Crunch.
Below his feet, Tao Hua crushed a few small pebbles of rubble. He curiously lifted his foot to examine the mess—all beige, representing the walls they crumbled from, surrounding what seemed to be a small passing town.
A creak sounded, direction Tao Hua's attention toward the source. Shan Si was past the gate of what looked like a dry, desolate town, opening the door of what looked to be a dishevelled, poorly maintained outpost. What was even more troublesome was the expression on his face when opening that door.
"…" Tao Hua, walking up behind him, glanced in. "It's…dirty."
"Empty," Shan Si corrected him even if both answers were technically correct, holding his hand to prevent Tao Hua from entering. He mumbled, "No one's been here for years. Why…?"
The room inside looked to be one that was left exactly as it once was. Inhabited, with rusted metal cups, yellowed paper, and a sleet of dust on the surface of the table in the middle. In the corner, webs and dust collected, with cracks throughout the wall from whatever animal burrowed itself and claimed this space it's home.
Yet, no creature scuttled, and the room was secluded in complete silence.
Tao Hua looked up at Shan Si's contemplating expression. "I…I was here five years ago. This was one of the main travel ports for merchants through Zhonglai. Why haven't I heard of it falling?"
Thinking back to the conversation in the tavern with the men and Gui Chang, Tao Hua hesitantly spoke up. "Apparently Siyue Town went through something similar. I…um, well, I didn't really get a chance to tell you."
Admittedly, they'd been on the road for another two days since the Mid-Autumn Festival. Tao Hua's mind had been in such a tizzy, unable to stop thinking about the lanterns, but also all that had happened before, and all that came after.
It also didn't help that Shan Si was focused on survival between himself while also keeping Tao Hua safe, and on the lookout for guards. He'd barely got a moment to rest that his exhaustion was drawn under his eyes, and in his own sluggish movements.
So, how could he be thinking about anything other than trying to alleviate Shan Si's stress? Especially since that night in the hut, Shan Si's attitude toward Tao Hua was practically shifted to high alert, treating him more delicately than he ever had before, as if Tao Hua would slip out of his hands if he looked away.
It was rather uncharacteristic not having this man joke around.
Shan Si, head turned down and eyes on Tao Hua, held up his hand and ruffled his hair affectionately. "I didn't give you a chance to."
That comment had suddenly made Tao Hua's face burn red. Neck bent, he stared down at his hands, which fiddled with each other against his chest. Outside of Shan Si's determination, ever since that night in the Abandoned Hut, the nights seemed rather restless.
Now, it wasn't that which kept happening. It was more innocent—making out, feeling each other up, es cetera, es cetera.
It was like removing the cork from a bottle that was well over its limit, and that limit had finally been reached long before the confession. Now, everything was spilling out of it with nowhere to go, and neither seemed to care that it was making a mess.
Such was more than Tao Hua could ever wish for, and yet, it was still a lot for someone like him to acknowledge.
Shan Si's hand slipped down to the back of Tao Hua's shoulder, turning him toward the town. Though it looked dry and dusty like that of a desert, the weather was bitterly cold, but that was expected to happen the closer they got to Buzhi Forest.
Most houses had begun to deteriorate without maintenance. The plants were crisp, easily breakable twigs, and the trees had little life left in them, let alone leaves.
The most alarming of all was in the colour that blanketed this town.
"Miss Gui mentioned something about the mood in Siyue Town. I thought she was exaggerating for the sake of getting her point across, but…" The more Tao Hua looked around, the grimmer his expression. "Now I see that she wasn't exaggerating—Miss Gui's always been unambiguous, straight to the point."
"I see," Shan Si said, without adding more. He stared ahead as they strolled along the street of that town, kicking aside a bit of the rubble as the clacking echoed eerily. The expression on his face was clouded, and Tao Hua couldn't quite tell what he was thinking about.
"She also mentioned that nothing really…well, exists," Tao Hua recalled with a frown, trying to remember each comment as best he could. "There wasn't much time to inquire further, but I think I now see what she meant. There's..."
"No life—no person, animal, plant. Even the buildings are lifeless," Shan Si finished his sentence. "Jianlai is the same way."
"But…Jianlai has more colour to it?"
"It does, doesn't it?" Shan Si said inexpressively. His pace remained the same, and as they walked further, Tao Hua realised that's where his commentary ended. So, he just covered the basics of what he heard from Gui Chang while also bringing up the men from the tavern that one day.
When Tao Hua glanced up at Shan Si, his expression had finally switched, darkening. The change was gradual at first, but plunged the moment Tao Hua brought up Gui Chang's warning about his father.
Shan Si waved his hand, ending the topic entirely. He brought Tao Hua closer into his embrace, observing his surroundings meticulously while also being in deep thought. Only after a while did he stop the two of them, and when he did, he leaned in close to Tao Hua, his face only a few inches away.
"There's something I still don't understand, Tao Hua."
Lightly flushed, Tao Hua timidly peered over, finding a pair of sombre eyes he felt could see right through his soul. Shifting his gaze away for only a moment, he dryly swallowed. "What?"
"If you knew your father wanted you dead—that he was hellbent on using you to revive your mother—why did you meet him? Was it actually an accident?"
Like pierced glass, Tao Hua's expression cracked. The blush faded, and his eyes hardened. When he turned back to look at Shan Si, his heart dropped the moment he saw that hurt expression.
"I…" He swallowed again. He weighed not mentioning anything to Shan Si about that, but as things evolved between the two, Tao Hua couldn't bring himself to continuously lie to Shan Si. All he could respond with was a croaked, "I'm…sorry."
"For once, I'll accept that response," Shan Si's brows wrinkled. "I thought it was an accident at first and gave you the benefit of the doubt, but it turns out pushing your father was the second time you put yourself in danger that day. Are you looking to die?"
Shan Si was clearly lecturing Tao Hua, and yet he remained calm and steady in both his touch and tone. This also remained true when asking, "Do you want to see me hurt?"
"N-No!" Tao Hua urged, rapidly shaking his head.
Just what kind of question was that?!
"That's not it at all! I did it so you wouldn't get hurt! I...I swear."
"You think they're…he's enough to hurt me?" Shan Si mockingly laughed. "C'mon...let's be real here; your father's a cockroach—easy to kick away, just doesn't know when to fucking die. A resilient bastard. He can't do anything to me physically."
Tao Hua shamelessly dipped his head, letting out a sigh. He wanted to retort and argue that, much like Shan Si, Tao Hua also wanted to protect him, and yet each time he tried, it never made him happy.
"But…" Shan Si seemed to be picking his words carefully. "He's also a smart cockroach."
"Th-That's why I…felt like I needed to intervene."
Shan Si shook his head at that notion.
"You didn't think I wasn't already aware of this? He immediately deduced my weaknesses through your actions, Tao Hua," Shan Si frowned, straightening his back. Tao Hua's head fell further, overcome with shame that made him feel inferior, useless, and nothing more than a bother; as if he couldn't do a single thing right. "And now he knows how to hurt me. He needs to be handled…sooner than later."
"What…do you mean?" Tao Hua asked, lifting his head to look over at Shan Si. A dangerous aura surrounded Shan Si; anyone looking at him could tell.
"I'll have to swing by the Tao Estate."
"…"
"Don't worry, I understood his intentions well. But there's still a bit of truth to what he said, which is why we need to be careful."
Bottom lip trembling, Tao Hua glared up at Shan Si.
"You know, I'm not as weak-minded as you think—!!?"
Bomph!
Chapter end.