Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sonorous sound of the door ringing really gave him a fright. He stared at the polished sliding door and saw the vague, opaque shape of high-heeled boots pacing about impatiently. Fu Lin gulped.
What was he supposed to do? Just because he now had a hair's breadth of respect for the general did not mean that whatever reservation he had towards the general had evaporated just like that.
Simply put, he was still too much of a chicken to face the general!
And now he had more than enough reason to think so. Even though Fu Lin was empathetic enough to understand why the general behaved the way he did, what if the general did not share the same sentiments as him and bore a grudge against Fu Lin for rebuking his country? And what if he had come here now to exact revenge for Fu Lin's conduct at the court?
Meanwhile, the person behind the door had now ceased his attempts after banging over and over but getting no response. Fu Lin's chest almost burst open in fright when he saw the shadow of a hand looming above the handle of the door. It seems the person outside had had enough of waiting and now wanted to come in.
Oh no!
Before he could react, however, in a split second, a vague movement had taken place, and somebody was already standing in the corner of the room cautiously. Terrified by the haunting posture of the person who was looming just a few feet away, he almost opened his mouth to scream his everyday banshee wail.
That was when he realized he had lost his voice.
"Y-you... " He pushed out a syllable with utmost difficulty after squeezing his vocal cords multiple times. "Who... who're you?"
The person was concealed behind the shades of the bed curtains, and the lingering darkness increased the fire of the almost-dying glass lamp flame. With that, what came into display was the kind face of a person with high brows and a soft smile-a man that Fu Li didn't know.
"I suggest you don't try talking until dawn comes." The words of the unknown man were like stones sinking within a deep pool, soft and calming. "The trauma your vocal chords have suffered from the abrupt injury would take a few hours to ease, and it is advisable that you do not speak until then."
Fu Lin did not try to resist the man after that because it was very clear he was a physician of sorts.
"I've prescribed a simple tonic that you can take whenever your throat hurts. You need not fear its side effects, as it is a simple cooling liquid to lull your strained chords. As for the burns," the physician contemplated, "they're small injuries that would eventually fade given enough time."
Fu Lin nodded his head in agreement. It seemed like nothing was serious.
The physician, however, continued to gaze at him with a strange look in his eyes and said, "Your Highness I know this might be an intrusion on your private life, but you do realize my life is at risk here if I fail to give a proper explanation for your sudden blackout. The blood that was shed from the sword injury is minimal, in fact." He raised his eyes in confused astonishment. "Not even a child would faint over such an abysmally small injury."
His words then died down, and a long silence ensued before he asked again, "The reason why you fainted... is it what I think it is?"
Fu Lin didn't bother to answer him immediately and looked out of the window. After what seemed like an eternity of absorbing the scenery outside, Fu Lin very slowly nodded his head in agreement once again.
The physician did not dare to dawdle any longer and said, "Alright then, I shall take my departure, Your Highness. Wishing you a quick recovery."
Fu Lin made a sound of acknowledgement but did not try to look in the direction the physician walked, nor did he jump at the sound of the door closing behind him. The physician steadily walked out, closing the door behind him with ordinary ease, and as he turned, he almost threw himself down by bumping into someone who was standing by the door like a pillar.
"General?" He asked, trying to shake himself off of the shock. "What are you doing here at this time?"
The truth was that the physician did, in fact, want to talk to the general about the seventh prince's condition right after this. But what he did not expect was for the general to be standing here, like some ghost, probably eavesdropping on their conversation. Whether he did or didn't, the physician was not in his right to ask, and he could relay the whole truth of the matter.
"This General..." He hesitated, his lock-like eyes and defined features emerging from the darkness. "This General just wanted to see how he was faring. This General didn't hear anything; he would never eavesdrop."
The physician tried his best not to laugh. The fact that the general was bad at lying was common knowledge that no one dared bring up in his presence. But what the physician didn't know was that he was this bad.
"That... of course, Your Grace." He coughed, trying to cover up his laughter. "And since you didn't eavesdrop, I'll give you what you actually want to know and skip the unnecessary medical jargon. In short, Your Grace, the blood that was shed in the event of the injury that your sword caused is tragically small to be reckoned with-enough for somebody to faint. What he lost in blood by the blade can be equated to the blood loss that occurs by pressing each finger with a needle-a small amount. And I can assure you that that tiny amount of blood loss is absolutely insufficient to cause unconsciousness."
His tone turned soft, and he looked at the general with a gentle gaze as he said the rest. "Therefore, General, his fainting cannot be attributed to the injury you caused, though there might be a tiny correlation. So please do not feel bad about it."
"I. Do. Not. Feel. Bad." He said, enunciating each word, and remained aloof like an iceberg for a while before asking again, "... Then why did he faint?"
The physician's shoulders began to shake in an attempt to hide his fit of laughter. "It is more of a mental condition that responds to the physical body quite irrationally."
"What condition?" The general was curious.
"I suspect that it's a condition of extreme revulsion towards blood." The physician said thoughtfully, "This is a form of conditioned fear that comes from blood trauma, and patients with this condition would faint, panic, or show symptoms of irrational fear towards anything to do with blood. It's often because of an emotional trauma they suffered that has something to do with blood."
The general nodded his head and saw the physician depart.
Blood trauma...
General Haoran was aware of the condition to some extent, although he didn't quite understand it. It would be strange for someone constantly involved in the matters of the battlefield to not have an inkling of what blood trauma was. At times, he had witnessed his comrades, who went onto the battlefield for the first time, cry and vomit at the sight and stench of blood. Some even seasoned martial veterans, after years of ruthless blood shed, come to fear the sight of it in their old years, and he knew how severe it could be.
But if Fu Lin suffered from blood trauma, it would make sense as to why he didn't become a soldier. And why he avoided looking below his neck at the court and continued to look directly into people's eyes. But even then, it was quite... admirable how he held on, fought his fear of blood, and stood his ground until he had acquired justice for his country, knowing that wet, hot blood was escaping his neck.
From the deepest recesses of his heart, an extremely tiny pang of guilt rose.
He couldn't delay any longer. He took to his feet, walking directly past the hall and eaves with his eyes only aligned towards the room Fu Lin was in.
The next second, he opened the sliding door, intending to go in.
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Double updates because WHY NOT??? ＼(≧▽≦)／ Don't forget to vote, comment and share if you enjoyed the chapter. Also make sure to follow me for updates on more exciting stories!( ' ∀ ')ノ～ ♡
Mini theater!!!
Haoran: Doctor, I swear I didn't eavesdrop.
Physician: Okay.
Haoran: No, doctor!! You don't understand!!!（πーπ）I really didn't eavesdrop!
Physician: Okay, but the mosquito has blood trauma and--
Haoran: ლಠ益ಠ)ლ WHAT???? WHY DIDN'T I HEAR THAT THROUGH THE KEYHOLE-
*plays why tf you lyin, why you always lyin by Nicholas Fraser*
Question of the day: Dazai or Chuuya? (lemme know your answer too!)
Answer: Eh... hard pick but Dazai