Chapter 101 - Nightmare

Feng Xuan opened her eyes only saw darkness. After having nightmares for the past few weeks, she already knew when she was already in one. It felt weird to feel her own body moving and yet all decisions were not up to her.

She heard something crackling behind her, the heat hovering at her backside. She turned and saw a burning shack. The wood was collapsing and the flames threatened to lick the leaves of the trees. She raised her hand to cover her nose as the smoke rose up to the sky.

She found a cut along her arm, dripping rich red blood. What happened? she asked in her head. Where am I?

Feng Xuan was no stranger to dreams, she knew that most of them happened in places she had been and have the capacity to transport her to another country if it would want. But she had never seen this place before. She was never the outdoorsy type and was sure had never hiked a hill in her life. So why was she in a forest?

She heard a scream and turned. Her eyes were wide, straining against the silhouettes of the tress and the branches that seemed to want to take hold of her. She saw no one but the screams continued, it seemed to have come from everywhere but finally, it focused on one part of the forest.

Feng Xuan decided to follow the sound, each of her step getting faster until she was sprinting, the screams getting louder and louder as she drew closer to it.

Finally she saw a house, much bigger than the shack she had been in. Her ankles felt sore, her toes felt like it would fall off. But there she was, heaving. The screams stopped for a second before it started again.

"Mom," she whispered. It was her mom's voice.

She began to run, jumping over the thick roots of trees, tripping multiple times—almost falling on her face but she caught herself every time. The screams continued but she didn't get closer to the house.

The forest was stretching in front of her like an endless marathon. Her lungs burned, her heart felt like it would burst any second, her brain was palpitating in her skull. Her foot made a stepped on something and she was on the ground unable to pull herself back up.

The screams continued in her head but the roots held her down, curling against her arms and legs. "Mom," she tried to say but the root circled her throat. Her vision blurred, her breathing slowed—she was dying… she was dying…

**

Feng Xuan bolted upright from the bed, clutching her chest. The beat of her heart was loud under her palms, her lungs were begging for huge breaths.

Her soul almost jumped from her body when she felt fingers closed on her elbow. "Qing Chen," she sighed in relief when he got up too. 

"Bad dream?"

Feng Xuan let out a chuckle, erasing the fear in her mind. "Nightmare," she answered. "I seem to be getting it recently. Wild."

It was still dark outside and Qing Chen's voice was low and husky when he spoke again. "What happened? Do you want to talk about it?"

Feng Xuan dropped to the bed. Her eyes wanted to close and get back to her slumber, but here she was again, afraid to fall asleep for more nightmares. She ran a hand through her hair. "It was about my mom again. I did not see her, but I hear her screaming but I could not get to her. There was a forest and I was running…" she bit her lips, trying to recollect. "Then I tripped and the ground swallowed me."

Qing Chen laid down next to her and caressed her cheek. "You are remembering your mother more than usual," he said. "I think she misses you."

Feng Xuan turned to her side. "Yeah, I think she does."

"We should pay her a visit."

"Yeah," Feng Xuan smiled. "I think we should."

**

The following morning, Qing Chen had immediately called Feng Lizhao regarding Feng Xuan's new dream and their plans of visiting the mother. Qing Chen stayed in the bedroom, pacing while Feng Xuan was cooking downstairs.

"Hmm," Feng Lizhao said, "her memories are really coming back in pieces then. It seems to go chronologically, no? It would not take her long to get to the end of that story."

Qing Chen swallowed. "Do you really think she's going to believe the dreams she's having? Right now, she thinks they are nightmares."

"The decision remains to be on her body," Feng Lizhao said. "It is only giving her what it could take. I am honestly anxious on what she would make out of her dreams."

"So am I, sir," he said, rubbing his forehead. "There is a chance that she will remain the same."

"Yes, there is that," Feng Lizhao answered. "But there is the other thing too—when she regains her memory. We have to talk about that." Feng Lizhao sighed. "If she decides to leave, would you let her?"

Qing Chen's mind automatically recalled when his father-in-law had warned him multiple times about telling Feng Xuan the truth and the possibility of losing her. Thinking about it now, Qing Chen just want to wrap her in a protective armor and prevent her from learning everything. But Feng Xuan deserved to know the truth, to be herself truly. "When it comes to that," he said. "I know I would not be able to stop her anyway."

Feng Lizhao chuckled despite himself. "Yeah, you won't. Neither can I. The only thing we could do if she wished to leave is to let her go."

Qing Chen stopped pacing. "What if she does not have to leave?"

"What do you mean?"

"What if we would bring what she would be looking for in Chengshi?"

**

Unexpectedly, it would be Senator Chang Yan who would play the key role with Feng Xuan's reawakening.