uneasy about him walking around with only a thin shirt to protect him.
Deciding that he had to find him again, Zhang Yao set out of the cave and made his way down towards the thick green forest. He didn't understand why he felt so compelled to run after someone who clearly didn't want to be anywhere near him, but still, his conscience told him that he had to see him to safety.
Meanwhile, Wang Xiao had had the time to wander south from the cave and was currently faced with an impressive view. A few feet from him was an opening in between the trees from which Wang Xiao could see quite a distance beyond Daishan. The other surrounding mountains loomed in the background against a bright blue sky, their peaks covered in delicate mist, their elegant bodies green with life.
Wang Xiao heard the sound of rushing water and, taking a peak from beyond the edge of the cliff, saw a magnificent waterfall, crashing loudly into a basin at the bottom. Wang Xiao gulp, realising that he was quite thirsty and that he wouldn't mind a dip in a nice, cool pool right now. What harm was there in taking a small detour? He knew that he should be hurrying back to the Yi clan as fast as possible but, in his current condition, he was hardly presentable. If he were to walk back into the clan looking like a beggar, he would surely bring shame upon the clan leader and his family.
Gingerly, Wang Xiao picked his way down the steep rocks until he reached the edge of the deep blue pool of freshwater. Wang Xiao began by scooping up the cool water into his palms and bringing it to his parched mouth. He drank several palm-fulls of the clear water, savouring each mouthful. Once he had satisfied his thirst, he began to undress methodically, starting with his black boots, hair tie, shirt, and finally, his pants. Placing the useless book and the jade pendant on top of his neatly folded clothes, he entered the water.
At first, the cold water gave him such a jolt that he felt all of his muscles tense up from the shock. After a few minutes of swishing around, however, his body grew accustomed to the temperature and he could enjoy it more. He began by scrubbing his skin with his nails to get rid of the dust and grime of the past few days. Wang Xiao was blessed with a beautifully lean and graceful body, his skin a snowy white that contrasted with his jet-black hair. Because he didn't train with the sword, like his fellow clansmen, Wang Xiao had no muscles to speak of, but his body held an alluring, supple look to it. He was long-limbed and delicate, thin yet strong.
Wang Xiao ducked underwater several times, letting his long black hair fan out around him each time. Each time he ducked, he opened his eyes underwater and took in the aquatic scene in front of him. After a while, Wang Xiao felt perfectly relaxed and refreshed, allowing him to reflect on the events of the past few days.
Wang Xiao smiled lightly as he recalled that he had almost died twice within the space of a few hours. He had then fallen inexplicably ill, had suffered strange visions, and had been cared for inside a dark and damp cave. At the emergence of this last memory, Wang Xiao felt a pang in his chest. He felt a mixture of pain, guilt, and embarrassment towards his saviour, and felt ungrateful at having run-off again.
Ducking his head underwater again, Wang Xiao shook out these thoughts from his mind. Instead of exerting his mind, he tried using his shoulder and forearm by swimming a short distance around the pool and found that both were in better shape than anticipated.
Although he was content to stay there all day, Wang Xiao knew that he had to get off this mountain and find his way back to the Yi clan. By now, his shidi was probably dying of worry and overfeeding himself with rice cakes to compensate. Wang Xiao imagined that Yi Ling would be plumper than when he last saw him, prompting him to laugh at his thought.
Hoisting himself up onto the rock platform beside the pool, Wang Xiao began to dress, regretting that he didn't have any clean clothes to wear. Plus, he was still missing an outer robe because he had previously torn it to pieces to make bandages. Maybe he'd be able to find a spare robe somewhere in town before he returned to the Yi clan. Once he was dressed, he swept his long hair up into an elegant bun on the top of his head, securing it with his hair tie.
Gathering the book and the pendant in his hand, Wang Xiao gave one last look at the beautiful scenery and, thanking nature for his blessings, departed once more towards the foot of the mountain.
From beyond a thicket, Zhang Yao stood ashen-faced, clutching at his sword with so much force that it shook. He hadn't intended to spy on the other man, but when he had heard splashing, he'd gone to take a look, expecting to find a wild animal or fish jumping around. He hadn't thought he'd catch up to Wang Xiao so quickly, meaning that the other was probably still bothered by his injuries.
What he had just seen, he wished he could wash away from his memory. Even though Zhang Yao had lived alone for most of his life, he had a high sense of morality and felt incredibly perturbed at having witness someone else bathing. Zhang Yao didn't feel ashamed per se--after all, they were both men--but he felt that he had intruded on the other's privacy. This went against his sense of decency, making him feel disgusted with himself.
He watched the retreating white form and, after taking a few good steadying breaths, he followed at a safe distance. Zhang Yao thought that, right now, he couldn't face Wang Xiao without feeling disgusting, so he decided to follow silently behind. That way, he'd be able to make sure he made it safely to the village, but he wouldn't have to deal with him face-to-face.
Zhang Yao walked softly between fallen trees and rocks, while Wang Xiao remained perfectly oblivious to his presence. Unbeknownst to him, his usually sharp instincts were completely muddled because of Zhang Yao's medicine, leaving him blissfully unaware of anything around him.
Several hours passed like this as Wang Xiao walked determinedly downhill without stopping once for a breather. Zhang Yao was impressed that he had regained so much stamina in such a short amount of time. Perhaps his energy transfusions hadn't been in vain after all. Walking steadily behind him, hidden by the shadows of the forest, Zhang Yao wondered again why he was doing this. He wasn't some kind of ghost to be lurking in the background like this. Just as he felt he had regained enough courage to face him, the city at the foot of Daishan came into sight.
Zhang Yao saw Wang Xiao's beaming face when he noticed the city below. Picking up his pace, Wang Xiao hurried down the mountain, his eyes never leaving the colourful houses and banners of the city below. Zhang Yao felt relieved that this whole experience was going to come to an end soon. He wanted to go back to his normal life and forget all about the strange, cheerful youth he'd nursed for two days.
He promised himself that, as soon as Wang Xiao was in the city and out of danger, he would go back up the mountain to finish his hunt. He still had some unfinished business with the feral wolves that lived there and now that he'd found traces of their lair, he had to go back and finish the job no matter what.
A few hours later, Wang Xiao finally reached the bottom of the mountain with Zhang Yao in tow. Walking briskly towards the city's gates, he couldn't contain his excitement at being back home. Zhang Yao hid on the side of a building and observed for a little while longer. He saw the unmistakable glimmer of happiness fill Wang Xiao's eyes as he smiled broadly.
As soon as he had entered the city, Wang Xiao was greeted by smiling faces who clearly recognized him. Near the entrance, Zhang Yao heard an exclamation from an old lady tending an apple cart.
"Young Master! Young Master Wang! You're back!"
"Grandma Xu!" replied Wang Xiao, smiling happily. "I'm back!"
"A-Ling has been running around everywhere since you left, you better hurry on back home before he dies of nervousness," answered the old woman, pointing towards the opposite end of the city.
Wang Xiao laughed heartily, a faint blush colouring his cheeks.
Right on cue, Wang Xiao caught sight of Yi Ling's golden robes from within the centre of the crowd.
Wang Xiao raised his arm above his head and called: "A-Ling!" to which the youth, upon hearing his voice, melted into a puddle of tears and ran straight towards him.
A-Ling threw himself around Wang Xiao, burying his face in his chest and yelling "Wang-ge! Wang-ge! Wang-ge!"
Wang Xiao laughed nervously, trying to pry the boy from around his waist, but Yi Ling was surprisingly strong and refused to let go. Zhang Yao observed this scene from beyond the corner of the building, remaining in the shadows. Wang Xiao's bell-like laughter reached his ears while his eyes examined every inch of the boy named 'A-Ling.' Clearly, Wang Xiao and the boy were from the same clan, as he recognized the golden robes that Wang Xiao was wearing when they first met. But, Zhang Yao wondered, who was this clingy boy, and why was he calling him 'Wang-ge?'
"Wang-ge! What happened to your robes? Are you injured? Where did you go? Why did you leave for so long? Have you eaten? Wang-ge!"
Wang Xiao laughed some more, patting A-Ling's back with one hand and trying to unravel his arms with the other. "A-Ling, one question at a time, okay? Let's go back home first. I could really use a change of clothes right now."
When he saw that the boy refused to let go, he added "A-Ling, let go of me if you want to go home. What will the others say if they see you like this?"
"I don't care!" he replied stubbornly.
However, he relented and finally released Wang Xiao from the confines of his embrace. Wang Xiao rubbed at his sides where the other had squeezed, saying "A-Ling, did you get stronger while I was gone? How is that possible, I was only gone for twelve days!"
"Twelve days is a long while, ge!"
Zhang Yao watched their retreating forms as they bickered openly on the road. Deciding that it was time to leave, he turned on his heels towards the mountain, only to hear the old woman address him.
"Young man, do you know our young master?"
Zhang Yao paused as he looked her dead in the eyes. He saw his reflection within the old woman's dark eyes and, taking in his countenance, he felt more unnerved than before. He shook his head and, looking over his shoulder one last time towards the city, left by the gates and disappeared into the foothills.
Grandma Xu looked back and forth between the gate and the inner city, trying to decide who this red-robed man was and why he looked so longingly after the young master. He didn't look particularly dangerous, but he was still someone that she had never seen in their city until now. Returning to her stall of apples, grandma Xu whispered to herself, "strange."