Shi Qingxuan was drowning. Their body was cold but their lungs were on fire, and every breath hurt more than anything had hurt before.
Maybe they should just stop breathing. It wasn't air, after all, just water, and every breath was agony. Why keep trying?
They let their mouth fall closed, and their lungs stop struggling. They gave up, and let the water take them.
But it didn't stop. The water moved within them, strong and inescapable, breaking through their ribs and forcing open their mouth, pushing into their lungs then out again. A voice shouted through the gloom, calling their name.
Shi Qingxuan, stay with me, keep breathing!
They felt pressure on their chest, what felt like hands against their skin, the warmth of human touch melting the icy coldness of the sea.
They coughed, and everything hurt. They breathed, and it felt like their qi was being pulled from their body. They swallowed, and tasted something foul, and familiar.
"Ge," they croaked, "Stop. I don't want any more medicine! Just let me rest."
The pressure against their lips stopped for a moment, and then returned.
"Stop whining," said a voice, deep and comforting and terrifying.
Shi Qingxuan opened their eyes, and saw a face out of their nightmares. They tried to pull away and scream, but were too weak, so only managed to shake and spit out the foul tasting liquid.
"What...what are you..." they gasped, voice hoarse and mind a blur of fear and confusion. How had they ended up here? All they could remember was pain.
He Xuan's grip on them didn't falter. He just stared at Shi Qingxuan, expression unreadable. And then his face shimmered, and the body holding Shi Qingxuan shifted, and he was Shi Qingxuan's friend again.
He Xuan reached for a wet cloth and wiped his face. Then he held up a small bowl. "Will you drink your medicine now? Or are you just going to spit on me again?"
"I..." The rational part of Shi Qingxuan knew that He Xuan briefly using his real face was the least important detail of this situation, but the part of them that constantly relived their brother's death was having trouble moving past it to try and understand what the hell was going on. They just stared at him in miserable confusion.
"You were shot," said He Xuan, his grip on Shi Qingxuan briefly growing tight. He usually avoided physical contact, but right now was holding Shi Qingxuan up against his chest with one arm while his other held the bowl. Were they in a bed? "I'm healing you. Or trying to, you're not making it easy."
"Shot..." repeated Shi Qingxuan, slowly. They certainly felt like they'd been shot. They hurt everywhere, especially in their chest and bad arm, and looking down they could see both were wrapped in bandages. Had He Xuan done that?
Shi Qingxuan was suddenly overcome by a vision of an arrow sticking out of their arm, the wound spurting blood onto... "Where's Yu Yanli?!"
"Also shot," said He Xuan. Shi Qingxuan gasped. "And also being healed. She's in better shape than you, not that that's difficult."
Shi Qingxuan's panic faded enough for them to finally be able to think. They were safe, Yu Yanli was safe. He Xuan was here taking care of everything. Because...
Oh. Because Shi Qingxuan had contacted him, just before they passed out. The memory of how they'd ended up here in He Xuan's arms finally all came together, and Shi Qingxuan felt a flush of embarrassment rise up their naked chest. To call for help and then scream at him and spit up medicine!
"Thank you so much," said Shi Qingxuan. "I'm sorry about...about spitting on you."
"Good," said He Xuan. "Here." He held out the bowl.
Shi Qingxuan took it with a shaking hand and swallowed the medicine it held in one gulp. They coughed. "Blech, that's awful."
He Xuan took back the empty bowl. "I suppose you'd rather I fed you sweet bean soup and mooncakes."
Shi Qingxuan pouted. "Maybe..." The thought of eating such rich food caused their stomach to roil in protest. Maybe not.
"Now you're finally awake you can start healing yourself," said He Xuan. He shifted so that they were no longer using him as a pillow, and rested Shi Qingxuan down on the bed. It was a cute bed with pretty white curtains pushed back against delicately carved wooden walls. Something about the design felt soothing, and familiar.
Shi Qingxuan realised they were humming with spiritual energy again, enough to kill a bunch of guys and then some. Not that anyone was likely to attack them with He Xuan here, but it was still reassuring.
They closed their eyes and let the energy flow through them, taking stock. Their chest was a mess, He Xuan had patched up the hole so their lungs actually worked and they weren't bleeding everywhere, but stitching all the pieces back together properly would take time and concentration. And their bad arm had somehow gotten worse, the arrow had fractured the already broken bone causing little shards to escape into the surrounding muscle. Blech.
Well, at least they weren't dying. There'd be time to fix all that when they didn't feel so drained.
"Was Yu Yanli shot badly?" they asked, opening their eyes. "Will she be ok?"
"You know this is her fault, right?" Now that He Xuan was sitting up beside them on the bed he looked very tall and imposing, even as a woman.
"She's not the one who shot me!" said Shi Qingxuan. "She just has enemies. But so do lots of people. Who's looking after her?"
"I am," said a familiar voice from the doorway.
Shi Qingxuan blinked. It shouldn't feel weirder to see two He Xuans than to see one He Xuan and one Sha Lizhong, but it really did. But there, standing behind the other He Xuan, was Yu Yanli, one arm bandaged but otherwise looking well. Shi Qingxuan let out a relieved breath that turned into a bout of coughing. The He Xuan next to them slapped them on the back rather harder than was called for.
"Ol' Feng!" said Yu Yanli, running towards the bed. "Ahhh I'm so glad you woke up! Lady He and I were so worried!"
"Speak for yourself," said the He Xuan by the door.
"Haha, you can't fool me, you big softy," said Yu Yanli. "Thanks for looking after him. Me, too, I really appreciate it."
Neither He Xuan replied.
Yu Yanli ran her hand over the carvings on the bed. "You never said your lady ghost friend had such a nice house, Ol' Feng! You have such exciting friends, all these ghosts and gods."
"Not as exciting as yours," the He Xuan next to Shi Qingxuan said darkly. Was he angry at her on Shi Qingxuan's behalf?
"...yeah, sorry about that," said Yu Yanli. "I never meant for Ol' Feng to get hurt."
"The important thing is we're all ok," said Shi Qingxuan.
"You're not ok," said He Xuan. "You're simply not dead. Healing you properly is going to be long and painful."
Shi Qingxuan made a sad sound, though they'd figured that much out already.
"Painful for you, not me," smiled He Xuan. "Maybe consider that next time you run into danger and use up all your spiritual energy."
Yu Yanli laughed. "You two are adorable. I guess I should let you get back to it." She winked.
Shi Qingxuan became suddenly aware of the fact they they were in bed with a female-seeming He Xuan while wearing nothing but thin trousers and a few bandages. Apparently, He Xuan became aware of it too, since he stood up and walked over to stand besides the other him. You'd think he'd be used to Yu Yanli's teasing by now, she acted like Shi Qingxuan had some sort of harem.
"As you can see, Yu Yanli is fine," said the other He Xuan. "I will take her home, and we will discuss tracking down your assailants."
Yu Yanli looked up at him with a surprised smile. "We will?"
"It would be annoying to have to heal you both again. Easier to just kill them all now and save myself the trouble." He turned and started walking out of the room, causing Yu Yanli to follow after at a little bit of a run to keep up with his long legs.
She laughed and said "...have I mentioned how much I like you, Lady He?" and then the two of them passed out of sight.
"You're a bad influence on her," said Shi Qingxuan to the He Xuan who remained. He smelled faintly of herbs, and even though it didn't make any difference objectively, it still felt nice to stay with the He Xuan who'd been looking after them before.
"She's already a murderer," said He Xuan. Which was a fair point. What was it with everyone Shi Qingxuan befriended being so into murder? "She just needs to learn to be more thorough. Or next time I might decide it's easier to just kill her."
"He Xuan! Don't kill Yu Yanli! I like her!" Shi Qingxuan sat up and poked a finger towards He Xuan. "You like her!"
"Stop overexerting yourself," said He Xuan.
Shi Qingxuan flopped backwards onto the bed, feeling dizzy. He Xuan was right, sitting up so quickly had been a bad idea. They looked up at the canopy of the bed, which was carved with pretty swirls that made them think of a light spring breeze. Under the herbal scent of the medicine they could smell...was that the sea? "Where are we?"
"My house."
"Your..." Their heart sped up in fear.
"Not my palace," said He Xuan. "Another house, in another place. You haven't been here before."
That was a relief, but brought up more questions. Before Shi Qingxuan could ask any of them, there was a polite knock and in walked a servant with a tray, containing a water jug and two cups.
"Ooh, thank you!" said Shi Qingxuan to the servant, a pale man dressed in black.
The servant nodded politely, put the tray next to the bed, bowed deeply to Shi Qingxuan and He Xuan, and then left.
"Quiet fellow," said Shi Qingxuan, and then took a sip of the water. It was amazing, refreshing and sweet with just the slightest hint of salt. It reminded them of happier times with their brother, and they hid their trembling lips by taking another sip.
"Everyone who works for me quickly learns to hold their tongue."
"That was totally you in disguise, wasn't it? said Shi Qingxuan.
"No," said He Xuan, walking towards the door. "Contact me if you start dying. Try not to use up all the energy I gave you this time."
"You're leaving already? Don't tell me you're busy, this is just a clone! I'll get bored!"
He Xuan silently opened a laquered chest and pulled out a small pile of books, then placed them on the bedside table with a thump. "Entertain yourself," he said. And then he left.