Jing Yuan was in his office, filling out some papers when he heard the door open. He glanced up to see who entered and saw Yanqing walking with Mimi. His head was hung low and he was leaning in the large lion who was walking slow, staying by the boy's side.
That made the general frown because it was like this all day. He noticed the behavior when they were training, and Yanqing seemed to tire quickly and said he couldn't breathe. Jing Yuan ended the training early, taking notice of his energy draining fast. His pet lion also sensed something wrong because he hasn't left Yanqing's side, letting the boy lean on him for support.
"General. I'm here to make up for the other half of the training that I promised to do" he greeted him, his voice hoarse as Mimi glanced up at him, growling in worry as he looked to his owner.
Jing Yuan looked at his lion with concern before looking at the boy who approached his side, leaning on the desk. "Yanqing. Are you feeling alright?" He asked him softly as the boy glanced at him. Mimi was on the other side of the desk. As Yanqing's vision got blurry, he mistook the general for the lion and moved over to hug his neck and shoulders. It surprised the general as his prodigy never acted like this before.
"Yes, general. I'm just a little drain. That's all" he assured him but Jing Yuan wasn't convinced. His skin was pale, and the light in his yellow eyes seemed very dim. Bringing his hand to feel Yanqing's forehead, Jing Yuan's eyes widen when it felt warm.
"You feel very warm. Did you go to Bailu?" He asked him but the only response was feeling the boy's arms slipping from him. "Yanqing?....Yanqing!"
It didn't take like for him to realize that the boy was falling and he quickly caught him before he hit the floor. Mimi whined in distress, rushing to them as his ears were down in worry, his blue eyes on the boy.
Jing Yuan brought his hand to Yanqing's cheek, finding it warm and he noticed the boy's breathing wasn't normal like he was struggling. "Yanqing! Yanqing! Yanqing, answer me!" He told him, concern rising as he picked up the boy in his arms. Knowing his student, he must've tried to hide his fever from his mentor.
"Mimi, come!" He commanded his lion, rushing the boy to his room so he can rest. He laid him gently on the bed as the lion gazed at him with worry. "Stay here, and watch out for Yanqing! I'm going to let Qingque know she can come watch over him while I go fetch Bailu" he instructed, leaving right away as the lion rested near the boy's side. On the way, he kept scolding himself in his head for not noticing sooner.
Few minutes later....
Yanqing started stirring awake, blinking a few times to adjust his vision. He noticed a towel resting on his forehead. And then, Mimi's face appeared, sniffing him. "Mimi?" He said confused. His response got the lion happy as it licked his face, glad to see him awake. "Mimi! Haha! Mimi! Stop!" Yanqing said laughing, trying to push him off.
"Ah! Looks who awake!"
In his vision came Bailu. The little vidyadhara looked at him with her big blue eyes. "Hello, Yanqing! Feeling better?" She asked, hopping off the bed to grab the bottle she carries. She summoned out the ice cold water, transferring it to the towel.
He sighed in relief, feeling the coolness reliving the heat on him. However, he spotted from the corner of his eye the general standing there with his arms crossed. His eyes were set on his pupil, narrowed at him which made the boy glanced away. He knew he was in for it.
"So, Bailu. Will Yanqing be alright?" He asked the healer, getting her attention. While he was mad at his prodigy for pushing himself like this, he still wanted to make sure he was alright.
"Yep! Yanqing's going to be ok. Just make sure he rest, eats soup and that's it. He should get better in no time. For his own good, I recommend to postpone training and any sort of cloud knight job for him" Bailu instructed to him firmly.
"I must thank you once again for coming after such short notice" he told her, bowing down with respect as she did the same and left. Once the healer was out and Mimi left to take a nap, the general turned to the boy, pulling a chair close to sit by his side.
Yanqing nervously glanced at his mentor who leaned on his hands with a disapproving glare at him. It was quiet in the room between them. Yanqing knew that he should've said he wasn't well sooner but he thought he could do it.
"Are you feeling alright?"
His eyes widen in surprise when his master didn't scold him but instead asked if he was ok. "Yes, general. I'm alright now" he responded, knowing now this is the part where he gets scolded.
But Jing Yuan just sighed, and his face softened at him. "I'm very dissapointed that you didn't say anything about your fever. A knight should never neglect their health. That just makes them a more easier opponent to take out in the field of battle" he calmly scolded him, making Yanqing glance away. He felt ashamed. He thought he could pull through with it.
"Don't think you're the only one at fault here"
He heard his voice only this time the tone was different. Glancing his eyes at him, Yanqing saw how the general had a look of guilt on his face. "I knew something was off with your current health. But I didn't think to send you to a doctor sooner" he explained, feeling a tang of regret in his heart. To him, Yanqing was his responsibility so for his health to start failing it would be because the general was careless and didn't notice sooner.
Yanqing sat up, staring at his mentor. "It wasn't your fault, Jing Yuan. I should've said something. I just thought I could do it" he reasoned with him. To the boy, it really wasn't the general's fault that he didn't notice his fever.
Jing Yuan glanced up at him, and ran a hand across his soft brownish blonde hair. "I'm just glad you're alright. But please, don't push yourself like. Please. For my sake" he insisted to him, letting his hand cup the boy's cheek which felt warm.
Yanqing blushed surprised, feeling like a child being cared by a parent. He wouldn't say it out loud but he did see Jing Yuan like a father sometimes. "Ok. I won't do something stupid like that again. I promise" he assured, looking at him directly and offering a small smile.
Jing Yuan smiled in relief, glad to hear that. Hopefully, this would be the last time his student would ignore his own health. "Good. Do you need anything from me?" He asked him, wanting to see if he could the boy in anyway. "Well, can you make me something warm? Maybe green tea?" Yanqing asked him shyly, hoping he wasn't being needy right now.
The general just smiled at him, ruffling his hair as he sat up. "Sure" he said, turning around to go prepare tea. But then he stopped walking, and turned his head to him. Yanqing wondered what else the general had to say. "Yanqing. Don't hesitate to ask me for help. Please" he requested to him. While the general thought it was his fault for not noticing sooner, his student should've said something.
Yanqing nodded as way to say yes, allowing the general to breathe easy in relief before he walked off to make tea.
