Chapter 3: Getting An Inch
In the year the news of Prince Zhangwu’s death arrived, she was twenty-five years old, with more than two thousand troops under her command, backed by the endless Yan Mountain Range. She occupied Changping County in Yan Prefecture of Youzhou.
Bandits pass like a comb, soldiers pass like a lice comb, officials pass like a razor. This is the true portrayal in chaotic times.
The world was in chaos and disorder, bandits were everywhere, and people eating people was no longer a metaphor, but a vivid human tragedy.
The Pei Family Army had fierce combat power, strict military discipline, cherished the common people, and had a far-reaching reputation. Refugees continuously poured into Changping County. This female general saw her elite soldiers rapidly grow to ten thousand under her command, standing out uniquely among the various rebel armies, with a resounding reputation.
The Zhang Clan of Bohai sent people to recruit her, but she resolutely refused. The Zhang Clan felt wary in their hearts and sent troops to annihilate her, but she personally led troops and killed them until they discarded their helmets and armor, fleeing in a disheveled state.
She won a victory, but died under the betrayal of her confidant and a cold arrow.
Speaking of it, she wasn’t much stronger than Prince Zhangwu.
“His Highness the Prince has come to see us off; the Pei Clan is endlessly grateful.” Pei Qinghe looked at Prince Zhangwu, her voice slow and clear: “The women, children, old, and young of the Pei Clan are being exiled to Youzhou, a distant journey, and the north is cold. We lack clothing and food, and also medicinal materials. We beg His Highness the Prince to lend a
Prince Zhangwu: “……”
Prince Zhangwu was stunned and subconsciously turned his head to look at Pang Long.
Pang Long frowned inwardly.
This Sixth Sister Pei is truly clueless. Making such a request in front of so many people!
Fine then, for the sake of the Eastern Palace’s reputation, we’ll see it through to the end.
Pang Long quickly picked up the conversation: “This matter is easy to handle. This minister will immediately send someone to the nearby county town to prepare cotton clothes and dry rations, and also send someone to invite a doctor and prepare a cart of medicinal materials.”
Prince Zhangwu smiled mildly and elegantly at Pei Qinghe: “Grand Tutor Pang’s words, Sixth Sister Pei should have heard them too.”
Pei Qinghe cupped her hands: “Many thanks to His Highness the Prince. There is one more matter. Among the fifty soldiers escorting us, our Pei Family old and young are either elderly or young, or delicate womenfolk. On the road to exile, if we encounter ruthless villains who cannot see the situation clearly and bully us, I’m afraid we would be calling to heaven with no response and calling to earth with no answer.”
“Please have His Highness the Prince dispatch personnel to accompany us and escort us safely to Youzhou.”
Everyone: “……”
Even Madam Lu, whose mind was muddled, was stimulated into clarity. She trembled as she rose and urgently scolded, “Sixth Sister Pei, do not speak nonsense!”
Demanding cotton clothes, grain, and medicinal materials was already excessive. Now they even demand guards, which is truly taking advantage.
Madam Feng also had no time to wipe her tears. She hurriedly got up, wanting to pull Pei Qinghe down to kneel and beg forgiveness.
Madam Feng’s stance immediately drew everyone’s attention.
Madam Feng was born with a gentle and beautiful appearance, twenty-nine years old this year, precisely the time when a woman is like a flower in full bloom. With the Pei Clan in dire straits, her husband dead in tragedy, Madam Feng wore a suit of white clothes, her eyes red and swollen, her expression mournful and touching, which only enhanced her graceful charm.
Not to mention villains without eyes, even normal men with eyes couldn’t help but take an extra glance.
Besides Madam Feng, there were also some young women with beautiful appearances among the kneeling womenfolk. With no one to provide protection, the escort officers harbored evil intentions, which was indeed a big trouble.
The Prince Zhangwu, this young man, felt his heart soften involuntarily. He turned to look at Pang Long: “Grand Tutor Pang, send some personnel to escort the Pei Family womenfolk to Youzhou!”
Grand Tutor Pang, this officialdom veteran, had a much harder heart and immediately wanted to refuse.
Sixth Sister Pei’s voice rang out again: “My eldest uncle served as Palace Secretary of the Eastern Palace for eight years and has a colleague’s friendship with Grand Tutor Pang. Grand Tutor Pang is kind-hearted and certainly will not stand idly by and do nothing to the Pei Family womenfolk.”
“If Great Uncle were aware in the netherworld, he would also feel grateful for Grand Tutor Pang’s helping hand.”
Not even willing to extend a hand to protect colleagues’ orphaned children—can that even be called human?
With such a big hat buckled down, Grand Tutor Pang couldn’t even utter a word of refusal.
Grand Tutor Pang glanced at the sharp-tongued Pei Qinghe, feeling a bit of a headache, but still had to show a grieved and pitying expression on his face: “It is I who was inconsiderate; I hadn’t thought of the matter of protection before.”
“His Highness the Prince may send a few men to escort the Pei Family Womenfolk to Youzhou.”
Grand Tutor Pang feared Pei Qinghe would make even more excessive demands, and immediately added: “This minister will go find Escort Officer Captain Sun again and ask him to take care of it.”
The number of people was a bit few.
However, with these few guards accompanying them, they could wave the Eastern Palace banner and deter petty villains with ill intentions.
Pei Qinghe cupped her hands again: “Many thanks to His Highness the Prince, thanks to Grand Tutor Pang.”
She then let out a long sigh: “Once we arrive in Youzhou, we are just a bunch of old and weak women and children; in the end, we still have to rely on ourselves.”
“I hear the weather there is cold, bandits run rampant, Xiongnu and Xianbei often raid for grain and supplies, and human lives are like weeds. As long as we live one day, we will pray for blessings for Crown Prince and His Highness the Prince one day. We hope the heavens will protect the Eastern Palace and also protect the Pei Family Old and Young.”
Madam Lu and Madam Feng shed tears streaming down.
The women and children kneeling on the ground were overcome with grief and cried as one.
Prince Zhangwu could read and was skilled at writing poetry; he was filial, fraternal, respectful, and obedient. In his fourteen years of life, he had never encountered such a thorny situation and was at a loss for a moment.
Several Eastern Palace subordinate officials exchanged glances, inwardly thinking things had gone wrong.
This Sixth Sister Pei was not old in years yet truly difficult to deal with. Leaving aside cotton clothes, grain, and medicinal materials, now there were even Eastern Palace Guards, and she was now scheming for Eastern Palace protection in Youzhou…
Seeing the young, inexperienced, and tender-faced His Highness the Prince in a dilemma, the group of Eastern Palace subordinate officials wanted to remind him but couldn’t speak up.
The Pei Family was already miserable enough, left with just this bunch of old and weak women and children; without a backer, how could they survive in that man-eats-man place like Youzhou?
Amid the miserable cries, the thirteen-year-old Sixth Sister Pei straightened her back, pursed her lips, appearing stubborn yet tragic: “His Highness the Prince need not worry about us. I have practiced martial arts and archery since young; even grown men are not my match. Whoever dares come to bully us, I will fight them to the death.”
Even an iron-hearted person couldn’t withstand such a scene.
Prince Zhangwu’s eyes reddened, and in an impulse, he took out a round iron token from his sleeve: “This is the Eastern Palace token. Once in Youzhou, if you
Grand Tutor Pang’s vision went black, and he hurriedly cried out: “Your Highness, no!”
Tokens like this one—there are only four in the entire Eastern Palace. One is in the Crown Prince’s hands, the other two are respectively in the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince’s and the Eastern Palace Guard Commander’s hands. The last one, the Crown Prince gave to Prince Zhangwu.
With this Eastern Palace token, one can command and direct the civil and military officials loyal to the Eastern Palace.
Such an important thing must never fall into the hands of a young girl.
Only then did Prince Zhangwu realize that his behavior was inappropriate; the hand he had extended was neither retractable nor withdrawable, leaving him quite embarrassed.
Pei Qinghe did not reach out to take the token. She said to Prince Zhangwu, who showed some regret in his expression, “Your Highness’s kind intentions are too much for us to accept. The Eastern Palace token is too precious; please take it back.”
“I only ask Your Highness to write a letter to the County Magistrate of Changping County in Yan Prefecture of Youzhou, to look after us a little.”
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