"Because it has to. I'm sorry. Everything has been drawn by the lines of destiny." Jingwei studied me, tears brimming in her eyes. "You were so small back then. Just this warm little baby cuddled in my arms and now..." She swept her arm up and down over me. "You're all grown up now. Now that you've finally met him, and it's time we all go to where we're supposed to be."
"Him?" I wrinkled my brow. That rang the bell.
This all seemingly inconsequential, slowly falling into place. The dots connected. Everything had a relation to him. Jie Moshu.
I still felt uncertain. Why would he be the source of everything that happened? Why me? What was his relation with me? Unspoken questions hovering in the air. This was all so confusing.
I took a moment to collect myself so that when I did speak, I didn't stutter like a fool. "You're not telling me something. Please, no more secrets—"
She hushed me and wrapped a hand around my wrist. "Trust him, trust Jie Moshu." She narrowed her eyes at me and gave me her "don't argue" look. Then softer, she said, "He'll be the one to protect you from now on. And remember, I'd always love you."
"I don't understand. Why him?"
She smiled at me, looking all frail and vulnerable. Smaller somehow. As I stared at her, she changed. Her hair and eyes glowed in white light. I raised my hand to shield my eyes. Magic raged around me, boiling and twisting. Her appearance suddenly began to sink away, more translucent.
"No, wait!" I whimpered. "I'm sorry, it all happened because of me!"
That one moment I realized; I was looking at her soul vanishing.
"It was never your fault to begin with," she whispered. Then she was gone. As her last voice echoed, "We all did it for you because we love you."
I fell to the ground as the fantasy land faded around me.
"No, I haven't had the chance to say thank you," I whispered, broken. Tears sizzled as they ran down my cheeks, but I wasn't given more than a second to mourn. All of a sudden, I felt a power slammed into me like a boulder crashing from the sky. I felt them tethered me alive. Pain washed over me.
We all done it because we love you. Her voice whispered to my memory. It was as if her last words to me. As Mama, and as Jingwei.
***
Those time of sleeping felt like a nightmare. A painful shudder pulsed through me. I woke up still sitting in the pavilion, sobbing.
"I'm sorry," Baba whispered, his voice was hoarse with grief. "It was her last will. To let her last shard of soul live as a seal before she exchanged her life for you. So, you'll know the truth from her, and not from anyone else."
I sprang to my feet at the sound of his voice, but my legs were too weak. I almost collapsed to my knees.
"I've got you," he gasped, pulling me into his arms. He then helped me back sitting on the wheelchair.
"Baba tell me, this isn't real right? You're not King of Medicine, are you? Mama also isn't a woman called Jingwei, right? Tell me that it's all just my imagination." I strained a laugh, "None of this is real right? Just one word from you, and I'll—" I stopped, hot tears gathering in my eyes. I bit my lips, wishing that my tears could stop from falling.
Please. Just even if it would be a lie, I'd still believe it.
"It's real. I'm Xing Xiuguang, the King of Medicine." He dropped his golden, hazel eyes glistening with sympathy.
His words finally made me break. It changed everything. All that I believed in, everything shattered. The happy and warm family I had always loved. That Mama who always smiling in my memory. Baba who always cooked me noodles. The idea of I had been deceived, it all had been so hollow. Small whispers that said everything was a lie echoed in my ears. My heart suddenly felt empty. At least it had me.
I turned back at him, took a deep breath. My hands clenched into fists. "Baba—ah, no, I should call you King of Medicine, now. I know that this is what Jingwei asked you to do for me. After all, she had sacrificed herself in order to let me live longer."
I swallowed hard before continuing, "I believed, you've been raising me all these years, it's because she asked you to, right?"
His expression told me that I was right.
King of Medicine. Baba once told me a story about him. The carefree deity who wandered around the Three Worlds, living without any restraints. He was the master of alchemy and Chinese medicine. I should have known when told me the stories of Gods. His eyes sparkled like he had seen them in person. If it wasn't for me holding him, he would have lived a better life.
I swallowed back more tears. "I'm sorry that I've been a burden for you."
"Huayu, this isn't..."
"Because of Jie Moshu's presence in my life." I whispered. I could feel rage surging inside me. "Because now that he's here, you don't need to act as my father anymore? Is that right?!"
"Huayu, it's not exactly like that." He moved his arms, encircling me. "I'm sorry, but now that he's here, he can take care of you more than us."
More tears puddled my eyes, I drew back. "So, you knew? You knew the whole time that Jie Moshu was looking for me? You knew and you acted as if you don't know him?"
Without him answering me, I already knew the answer. I looked down, blinking back tears. Was it all just a lie? All of these years, it was all an act out of sympathy? After everything, nothing was sincere?
"Father-in-law, can you please give us some time alone?"
Jie Moshu's voice cut through the pain crashing through me. And suddenly he was there, standing near the entrance of the pavilion. Weak sunlight filtered through, bathing the area into a glowing haze. Jie Moshu cut a dramatic figure in the midst of my maelstrom of emotions.
Baba sighed. He then patted Jie Moshu's back as he walked through the bridge heading back to the mansion.
"Why are you here?" My voice came out tight and cold as I wiped my eyes with my sleeves.
He gave me a warm smile. "To see you, wife."
I had a frantic, irrational notion as soon as he called me that. Somehow I felt irritated. "Can you please stop calling me that? I'm really not in the mood—"
"Of course, you aren't. You aren't thinking straight." Jie Moshu took both of my hands. "Now, take a deep breath."
"What are you doing?"
"Just follow me," he assured me. "Close your eyes, and breathe."
He sucked in a deep breath, her dark eyes latching on to mine. "Slowly, breathe out."
Despite myself, I followed suit.
A familiar sensation surged through me when I did as he told me. Then, memories bombarded me.
Flashes of Baba held me in his arms when I still a baby. His expression was all terrified, overwhelmed and full of love. He looked as though he didn't believe that I was actually in his arms. Another flashes when I had just learned to walk. He opened his arms near me, protecting me from falling, hurting myself. Fragments of him cooking and feeding me when I was still uncapable to take care of myself. Moments when I first got my swimming medallion, and he carried me in his arms, let myself felt what it was like to be flying on air. He was there when I was grieving for Mama's death. He was there whenever I needed his support even through my darkest moment.
Drawing a sharp breath, I released the emotions trapped inside as I opened my eyes. If I hadn't been sitting down, I would have been once again knocked over by the sheer of emotion. But that wasn't what had my breath hitching.
Baba's back was still there not far from where I was, he was a reality. He hadn't shattered like Jingwei. He was alive before me. Although my family had been a lie to begin with, but all these years he had been raising me like his own. He was the one whom I first call as "father".
I don't know how long the two of us sat there, but Jie Moshu never once told me everything would be fine. Never tried to stop me from venting. He just held me, his grip felt firm. Only when I stopped into silent sniffles did he pull away.
"Feeling better?"
"Baba," I gasped, holding Jie Moshu's arms tight. "I need to go find Baba."
"No problem," said Jie Moshu, a curious tone to his voice. "How do you plan to go?"
"You can help to push me there!" I said desperately, remembering that my condition was on a wheelchair. My legs were still numb. It would be hard for me to get there as fast as I could. Of course, I would want to tell how sorry I was for blaming that to Baba. He must've hurt because of my words.
"Well, you can go there by yourself."
I frowned. What did he mean by that?
Jie Moshu rocked back, raised his head, and closed his eyes. The air around him began to glow in red sparks. He settled his hand on my legs. I felt his magic pulsed, moving. A gentle warmth spread across my lower body. Then I could feel my legs again.
"I just healed you," Jie Moshu said, as he slid my strands of falling hair off my shoulder, clearing my neck. His mouth curled into a smile. "You can see Father-in-law now. Faster."
I met his dark eyes and I can see it all in his expression. Apart from pitying me.... more like amused. My inside had collapsed. After all this time, he could heal me, but he let me paralyzed for weeks?
"You—!"
Jie Moshu put a finger on my lips, shushed me. "What's important now is clear the misunderstanding with father-in-law. We can talk regarding anything afterwards, dear wife."
"Fine!" My voice fired up in fury that it let my tears steamed to thin air. I would deal with him later after this. Just you wait, Jie Moshu.
I rose to my feet. Feeling perfectly fine even I had been sitting there for days now. I shouldn't care about my grudge to him; I should be running.
Like pumped, I ran after Baba, dodge right past, and planted myself in his way. The right moment to halt him before he could open the door. Baba was standing, staring down at me in astonishment.
"Baba! I... I'm sorry..." I said between my panting breaths. "I'm really sorry..." I took a chance to collect myself, settling my lungs air circulation to a normal pace. "I don't give a thing about who I really am, or who my birth parents are. Since you already agreed to raise me, then you'll have to take full responsibility. You can't cancel a package that you've ordered, am I wrong?"
He fell silent for a while. Was Baba really that offended by what I said earlier? Dead, dead, dead. I was done for. This time I might really become an orphan with no parents to pamper me. All for my stupid mouth!
Ouch! I felt a hard smack on my head. "What was that for?!"
I turned facing Baba. He folded his arms, narrowing his eyes at me. "You, silly daughter! You should be thankful that I, the great King of Medicine, had raised you until this big! At least, you still know how to apologize. Starting from this day, I don't to hear any words saying that 'you're not my daughter' or 'I'm a fake father'." He pulled my ears, added sternly. "Do you hear me, Liu Huayu?"
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" I gave a few knocks on his hand then he released me. "That hurts!"
"It serves you, right."
"Baba..." I pouted, gave my wheedling looks to him. I did little gestures of pulling his shirt. "Baba, forgive me."
He rolled his eyes, but he eventually opened his arms. I giggled happily to wrap my arms around his rough shoulders. "No more sprouting nonsense. You are and always be my daughter."
"Yes, my great Baba! This silly daughter has known her own mistakes. I won't do it again." I gave a peck on his cheeks. And we hugged for a long time.