My Dearest General: It Has Always Been You

"What are you doing there?"

The man's voice shocked Shi Nian so much that her hand jerked and the edge of the sharp tool pierced her fingers, instantly drawing blood. But she couldn't afford to care right now. She stuffed the wooden plate and the sharp tool behind her back and stood up hastily.

General Jiang Jinyan approached from afar, wearing only a thin, black kimono with a coat draped across his shoulder. The front lapel of the kimono was loose, showing an expanse of health, bronze color skin gilded with numerous scars, both new and old.

Soft strands of hair brushed against his cheek, half covering the hideous scar which ran across his left cheek. His eyes were staring attentively at her, as if she was an object worth observing.

Shi Nian shook her head and pretended that she was just looking around at the back garden that was filled with blossoming pink petals. Because of her care, General Jiang Jinyan's cherry blossom trees thrived magnificently, its bloom was full in grandeur, shards of pink and white washing the General's residence everyday, coloring the dull and somber ambience.

Under her feet, pots of orchids, bonsais and all of those plants which were befitting of an old man lined up neatly.

And she, standing in the middle of all of it, was just like a little fairy that got lost in Eden.

Jiang Jinyan fell into a trance in a split second before recovering himself. His eyebrows raised casually as his gaze raked all across her. The longer he stared, the more nervous Shi Nian became.

"Are you planting a poisonous herb in my garden?" he probed casually.

Shi Nian's eyes widened in shock as she hastily denied his accusation.

"No?" Seeing how hard she shook her head, mirth filled Jiang Jinyan's eyes. "So, what's up with that block of wood?"

Shi Nian froze in place. Her effort was all busted just by a single glance of the Great General of Wei Dynasty. She chewed her lips anxiously and finally gave up on hiding what she was doing. Gingerly, she reached out the hands behind her back and opened her palm.

Jiang Jinyan gave a closer look and was stunned in place.

It was just an ordinary wooden plank. Presumably it was one piece among trash that wasn't useful anymore. The servants were patching the farm lately so they might have left many broken woods behind. No one would notice if there's one of them missing.

The wooden plank had been cut so nicely that its sharp edges were gone. Its surface was polished with oil and words had been carved atop of it. Line of words. Some had three characters, some had two. Lei Liqiu, Ru Meiqi, Cao Ting, Qiang Fei…

General Jiang blinked. Realization dawned on him. "Your fellow witches?"

Shi Nian puffed up her cheeks in annoyance. She had told him many times that she wasn't a witch! It was just that they were born with the ability to borrow the Earth's spiritual power and transfer it to others. So they could easily grow plants and heal wounds. Of course, such a magic was seen as abhorrent and appalling by ordinary people. Thus came the title 'Witch of the Dark Forest'.

"You are making cenotaphs for them?"

Shi Nian pursed her lips and nodded. Her sisters…some of them had died back in the forest and some were beheaded in public. She herself had left them all behind without retrieving their corpses. Time passed and their bodies had rotted or been eaten by wild beasts with possibly not even bones remaining thus, this was the only thing she could do.

Pray that their soul would be able to go into the path of reincarnation soon.

Jiang Jinyan caught her wrist and Shi Nian struggled in reflex.

"Shush," he chided softly. "Don't move. Let me see your fingers." The man's eyelashes were very long and curly as he lowered his head. "How did you graze your hands all over like this?"

Jiang Jinyan's hands were large, contrasted with her skinny, emaciated ones. Now that they were lined up together, it was more obvious than ever. Pale and bronze skin complemented each other, and he gently pried open her curled fingers one by one and wiped the blood away. Coarse callouses swiped the pad of her fingers, the ticklish sensation almost made her squirm.

"Does it hurt?"

She shook her head. This kind of pain was nothing at all.

"Silly child." He muttered. "If you want to do it, you can ask the other servants. Your wounds have only just healed and now, you're adding on to them again."

Shi Nian listened in place as Jiang Jinyan lectured her, petrified. The way he treated her—a mere stranger—was too kind, too generous. Saving her, offering her a place to stay, caring about her wounds, accompanying her as she practiced her hideous handwriting, telling her to eat more, worrying about her mental state…

She grew up bearing humans' malice and doubts that it was hard to digest this kind of kindness which didn't request anything in return. It made her…vulnerable and weak.

"Follow me." He pulled her along and this time, Shi Nian couldn't bring herself to reject him.

The both of them followed the stony path to the back of the residence which she had never ventured to before. General Jiang's residence was too spacious and wide and Shi Nian didn't dare to act presumptuously. The only places she ever went to were her room, the main hall and Jiang Jinyan's room—albeit it was only one time when he was injured.

When they turned into a corner, a new world opened up in front of Shi Nian's eyes.

So many…so many flowers! Rose, peony, daffodil, daisy, begonia, tulips. It was like she was walking across the sea of rainbows that consisted of all the beautiful things in the world. Astonished, amazed, awed, Shi Nian could do nothing but gawk at this spectacular sight.

"Do you like it?" he asked.

He offered his arm to her. She reached out, avoided his scabbed wound, and wrote with the tip of her finger. [Your flowers?]

He hummed softly. "Isn't it beautiful? I have spent too much time in wars. There is too much grief, desperation, rage and hatred in them. Everytime I return, I will spend some time here. Merely gazing at this scenery...gives me the illusion that my sinful soul has been granted salvation."

Shi Nian looked up to see his chiseled side features.

That kind of gaze again…