by G R Matthews
The emperor paused and looked down the table towards the bowl of fruit. He raised a hand and gestured. The bowl lifted from the table, floated down the table and came to rest within his easy reach. He selected an apple and bit into it.
“Now, in my bargain with these men I cannot act against them unless they act against me. By this nature, we coexist and they will assist the Empire should it need their service. However, that compact has been broken.”
“Broken. My lord?” the duke asked.
“Broken, Lord Duke, and now you are at risk.”
“What? Why me?” the duke said and cast a confused glance at Weyl.
“You sent men into the mountains did you not?” The emperor’s eyes flicked to Weyl and then back again to the duke. “You sent your troops into a small mining village beyond the high pass.”
“Yes, my Lord, but we have yet to have news of their mission's success,” Weyl answered.
“What of their purpose?” the emperor asked, but did not wait for answer, “You wanted to capture a broken man. The negotiator they sent before the war. The one who stood on the battlements and, bravely, against the wishes of his own duke, acted to expose the stratagem you had devised to win the city.”
“Yes, my Lord,” the duke said.
“You wanted revenge enough, that on receipt of the news of his whereabouts, you sent the troops without first checking the list.” The emperor snapped off the last few words. “There is little point compiling the list and keeping it constantly up-to-date if it is never used, my Lord Duke.”
Haung watched the duke flash a quick, flustered, look at Weyl whose own eyes were full of confusion.
“My Lord Emperor, the list was checked I assure you,” Weyl said in a rush. “Haung, go and find Marbu. Bring him, and the list here. At once.”
Before Haung could move, the emperor raised a hand to stop him, “I can tell you what is written on the list. The village your men attacked and razed to the ground when they did not receive the information they wanted from the village elders was the Bear’s village.”
“My men attacked?” the duke spoke in unsure tones.
“There is little I do not know about the men on that list. I keep constant checks and watches. I heard earlier today what had happened. The Bear is slow to anger and would usually avoid a fight but you have invaded his den and hurt his offspring. He will be coming for you, Lord Duke, and he is a threat that I cannot help you with.” The emperor took another bite of the apple.
“He is one man, my Lord Emperor,” Weyl said. “The defences of the castle, the troops and Jiin-Wei can stop him. We can protect the duke.”
The duke turned away from Weyl to the emperor, “My thanks for this warning, my Lord, and you have my apologies for the errors of my staff. If we have awakened the Bear then we must put him back to sleep before the winter.”
“There is one more thing that you should know, the Bear was not alone. Another man was with him, your negotiator, Zhou.” The emperor bit again into the apple.
“Our information was correct then,” Weyl smiled.
“The negotiator still lives,” the emperor looked at the remains of the apple, “and he is interesting to me. I do not yet know, but this Zhou may soon be added to that list. If the Bear comes, then he will come too. Perhaps, Lord Duke, you will have your revenge on the man that almost thwarted your plan but it is possible that they may have theirs instead. The Bear is a Forbidden Man, by our compact, and I cannot help you more than I have done.”
The emperor stood, dropping the apple core onto the ground, the pips shaking loose and finding their way into cracks between the stone floor.
“Chen, Shen, the portal if you please.” The emperor walked towards the dais. “Before I forget, a small gift for Jiin-Wei Haung, to remember the time he met the Dragon Emperor. I think you will like the painting inside.”
Shen dipped a hand into his robes and produced a scroll case. It was the length of a dagger, made of ivory and capped at both ends by gold. He handed it to Haung who bowed low as he accepted it.
The grey mirror rippled again as the emperor and his two Jiin-Wei stepped through. As the ripples settled, the grey drained out from the glass and it returned to its natural reflective state. The throne twisted back around and the curtain returned to cover the portal.
“Commander Weyl, convene a council of the captains tomorrow and go over the castle defences. Ensure they are as tight and ready as they can be. If the Bear comes, then I want to be ready for him. Remember, this is not an army but one man. He will not come straight on to our swords but try to go around them. We will need to be watchful,” said the duke.
“Yes, Lord Duke.” Weyl saluted and started to walk away. “Haung, I’ll want you at that meeting. Go and get some sleep but ensure you are fully awake tomorrow.”
“Yes, Commander.” Haung bowed to the duke and made his way back to his apartment.
As he walked along the castle's corridors he prised open the scroll case and gently extracted the contents. Unfurling the scroll, his eyes widened and he came to halt near a glowing torch letting the light spill across the surface. The scroll was Juran’s rolling hills, the same scroll he had seen and admired in Xi Jiang’s house. Attached to the scroll was a short note. Haung lifted it off the painting and read it. His eyes widened further and then the words on the note flickered into flame, consuming the note entirely. He blew the ash off the scroll and wiped his smudged fingers on his tunic.
Haung repacked the scroll in its case and with quicker steps returned to Jiao and his baby. His mind was whirling. Why does the emperor want to meet me again and why without the duke’s knowledge? And why that painting? Haung shivered and tried to put his thoughts to one side. Tonight, he needed to sleep.
# # #
“Haung, I need to speak to you.”
“Yes, my Lord.” Haung knelt on the ground, placing both hands on the cold stone and touching his forehead to floor in front of him.
“You are a man who knows his duty.” Haung was sure that was not meant as a question and he waited for the emperor to continue. “You know to follow orders and to be loyal, but who is your loyalty to now?”
“To the duke, my Lord, and through him to you.” Haung did not raise his eyes.
“As it should, as it should be. However,” the emperor paused, “these are times of great change. The famine in the north has weakened our borders, young Haung. The fall of the Wubei has caused us much sadness. Though I gave my blessing to the duke for his war, a great many soldiers of the empire have been lost to us at a time when we need them most. But it is not for us to see the future. That we leave to the Fang-shi though even their visions can be clouded and unclear. No matter. What is done is done and we must control our future as best we can.”
Haung kept his forehead pressed to the floor, the cold stone numbing his skin. Why was the emperor speaking to him and in riddles?
“Haung, I understand you have a family? Something normally forbidden to a Jiin-Wei.”
“Yes, Lord Emperor.”
“A reward for your efforts in the war?”
“Yes, Lord Emperor.”
“And now you are the Captain of the Duke’s Bodyguard,” the emperor paused. “Interesting. It is clear that the duke puts his faith in you and he is not a man to give trust easily. Do you trust him, Haung?”
“I do as my lord commands.” Haung watched a droplet of sweat fall from his forehead to stone floor.
“Of course you do,” the emperor’s voice lowered, “of course you do, because you know should you do anything against the duke, your family will suffer. I expect that one or two of his trusted officers have made this clear to you. The duke would never say anything but they have, haven’t they.”
Haung drew breath to answer but there were no words he could find that would be the truth and preserve his honour to the duke.
“You do not need to answer, Jiin-Wei Haung. As Emperor, I find it easier to ask questions to which I already know the answers.
It is much easier to gauge the metal of a man that way. By his reactions. And you are interesting, I can see why the duke keeps you close.”
Haung felt a touch on his mind. A whisper on the wind, a wave amongst the ocean, a grain of sand on a beach, so light and subtle. His natural reaction took over and the wards on his mind snapped into place, dark obsidian glass, impenetrable, reflecting the touch. Not the duke, Haung recognised his touch, plus the duke rarely tried it anymore. Haung had learnt to spot the effect of that touch on other people, calming them, making them listen and more receptive to the duke’s words.
“Very interesting, Haung. Very interesting indeed.” The emperor’s voice was full of amusement. “I can see why the duke keeps you close, and your family even closer.”
Haung raised his head to look at the emperor, caught his eyes and then fearfully pushed his forehead back to the cold stone.
“Forgive me, Lord Emperor.”
“There is nothing to forgive, Jiin-Wei Haung.”
A slight creak of wood told Haung that the emperor had stood up from the throne. From his limited view, Haung could see the hem of the Dragon Emperor’s robe swish across the floor in front of him.
“Power has its pleasures, Haung, but it also has its dangers. I tell you this so that you can make a decision about your future and hence the well-being of your family.”
“Lord?” Haung felt a vice made of fear clamp around his chest.
“A man is coming to the castle, Haung. You know this and we spoke of it earlier. If it is the man I suspect then you would do well to never face him in combat. The duke has made him angry and though he is slow to anger, once it burns, it is a brighter flame than the sun. He will come to kill the duke and, I tell you honestly in respect of your honour and loyalty, you cannot stop him. Your bodyguards may slow him, tire him, but not stop him.”
“Lord Emperor, I have my duty.”
“That you do, Haung, and this is why I tell you. I too have a duty and have fulfilled mine to the duke by informing him. I warned him that his war might have unintended consequences but I gave my permission. I have now fulfilled my duty to him, but you? You have potential and I hate to see such promise wasted. I may need it in the future.”
The gold and red robe stopped directly in front of Haung.
“They are strange things, honour and duty. You give both of these to a man who has, through subordinates, threatened your wife and child. A man who you, above all people, know manipulates people for his own ends. We might argue he does these things for the good of the city and region but you have walked through the red misery of war and conquest. You have seen the effects of famine and the care, or lack of, given to the poor.”
The expensive cloth hem moved out of view and the emperor’s voice came from further away.
“Jiin-Wei Haung, I give you choice. The highest form of power. To choose your own fate. Should you decide, you may bring your family to the Holy City and I will give you a position of wealth and responsibilities suited to your skills. Or, you may decide to fulfil your obligations of honour and loyalty to the duke. No one will think less of you whichever course you choose to take.”
“Yes, my Lord,” Haung’s voice wavered.
“Should you decide to come to the Holy city, show the guards this. There is an old proverb that you might find of use, in this time, qiáng lóng nán yā dìtóu shé.” A bright red mark appeared on the back of Haung’s right hand, a coiled dragon, which faded quickly. “Farewell, Jiin-Wei Haung.”
Haung waited for a few minutes then looked up from his prone position. The emperor had left. The mirror portal was just a mirror again and the room was empty. He drew in a shaky breath and tried to process the choice. Betray the duke and save his family, or keep to his duty and die. The emperor’s words favoured the latter course, it was clear to Haung, but there was so much at stake. And, maybe, it was actually a test of loyalty.
Haung discovered he had developed a headache.
Chapter 29
“Tell me what they wanted,” Boqin said. The smouldering remains of the village houses cast tendrils of smoke into the sky. The stone lower floors were still standing but the roofs had collapsed in on themselves. The people of the village were tending to the wounded and damping down the last of the fires.
“They wanted the stranger.” The miner was sat on the rock, his friends wiping the blood away from his face with wet cloths. “I told them he’d gone.”
“And they still did this to you and the village?” Zhou asked.
“Worse to Kirn. The foreman reckons they broke both his arms before they killed him.”
“Did they say why they wanted us?” Boqin said as he took a cloth from one of the miners and began tending to another man who was laid on the stone floor nearby.
“Said he was a criminal wanted by the duke. Said he was dangerous and had escaped from the duke’s justice. That he’d killed children and raped women in Wubei. That he’d been in prison there but had got away.” The miner looked up through the blood dripping down his forehead and into his eyes. “That true?”
“No,” said Zhou and Boqin together.
The miner stared hard into Zhou’s eyes, “Reckon you’re telling the truth.”
“Zhou, go and see if you can help the village. I need to think,” Boqin said.
Zhou nodded to the two men and headed off towards the crowd surrounding the foreman. The village people reminded him of home. The home that had been, before the war and the siege. The smell of burning wood had crept up his nostrils and the iron tang of spilt blood coated his tongue. The village was lucky. Only one man had been killed though several others had suffered beatings, but at least the soldiers had left the women and children alone. He spent the rest of the afternoon treating cuts and bruises making use of his education and helping the people recover belongings from the shells of their homes. As evening approached Boqin sought him out.
“We’ve made plans for tonight. The villagers will set up a temporary camp in the mine entrance. They have enough food and water for several weeks. The soldiers didn’t loot too much, so a group of men will travel to the nearest town and buy enough provisions to rebuild. The mine is profitable so there is no need to relocate. It will take time but they are a tough people,” Boqin explained.
“What can I do to help?” Zhou asked.
“The villagers defended you because you were with me. Their views have hardened since this morning. Kirn’s death has rocked them. They want you gone. You’re bad luck, they’re saying. I have been discussing it with the elders all afternoon but their minds are set,” Boqin growled. “They are not unkind but they are scared and protective of their people.”
“Where will I go?” Zhou’s asked.
“Tonight, you stay with us. Tomorrow, we will provision you for a journey. I will prepare a map. There is a mountain sacred to the Wu but it is many weeks travel from here by foot. If you use your spirit you should be quicker, but use it sparingly and make sure you eat properly if you do.”
“Boqin, I don’t know how to use it. Not properly, not really.” Zhou wiped his face with a damp cloth.
“It is not ideal, I know. Normally, I would spend months and years teaching you how to use, control and live in harmony with your spirit. We would spend weeks just learning about its nature before you tried to use it. But, we don’t have that time. For all the Elders and I know, the soldiers will return, looking for you. I will be here if they do. I also have a duty to these people. I brought you in when they wanted you to move on. I will help them rebuild and then I will meet you on the mountain.”
“How long? How will I survive on the mountain?” Zhou threw the cloth down.
“You’ll find a temple on the mountain. It has water and supplies. Part of our obligation as a Wu is to maintain that temple. You may find other Wu there, you may not. If you do, be respectful. The temple is sacred ground. No violence is allowed and on its grounds, all are equal. Most of the time, the temple is empty. Wait for me there. I will
be there as soon as I can.” Boqin laid a heavy hand on Zhou’s shoulder. “Meditate, practise, write, eat, think. Use the time wisely. It is often the hardest resource to come by.”
Zhou met the serious gaze of Boqin, “Thank you.”
“Get some sleep; it will be an early start tomorrow.”
# # #
“I’ve marked the mountain on this map and also listed people in the towns along the way who will offer you help if you need it. I am sure of most of them. Don’t use them if you don’t need to, and don’t overstay your welcome.” Boqin stood with Zhou at the beginnings of the trail leading away from the village and down towards the green valleys far below. About forty paces behind him were the village Elders. “Travel well, Zhou.”
“Thank you, Boqin,” Zhou shifted his gaze to the group behind the thick shouldered man, “Tell them I am sorry but thank them for their kindness.”
Boqin nodded and turned away, his tread heavy as he climbed back up the trail towards the Elders. Zhou watched him go before turning away and striding down the path.
The path was rough stone and loose rocks and a few hundred paces beyond the village, trees began to line the path. Zhou could only see as far as the next bend. As he continued to descend, the pine trees slowly gave way to aspens then other thicker trunked, broad-leafed trees. The full pack on his shoulders was a comfort, though the oiled-skin bedroll, tied to the top, kept hitting him on the back of the head whenever he had to take a larger step down off the rocks that jutted out of the grass, which had now started to poke through. The sun rose higher in the sky though the canopy of leaves shaded him from the heat.
He spent the first night curled up beneath the bedroll, on a carpet of moss, next to a low fire. The next morning he was up with the sun and making further headway down the trail.
By mid-morning the trees thinned and were replaced by pastoral fields and terraced rice paddies. Small farm huts began to appear on the valley sides and their owners, dressed in simple homespun tunics and wide brimmed hats, worked the fields. As he passed by a few stopped, stood up straight and watched him. None raised their hand in greeting and they only returned to work when he was far from them.