"What's the matter?" Feng Chusan turned at Yan Xiao calling her name.
"Elder Han is calling for you now,"
"But I just left her place though?" Feng Chusan was puzzled. Why was Han Yuefeng calling her back? Had she forgotten something?
"Well, alright," she shrugged and headed back. Yan Xiao started to tag along, but she glared at him and he shrunk back.
"Yes?" She did not bother to bow this time around. Han Yuefeng was on her feet, yet writing speedily on four pieces of paper.
"Chusan," Han Yuefeng looked up, "you can't believe what luck we have! We can meet up with the others!"
"Really? How?" Feng Chusan caught Han Yuefeng's excitement.
"Sis Nalan Yu and my other senior sect brothers have gone to the Upper Prefectures. She gave me a break from my elder duties and said I should use this opportunity to visit Si Lak town with you and the others. We haven't seen them in so long! Won't it be fun!"
"It certainly will," Feng Chusan agreed, "but what about my mission?"
"To hell with your mission; you can always do it. But this is a one time opportunity! Here, use my elder token to send these letters to Su Hanlin and the others. It's a summon letter, so they can't refuse, ha!"
"Why would they refuse anyway?" Feng Chusan collected the letters and the token, "so I can just walk up to like, the Medicine Hall with this and they'll let me in?" She asked as she examined the brass token.
"Yes, according to Sis Nalan," Han Yuefeng replied.
"Alright. But I have no idea where Ye Haobei and her master live though,"
"Okay. Leave that to me," Han Yuefeng collected the letter addressed to Ye Haobei back. "You go and deliver the rest,"
"Alright. What about the training of class three, though?"
"Feng Chusan! Keep worrying about unnecessary things! I'll sort it out. You go, go!"
Rubbing her nose, Feng Chusan was sort of chased out by the frenzied Han Yuefeng. Since the Medicine Hall was kind of the closest, she headed there first, sightseeing along the way.
Su Hanlin just happened to be heading out with some of her fellow disciples. She was quite shocked at running into Feng Chusan, and even she almost didn't recognise her immediately.
"Chusan?"
"Hanlin!" Feng Chusan hugged her excitedly, "or, should I say, ace mercenary Red Plum?"
Su Hanlin rubbed her nose in embarrassment and playfully shoved Feng Chusan away.
"What are you doing here? You're a sight for sore eyes!"
"So are you, all holed up in your Hall," Feng Chusan retorted, "well," she stretched to her full height and brandished the token, "I'm here on official business!"
Su Hanlin took a look at the token.
"Yes?"
"By the order of Elder Han of the Spear School," Feng Chusan read from the paper, "the Medicine Hall disciple, Su Hanlin, is hereby summoned immediately!"
The disciples with Su Hanlin were shocked.
"Junior, what's the matter? Did you offend an elder? Why are you being summoned all of a sudden?"
Feng Chusan winked at Su Hanlin, and she caught the hint.
"Oh-- I -- I guess?" Su Hanlin was a bad pretender, "I don't know. I better go quickly find out. See you!" And she quickly followed after her friend.
"I'm still on my way to summon Li Beiyao and Gu Yuwei," replied Feng Chusan when Su Hanlin asked why they weren't returning to the Spear School and instead heading towards the Riding Squad.
"Can you tell me what this is about?" Su Hanlin still had her demure big-sisterly demeanour.
"We're going for a reunion picnic!" Feng Chusan decided on the spot. Su Hanlin raised her eyebrows.
"Where?"
"Si Lak town. Have you been there?" Feng Chusan asked.
"No," Su Hanlin shook her head.
"Me neither. Not even Yuefeng. According to Elder Nalan, it's pretty interesting,"
"It must be," said Su Hanlin, "that's where the family members of the mercenaries live. It's like the camp is the palace, and the town is the city. They say that if you reach a certain stage, you can go out to look for your relatives and bring them here," she looked wistful.
"Lalala," Feng Chusan wagged her tongue, "who's the one always harping that we should forget our past?"
"I didn't harp it as much as Meng Yue did,"
"Right. About her, did you hear anything?"
Su Hanlin shook her head.
"I think she's somewhere somewhere. Maybe even in Si Lak town. You never know,"
"Wasn't Tutor Sal looking for her back then?"
"I don't think she found her." Su Hanlin replied.
"Well, if anything, I hope she's gotten a hold on her berserk cultivation," Feng Chusan commented.
"Wasn't it the Top Senior that helped her restrain it back then? I don't think she can ever go berserk again,"
"Right, let me tell you something about the Top Senior," Feng Chusan suddenly interrupted, "I've been pestering Yuefeng to take me as her disciple, so the Top Senior can become my grandmaster!" And she laughed mischievously, "but you know how Yuefeng is. She reckons she hasn't learnt much to even take disciples. I told her she doesn't have to teach me anything. It's all for show. Since when has the Top Senior had time to teach her anything herself?" She shrugged.
"Hmm," Su Hanlin chuckled.
"What about you? Yuefeng is always asking when you and your guardian master will tie the knot. My lips are almost chapped from explaining to her that it's not like that. Or is it? Is it?"
Su Hanlin shook her head.
"It isn't. He's a weird man, my master,"
They had arrived at the Riding Squad. Feng Chusan entered confidently but Su Hanlin hung back. Before Feng Chusan had taken twenty steps inside the gate, a disciple stopped her.
"Only Riding Squad disciples are allowed here," he said curtly. Of course, Feng Chusan's red and white uniform stood out against their green and brown one. Feng Chusan pursed her lips and slowly raised Han Yuefeng's elder token.
"I'm here on the orders of Elder Night Whisper of the Spear School,"
She reckoned he would not recognise Han Yuefeng's name so she used her mercenary name instead. The disciple was slightly surprised.
"Then-- who are you here for?"
"The disciple by name, Gu Yuwei," Feng Chusan replied pompously.
"Give me a minute please. I'm afraid you can't leave here to enter further," he added.
"Hmph," Feng Chusan raised her nose, "go, quickly call Gu Yuwei for me. Who cares about your Riding Squad anyway?"
The disciple left and only then did Su Hanlin cautiously approach Feng Chusan. While waiting, the two admired the Riding Squad's architecture.
"How may I help you?" It was Ning Fulan that returned with the disciple, bearing her proverbial whip. Feng Chusan involuntarily shivered. She had bad memories from it.
"Hello, er... Tutor Ning," Feng Chusan greeted awkwardly. Ning Fulan took another look at her. It turned out she did not recognise her either. Or rather, she did not really memorise the faces of hatchlings except those of the Big Sisters. Therefore, she recognised Su Hanlin first.
"Oh, hello there," she did not remember the girl's name, though, "and you, yes? What's the matter with Gu Yuwei?"
Feng Chusan had forgotten how protective Ning Fulan was of Gu Yuwei. She scratched her nose. Offending the elder nonsense wouldn't work with this one.
"Err, Elder Night Whisper summoned her," slightly glad that Ning Fulan did not remember her, Feng Chusan was able to speak normally to the tutor.
"What does she have to do with an elder of the Spear Squad?" Ning Fulan narrowed her eyes, "Yuwei has not left the Riding Squad since all this time, so what is the matter?"
Feng Chusan pulled out the summon Han Yuefeng had written. Ning Fulan frowned at it. Finally, Su Hanlin opened her mouth.
"Tutor Ning, we were all friends back at the hatchery. Elder Night Whisper, one of us, is inviting us to a picnic,"
Eyes bulging, Feng Chusan stomped on Su Hanlin's feet, trying to shut her up!! What was the girl up to?!? Why was she revealing the secret!? Was that what would make this tsundre agree? No, right? Huh--?
Ning Fulan's expression softened. She nodded gruffly.
"Oh, I see. Even though Yuwei has made new friends here, I'm sure she still misses you guys. Fine, I'll go call her,"
Huh?!? Huhhh?? Feng Chusan was dumbfounded. She glanced back at Su Hanlin.
"What's happening here? Why don't I understand? Why did she agree when you told her the truth?"
Su Hanlin smirked and tapped Feng Chusan's nose.
"Because Tutor Ning cares about Gu Yuwei. If it was any other thing, she would never let us see her. But if it's in Yuwei's interest, she'll readily agree,"
"Oh," Feng Chusan murmured, "well, I've never been that good at reading people--"
And then Gu Yuwei bounded out, beaming radiantly.
"Chusaaan! Hanliiin!" She screamed, and literally flew into her friends embraces.
"I've missed you guys so much! Letters are nothing to seeing you in person! Oh my, you've changed, Chusan! Hanlin, why do you look so sallow? What have you guys been up to? Tell me, tell me! Just now, Fulan-jie told me you were outside. I didn't believe her! I really can't believe it! Are we really going on a picnic? Did Yuefeng really organise this? Why didn't she send a letter first? Is it being impromptu part of the surprise?"
Su Hanlin and Feng Chusan stared agape at the girl.
"Umm, Yuwei?" Su Hanlin raised her eyebrows, "have you and Beiyao swapped souls?"
Gu Yuwei laughed loudly, making the two girls jump with shock. Gu Yuwei had been a very reserved person! Who was this stranger?!
"I know, right? I don't know, I guess Fulan-jie is the reason,"
"Fulan-jie?" Feng Chusan shuddered at the name, "you mean Tutor Ning? Why are you calling her that?!"
Gu Yuwei laughed again.
"Turns out she's my sister! Like, my birth sister! But all the fuss about your past not mattering anymore made her unable to tell me when we were in the hatchery,"
Feng Chusan took a few steps back and examined Gu Yuwei, trying to look for any resemblance to the fiery Ning Fulan. Su Hanlin, instead, asked.
"But you are a Gu and she's a Ning. How does that happen, then?"
"You also don't look like each other," Feng Chusan said after completing her appraisal. Gu Yuwei smirked.
"It's a long story. But I think we still have to fetch Li Beiyao? Let's go!"
"Seeing you like this," commented Su Hanlin as they started on the way to the Tiger Squad, "it'll be no surprise if Li Beiyao has become a tiny sombre mother abbess,"
"Aaaaaaahhhhh!" Li Beiyao screamed at the sight of her friends. Like Gu Yuwei, she jumped into their arms, almost breaking down into sobs.
"Oh my! You guys! I've missed you so much! I can only recognise Su Hanlin! You two have grown! You're almost a foot taller than me, Chusan!"
"Heh. I must live up to the gallantry of the Spear School," said Feng Chusan cockily, "well, I'm glad you're as I remembered, Beiyao. We first thought you and Yuwei had swapped souls,"
"Oh, really? Why?"
And then, as if finally receiving permission, Gu Yuwei launched into another tirade of all the things they'd written to each other in their letters and how it wasn't enough! At! All! Even Li Beiyao's jaws dropped.
"Guys, let's go, let's go!" Gu Yuwei urged, "let's not keep Yuefeng waiting, come on!"
So they fell into step on their way back to the Spear School.
"Beiyao, you can't believe it. You know how you've always been curious about why Tutor Ning treated Yuwei so well? Well, turns out they're sisters, according to Yuwei!"
"What?!?" Li Beiyao reacted with the expected level of gusto, "Yuwei, you traitor! Why didn't you write as soon as you found out!"
"Isn't it because of the past identity doesn't matter nonsense?" Gu Yuwei retorted.
"Then why're you telling us now?" Feng Chusan countered.
"I'll just pretend it slipped out. Also, it's your fault, not mine. I called her Fulan-jie, which is normal considering were sectmates." Gu Yuwei smiled cheekily.
"But you're Gu, and she's Ning," Li Beiyao repeat
ed Su Hanlin's question.
"Yeah. I'll tell you the story during our picnic," Gu Yuwei stuck out her tongue.