Phoenix Rise: XieRong

Chapter 16 The Lost Child

XieRong and FeiHong quickly left the back alley and went to the main street to buy provisions.

"Jie, why did you choose to go with Young Lord Bai instead of the fourth prince?"

"Because a lot of people would choose to travel with the fourth prince rather than Lord Bai."

"Then wouldn’t that make us a more easier target by the bandits?"

"No, more people doesn’t necessarily mean more security, FeiHong. Think about it, the number of people with the prince far outnumber the guards with him and most of the people travelling with the prince will be the common people with hardly any cultivation because they think that the guards with the prince will be high level cultivators who will protect them. However, the favoured second prince is arriving today. So whose security do you think will be the priority?"

"The second prince’s."

"Exactly. So who do you think will have better guards?"

"The second prince."

"Yes. Wait and see FeiHong, the fourth prince’s party will have at most, ten to twelve cultivators whose cultivation is in the mid to late Spirit Stabilising Realm. I also didn’t want to travel with him because he is the second prince’s blood brother. Who’s to say that if one turned out to be a rotten apple, the other will not be one too? Now, I want you tell me the other reasons as to why I chose to travel with young lord Bai."

XieRong let her sister think as she quickly made her purchases.

After XieRong was done shopping for clothes and food she looked at her little sister who was still in deep thought.

"FeiHong can you please put all these in your ring? I can’t carry all these much longer!"

FeiHong sheepishly put all the things in her space.

"So, have you come up with an answer? It’s okay if you’re wrong. All people make mistakes, and the smart ones learn from them. I made a lot of mistakes too when mother taught me."

"Jie, I think the other reason you chose first young lord Bai was because of the provisions. Since more people are travelling with the fourth prince he’ll have to carry more provisions, while Lord Bai will have to carry less. This will attract bandits to the fourth prince’s group rather than first young lord Bai’s"

"Good girl, FeiHong!" XieRong praised.

"You’re right. I chose him because of that as well. I’ll tell you the last reason; young lord Bai has more influence than the fourth prince because he is older. Also, the fourth prince lives in the shadows of his older brother. Naturally, the first young lord Bai will have more powerful friends who would have provided him with extra guards with high cultivation levels and other provisions for the journey."

XieRong looked around for a weapon shop. The capital was so big and crowded that not losing her sister in itself could be considered a great feat.

"Jie, let’s ask that steamed bun vendor for directions."

FeiHong pointed to a small booth.

XieRong pushed her way to the vendor, holding FeiHong’s hand firmly.

She took a deep breath once she made it out. She felt like she’d just fought a war and emerged victorious.

She picked up FeiHong in one arm. After the poison had been removed from her, XieRong found it easier to carry FeiHong in her arms for longer periods of time. The streets were getting busier by the minute.

"Mister," XieRong said, addressing the vendor,"are the streets always this crowded at this time?"

"No young miss, the second prince has arrived, so everyone is rushing to see him. Otherwise this street is usually empty."

XieRong’s eyes gleamed with joy.

’So, he’d returned had he?’

XieRong laughed at the second prince in her heart. She’d prepared a surprise for him that he’d never forget. She couldn’t wait to hear the rumours when they reached the west province.

"Say, mister, do you happen to know any weapon shops around here? I’ve been looking around but haven’t found any so far."

"Miss, you should go the Jin weapon shop that’s on the fifth street, it’s the only shop that will be open today. You will find it if you go straight down, take the fourth right from here and then the third left."

"Thank you, mister," she said, paying for the steamed bun she bought for her sister.

XieRong turned to leave when she felt someone grab her pants.

She turned around to see a little girl younger than FeiHong.

"Jie Jie, have you seen my big brother anywhere?"

XieRong saw the little girl had tears in her eyes. She knew she didn’t have the time to help someone else besides herself but the girl reminded her so much of FeiHong that she just had to help her.

She would have been distraught if something similar had happened to her sister. Her mother had always taught her to treat people the way she would want others to treat her. XieRong knew that she would want someone to help FeiHong if she were in the same predicament as this little girl.

Putting FeiHong down, XieRong bent down to the little girl’s level.

"Little miss, can you tell me what happened?"

"I was here shopping with my elder brother but then I lost him."

"What a strong girl you are!"

She patted the little girl’s head with her free hand,"You didn’t cry and looked for help. How about I buy you a steamed bun for being so brave?"

The little girl’s face brightened a little.

"This Jie Jie will also help you look for your elder brother while you eat the dumplings. Can you tell this Jie Jie your name?"

"ChuHua."

"Okay, ChuHua, let’s look for your big brother."

XieRong bought another steamed bun and gave it to the little girl.

She then picked both the girls up in either of her arms and made her way to the weapon shop.

XieRong set the two girls down as soon as she saw that the fourth street barely had any people. Her arms throbbed slightly from carrying two people not much younger than her.

She followed the vendor’s instructions and soon reached the Jin weapon shop.

She was surprised when she felt ChuHua pull her into the shop.

"Young miss! The young miss has been found!" A man said, as he rushed up to ChuHua.

"Young miss, everyone was so worried. Where had you been?" A lady as she examined ChuHua.

"She was lost on the main street. You can’t blame her, it’s very crowded today."

"Thank you, miss, for bringing our young miss here."

"It’s okay," XieRong replied. She’d come here looking for daggers so she couldn’t take the credit for helping ChuHua.

"Auntie, do you know which family ChuHua is from and who her big brother is?"

"Miss, you don’t have to worry, I am her big brother," A boy wearing expensive green robes said as he entered the shop.

He had triangular eyes and a menacing look on his face.

All the servants in the shop fell silent.

"Why don’t you come give this big brother a hug, ChuHua? This big brother was so worried about you."

ChuHua held XieRong’s hand tighter as she hid behind XieRong. She could feel her sister’s grip tighten on her hand too. XieRong was confused to see her sister become pale, as though a ghost stood before her.

FeiHong’s hands and lips had started to quiver.

XieRong gained a ruthless gleam to her eyes.

She put the girls behind her protectively, shielding them from the boy.

"FeiHong, give Jie her ring. You don’t have to be scared, Jie is here. Nothing will happen."

FeiHong handed XieRong her ring.

"This young lord is the second young lord of the Bai family. Give this young lord’s sister so that he can bring her home."

XieRong looked sideways at ChuHua. So, she was the young miss of the Bai family.

"ChuHua is he the brother you were looking for?"

Chu Hua shook her from side to side furiously.

"Do you want to leave with him?"

ChuHua shook her head again.

XieRong turned around to face the young lord.

"Hm..." XieRong pretended to think.

"This miss doesn’t remember ever hearing about a ’second young lord’ of the Bai family. Is this young lord sure that he has not eaten something rotten?"

"You dare? I am the second young lord Bai, and a cultivator in the late Dantian formation realm. You still dare insult this young lord?"

"Well, then let this miss ask this lord a question: How many years is this young lord?"

"Why should this young lord answer anything?"

"Is this young lord so delirious from the rotten food that he can not even say how old he is?"

The boy in front of XieRong grew red in the face. He reminded her so much of the second prince that she wanted to teach him a lesson even more.

"This lord is eight years old."

"Does the lord think this miss is stupid? Everyone in the Southern province knows that the second prince is the most talented cultivator of our generation and he’s only about to break through to the Dantian Formation realm. Are you trying to say that this lord is better than the second prince?"

"I-This lord-"

"If you say that you’re in the late Dantian Formation realm then we must let lord Bai, the second prince,and the emperor know! How could such a protégé in the Northern Continent not be known by Lord Bai, the prince and the emperor?"

The second young lord Bai now looked like a ripened tomato.

"You!" He screamed, charging towards XieRong, reaching for her neck.

XieRong had been waiting for him to do that.

The second prince always reached for her collar or neck when things didn’t go his way.

She stepped out of the way and stuck her foot out when the boy’s hand was a few inches away from her throat. He couldn’t control himself and fell flat on his face.

XieRong quickly sprinkled a mixture of Gua wood and Tanhuan berry powders on the boy from her ring as her sleeves hid her hand. The Gua wood would paralyse him while the Tanhuan berry

The air around XieRong dropped to freezing temperature as she whispered, "Know your place."