Chapter thirteen.

The huge crowd at the Forbidden City was very proud of their newest heroine as the entire China would soon be.

The trio of soldiers approached to Shang and interrupted his thoughts, but none of the three soldiers were wearing that ridiculous makeup and earrings anymore.

"Captain," Ling said and Shang turned toward his best soldiers.

"She forgot her helmet." Iao said pointing to Chien Po, who was behind him and was holding Mulan's helmet.

Chien Po handed Mulan's helmet to Shang.

Shang looked down at the helmet for a few seconds; then, he raised his head and looked at his soldiers again "I'll return it to her."

Shang walked toward his horse and mounted the animal; as he rode away from the Forbidden City, the crowd cheered just as when Mulan rode away from the Forbidden City.

The Emperor grinned a bit, luckily no one noticed; even The Emperor paired Shang with Mulan.

"That girl and that Captain are the greatest heroes China has ever seen till today." The wise old sovereign muttered.

The trio of soldiers watched their commanding officer ride away from the Forbidden City for a few moments till the silence between them was broken.

"They make a beautiful couple, don't you guys think?" Chien Po asked their friends.

"I think so. Captain found his girl worth fighting for." Ling answered.

Iao arched a brow and crossed his arms "they'll get engaged; just wait cuz it'll happen."

"Come near, soldiers." The Emperor ordered in a calm tone of voice and the trio of soldiers obeyed.

"Chi Fu!" The Emperor called.

"Your Majesty?" Chi Fu asked holding his clipboard and with his brush positioned over it.

"See to it that these men and the other soldiers who are scattered around the palace receive a reward proportional to their actions." The Emperor said gesturing with hands.

Chi Fu looked them up and down with an expression of slight contempt, but didn't contest his sovereign's orders.

"So it will be done, Your Majesty." Chi Fu answered as he wrote something on his clipboard.

The Emperor turned around and begun to go up the stairs slowly and return to the palace; his imposing figure disappeared as he crossed the huge red entry doors of the palace.

Then, the soldiers that were scattered around the palace started appearing and went to where Chi Fu and the three soldiers were (it looks like someone is going to spend the whole night solving political issues, more than deserved in his case).

The Emperor walked toward two huge red doors in a hall, which were being guarded by two guards. The guards bowed to The Emperor and opened the door for him.

As soon as The Emperor entered the room, the guards closed the doors and stood outside the room, guarding the doors.

The room belonged to The Emperor, the room was gigantic and of indescribable luxury. There were the three princesses: Ting-Ting, Mei and Su, who were locked there to be safe from the Huns until the danger was over.

The three Imperial princesses were sat on a huge red bed with a canopy over it, hugging each other; they looked at their father who was looking at his daughters with a slightly thrilled look in his eyes.

Emperor Dim Sum slowly walked toward his daughters, who were thrilled as well. The wise old sovereign sat beside his daughters and gently wrapped his arms around the three girls.

Ting-Ting, Mei and Su returned their father's hug while smirking slightly and tears streamed down from their closed eyes.

The four members of the Imperial family knew that now they were safe from the Huns, after several years of psychological torture not only for them but for whole China.

Meanwhile, Shang was riding during the last hours of the night, going after Mulan to "return her helmet to her".

When he arrived at a village, he asked a villager if he had seen a woman dressed in a blue dress and riding a black horse. The man nodded and pointed to a road that led out of the village and passed near to a forest.

Shang thanked the man, mounted his horse and rode across road. He stopped at a small city to spend the rest of the night in an inn.

An employee from that place led Shang to a small stable where his stallion could spend the night with some other horses. Shang removed the saddle and the reins from the horse, to put them back on the animal by the morning.

When he was at his room's door, he gave some coins to the employee to pay for the stay. The man bowed to Shang in thanks and left.

Shang took of the pieces of his armor and placed them beside the bed in an organized way. He went to a room beside the inn to take a bath and try to forget his problems at least for that moment.

After a few minutes he came out from that room were the guests of the inn could wash themselves. He was wearing his training robe with the front part not open (well, he was in a place where someone could see him and this place was not a camp).

It took a long time for him to sleep and when he managed to, he was still a bit disturbed; normally he would fall asleep quickly and sleep soundly.

Meanwhile, Mulan was at another inn at the same small town, but at the other entrance to the city.

Mulan was so exhausted that unlike Shang, she fell asleep quickly and soundly, she didn't even take off her shoes to sleep; she was (almost) in complete inner peace.

When it was already past the midday, Mulan woke up feeling the sunlight coming in through the window and caressing her face with its warmth.

It took her a few moments to remember where she was; when she remembered, she sighed and looked at the horizon through the window.

All of sudden, Mushu and Cri-kee climbed on her shoulders, they looked at her with a look of compassion on their faces.

"Mulan, now you're China's heroine, everything is going to be fine." Mushu said tenderly to his protégé; Cri-kee made a cute sound with a happy face, showing that he agreed with the little red-guardian-dragon.

"Thanks…you two always comfort me when I need." Mulan answered lowly.

Then, Mulan's facial expression turned from a homesick and concerned expression to a determinate one. She quickly picked up Shan Yu's sword that she had left beside the bed.

She went where she had left Khan; she put the saddle and the reins on her beautiful black stallion, mounted him and started to ride toward her house.

Meanwhile, Shang also woke up because of the sunlight invading his room. It took only a moment for him to remember where he was and why he was there; he tied his hair up again in a bun with a blood red ribbon since it was a bit messy and put his shoes on.

The young Captain quickly put on his elegant armor and his bright-red cape. He went to where he had left Xúe (his stallion); he put the saddle and the reins on his horse and mounted the animal.

He rode across the same road Mulan passed by; by each place he went he asked the villagers if they had saw a woman dressed in a dark-blue gown riding a black horse and where she had gone.

Shang couldn't help but smiled when he rode across a road that was near to a small town full of several large houses and which was beside a wood and a canebrake of bamboos.

"It's hard to believe that she lives so close to where I live and I've never seen her before," Shang said to himself as he turned his forward to keep riding across the road "but now I know that I'll be able to see her again…" That was the city where he lived (well, the city where he lived since he was eleven years old, if you didn't understand read the beginning of the story).

He rode for a few more minutes and arrived at the city that was about five minutes on horseback from the village where Mulan lived (that city we see at the beginning of the movie); he asked for information from a woman who was in front of a fabric store, but this time he felt confident enough to call Mulan by her name.

"Excuse me, lady." Shang asked politely to the woman while holding Mulan's helmet in his hands.

The woman turned around and got a bit surprised to see a military officer in front of her but she answered Shang politely "Do you need any help sir?" The woman asked while folding a fabric.

"Yes madam, do you know a girl named Fa Mulan?" Shang asked politely.

Surprisingly for him, the woman knew "Yes sir and she don't live far from here." She answered.

"And where does she live?" Shang asked.

"In a village that is five minutes away from here on horseback," The woman answered and then, she pointed to the entry portal of that city "go by the road in that direction." She added.

"Thanks madam." Shang thanked as he bowed to the woman; then, he mounted his horse and rode crossing the way the woman indicated.

Meanwhile, Mulan arrived at her village and some people who were walking through the village looked at her surprised; she had been missing for the past two months and now had come back completely different.

But they were surprised in a good way, they seemed to be relieved that she was fine; but Mulan was just hoping that her father would accept her back.

Mulan dismounted Khan and left the horse close to her house's wall but not too, she didn't tie Khan's reins to anything because she knew that Khan would wait for her until she come back to pick him up.

Mulan took a deep breath, laying her hands on Khan's saddle; even though she had received a huge honor from The Emperor itself, she still needed her father's approval.

Mushu and Cri-kee jumped over Khan "Be brave Mulan, I know Fa Zhou missed you very much during each minute you were away from home; the same applies to your mother and grandmother." Mushu said sincerely and wisely.

"You really think so?" Mulan asked raising her eyes.

"We're sure; your family has many reasons to be proud of you." Mushu said and Khan neighed, showing that he agreed with Mushu even though they didn't get along very well.

"Now go, go meet your father again; Cri-kee and I have some personal affairs to solve." Mushu said and then, he climbed the wall with Cri-kee and went to the ancestors' temple.

"Wake up elder ancestor! I have great news to tell and you need to listen!" Mushu screamed excitedly to the most ancient ancestor's tombstone; Cri-kee stood a few meters away from the tombstone just in case.

The ideograms written on the tombstone began to shine and the spirit of an elderly man holding a cane appeared.

Cri-kee got surprised and a bit scared, but then, he got impressed at seeing that amazing scene.

"Oh, it's just you Mushu…" The elder ancestor said with a tone of contempt in his voice.

"Did you miss me?" Mushu asked sarcastically with a confident smile.

"No! All ancestors are waiting for news of the great stone dragon and Mulan!" The elder ancestor replied as he raised his arms and put his face very close to Mushu's.

Mushu turned around with both his arms behind his head "Too bad, because I have news of both." The red guardian dragon answered as he slowly walked toward the temple's entry.

All of sudden, the elder ancestor grabbed Mushu and lifted him in the air.

"Spit it out!" The elder ancestor ordered.

"Well, to begin with, I need to say that that stone statue that you celestial beings call 'guardian' was completely useless." Mushu said almost in a pompous way.

"So even the most powerful guardian couldn't help Mulan…" The elder ancestor said a bit sad.

"He couldn't, but I could and I did!" Mushu said proudly while pointing to himself.

"What do you mean with this?"

"Since the 'great stone dragon' didn't even wake up and became shards when you ordered me to wake him up, I decided to go after Mulan and bring her home on my own."

"You what?!" The elder ancestor asked very angry and pulled Mushu very close to his face.

"Can I explain before you throw me out the window?" Mushu asked with his eyes closed, grinning slightly and it was possible to hear a bit of fear in his voice.

The elder ancestor threw him on the floor, not answering his question but giving him the chance to explain.

"Well, I have an even better idea: instead of hearing my explanation, look out the window and see how I was of great help to Mulan and the honors she received." Mushu said as he pointed to the window from which was possible to see the garden.

The elder ancestor looked suspiciously to Mushu but did what the little guardian said; the ghost had nothing to lose anyway. Mushu stood where he was; he was pretty sure that Mulan would be received with great love by her family.

Meanwhile, Shang was walking through the village, trying to find Mulan's house, but he was feeling a bit uncomfortable to ask for information because everyone was staring at him; he was obviously drawing attention because he was wearing a high-ranking military officer uniform, not to mention the long red cape he was wearing.

As he walked he leaded his horse pulling on his reins with his right hand while holding Mulan's helmet with his left hand; then, he saw a black stallion standing beside a wall. It was Mulan's horse: Khan.

Shang left his beautiful white stallion near to a fence and gently caressed Xúe's forehead "Stay here, I'll come back soon." Shang said tenderly to his horse.

The horse rubbed his face against Shang's, telling without words that he would obey his owner orders.

"Good boy," Shang whispered and walked toward the circular entrance of the wall, where Fa Li and Grandma Fa were.

"If you're asking me, she should have brought home a ma-" Grandma Fa said to Fa Li but she had her phrase interrupted by Shang.

"Excuse me," Shang said nervously, then, Fa Li and Grandma Fa turned around and looked at him.

"Does Fa Mulan live here?" Shang asked timidly.

Fa Li and Grandma Fa stared at Shang very surprised to see a high-rank military officer (very handsome by the way) in front of them; they didn't answer but pointed toward the garden.

Shang thanked the two women and walked toward the garden; Grandma Fa got so amazed with the handsome young military officer that she even considered joining the next war, but Fa Li was still so perplexed that she stood agape for a few seconds more.

"Was what just happened real?" Fa Li asked her mother-in-law while pointing to the garden.

"Yes; impressive don't you think?" Grandma Fa answered with another question.

"Not exactly; unexpected." Fa Li answered and then, the two women of the Fa family looked toward the garden.

"Honorable Fa Zhou," Shang bowed in respect of the war veteran "I…Mulan!" Shang immediately straightened up when he saw the girl he had followed for the past few hours.

Mulan blinked a bit, surprised to see her commanding officer in front of her but her reaction wasn't as clumsy as Shang's.

"Uh…" Shang tried to find the best words to talk with Mulan "You forgot your helmet," Shang handed to Mulan but he remembered it was Fa Zhou's helmet "Ah, wah, well, actually is your helmet, isn't it? I mean…" He couldn't help but stuttered; he had zero experience in emotional matters and his shyness didn't help at all.

Fa Zhou looked at Mulan, indicating to her to take the helmet back; Mulan stepped forward but she did more than take the helmet back.

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Mulan asked as she took the helmet.

Before Shang could answer, Grandma Fa said the most inconvenient sentence in history "Would you like to stay forever?"

Both Mulan and Shang got a bit embarrassed at that comment but they tried to act normally "Dinner would be great." The young Captain answered while grinning.

Mulan handed the helmet to her father and her mother and grandmother approached to them.

"I have to take Khan to the stable. Shang, do you want to take your horse to the stable as well?" Mulan asked.

"Ah…Yes, thanks." Shang answered; then, Mulan and he walked toward the street where the horses were.

Fa Li stood beside Fa Zhou and he placed his hand on his wife's shoulder; the couple and Grandma Fa watched Mulan and Shang walk toward the street.

Fa Zhou smiled slightly as he raised an eyebrow; he had already noticed that Shang had affection for Mulan and somehow, he knew that Mulan corresponded to Shang's feelings.

Fa Li and Grandma Fa were pairing Mulan and Shang as well; much more than Fa Zhou or anyone else.

Mulan took Khan's reins to lead him to the stable but before doing it she waited for Shang to come back and bring his horse with him.

Shang returned bringing his horse with him, leading the animal by his reins.

Shang and his horse followed Mulan and her horse; they went around the wall around the house and entered the gate that led to the back of the house.

They turned left, where the stable was; they removed the saddles and reins from the horses so that the animals could be more comfortable.

Before they walked toward the gate, Mulan turned to Shang "I'll be right back, Shang; I have to go to the ancestors' temple."

"All right, I'll wait for you at the garden." Shang answered and went to the garden.

Mulan walked to the ancestors' temple; while she crossed the bridge over the small stream, she looked at the magnolia petals being carried by the breeze, falling gently over the bridge, giving it a delicate beauty.

As Mulan walked beside the lake, she looked at her image reflected in the lake, didn't even notice that the statue of the great stone dragon was no longer there.

Mulan smiled at bit at the sight of what she had become; she finally looked at her reflection and like what she saw: She finally discovered her vocation, brought honor to her family and mainly…found out who she is.

When Mulan arrived at the ancestors' temple, Mushu fell on the marble steps in front of her; he was celebrating her victory with the spirits of the ancestors.

She thanked Mushu and even kissed his forehead; then all of sudden, little-brother appeared and ran inside the temple, bringing a row of chickens with him.

"Mushu!" The elder ancestor called out to Mushu and a facial expression of "I'm really screwed" appeared on the little dragon's face.

Mulan got very surprised with what she heard; she knew that the guardians were the only beings who could see the ancestors, but she had the impression that she had just heard a ghost's voice.

"Was that what I think it is?" Mulan asked Mushu as she raised an eyebrow.

"Just forget that and don't worry, I have to resolve this little mess. Go back to the garden and celebrate your return with your family; I saw that the 'pretty boy' is here, go talk to him too. I'll take a little while to fix up the things here…"

"Okay…" Mulan answered a bit confused and quickly returned to the garden, where her family and Shang were waiting for her; she decided that it was not worth thinking about that, it was not of her business.

Grandma Fa decided to be inconvenient again, although more subtly this time. What was her big plan this time? Let her granddaughter and the man she just met have a conversation alone.

"I will take a few minutes more to finish making dinner," Grandma Fa said and grabbed her daughter-in-law's hand "let's go dear, I need your help with it."

"Okay grandma." Fa Li answered her mother-in-law and returned to the house with the old woman. She didn't express her thoughts in her facial expression but it was obvious that she understood and acted according to Grandma Fa's plans.

Fa Zhou also acted according to his mother's plan, he smirked a bit and arched an eyebrow as he saw Grandma Fa and Fa Li enter the house.

"Well, I will meditate in the meantime." Fa Zhou said and then, he picked up his cane and walked toward the house.

Mulan and Shang exchanged glances for a few seconds; after all they went through, it was hard for them not to be even slightly uncomfortable with that situation.

Shang turned his face to the left a bit.

"Mulan…"

"Yes?" Mulan asked curiously but also a bit embarrassed.

"I have to say something very important…" Shang said in a serious tone, so Mulan ruled out the possibility that he wanted to declare himself to her (even though he would do that in that moment if he weren't feeling the weight of guilt over his shoulders); instead, she got a little concerned.

"So tell me; after everything we went through, it can't be too bad." Mulan said in a comprehensive voice.

Then, he took a deep breath and looked at Mulan with a slightly sad expression on his face.

"I came to ask your forgiveness."

"What? Why?"

"You should have known more than anyone, I've done a lot of unforgivable things to you in the last few hours and I feel that guilt will never leave my soul completely…"

"Shang, please don't say that, you were just fulfilling your duties."

"Perhaps my duties with the army but not my duties as a friend or someone who has a debt of gratitude. Mulan, I almost killed you when we found out your secret at the Tung Shao Pass, I left you there wounded and at the mercy of the dangers of the mountains, I didn't believe you when you tried to warn me about the Huns and I treated you with contempt and because of my thankless attitude they almost killed The Emperor and I didn't even thanked you after the second time you saved my life… This is way more than unforgivable. I don't know if there's anything I could do to fix the mistakes I made, but as for gratitude, I thank you for saving my life. And again ... I hope you can forgive me."

Mulan hold back tears at those beautiful words Shang said to her; her heart had already forgiven him, and if there was still any wound in it caused by what happened, his words healed it.

"Shang, I forgive you… I had already forgiven your mistakes."

"How? How can you forgive me after all I did to you? Reasons abound for you to hate me. I let my injured ego cover my eyes and if it weren't because you didn't give up on us, many lives would have been lost."

"I would never let anyone die if I could do something to prevent." Mulan said and then, she approached to Shang "Especially the people I lived with for two months and I started calling them friends."

Shang almost smiled but he refused to think he deserved to be forgiven.

He gave a crooked smile "It's ironic how I always said that I hate Chi Fu, but I ended up acting just like the man I loathe so much." Then, he got serious again "And worse of all: with the person once I called friend and my best soldier. Actually Mulan…You're still the best soldier I ever trained."

"Thanks," Mulan said smiling slightly "But answer me: would you happen to have followed me till here if you weren't truly sorry?"

After Mulan's question, Shang didn't know exactly what to say, she just showed him once more how smart, kind and full of surprises she could be.

"No…I think I wouldn't…" Shang said nervously while his eyes were looking down.

"See? That's one of the reasons I forgave you; you followed me all night till here to ask my forgiveness," Mulan said and then, she placed her left hand on Shang's right shoulder "That's the proof that you're really sorry. Besides, forgiveness is not only good for those who receive it, but especially for those who give it; because it removes bad feelings from the soul."

"I think so…But I still don't understand what else I did for you besides coming here to apologize." Shang said and looked at Mulan.

Mulan got a bit serious, she took her hand off Shang and begun to list what he did for her "First: You trained me with mastery and even though you were very stern and picky, this severity of yours made me improve as fast as possible."

Shang felt little less guilty and got able to speak naturally "Well, at the beginning you didn't make it easy for me as well."

Mulan stifled a laugh and returned to list what he did for her "When you found out that I am women, according to the law you should have killed me; I know that for a moment you were going to fulfill your duty but instead, you spared my life though you could have been punished for it."

Shang didn't say anything about what Mulan said this time; the feeling of guilt had just come back to his mind.

"And after we defeated Shan Yu, you stood in front of me and defended me tooth and nail from the offenses that Chi Fu said; I remember clearly how angry you were at him. You even tried to argue with The Emperor." Mulan said gently, she even found it funny when she remembered the moment Shang grabbed Chi Fu by the collar.

Shang smiled a bit but he still felt the weight of the guilt over his shoulders "I think you're right…but if you already forgave me, why do I still feel so guilty?" But Mulan's next words made him realize what he needed to do.

Mulan breathed out a sigh and smiled slightly as she approached to Shang "My forgiveness won't be enough for you Shang; now you must forgive yourself. Only this way you will be at peace with yourself again and eliminate guilt from your soul."

Shang smiled a bit with a slightly thrilled look, "Thanks Mulan, you're always there when I need. I'll do it; I'll move on and try to forget the past."

There was a moment filled with silence between them, but this time they weren't embarrassed or uncomfortable with each other's presence.

Then, Mulan smiled as an idea came to her mind "But y'know, in fact there is something you can do for me…" she said as she turned to Shang.

Shang got surprised and turned to Mulan "What is it then? Just tell me and I'll do it." Shang asked, by his voice he was really willing to do anything.

But Mulan's answer was quite different, instead of speaking, she did something completely unexpected.

Mulan gently threw her arms around Shang's neck, hugging him tightly. Her eyes were closed and she was smiling; she even stood on tiptoe to be almost as tall as him, though it didn't work much.

Shang was very surprised, his arms were open and his hands were static; he didn't expect she would do that and now his heart was beating very fast. But after a few seconds, Mulan moved a bit her arms, indicating him to return the hug; Shang obeyed and wrapped his arms around Mulan's waist.

Mulan kept herself smiling with her eyes closed, but she blushed as she would blush only a month later (those who understood, understood and those who did not understand don't ask me!); to her, feel his arms wrapped around her waist it was almost like heaven.

Shang also found it very good hugging Mulan; his eyes were half closed and he was smiling a bit, luckily (for him) he didn't blush, it would be embarrassing for him if Mulan saw him with a flushed face.

They backed away from each other and looked with an expression of naturalness; Mulan smiled a bit "This was everything I wanted that moment at the Forbidden City."

Shang gave her a crooked smile and put his hand behind his nape "Actually, me too…So…We're friends again?" he asked nervously.

"Yes…" Mulan answered calmly and then, she gave him a challenging look "…Captain!" Mulan added; for her, be able to talk to him without any formality was so much fun.

Both laughed at this comment for a few seconds till that moment was interrupted by an inconvenient old lady.

"Hey! The dinner is ready! Are you two coming or not?" All of sudden Grandma Fa appeared in a window and called them out to come in.

Mulan and Shang just looked to each other for a moment and returned to the house while laughing a bit.

During the dinner, Mulan and Shang talked about what happened during the training days at the camp and the battle; not everything, just the most important moments.

"My condolences for your friend and especially for your father, Captain." Fa Zhou said respectfully.

"Thanks sir, they will be missed…" Shang answered trying to keep impassive but it was possible to hear a bit of sadness in his voice.

Mulan looked at Shang, feeling sorry for him; she joined the war to keep her father safe and managed to, but unfortunately for Shang he couldn't do the same for his father and neither for his friend.

But all of sudden, Fa Zhou said something that no one in that room understood "So Feng really continued serving in the army and became a General…" He said smiling a bit.

"Did you know him sir?" Shang asked surprised.

"Yes, when I was young, I met him at the battle which left me with this injured leg; but if weren't for him instead of getting disabled I would have joined the ancestors." Fa Zhou explained.

"Oh, I remember him! Some years later, he visited our house with his wife and you." Fa Li said as soon as she remembered that day sixteen years before.

"Really? But if you were here once, why don't I remember seeing you before I joined the army?" Mulan asked Shang.

Shang knew the reason because his father had told him about this when he was younger "Well, because none of us was old enough to remember; my father told me that that day, you were just a newborn and I was just a toddler." He answered calmly.

"And you were a very shy little boy who was trying to hide behind your mother at all costs." Grandma Fa commented; showing that despite her old age, she had a good memory.

Shang and Mulan giggled a bit; both thought that was funny, even though the young Captain got a bit embarrassed.

Mulan calmed down to catch her breath "So we've known each other for a long time…"

"Yes, we just didn't remember…" Shang added.

After dinner, Mulan and Shang were at the garden, sat on the bench under the magnolia tree.

The sun was setting on the horizon and the breeze of that evening of early summer was waving the branches and making some petals of the flowers fall.

"Mulan…"

"What?" Mulan asked calmly as she looked at him.

Shang looked down at Mulan "I have to go now." He answered calmly.

Mulan got a bit sad, she wanted to spend a little more time with him, but she knew he must be missing his family.

"I understand; your family must be missing you as well." Mulan said trying to cheer him up, but she just said that and Shang's facial expression turned to a sad one.

"I don't have a family…" Shang answered with difficulty, with a shaky voice.

"What?" Mulan asked confused and a bit shocked.

"My father was the only relative I had; now I'm the only person left in the Li family…" Shang added while looking at the sky.

"Oh my…I'm so sorry Shang." Mulan said trying to comfort Shang.

"Please don't be; I may no longer have relatives, but I have friends who I trust with my life." Shang said smiling slightly as he put one of his hands over Mulan's head, caressing her hair.

Mulan smiled a bit, she knew she was one of those reliable friends.

Shang turned his gaze to the sun setting in the horizon "Besides, I have a maid named Jia at my house that knows me since I was born; she's almost like a second mother to me, or a grandmother." Shang explained with a thrilled look in his face, he was missing Jia after being far from home for so long.

"I'm sure she's a very good woman." Mulan said to Shang while smiling slightly.

"Yes she's…" Shang replied and got up from the bench "well, I need to go now, because before I go back to my house, I must tell Yin's family that he is gone."

"I had forgotten about him, his family will be very sad…" Mulan commented.

"Humph, I'm not so sure. I never heard his parents praise him despite how hard he worked; the few times I saw them, they always treated him with disdain and even so, he was always cheerful and unshakable."

"Well, he had a great friend." Mulan said trying to cheer him up.

It kind worked a bit, he smiled slightly.

Mulan got up from the bench and walked with Shang to the stable.

He put the saddle and reins on his horse, thanked the hospitality of Mulan's family and left to return to his city.

Mulan closed the gate and stood looking at the part of the garden which had the lake, small stream and a bridge.

Fa Zhou appeared beside Mulan, the silence remained between them for a few seconds while they admired at the moonlit place at that summer night.

"When I came here this morning, everything I wished was that you returned home; it didn't matter how."

"Here I am Baba, and you won't lose me again." Mulan answered her father.

"When you left home to join the army, I bitterly regretted saying that to you because I realized…that no honor is more important than my daughter." Fa Zhou said sincerely.

"What matters now is that now I know who I am. And I obtained things that I never imagined I would ever get." Mulan answered her father.

Mulan and Fa Zhou hugged each other for a moment, after a few seconds, they backed away a bit but their arms were still entwined.

"I love you Mulan, you're my first and only daughter. I didn't acted like a father that day, but from now on, I swear that your happiness is above anything for me. I hope you can forgive me…" Fa Zhou told his daughter with a thrilled voice.

"I forgive you Baba…You're my father, and I love you." Mulan answered and a tear streamed from her eye.

They hugged for one more time and after it, Fa Zhou returned home, Mulan stood where she was, looking at the full moon.

Mulan remembered the last time she was at that place and sang out her sadness to her reflection, now, she could only feel happiness, and now she felt like a dignified woman again; it didn't matter if no man wanted to marry her, she was happy.

Mulan begun to slowly walk through that beautiful moonlit place, and begun to sing how she was feeling that moment; with Cri-kee, who was perched on a blade of grass and Mushu, who was at entry of the ancestor's temple as audience.

"Look at me; I'll never pass for a perfect bride

Or a perfect daughter

But I know, that I don't need to play these parts

Now I see

That if I be truly and be myself

I won't break my family's heart…

Who is that girl I see,

Staring straight, back at me?

It's my reflection and now is someone I know

I no longer need to hide

Who I am

Though once I tried…

My reflection to me has shown

Who I am inside!

My reflection to me has shown who I am inside…"

While Mulan sang, Mushu and Cri-kee watched her in silence, but also in awe; finally their friend was happy with whom she is, and she would remain like this forever. The cute cricket and the small red-guardian-dragon even felt tears stream from their eyes.

Meanwhile, a young Captain arrived at a beautiful two-story house, but it wasn't his house, even though it was being located in the same city he lived.

The house was small compared to his, it was painted yellowish white instead of blood-red, it had no garden or yard but there were two ornamental oaks at the left and at right of the house's entrance, there was no wall surrounding the house and the bright-red doors with golden-door-handles gave direct access to the street.

Shang approached to the door, he was about to knock the door but he but he stopped and got reluctant for a few moments. He felt as if the weight of the world was over his shoulders: breaking the news of a young man's death to his family is a task that nobody wants to do, especially if that young man was your best friend…

But even though it was an unfortunate obligation, Shang knew he was the only one who could fulfill it.

So he took a deep breath with his eyes closed to feel ready; he opened his eyes, held one of the golden-door-handles and knocked the door.

Shang backed away a bit from the door as soon as it started to open, already expecting to be badly greeted his late best friend's parents.

And was exactly what happened; the first person to appear at the door was a middle-aged woman who was very short, overweight and had a gray hair with some black locks that was tied up in a high hairstyle.

After her, a middle-aged man appeared at the door; he was a bit taller than the woman but much shorter than Shang. He was thin and his hair was black just like the beard on his face.

They looked at Shang with an expression of contempt "What do you want?" The woman asked annoyed with her arms crossed.

"Honorable Sir and Madam Dai…" Shang begun speaking, but his phrase got interrupted.

"Why are you here and our son is not?" The man asked annoyed, interrupting Shang's phrase "Spit it out!" He ordered harshly.

Shang hung his head down with his eyes closed; Yin's parents still had an expression of contempt and irritation on their faces but now seemed to be a bit concerned.

"He's gone. He died in a Huns' attack at the northern mountains." Shang broke the news to Yin's parents.

Their eyes widened, the woman burst into tears and fell on her knees on the floor while covering her face; the sound of her crying seemed more like an outcry.

"NO! NOT MY SON! Not my son…" The woman repeated these words while crying bitterly. Her husband fell on his knees as well and hugged his wife; though he weren't crying, by his facial expression anyone could say that he was broken inside.

Shang got surprised by the reaction of Yin's parents; they always treated him with disdain, and now were destroyed by his death. But he felt sorry for their sadness, because it reminded him of his father's death; it's just like they say: you never value what you have until the day you lose it.

The young Captain bent down a little, wanting to comfort Yin's parents for their loss; yes, he had no appreciation for them but he knew exactly how they were feeling. He slowly reached out, acting in a purely instinctive way; but all of sudden any action he might have thought of doing was taken out of his mind at Yin's father's sudden reaction.

"GO AWAY!" The man shouted as he slapped Shang's hand "THIS'S ALL YOUR FAULT! I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE EVER AGAIN! GO AWAY!" He brutally added.

Shang frowned at that harsh treatment they gave to him, but he bowed as the polite man he is, mounted his horse and started to ride to return home.

Meanwhile, Jia, the gentle maid with a humble heart and a pure soul was at the house, looking at the horizon through the window with a look on her face that mixed sadness with hope.

She was wearing her black hair with one single gray lock tied in a low bun with one silver chopstick stuck on her bun. She was wearing a dress composed by a light yellow long-sleeved-shirt, a peach-colored bodice with a dark blue sash tied around her waist and long cyan blue skirt.

Jia was looking at the bright full moon, when all of sudden, she started to hear the sound of horse paws galloping, she looked at the horizon (I mean a neighborhood full of big houses and wide streets) and didn't recognized at first what was coming.

She put a hand on her forehead and narrowed her eyes to take a better look, but as soon as the figure on the horizon entered the part of the neighborhood that there were lights outside the houses illuminating the streets, she immediately recognized the person that was returning after being away for two months.

"I can't believe it!" Jia exclaimed happily as she watched her young master ride back to the house.

When Shang arrived at his house, he made his horse kick the gate, literally breaking it open; he couldn't wait another moment to see Jia again.

Jia quickly ran down the stairs holding her skirt to avoid tripping, she ran toward the entrance door as fast as she could, she might be a middle-aged woman but her happiness at that moment was stronger than her age.

"Shang!" Jia cried ecstatic as she opened the entrance door at once and saw the young Captain at that house's garden.

The young Captain got off his horse and ran across the garden toward Jia while smiling broadly.

"Shang!" Jia cried out again as she ran toward Shang, she crossed the bridge that was over an ornamental lake (yes, his house's garden and backyard are very similar to Mulan's. Well I'm not to blame if at that time it was common for houses of wealthy people to have large gardens and ornamental ponds).

As soon as they were less than a meter away from each other, Jia threw herself on Shang, hugging him tightly with her arms wrapped around his neck while Shang's hands were wrapped around her waist; she was crying and laughing loudly of happiness.

"I missed you so much Jia!" Shang exclaimed while laughing of happiness to finally see his maid and friend after being away for so long.

"Me too!" Jia said while tears streamed down her eyes and her hands gripped Shang's cape.

Jia backed away a bit from Shang but her hands were still holding his arms; then, she put her right hand on his face "You are back…Safe and sound…" she muttered as she looked at his eyes with a thrilled look on her eyes and smiling.

Shang was also with a thrilled look on his face "I promised you…" he answered and then, he put his hand over Jia's hand that was touching his face "And I keep my word…"

Jia wiped the tears from her eyes with her left hand and looked back at him "you're still the same…handsome and lovable as always..." She commented and brushed back a lock of hair that had come loose from his bun.

"No Jia…I changed a lot during these days…but I changed for the better…" Shang answered a bit serious but as soon as he finished speaking he returned to smile "I made friends that I trust with my life, and I can say proudly that I trained China's finest troops along with China's greatest hero…" After all, what he said to himself on his first day as a captain came true.

Jia didn't say anything but smiled broadly, proud of the man she knew since he was born. Then, her proud and happy facial expression faded and gave way to a confused one.

She looked at the broken open gate over his shoulder, expecting to see someone else: General Li.

"Shang, where's your father?" Jia asked a bit serious.

The young Captain hung his head down, his facial expression became a very sad one and he squeezed his eyes shut; he used all the forces of his soul to keep from crying, but this time he didn't managed to, he really was very sad about his father's death.

When the tears slowly streamed from his closed eyes, Jia became very concerned; she hadn't seen him cry for the past seven years, something was clearly wrong.

"He's gone; he and Yin died at a Huns' attack at the northern mountains…" Shang answered as he lifted his eyes and looked at Jia.

The middle-aged maid's eyes widened and she covered her mouth with her hands; tears begun to fall from her eyes again, but instead of crying in happiness, now she was crying with sadness.

Jia hung her head down covering her face with her hands, crying silently. Shang gently hugged the maid, caressing her head while looking at the full moon with teary eyes.

"I'll miss your father very much…even that friend of yours…" Jia said lowly while looking at the ground.

"And I'll even more…" Shang answered and looked at Jia "Let's go back to the house; we cannot stay out here…" at this phrase, Jia lifted her eyes and looked at Shang; she nodded and returned to the house.

Shang in turn, led his horse to his house's stable and took off the animal's saddle and the reins; the white stallion seemed to be very sorry for his owner losses.

The young Captain locked the gate and returned to the house. As soon as he closed the door, he turned around and looked at the house for a few seconds; it was weird to come home after so long, but weird in a good way.

Shang looked at the right and saw Jia coming out from the living room, holding a folded blue fabric in her hands.

"What's this?" He asked.

Jia unfolded the fabric, showing that it was actually a long-sleeved blue Hanfu shirt "A gift from your parents…it took a very long time to get finished." She answered and handed the shirt to Shang.

Shang looked really confused at the shirt "From my parents? But…"

Jia interrupted Shang's sentence "I know, but let me explain and you'll understand." She said calmly and smiling slightly.

The middle aged maid and the young Captain walked toward the living room and they sat at the table to talk.

"Now tell me, what do you have to explain to me?" He asked in a serious tone.

Jia took a deep breath and looked at him; she was smiling a bit, even though she was sad.

Flashback.

It was a spring afternoon, a few weeks before you and your father went to the war; I was cleaning the house as always, more specifically, I was sweeping your father room's floor.

When I was near to the wardrobe and accidentally hit the broom handle in a box that was on top of the closet when I raised my arms, stretching myself.

I got the box before it fell on the floor, saving it from breaking or breaking whatever there was inside it. But I got curious and opened the reddish wood box; what I saw was nothing I expected it would be.

It was the blue fabric that this shirt is made of; as soon as I looked at it, I remembered that it took months for Mrs. Wang to weave the fabric and finished a few weeks before she died.

I smiled, remembering the lovely face of Mrs. Wang when she worked using the loom and singed while weaved this fabric. I folded the blue silk and went downstairs to show it to your father, who was sat at the living room's table, reading some scrolls; I do not remember what but they had something to do with a mission he should fulfill.

"Mr. Feng," I called him as I entered the living room and closed the sliding door behind me.

"Jia, you know you shouldn't disturb me when I'm studying." The General said politely to me without take off his eyes from the scroll but it was possible to hear a tone of irritation in his voice.

"I know, sorry; but I guess you'll like to see this." I apologized and insisted him to look at me.

He lifted his eyes and looked at me "What's this?" He asked confused and seemed to be annoyed, as if I had disturbed him for nothing.

I didn't answer with words; instead, I unfolded the fabric and proudly showed him. Your father got very surprised; he got up from the table and walked toward me.

He held a part of the fabric in his hands while looking at it with an astonished look "Where did you find this?" he asked without look at me.

"I found it on top of your bedroom's wardrobe." I answered while looking at the fabric me and him were holding in our hands.

Then, he smiled slightly and his gaze at the fabric softened "My dear Wang…She made it with such care…" He said to himself but didn't matter that I heard since I was right beside him.

"Yes, is so beautiful…" I commented; then, I straightened up "But for what did she weave this fabric?" I asked.

"To make a gift for our son." He answered as he straightened up and looked at me.

I smiled and held each end of the fabric in each hand, stretching it "She sure had a golden heart; with this fabric it will be possible to make a beautiful blue shirt."

He smiled and took the silk from my hands "Something I never told you is that when Wang showed me this fabric when it was still unfinished and said what she was weaving the fabric for, I said the shirt would be too big for him." He told me finding it funny "Then, she said that this would be a gift for Shang when he became an adult." He explained to me.

I smiled and took back the fabric from his hands "She was a wonderful woman and an exemplary mother." I commented as I folded the silk.

"Yes, she was…" He muttered and I looked at him, he was looking down and had an expression of nostalgia in his face.

I took compassion for his pain, "You still miss her a lot, don't you sir?" I asked smiling slightly.

"Yes, she was like the sun of my day…my son is the only thing that brought light back to my life." He answered.

"I can guess why, Shang look so much like her, even though now he's a man from head to toe." I commented.

"But you still love Mrs. Wang after all these years, don't you? Normally other men would remarry not much time after the mourning period." I dared to ask.

"I wouldn't be able to do that, Shang would never forgive me and I want to preserve her memory until the end of my days." He said sincerely.

This phrase of his only gave me one more example of how General Li Feng was a very worthy man "Well, I'll put this back where I found it." I said as I turned around, feeling a bit regretted for taking the conversation to that point.

"No wait," He said as he placed his hand on my shoulder, I turned around and he asked me for something that I consider my last duty to him.

"I want you to sew this fabric and turn it into a shirt; use it to fulfill Wang's will." He told me and all managed to do was nod.

"Yes sir, I'll start right now." I said and when I was about to turn around I felt his hand grip my shoulder slightly, preventing me to go away before he finished speaking.

"And please, keep this as a secret till it's through. Okay?" He asked to me and I obeyed.

I bowed to him in sign of respect and went to my room. Every day I worked hard on it but it was worth; every day since you two went to the war I looked through the window waiting you both to come back.

Although it didn't happened like I wanted to, I'm glad you came back alive and victorious, to perpetuate the existence of the Li family and help to protect our country again.

End flashback.

Jia's eyes were looking at that living room's low ceiling, but actually she was looking at nothing while she explained the whole story to Shang.

When she finished explaining, she looked at her young master who was looking up with an expression of nostalgia in his face while holding the blue shirt in his hands.

"Shang, are you all right?" Jia asked a bit concerned but she thought he was feeling better.

He looked at Jia "No, but I'll be…" Shang answered smiling slightly. Jia smiled a bit; Shang was an adult man, he was able to understand and overcome what happened.

"I'll use this but not now; I'll only wear white this week" Shang said to Jia as he got up from the table and turned around to look at the maid "and so you will." He added pointing to Jia, emphasizing his order.

Note: If you don't know (and probably you don't know), the white color symbolizes mourning in several countries of Asia, like China, Japan, Korea and India.

"Yes, I will…" Jia answered in a low voice as she bowed her head forward in respect.

Shang slowly went up the stairs taking heavy steps, supporting his right hand on the handrail; when he arrived on the second floor, he looked around at the hall with red painted walls and low ceiling made of wood like the floor of the second floor.

There were some candlesticks illuminating the corridor but the place was still a little dark. Shang looked at that place, there were five sliding-doors which gave access to six big rooms, but now only two of them were occupied.

Shang opened the sliding door made of bamboo paper of his room and closed it as soon as he entered the room.

He looked around at the room; he had spent the last two months in a camp, he had even forgotten the feeling of being in a room again.

Shang placed the blue shirt in a wardrobe and slowly closed its doors; then, he walked toward his room's table and looked for a few seconds at the scrolls over the table, just like he had left in the day he went to the war.

All of sudden, Shang frowned, gritted his teeth and clenched his fists "AHHHH!" He shouted fiercely and threw all the scrolls that were on the table beside him on the floor in one single move with his arm.

He got filled with anger, his body acted according to his rage, his sanity in that moment wasn't working cuz what he did was just to vent his sadness.

Shang lifted the low table in the air and threw it on the floor with all his might and rage, breaking it in half instantly. Jia, who was at the beginning of the stairs, heard the sound of Shang destroying his own room. The maid was covering her ears while tears streamed down her closed eyes; and she was already dressed in white.

He stopped to catch his breath for a few seconds; then, he turned around, ran toward the big mirror he had in the room and punched it right in the middle of the mirror. He punched with so much might that the mirror cracked completely.

The young Captain was still in fighting position, with his fists clenched, his legs apart and his knees slightly bent.

He was breathing heavily while catching his breath. All of sudden, he fell on his knees and his facial expression changed from utterly angry to utterly desolate.

Shang grabbed the left sleeve of his shirt and tore it with all his might; his eyes filled with tears, which began to fall on the floor.

He was weeping bitterly, although he hardly made a sound as the tears streamed from his eyes and he wailed. Shang remembered several moments with his father and with Yin; he knew he had to move on and continue his life, but only for a moment he needed to let the pain out; not only the pain for his father's and Yin's death, but for each pain he felt in those seven years of silence.

After a few hours, Jia woke up just to find out that she had fallen sleep face down on the stair. She looked through a window; the sky was still very dark, it was still a few hours before the break of dawn.

The middle aged maid slowly looked around, searching for Shang, but there weren't any sign of him; at least not on the ground floor.

The silence of that place was agonizing, so she got up and went up the stairs to see if her young master was okay, if he hadn't done anything crazy.

Jia took a deep breath with her eyes closed before knocking the door. Then, she opened her eyes and knocked the sliding door three times "He must be sleeping…" she thought since she heard no answer.

Even so, she knocked the door again, a bit rougher this time. But again, there was no answer. Jia got concerned with this continuous silence, so she slowly opened the sliding door; her eyes widened and she didn't believe what she was seeing in front of her eyes.

There were scrolls scattered on the floor, the table was broken in half with splinters of wood where the table had broken and the mirror was shattered, there were broken shard glass on the floor in front of the mirror; Jia stood agape while staring at that scene.

Then, the maid turned her eyes to the bed with a canopy made of reddish wood; as she thought, her master was sleeping, but not exactly as she thought.

Shang was kneeling on the floor with his face and arms resting on the bed. Jia smiled slightly and walked toward Shang, then, she sat beside him and hugged him.

He woke up and slowly opened his eyes; at first Shang got confused feeling that there were two arms wrapped around his shoulders, but he immediately realized that it was Jia, who didn't noticed that he was awake because she was leaning her face against his arm.

Shang smiled a bit; he seemed to be no longer sad, then, he gently stroked her head to make Jia look at him. She looked at Shang, he was smiling, and she didn't expect to see him like that.

"Surprised?" Shang asked ironically.

Jia did get surprised with the way Shang spoke to her "W-Well, I think is impossible to not be…" she said stuttering a bit.

"I know," Shang answered and looked around the room, better saying, the mess "Don't worry; I'll fix everything up, not you." He added calmly as he looked down at her.

The middle aged woman backed away a bit from him "I'm not talking about that; I'm talking about you, you look so…fine…" Jia answered.

"Well," Shang said as he rubbed his eyes with his left hand for a moment, wiping off the dried tears "Vent the pain really makes you feel better." He added tranquilly.

"So you've overcome this?" Jia asked as she crossed her legs.

Shang crossed his arms "No," he answered in a bit serious tone of voice "But I know that I can't stay sad for those who died, I must move on and live my life because that's what they would want if they were alive." He completed.

Jia smiled with a thrilled look on her face and gently put her hand on Shang's face, he placed his hand over Jia's hand "I'm glad; now I can be at peace cuz I know you'll be fine." Jia said sincerely.

"Partly, thanks to you, you are one of the pillars that sustain me." Shang answered.

Jia didn't answer but smiled; then, she straightened up "I want you to tell me each detail of what happened while you were at the Wu Zhong camp and on the battlefield." She explained.

"I'll tell you; every detail." Shang answered calmly.

They spent the rest of the night talking about what happened, with the full moon and the stars lighting up the dark sky of that night.

End of Chapter

I'll say it again, if you just read this chapter, I have to explain that I post the chapters of this story as individual stories because I didn't managed to post as other people would post; heavens know I tried.

So if you want to read the previous chapters, access my account and you'll find the other chapters; so you will understand certain references in this chapter.

Again, I must emphasize that I'm not from a country that speaks English! So don't judge me if there are any mistakes in writing, in popular expressions or in timing of the scenes. Remember, I didn't watch the entire movie in English, take that into account!

Again, I have to make an honorable mention to AJ Garcia cuz her fanfiction "Shang" gave me several inspirations for this chapter.

Stay tuned! The next chapter will be published very soon!