Kunlun Mountain Part 4 - The Return

Chapter 55 - Mistakes

Zhe Yan knew Mo Yuan was angry that he had made the decision to allow them to stay on and learn from them, and he was positive Mo Yuan knew why.  They were after all brothers and knew each other very well, and Mo Yuan would have known that Zhe Yan did not make calls like that without a good reason.

Honghui also knew Zhe Yan well enough to know that he was walking into a trap, but after seeing the full extent of what Bai Qian went through under his roof, and then to turn up at her own home begging for her help, Zhe Yan was feeling neither kind nor compassionate.

Leading him quietly towards the West end of the Mountain where Cheng Bao and Gouzhi had already prepared the land for him, Zhe Yan waved his hand over the ground at his feet where several different herb seedlings appeared for planting.

Then giving him a shovel, he told him to begin digging, while he stood by and watched.  Honghui had never felt so low as he did then, but he did it, because contrary to what Zhe Yan thought, he had come to them as a last resort knowing how difficult they would make it for him.  But with only his people in mind, he dug out small holes for the seedlings to be placed.

"Herb gardens are wonderful things." Zhe Yan said smiling at him.  "Not just for the health benefits, but the planting can be just as pleasurable especially when we can watch a mere seedling grow strong and vibrant, filled with nutritional  value for the body and the mind." He said softly as he watched him.  

Saying nothing, Honghui knew there was more to come when Zhe Yan spoke like that, so he braced himself.

"Did you know.  If you plant marjoram, it will assist any other plant regardless of what it is to grow.  It is a companion plant." he said as he handed it to him to place in the ground.

"I didn't know that." he said having planted it himself in many of his gardens, and thinking back, he realized there could actually be some truth in it.  Every garden he had grown with marjoram, had flourished.  Then moving into the center of the patch, he placed the plant in the ground before gently patting the dirt in around it.

"Companion plants are what keeps the garden healthy, strong and lively, they also improve the taste while ensuring the rest of the garden remains tightly bound together" he said before bending down to pick up a spring onion plant.    "Whereas most onion types  are not a companion plant for any herb garden.  In fact it is a weed.  A pest if you like." he said as he watched the man plant some of the other herbs around the centred marjoram while waving a hand over the onions where they vanished into thin air.

Stopping, Honghui took a deep breath.  It was obvious now where this was going, and he realized he had been a fool to come.  Placing the shovel on the ground, he stood tall and faced him.

"Zhe Yan.  I came in good faith.  I am on my knees a broken man, what more do you want?" he asked sadly looking at the man who he still loved.

Zhe Yan looked back at him intensely.  Like the rest of his brothers, begging was never an option, they were far too proud to beg for anything, so to have him arrive doing just that, did not soften his heart at all, if anything it made him angry.

Smiling at him, there was no malice in it but nor was it friendly.  "Honghui.  I understand that things have not been easy for you, and I also understand the part you played in this destruction was not entirely your fault, but everyone is doing what they can to get through it.  Even those without the means to rebuild their lands are making a life for themselves.  It may not be what they once knew, but they are managing and doing well without the assistance of others.  You are a High God and Lord of the Demon Realms. Act like it!" he said pointedly before moving on to the real reason why he invited him in.