The closer Yuchi Chong drew to his twilight years, the more bewildered he became. He had betrayed Great Kang and defected to Great Yong, and in Great Kang he had long since become the target of a thousand accusing fingers. In the hearts of the Kang People, he was a sinner who had broken faith and forgotten his ancestors. Yet he found no acceptance in Great Yong either; they had always treated him as an outsider. Vast as the world was, there was nowhere he belonged. Even he no longer knew whether he was a man of Kang or Yong.
Liang Wensheng's voice sounded behind him. "Commander-in-Chief, why are you standing out in the snow alone?"
"We've been so busy traveling these past few days that I never stopped to appreciate the snowy scenery," Yuchi Chong said. "Now I finally have the chance." He turned and walked back into the covered corridor, shook the snow from his clothes, and sighed softly. "I thought I would see more clearly if I walked into the snow, but once I was in it, everything became a blur. The view is clearer from here after all."
"Those caught in the game are bewildered; those watching from outside see clearly," Liang Wensheng said. He had keenly caught the old commander's inner confusion in his words.
Yuchi Chong heard the meaning beneath his words and smiled faintly. "Once we return to the Yong Capital, bring your fiancée over to meet me."
Embarrassment appeared on Liang Wensheng's face. He pressed his lips together, cupped his fists, and bowed. "Please punish me, Commander-in-Chief!"
Yuchi Chong chuckled. "What crime have you committed? Did you deliberately deceive me about this?" He gave Liang Wensheng a meaningful look. "You have always acted with sound judgment and a mind of your own.