BLHO Chapter 84

Chapter 84 Nightmare

The ashen grey dome of the sky loomed overhead. Moments ago, it was calm and windless, but in the blink of an eye, dark clouds converged.

Lin Shuangxu looked up, sensing an impending ice storm.

“How many hours has it been?” he asked Qin, the vice-general beside him, his voice heavy.

“Reporting to the young master, more than three hours.”

They had set out early in the morning, and now it was almost dusk.

He Yuncheng had taken the Han army to rescue people. The situation in the mountains was unclear, so some delay was normal.

But Lin Shuangxu felt increasingly uneasy.

Another gust of wind howled past, and the heavy rain came without warning.

The soldiers quickly put on their bamboo hats. At this time of year, the freezing rain outside the pass was no joke. Qin, the vice-general, fearing that Lin Shuangxu would catch a cold, hurriedly stepped forward to put a raincoat on him.

At the same time, he ordered the soldiers behind him, “Everyone, set up camp and wait for the general in place. We’ll set off again tomorrow!”

The soldiers busied themselves in the rain.

But Lin Shuangxu was utterly defeated by the biting cold.

Without a word, he stood up and leaped onto his horse.

Seeing him get up and leave, Qin, the vice-general, quickly went up to ask, “Young master, where are you going?”

Lin Shuangxu couldn’t bother to answer. He flicked his whip and sped away in the heavy rain.

The urgent hooves of the horse splashed mud and dust. Qin, the vice-general, pointed to his subordinates beside him, “Protect the young master! You few, follow me!”

“Yes!”

A group of dozens of people spurred their horses and chased after Lin Shuangxu.

He didn’t speak, and Qin, the vice-general, didn’t ask any more questions.

There was no need to ask; it was clear that he was worried about He Yuncheng’s safety and couldn’t wait any longer.

Everyone tacitly followed him, galloping wildly towards Swallow Return Mountain.

The rain fell harder and harder, scouring people’s eyes, making it almost impossible to see the road ahead.

The sky was also gradually darkening. In a little while, the sun would set, and the situation in the valley would be even more dangerous.

Lin Shuangxu suppressed his emotions, and the others became increasingly worried as the rain intensified.

At full speed, they finally met the returning team at the foot of the mountain before night completely fell.

Like ink splashed on paper, the outlines came closer and closer.

Qin, the vice-general, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the returning team. “Young master, look, the general is back!”

Lin Shuangxu’s eyelashes were wet with rain, and he squinted slightly, unable to relax his mind at all.

Han Mao was at the front, and some of the others carried wounded people on their horses, while others rode alone.

He looked at everyone and didn’t see He Yuncheng.

“Whoosh—”

The two sides met, and everyone reined in their horses. Lin Shuangxu confirmed all the faces in front of him again, but still no He Yuncheng.

Then he saw the pain and bloodshot in Han Mao’s eyes.

“General He, he…” Han Mao opened his mouth, his throat moving with difficulty. Unable to face Lin Shuangxu, he lowered his eyes as he spoke.

“When he was rescuing someone… he accidentally fell off a cliff.”

A bolt of lightning struck from the sky, illuminating Lin Shuangxu’s face, making it look ashen.

Immediately afterwards, rolling thunder shook the earth, as if to split Swallow Return Mountain apart.

“You fucking fart!” The first to react was Qin, the vice-general. He flipped off his horse, rushed forward, and grabbed Han Mao from his horse.

Han Mao fell off his horse in a disheveled state. Before he could stand steady, Qin, the vice-general, punched him in the face.

“What kind of skill does our general have? How could he accidentally fall off a cliff? Did you harm him?!”

Han Mao didn’t argue or resist, kneeling on the ground following his force.

Through the rain, he looked at Lin Shuangxu’s blurred face, and helplessly confessed to him, “I didn’t protect General He well; it’s my fault.”

The sound of the rain was too loud, the rushing noise making people’s minds blank.

Lin Shuangxu was a little dazed. Everything in front of him turned into phantoms, making it difficult for him to distinguish between reality and dream.

He wasn’t as angry as the soldiers, nor did he collapse in heartbreak. He didn’t even hear Han Mao’s words clearly. He had to see it with his own eyes to know what had happened.

The horse whip fell again. He abandoned the crowd and ran towards Swallow Return Mountain, without looking back.

It was completely dark, the mountain road was slippery, and the horse was startled and refused to go any further.

So he dismounted and staggered forward on foot.

The crowd quickly followed him. Han Mao stepped forward to persuade him, “The mountain road is dangerous; go back.”

Qin, the vice-general, at this time didn’t bother to settle accounts with Han Mao, and came up to dissuade him, “Young master, let’s go back first. I’ll take the brothers to look for the general here.”

Lin Shuangxu didn’t seem to hear them; he stubbornly moved forward.

Weeds and dead branches tore at his hem, and the road under his feet became more and more muddy.

“Lin Shuangxu!” Han Mao was really anxious and grabbed him. “Calm down. If you have any resentment, go back and settle it with me. It’s too dangerous here.”

Lin Shuangxu’s eyes were filled with a cold mist, colder than the rain, scraping over Han Mao’s body like a knife.

“Get out.”

Faced with such a gaze, Han Mao couldn’t say another word and slowly let go of his hand.

In the silent rainy night, the He family army followed the Han family army back, and after nearly two hours of difficult progress, they returned to the place where they had rescued people earlier.

The rain had stopped, and the soldiers lit a few torches. The dark abyss looked even more terrifying in the night.

“It’s here.” Han Mao pointed to the cliff they had climbed over. “General He was carrying the injured person over here, and on the way, that person suddenly woke up. In the struggle, the two of them fell down together.”

He tried not to describe the details, fearing that Lin Shuangxu wouldn’t be able to bear imagining the scene.

But even a few words were heart-wrenching.

Lin Shuangxu’s reaction seemed too calm. While the soldiers were crying and wiping their tears, he just frowned.

He followed the direction Han Mao pointed and walked towards the edge of the abyss. With each step he took, his heart beat faster.

When he got close, he almost lost control in his chest.

The scene that had appeared countless times in his nightmares appeared before his eyes without any difference.

He Yuncheng fell into the abyss.

That scene that repeatedly tormented him and kept him from sleeping peacefully was being played out alive.

The churning in his stomach made him feel nauseous, but having not eaten or drank anything all day, he bent over and only dry heaved.

All his strength was quickly exhausted in the intense physical reaction. He felt dizzy, and his body became very light. The abyss under his feet was so close that it seemed like a gust of wind would blow him down.

He let the wind blow, scattering his heart and soul, blowing him to unknown depths.

Would he be able to find He Yuncheng there?

He closed his eyes, and before he completely lost consciousness, he heard someone shouting his name loudly.

“Young Master Shuangxu!”

“Young master!”

The overlapping voices were not He Yuncheng’s.

He Yuncheng was dead.

–

The rescued wounded needed to be treated quickly. Under Han Mao’s orders, everyone returned to the military camp to rest, and the plan to return to the capital was postponed.

The military doctor sat by the bed, carefully taking the pulse of the unconscious person on the bed.

It was Lin Shuangxu.

For three whole days, he hadn’t woken up.

Guo Yao and Qin, the vice-general, were waiting beside him. Han Mao hadn’t left his side for the past few days either. He seemed even more anxious than the He family, and he kept asking the military doctor, “How is he?”

That night at Swallow Return Mountain, Lin Shuangxu fainted at the edge of the cliff and almost fell down. It was Han Mao who rushed forward in time, pulled him back, and saved his life.

After taking his pulse, the military doctor put Lin Shuangxu’s hand back under the blanket and shook his head.

Han Mao anxiously asked, “What does shaking your head mean? He’s taken so much medicine these days, why hasn’t it had any effect? He wasn’t injured, so why is he still unconscious?”

The military doctor said, “The young master is overly saddened and has damaged his heart. Medicine can’t cure this; we can only wait for him to recover his mood and wake up on his own.”

There was nothing they could do, and being anxious was useless.

After listening, Guo Yao said from the side, “Thank you for your trouble, military doctor.”

The military doctor stood up and instructed them, “Someone must stay by the young master’s bed at all times. Please take turns guarding him, and if there’s any change, come and call me in time.”

“Of course.” Guo Yao looked at the few people beside him and said, “I’ll stay here today; everyone, go back and rest.”

“No need.” Han Mao stared intently at Lin Shuangxu. “Guo Yao, you should go back. I’ll stay here and watch over him.”

Guo Yao looked at him with composure and said, “General Han has been taking care of our young master these past few days; you’ve been too much trouble.”

“It’s no trouble.” Han Mao’s eyes couldn’t leave Lin Shuangxu. “If he doesn’t wake up, I won’t feel at ease going back.”

The affection in his eyes was undisguised. How could Guo Yao not see it?

His expression slightly darkened, Guo Yao didn’t say much more in front of Lin Shuangxu’s bed and stood up. “In that case, then, I’ll leave you to it, General Han.”