Backlash Part 1

Chapter 48: Empathy

Lan Xichen felt disoriented. As his eyes focused he saw a group of people huddled together, all weeping. Lan Xichen didn't know where he was. Their air was cold and horribly dry, the sky a permanent haze of grey. The few buildings he could see seemed to barely be standing. Nothing in the place looked healthy.  Even the living plants looked frail and somewhat sickly. The group of equally frail looking villagers were dressed in rough clothing, most of which seemed to have been mended repeatedly.

"A-Yuan. You need to take good care of your Xian-gege." Lan Xichen recognized Wen Qing's voice and he finally spotted her in the centre of the crowd. She was dressed in the bold red's of the QishanWen sect, but she didn't look quite the same. The Wen Qing he was seeing seemed thinner.  Her frame looked weaker, frail like everything else in this place. Although she was smiling gently, Lan Xichen felt a deep soul crushing sorrow.  There was a deep exhaustion radiating from her eyes that felt it had little to do with sleep.  That exhaustion was so palpable that he could feel it.  It was like something inside had been depleted, and now everything about the world felt like it was too much.  At the same time a deep sadness was filling Lan Xichen's eyes with tears.

'That's right. I'm in empathy. This must be Wen-guniang's emotions then.' Lan Xichen thought to himself. He looked around at the group of people and realized Wen Qing was not the only one who seemed underweight. Among the group there was not a single person who looked like they were in good health. The small plots of land around him were clearly growing something, but none of the plants seemed to be particularly thriving. Now that Lan Xichen was paying attention he also felt something else mixed with the horrendous chill in the air.

'Resentment.' Lan Xichen thought to himself. The area was polluted with resentful energy that seemed to be coming from everywhere. Lan Xichen did not doubt that even the earth they were standing on was probably contaminated by it.  They were living in this place?  This was not a place people should live.  The resentful energy was so pervasive it was surely contaminating their food and water.  There was no way they were not contaminated with it themselves.  Their were even elderly people in the group.  How could the possibly maintain their health in such an environment.

"When will Xian-gege wake up? Is Xian-gege sick?" A small child's voice seemed to echo in the tiny decrepit village. There was a child living here.  This was not a healthy environment for a child to grow up in.  Lan Xichen felt a horrible sorrow consuming him. Wen Qing was clearly devastated, but somehow she wasn't crying. Wen Qing smiled sadly at the small child.

"Xian-gege is very sad right now. So he is going to sleep for a few days." Wen Qing's voice trembled very slightly.  Lan Xichen felt tears stinging his eyes.  He had not experienced such grief since losing his mother, and honestly Lan Xichen wasn't sure if that sorrow had been as raw and painful as this.

"Won't Qing-jiejie be back by then?" The heartbreak Lan Xichen felt when the child asked that question, told Lan Xichen that something was definitely wrong. Wen Qing did not expect to be coming back.

"Qing-jiejie has to go far away, and I don't know if I'll be able to come back." Wen Qing said, holding back her tears.

"Qing-jiejie has to come back. Xian-gege was sad his Shijie was far away. Qing-jiejie can't be far away too." The child whined earnestly.

'A-Yuan. This is the only way. If A-Ning and I don't leave they will kill A-Ying and everyone else. They gave the ultimatum, maybe this way they'll leave you alone for a bit longer.' Wen Qing's thoughts echoed in Lan Xichen's head.

"A-Yuan, it will be very important for you to take care of your Xian-gege. He'll be very sad, but I know you are very good at helping him smile." Wen Qing said with a smile even as her eyes began to get red. Wen Qing looked at the faces around her. Her aunts and uncles, all trying to hold back their tears. They understood. They had all understood the fate that probably awaited them.