“We need to talk,” Hok said.
“I have nothing to say to you,” Ying replied.
“You've just been through a lot,” Hok said. “Let me help you.”
Ying didn't respond.
“The pet vendor said that your mother lives at the end of the Grand Canal,” Hok said. “Let's go there.”
“What makes you think I want to see her?”
“I would want to see my mother.”
“I thought you came on this trip to help Seh.”
“I did, but I don't think Seh will be any worse off if I wait a few extra weeks, or even longer, to begin giving him powdered dragon bone as a treatment. Let me help you first.”
Ying noticed that his hands were still shaking. He curled back his upper lip, angry that Hok was pushing him and upset that she was seeing him like this. “Why do you keep wanting to help me? Don't say that's just what people do. I don't buy it.”
“People should help one another,” Hok said, “and you obviously could use some help. It's that simple. You can accept my words or disregard them. Believe what you want to believe. That's what you're going to do, anyway.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“You've never listened to anyone, no matter how good the advice.”
“That's because most people are stupid.”
Hok stared, unblinking, at him. “You are very clever, Ying. No one will deny that. However, just because you are smarter than most people does not mean that most people are stupid.”
“Leave me alone.”
“No.”
Ying took another bite of his dinner bun. “I hate you,” he mumbled.
“I realize that. After all, you tried to kill me and the others,” Hok said matter-of-factly. “Oddly enough, I never understood why it is you hate us so much.”
“Because you were spoiled rotten,” Ying said.
“You wanted to kill us because you were jealous of us?”
“That's not what I said.”
“Yes, it is.”
“Grandmaster treated all of you differently than me,” Ying said. “He treated you differently, even though you were no more special than I was. In fact, I'm better at kung fu than any of you. I worked harder than any of you. I went on a mission for Grandmaster, and I never received any recognition for it. I even lost my best friend on that mission. It was so … unfair.”
“Sounds like jealousy to me.”
Ying spat and glared at Hok, but she wouldn't let it go.
“I had no control over how Grandmaster treated you,” Hok said. “Neither did any of the others. For you to take it out on us, that's unfair.”
“You could have stood up for me,” Ying said.
“How do you know that I didn't?”
“Don't be ridiculous,” Ying said. “I never heard you utter a single word in my defense.”
“That doesn't mean that I remained silent. I stood up for you many times.”
“Give me one example.”
“Remember the time I spent an entire week scrubbing the floor of every building within the Cangzhen compound? I distinctly remember you mocking me for days.”
Ying thought back. “Yes, I suppose I do.”
“Do you remember what you did the day before I started scrubbing?”
“No, I … wait a moment, yes,” Ying said. “Grandmaster made a big fuss about me hiding down in the escape tunnels. It was the first time Fu had woken me. I attacked Fu.”
“That's right,” Hok said. “I told Grandmaster that Fu should never have done that. Everyone knows how you react when you're woken without warning, including Fu. I told Grandmaster that punishing you was unfair. You weren't bothering anyone by going into the tunnel. Fu was bothering you.”
Ying stared at Hok, dumbfounded. “You said that to Grandmaster? How did he respond?”
“He got really angry at me, of course. He told me I was the one who should mind her own business. Scrubbing the floors was my punishment.”
“How come you never told me this?”
“What difference would it have made?”
“A lot. I would have known that you were on my side.”
“So, if a person is not openly fighting for you, then he or she is against you?” Hok asked.
“I … I don't know,” Ying said.
“I think you do know,” Hok said. “You need to rethink how you think everybody else thinks. For someone so smart, you sure can be stupid. Most people are neither for you nor against you. They have too many other things to worry about in their own lives. They don't have time to spend wondering about your situation. Don't flatter yourself so much.”