The Phoenix Reborn Book II
Chapter 137 The Circle of Fire Towards Wu
*Some days ago*
In the darkness of the night, the group of Liang and Huang family warriors camped in the middle of the forest. With makeshift equipment and supplies, they rested their bodies after a long journey.
“There is still half way back,” said Liang Shupeng—sang Prime Minister Liang—with a worried face. The light emanating from the campfire helped him clearly see the map image in his hand. “We still need about four more days.”
Huang Qinghao who sat across from Liang Shupeng replied with a gloomy face, “Still for so long?” He began to worry about the circumstances in Zhongcheng, especially with the heightened tension between Wang Chengliu and Huang Miaoling.
Hearing Huang Qinghao's words, Liang Fenghong who was sitting leaning against a large tree trunk had a serious expression. ‘Fears Father-in-Law make sense,’ thought. His mind was spinning and he was reminded of one figure, ‘However, he also helped devise a plan, so everything would be fine.’
Suddenly, the crisp sound of stepped leaves made everyone alert. Each hand reaches for the nearest weapon and each eye is directed to the source of the sound.
Liang Fenghong gave an omen for everyone to fall silent, his eyes quickly sweeping towards the father who was turning off the bonfire swiftly. The man then signaled for a number of soldiers to form a formation, becoming the troupe's first defense just in case their visitors were enemies.
The footsteps on the leaves scattered on the forest floor grew closer and closer, and it made everyone's heart pound. Strange, but those footsteps obviously only came from one person, while their troops were thousands of people, why did they feel so depressed?
“There!” hiss was one of the soldiers who saw a black shadow cast out from behind the darkness of the night. “Who's ka—!"
“Liang Fenghong.”
Hearing the voice of a woman calling out the name of the Liang family's son, everyone was immediately shocked. Their eyes were directed towards the figure of Liang Fenghong who was also frowning in confusion.
The next instant, everyone was wide-eyed when a flame appeared in the middle of the darkness. The radiance from the flame tongue illuminated the face of the figure that had just arrived.
Recognizing his uninvited guest, Liang Fenghong immediately called, “Lan’er?” He sighed harshly with a relieved smile on his face, “I just thought of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao arrived [1].”
Lan’er smiled forcefully, making her pale lips even more attention-grabbing. “Don't equate me with Cao Cao.” The girl's gaze turned to the people behind Liang Fenghong who were looking at her in confusion and astonishment.
“Return the fire,” Liang Fenghong said. “He is not an enemy,” he explained. The man approached Lan’er, then reached out to help the girl step up.
Lan’er glanced at the hand extended by Liang Fenghong, then she placed her hand there. The tongue of fire in her left hand disappeared, and the girl stepped carefully towards the center of the entourage.
Huang Qinghao and Liang Shupeng frowned, very curious about the identity of the mysterious young girl, especially the way Liang Fenghong treated her. They glanced towards their son, expecting the young man to explain. However, the man was too busy thinking about anything else.
Liang Fenghong frowned, surprised by how cold Lan’er's hand was. Taking the chance he was holding the girl's hand, he tried to check her pulse.
Liang Fenghong's eyes grew bigger, and he turned to Lan’er who was walking by his side. “Lan’er, kau—”
“I know,” replied Lan’er while pulling back his hand, not wanting Liang Fenghong to chatter further about the situation. The girl's gaze shot up to Liang Shupeng and Huang Qinghao who looked at her questioningly. “Greetings to Premier Liang and General Besar Huang. Sorry I had to come uninvited.”
Liang Shupeng and Huang Qinghao replied to Lan’er's greeting with a nod of the head, then they looked at Liang Fenghong. “Fenghong, did you not introduce this lady to us?” liang Shupeng asked carefully, feeling that Lan’er was not just anyone. There was something from the attitude of the girl that made her increase her alertness.
“Introduction is not a necessary thing,” said Lan’er, surprising everyone who was in that place. No one would have thought that anyone would dare to speak like that with the prime minister. “I'm here to help you guys arrive in Wu faster.”
Hearing this, Liang Fenghong's expression looked deteriorated. “You can't do that,” he said.
Lan’er glanced at Liang Fenghong and said, “Can or not be my business, your current task is to arrive at Wu.” The girl wasn't kidding. “Time is no longer on our side, Liang Fenghong.”
“That's the reason I have to do this,” reply Lan’er with a bitter expression. The girl raised her head, then looked at Liang Shupeng and Huang Qinghao. Then, his gaze landed on Liang Fenghong. “If you do not immediately settle the affairs in Wu, then the people in Shi will be the victims.”
“How is it possible?” liang Fenghong asked with a frown. “Our plan is almost perfect.”
Lan’er looked towards Liang Fenghong with his right eyebrow raised, his expression showing as if he was laughing at the man. “You should be the one who understands best that not everything goes according to plan, right?” reply the girl. Then, he explained, “Lu Si decided to support Wang Chengliu.”
“What?!” Liang Fenghong's expression turned very bad. “Why?!”
“Stupidity,” reply Lan’er briefly, do not want to explain further.
Lan’er then floated his hands in one direction, and sparks were seen in the middle of the camp. Everyone had still not recovered from their shock before, but the girl again made everyone's eyes grow bigger with a large circle of fire that was slowly forming. Like a door, the circle of fire stood upright.
The breath of amazement at the miracle she created could Lan’er hear from her surroundings, but the girl had no time to respond to it. “Go past this circle of fire .. and you will arrive at the residence of Princess Rongya,” he explained making everyone look at him in astonishment. “After you have regained control of Wu, this circle of fire will reappear in the same place. When you pass through it, you will arrive at the gate of Jingcheng.”
Liang Fenghong was speechless, again Lan’er took unilateral action regardless of his own condition. Merely, when he saw the blood flowing down from the side of the girl's ear, Liang Fenghong exclaimed as he propped up Lan’er's body which began to waver, “Lan’er!”
Lan’er's breath was a little breathless, but she still continued saying, “Don't mind me and quickly go.” The girl removed Liang Fenghong's hand from his arm, then added, “There is still a wife waiting for your return home,”
A bitter smile was painted on Liang Fenghong's face, disbelieving the girl before him was still able to joke around with such a body. Although there are some of her who believe that Lan’er is a goddess, but the body of the girl still works like a human. Moreover, based on Liang Fenghong's examination earlier, he was quite certain that ... in a matter of days, Lan’er's body would stop working.
Yeah, that girl's gonna be dead soon.
Able to read Liang Fenghong's mind, Lan’er said, “You yourself said, I am not a human, but a god.” A grin painted on Lan’er's face, “God won't die that easily, Man.” Then, he added, “Only, do not waste my time ... and go immediately.”
Liang Fenghong gritted his teeth and clenched his hands. He was the Physician of Jianghu, but he had to face the fact that there were a number of people he could not save.
And, Lan’er is one of them.
Without delaying any longer, Liang Fenghong immediately asked his two fathers to order the troops to pass through the ring of fire. As he became the last person to pass through the circle of fire, he glanced at Lan’er who was standing lonely in the middle of the darkness.
“Lan’er ...,” Liang Fenghong looked sadly at the girl, “I really owe you.”
Lan’er looked at Liang Fenghong for a while, then said with a gentle smile, “Make sure you and Huang Miaoling end up happy, that's enough.”
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[1] “Only talked about Cao Cao, and Cao Cao arrived”: a traditional proverb meaning “Speak of the Devil” or referring to someone who appeared right after he was talked about. If anyone has read Romance of the Three Kingdom, yes, Cao Cao in this proverb is taken from Cao Cao ROTTK.
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A/N: Honestly, really feel if the flow of the groove is messy. This part should appear far behind, but the author forgot. Want to be tucked away, but it feels even less. Yes, gaskeun ae, right?
For sure, the second book will be revised if this story is over and author has time. For now, enjoy aje what there yak wkwk
