The Kingdom of Four Rivers

by Guy Salvidge

  “Father, I've got some distressing news,” Liang said.

  “Dark clouds approach on the horizon,” Tuan said. “What has happened?”

  “It's Kai Sen. He told us—” Liang faltered. Where to begin? “He told us that we are slaves, that those of the Inner Shield live far better than we do.”

  “And this surprises you?” Tuan said.

  “No, not exactly. It's just that—”

  “Yes, my son?”

  “He said that we do not own the land we till nor the grain we harvest. He said that they will slaughter us if we speak up against them.”

  “Ask those two to come in,” Tuan said. “They should hear this.” Liang told Sovann and Ji Tao to come into the study.

  “Greetings, uncle Tuan,” Ji Tao said.

  “Greetings, my niece. I think it's time we discussed this matter. Perhaps I can allay your fears.”

  “Allay our fears?” Sovann said. “They're shooting people out there!”

  “You were wise to leave when you did,” Tuan said. “But now you must listen to me very carefully. Kai Sen is an outsider. He does not understand the situation here in Baitang. He has not lived here for decades as I have done. Why should you believe his words over your own experience?”

  “Because he's been to the Inner Shield,” Ji Tao said.

  “He's been inside, this is true,” Tuan said. “Did he have anything else to say, other than outline the material conditions here in Baitang?”

  “He said something about the sleepers,” Sovann said. “That they were in charge of everything.”

  “Yes, he said that the sleepers have taken over the Inner Shield,” Liang said.

  “This is interesting,” Tuan said. “I have long suspected such a thing, but I have never been sure. Hmmm, this alters the situation. I must consider this.” He turned back to his desk and picked up the Book of Changes. “I will consult the Oracle.”

  “We've got to leave,” Sovann said.

  “Hush, my children. I need a few minutes of peace. Go into the kitchen and I will call for you when I am ready.”

  “Please hurry, uncle,” Ji Tao said. They went back into the kitchen.

  “Where's your brother?” Liang asked Ji Tao.

  “I haven't seen him today,” she replied.

  “We should tell him what's going on,” Liang said.

  “No. I mean, I don't think that's a good idea. He won't see it our way.”

  “Why not?” Sovann asked. “He's not blind. You don't give him much credit, do you?”

  “It's not that. Look, I'll show you.” Ji Tao went to her room and returned with a crumpled piece of paper.

  “What that?” Sovann asked. “A letter?”

  “Yes, it's from Kai Sen. He gave it to me before he was taken away.”

  “Read it to us, cousin,” Liang said.

  Ji Tao read out Kai Sen's letter.

  “It's a day for surprises,” Liang said, scratching his head. “I need a drink.” He went to the cupboard and got out a bottle of rice wine and three glasses. He poured them each a drink and gulped the bitter liquid down.

  “I overheard Cheng talking to Bao Min weeks ago at the bar in Luihang,” Ji Tao explained. “I think he was making some kind of deal.”

  “Perhaps you were wise not to trust your brother after all,” Sovann said.

  “I'm not sure what to think any more, but let's not mention it to him, just in case.”

  “Are you going to show the letter to Father?” Liang asked.

  “What letter?” Tuan said, opening the door. Ji Tao showed it to him and he read it quickly. “This is most upsetting,” Tuan said. “But it is not entirely unexpected.” He drew up a chair at the table.

  “Have you made your decision, Father?” Liang asked.

  “I have. The Oracle has provided me with guidance.”

  “What does it say?” Ji Tao asked.

  “The hexagram is Obstruction,” Tuan said. “A dangerous abyss ahead and steep mountains behind. But the obstruction can and will be overcome in the course of time. It seems that we are to retreat in the face of danger. But what exactly does it mean to retreat in this situation? Is it an external, physical retreat, or an inward one? The judgement suggests that there is the need for introspection, for inner nourishment.”

  “We can't just sit here!” Sovann said.

  “Let me finish,” Tuan said. “The moving lines suggest that we should not strive blindly ahead, but pause to reflect how to best approach the situation. There is the suggestion of retreat, of waiting for the best moment for action. But there is more. The moving line in the third place indicates that the father of the family must not plunge forward into danger. He must withdraw in order so that he may assist his family. The hexagram changes to Difficulty at the Beginning, which is symbolised by a blade of grass pushing its way up through the ground. This is a chaotic situation, but there will be a release of tension. The superior man must work to bring order to this confused state.”

  “What does it mean?” Sovann asked.

  “I must remain here, that much is certain,” Tuan said. “Your aunt Rong Li will remain also. We will tend the crops and respond to events as they develop. But as for the three of you, the situation is different. There is indeed great danger in remaining, and thus it is necessary to retreat, to find sanctuary. Kai Sen's words will no doubt provoke a degree of unrest, the beginnings of which you have seen tonight. I would not be surprised if the authorities came here in the morning, at best to question, at worst to detain. Thus it will be necessary for you to leave tonight.”

  “The Oracle is indeed wise,” Liang said. “Thank you, Father.”

  “It is not a decision I take lightly,” Tuan said. “I have already lost one son to misadventure; I do not wish to lose another. And yet it seems that I must send you away to avoid misfortune.”

  “We'd better get ready,” Sovann said. “Where are we going, anyway?”

  “Pack your things, and then we will discuss it,” Tuan said.

  Into their backpacks went their bedrolls, some clothes, enough food and drink to last a few days, and a few personal items. Ji Tao packed a pad of paper and a pen. Tuan gave them several items scrounged from Shulao—a compass, several torches, a map, and some thermoses. He also gave Liang one of his most prized possessions, a shell-sized piece of green jade, shaped like a dragon.

  When they were ready, Tuan came with them to the door. Outside, the night was perfectly silent. “Where should we go, uncle?” Ji Tao asked.

  “You must leave Baitang, first of all,” Tuan said. “And you must go on foot. I would make Luihang your first port of call. We have friends there, and the trouble may not reach that far. But you must not go to Zhenghe. If Kai Sen is right about the sleepers, then Zhenghe is a place of great danger.”

  “What if the road to Luihang is blocked?” Liang asked.

  “Then you must go into the jungle,” Tuan said. “I believe that the dangers of the jungle have been overstated, perhaps deliberately so. Now go before your aunt wakes up. Go, my children! I will expect your return in a matter of weeks. That should be long enough for the trouble to die down.” Tuan closed the door behind him, and they faced the night.

  There were no stars visible beneath the shield, no moon. People did not usually travel after nightfall, unless they were robbers or bandits. The only thing clearly visible was the dim red glow of the Inner Shield, which seemed more menacing at night than in the day. But now they walked away from it, along a dirt path between Tuan's wheat fields. Their immediate destination was the north gate.

  “I wish Kalliyan was here,” Sovann said. “Remember our agreement, Ji Tao?”

  “Don't worry, Sovann; she's safe in Luihang,” Liang said. No one had mentioned the Amars at the Symposium.

  “Look,” Ji Tao said.

  In the distance, a single light: the guardhouse at the north gate.

  “Turn off your torches,” Liang said. “I want to get a closer look without being seen.”
Without the torch-light, he could barely see his hand in front of his face.

  “Be careful where you step,” Ji Tao said.

  They crept toward the guardhouse. It was as though they were walking over the edge of the world, into nothingness.

  “What if they won't let us through?” Sovann asked.

  “Shh. Let's see.”

  There did not appear to be anyone near the guardhouse, which was not unusual for this hour. The trouble at the Autumn Symposium had not yet reached this far north. The guards would be inside, snoozing the night away at their posts.

  “What should we say?” Liang asked.

  “Tell them it's a family emergency,” Sovann said. “We need to get away tonight.”

  “Okay, let me go by myself,” Liang said. “You two wait here.”

  Liang approached the guardhouse and knocked on the door. He could hear someone moving around inside. The door opened and light spilled out over him. Liang squinted, then saw a rifle pointed in his face.

  “What do you want?” the guard demanded. A second guard appeared in the doorway.

  “I mean you no harm,” Liang said, raising his hands. “My in Chang village has fallen ill; I must go to her before it's too late.”

  “Wait until morning,” the first guard said, lowering his rifle.

  “It's urgent,” Liang said. “She is very ill.”

  “The gate is closed,” the second guard said. “We're doing routine maintenance on it. You'll have to wait.”

  “Maintenance at this hour?” Liang asked. “This is most distressing. Perhaps you can write me a pass for the west gate, then?”

  “Look,” the first guard said, stepping out of the doorway. “We're not writing you anything. My advice is to go home and wait until morning. There have been reports of some trouble in East District tonight. We're on the lookout for saboteurs. You wouldn't want to get shot accidentally, would you?”

  “I must get away,” Liang pleaded. “Perhaps you could be persuaded to change your minds?” He flipped open the pouch of his backpack suggestively.

  “Definitely not,” the second guard said. “We're under direct orders not to let anybody out.”

  “I thought you said the gate was closed for maintenance?”

  “Correct,” the guard said. “That is why no one is allowed out.”

  “You're welcome to try at the west gate,” the first guard said. “But you're not getting through here. Now get lost.” The guards stepped inside and closed the door in Liang's face.

  In the dark, Liang could not see where he had left Ji Tao and Sovann. He groped around, barely able to tell up from down, until a torch flashed on and off repeatedly. “Over here,” someone hissed. Sovann and Ji Tao were crouching in a nearby gully. He crouched down next to them.

  “It's no good,” he said. “They've closed the gate.”

  “Did they say why?” Sovann asked.

  “Something about routine maintenance.”

  “There's no maintenance going on,” Ji Tao said sharply. “They lied to you.”

  “Of course they lied,” Liang said. “But what am I supposed to do about it? You want to get a rifle pointed in your face? You go and ask them.”

  “It's too late for that,” Sovann said. “It must be because of the Symposium. What are we going to do now?”

  “We could try the west gate,” Liang said.

  “And what if they're doing maintenance on that gate too?” Ji Tao said.

  “Have you got a better idea? I'm ready to hear it.”

  “No,” Ji Tao admitted. “Let's go to west gate. It's a bit closer to Luihang anyway.”

  Getting to the west gate at night was easier said than done. But the three of them knew Baitang well, having lived in the town their whole lives, that they made it in the end. Liang had long since lost track of time, but he knew one thing, that dawn would not be far away. Had their eyes grown more accustomed to the dark, or was it getting lighter?

  In fact there were dozens of people milling around at the west gate. It was so noisy and bright that there was no point trying to sneak up.

  “What's going on?” Liang asked a group of men.

  “The pricks won't let us out,” one of the men said. “Hey, I know you. Chen Liang, right?”

  “Yeah.” Liang looked at the man. He was burly, reputed to be good in a fight. “Yin Men, isn't it?”

  “That's me. These are my cousins.”

  “I've brought my cousins too.”

  Names were exchanged, and then Yin Men said, “are you trying to get away, too?”

  “That's right. Were you at the Symposium?”

  “Not me, but cousin Tu here told me all about it.”

  “I thought you were more of a fighter,” Liang said.

  “Yeah, yeah, but only a fool fights rifles with fists. I heard there's going to be a crackdown, and I don't trust those bastards.”

  Liang told Yin Men that his family had been the ones to revive Kai Sen.

  Yin Men was impressed. “That's amazing! Hey everyone, the Chens are here! These are the guys who busted Kai Sen out!” A cheer went up amongst the crowd.

  “Okay, so what's the plan?” Liang asked.

  “More guards will be here soon,” Ji Tao said. “We can't stand around all night.”

  “Correct, sister,” Yin Men said. “Some friends of mine are up at the guardhouse now. They should be back in a minute. If those pricks don't let us out, I'm going to crack their heads.”

  “I thought you weren't going to fight rifles with fists,” Sovann said.

  “Yeah, but there are dozens of us and only a few of them.”

  “He's right,” Ji Tao said. “We should try to get through before more guards arrive. Come on, let's have a look.”

  Yin Men's friends were in a heated argument with the guards at the guardhouse. It seemed that they had received some backup already, for Liang counted at least four guards.

  “Move away from the guardhouse!” came the command. “Step back, or we shoot!”

  The crowd surged toward the guards. One of the guards fired a warning shot over their heads, but it was too late for that. One of the men that had been arguing with a guard tried to wrest his rifle away. Shots were fired—Liang saw the man's body flop to the ground. Yin Men and his cousins ran forward.

  “Get down,” Sovann hissed. “You'll be killed!” Bodies were heading in all directions; some alive, others dead or dying. For a mad second, Liang thought to enter the fray, but then Sovann and Ji Tao were pulling him down into the grass.

  “Let them do the fighting!” Ji Tao said.

  But the battle was already won. Weight of numbers had quickly prevailed, and the guards were sprawled on the ground, a tangle of limbs. Yin Men towered over them, clutching a rifle. He was bleeding profusely from a wound in his side. “That's for Yin Ling, you bastards!” He pumped more bullets into the bodies. The injured were dragged away, leaving a total of seven corpses, including the man who had tried to steal the rifle initially.

  Yin Men staggered toward the doorway of the guardhouse, clearly favouring his left side. Then there was a sharp crack and Yin Men fell dead to the ground. The shot had come from inside, and now there was a desperate scramble for cover. Liang, Ji Tao and Sovann crouched beneath the window of the guardhouse. But the situation was hopeless for whoever had shot Yin Men. There were dozens of people outside, and now they had four rifles. It was soon over, the shooter's bullet-riddled body paraded for all to see.

  “Quickly,” Ji Tao said, pushing past people into the guardhouse. “We've got to work out how to open the breach.” Liang and Sovann followed her.

  Inside there was blood everywhere, as well as everyday items like papers and coffee cups scattered around. Ji Tao stepped around the pools of blood, as if not noticing them, and went into the back of the guardhouse, which was a tiny, cramped room full of perplexing equipment. Liang peered over Ji Tao's shoulder to get a look at the monitors, consoles and rows of buttons.

  “Let Ji T
ao look,” Sovann said to the men who began to pile into the guardhouse. “Not everyone can fit in there.”

  “Tell her to hurry up!”

  “All right,” Ji Tao murmured, looking at the screens. Liang could not read the writing on the consoles, but perhaps Ji Tao could. She was muttering away to herself, her finger poised over a set of yellow buttons.

  Then a previously darkened screen flashed to life. “What's the situation th...who are you?” the guard on the screen demanded.

  “Ah, there's been an ac...accident,” Ji Tao stammered, fiddling with the buttons on the monitor. The screen winked off. “Now we're in for it,” she said to Liang.

  The monitors showed vision of the area surrounding the guardhouse. On the screens, Liang could see the bodies of the guards being dragged away. On another monitor, he could see the breach itself, swirling darkly.

  “I'm not sure how to open it,” Ji Tao concluded.

  “Maybe it doesn't need to open,” Liang said. The breach was different to the rest of the shield's surface. It was like a hidden space in the angle between two walls.

  “Ask someone to go through,” Ji Tao said. “Tell them I've opened it.”

  The message was relayed outside, and a couple of intrepid volunteers made their way over to the breach. Liang watched on the monitor as they stepped into the vortex and disappeared.

  “Damn,” Liang said. “We should have told them to come back when they're through.”

  The crowd wasn't willing to wait any longer, however. They preferred the uncertainty of the breach to the certainty of the guns. More were going through.

  “I guess it's okay,” Ji Tao said. “I think.”

  Some opportunists were ransacking the guardhouse, stripping it of anything even remotely useful. Ji Tao and Liang squeezed past them. The bodies had been moved behind the guardhouse, but the ground was stained with blood. The guards' rifles had long since been claimed. There was nothing left to do here except step into the breach or wait for more guards to arrive.

  “Are we going?” Sovann asked.

  “Yes, it's okay,” Ji Tao said.

  “I hope you're right, cousin,” Liang said.