Decide
Chapter Thirty-Two
What should we do then?
In my haste, I didn't have time to hide my bewilderment and blurted out the question. Despite the embarrassment, I could still hear a weak tremor in my voice.
Iris glanced at me, still looking completely calm: "The plan has been moved up, and there are some things in the cave that we didn't have time to retrieve."
She paused, looked up at the sky, and saw that the sun was still roughly in the middle of the sky, around noon. Then she said, "Let's go now. The village where we'll meet is about 80 or 90 miles ahead."
I was stunned for a moment before I realized that Iris's "original plan" was to continue to Hyakuri!
"Why go to Baili?" I became even more anxious when I saw that even Lan Feiyu didn't say anything. I questioned Yuanzi, "You and Lan Feiyu may not have been infected by that poison. Shouldn't we hurry back to Bozhou City and ask Mr. Tao to help us find the culprit and get the antidote while Prince Asa is not in the city?"
I thought my deduction was perfectly reasonable, but to my surprise, it still earned me a cold smile from Yuanzi. She stared at me and said with a half-smile, "You don't have to come with us. Zhao Xi, if you want to go back to Prince Dong Chu's side, I can have Zhizha take you back, but you must swear that you will not utter a single word about me or Lan Feiyu."
"This isn't about going back or not!" I was furious and unconsciously raised my voice, but seeing Yuanzi's brow furrow again, I bit my lip and lowered my voice, "Although I'm from Dongchu, I can't interfere in your important affairs. I just want to know if going to Baili can resolve the potential danger of your and Lan Feiyu's poisoning!"
As soon as the words were spoken, a series of howls came from the cave, the sound becoming increasingly shrill and high-pitched, just as the kite had said before: This is no longer human.
I couldn't help but shiver again and looked at the kite.
If I still can't see it now, I'm a fool.
Iris remained calm and smiled enigmatically again: "Zhao Xi, you should only have one question: do you want to come with us? Go to Baili and see your biological brother."
She deliberately spoke the last four words extremely slowly, so slowly that even if I were to doubt my own hearing, I couldn't do it.
Strangely, instead of being surprised, I felt a strange calm and composure amidst the absurdity. My mindset was like that of a spectator who had seen through the tricks. No matter how hard the actors on stage tried to pull off their bizarre and outlandish moves, they could no longer arouse any curiosity or amazement in my eyes.
I pursed my lips, somewhat stiffly saying, "I don't want to see the Xie family. They have nothing to do with me. My surname is Zhao, and I am the daughter of the Zhao family!"
Yuanzi chuckled, but her gaze towards me inexplicably lost its sharpness. She moved her lips as if she wanted to say something, but Lan Feiyu, who had been silent all along, suddenly pulled me closer to her and said to Yuanzi, "Xi'er is seriously injured. Even if she wants to go to Baili, with her body, she can't walk for more than ten hours straight. Why don't you take these girls and go first, Yuanzi? I'll stay here with Xi'er."
She looked at me, paused for a moment, and then said, "Whether Xi'er goes to Baili or not, I believe she won't reveal our affair."
Iris glanced coldly at Lan Feiyu and me, then said nothing more. She walked over to the girls who were still cowering to the side and said indifferently, "Come with me."
She ignored Lan Feiyu and me, and led a few surviving girls away, leaving Lan Feiyu and me behind in front of the cave, staring blankly as Iris and the others left.
Only when the figures of the others had become blurred did Lan Feiyu turn to me and let out a soft sigh: "Xi'er, let's go, I'll take you back to your brother."
After speaking, Lan Feiyu took a few steps ahead. I called out from behind, "Wait!" as I chased after her, still glancing fearfully at the sealed cave. "You were splattered with blood, are you alright? I..."
Lan Feiyu stopped and said with a helpless wry smile, "Maybe it's alright."
"Maybe?" I pressed on, grabbing her arm and asking earnestly, "Is it because Baili has the antidote that Yuanzi insists on going there?"
Lan Feiyu shook her head and said, "No, going to Baili is a must. As for the antidote, Xi'er, you don't understand... Never mind, you don't really need to understand. I believe everything you say."
I was a little confused. What did you mean by believing me?
After a while, Lan Feiyu had already walked more than ten steps. I suddenly came to my senses, and ignoring the pain, I ran up to her.
Does she mean that she believes I really just decided to have some fun on a whim, and that it has nothing to do with any family or country feuds, conspiracies or schemes?
Whether others believe it or not, it is absolutely true. But I did not feel depressed because of it. Instead, after a moment of stunned silence, a bittersweet feeling slowly seeped into my heart.
Lan Feiyu still didn't believe me. She couldn't believe that I clearly had an inextricable connection with the Eastern Chu royal family—mainly thanks to my uncle's "blessing," and my biological father was very likely the patriarch of the Xie family, which had been eradicated by the current Eastern Chu emperor—although I had my doubts about this matter.
Given her background, if I were in Lan Feiyu's shoes, I probably wouldn't believe that there really was such a stupid and crazy girl who traveled thousands of miles to the border just to see the vast world before getting married, to see elephants, and to find out how big the baby elephants are, etc., at the request of her older sister.
But Lan Feiyu said she believed me, believed everything I said.
She was willing to suppress all her suspicions for my sake, even going so far as to send me back to my older brother so that I could escape all the current turmoil. I was also confident that no matter how turbulent the situation became, as long as I stayed with my older brother, he would be able to protect me completely.
But what about Lan Feiyu?
She was about to embark on a journey alone to pursue the unidentified kite, and then travel to Baili together. If all went well, she could get Baili's assistance, fight back against Bozhou, and reclaim her father and brother's land.
She's a girl, and she has to do something like this.
Although Yuanzi had previously said that Lan Feiyu looked down on her brother who was going to become a lackey of Dongchu, and that her undisguised hostility towards Dongchu overturned my lifelong belief that "the world should not belong to the emperor," I could still understand her.
She said that Bozhou does not need a master who is above it, just like me. I do not want a master who can control my future, whether that person is my husband or not. I once heard the saying "Never be born a woman, for a hundred years of joy and sorrow are determined by others" when I was young, and I have remembered it firmly and will never forget it.
I am willing to shoulder both joy and sorrow myself, rather than be a puppet in the hands of others.
The journey is difficult, more difficult than mountains, and more dangerous than water.
No, I made a decision in an instant. For my own sake, I cannot abandon Lan Feiyu. We are sworn brothers, and I must accompany her through life and death.
For the public good... Well, no matter how insignificant and humble I am, I am still a daughter of Dongchu. I cannot turn away when I see storms approaching and dark clouds looming over the city. If I were by her side, perhaps I could do my best, however small, to ease the tension between Bozhou and Dongchu.
Having made up my mind, I stepped forward and took Lan Feiyu's hand: "I'll go to Baili with you."
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