'We thank the cultists and the free Xia for saving our city from such a great misfortune!' The innkeeper and his employees bowed politely to Jia Fu and the others, as well as to several others who had also gathered. Ji Fu raised a hand defensively. "That is our duty and our responsibility. There is no reason to thank us," he said.
Xinxin sat down at the richly laid table. They had freshened up and washed the blood from their bodies. When Jia Fu and the others sat down, she dug in heartily. Jia Fu placed some meat on her rice with a gentle smile and watched her eat. Tao Cui exchanged a glance with Mu Bai. He shrugged and rolled his eyes, so she said nothing and helped herself to some food as well.
'Tell me, Tao Guniang, where are you from?' asked Xinxin, swallowing her bite. Tao Cui put her vegetables on her rice and sat up straight as she replied.
'I once belonged to a high sect, but I decided to join the free Xia to make a difference in the world. To fight on the front lines instead of spreading teachings,' she replied. Jia Fu listened.
'I don't mean that education and knowledge are useless,' she apologised. 'I saw my strength more in fighting,' she finally said.
'So the Jade Blade of the Wind is a gift from your former sect?' asked Jia Fu. Tao Cui nodded proudly and stroked her jade sword.
"My Shizun gave it to me a long time ago. When I wanted to return it when I left the sect, he told me to keep it. If I stand up for my convictions, I need a reliable partner by my side.' Xinxin nodded in agreement.
'But why was your desire to fight on the front lines incompatible with your sect?" she finally asked. Tao Cui's eyes darkened briefly and Xinxin immediately regretted her question. But before she could take it back, Tao Cui looked at her.
'It's similar to your belief that the high nobility should use their power for the good of the people, rather than just for themselves. My sect is subordinate to the high noble families, so my hands were always tied in battle, which is why I decided to become a free Xia,' she replied. Xinxin nodded and asked no further questions. The subject seemed to be a sore point.
They ate and chatted about this and that for a while, when suddenly a woman stormed into the tavern. She was covered in blood, dirt and snow. You could still see her festive clothes and the panic in her eyes.
'Help!' she cried. 'Help, I need help,' her voice breaking as she became more and more panicked. Xinxin and Jia Fu exchanged glances, then stood up. Xinxin put a hand on the woman's shoulder and turned her towards them. Jia Fu's mere presence exuded a calming presence.
'What happened?' Xinxin asked her calmly. Tao Cui and Mu Bai also exchanged glances and then stood up.
'Guniang, Guniang,' the woman was completely out of breath. 'Guniang, last night a wedding procession with the bride for young master Yi was supposed to arrive. But then...' She gasped.
'Then the city was locked down. The young master went to protect his bride. When the gates were opened this morning, I immediately went out to look for her, but the wedding procession, everyone, they are all...' Her voice trailed off and she began to sob uncontrollably. Xinxin and Jia Fu looked at each other in silent agreement. Xinxin handed the woman over to the innkeeper. 'Please take good care of her and give her something to drink and eat when she wakes up,' Jia Fu asked the man. He nodded quickly and took the unconscious woman from him.
Together they hurried off. The city was just beginning to come back to life. Hesitantly, the businessmen and women set up their stalls. Much later than usual. Behind the walls of Caifen, where the corpses were being burned in large numbers, black smoke billowed into the sky, bathing everything in a ghostly, unreal scene. The smell of rotten blood and black miasma still hung in the air, weighing heavily on the minds of the common people. The streets, usually so lively and crowded, still seemed quite desolate and empty.
The soldiers who had helped them in battle and were now tending to their wounds opened the gate for them as they hurried over. Their faces showed concern and despondency. They would not be able to withstand such a wave again. Outside, the icy wind blew around their ears, and the new snow had almost completely covered the traces of the battle. But only almost.
'By the gods,' Tao Cui sank to her knees when they reached the former wedding procession. A thick blanket of fresh snow had settled over the pile of corpses and debris. The blood had stubbornly eaten its way through the thick white and thin rivulets still flowed through the deep tracks in the snow. Tao Cui held her hand over her mouth.
'It's my fault,' she gasped. 'I was too late. If only I had found the empty mass grave sooner.' Xinxin took her in her arms.
'It's not your fault. It's not your fault. You couldn't have stopped all these undead on your own,' Tao Cui reassured her. Jia Fu and Mu Bai searched through the rubble.
'That must have been the groom,' sighed Mu Bai. 'He fought bravely.' Jia Fu lifted the wreckage of the palanquin with the tip of his sword. Inside lay two maids, half torn apart and covered in bite marks.
'The bride is missing,' he noted. A piercing scream nearby startled a flock of ravens. Within seconds, the troop followed the scream. Jia Fu reached the spot first. A heap of red and gold was huddled together at the edge of a steep cliff. Three undead surrounded it. 'No, leave me alone,' a young woman screamed in panic, crawling closer and closer to the edge of the cliff. Jia Fu's bright flash struck in front of her and the undead, blocking the path of the drooling corpses. Xinxins, Tao Cuis and Mu Bai's weapons knocked the three heads off their shoulders. Jia Fu landed between the woman and the undead. He turned and knelt beside the trembling heap of misery.
'Guniang!' he said softly. When the young woman looked up, the world stood still for a moment. Her large, wet eyes looked at Jia Fu with fear. Her full lips were bitten bloody and her pale skin stood out clearly against her luxurious red wedding gown. Red, delicate jewellery was woven into her hair, and her veil had long since been lost. She looked so vulnerable, so innocent. Like a master's porcelain doll, carelessly thrown into the snow.
'What is your name?' Jia Fu asked the young woman, helping her up. 'A'Shui,' she replied in a weak voice, clinging to him, unable to stand on her own.
'That must have been terrible, A'Shui Guniang,' Xinxin said gently, stepping over the lifeless bodies and stroking her shoulder. A'Shui's eyes filled with tears she could no longer hold back.
'I don't understand what happened,' she sobbed. Xinxin dropped her sword and took the whimpering heap of misery into her arms. She stroked her back soothingly and comforted her. Jia Fu threw the bodies over the cliffs so that A'Shui would not have to look at them anymore. Tao Cui's guilty conscience and remorse were written all over her face.
'I'm so sorry,' she whispered. She and Xinxin supported A'Shui as they made their way back. Her red robe made it difficult to tell whether she was injured or not. A'Shui was petite, seemed to break if you touched her too harshly, and ploughed through the snow with great difficulty.
When they passed the remains of the wedding procession, she flinched violently. Tears streamed down her face and she bit her lips until they bled again. Jia Fu and Mu Bai tried their best to block her view and let the women walk ahead to take care of recovering the bodies.
Back at the inn, Xinxin and Tao Cui prepared a bath for A'Shui and some new clothes. A'Shui remained silent most of the time. Her white, porcelain-coloured skin was flawless and seemed supernaturally beautiful. Even without make-up, her full lips were a deep red and her dark, almond-shaped eyes were framed by thick eyelashes. Xinxin had never seen a more beautiful woman. She seemed ethereal, divine. When A'Shui had dressed, Tao Cui came in with a tray. On it were bowls, a teapot and a small selection of light dishes. They sat down at the low table in front of the charcoal bowls. While Xinxin braided A'Shui's hair, Tao Cui served her the food.
'I'm sorry, A'Shui Guniang,' she said softly. A'Shui smiled gently and placed a hand on her arm.
'A'Xin has already told me that it's not your fault, Tao Guniang,' she said softly. Her voice was like a gentle, warm breeze caressing the skin, reminiscent of early spring.
'It's more likely mine.' She folded her hands in her lap and tears rolled down her cheeks again. Tao Cui and Xinxin exchanged glances but waited patiently until A'Shui was ready to continue speaking.
"My family consisted only of my father and me. When Yi Gongzi proposed to me, I accepted so that my father could live out his old age in dignity. But he was furious. He said that Yi Gongzi only wanted to marry me for my looks and that I would not have a happy marriage. I ran away from home; I didn't want to hear that. Then we were attacked by looters. Yi Gongzi saved me, but my father fell victim to them. It must have been his anger and resentment that ignited the flame of the undead and led them to Caifeng,' she explained.
'A'Shui, it's not your fault. You couldn't have known that the marauders had built a mass grave and that your father's anger, of all things, would be the last straw. It was a chain of unfortunate circumstances,' Xinxin defended her. A'Shui looked at her shyly but gratefully.
'Thank you for your kind words, A'Xin.' 'What will you do now?' asked Tao Cui. A'Shui sighed. 'To be honest, I don't know. I have no family left and no husband. The wedding procession was led by the Yi family, and they...' A'Shui broke off. Xinxin gently squeezed her shoulder.
'You can come with us for now. We'll find a place for you,' she encouraged A'Shui. A'Shui seemed to think for a moment, but Tao Cui also nodded eagerly.
'Yes, I'll take care of you, I promise.' So it was decided.
'Everyone gather round," Liu Yan strode into the room. The three women were talking, pacing back and forth. His gaze lingered on A'Shui, who had intertwined her hand with Xinxin's and looked at her gratefully with her large, innocent eyes. He knew that the good times would soon be over. Soon, Xinxin's suffering would be revealed, he was sure of it. The soul space vibrated as if it were resisting further memories. Liu Yan crouched down next to Xinxin and gently stroked her cheek. "I'm here," he whispered in her ear. "I won't let anyone hurt you ever again." The tremors in the soul space subsided somewhat. Nevertheless, the next memories opened only slowly. Painfully, as if she were still resisting. Liu Yan waited patiently.