Still Secretly In Love With My Enemy Today - Chapter 34

Chapter 34: ivine pedestal carved in gold and inlaid with colors, crimson curtains billowing on both sides, and a sea of people beneath.

 

I squeezed through the crowd, stopping three feet from the edge of the platform. Silver-armored guards held their halberds outward. Two rows of Great Phoenix Drums lined the stage, and in the center stood the statue of the God of the West Wing, its silhouette hazy behind a moon-shadow veil.

 

—The kind of arrangement seen only when the High Priest himself makes an appearance.

 

Looking up past the crowd through layers of silk screens and curtains, Xie Huaishuang was surely close by.

 

To me, this scene was all too familiar. It looked like every other time before, yet it felt entirely different.

 

In the past, I would be tense, standing beneath the thirty-foot platform with nervous anticipation, holding my breath for my most formidable enemy to appear. I would observe and deduce his every move without a moment’s relaxation, starting with a lightning-fast confrontation and ending with the sound of clashing metal and tearing silk.

 

This time, there would be no crossing of blades. It was the end of spring, at its most vibrant. Flowers bloomed among the trees, and the sun sparkled on the water’s edge. I was here to take my beloved away.

 

The string music had begun, and the noisy waves of the crowd ebbed and flowed in my ears, sometimes distant, sometimes near.

 

I kept my eyes fixed on the stage. I only had to wait for the third movement of the music, and the person I loved most in the world would step out from beneath those layers of crimson curtains.

 

With hundreds of people crowded below, only I knew what kind of deep green, spring-water eyes lay behind those circles of pearl veils.

 

Eyes that would gaze at me for a long time and smile—eyes that rippled under the sunlight.

 

They are the most beautiful, brightest eyes. I thought that even with so many people below, Xie Huaishuang would be able to find me with a single glance.

 

I never told Xie Huaishuang, nor anyone else, that every time I stood below the stage with that calm, detached expression, it was an act. Inside, I was frantically guessing where that damnable High Priest was, how far he was from me, whether he was smoothing his sleeves or polishing his sword.

 

Ten years without progress; here I was again. I was guessing where Xie Huaishuang was, what he was doing, and if he was thinking of me as much as I was thinking of him.

 

—I was afraid he’d think of me and get distracted, yet I was also afraid he wouldn’t think of me at all.

 

I am truly a baffling person right now.

 

The music reached the end of the second movement. I pushed all these chaotic thoughts down and focused my mind on the stage.

 

The surrounding noise gradually quieted. Everyone looked up, staring intently at the platform.

 

Even if their prestige had taken a hit, word that this ceremony wouldn’t be presided over by an ordinary official, but by the High Priest himself, had brought many to Star-Gazing City overnight just for a glimpse of the legendary, celestial figure.

 

Standing among hundreds of devout believers, I suddenly remembered Xie Huaishuang whispering to me at midnight yesterday, hidden behind layers of bed curtains. He told me to wait for him to be “kidnapped,” his voice and gaze soft in the dim lamplight as he looked at me from the pillow with those pool-like eyes.

 

At a gap in the billowing curtains, a flash of deep green hem suddenly appeared. Cheers exploded from all directions, and my fingertips dug sharply into my palms.

 

The voices and the wind seemed to be swept back by the sunlight. In the overwhelming, noisy colors of spring, I could only see Xie Huaishuang.

 

I hadn’t seen him like this in a long time. His layered deep green sleeves were fully embroidered with strange patterns. The intricate phoenix crown dropped circles of pearl veils, completely obscuring his face. At his waist hung a long sword with a snow-white scabbard and hilt.

 

—Only the cyan sword tassel was missing. Xie Huaishuang had tucked it into my care.

 

On the thirty-foot high stage, across the layers of people, his gaze traveled from afar and lingered imperceptibly on me.

 

He really did find me with a single glance.

 

Every movement was identical to my memory. He bowed to the statue of the God of the West Wing, rose, lifted his hem, and as the drums on both sides thundered, he raised his long sleeves. He leaped into the air with a toe-tap—a grand, sweeping motion that remained as light and swaying as the shadow of a lush green tree on the water.

 

Every step he took on stage was a position we had calculated together to ensure none of the traps would harm him, and so I could take the shortest, fastest route past the guards to reach his side.

 

Half a minute left.

 

Zhou Xun was hidden at a high point to the east; he would trigger the mechanisms and retreat immediately. By then, the Temple’s focus should be entirely on me, because…

 

Xie Huaishuang definitely just looked at me again.

 

Ten breaths left.

 

The God-Pleasing Dance was ending. With a final beat of the strings and drums, Xie Huaishuang raised his sleeves as he had at the start and froze his movement.

 

Now!

 

The sound of tearing silk erupted as the heavy curtains fell. Following the route I had calculated hundreds of times, I released ten sleeve-arrows to clear the way, tapped my toes against the guards’ shields and spears, and flipped onto the stage.

 

The crimson curtains fell like fire. Xie Huaishuang stood in the center of the red shadows, and with a sharp zheng, his long sword left its scabbard.

 

As we agreed, he struck out to destroy three relatively minor mechanisms to make the scene look convincing.

 

Aside from that, this was the most restrained and performative fight I had ever had with him. It looked intense, but every strike avoided vital points, exposing nothing but openings to each other.

 

Through the pearl veils, I couldn’t see his eyes clearly, but I could see that his hand holding the sword wasn’t using any real force. The tip of his blade brushed against the edge of my Zhan Yun blade like his fingertips usually brushed the back of my hand; with a flick, I pushed it away effortlessly.

 

Actually, there was no need to be so careful. He couldn’t kill me even when he fought me with his full strength; at most, he’d give me a minor injury.

 

A moment before the platform collapsed, I turned my blade. Xie Huaishuang took the hint, completely loosened his grip, and pretended to fail to dodge. I took the opportunity to close in, scooping him up and restraining him.

 

I had originally wanted to carry him bridal-style so he’d be less uncomfortable. Xie Huaishuang had rejected the idea, saying it would look like I was treating him too well.

 

So what then? I simply couldn’t bring myself to do anything “bad” to him.

 

After much planning, we compromised on this. Xie Huaishuang was slung over my shoulder; he looked for all the world like a mountain bandit stealing a bride.

 

There seemed to be ten, maybe twenty guards and officials trying to stop me. Unfortunately, the only person in the entire Temple capable of stopping me was currently playing his part obediently on my shoulder.

 

The moment my iron claw hooked the eaves, I heard the divine pedestal collapse behind me with a roar.

 

“Hold on tight.”

 

Xie Huaishuang gave an affirmative hum and continued his performative struggling.

 

Our sleeves snapped in the wind, and the pearl veils rattled violently. Xie Huaishuang’s voice in my ear was blurred by the rushing air.

 

“Someone to the southeast.”

 

“Dodge left.”

 

“Watch the front.”

 

He feigned a struggle, but his hands stayed protective over the small of my back, and his chaotic sword shadows landed precisely on my hems and sleeve corners.

 

“When we get back…”

 

He suddenly tightened his grip. I understood, ducking sharply as a short javelin whistled past my hair.

 

“Back where? What?”

 

“Back at home, I’ll pay you back for the new clothes.”

 

Before he finished speaking, he made another performative strike, slicing off half a piece of fabric that vanished into the wind.

 

I was already an expert at escaping pursuers, and now—I glanced sideways at Xie Huaishuang, catching a glimpse of his chin beneath the pearls—I had such an excellent accomplice.

 

The cursing, the shouts, and the clatter of armor were quickly left far behind. The sunlight at this height was almost blindingly bright. The willow shadows and flowers beneath the eaves blurred past. Not far off, I saw a wing of the Iron Vermilion Bird peeking out.

 

Xie Huaishuang ripped off the phoenix crown with its pearl veils. It hit the bushes below with a dull thud, shattering among the crimson and pale red flowers. His long hair, freed from its constraints, immediately tangled with the spring breeze and brushed against the corner of my eye. Finally, those two clear green pools were revealed to me, unobstructed and joyous.

 

“It was too heavy.”

 

Xie Huaishuang’s voice was faint in the wind. I carried him around a corner and onto a high wall. In a fleeting glance, I watched his lips move and barely made out what he said.

 

“Then throw it away.”

 

This was the second time I had escaped the Temple’s pursuit with Xie Huaishuang. The first was when we destroyed Linlang Pavilion; this time, I had kidnapped the revered High Priest in front of thousands.

 

Both were dangerous, exhilarating feats. The gilded shackles and painted icons were all smashed to pieces. With swords in hand, we entered the vast, hazy sky, traveling with the clouds and wind across thirty-six thousand acres of clarity.

 

This time, the wings of the Iron Vermilion Bird did not reflect a crimson firelight. They reflected a continuous, golden spring light, turning the world into a shimmering water surface under a clear day.

 

“Is everything okay on Zhou Xun’s end?”

 

“Everything followed the plan. They weren’t discovered.”

 

I adjusted the control lever and looked back at Xie Huaishuang. He was still wearing that deep green outer robe, its long hem trailing behind him in luxurious, vivid folds that looked entirely out of place with his surroundings. Finally no longer acting, he sat by the window with his long hair hanging down, his fingertips pressed against the glass.

 

Clouds rolled past outside, light and shadow flickering across his face, sharpening his features.

 

“They won’t catch up.”

 

I sat down beside him. Only after speaking did I realize he wasn’t looking at me. Just as I was about to poke him, he turned his face toward me.

 

“I know,” Xie Huaishuang’s eyes crinkled. “This is the best kite-machine in all of West Wing, isn’t it?”

 

I nodded subconsciously, then suddenly felt something was wrong. My eyes widened, and I didn’t know where to put my hands.

 

“You… you can hear me?”

 

Xie Huaishuang watched me for a long time. Just as I started to think I had imagined it, he suddenly smiled.

 

“I can hear you.”

 

“Since wh…”

 

“Two days ago.”

 

Xie Huaishuang suddenly leaned in very close, his nose almost touching mine. That unique, strange fragrance of the Temple enveloped me, and the turquoise on his ears swayed.

 

“You aren’t allowed to be mad at me.” He stared at me, his voice soft. “I actually… started being able to hear two days ago.”

 

I saw my own blurry reflection in his suddenly magnified eyes. After a moment of joy, reality hit me.

 

Two days—two days ago…

 

What had I whispered to myself during those two days?

 

I tried to recall, but my mind was a mess of paste. The more I tried, the more confused I became. Nothing came to mind except hundreds of images of Xie Huaishuang mixed with spring rain, sunlight, flowers, and grass, all crowding together in a noisy jumble.

 

“Why,” I couldn’t even find my own voice, “why didn’t you tell me?”

 

“I wanted to tell you. At first, it was because I couldn’t hear very clearly, and I was afraid I’d lose it again and make you happy for nothing.”

 

Xie Huaishuang moved even closer. I instinctively wanted to back away, but he caught my wrist, his sword-calloused skin rubbing against my inner arm.

 

“And then… then it was because I heard some things, and for a moment, I didn’t know how to tell you.”

 

A guess slowly rose in my heart. I asked in a low voice, “Heard what?”

 

Xie Huaishuang smiled. His lashes fluttered, and his breath brushed against my cheek like a feather.

 

“You said… that you like me.”

 

The Iron Vermilion Bird lurched at that exact moment, and my heart shook with it as if mountains were collapsing and seas were churning. I couldn’t say a single word, only stare into his eyes within that tiny space.

 

Xie Huaishuang seemed completely unaware of how earth-shattering his words were. As if they weren’t enough, he added another sentence amidst the turbulence.

 

“You like me best. Right?”