Chapter 58
The Phoenix Army had won a victory. After returning to camp, they beat drums to announce the triumph and sounded their horns in celebration.
The drums shook the heavens, the horns rang straight through the heart. The rousing sound swept across all of Qingzhou City in an instant. The common folk looked up; some were already used to it, while others cheered in delight. Every street and alley seemed alive.
Once the drums and horns fell silent, the other military camps in Qingzhou City began beating their own drums in response; it was the best way to lift morale.
The camps were separated by some distance, so not everyone could come in person to offer congratulations. But these thunderous drums alone were enough to stir spirits and let the city’s people know their army had won again.
Of course, it was also a way to intimidate the enemy.
Li Xiaowei had already sent people to clean up the bodies and was just waiting for the Crow Tribe to bring silver to ransom them back. If the Crow Tribe did not come within three days, the corpses would be burned.
The drums and horns were also a notice to the enemy to come redeem their dead.
That night after returning to camp, Li Xiaowei specially gave Ye Rui and Lu Yihua each a large chicken leg, and even considered putting Ye Rui in charge of a squad so she could choose her own people.
When Ye Rui heard this, she was almost overjoyed. She had never expected that going out to chop wood would actually lead her to the Crow Tribe, earn her military merit, and even give her a chance to rise to squad leader!
Wasn’t her main quest almost complete now!
Fate really was strange; just when she had been at her wit’s end, an opportunity had come along. And once again she felt the truth of the saying that opportunities favor the prepared.
Ye Rui dealt with one sister after another who came over to greet her. Once she finally got through them all, she happily tucked into the tender, juicy chicken leg. Since coming to the camp, she had never gone hungry, but the food was not especially good either. Grain was precious in the military camp, after all, so getting to eat such a large chicken leg was a first.
It still wasn’t time for the monthly rest day. When the next one came, she absolutely had to drag Lu Yihua into the city for a proper meal. Qingzhou City was not the Capital City, but precisely because it sat on the border, some of the dishes in its taverns carried the flavors of the barbarian tribes. Ye Rui very much wanted to try them.
The silver notes she had brought with her were not kept on her person, but deposited in a bank. After all, there was nowhere secure to hide money in the military camp. If even banknotes could not be safely tucked away, then Ye Rui was truly curious how Pang Niu managed every time to sneak some steamed buns out of the mess hall and hide them, only to divide them among everyone at night.
Two days later, the Crow Tribe’s young chieftain came personally to ransom the bodies. Like the other Crow people, he was tall and broad-shouldered, covered in tattoos, with a little braid tied at the back and a full beard. His bearing was like that of a lion; Ye Rui could not make out his age at all, only that he had an extraordinary presence.
Today, Li Xiaowei had deliberately brought Ye Rui here to Flaming Phoenix Forest so Ye Rui could see for herself how corpses were exchanged after a battle. Great Yan and the barbarian tribes were enemies, yes, but the Crow people had never humiliated the Phoenix Army’s dead. Likewise, the Phoenix Army would not humiliate theirs. So long as the Crow Tribe came to ransom them, all the bodies would be returned in full.
The two sides conducted the exchange in an open clearing in Flaming Phoenix Forest. Li Xiaowei brought a hundred-odd people, and there were also archers hidden in the shadows in case the Crow Tribe tried anything.
The Crow Tribe’s young chieftain was called Tasin. He walked at the front of the group, with a hundred-odd men behind him, pushing dozens of carts forward; two of the carts each carried two large wooden chests. The people behind him were also leading dozens of cattle and sheep. These were all bargaining chips for the exchange.
The Crow people dead this time numbered nearly two hundred, making it one of the more significant exchanges between the two sides.
Tasin opened the wooden chests. Three of them held dried meat and some provisions, while the remaining chest contained crystals and silver produced by the Crow Tribe.
Li Xiaowei was named Li Yan. She was already forty, tall and slim, and skilled with a silver spear. Her silver armor gleamed brilliantly in the sunlight. Standing at the head of the formation, she cast a single glance at the items in the chests and then at the dozens of cattle and sheep being led over, and nodded with satisfaction.
Li Yan made a gesture, and several female soldiers pushed the carts carrying the corpses forward, stopping them in the space between the two sides.
Tasin said something in the Crow language, and several people went to count the bodies. Ye Rui could only see grief and resentment on their faces, but they never did anything out of line. They turned over each corpse to confirm its identity, and when they saw the familiar faces from before, sorrow welled up uncontrollably, their eyes growing red.
For each body they counted, they carefully covered the head with a white cloth. Then they folded their hands together and murmured something, as if offering a final farewell.
According to Pang Niu, the Crow people believed in life after death and believed that the corpse was the final dignity of a human being. Even when they killed someone, they would not trample the body.
If the Phoenix Army did not come within three days to ransom the dead, then they would burn the bodies; the Phoenix Army did the same according to their customs.
Once the count was finished, they carried the corpses one by one onto their empty carts.
The lands the barbarians lived in were poor in resources and relatively barren. They survived mainly by herding, and most were nomadic peoples. The Crow Tribe did have some crystal mines, and those crystals were used to forge weapons. But now they could only be used as chips to ransom the dead.
Because resources were so scarce, the barbarian tribes kept invading Great Yan. The barbarians in Nan Zhenchuan had even joined forces with the Liang Kingdom to attack Great Yan, all of it naturally for Great Yan’s fertile land.
From start to finish, neither side said a single word, yet they somehow cooperated with perfect understanding to complete the entire exchange. Tasin’s eyes shone like torches as he looked at Ye Rui, locking onto her like a hawk on prey. Ye Rui felt a chill run down her spine.
Had he recognized her as the one who had shot from the shadows?
Impossible!
“You’re good.”
Tasin spoke in Great Yan’s language, staring straight at Ye Rui. Ye Rui stiffened, then glared right back. Neither of them gave an inch until Tasin finally looked away.
Tasin then glanced at Li Yan, turned, and left with the fallen warriors. Watching the Crow people’s retreating backs, Ye Rui suddenly felt a little afraid. Would there come a day when she would be just like Tasin, pushing the bodies of her sisters home?
This was the battlefield; cruel and merciless. Glory was always accompanied by loss. The good sisters beside you could die at any moment on the field.
Everyone had that awareness.
Only then did Ye Rui truly feel the cruelty of the battlefield, through the Crow people’s farewell to their own kin.
It was a silent farewell; before even grief could catch up, it was already over.
On the battlefield, death was not the most terrifying thing. The most terrifying thing was that you had to live on, collect the bodies of the people who had once laughed and cried beside you, inherit their will, and keep living; keep fighting.
Ye Rui’s heart tightened again and again. Her gaze swept over the sisters who slept in the same tent as her.
Was she now able to face this kind of parting? Had she already gained that sort of resolve?
**
It was already spring. To welcome the new year, every household in the Capital City had begun decorating. Red paper cuttings were pasted on doorways; shops were already selling New Year goods. Smoke from cooking fires rose everywhere, and the whole market district was crowded to the point of overflow.
Beichenfang was like this. Looking from afar, one could only see dense, packed crowds: voices haggling, voices calling out wares, voices discussing everything under the sun. The whole place was brimming with life.
Li Yun sat in a teahouse by the roadside and looked at the empty seat beside her, unable to help sighing.
That person had left just like that, without a single word. She had taken nothing with her; even the guard uniform from the Xie residence was still left behind, as though she wanted to cut off every last connection to the Xie household.
Then what about her? They had promised to spend the New Year together and watch the fireworks in the Capital City. That person really had no sense of trustworthiness at all!
Li Yun tightened her grip on the cup, then tilted her head back and drank it down. About a quarter of an hour later, she saw Ri Xi come out of the overcrowded clothing shop. She hurried forward to help Ri Xi with the heavier things and asked, “Lady Ri Xi, have you bought everything?”
“Not yet. We need to look through a few more shops. Everyone should make themselves some new clothes to welcome the new year.”
Ri Xi curved her lips in a smile, then went into two more ready-made clothing shops. For some reason, whenever she chose clothes, she always thought of Ye Rui and wanted to buy a few sets of new clothes for her, then watch her smile sweetly and say, “Ri Xi is so nice.”
It was the New Year reunion. Would Ye Rui really not come back and take a look?
No. Ri Xi lowered her head with a bitter smile and suddenly felt foolish. She had left so decisively, taking nothing with her, and now there was no news at all. How could she possibly come back?
She had been determined to leave.
In the end... the Xie residence owed her.
Li Yun was also in the clothing shop, staring all the while at a dark green fitted outfit. She remembered that Ye Rui had a dark green crossed-collar robe; when she wore it, she looked sharp and spirited, very beautiful.
Bah! Why did I think of her again?
The two of them each had their own thoughts, but they still picked out their clothes and prepared to head back to the residence. On the way, they heard passersby talking about the Helian family. Something had happened to the Helian family again. Their second son seemed to be the one who had informed on them to the court, causing Helian Ying’s death, and the Emperor very much approved of his righteous act of turning on his own family.
Out in public, the Helian family seemed to have gained the Emperor’s favor again; but word was that Helian Yong was not having a good time. On the surface, the family remained polite and harmonious, but behind closed doors Helian Chi had beaten Helian Yong and taken back all his shops in the Capital City, causing him to lose quite a bit of income.
There were even rumors that Helian Chi had broken Helian Yong’s leg, but claimed instead that Helian Yong had slipped and fallen inside the residence. By now, Helian Yong still had not been able to get out of bed.
After returning to the residence, once Ri Xi had put away all the items, she went to Xie Tinglan’s study and told Xie Tinglan everything she had heard in Beichenfang.
“Oh? Only a broken leg? Since when did that old fox, Helian Chi, become so merciful?”
Xie Tinglan did not believe the saying that a tiger does not devour its cubs. She knew all too well how she had clawed her way up step by step, and how many wounds her own blood kin had left on her. She remembered each and every one of them.
“It seems I’ll have to add more fuel to the fire and make Helian Yong completely fall out with Helian Chi. Only then will the killing intent truly rise.”
Xie Tinglan set down her wolf-hair brush and lifted her eyes to Ri Xi. After hesitating for a few breaths, she asked, “Still no news of her?”
“None.”
Ri Xi also looked disappointed. They had used all the secret posts in the various cities and still could not find any trace of Ye Rui. It was truly baffling. Still, the Xie residence was not without good news. At the very least, Xie Tinglan’s body was getting better by the day; that was a tremendous blessing.
If Ye Rui knew, she would surely be happy too. The Yama Flower she had exchanged for had now borne fruit.
Xie Tinglan would no longer have to suffer from the cold poison.
After all these years, this was the first time Ri Xi had seen color in Xie Tinglan’s face during winter.
Before this, Xie Tinglan had gone to see Mu Xue several times, but Mu Xue refused to meet her and said that if she was asking after Ye Rui’s whereabouts, then she absolutely would not tell Xie Tinglan, so there was no need for her to waste her effort.
Still, Xie Tinglan would not give up; she went several more times, and the result was, of course, a fruitless return each time.
“Let’s focus on the Capital City for now. After this incident, the other noble families are probably all itching to act, to kick someone while they’re down—especially the Zhongshan Prince.”
Ri Xi listened and asked in confusion, “My lord, aren’t the Zhongshan Prince and the Helian family on the same side?”
“Ri Xi, where in this world are there any eternal friends, especially not ones bound together by interests alone.”
Ri Xi nodded to show she understood, then asked, “My lord, when spring arrives, the martial world will hold a tournament. The Chaoyang sect will also take part. Do you have any instructions?”
Xie Tinglan thought it over and said, “As for matters in the martial world, I’m not involved much. You’ll have to ask that one.”
Now that the Helian family had shown weakness, everyone would certainly think that the childless Helian Shaohua was about to lose even more of her status. But in the Emperor’s eyes, that only made it easier for him to control the various great families. He never wanted the powerful clans to keep nibbling away at his imperial authority.
Of course, it was also a fact that by dealing with her own family, she had damaged her own prestige. It was just impossible to know what she would have to endure inside the palace.
Would some fool provoke that Shura?
**
On ordinary days, people came to pay their respects in Golden Phoenix Palace every day. But after the incident of Helian Ying’s embezzlement and execution, Helian Chi once again claimed illness and did not attend court. Both the main and collateral branches of the Helian family were suppressed in the imperial court, and Helian Shaohua was dragged down with them.
The Emperor had not come for ten days already. Whatever being devoted as swallows to a single nest, whatever being in perfect harmony like phoenixes and lutes; now it all sounded like a joke.
Helian Shaohua did not mind. She had long known this day would come. She spent her days reading in the palace and occasionally went to Rizhao Temple to offer incense, living quite leisurely.
Helian Shaohua knew someone would definitely come to stir up trouble in Golden Phoenix Palace, especially the daughters of a few ministers who had coveted the Empress’s position for a long time. Now that she had fallen from favor and the Emperor’s attitude was so ambiguous, they would certainly believe there was an opening to exploit.
Helian Shaohua knew the Emperor was doing this precisely to let some restless consorts cause trouble. By then, he would probably stand on her side, condemn the troublesome consorts, and thereby weaken the arrogance of those ministers and keep them in check.
His imperial tactics were indeed learned well.
However, after counting everything, Helian Shaohua still had not anticipated the ambitions of those consorts.
When the Emperor stormed into Golden Phoenix Palace, Helian Shaohua was practicing calligraphy. Hearing the trembling voice of Zhao Shenggong, she immediately sensed something was wrong; even the ink on her brush smeared into a small blot.
She exchanged a glance with Shen Zhuiying, her brows knitting slightly. In a low voice, she said, “There may be trouble.”
Shen Zhuiying’s gaze also changed. She followed Helian Shaohua to the main hall to receive the Yuan Emperor. Unexpectedly, before either of them had even knelt, they were stunned in place by a single sentence from the Yuan Emperor.
“Shaohua! How dare you poison my imperial heir!”
Poison his imperial heir? Helian Shaohua lifted her head slightly and looked at the woman beside the Yuan Emperor, crying with pear blossoms in the rain. Li Fei; the daughter of the Minister of Justice. She had only announced her pregnancy a month ago, and today she had already come to hold her accountable.
This woman was ambitious beyond measure. With her stunning looks and coquettish methods, she had become consort faster than anyone else. Every time she came to pay her respects, her eyes carried a cold glint. Helian Shaohua had long known she would be a disaster if left in the harem. It was just that she had recently been busy suppressing the Helian family and had no interest in harem affairs, so this woman had come to trouble her first.
Helian Shaohua’s expression remained calm, though her brows were faintly furrowed as she asked in confusion, “I have not done such a thing. I do not know what Your Majesty means.”
The Yuan Emperor lowered his eyes to look at Helian Shaohua. When the two of them met gaze to gaze, Li Fei half-knelt and cried out, “Your Majesty, you must uphold justice for this consort!”
Justice?
Helian Shaohua nearly laughed. There was no such thing as justice in this palace.
“This consort knows nothing of this matter. I beg Your Majesty to tell me what has happened.”
Helian Shaohua did not panic at all. She kept staring straight at the Emperor. That stubborn look was just like it had been in her youth, and for an instant the Yuan Emperor actually felt a little dazed.
But now he was the Emperor, the Son of Heaven; how could he possibly tolerate someone looking at him like that, much less the person who had shared his bed for more than ten years.
At that moment, the guards dragged in an elderly maidservant from Golden Phoenix Palace. Her back, buttocks, and thighs were already a bloody mess; she could barely breathe, let alone speak.
Helian Shaohua looked once and immediately understood.
But how exactly had Li Fei framed her? Or rather, how had she bought off an old maidservant who had served in her own palace for ten years?
That was really rather interesting.
“She is a maidservant from your palace. The pastries sent to Mingyu Palace clearly contained abortifacient ziduosan; the imperial kitchen also said those pastries were ordered by the Empress to be delivered to Mingyu Palace. Fortunately, Li Fei did not eat them, or else the imperial heir would have been lost. What else do you have to argue?”
Hearing this, Helian Shaohua understood. While she had been too busy to manage the harem, some people had already infiltrated her own ranks.
Quite capable.
“Since Your Majesty believes whatever I say would only be sophistry, then I have nothing more to say. The clear will remain clear. Even if Your Majesty wishes to execute me, I will die with a clean conscience.”
Every word Helian Shaohua spoke was crisp and forceful. Setting aside the fact that she had not done it, even if she had, she still had the ability to clear her name; it would just be more troublesome.
Seeing that Helian Shaohua showed no intention of yielding, the Yuan Emperor’s anger surged as well. “Shaohua, even if you cannot bear my imperial heir for me, I have always treated you as before. How could you be so vicious?”
At that, Helian Shaohua’s expression remained calm, but the fingers hidden in her sleeve had already dug deeply into her flesh, nearly drawing blood. She gritted out, “So Your Majesty thinks this consort is such a vicious person. Then I have nothing to say.”
The Yuan Emperor was silent for a long time. After his chest rose and fell heavily twice, he said, “The Empress is confined to Golden Phoenix Palace. No one is permitted to visit!”
With that, the Emperor turned and left. The half-dead maidservant was dragged away, leaving a streak of blood on the ground. Li Fei only glanced back at Helian Shaohua, her eyes flashing with smug satisfaction. These people had come in full force and left in a grand procession; in an instant, Golden Phoenix Palace was cold and quiet again.
The days ahead would probably be even lonelier.
Shen Zhuiying helped Helian Shaohua up and asked worriedly, “Your Majesty, are you all right?”
“This palace is fine.”
Helian Shaohua gave a cold laugh. Looking at the towering palace walls and the wide-open vermilion gate, a dark look entered her eyes as she said, “Vicious?”
“Yan Mu, on this point, you really did not misunderstand.”
TL Note:
being devoted as swallows to a single nest, phoenixes and lutes (鹣鲽情深，鸾凤和鸣) = stock phrases for a loving, harmonious married couple.
pear blossoms in the rain (梨花带雨) = crying prettily, with tears streaming down the face.