ITF Chapter92

Three days later at dawn, Luo Congye led a team of elite Alpha soldiers and set off from Urdan Island with Zhong Xiao to meet up with the mercenary army that was about to arrive at Zhong Maoru’s fief.

When he departed, dawn had yet to fully break. Bai Heting lay curled on his side with his back to him, leaving it impossible to tell whether he was asleep or merely pretending to be.

Luo Congye felt that he was awake.

Bai Heting’s sleeping posture was slightly stiffer than usual; he lay very rigidly, remaining completely motionless while Luo Congye dressed and put on his armor—something quite uncommon in this bed.

Luo Congye suddenly had a strong urge to kiss him, or to hold him, or perhaps to touch his soft hair.

But he didn’t.

If he did that, he truly wouldn’t want to leave.

He stood quietly by the bed for a moment, then stole away before Bei Yang could urge him.

Since his departure, the official location for discussing important matters on the island had shifted to Lin Zaichang’s residence, and most of Bai Heting’s knowledge regarding the war came from Jiang Han’s accounts.

Jiang Han still hadn’t moved into a new place. Zhong Xiao’s departure had been far too sudden, and Lin Qian, whose face was clouded with worry all day long, had delayed finding him a place to live time and time again.

Jiang Han did not press her either.

Two months later, the weather on the island slowly grew colder. As the daylight hours progressively shortened, the time Bai Heting spent sitting quietly on the beach also grew shorter. He would go to Jiang Han’s place and stay for half a day every other day.

When he arrived on this day, it was already close to noon. Jiang Han and Lin Qian were sitting at the table with their heads down, studying several plant specimens. Seeing him arrive, Lin Qian tapped a finger against a letter resting on the table.

Whether it was because she was distracted by Zhong Xiao going off to war, or because she had been influenced by Jiang Han, Lin Qian’s hostility toward Bai Heting had faded considerably. She glanced at him and said listlessly, “Yours.”

Bai Heting picked up the heavy letter but did not check it immediately.

Luo Congye had been writing to him at a fixed frequency of one letter per week. Starting from the third week, the letters would also include a leather cord meant to be tied around the wrist. The cord would lose much of its scent during the long journey, but a faint aroma of tequila could still be detected.

Luo Congye was always rambling in his letters about trivial, irrelevant matters; chatting about the weather, the scenery, and novel sights, while also asking after his well-being.

Bai Heting had only replied to him once. The content of the reply was very brief, pressing him on whether he had found any news about Su Xingchuan.

Bai Heting put the letter into his pocket, lowered his head, and looked at the items on the table with them. “What is this, weeds?”

Jiang Han said, “Part of it is.”

Lin Qian corrected, “The vast majority is.” She raised her finger and tapped another envelope. “These are medicinal ingredients sent back by Bei Yang. He said it’s a folk remedy used by the mercenaries on the front line. Applying it externally can—” Her tone turned sarcastic, “Strengthen bones and muscles, reduce swelling, and dispel bruising.”

There was no recipient written on the envelope. Bai Heting opened it and looked, and indeed, there were only those few lines.

He threw the paper back with disdain. “His handwriting is about on par with that of an eight-year-old Luo Congye.”

There was a bit of exaggeration in these words, and the other two burst out laughing. The tight tension in Lin Qian’s nerves finally relaxed a little. While helping Jiang Han sort out the useful herbs, she said leisurely, “You’ve certainly remained quite calm through this. Are you really not worried about Luo Congye’s safety?”

Bai Heting unconsciously touched the leather cord around his wrist, not giving Jiang Han a chance to chime in. “The battlefield awaiting them will not be as brutal as the siege warfare Zhong Maoru faced. Among mercenaries, there has long been an unspoken rule: those who surrender are not to be killed. In their eyes, prisoners are walking silver and gold. Holding them for ransom and waiting for their families to pay is far more profitable.”

Lin Zaichang had comforted Lin Qian in the same way. But this rhetoric had clearly failed to work, and the girl’s beautiful face was once again clouded with anxiety. “That’s easy to say… but they aren’t like ordinary prisoners, are they?”

Bai Heting paused for a moment and didn’t refute her. “If you really want to help her, you should go with her. Sitting here letting your mind run wild is entirely futile.”

Lin Qian had indeed wanted to go along at the time, but she had been stopped indisputably by Zhong Xiao and Lin Zaichang. The moment Bai Heting said this, her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

Before those glistening tears could fall, Bai Heting added, “Shedding tears won’t help the situation on the battlefield either.”

Lin Qian suddenly stood up but failed to steady herself. Fortunately, Bai Heting caught her by the arm in time.

Although she had a willful personality, she rarely acted this emotional. Jiang Han hurriedly stood up to smooth things over between the two. “It’s getting late. We can clean up these herbs later. Let’s eat first.”

Lin Qian’s dizziness passed, only for a wave of nausea to surge up her chest. She yanked her arm back and said with a frown, “You guys go ahead and eat.”

Bai Heting didn’t let go. He stared at Lin Qian for a moment, his voice suddenly turning deep and serious. “You’re a physician. If something is wrong with your own body, you don’t even realize it yourself?”

Lin Qian sniffled, raised her other hand to wipe away her tears, and snapped coldly, “There’s something wrong with you.”

Jiang Han keenly caught the anomaly in Bai Heting’s expression. His gaze slid from Bai Heting’s face to Lin Qian’s, and his expression turned grave as well.

“Sit down.” He walked past Bai Heting, placed his hand on Lin Qian’s shoulder, and patted it gently. “Let me take a look at you.”

Bai Heting stepped aside to make room for him without a word.

Lin Qian stared at the two of them blankly, then slowly sank back into her chair, still unable to make sense of what was going on. Jiang Han first took her pulse, then moved behind her and bent down to examine her gland.

Only then did it suddenly dawn on Lin Qian.

She was a physician, yet she had completely failed to notice—

She turned around to look at Jiang Han. Before he could speak, she beat him to it and asked, “Really?”

Jiang Han looked at her and gave a firm nod.

At last, the young girl managed to smile through her tears, and the worn, haggard expression on her face finally began to fade. But she immediately grew flustered and conflicted. “Should I tell Zhong Xiao? Will it distract her on the front line?” Before either of them could answer, she stood up again, her tone as lively as a light and cheerful finch. “I’ll go tell Father first!”

Seeing that she was completely lightheaded with excitement, Jiang Han quickly pressed her back down and urged, “Don’t be so reckless, be careful.”

Hearing this, Lin Qian restrained herself a little.

She tilted her head slightly, placing both hands over her lower abdomen with a look of tenderness appearing on her face that Bai Heting had never seen before.

“I really want to know…” she spoke in a soft whisper, “…what it looks like right now.”

Bai Heting stared at her blankly.

I know, he thought.

She was entirely immersed in her joy, completely failing to notice that the other two people present wore expressions starkly different from hers.

From that day on, Bai Heting never went to see Jiang Han again. However, Jiang Han would visit him from time to time to update him on the situation on the front line based on what he knew.

The flames of war continued to burn for more than two months. Just as the cold began to consume this isolated island at sea, news of victory finally arrived from Zhong Maoru’s siege warfare. A week later, Bai Heting also received his very first letter from Su Xingchuan.

It was an overcast day, and the winter sea breeze was biting cold. Jiang Han arrived at Luo Congye’s residence before sunset, only to find Bai Heting once again sitting alone on the sandy shore by the sea.

He handed both letters to Bai Heting at the same time and told him the news of the king’s retreat.

“I heard… the reason the King withdrew his troops is because Zhong Maoru swore allegiance to him once again. The King even signed a royal pardon for him, erasing the crime of instigating a private war.” Jiang Han paused, speaking hesitantly, “Did the Zhong family…?”

The word “betrayed” stuck in his throat, impossible to voice no matter what. But Bai Heting understood the unease concealed beneath his words. He rubbed the red wax seal on the envelope absentmindedly, thinking for a long while before finally murmuring, “Probably not.”

Jiang Han did not understand politics, but seeing that Bai Heting had no intention of explaining, he did not press further. He merely urged, “The weather is too cold. Let’s go back inside.”

Bai Heting nodded as if agreeing, yet his body remained entirely motionless, his gaze still fixed on the far horizon.

There lay a straight horizontal line, dividing the murky, indistinct world before his eyes in two.

It was the boundary where the sea met the sky.

You can unlock the complete translation in epub format HERE!