*coughs* Thank you very much for reviewing: Amber (6 reviews.I'm glad you
like the story. Did you receive the e-mail I sent you?), Phoenix Feather
(Indeed, Tsien is very cute. Lol), Sovereign, Kaley, crazygurl06, Sue,
Traum (thanks for your offer, maybe later), lovely moonlight maiden, eunc
(Yeah, Tsien has his influence between those two.lol.), AD.and last but not
least..Toughspirit, and Jeanine.although I'll have to wait until you guys
come back from your vacation. (
Chapter 7: Silence Hurts More Than Words
The Imperial soldiers were already on foot before dawn packing everything.
Mulan walked past Shang with her head bent down fixing her eyes on the ground. Immediately, he noticed she was avoiding him. Shang wondered if it had something to do with revenge.maybe he had been exaggerated and rude and he deserved to be treated like that. Was it time to apologize? The whole thing didn't make sense; they were friends and it was stupid to end their friendship because of gossip. He reached for her while she fixed the saddle and trappings on her horse's back. "Good morning, Mulan."
She never dared to face him and simply muttered a cold and forced, "Good morning, Sir." Sir? She wasn't supposed to call him like that since they were friends. Damn Peng, Shang cursed to himself.it was all his fault.
Tsien had seen it all.the way Mulan was acting appeared so weird to his eyes. He followed Shang and asked, "What's wrong with Mulan?" "She's upset," Shang answered.
Like the young General expected, his simple answer wouldn't be enough for the boy. "Why?" Shang thought for a moment, what to say; obviously he was not telling him about the poem she wrote. Even a child would say he was pathetic. "Grownups' problems." Still not enough for him, Tsien asked with no shame, "What kind of grownups' problems?" Shang shrugged and suggested, "I really don't know, but why don't you go and cheer her up?"
With his nonchalant smile, Tsien agreed, "Ok."
Tsien ran to Mulan and the first thing he did was to hug her. She lifted him up since he wasn't so heavy. "Hello Tsien." Well she didn't sound very upset to him.
"Mulan," The boy spoke up, "Shang told me you're upset. Why are you upset?"
Mulan gently put the boy down. "He told you so?" Couldn't he just keep it to himself?
"Yes."
Mulan crossed her arms to her chest, now she was even angrier at him for telling Tsien she was upset with him.as if it were all her fault. "It's not true, don't listen to him."
"Are you mad at him?"
Mulan sighed, "I don't know, Tsien."
Noticing the subject made Mulan uncomfortable Tsien decided to shut his mouth. It was strange though, to see the woman who was always smiling upset. Was she mad at him to? "Mulan are you mad at me?"
"How could I?" She smiled lopsidedly at the little boy and bent to embrace him. "Listen, what happens between Shang and me has nothing to do with you."
"But what happened between you and Shang?"
"We argued, that's all," Mulan assured, although her words were far from convincing herself, "No big deal."
"Like when parents argue and then they are happy with each other again?"
Mulan nodded, "Yeah, sort of." She doubted things would turn out the way Tsien thought.Shang wouldn't want her as his wife in the first place.he had already proven it last night. Still she had to admit it was the only way to keep Tsien from asking more and more questions. She wasn't really in a mood to be interrogated.
"So, it's not like you'll be angry at him forever.right?"
"I hope not."
+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* +
The sun never came out at all, that day, since gray clouds covered the sky. It seemed it was going to rain.
Tsien had walked next to Mulan while she pulled the kart holding her hand. When a thunder crashed so hard and so loud, the boy tightened the grip on Mulan's hand. "It's ok, Tsien, I'm here with you." Her words, made Tsien smile at her showing he trusted her. She was glad he did so. "I'm going inside with my sister," he announced.
Crystal rain drops started to pour down over their heads. Then, the rain got heavier. Mulan breathed in the air she loved the smell of wet dirt, it made her forget of all her troubles and simply relax her mind. Just when she was totally forgetting about what happened with her poem, Shang appeared, his presence certainly disturbing her peace. "Would you like to take a break from pulling the kart?"
Mulan tried to look as dignified as possible, "No, I'm fine."
"Are you sure?" He insisted humbly.
"Yes," she said sarcastically, "Now go, otherwise they are going to think I'm your concubine." As far as he remembered, Mulan had never used sarcasm with him.despite she was a warrior she had always addressed him properly and the way a woman should treat a man.well, she treated him the way friends are treated but always with respect. "Mulan, we need to talk," said Shang. She rolled her eyes. "I'm not in a mood right now. So, why don't you save your breath?"
Shang nodded and walked away sadly. He felt like an idiot. Rejected was more so.
Mulan bit her lips. He had come to her to talk to her and she had rejected him. Stubbornly, she reminded herself he had rejected her last night. Still, it broke her heart he way she had treated him. As hard as it is to admit, she loved him no matter what.
*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+ *
The Huns had reached the entrance of the village before the Chinese. Green rice paddies would be the perfect place to attack. They wouldn't suspect. They hid in the rice fields after killing the farmers that worked there (mostly women and teenagers). They left no evidence for the Chinese soldiers to notice though.
"How many Imperial soldiers are after us this time?" Wuzhumuxin addressed one of his men.
"About a hundred," the spy answered.
The Hun leader stood on a rock and announced, "Let them come, and then we'll destroy their precious country. We are ready."
"I think we won't have to wait any longer," one of the Huns pointed out as he heard the Chinese approaching. Their plan would work exactly as they had planned.
Wuzhumuxin let out an evil laughter. He gained his composure and commanded in his fierce voice, "Charge!"
They advanced towards the Imperial soldiers, who were totally unaware of their presence. Arrows hovered above their heads, warning to fall over them.
Without thinking much, Mulan took Mei Hyung and Tsien out of the kart. She released Khan from the heavy load, and helped Tsien up the horse. After that, she handed the baby to her brother's arms and she got up as well. They didn't even say goodbye to Shang. There was no time to say goodbye.
The General watched them leave and whispered with a special caress of affection, "Be careful." He closed his eyes for a second and prayed they would stay away from danger. When he opened his eyes he commanded, "Soldiers use the cannons!" They carried the cannons out of the kart obeying his order.
+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* +
Mulan pressed her heels on her horse making him move as fast as he could.
The Huns noticed Mulan was running away, so their leader ordered, "Don't let her escape, she has to be dead!"
Two Huns chased her shooting flaming arrows at her.
"Tsien keep you head down," she said placing her hand on the boy's head. Mulan turned back and an arrow almost hit her head, luckily, she moved quickly dodging it.
She had to think of something. Just then, she came up with one of her bright ideas. Mulan unfastened the handkerchief from around her neck and ripped it into two. She threw both pieces, which landed on the Huns' faces keeping them from seeing where they were going. This gave her the advantage of getting away. Mushu sighed with relief, "I thought we wouldn't get away from this one." Mulan grinned at him triumphantly.
+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* +
Although the Imperial soldiers aimed the cannons towards the Mongolians, some of them managed to get through the smoke.
Shang kept leading his men with courage and bravery, "Prepare your swords."
The Chinese soldiers took out their swords bravely.
As the Huns attacked and the Imperial soldiers defended their country the real battle began. It was a battle with swords, where one of the two sides had to finish off the opposite with the blood of their men. Blood spilled as swords thrust inside during the process.
Two men charged against the General. Of course it was not easy to defeat Shang. He was an expert with his martial arts skills that he managed to disarm on e of the attackers. Shang had knocked him down and he grabbed his sword and placed it on his sash. The other Hun jumped to his back and tried to cut his head off. Luckily, he just made a scratch on his neck. When he hit the man on his ribs with his strong elbows, the Hun fell back clutching his stomach in pain. Shang wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand. In the process, the Hun he knocked down returned to his standing position. He pulled the General's cape so hard, he completely lost his balance and fell to the ground. The Hun reached his neck and strangled him with his rough hands, making him lose his breath. Shang loosened the grip on his sword allowing the Hun to snatch it and let him breathe. As he caught his breath, the Hun raised Shang's sword threatening he was slashing him into pieces. The General swallowed hard.he was too young to die. Quickly, Shang reached for the sword he hid under his red cape and thrust in into the Hun's heart. It seemed like the man had explode, since the blood came out of him like a wild river. For a moment, Shang watched him shocked. He felt as if he were a barbarian. During that instant of shock, the true barbarian drew his sword into Shang's stomach. The Hun fell back.dead.
Shang groaned in pain and put his arm around his stomach. He had never been wounded so badly, he was bleeding also. Shang tried to stand up, but he fell down when his vision became blurry and unclear. His attempts of keeping his eyes open failed and he fell unconscious on the ground.
+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* +
Once in the village, Mulan went from house to house asking for someone to take care of the poor children. Everyone said they didn't have enough food, or they couldn't stand babies. Finally, a peasant girl named Tanni accepted the kids into her house as if they were her cousins or nephews. Mulan was very thankful to her. Tsien didn't want to be apart from Mulan and Shang, they were his friends.
"Your father is going to come for you and your sister," Mulan assured.
Tsien nodded, wiping the tears from his face with his little hands. "Will I ever see you and Shang again?"
It tore her heart apart to see him cry. He had grown fond of them since the very beginning, and they had also got used to him asking so many questions. There was one problem, Mulan couldn't be sure if she would be able to see him again, or Shang, as long as they kept risking their lives in war there was nothing for sure. Both were warriors and their lives were bound to be risked to protect the whole country. Mulan caressed the boy's cheek and kissed it. Her silence had said it all, and Tsien understood what she meant.
"If you can come back to me," Tsien requested, "We can go together to the Imperial City to watch the Victory Parade. I've never been to the Imperial City.not even once."
She just couldn't deny his request. Mulan placed her hands on the boys ears and kissed his forehead. "We will go.together.the four of us." They embraced each other briefly. Mulan hated goodbyes, specially when it was about someone special like Tsien. He had won a place in her heart, as well as Mei Hyung and Loushen. She kissed the baby goodbye, and thanked Tanni for her hospitality. Mulan rode silently with a tear stung face as she departed. She hoped to get in time and that everything would be under control.
Mushu tried to cheer her up saying, "You will see those kids again."
Mulan made a weak grin. She wondered if the four of them could go someday to the Imperial City, and if Shang would agree to go with her after the way she had been around him. She promised herself that the first thing she would do when seeing Shang, was to beg his forgiveness, no matter how low did she had to humiliate herself. They could forget about everything that happened before and be the best friends, the way things should be.
Dear readers,
I'm planning to get the 8th chapter as soon as I can. Let me see if I can manage to update for Saturday or Sunday. You can all trust that the next chapter is very interesting.
Your friend, Becky.
Chapter 7: Silence Hurts More Than Words
The Imperial soldiers were already on foot before dawn packing everything.
Mulan walked past Shang with her head bent down fixing her eyes on the ground. Immediately, he noticed she was avoiding him. Shang wondered if it had something to do with revenge.maybe he had been exaggerated and rude and he deserved to be treated like that. Was it time to apologize? The whole thing didn't make sense; they were friends and it was stupid to end their friendship because of gossip. He reached for her while she fixed the saddle and trappings on her horse's back. "Good morning, Mulan."
She never dared to face him and simply muttered a cold and forced, "Good morning, Sir." Sir? She wasn't supposed to call him like that since they were friends. Damn Peng, Shang cursed to himself.it was all his fault.
Tsien had seen it all.the way Mulan was acting appeared so weird to his eyes. He followed Shang and asked, "What's wrong with Mulan?" "She's upset," Shang answered.
Like the young General expected, his simple answer wouldn't be enough for the boy. "Why?" Shang thought for a moment, what to say; obviously he was not telling him about the poem she wrote. Even a child would say he was pathetic. "Grownups' problems." Still not enough for him, Tsien asked with no shame, "What kind of grownups' problems?" Shang shrugged and suggested, "I really don't know, but why don't you go and cheer her up?"
With his nonchalant smile, Tsien agreed, "Ok."
Tsien ran to Mulan and the first thing he did was to hug her. She lifted him up since he wasn't so heavy. "Hello Tsien." Well she didn't sound very upset to him.
"Mulan," The boy spoke up, "Shang told me you're upset. Why are you upset?"
Mulan gently put the boy down. "He told you so?" Couldn't he just keep it to himself?
"Yes."
Mulan crossed her arms to her chest, now she was even angrier at him for telling Tsien she was upset with him.as if it were all her fault. "It's not true, don't listen to him."
"Are you mad at him?"
Mulan sighed, "I don't know, Tsien."
Noticing the subject made Mulan uncomfortable Tsien decided to shut his mouth. It was strange though, to see the woman who was always smiling upset. Was she mad at him to? "Mulan are you mad at me?"
"How could I?" She smiled lopsidedly at the little boy and bent to embrace him. "Listen, what happens between Shang and me has nothing to do with you."
"But what happened between you and Shang?"
"We argued, that's all," Mulan assured, although her words were far from convincing herself, "No big deal."
"Like when parents argue and then they are happy with each other again?"
Mulan nodded, "Yeah, sort of." She doubted things would turn out the way Tsien thought.Shang wouldn't want her as his wife in the first place.he had already proven it last night. Still she had to admit it was the only way to keep Tsien from asking more and more questions. She wasn't really in a mood to be interrogated.
"So, it's not like you'll be angry at him forever.right?"
"I hope not."
+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* +
The sun never came out at all, that day, since gray clouds covered the sky. It seemed it was going to rain.
Tsien had walked next to Mulan while she pulled the kart holding her hand. When a thunder crashed so hard and so loud, the boy tightened the grip on Mulan's hand. "It's ok, Tsien, I'm here with you." Her words, made Tsien smile at her showing he trusted her. She was glad he did so. "I'm going inside with my sister," he announced.
Crystal rain drops started to pour down over their heads. Then, the rain got heavier. Mulan breathed in the air she loved the smell of wet dirt, it made her forget of all her troubles and simply relax her mind. Just when she was totally forgetting about what happened with her poem, Shang appeared, his presence certainly disturbing her peace. "Would you like to take a break from pulling the kart?"
Mulan tried to look as dignified as possible, "No, I'm fine."
"Are you sure?" He insisted humbly.
"Yes," she said sarcastically, "Now go, otherwise they are going to think I'm your concubine." As far as he remembered, Mulan had never used sarcasm with him.despite she was a warrior she had always addressed him properly and the way a woman should treat a man.well, she treated him the way friends are treated but always with respect. "Mulan, we need to talk," said Shang. She rolled her eyes. "I'm not in a mood right now. So, why don't you save your breath?"
Shang nodded and walked away sadly. He felt like an idiot. Rejected was more so.
Mulan bit her lips. He had come to her to talk to her and she had rejected him. Stubbornly, she reminded herself he had rejected her last night. Still, it broke her heart he way she had treated him. As hard as it is to admit, she loved him no matter what.
*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+ *
The Huns had reached the entrance of the village before the Chinese. Green rice paddies would be the perfect place to attack. They wouldn't suspect. They hid in the rice fields after killing the farmers that worked there (mostly women and teenagers). They left no evidence for the Chinese soldiers to notice though.
"How many Imperial soldiers are after us this time?" Wuzhumuxin addressed one of his men.
"About a hundred," the spy answered.
The Hun leader stood on a rock and announced, "Let them come, and then we'll destroy their precious country. We are ready."
"I think we won't have to wait any longer," one of the Huns pointed out as he heard the Chinese approaching. Their plan would work exactly as they had planned.
Wuzhumuxin let out an evil laughter. He gained his composure and commanded in his fierce voice, "Charge!"
They advanced towards the Imperial soldiers, who were totally unaware of their presence. Arrows hovered above their heads, warning to fall over them.
Without thinking much, Mulan took Mei Hyung and Tsien out of the kart. She released Khan from the heavy load, and helped Tsien up the horse. After that, she handed the baby to her brother's arms and she got up as well. They didn't even say goodbye to Shang. There was no time to say goodbye.
The General watched them leave and whispered with a special caress of affection, "Be careful." He closed his eyes for a second and prayed they would stay away from danger. When he opened his eyes he commanded, "Soldiers use the cannons!" They carried the cannons out of the kart obeying his order.
+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* +
Mulan pressed her heels on her horse making him move as fast as he could.
The Huns noticed Mulan was running away, so their leader ordered, "Don't let her escape, she has to be dead!"
Two Huns chased her shooting flaming arrows at her.
"Tsien keep you head down," she said placing her hand on the boy's head. Mulan turned back and an arrow almost hit her head, luckily, she moved quickly dodging it.
She had to think of something. Just then, she came up with one of her bright ideas. Mulan unfastened the handkerchief from around her neck and ripped it into two. She threw both pieces, which landed on the Huns' faces keeping them from seeing where they were going. This gave her the advantage of getting away. Mushu sighed with relief, "I thought we wouldn't get away from this one." Mulan grinned at him triumphantly.
+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* +
Although the Imperial soldiers aimed the cannons towards the Mongolians, some of them managed to get through the smoke.
Shang kept leading his men with courage and bravery, "Prepare your swords."
The Chinese soldiers took out their swords bravely.
As the Huns attacked and the Imperial soldiers defended their country the real battle began. It was a battle with swords, where one of the two sides had to finish off the opposite with the blood of their men. Blood spilled as swords thrust inside during the process.
Two men charged against the General. Of course it was not easy to defeat Shang. He was an expert with his martial arts skills that he managed to disarm on e of the attackers. Shang had knocked him down and he grabbed his sword and placed it on his sash. The other Hun jumped to his back and tried to cut his head off. Luckily, he just made a scratch on his neck. When he hit the man on his ribs with his strong elbows, the Hun fell back clutching his stomach in pain. Shang wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand. In the process, the Hun he knocked down returned to his standing position. He pulled the General's cape so hard, he completely lost his balance and fell to the ground. The Hun reached his neck and strangled him with his rough hands, making him lose his breath. Shang loosened the grip on his sword allowing the Hun to snatch it and let him breathe. As he caught his breath, the Hun raised Shang's sword threatening he was slashing him into pieces. The General swallowed hard.he was too young to die. Quickly, Shang reached for the sword he hid under his red cape and thrust in into the Hun's heart. It seemed like the man had explode, since the blood came out of him like a wild river. For a moment, Shang watched him shocked. He felt as if he were a barbarian. During that instant of shock, the true barbarian drew his sword into Shang's stomach. The Hun fell back.dead.
Shang groaned in pain and put his arm around his stomach. He had never been wounded so badly, he was bleeding also. Shang tried to stand up, but he fell down when his vision became blurry and unclear. His attempts of keeping his eyes open failed and he fell unconscious on the ground.
+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* +
Once in the village, Mulan went from house to house asking for someone to take care of the poor children. Everyone said they didn't have enough food, or they couldn't stand babies. Finally, a peasant girl named Tanni accepted the kids into her house as if they were her cousins or nephews. Mulan was very thankful to her. Tsien didn't want to be apart from Mulan and Shang, they were his friends.
"Your father is going to come for you and your sister," Mulan assured.
Tsien nodded, wiping the tears from his face with his little hands. "Will I ever see you and Shang again?"
It tore her heart apart to see him cry. He had grown fond of them since the very beginning, and they had also got used to him asking so many questions. There was one problem, Mulan couldn't be sure if she would be able to see him again, or Shang, as long as they kept risking their lives in war there was nothing for sure. Both were warriors and their lives were bound to be risked to protect the whole country. Mulan caressed the boy's cheek and kissed it. Her silence had said it all, and Tsien understood what she meant.
"If you can come back to me," Tsien requested, "We can go together to the Imperial City to watch the Victory Parade. I've never been to the Imperial City.not even once."
She just couldn't deny his request. Mulan placed her hands on the boys ears and kissed his forehead. "We will go.together.the four of us." They embraced each other briefly. Mulan hated goodbyes, specially when it was about someone special like Tsien. He had won a place in her heart, as well as Mei Hyung and Loushen. She kissed the baby goodbye, and thanked Tanni for her hospitality. Mulan rode silently with a tear stung face as she departed. She hoped to get in time and that everything would be under control.
Mushu tried to cheer her up saying, "You will see those kids again."
Mulan made a weak grin. She wondered if the four of them could go someday to the Imperial City, and if Shang would agree to go with her after the way she had been around him. She promised herself that the first thing she would do when seeing Shang, was to beg his forgiveness, no matter how low did she had to humiliate herself. They could forget about everything that happened before and be the best friends, the way things should be.
Dear readers,
I'm planning to get the 8th chapter as soon as I can. Let me see if I can manage to update for Saturday or Sunday. You can all trust that the next chapter is very interesting.
Your friend, Becky.