Till the End
Chapter 3, Part I
"Father! Father!" Yi Ru yelled out as she ran into Yue Ru's room where she found Xiao Yao next to the sleeping woman. She ran up to him and collapsed a little, tired from running, so her father caught her and held her. "Father..." she paused to catch her breath and Xiao Yao patted her back to help her. "Father... I saw her, I saw her!""Who?" He was half-listening to her because he was thinking of Yue Ru's condition before Yi Ru came in. He was getting worried that the 9th essence would not show up and Yu Ru will dissolved into thin air.
"Moth... the lady that gave me the candy, the one you've been looking for!" Xiao Yao stood up, snapping out of his own thoughts.
"Where? Where is she now?"
"I don't know.... I met her down at the bay where I was praying..." Xiao Yao started out the door.
"Ling'er..." he whispered, but Yi Ru tugged at his arm to stop him.
"She's not there anymore. I had asked her to come, really I did! But she wouldn't, she said she had to leave..."
"Did... did she say where she lives?"
"No..." Xiao Yao sat back down on the bench. "But... she said you must've mistaken her as mother..." Xiao Yao looked at little Yi Ru. "She said she's Xuan Ling, and that she had never been married..."
"Really?..." Xiao Yao whispered, but more to himself than to his daughter. Yi Ru nodded, and then pulled out her little stone. She held the stone right in front of Xiao Yao.
"Look father... Xuan Ling jie jie gave me this." Xiao Yao eyed the stone and his eyes lit up, recognizing the symbol of the stone. "She said that if I wished really hard on this seed, then when it sprouts my wish would come true." She turned to him smiling. "Do you think it will sprout?" Xiao Yao, with shaken hand, took the little stone and looked at it. His eyes started to water as Yi Ru looked at him confused. She looked back at the stone then back to her father wondering what was going on.
"Father?..." She stugged his sleeve. Xiao Yao snapped out of his trance and looked at her.
"Yes?"
"Do you think it will sprout?" Xiao Yao looked back at the stone, turning it around in his fingers.
"Yes it will..." He said to her then went back to his trance-like look, and whispered to himself. "It will sprout... Xiao Yao ge ge will never lie to you..."
Chapter 3, Part II
It was near the end of the year and everyone was busy with decorations and buying goods for the holiday. Yi Ru's great-auntie had bought many things and decorated the inn. Xiao Yao would help here and there with the heavy things but he mainly had to take care of Yue Ru. These days, she has been looking paler and paler, which made Xiao Yao very worried. He has been waiting on news of the 9th essence from his friends who were getting a lead to where it might be.
On the night of New Year's Eve Xiao Yao took Yi Ru out to see the festivities. While eating at a crowded restaurant, they saw many people going toward the town center. Yi Ru wanted to see what the excitement was about so they quickly paid for their food and followed the crowd. They heard from others that this groups of girls called "Pearls" are putting up a free show for tonight only. Xiao Yao and Yi Ru quickly found seats then leaving Yi Ru there, Xiao Yao went to buy some candy for them both. As he paid the candy-man Xuan Ling walked pass him, frantically calling to her maid.
"Yu Yan, have you seen my instrument?" Xuan Ling asked, as they both disappeared in the crowd. Xiao Yao stopped in his track as he heard her voice. The candy dropped from his hand has he ran around trying to find her. He kept calling out 'Ling'er' but he could not find her anywhere.
"Xuan Ling! Hurry up child, you're up next!" Mama called out to her as Yu Yan put the last touch up on Xuan Ling's costume. Xuan Ling took a deep breath and went on stage to perform.
Yi Ru gasped when she saw Xuan Ling, then clapped loudly along with others around her as Xuan Ling begun to sing.
Xiao Yao was still trying to find Ling'er but the crowd was thinning out because everyone wanted to see the show now. Xuan Ling had made quite a name for herself, but she would only perform on holidays or special occasions. So many were curious to see this beauty perform on such a rare opportunity. Xiao Yao gave up after a while and went back to Yi Ru. Yi Ru tugged at his sleeve as he sat down and pointed at Xuan Ling on the stage.
"Father! Father! That's her! That's Xuan Ling jie jie!" Xiao Yao's eyes quickly averted to the stage and onto the beautiful face of Xuan Ling. His lips were partially parted from being stunned at the site of his wife. Time seemed to slow down as he stood up gazing up at Xuan Ling. He couldn't see nor hear anything beside her and her singing. Many people in the back of him were yelling for him to sit down, but he was deaf to all but her. He grabbed Yi Ru's hand and pulled her along as he started for the stage. He was stopped by the guards when he tried to go straight up on stage. He couldn't understand why these people were keeping him from seeing his wife. He needed to see her, talk to her, touch her....
"What do you think you're doing?" One of the guards asked him as he pushed Xiao Yao away.
"I need to see Ling'er... I NEED to see my wife!!!" Xiao Yao tried again to get past them, but more guards came to stop him.
"Go home you crazy lunatic! There's no Ling'er here for you to find." Another guard said.
"She's my wife!!! Let me see her!" The guards and the people who were near, over hearing the situation, laughed at this.
"You're really are crazy!" One guard said, laughing in Xiao Yao's face.
"If she's your wife, then I'm... I'll marry a man!" Another guard said as others roared into more laughter. Xiao Yao was trying his hardest to control his temper but he just wanted to punch these guards in the face. He clenched his hands tightly as he held it all in. Yi Ru looked sadly at her father... she didn't understand why these people were so cruel to him. Xiao Yao tried again to get pass them but this time some guards picked him up and threw him far away.
"Father!!!" Yi Ru cried out as she ran over to him. Xiao Yao scrambled to his feet but his side hurt too much so he ended up crawling on the ground. Yi Ru tried to stop him but he kept on crawling.
"Ling'er... need to see... her...." His coughing started up again, which made Yi Ru more worried. An old man approached them and helped Yi Ru pulled Xiao Yao up onto his feet.
"Young Xia, don't try again. You are too weak to fight these brutes. Listen to this old man... you can try to find that person later at the Ying House. These girls are staying there for the time being." Xiao Yao coughed on and on but he had heard the man. He decided to go find later, and would go home now so Yi Ru wouldn't be more scared for him.
"Xie xie." Xiao Yao said to the man when he could stop coughing for a second then Yi Ru half-carried her father on their way home. They had to stop many time as Xiao Yao's coughing got worse and worse. At one point Xiao Yao fell on his knees, putting a hand over his mouth as he coughed up blood. Yi Ru kept calling out to him and asking if he was ok, but she began to cry when she saw the blood dripped from his hand to the ground. She wrapped her arms around him tightly begging him not to die and leave her. Xiao Yao wanted to reassured her that he wouldn't die... COULDN'T die and leave her but he began to cough harder. His eyes were blurring now because of the tears created from his coughing. He tried his hardest to not blur out his vision of Yi Ru. But as he tried harder to see her, vision got darker and darker, then suddenly he was out. Yi Ru tried to hold onto him as his body fell limply to the ground...
Chapter 3, Part III
It was a bright morning when Xiao Yao woke up and found himself in his room. He looked around wondering how he ended up there when he saw Yi Ru. She was asleep beside his bed. He picked up the little girl and put her into bed. He went out to the inn and found his aunt sitting at a table; deep in thought. As he sat down across from her, she snapped out of her thoughts and turned to look at him.
"How did I get back here?" Xiao Yao asked.
"Yi Ru ran home and told me. I came as quickly as I could..." She paused and looked out the door. "You coughed up so much blood... the doctor..."
"A doctor looked at me?" She nodded then continued.
"He said... there's no reason for you to be sick. He felt nothing wrong from your pulse... so he does not understand why you're so sick and coughing up blood..." Xiao Yao was silent. He didn't know why either about his illness. He did fight many people while he travelled to find Yue Ru's essences, but he never had more than bruises and small scratches. Nothing that would bring upon this sudden illness.
"We need to find you a better doctor," his aunt said, her voice full of concern, but Xiao Yao shook his head.
"There's no need. If this doctor said there's nothing wrong then I should be fine. Don't worry..." He patted her hand, and cut her off when she wanted to say something. "I'll be off again tomorrow. There has been news of the 9th essence." He stood up. "I will come back soon this time, and I know you'll take great care for Yi Ru..." His aunt nodded sadly as he walked into Yue Ru's room. He sat beside her sleeping body and told her that he would be leaving again but will be back soon with the essence. Then he talked to her about the past days, especially what had happened yesterday... that he had found Ling'er...
The next day he went to the Ying House to find Ling'er before he had to go off again. The Ying House was full of people, mainly men, enjoying the food, wine, and the girls. Xiao Yao looked around for her, and girls came up to him asking him to drink with them or come and talk to them.
"Have you seen Ling'er?" He asked each time a girl came up to him, but they shook their head and tried to flirt with him. Xiao Yao just ignored them and kept on finding Ling'er. Mama started to notice that a man was wandering around and not enjoying himself so she came up to him.
"Young sir, shouldn't you sit down and enjoy some expensive wine. I will call the prettiest girls over and service you. Now, now sit here..." Mama pulled Xiao Yao to a table while waving at some girls to come over.
"Yes! That's Ling'er! I need to talk to her!" Mama sneered at him. By now she disliked him more and more and was looking at him up and down.
"You...? Wanna see Xuan Ling?" She started to laugh which made the other girls giggled along. "I'm sorry but she doesn't serve low-class men like you. Go now... unless these girls can assist you, otherwise there's no Ling'er nor Xuan Ling for you to find." Mama turned to leave and the girls glanced and pointed at him as they, too, left. Xiao Yao walked slowly out of the Ying House with head down in disappointment.
In the upper level of the Ying House, through a window Xuan Ling had witnessed the whole scene. She was curious why this man was trying to look for her... or wait... was he looking for her or this Ling'er? She remembered that Ling'er was Yi Ru's mother's name and figured out that this must be the little girl's father. Xuan Ling looked at his retreating back and wondered if she really was like the woman he was trying to find.
Xuan Ling was always in her room for most of her life. Mama always treated as the treasure; in a way the title 'Pearls' only referred to her among the other girls, because she was the most precious of them all. But Xuan Ling, being naive and innocent never understood that idea and thought of herself as any normal girl. She was very simple-minded and did things that Mama told her too and usually without questions. Mama never let her served men, though they had requested her presence all the time. Xuan Ling was only allowed to perform once in a while, usually on holidays or rare occasions. She was not allowed out to the outer rooms of the Ying House, where the customers came and went, and she was especially not allowed out of the Ying House at all. The 'Pearls' girls travelled around with Mama a lot, to different towns and cities to perform for many people. Xuan Ling was usually stuck in the carriage or at their present home at the time. She never really got to see the outside world nor interacted with different people, especially men. But she had a childish and playful behaviours, so she often snuck outside with her maid, but only to see what it was like outside and enjoy the different surroundings. Her maid never really let her talk to others.
Xuan Ling never had to worry about anything. She had the best food presented to her, her clothes always cleaned and ready at anytime she wanted to where them. All her luxury made her simple-minded because she never had to think about those things that are necessity of life... they just all come too easily. It was her maid that did everything for her and took good care of her, and looked out for her.
Chapter 4, Part I "Yi Ru!" Her great-auntie yelled out as she went upstairs to find the little girl. She knew where to find her, so walked straight into the little girl's room and found her at that exact spot, next to the window. "Aiya, silly girl! Get away from that window, it's pouring outside," she went over to her when the little girl didn't budge. "Have you been sitting here all day again?" She touched Yi Ru but the girl still didn't move. She turned her around and found her stiff cold. Yi Ru's body was shaken from the cold and all she could do was hugged herself; she could barely open her eyes to look up at her great-auntie.
"Oh Heavens! You're so cold!" She picked up Yi Ru and placed her into bed and wrapped her up with the thick blankets. She went over to close the window then went downstairs to make some soup for Yi Ru. After the little girl finished what she could of the food her great-auntie had brought up, she fell asleep instantly. Her great-auntie left to go do some errands then, now that Yi Ru was fine and resting.
It was a couple of hours later that Yi Ru woke up to an empty and quiet inn. She got up and looked around but had to stop because her head started to pound if she moved too quickly. Slowly she got out of bed and walked downstairs. She just wanted to get some water but her body was too weak and kept her from going faster. In the middle of the stairs she felt dizzy and had to sit down right there for a while until her head stopped spinning. Using the wall to support herself, she got up and went downstairs. Beads of sweat were dripping from her face when she reached the table. She collapsed onto the chair and used her strengths to pour herself a cup of tea, but there was none left in the pot. Grown so tired and dehydrated she fell unconscious right on the table.
Outside the rain had ceased and Xuan Ling thought it was the perfect opportunity to sneak out, otherwise when it starts to pour again, it would be a long time till she can go outside again. It had taken her some hours to convince her maid to let her out, so when outside she ran around sniffing the fresh air and spread her arms out wide to take in the sun that have been hidden for many days by the dark clouds. Yu Yan had to run to be able to catch up with her lady as Xuan Ling ran around to look at things. She moved from shop to shop and a fast pace and kept yelling out to Yu Yan to hurry and catch up. Xuan Ling stopped when she saw Yi Ru's inn. She had remembered its name when the little girl had told her. Her smile grew bigger as she decided to pay a visit to her little friend.
"Yu Yan, I'm going to visit a friend. I'll meet you back at the Ying House!" She ran off to the inn while her maid looked at her a bit confused. 'Friend..?' Yu Yan thought as she turned around to walk back to the Ying House. 'I didn't know Lady had any friends...'
To be continued...
Note from Chibi Jennifer: The version you've read here has been edited by me, i.e I've corrected some spelling errors and typos. The fanfiction is however updated more regulary elsewhere, and so if you're keen on what happens next, feel free to visit this link where the author veevee has posted her story. This is incase some of you can't wait for me to post up the next chapters ^_^ Happy reading!
The Full Updated Story