Note: This story isn't historically accurate. The author made great use of historical license in writing it. The inaccuracy is designed to add to the dramatic aspects of the plot. The Huns' invasions and the first Japanese incursion into Chinese territory are at least two centuries apart. The military apparatuses used in the story are out of their respective Eras, as well. That being said, the cultural aspects of Chinese society were extensively studied and are, mostly, accurate, though. Enjoy the reading!

Flower of China

By Kath Klein

Translated by Yoruki Hiiragizawa

Chapter XVII

Xiao Lang squirmed uncomfortably as he tried to accommodate himself the best way possible over an armchair with his feet up on a low stool. Giving up on his attempt and feeling a painful crick in his neck, he breathed out deeply, watching as Kinomoto slept soundly on the bed.

He had known her fever was most likely caused by the injury going unattended and since he was no healer, he had no idea what he could do other than clean up and dress the wound. That's how, after she spent a whole day in a frenzy, he ended up seeking out the help of one of the village matrons to treat her fever.

He almost regretted doing so when the old woman started making allusions at Kinomoto being "the Japanese bastard from the Yangs".

Evidently, not thinking straight - and infuriated at the woman's nerve - he hissed at her, warning her to watch her tongue when talking about his "wife".

He honestly didn't know what had possessed him to say such a thing but it had been enough to shut the woman up, at least. Thankfully he didn't have to deal with the woman again for the remedy she recommended had taken effect, though slowly.

It had been a close call, but after almost three days with a high temperature, he was pleased to see that her injury was healing well and her fever had finally broken, allowing her some semblance of slumber. It still wasn't ideal, but it was better than no rest at all. And the nightmares seemed to have lessened some, too.

She stirred a bit on the bed and the General waited with bated breath to see if she would wake up. After just a moment more she turned on her uninjured side, curling into herself with a little whimper and went back to sleep.

Heaving a sigh, he looked away from her, staring out the night sky through the window. He'd learned more about the girl in the last three days while watching her sleep than he did in over two years.

According to her recurring nightmares, the girl was, actually, pretty terrified of being found out and, yet, she remained in the army as a soldier. He really couldn't understand her. She had spent the two previous years living as a man and for what?

Xiao Lang leaned his head back, unable to maintain his heavy lids open for long. It was still hard to believe that a woman had been capable of pulling through as a soldier. She had endured an arduous training that had toppled lesser men before her. And she had thrived on it. She had become a Captain at an earlier age than even him. He had so many plans for Touya's future. He would've made sure Kinomoto became the greatest General of not only this Dynasty but of all times. Dammit!

At the same time he loathed that girl for making a fool out of him, he couldn't deny that Touya… that she had been his best pupil and his best friend. He had thought of Kinomoto as a son at times –– the son he could only dream of siring, once he doubted that any woman would be good enough to bear for him.

And now, with the kid he learned to respect and admire being a woman, it was as if it had all been a lie. It was as if Kinomoto Touya had, indeed, died and that thought was enough to put a sour taste in his mouth. To make things worse he truly missed talking to his pupil. Touya always had helped him put things into perspective.

Kinomoto started thrashing around on the bed, making him open his eyes with a tired sigh. She started muttering something incomprehensible and he furrowed his brow, getting up and nearing the bed. He noticed the wet cloth he'd set over her head was lying by her neck on the pillow and took it, ploughing it on the water basin over the bedside table as he sat beside her. Softly, he brushed her hair away from her forehead, making her stir a bit before settling down again. He lightly placed his hand on her brow to check her fever and narrowed his eyes. She wasn't burning up anymore but he was concerned with how slowly she seemed to be improving.

Xiao Lang looked down at her, observing her closely. Her hair was shorter than how most women used it, though it was longer than how it used to be when she joined the army. Her delicate face still held a childlike aspect, which explained how she could pass for a young boy, yet not a man.

The more he looked at her, though, the harder it was to believe he had ever thought her to be a boy at all. How had he been so blind? How many times had he looked Touya in the eyes and, grudgingly, thought of the girl from Shanghai? How many times had he dismissed the fleeting thought believing he was losing his mind?

He heard her stir in her sleep again. 'No, Ban,' she whimpered with a deep frown on her face. 'Please, hold on, Ban. Please, don't die. Please...'

He furrowed his brow at hearing that; a sour taste in his mouth at the rogue thought that started spreading on his mind at hearing her call another man's name.

Had Yu Ban known Kinomoto to be a woman? The two of them had been extremely close during those first months of training. He knew that Ban's death had been extremely hard on his pupil; could it really be just because they were friends? How many times had he seen them training well past curfew hours? Was training all they did together? Could they've been lovers?

'We'll… we'll show them, Ban,' she went on, her voice was wobbly and her lips were shaking. 'The Major and… the others. We'll show them.'

Xiao Lang saw her turn to the other side and whimper in pain again as she curled in, making herself as small as possible. She was agitated, her dream was, clearly, unpleasant and she was probably putting pressure on her injury. 'You're more trouble than you're worth, you know that?' he muttered, wondering not for the first time why was he doing that.

Taking a deep breath, he turned her around so that she was laying on her back with her legs stretched and took the damp cloth from the basin, squeezing the excess water before placing it back on her forehead. She shuddered for a moment, at the cold wet feeling before starting to calm down.

'We'll make him proud, Ban,' she murmured under her breath and if Xiao Lang weren't so close to her, he wouldn't have heard. 'The General… he'll be proud of us, he'll be...' she kept on grumbling unintelligibly.

He couldn't help the smile flickering on his face at hearing that. She had managed to make him proud. Of her and of the whole troop they trained together. He'd been so certain the task of turning what everyone thought to be a bunch of useless men into soldiers had been a punishment of some sort. And yet, now, he saw that as one of his greatest accomplishments.

That was one of the reasons he felt so conflicted on how to proceed with her. By law, he should take her back to The Forbidden City to face judgement for her crimes. Could he do it, though? For the first time in his life, he honestly was at a loss on what to do.

Sakura's eyes slowly fluttered open, the balmy sun pleasantly rousing her out of deep sleep. The softness of the bed and the absence of the acute pain that'd become her constant companion lately slowly enveloped her mind making her doze off again. When she was brought to again, yawning and stretching languidly, she let out a hiss at the sudden throbbing pain she felt at her side.

'You need more time of rest to heal properly,' she was startled by the General's voice and opened her eyes, turning her head in his direction while attempting to sit up. She found him sagging uncomfortably on the armchair at the corner of the room with his feet resting over a stool.

Sakura flinched, trying to sit up squarely and busied her hands with straightening her clothes while staring forward to avoid looking at him. 'I, I suppose you're right.'

'You've been out for almost a week; barely staying awake long enough to sip some broth,' she heard the sound of fabric shifting and a muffled thud she supposed to be his feet stomping on the floor as he stood up. 'It would do you good to try and eat something now.'

She didn't answer him. She knew that it would do her no good to avoid him, he wouldn't just disappear from the room and her life just because she wished it, but the headstrong part of her still refused to glance his way as she felt vulnerable. Why couldn't he be just part of another nightmare?

She saw him stop beside the bed with the corner of her eyes as he extended his hand toward her. 'Come. I'll help you to the table.'

'I don't need your help,' she muttered through gritted teeth, stubbornly swatting at his outstretched hand.

'Yes, you do,' he heaved a weary sigh and she looked up in time to see him roll his eyes. 'You're still recovering.'

Sakura stared at him coldly, keeping unblinking eye contact and clenching her hands beside her on the bed. 'Let me rephrase it, then: I don't want your help.'

Xiao Lang shook his head and massaged his temples, his eyes narrowing in a way she knew to indicate that he was getting impatient. 'Don't be stupid, girl. What would you gain by holding on to your pride now?'

'My pride is the only thing I have left,' she countered, unwilling to give in to his reasoning, no matter how sound it was.

Xiao Lang narrowed his eyes, his lips sealed tight in displeasure at her saucy reply. Shaking his head, he thought that maybe he'd been too complacent with Captain Kinomoto, maybe he'd given the boy too much liberty and now the girl thought she could talk to him like that. Such audacity in a woman was unbecoming. 'You better start acting like a woman, Kinomoto,' he reproached her, his voice cautionary and assertive.

Yet, she refused to lower her head. 'Women shouldn't be so submissive to men.'

He grunted in frustration at her stubbornness. 'Your crazy ideas are going to get you killed.'

'You didn't seem to mind my "crazy ideas" so much while you thought I was a man,' she wittily pointed out with one raised eyebrow. 'And if it means I get to keep my head held high, I'll gladly face death. It wouldn't be the first time.'

The General shook his head and heaved a sigh, running his hand through his hair and decided to change tactics. 'Then behave like an officer and obey the order you were given.'

She only smirked. 'And when has Captain Kinomoto ever done anything he didn't want, Sir?'

'Don't test my patience, woman,' he warned her, squinting his eyes. 'You're not a Captain anymore. Playtime is over.'

'Do you really think it was a game?' She bristled through clenched teeth. 'I was trying to survive, General!'

'By joining the army? By going to battlefields and fighting in a war?' He inquired in a clipped tone, clenching his hands at his sides. 'How was any of that going to keep you alive? It's insane!'

'As insane as it might've been, it was a better option than just resigning myself to lay down with men for money,' she disputed, glaring at him as if daring him to disagree.

Swallowing hard, Xiao Lang just stared her down in silence for a few heartbeats because what could he say about that? How was he supposed to answer to that veiled accusation? 'Well, if you're strong enough fight me over such inanity,' he turned his back to her, waving his hand dismissively as he took a seat at the table. 'Then I guess you must be able to stand up and walk on your own to get something to eat.'

Sakura watched him settle at the table and let out a long deep sigh of relief that he relented the argument. She lowered her legs from the bed, her bare feet touching the cold floor and straightened her clothes, making sure her hanfu was properly closed.

When she tried to get up, her legs almost gave in to the weight of her own body and she suddenly realized that, after spending a week in a bedridden state, her body was weaker than she thought.

She tried to ignore the way the General kept a rapt eye locked on her. Dammit! She refused to give him a reason to gloat… She grumbled unhappily, her fingers gripping tightly to the headboard as she set her feet steadily to the floor once more and stood on wobbly feet.

Xiao Lang followed her movements with his eyes, noticing how she leaned against the wall and furniture to keep standing. She was still weakened but was too headstrong to admit to needing help; especially his help.

She straightened up, her chest out and shoulders back all the while staring him with clenched jaws and keeping her chin up as she crossed the short distance to the table. 'As I said before, I don't need your help, General,' she stated slightly out of breath.

'Oh, yeah! I can see that, sure…' he replied with heavy irony.

Rather than answering him, she took a plain steamed bun from the table eating it slowly along with a cup of lukewarm tea. Though the last days had left her ravenous, she knew that eating too fast would only serve to make her ill again. She needed her energy and strength back if she wanted to have any chance of escaping him.

'After you eat something, we'll take another look at that troublesome injury of yours,' he stated, making her look at him with a creased brow.

'I'm perfectly able to treat it myself,' she declared, crossing one arm protectively over her waist and taking her drink with the other.

Xiao Lang rolled his eyes at her stubbornness. As much as she didn't want to accept his help, he didn't actually think she'd be able to take care of the injury by herself. And after all the trouble he had to get her fever to break, he didn't want to go through all that again. 'Maybe you are, maybe you aren't. Either way, I'll be the one to judge it,' he insisted, stretching his muscles and snapping his tense neck and shoulders after the night spent on the armchair.

She almost choked on her tea at his haughtiness. 'No, Sir! I'm the one who gets to decide about my life and my body.'

Gazing into her eyes, he raised an eyebrow and opened an unnerving and enigmatic smile. 'As a woman, you're a criminal and a prisoner, therefore I get to decide about your life. As a soldier, I'm your General and commanding officer and I also get to decide about your life.'

Sakura narrowed her eyes, wondering if he was teasing her or if he was being serious. 'Do you enjoy so much to have control over things like this?'

'It doesn't matter whether I enjoy it or not. You're my responsibility now,' he replied, holding back a smirk when she huffed and turned her head to look away from him.

She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing how much he affected her, so she took another steamed bun and started nipping at it and washing it down with the tea. While she took her time eating, the General stood up from the table and started moving around the bedroom, doing what? She didn't know, once she purposefully avoided looking in his direction.

She smiled slightly at the feeling of fullness in contrast to the hole she had previously felt in her stomach. Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself and stood up, feeling a lot more steady on her feet and nodding satisfied. It didn't matter what the General thought, her priority should be building her strength back up and strategize how to escape.

When she turned around, Sakura saw him leaning against an open window, watching the outside movement and couldn't help but watch him in silence. As much as it pained her to admit it, Xiao Lang was a striking specimen. And she knew she was ogling at him.

It was a waste that he was just like every other narrow-minded man she'd ever met. He had such a potential for greatness and yet allowed himself to be bound by societal rules and expectations. Sometimes she wished she could hate him, it'd be so much simpler if she could.

'Did Ban know you are a woman?' he asked her, rather unexpectedly, taking her back from her wandering to the present.

'Ban?' She raised an eyebrow and took a sideways glance at him, confused by the question.

'Yes, Yu Ban,' Xiao Lang repeated, a strange tightness in his voice as he turned away from the window facing her. 'The two of you were as thick as thieves those first couple months. There were several nights when I've watched as you've practised alone after curfew. So, did he know you were a woman?'

'He didn't. I mean,' she shook her head, clasping and wringing her hands together. 'He found it out at the top of Mount Fuy before he…' Sakura clenched her teeth, choking on her words as she felt the pinpricks of tears in her eyes. She blinked a couple of times and took a deep breath, getting her emotions under control. 'I-I couldn't control my voice so he ended up learning the truth at his final moments.'

The General narrowed his eyes, watching her carefully. 'You wouldn't lie to me about this, would you?'

She merely took him in with a frown for a moment, before shaking her head and giving up trying to figure out what was going on inside his thick head. 'What is this about, Sir?'

He shrugged, looking away from her and clenching his hands at his side. 'I was just curious to know if you really had fooled everyone.'

Sakura kept watching him, tilting her head slightly and pressing her lips together in silent contemplation. What on Earth could have made the General think of Ban, of all people?

After a couple of minutes of awkward silence between them, Xiao Lang glanced sideways at her and crossed his arms, leaning against the windowsill. 'You really felt his death, didn't you?'

'Yes, I did,' She didn't see a reason to deny that. And didn't they already have this conversation before? 'Ban was someone I cherished very much.'

Somehow, her answer seemed to displease the General as he turned back to her with a sour expression. 'Just what was he to you?'

'I don't understand what you're asking me, General!' She shrugged shaking her head with a furrowed brow. 'Or even what it is to you...'

'Just answer me, Kinomoto!' he demanded, taking a heavy step in her direction while aggressively running his hand through his hair.

'He… he was my friend,' she bowed her head with slumped shoulders. 'I'm… I can't help feeling responsible for his death. If...' she stuttered, her eyes darting around the room and avoiding the General. 'If I hadn't seen the Huns, he might've still been alive.'

'If you hadn't seen them, the Emperor might've died, instead,' he countered, matter-of-factly.

Sakura raised her eyes, feeling a lump in her throat. She has told that to herself many times and knew that the Son of Heaven's life was more valuable than any other's but it didn't help her feel any less guilty. Ban was her friend and she had been the soldier in charge of the sabotage unit.

'Maybe…' Sakura replied in a mumble and heaved a sigh, stubbornly squaring her shoulders. 'Not that it matters now, does it? Whether or not I saved the Emperor's life is of no consequence now that I'm found to be a woman,' her mouth twisted into something that was a mixture of a sneer and a smile. 'Though I'd gladly die if only I get to see the look on those old geezers' faces at learning that a woman devised the strategy which won a war they couldn't,' she grinned as Xiao Lang furrowed his brow, twisting his mouth into a scowl. 'That I bested them at their own game and was the one who granted not only the Emperor's safety but all of China's.'

He narrowed his eyes at her. 'It behoves you not to act in such a petulant way.'

'You're the one who brought up how I saved the Emperor,' she replied, pursing her mouth in a smirk.

Xiao Lang sighed, seeming to have tired of their bickering. 'Just tell me at once: did you or did you not dally around with Ban?'

She momentarily froze in her place, staring him with wide eyes and raised eyebrows, all the colour drained from her face as she took in what he'd just asked. Then, to her utter embarrassment, she felt herself flushing violently, her cheeks heating up as she stammered an outraged and hasty denial.

How did they move from almost friendly banter to him accusing her of… of that? Had he not understood the lengths to which she went to preserve her honour? How dare he question her virtue?

She forced herself not to think of the only instance where she allowed a man – that man – to touch her and looked back up to face him. She didn't even notice that she had looked away.

The General's amber eyes were watching her closely as if appraising her; appraising her reactions to his ridiculous question.

She refused to let him shame her in that way. Sakura narrowed her eyes at him, jutting out her chin and clenching her fists at her side. She noticed with a bit of satisfaction that he slightly shifted his stance as her own did the same; that he unconsciously braced himself for impact as she readied herself to charge – even if figuratively.

Before she could descend on him with righteous indignation, though, Xiao Lang sighed deeply, in what seemed like a mixture of frustration and tiredness. 'When we were last in Shanghai,' he brought it up, massaging his temple and applying pressure on his eyes. 'Why didn't you tell me who you were then?'

She looked at him with wide-eyed bewilderment for a moment as she took in his words. Her eyes stared at him, unseeing, as she contemplated his question and what could've happened if she had told him the truth. 'How…' she stammered, feeling her throat close up. 'How do you suppose I should've done it? Should I just have come to you and said that I was the girl you were looking for? You would have killed me.'

He crossed his arms and, for a brief fleeting moment, so swift Sakura almost doubted having seeing it, Xiao Lang looked away as if unable to look her in the eyes; almost as if ashamed. 'You must've had quite a lot of fun at seeing me seeking for someone I would never find, huh?' He said with a glum expression on his face.

She furrowed her brow and sighed as if tired of iterating the same thing over and over again. 'I've warned you that the girl was dead.'

'Dead?' He stifled an unbelieving groan at her statement – along with a sharp pang in his chest that he thought better not to look too closely at. 'Then who's it that I'm talking to here?'

'Just the carcass of a foolish girl who let herself be dragged to her own demise while believing she was going to meet her future husband,' she answered, throwing him a snarky remark, trying not to seem aggrieved at the memories.

'You still should have been honest,' he mentioned, shaking his head. 'Or, at least, should've told me the truth earlier.'

'I've told you the truth the moment we met… Or I tried to tell you that I wasn't there by choice but you thought I was playing games and being theatrical to arouse you, as I recall,' she shook her head and rolled her eyes. 'Everything I did was in order to survive. It's why I ran from you that night. It's why I joined the army. It's why I risked my life to fight in a war.'

He squared his shoulders even if he looked away from her. He didn't think there would come a day when he didn't regret what he'd done. Dammit! What even was his life? How did that girl ended up becoming such a huge part of his life? It was no wonder that while in Shanghai he kept seeing the green-eyed girl in Kinomoto, though at the time, he thought it to be the fruit of guilty conscience and remorsefulness.

The General eyed her nonplussed and shook his head. 'And just how come your survival managed to bring you back into my life?'

She clenched her fists at her sides, her knuckles white, as she trembled out of frustration. 'You say it as if I had a choice,' she muttered under her breath. 'It seems like I can't get rid of you, as much as I try it,' she gave a long, weary sigh and slumped her shoulders, briefly closing her eyes. 'You're an intelligent man, General. Do you really think I had the power of designing all that's happened just out of spite? Becoming a soldier, joining your troop…' she opened her eyes, gazing at him intently. 'You were the one who decided to make me a Captain under your tutelage.'

'You should've said "no",' he replied, his tone just a tiny bit hesitant.

She laughed at that and shook her head. 'And would you have accepted my denial, Sir?'

Instead of answering, Xiao Lang started pacing around the room while processing everything that had been said between them just now. After a couple of minutes, he turned to face her and straightened up with a deep breath. 'Here's where we're at, Kinomoto: no matter the reason, you've impersonated a soldier for over two years, deceived not only your Commanding Officer but also lied to your Emperor, dishonouring the Chinese Army…'

Sakura huffed and rolled her eyes cutting in. 'I won't waste my breath anymore trying to make you understand that circumstances and, in a way, your actions have forced my hand. If you persist in being obtuse, so be it!'

'I'm not the one being obtuse here. Maybe you've been leaning on deceit for too long but it's due time for you to stop deluding yourself.' He admonished her, aiming for a matter-of-factly tone and failing to deliver it as a pinch of sorrow leaked into his voice.

Sakura felt herself flinch at noticing the underlying anguish in his voice. She would rather he be angry and resent her, for she didn't know what to do with the prospect of having hurt him.

He heaved a sigh before proceeding. 'You're a woman. Women always belong to a man - be that their father, brother, husband or even their pander.'

'I. Belong. To No. Man.' She bristled, squinting her eyes and baring her teeth.

'You might not like it, Kinomoto, but that's how things work and you know it,' he explained, letting out an exasperated sigh. 'If it makes you feel better, we could even think of the 300 coins I paid for you as a dowry instead of what it was…'

Sakura felt herself blushing and couldn't maintain eye contact with him as she stammered: 'Y-You're not my fiancé.'

Xiao Lang watched as a tinge of red spread on her cheeks, a sign of her fluster, and tried not to smile at her reaction. 'If that's how you prefer it, then we're back to you being my prisoner, which makes me responsible for you just the same,' he said, sobering up and letting out a long sigh while rubbing his neck. 'Whatever the case, your life belongs to me. At least for now.'

'You're enjoying this, aren't you?' She stared at him through narrowed eyes.

'As I said before, it's not a matter of enjoying it,' he said, looking her straight in the eyes. 'I'm simply being honest about where we stand.'

The frankness in his eyes and voice robbed her of the will to keep on fighting him and she gritted her teeth feeling her body move in slow-motion. Not knowing what else to do now, she turned her back to him and tottered around the room well aware of her still recovering body. Tentatively, she pressed around the injury at her side, still feeling a raw soreness in the area. Not for the first time, she chastised herself for the stupid distraction which resulted in that injury.

The General kept a close eye on her and leaned slightly forward at seeing her wince in pain. Although her minor cuts and bruises had gotten better, the worst of her injuries still was a long way from being completely healed. It had been a bad enough gash that, even when freshly inflicted, would've taken time to properly heal.

With everything that happened, it had just gotten worse over time. With a few short steadfast steps, he reached the dresser where he kept the medicine and dressings. 'You need to change the bandages and reapply the ointments,' he remarked, making her stop in her rambling.

'I can do it by myself,' she stated adamantly.

'I need to make sure it's treated correctly,' he insisted, weary from their previous discussion. 'It'll be a long enough travel and your fever returning would only be a setback.'

'Travel? What travel?' she inquired, looking at him again. 'What exactly are your plans, General?'

Instead of answering, Xiao Lang continued to gather the supplies to attend to her wound. The truth was that he knew what he had to do. What was expected of him but there was a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach at the mere thought of following it through. That doubt was something he never experienced before while fulfilling his duty.

'You're taking me back to The Forbidden City,' she noted and he felt himself gulping down a lump in his throat.

'Your crimes… Had they been only against me, I'd deal with you myself, but…' he furrowed his brow, pressing on against a sudden stammer. 'As your trickery made a fool of the whole Army, it's not up to me to decide on your punishment. Your judgement will come by the hands of the Son of Heavens, instead.'

'So you'll make me into an example of what'll happen to any woman who fails to comply and yield to men's will, won't you?' she pondered, her low voice dripping with resentment.

He remained in silence, his eyes secured on the items in his hands, the tight grip on the dressing stripes turning his knuckles white.

'Decapitation, mutilation, flaying or, maybe, death by a Thousand Cuts,' she pressed on; her voice strangely sombre despite the little waver in her words and the quiver in her lips. 'Which of these punishments do you believe better suit my "crimes", General?'

He then turned to face her, his jaw clenching and his eyes narrowed as he took her in. 'It's not for me to decide. I'm a General of the Chinese Army and I know my duty, Kinomoto.'

She swallowed hard, eyes taking a steely gaze as she slowly nodded her acquiescence. 'And I'm a Captain.'

Xiao Lang scrutinized her for a moment before looking out the window. 'Not anymore and that's the problem,' he said, feeling a little jaded and disoriented. 'You're no longer Captain Kinomoto. I don't have the slightest idea of who you are.'

Sakura slumped her shoulders, regarding him with a lump in her throat. 'I'm still the same person, General.'

'No, you're not,' he replied as if it pained him to admit it. 'Let's take care of your wound. We need to get to the Emperor as soon as possible.' He hesitated and then added as an afterthought. 'In light of your achievements and the role you had in defeating the Huns, I'll request for a private audience with him and he'll decide your destiny. Just him.'

She nodded absentmindedly. She knew this to be the standard procedure for crimes committed by political prisoners and noblemen, though there was occasional precedence for the military. So the Lord of Ten Thousand Years would be her judge. She could only hope he would show her mercy and grant her a quick death.

Not that she'd just walk into the palace to meet her death without a plan of escape or without attempting to save herself. And to have a real chance of evading her final meeting with the Emperor, she needed to be completely healed.

Taking a deep breath, Sakura stepped closer to the General, watching him comb through bandages and varied salves and liniments. She creased her brow, surprised by the sheer number of material over the dresser and had no idea what each of them was for.

The longer she remained upright, the greater the discomfort she felt and what had been a stinging numbness a few minutes ago was becoming a sharp twinge of pain. Blinking a couple of times and feeling a bit overwhelmed, she decided to swallow her pride and accept his help.

Looking away from him, she unlaced her hanfu with shaking hands, opening it to give him easier access to the wound while trying to keep her modesty as much as possible. Shaking her head, she heaved a sigh, acknowledging that he wouldn't be able to treat her while she tried to cover herself.

Rationalizing it, she knew he had already seen her bare and it would not do to be headstrong about it now. She slowly undressed the top of her garment, covering her breasts with her arms for modesty's sake and as much as she tried, there was no way to refrain from blushing as Xiao Lang drew nearer to her. It was maddening that she felt vulnerable and was unable to maintain eye contact with him.

The General approached her, taking notice of her naked shoulders and the delicate arch of her collarbone as she tried in vain to cover herself. He felt warm inside, his heart pounding in his chest as he beheld her in unrestrained awe. Not for the first time he wondered how could he have been so blind not to see what had been right in front of him. How could he have believed, for even a minute, that the stunning woman in front of him was a boy?

Carefully, he untied the band that was fastened around her waist, covering the wound and felt her shiver at the little brushes of his fingertips with her skin. Swallowing hard, he forced himself to look away from her shoulder and luscious neck to focus on the laceration.

'It's quite unsightly, still,' he remarked, gently feeling around the inflammation area.

Sakura bent herself as much as she could, taking a look at the injury and, dejectedly, conceded to his assessment.

'Had it not been taken care when it did, it would've turned into a serious infection,' the General commented, cleaning the purulence with a clean linen stripe, making her wince as the pain flared up. He didn't begrudge her predicament as he knew how much that hurt but she would have to bear with it. The cut needed to be cleaned up otherwise it would turn gangrenous.

'It was a deep wound but it wasn't that bad before,' Sakura hissed, her body shuddering in pain as she felt tears stinging her eyes. 'Had you not assailed me the way you did when you found out the truth, it would be healed by now.'

Xiao Lang paused his ministrations, lifting his gaze to look deep into her eyes. 'As I recall, after recovering from the immediate blow of Ban's death, you mercilessly obliterated every Hun you found on your way.'

Sakura furrowed her brow and tilted her head looking at him in confusion. 'Well, yes! They've just killed my best friend and I was furious.'

He just nodded, concurring with her explanation and turned his attention back to the task at hand. 'Then you know exactly how I felt when you said Touya didn't exist.'

She stared at him with wide eyes at hearing his reasoning and bit onto her lower lip, holding back a pained whimper. 'I-I'm so sorry, General.'

He briefly glanced up. 'So am I.'

Sakura wrapped her arms tightly around her body in an attempt to better cover her breasts and closed her eyes tightly as he finished cleaning the wound. Partly to help her endure the pain and partly to avoid shedding the tears pooling beneath her eyelids. She inhaled sharply, biting down a whimper when he started plastering the wound with the ointments, liniments and salves he had lying around.

The General watched her bear with the pain with deep admiration. He knew personally the excruciating pain that was caused by the application of those medicines and he'd already seen grown men struggling and screaming during treatment.

He took notice of her shivering body and of the tightness in her facial muscles and felt the hint of a smile on his lips. Though he didn't enjoy seeing her in pain, he had to admit that her toughness was rather admirable.

Taking a clean stripe of linen, he leaned over her and methodically swathed her waist. Unintentionally, Xiao Lang caught himself breathing her in as he was all but embracing her in order to dress her wound. He felt her body tremble again and her lips parted just slightly. Only the gods know how much it cost him to control the urge to brush his lips against the skin of her neck, as exposed as she was at that moment.

He felt disturbed by the need to bury the desire of finding out what her skin tasted like. Swallowing hard, he finished binding the linen up and took a step back trying to think clearly once more.

Sakura felt herself wobble on her feet. Her whole body trembled and ached as the medicine acted on the cut.

The only reason she didn't topple over was the General's steady hand on her forearm. 'I know it stings,' he said softly. 'But it's a necessary evil to heal.'

'It doesn't sting. It's like my whole body is on fire!' She knew he was right but couldn't help complaining. She took deep breaths and squeezed her eyes shut to avoid crying in front of him.

For a brief moment, Sakura believed the pain had finally managed to derange her, for she could swear she felt something soft and warm brushing tenderly against her left shoulder, near her jaw and her temple. Almost like kisses.

In the following minute, however, she was aware of the General guiding her by the arm toward the bed. 'Sit down,' she heard him say, still holding her by the arm.

Once she had seated, he let go of her and fixed the top of her hanfu back over her shoulders, properly covering her up. No lingering touches.

It was official. She was definitely hallucinating.

Xiao Lang stepped away from her, his hands shaking. His heart seemed almost ready to burst out of his chest. He gulped loudly at the sight of her emerald eyes opening. 'You should lie down and rest,' he managed to say without quivering and she just nodded without complaint.

He watched her as she slowly lay down, her body seeming to have shrunk out of pain. He shook his head and heaved a sigh, running his hand through his hair in distress.

Ancestors… That woman would drive him crazy.

To be continued.

Minor editing on January 10th, 2020.