Late Bloomer Brings The Light

Chapter 17

Only when they can no longer hear any other footsteps do they look at each other again and speak. "What does the old man mean I'm not missing? In case people aren't aware, I'm still in Qishan!" Jiang Ying babbles. He is freaking out a bit, but in his opinion, he has every right to. "I hope this doesn't mean you take back what you said about believing me regarding who I am, because I swear on my life that I really am Jiang Ying."

Xie Yun throws his head back and starts laughing. "I guess someone is crazy enough to pretend to be you. They must be out of their freaking minds!"

Jiang Ying grabs the other's sleeve and shakes it. "This is serious, Xie Yun! Just who could pretend to be me well enough that people would actually believe it? Surely, my mother won't let anyone take my place. She is, you know, fiercely protective of me." He pauses, his expression troubled.

"Then someone close to you has chosen to play a game with Wen Ruohan and Madame Yu, knowing it would be a risk to let your disappearance be known. At least that one has some brains. I thought everyone close to you was like you." Xie Yun smiles, his eyes darkening with amusement.

A glare is directed at Xie Yun before Jiang Ying grabs his sleeve again and starts walking, pulling him along. "Initially, I thought I only had to confront Wen Ruohan upon my return, but now it seems I also have to strangle that dear one for not letting my mother know about my disappearance and for extending my suffering. This is freaking fantastic!"

"Or you can shoot them with your bow and arrow... Oh wait, you can't hit anything!" Xie Yun starts cackling as if Jiang Ying's life is the punchline of an amazing joke.

Jiang Ying growls, slips the bow off from around his torso, and grabs an arrow from the quiver. Sliding the arrow into the correct place, he pulls the string back with his right hand, eyes squinting as he tries to aim for a tree trunk on the far side of the clearing. The arrow releases, and the string vibrates with the loss of tension.

He closes his eyes as he hears the thud of the arrow hitting something. Slowly, he opens his eyes and sees the arrow he had loosed proudly sticking out of a tree trunk, just not the one he was originally aiming for. Oh well, he will manage. "See that, Xie Yun? I can hit something."

Xie Yun folds his arms across his chest. "You weren't even aiming for that one."

Jiang Ying's mouth drops open before turning into a pout. "How did you know that?"

"I did my fair share of archery, so I can tell by the way you tense up that you weren't aiming for that tree," Xie Yun explains as he takes a few steps toward Jiang Ying. Before Jiang Ying can defend himself, Xie Yun positions himself behind him, pressing his chest against Jiang Ying's back.

He guides Jiang Ying's right hand up on the bow. "This hand needs to come up a bit." His foot lightly taps against one of Jiang Ying's while his mouth rests near Jiang Ying's ear. "Spread your legs further apart." Smirking at the shuddering against him, he grabs one of the arrows from Jiang Ying's quiver and hands it to him. "Now pull back and aim."

Jiang Ying pulls the bow back, his hands shaking slightly. He can feel Xie Yun's warmth on his back and his breath near his ear, causing his heart to race. The wild beating in his chest gives him a slight headache. It worsens when Xie Yun places one hand on his waist and the other over his own, helping to steady the bow. "Stop shaking! How are you going to aim like this?"

Jiang Ying swallows hard and takes aim at the trunk that had been his original target earlier. Letting out a deep breath to relax himself, he releases the arrow and watches it fly across the clearing. The sound it makes as it hits its intended target echoes like victory in his ears. "I did it, Xie Yun!" he yells in triumph as he steps away from the other to look at him.