Light and Shadow

27 - An Assassin

It was the next day and Xun Yu's words of advice still lingered in Yang Xiu's conscience. He grit his teeth out of sheer annoyance as he grappled with a dilemma in his mind. Should I tell him? He gave me advice that could save my life, so should I return the favor? It would only be this once, and it would be the civil thing to do. He angrily slammed his right hand on the table and frowned as he attempted to ignore the pain that coursed through his hand and up his arm. He was sitting behind the desk in his office with a fur blanket wrapped around him. He looked behind him, at the window, and saw that snow was falling. He sighed, his breath was like that of smoke in the cold winter air, and he nodded as he sighed and made his decision. I will tell him.

Yang Xiu stood up from behind the desk and let the fur blanket fall to the floor behind him. He smoothed out his teal paofu and decided that he would don his proper minister attire before going to meet with Xun Yu. Once he deemed himself ready, he left his office and walked in the direction of Xun Yu's.

"Yu, you can't seriously consider this as better, can you?!" Someone gushed loudly. "You just threw up all over me!"

Yang Xiu froze in place outside of the door. He stopped to listen to what was happening.

"Sima Yi, I am so sorry," Xun Yu said hoarsely. "Please, allow me to make it up to you."

"No, no, there is no need. Just let me help you make arrangements for our Lord's return, and I will consider that as payment. You need to rest." Sima Yi stated.

A silence filled the air, and the two no longer spoke. Yang Xiu heard the two begin moving towards the door and he panicked. He quickly acted like he was taking a casual stroll through the hallway. As the two exited the room, Yang Xiu could see that Sima Yi's torso was covered in vomit and Xun Yu appeared to be pale and highly embarrassed. The two froze when they saw Yang Xiu, and Yang Xiu watched as recognition and fear briefly flashed in Xun Yu's eyes as Sima Yi crossed his arms to cover up his vomit covered chest. So he is ill. The three bowed to each other, and Yang Xiu was the first one to speak.

"Greetings Minister Xun," Yang Xiu began with a fake polite smile.

"Greetings, Yang Xiu. It is nice to see you." Xun Yu replied. His voice quivered slightly.

Yang Xiu smiled politely at him.

"Minister, may I speak with you in private? There is, uh, an urgent matter that I need to discuss with you." Yang Xiu stated.

The two made eye contact, and Sima Yi turned to look at Xun Yu with a worried expression; however, Xun Yu ignored it and told Sima Yi to go home and change and that he would catch up with him shortly. Yang Xiu then motioned for Xun Yu to follow him as Sima Yi walked away. The two walked through the palace, until they made it to an inner garden. It was quite beautiful, with a small pond, a simple black bench, a peach blossom tree that was currently missing its petals, and a few lily pads sparsely decorated the top of the pond. Snowflakes delicately fell around them, coating the ground in a thin layer of snow. The two moved to stand near the pond, and they faced each other. Xun Yu felt as though he was freezing, but he did his best to resist shivering while Yang Xiu faced him with eyes full of indifference.

"Minister, thank you for the advice yesterday. I thought that it would only be proper if I helped you in some way as well," Yang Xiu began, watching as Xun Yu eyed him curiously.

"There is really no need to thank me. I am glad that my advice has helped you." Xun Yu replied.

Yang Xiu smiled slightly, but it quickly vanished and was replaced by a look of seriousness.

"About Yuan Shao's spies, there was more to the situation than I initially led you to believe. I was not the only one helping them; in fact, someone of immense power and callousness was the true mastermind behind it all." Yang Xiu stated, watching as Xun Yu gazed at him with an unreadable expression.