Returning Home

Autumn 474 BC - Yue State

Twelve years have passed after the last time Ying saw Fan Li, who tried to protect the chariot that brought her, Xi Shi and Zheng Dan.

Twelve years after she was resurrected - Ying reappeared in front of Fan Li's house.

Fan Li had just finished his meeting with Goujian, the King of Yue. He was surprised to see a fine-looking young man was waiting at his house. To the servant, that young man said that he was an old friend of Fan Li. But Fan Li didn't remember that he had a friend like him.

"Young master, what's your honorable name?" Fan Li asked the young man.

"Minister Fan, I'm not a young master. I am Ying. If you remember me, twelve years ago I was supposed to be sent to the Wu Kingdom…."

Before she finished her words, Fan Li already replied, "Ying? Are you Ying? You are still alive!"

He looked at her carefully. Indeed she was one of the three beauties that were supposed to be sent to the Wu Kingdom. On her way, her chariot was plundered by bandits, and she was kidnapped. At that time, Fan Li had no choice. He had to secure Xi Shi and Zheng Dan first. Only after they were safe, he led his men to look after Ying. But he could not find her.

For many years Fan Li felt guilty every time he remembered how he didn't try hard to save her. Now suddenly, she reappeared. But was she really her? Even with long hair and woman dress, that girl could not be her. She's supposed to be at least thirty years old. But the person in front of him looked very young.

"Are you really Ying?" asked Fan Li. "Where have you been? For years, we've been looking for you!"

"Mister Fan, that day when the bandit kidnapped me, I fell from the horseback. They thought I was dead. Therefore they left me behind. But I was not dead. A swordsmen couple rescued me, and later on, they trained me as their disciple!" Ying explained.

"Ah, I'm so glad to hear it! Forgive me, that day I didn't immediately try to save you!" Fan Li said.

Ying sighed, "All happened for good. I have no regret, and I don't blame you for that!"

"What makes you come back here?" he asked.

Ying opened the box that she had been carried. "Mister Fan, I present this sword to you!"

Fan Li saw the beautiful, exquisite sword. He was so astonished to see the sword. He asked, "Where do you get this sword?"

"In this past twelve years, I have used nine years to forge this sword!" Ying said. "I know that you want to defeat the Wu Kingdom to free Xi Shi and Zheng Dan. This sword is the only thing I could give to support you and our King Goujian!"

Fan Li knew that the girl in front of him used to love him. He could see from her eyes that she still adored him. Although she knew that it was an unrequited love, she still spent a lot of effort forging the sword for him. He felt so embarrassed of himself, and he knew that he should not play around with her heart.

"Ying, this sword is too precious. I can't accept it!" He said. "I don't deserve this sword!"

"If you don't deserve it, then who deserves it?" She asked. "You're a smart man. I know that you could lead our Yue to win this war against Wu!"

"This sword, better for you to keep it for someone who deserves it. Be it your future husband or someone capable who could use this sword to bring justice and peace in this world!"

"To bring justice and peace in this world," Ying repeated his word. "Isn't that my aspiration, that I want to be a sword of justice?" Ying said in her mind.

"Mister Fan, take me to the king. I could help him to win this war by forging swords for his army!"

"Ying, you're a girl. You're not kidding me, right?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding?" Ying asked.

Fan Li observed the girl in front of him. She looked very young, but her eyes showed her maturity. She's no longer the young, naive Ying that he used to know.

Fan Li brought Ying to see King Goujian at the palace.

King Goujian and his wife were surprised to see her again. Not only because they had never thought that she's still alive, but also because she looked so young and no different from the last time they saw her twelve years ago. The girl in front of them had her hair cut short, like the men of Yue. But she wore shoes, with a long robe clothing like the men from Chu State or other states in the north. She looked like a handsome young man with no tattoo on her face or body and her fair skin complexion. ****

[ **** See the author's note]

They had a banquet that night, together with Wen Zhong and other ministers and generals of Yue.

"Ying, my beautiful daughter! I'm so glad to see you again," the queen said and caressed Ying's face.

"My queen, I'm happy to be able to see you again too!" Ying said politely.

"My daughter, you don't change a bit!" The queen was confused. How could someone didn't grow even slightly older in twelve years? She should be in her late twenties or even early thirties, but she looked as if she's just a seventeen-year-old girl.

"Tell me what happened to you after the bandits kidnapped you at that time!" Goujian asked Ying.

Ying narrated her story and how Mister Yao and Madame Ling found her and saved her. She just didn't tell them that she's resurrected. She just said to them that she's almost dead and was saved. She didn't tell them that now she could not die as she's an immortal.

"I'm glad that you're saved. And although you are not a king's woman, it seems that you have an eventful life. Mister Fan said that you learn the art of weapon-making and that you want to join our army in this campaign against Wu!" King Goujian said.

Ying made a salute and answered, "My king, your servant, had learned swordsmanship and military tactics in these past few years. Also, in the past nine years, I've learned metallurgy. With my knowledge, I could contribute to Yue's victory against Wu!"

"Tell me then!" King Goujian said.

"Our weapons need to be improved. I have seen the Yue soldiers' weapons. We should make a better sword, which is more durable than our current weapons," she said. "If my king gives me two hundred men and six months, I could guarantee that we could produce five thousand swords that are impossible for Wu soldiers to resist! Our soldiers have sieged them for more than two years. And with one final strike, we could finish Wu forever!"

King Goujian looked at her. How could he believe her word?

As if he knew what's in King Goujian's mind, Fan Li interrupted and said, "My king, I've seen the sword that Ying forged. It is indeed much better than our current sword. If my king allows, I will show the sword to you right now. My man outside is carrying the sword to be shown to you!"

"Summon him to present that sword right now," King Goujian said.

Fan Li's man entered the palace room and presented the sword to King Goujian.

"My king, we should let one soldier use this sword, and another one soldier to use our current sword, to see how powerful this sword is!" Fan Li suggested.

King Goujian agreed.

Two soldiers used two kinds of swords, and they started to fight with their swords. After some time, they found out that Ying's sword was superior because it was longer and easier to attack opponents. And after some clashes between the two swords, they found out that their current weapons tend to be less sharp than Ying's sword.

"My king, let me show you once more!" said Fan Li. He took Ying's sword from the soldier's hand. And with all his might, he slashed Ying's sword onto the other soldier's sword. And the other's sword was broken into two pieces, while Ying's sword remained the same and no crack or had any mark. That's the sword Ying forged to be mass-produced, not the sword that she forged for Fan Li.

All in the room shouted, disbelieved by what they saw. Only Ying still sat still and remained calm.

"Ying, tell me, how do you make it?" King Goujian asked.

"My king, our weapons, are mostly made of one kind of metal. I am using some other metals to be blended with copper and iron to create a stronger and sharper weapon," Ying said.

King Goujian nodded happily, "Ying, you have to help me to win this war! Mister Fan, you have to help and provide anything that Ying needs. You and Ying will be in charge of producing the weapons and all other war preparation!"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Fan Li saluted with his fist while Ying bowed her head calmly.

King Goujian gave Ying a place where she lived, not far from the workshop Fan Li built to forge weapons for the soldiers.

Ying had never visited her hometown for twelve years. That morning she decided to go to her village to see her mother and Min - her childhood friend.

Ying's mother had told her that they should not relate again. Yet, Ying still wanted to see her, even for a glance.

When she arrived at her old house, she saw a boy was playing on the ground. There's also a young pregnant woman who was weaving and an old woman carrying a baby in her hand. The boy must be her mother's son. She saw him when he's just a baby before she went to Wu State.

The old woman was not her mother. Where's her mother then?

Ying waited for hours in front of her old house, hoping to see her mother. But Madame Wu didn't show up. A neighbor told Ying that she had passed away three years earlier.

Ying left the house. A few hours later, when she's near the river, she started to cry.