Chapter 27 Set Free

Deming felt as if someone was touching his whole body. He felt his body soak in the bathtub. He can smell the strong medicine. Deming heard a lot of people talking. He was very scared. He hates dark places. He reached out to find Guozhao Zhiqiang. He felt his lips move, but he wasn't sure. He believed he call out Guozhao Zhiqiang's name as loudly as possible, but he heard nothing.

Deming heard a soft female voice, and someone held Deming's hand, "Classmate, can you hear me?"

Deming heard her voice gradually disappeared, and then he couldn't remember anything. The next thing he remembered was waking up in a strange bed. Deming sat on the edge of the bed and looked around. The room is very small. There is a small single bed and a low table on the right. There is a small table on the ground with four cushions. He slowly got up, but his legs became weak, and he sat back again. Then the door was opened, and a lady in a black dress with red trims walked in.

The young female teen smiled at him and said, "You are awake now." She quickly put the brewed medicine on the table and rushed out.

Moments later, an old man and three other men rushed into the room with the young female. The older man walked over and check his pulses.

The young female asked the old man, "Doctor Lu, how is he?"

Doctor Lu, "He will recover."

Deming asked, "Who are you? Where am I?"

The young female looked confused, "You are in your room."

Deming shook his head, "No, I don't belong here." He stood up and ran out the door. He shouted, "Zhiqiang." The two young men each grabbed his arm and dragged him back to the room. Deming shouted in fear. "Let go of me, Zhiqiang, save me." He struggled desperately, trying to break free from the two men.

Young female teen put her arms around Deming's shoulders, "Please calm down."

Deming shouted in frustration and fear, "Let me go."

Doctor Lu put a sachet on Deming's mouth and nose. Then Deming's eyes became heavy, and he finally fell asleep. Doctor Lu looked at the young female, "Bingqing, stay here with him, if he wakes up, let me know."

Li Bingqing asked, "Doctor Lu, is this normal?"

Doctor Lu sighed, "Sometime, near-death experience will make a person act like this."

Li Bingqing nodded. Doctor Lu and the others left the room leaving Li Bingqing inside the room with Deming.

At about midnight, Deming opened his eyes again. He saw the young teen female sitting at the table reading a book. He felt dizzy.

Li Bingqing turned around and said, "Are you awake? Don't rush out anymore, it's almost one o'clock in the morning."

Deming realized that these people would not let him go easily. He asked, "Where am I?"

Li Bingqing looked at Deming oddly and said, "You are in Guzheng Sector."

Deming asked, "How do I get from Waterfall City to here? Where are Zhiqiang and his brothers?"

Li Bingqing said, "I don't know. You have been unconscious for three weeks. The only name I heard you muttering in your sleep is Zhiqiang. As for how you came, our classmate brought you back. When you arrive, they were pretty sure you will not survive." She smiled at Deming. "Well, I guess they were wrong."

Deming asked, "You know me?"

Li Bingqing looked at Deming and said, "No, I don't know you. I got to know you through this." She threw a book to Deming. "Every student has a biography."

Deming looked at the book and threw it back to Li Bingqing, "I don't know how to read it."

Li Bingqing looked at Deming's expression, "Strange. I have seen people with short-term memory loss, but not to the point where they can't read. You are like a completely different person."

Deming, "Please read it for me."

Li Bingqing smiled and shook her head, "Okay. Dong Enlai, fourteen years old. At the age of four, he was rescued by the late master Huang He when he went hunting." She paused and looked at Deming. "Should I continue?"

Deming, "No. Can you please bring me a mirror?"

Li Bingqing stepped forward, grabbed a small mirror from the table, and handed it to Deming.

Deming took the mirror and saw himself in the mirror. He is the boy he helped pull out from the riverbank. His hair is no longer red. He touched his face, "Impossible? How could this be?"

Li Bingqing, "What are you whispering?

Deming, "Nothing." He put down the mirror. "What's your name?"

Li Bingqing, "Bingqing." She sighed. "Since you don't remember anything. I think you must start all over again."

Deming's voice was broken, "I would love to start all over again."

A month had passed since Guozhao Zhiqiang returned to Cloud City. Today is a good day, so he woke up early in the morning and overlooking the valley. When the sunrise on the horizon of the top of Peach Blossom Mountain, Cloud City look like a city on the clouds. Guozhao Zhiqiang opened the bamboo tubes and began to scattering Deming's ashes. He was supposed to release Deming's ashes a few weeks ago, but he found himself unable to do so. When he woke up this morning, the sunrise in the early morning was exceptionally beautiful, so he thought Deming would prefer this kind of scenery.

Guozhao Zhiqiang said softly, "Deming, I did as I promised. I brought you back to Cloud City with me, but since you are no longer in this world, I hope your ashes can grow flowers and grass around me." He watches Deming's ashes drifting across Peach Blossom Mountain. As soon as Guozhao Zhiqiang turned around, he heard familiar footsteps approaching him.

Ping'an smiled at him, "Zhiqiang, you are back." She walked up to him and wiped his tears. "What happened?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang hugged Ping'an, "Shimu…my heart hurts so much."

Ping'an comforted, "What's the matter?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang hugged Ping'an, "I found that special person, but he was taken away. This time it hurts even more." He sobbed. "From now on, he... he will only exist in my dreams and lives in my memory."

Ping'an, "Is not that Childe Hu?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang shook his head.

Ping'an, "Your first master once said, 'sometime memories were best, if its stay as memories, at least we knew once what true happiness is'." She looked at the grey ashes on the grass. "Are these belonging to him?" Guozhao Zhiqiang nodded. "Are you going to go inside the valley, or staying in your cabin?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, "I want to be alone."

Ping'an smiled at him, "Okay, tomorrow I will go hunting with your masters."

Guozhao Zhiqiang watched as Ping'an walk towards Peach Blossom Valley. In many ways, he envied that his masters have a soulmate like his shimu. He closed his eyes and pitied himself, because he knew that in happiness and suffering, or until his skin wrinkled and his hair turned white, he would never have anyone standing by his side. He continued to stand there watching the wind blow Deming's ashes across the mountain, knowing that part of him had died that day.