Wu Ling's question hung above Fang Lin's head like a sword poised to fall on his neck. It wasn't comfortable in the slightest but the young lord made himself answer it anyway.
"I abandoned you, didn't I?" Fang Lin said bitterly. "Why would I expect you to be different? You are though," he said with a heavy sigh.
"You ran out to rescue Sister Jin and you did even more to rescue me. You're not a Scholar, but I can see you're always trying to think a few steps ahead. You," Fang Ling hesitated, hating the bitter realization that sat in his stomach like he'd swallowed the pit of a peach.
"You thought my barrier would hold long enough for you to support Brother Xong, didn't you?" Fang Lin finally said, reaching the only conclusion that made sense when he examined everything that had happened. "That's why you helped him first. You didn't know I was about to fail."
"That's true," Wu Ling said, keeping his tone mild and calm. "I saw what your barrier was capable of on the night of the banquet. I didn't think it would break so quickly."
"That, that was just a little trick," the young scholar admitted with a dark chuckle. He'd dug his own grave with that one, hadn't he? "After Su Yao's calligraphy that night, I couldn't look any less amazing, so, I poured all the strength of the barrier into the side Brother Zhang hit. The other sides of the barrier would have torn like rice paper if you poked them with something as trivial as a chopstick."
"So that's how it was," Wu Ling said, accepting the explanation without judgment. How could the young lord expect that his attempt to posture in front of a woman would result in such a disaster? And who could blame him for wanting to look good in front of a woman as amazing as Su Yao?
"Well, now we know," Wu Ling said simply. "Next time won't be as bad," he added, placing a hand firmly on Fang Lin's shoulder and giving him a squeeze. "When you're finished with the broth, try the tea," he added, placing a fresh steaming cup next to the young scholar and standing to leave.
"That's it?" Fang Lin said, stunned that Wu Ling was going to leave without berating him. If it had been his father, a tongue lashing is the least he could expect after what he'd done, but Wu Ling, the 'leader' of their group, was going to let it go, just like that? "Aren't you angry? How can you trust me for a 'next time?'"
"Because," Wu Ling said from the entrance of the hut. "You've suffered enough, there's no point in yelling. You're scared of next time, but you're also scared about how the rest of us are going to treat you. More importantly, you're guilty and ashamed," Wu Ling said honestly.
If he'd seen Fang Lin attempting to paint over his dark yellow, green and amber shame and guilt with some kind of false righteousness or justification for his actions, he'd have said a few choice words. Seeing the colors that surrounded the injured man, however, Wu Ling didn't see any point in scolding.
"Would you like to know how the others responded to what happened?" Wu Ling said, looking Fang Lin directly in the eyes.
"Yes, please," Fang Lin said, looking down into the cup of tea Wu Ling had prepared for him, unable to meet the other man's eyes.
"Brother Yu wouldn't sleep until he'd devised a treatment for you," Wu Ling began. "He pushed himself so hard to save both your life and your leg that he managed to break through and become a Novice in the process."
"I should warn you," Wu Ling continued. "If you make it to the second stage, as a side effect of his elixir, you'll likely experience a reawakening on the Martial Path. You may even need to work harder than normal to become a Novice yourself. Brother Yu agonized about giving you his treatment because he didn't want to take that choice away from you," Wu Ling explained.
"When Brother Yu told us what the elixir would do, Brother Zhang offered to open up his family's ancient heritage for you if you needed help," the young artist continued. "He said that you'd fought beside us and you were injured keeping others safe. He knows that without your barrier, Brother Yu could never have treated Sister Jin's hand in the middle of the battle, so he's willing to help you become a sword cultivator to learn Sword Formations from his family's legacy if you wish."
On the bed, Fang Lin stared at Wu Ling with an open mouth and slack jaw. What kind of treatment was this? For someone who had tried to abandon them, they would go so far?
"Brother Zhang helped build this hut for Yu Jinqi to treat you in," Wu Ling kept speaking, ignoring the shock on Fang Lin's face. "Su Xiang helped gather the bamboo to build it and Brother Xiong harvested the materials for your elixir from the bodies of the wolves we fought. He made sure to select the best ones for you to give you the best chance of recovering without damage to your cultivation," Wu Ling explained, leaving the entrance to the hut to return to Fang Lin's side.
"Brother Fang, for a moment, you were terrified. You ran from a lethal beast the moment you saw your barrier was going to collapse," Wu Ling said gently. "But that doesn't make you a bad person. Sister Jin made a horrible mistake in that battle as well, more than one. For both of you, it was your first time. Next time will be frightening too, but we'll face it together and you'll do better. Isn't that the way it should be?"
"Brother Wu, you, you're being kinder to me than I deserve," Fang Lin said, his eyes growing misty, turning the room hazy and indistinct. "All of you are being kinder and more generous with me than I deserve."
"No, we're not," Wu Ling said firmly, looking into the other man's watery eyes. "I'm not a swordsman like my father was, but I know something about how people on the martial path feel about the ones who fight by your side. You faced danger with us. You shed blood with us. That means something to all of us. I don't feel like you abandoned us. No one else does either," he reassured the other man.
"Now, tonight, Brother Xiong managed to track down a boar that we've been roasting since early this morning," Wu Ling said with a wide smile. "Brother Yu was certain you'd wake up today so we're going to have a little celebration tonight. We'll explain everything else later, but for now, I'm going to get Brother Zhang to help you down to the lake to wash up. After all, we have a lot to celebrate, but we can't do it until everyone's there."
"Brother Wu, thank you," Fang Lin said, offering a seated bow over cupped hands. "I, I'll do better next time."
"I'll look forward to it," Wu Ling said, returning the other man's bow and leaving the hut to give Fang Lin some time to recollect himself. As much as he'd been worried about how Fang Lin would respond to what happened, it seemed like they'd avoided all the worst outcomes. Now, they just needed to build forward on a new foundation from here.