Chapter 84: Colluding with Foreign Tribes
One-Eyed Dragon.
It was him.
He had his face covered, dressed in night-blooming clothes, but the injured left eye left a deep impression on me. The gaze from his right eye towards me was profound, shrewd, refined, and roguish. Besides him, no other man in this world could blend so many disparate qualities into one.
Who had injured him?
He wouldn’t personally handle ordinary robberies on the mountain.
There must be something big going on.
With a “bang,” the door was kicked open.
I pulled the bedding and covered him.
The men standing outside the door were all dressed as bandits, but their speech carried a stiff, barbarian tone.
“Have you seen a wounded man?” the leader asked.
I tried my best to remain calm and retorted, “How dare you! Do you know I am Lady Yidexiang, enfeoffed by the Imperial Court? How dare you trespass into my residence!”
The man was startled by my demeanor. Perhaps not wanting to cause further trouble, he said, “We are merely searching for someone here. Lady, please forgive us.”
“I am resting in my room, when have I seen any man? The Chieftain is out busy and has not returned. Do not speak nonsense and damage a woman’s reputation.”
They searched all over the room and, unwilling to linger, exchanged glances and said, “Chase east,” then left.
The house guards of the manor hurried over and asked, “Did the young Madam get frightened? These bandits are truly fierce. Tomorrow, we will report them to the government office!”
I said, “You may withdraw. We will discuss these matters tomorrow.”
“Yes.”
After a while, I got up and closed the door.
One-Eyed Dragon got up from the bedding, his face faintly flushed.
I tore a handkerchief and bandaged his wound.
I knew what he was thinking and said, “Ten years to find a confidant, a lifetime to survive for two women. Even the peerless Han Xin was once rescued by a woman in distress. I am not a prudish person, why should the Great Chieftain be ashamed?”
He was relieved and cupped his hands, saying, “Boss Zhu is generous!”
I did not light a lamp.
In the dim moonlight, I poured a bowl of tea and handed it to him.
“Can the Great Chieftain tell me what happened tonight?”
He remained silent.
I said, “Those people just now were not bandits from Shenju Mountain.”
He looked at me, “Boss Zhu noticed?”
“Yes.”
He said, “They impersonated bandits, merely to frame us. Judging by tonight’s situation, it’s likely that inciting the Imperial Court to order a crackdown on bandits is secondary. There is a larger conspiracy, which I cannot yet discern.”
He opened the window, placed his hand by his mouth, and let out three bird calls.
In a moment, the sound of rustling footsteps approached.
The real bandits arrived.
One-Eyed Dragon asked, “Have you found out who those fake bandits were?”
“Great Chieftain, they are not Han people, they seem to be… Tartars.”
One-Eyed Dragon shook his head, “Impossible. Even if the Zheng Family is setting a trap, they wouldn’t dare collude with the Tartars.”
“Great Chieftain, the water seems to be getting murkier. At West Peak Ridge, over a dozen bodies were found, all naked. It seems the Zheng Family assigned another group to impersonate us. But the Tartars took advantage of the chaos, killed that group, stripped them of their clothes, and went to raid the warehouse. The Zheng Family’s people were unaware, turning a blind eye, just waiting for things to escalate.”
During their conversation, I gradually pieced together the general situation.
The third day of the eighth month was the day the entire Zheng Family would go for incense. The Zheng Family had spread the word early that they would go to Sanqing Temple for a religious ceremony that day.
One-Eyed Dragon’s brothers in the city had gathered this information. Originally, they thought this would be a great opportunity to raid the warehouse. If half of the five hundred thousand taels of silver were stolen and distributed to the poor, then the people around Yangzhou would not go hungry for five years.
But he had been watching for a few days beforehand and felt something was wrong.
The warehouse defenses were clearly lax. It was like a net had been cast, waiting.
He ordered his brothers not to act rashly, but to lie in ambush around and observe.
The third quarter of the hour.
Someone came to raid the warehouse.
One-Eyed Dragon discovered that the group was actually using the banner of Shenju Mountain, impersonating the bandits of Shenju Mountain.
And the Zheng Family, without even asking or investigating, rushed to the government office, shouting, “Bandits are here, bandits are here!”
One-Eyed Dragon took action.
He wanted to capture the leader of the group to understand what was going on.
He couldn’t be framed for something he didn’t do.
The other party had more people, and each of them attacked fiercely, like trained soldiers. He could no longer resist and prioritized escape.
Thus, the scene at the beginning occurred.
One-Eyed Dragon said, “We Han people and the Tartars are irreconcilable! Regardless of the reason, tell the brothers to capture the Tartars, every single one!”
“Yes!”
Those men left.
One-Eyed Dragon bid me farewell.
I said, “Great Chieftain, take care.”
He turned back, hesitated for a moment, and asked me, “Boss Zhu, how much do you know about your husband?”
I didn’t know why he suddenly asked this.
I placed my hand on my lower abdomen and said softly, “My husband and I are deeply in love, and there are no secrets between us. I know everything about him.”
He thought for a moment and said, “Then do you know why he also went to the warehouse tonight?”
“What?”
I shook my head, “You must have seen wrong. My husband is discussing business with merchants from Fuliang tonight.”
He looked up and said, “I hope so. My one eye is not as clear-sighted as two.”
I said, “Since you might have seen wrong, Great Chieftain, why don’t you tell me who else you saw?”
“There were two people wearing Eastern Depot attire, seemingly Eastern Depot guards. Your husband brought them to the warehouse. As soon as they arrived, they were apprehended by the Zheng Family’s people.”
“Impossible, impossible,” I murmured.
One-Eyed Dragon said, “It was my slip of the tongue, causing Boss Zhu worry. Thank you for saving my life tonight. I, One-Eyed Dragon, always repay kindness. In the future, if you need me and my brothers for anything, just ask!”
After speaking, he leaped up and over the wall.
I returned to my room, but could no longer sleep.
The night was cold and lonely.
At the fourth watch, Qin Mingxu returned.
He thought I was still asleep and tiptoed to the bedside, lying down next to me.
“Mingxu, where were you last night?”
I spoke.
He was startled, turned his body to face me, “The merchants from Fuliang are heavy drinkers, I had no choice but to drink with them.”
The smell of alcohol on him corroborated his words.
I asked, “Was the business settled?”
“It was,” he replied.
“That’s good.” I smiled.
“Sang Yu, it’s still early, get some more sleep. The doctor said pregnant women are prone to sleepiness.” He gently patted me, coaxing me to sleep.
I said, “Mingxu, do you know, I had a dream last night.”
“What dream?”
“I dreamed of when I was little, about my time with Feng Gao in the acrobatic troupe. He was very thin and couldn’t carry the lion head, so the troupe leader always hit him. I told the troupe leader that I would carry the lion head, and he could be in charge of tossing the embroidered balls. When I was sick, he used broken tiles to scoop water from the river, little by little, to give me to drink. Mingxu, Feng Gao and I are like siblings. At any time, I don’t want to see him in trouble. Do you understand?”
“I understand,” he said.
“Do you really understand?”
“I really do. Otherwise, when Director Feng was imprisoned in the Imperial Prison last time, I wouldn’t have gone to the Capital City to deliver a letter. Sang Yu, I know your bond with Director Feng, and I won’t let you be sad.”
The light in his eyes was incredibly sincere.
The days were short, the nights long. I looked at his face, and for a moment, I couldn’t tell how much sincerity was in his words.
He and I, having gone through hardships, finally became husband and wife.
I was carrying his child.
I should trust him.
I should trust him.
Daybreak arrived.
After washing up, I went to the wine shop.
Zhu Xifeng said, “Elder Sister, something happened at the Zheng Family’s warehouse last night. This morning, it’s all over Yangzhou City.”
“What happened?”
I tried to act as relaxed as possible.
I hoped One-Eyed Dragon had indeed seen wrong.
This was just a dispute between the Zheng Family and the bandits, unrelated to Feng Gao, and unrelated to Qin Mingxu.
Zhu Xifeng said, “Last night, the bandits from Shenju Mountain went to steal the silver the Zheng Family was using to build their ancestral temple. Government officials caught two Eastern Depot guards at the scene. The Zheng Family has already reported to the Imperial Court that the Eastern Depot colluded with the bandits to steal silver. Consort Zheng’s father said that the bandits would not have had such audacity without the backing of the Eastern Depot. The reason this group of bandits has not been wiped out over the years is likely due to interference from the Eastern Depot. Director Feng is likely in grave danger this time.”
It felt like a heavy blow to the head.
“The Zheng Family is talking nonsense. What use would the Eastern Depot have in stealing silver?”
“Elder Sister, the Zheng Family claims that the Eastern Depot is colluding with Lu Wang and intends to commit treason during the chaos of the northern campaign against the Tartars. Stealing silver was to fund their provisions.”
I slumped onto the chair.
Treason.
Once these words are involved, it’s all over.
To kill a person’s spirit is no more than this.
“Your Majesty will not believe the Zheng Family’s one-sided story,” I said, trying to steady my nerves.
“But no one can explain why Eastern Depot guards were found outside the warehouse door! Those two guards couldn’t explain either, and the Zheng Family has already ordered the government officials to torture them…”
Those two Eastern Depot guards were left in Yangzhou by Feng Gao for my sake.
Feng Gao had told me that no matter what happened, I could go to the River Affairs Yamen to find them.
I pondered, someone must have lured them to the warehouse door in my name and they were caught.
Eastern Depot guards are extremely vigilant; ordinary people could never deceive them.
Unless…
Unless, the one who deceived them was someone very close to me.
My husband.
I had trusted him wrongly.
My hands began to tremble.
The Zheng Family’s memorial was sent to the Capital City. If it was a six-hundred-li urgent dispatch, it would arrive in about three days.
How could Feng Gao escape this sudden disaster this time?
I hurried towards the Qin Manor.
The trees, houses, and passersby along the way turned into terrifying phantoms.
This desolate world opened its bloody maw, ready to swallow me and my Dou Ya.
In years past, willows were transplanted, lingering in the south of Han. Now, seeing them fall, I am filled with sorrow by the river. If trees are like this, how can humans bear it?
Dou Ya, can I still protect you like I did when we were children?
I stepped into the room, and Qin Mingxu was already up.
He was wiping his face with a damp handkerchief. Seeing me, he smiled, “Sang Yu, is there nothing to do at the counter today?”
Blood rushed to my head.
I raised my palm and slapped him with all my might.
“Shameless!”
The damp handkerchief fell to the ground, covered in dust.
Time seemed to stand still.
After a long, long while, he slowly squatted down, picked up the handkerchief, and looked at me, saying, “Sang Yu, you have truly misunderstood me.”
