The Flower Among the Flames

Chapter 16

Moaning quietly, Li Long was carefully moved back onto his mat by Seulgi and Zhao Meng with Jiang Hua supervising. She was very cross with them and she let the two of them know it. Jiang Hua took Li Long's pulse to make sure he was stable, and when she was done, she stared accusingly at Seulgi. He shuffled uncomfortably in her gaze, his confidence from before now gone. Zhao Meng felt sorry for him...sort of.

"Why did you give him your freakin' soup?!" Jiang Hua hissed, her voice low as to not disturb the unconscious warrior. She walked out for just two minutes and when she came back, she finds the poor man with his face planted into the tabletop.

"Li Long asked for some," Zhao Meng chimed in, earning the cold death stare of her subordinate. "What? The poor man was hungry! What were we supposed to do? Let him sit there in front a pot of soup and tell him he can't eat?"

"No," Jiang Hua answered. "Feeding him is fine...but not with that soup!"

"Why is everyone hating on my soup?" Seulgi raised an eyebrow.

"That's not what I meant," Jiang Hua said quickly. "It's just that he is weakened, and I don't know if his wounds will negatively impact his digestion."

"He seemed perfectly fine," Zhao Meng grimaced. "That is...until he passed out."

"Yes," Jiang Hua grumbled. "And now he's back here...unconscious. If you'll excuse me, I have to check on his condition. We'll need some quiet and privacy. I can't focus on my craft with people hovering over me."

The two warriors nodded and quietly exited the room, sliding the door shut behind them. Zhao Meng gave an exasperated sigh and stretched her arms over her head. I'm bored. She thought. There's got to be something I can do. It was just him and her now. She had sent the Shaos to run some errands and paperwork after their meal, amid deaf protests. There was still a war going on after all. They couldn't slack off because of some mystical intervention. But then again, Zhao Meng didn't have the mind to push papers efficiently either because of it.

"You feel like going to the wall?" Zhao Meng asked the Man of Joseon, who turned his body towards her.

Seulgi crossed his arms over his chest with a puzzled expression. "Why do you ask?"

"I don't know," She shrugged. "There's nothing going on here and I'm full. Plus, there's a great view of the landscape from the ramparts. It'd be a sight for sore eyes considering what's been happening lately, don't you think?"

Seulgi grunted quietly. She was asking him to look out from the walls of the fortress that's keeping him captive. He didn't know whether to feel depressed or content. Even though his standing with her and Li Long was better now than his initial capture, he was still their prisoner. Going in broad daylight without some sort of security on him would cause her men to suspect something was up. He asked, "How do you intend to get me on the wall? I'm your prisoner, remember? We can't just go out standing the way we are."

"The way we are?" Now it was her turn to raise an eyebrow. She smirked, "Oh. So we're past the 'kill each other' milestone then, huh?"

Seulgi's face reddened. Stupid, stupid. He stammered, "Y-you know that's not what I mean."

"Do I?" Zhao Meng asked, feigning ignorance as she turned her torso side to side, her hands behind her back. He slapped his face and let out a low moan. There was no debating with her. Women, he shook his head. I just can't understand them.

"If you're worried about being seen in public with me, you don't have to come," She pouted, hands on her hips. Now she was feigning sadness in order to guilt trip him. Why was this so familiar? He thought. Too late. He was sucked into another vision.