A rider came galloping back to Xinzhou Pass, hoofbeats throwing up a plume of dust that rose high into the air. When the dust settled, the horse had already carried its rider through the city gate. Not long after, the rider reached the city wall, leaped from the saddle, and bounded up the steps.

The rider ran up to Yu Chaozong, dropped to one knee, and cupped his fist in salute. “Big Brother — it’s done.”

Yu Chaozong nodded, then gave an order: “Go and bring everyone back.”

About an hour later, seven or eight hundred Chu soldiers who had previously been disarmed and expelled by Bi Datong came streaming back through the gate. After being driven out, they hadn’t gone far — Yu Chaozong’s men had caught up with them shortly after and arranged for them to wait just outside the pass.

Yu Chaozong walked out to stand before them, clasped his fists together, and said, “I must apologize for the indignity you’ve suffered. Every one of you is a hero. Whether it’s for Dachu or simply for the people — you’ve held this pass to the last against a brutal and powerful enemy, and I can only admire you for it.”

He straightened and continued, “Before I came here, I gave clear instructions that you were all to be treated with respect and courtesy. Yet Yanshan Camp’s second-in-command, Bi Datong, did this to you. That reflects my own failure to counsel and restrain him. He was the camp’s second-in-command, which made dealing with him difficult.”

At that point, Yu Chaozong’s tone shifted abruptly, his voice rising with force.

“But. Anyone who wrongs the common people of the Central Plains — anyone who wrongs heroes like yourselves — I, Yu Chaozong, will not tolerate, no matter who they are. I’m not talking about merely the second-in-command of a mountain camp. Even if it were I, Yu Chaozong, who one day committed an act that offended all heaven and man alike — you would be fully justified in killing me for it.”

“Long live the Big Brother!”

One of the Chu soldiers couldn’t hold back and called out.

Yu Chaozong said, “I will now return every weapon and piece of armor that the second-in-command took from you. And not only that — you are welcome to go to our supply depot and take whatever you need, as much as you like, whether it’s arrows or provisions. All I ask of you in return is one thing: I am not well versed in the defense of a city, and to resist this enemy, I ask that you set aside what has happened and stay to help us hold the pass.”

When he finished, Yu Chaozong bowed deeply once more.

“We all stay!”

The general whose armor had been seized by Bi Datong stepped forward and said, “Defending this border pass is the duty of us border soldiers by rights. The Founding Emperor once said: the nation may fall, and homes may be shattered, but the border passes must not be surrendered! While our lives remain, the pass remains.”

Yu Chaozong said loudly, “This is exactly why I hold such deep respect for all of you — you are the heroes of the Central Plains people!”

He had killed one Bi Datong and gained seven or eight hundred battle-hardened veteran border soldiers in return. Yu Chaozong felt a genuine surge of satisfaction in his chest, thinking that Li Chi was truly a remarkable mind — he had actually foreseen that Bi Datong would agree to send troops to Xinzhou Pass.

The day Zhuang Wudi had returned to camp, he had brought Yu Chaozong not only Li Chi’s words about the hearts of the people, but also a few other words that had truly moved Yu Chaozong and been the real key to his decision to send forces to Xinzhou Pass.

Li Chi had had Zhuang Wudi tell Yu Chaozong: Bi Datong is a coward who clings to his life and is cunning as a hare. So if the Big Brother were to speak of seizing Xinzhou Pass — to secure a future road through the northern steppes — Bi Datong would certainly agree.

Li Chi had also said: once Bi Datong reaches the border pass, his nature will ensure he does something that drives out the garrison soldiers. When that happens, Big Brother can have men intercept these battle-worn veterans and treat them sincerely — much will be gained.

He had further predicted that Bi Datong would soon find an excuse to return to Yanshan Camp once he arrived at Xinzhou Pass. If he were allowed to go back, it would be nearly impossible for Big Brother to reclaim Yanshan Camp afterward. Better to eliminate Bi Datong while he was away — and that would secure Yanshan Camp once and for all.

At this moment, every prediction Li Chi had made had come true, and how could Yu Chaozong possibly not be in awe of him? His reason for coming to Xinzhou Pass in the first place — the greatest temptation of all — had not been the pass itself, nor those veteran soldiers. It had been the chance to kill Bi Datong.

Inside Yanshan Camp, as the Big Brother, he had no way to act.

Now, Yu Chaozong let out a long, long breath. The great stone that had sat wedged in his chest finally settled to the ground. With Bi Datong gone, there was no one left in Yanshan Camp who could threaten him.

The greatest benefit of all: with Bi Datong dead, the line of communication between Bi Datong and Prince Yu was cut as well. Yu Chaozong had no desire to hand the Yanshan Camp he had built through years of effort over to Prince Yu — nor to let so many good brothers be used as cannon fodder.

Bi Datong had wanted only wealth and glory. He would have sold anyone without a second thought.

Yu Chaozong turned to his trusted aide and said, “Wei Jin — take three hundred soldiers from my personal guard, two horses each, and get to Daizhou Pass as fast as you can. My estimate is that Prince Wu’s army is nearly there. Whatever the cost, I need you to bring Brother Li and the others out safely. Protect him at all costs.”

His trusted aide Wei Jin clasped his fist. “Big Brother, rest easy. Even if every one of us dies, Brother Li will get out safely.”

Yu Chaozong nodded. “When you see Brother Li, ask him on my behalf whether he’d be willing to come to Yanshan Camp. If he says yes, the position of third-in-command is being held open for him. If he’s not ready to come just yet, the doors of Yanshan Camp will always be open for him — whenever he wants to come, I’ll personally go to bring him.”

Wei Jin said, “Big Brother, rest easy. I’ll relay every word exactly.”

After another cupped-fist salute, he turned and went to choose his men.

Yu Chaozong watched Wei Jin go, thinking to himself that Brother Li was not only a man of integrity and chivalry, but someone with the rare talent to devise plans for the whole realm. If he could have Li Chi at his side, the future of Yanshan Camp would surely be without limit.

He also thought: Li Chi was his lucky star. The first time they met on Yanshan Mountain, Li Chi had saved his life — if not for meeting Li Chi, he would have been killed by the ambush Bi Datong had arranged. The second time Li Chi came to Yanshan, he had helped clear out all the hidden threats in the camp, and then plotted to help him take Xinzhou Pass and eliminate Bi Datong. A lucky star like that, he would move heaven and earth to bring up into the camp.

With things as they now stood inside Yanshan Camp, there was no longer any threat to him. When Zhuang Wudi returned, he would naturally become second-in-command. If Li Chi was willing to come to the mountain, he would be third.

Yu Chaozong’s thoughts ranged further and further, until he was imagining that with Li Chi’s help, perhaps in the not-too-distant future he could seize the whole of Jizhou, and from there drive his forces directly toward the south.

Just as he had imagined when he first gathered followers and rose in revolt… he didn’t want to be a rebel. The reason he had become a rebel was that he didn’t want to be a rebel.

Most people would find that logic impossible to follow. Yu Chaozong had never bothered to explain it. But he knew Li Chi understood him. Even though the two of them had, in total, only ever met three times — he believed that from the moment he had raised his forces against the court until now, Li Chi was the only person who had ever truly understood him.

About twenty li from Daizhou Pass, a carriage rolled slowly forward. The driver, Mister Yan, was covered head to toe in dust and grit. That was the north for you — when the wind picked up, yellow sand filled the sky, and the particles that lashed your face felt like a small blade cutting over and over.

Inside the carriage, the Long-Browed Daoist looked at the divine boar sprawled there sleeping and couldn’t help but grumble under his breath: “Most people keep a pig to slaughter and eat. We keep a pig to worship like an ancestor.”

The divine boar seemed to have caught something unflattering in those words. It raised its head and looked at the Long-Browed Daoist, and in that gaze there was an unmistakably clear expression of contempt.

The Long-Browed Daoist and it locked eyes. Human and pig, neither willing to back down.

Mister Yan glanced back, saw the scene, and sighed. “That pig has successfully dragged your intellect down to its own level, and now it uses the experience of a pig to humiliate you.”

The Long-Browed Daoist felt that Mister Yan was insulting him.

But he had no intention of acknowledging it, because he was still in a staring contest with the pig. If he looked away now, wouldn’t that mean he had lost?

Mister Yan glanced back again, and sighed again. “Fine. You’re evenly matched.”

The Long-Browed Daoist, still glaring at the pig, said, “Are you sure you have the right road? We’ve been going for several days now and there’s still no sign of Daizhou Pass.”

Mister Yan said, “Don’t take advantage of my youth to bully me.”

The Long-Browed Daoist thought about it. At this moment, Mister Yan genuinely had the standing to say that.

“I have a feeling that when we get to Daizhou Pass, Little One will scold us. We didn’t go back to Jizhou City when he told us to — we came chasing after him all the way to Daizhou Pass…”

The Long-Browed Daoist said, quite seriously, “If Little One really does scold us, would you be brave and admit that you were the one who insisted on coming?”

Mister Yan was taken aback. Then he turned to look at the Long-Browed Daoist and said, “Why should I?!”

The Long-Browed Daoist answered, “You’re young. You can take a scolding. There are plenty of people who scold children — but who ever scolds an old man?”

Mister Yan: “…”

He smiled a little and said, “Maybe we should just turn back. There’s still time.”

The Long-Browed Daoist shook his head decisively. “I won’t go back. It’s been ten or more years — if I don’t come, this will be the first time we’ve ever been apart for the New Year.”

Mister Yan felt a faint tightening in his chest. After a moment of silence, he said, “Then when we get to Daizhou, I’ll say it was my idea to come. If Little One wants to scold someone, he can scold me. That’s what comes of you being my elder.”

The Long-Browed Daoist nodded, but his eyes still hadn’t moved from the pig. When he nodded, his gaze stayed fixed in the same direction — that unshakeable, unyielding spirit was truly something to behold… truly on par with the divine boar.

The two of them kept talking as they traveled and finally arrived at Daizhou Pass. The gate was closely guarded. Mister Yan, afraid they might not be let in, tried his luck and mentioned that he was an old friend of Xiahou Zuo’s. To his surprise, the soldiers on duty let them in immediately.

As they entered, the Long-Browed Daoist turned to one of the soldiers and asked in passing, “Excuse me — do you happen to know someone named Li Chi?”

The soldier’s eyes lit up at once. “Of course I know Master Li — who in this whole Daizhou Pass doesn’t know Master Li?”

The Long-Browed Daoist said immediately, “My disciple. That’s my disciple. I’m here looking for him.”

The soldier, hearing that this old man was Master Li’s teacher, hurried to offer to take them to find Li Chi. The Long-Browed Daoist turned to Mister Yan with a very self-satisfied expression and said, “You see? My disciple. Revered by everyone here.”

Mister Yan said lightly, “That carries no particular weight with me. He’s my disciple too.”

The Long-Browed Daoist gave a dismissive grunt and turned back to look at the divine boar.

The divine boar thought: *this old fellow really is something. Stares at me all day. Nothing like that dog — won’t look at me even once.*

By the time they reached the base of the wall and word was sent up that his teacher had arrived, Li Chi came hurrying down from the city wall. At the sight of those two road-weary figures, something caught in Li Chi’s chest. He had feared these two would come — yet somewhere in the back of his mind, he had also half-guessed that they wouldn’t simply listen and stay behind in Jizhou City.

The moment they were face to face, Mister Yan pointed at the Long-Browed Daoist and said, “I said we shouldn’t come — we’d just add to your troubles. He wouldn’t listen. I tried to talk him out of it for a long time. The man is absolutely impossible.”

The Long-Browed Daoist looked at Mister Yan, his eyes full of small, questioning stars.

The Long-Browed Daoist started rolling up his sleeves as he spoke. “Today we settle this once and for all. I’ll fight you to the death, you old scoundrel.”

Mister Yan smiled. “And who was it who said he didn’t want to spend the New Year apart from Li Chi?”

The Long-Browed Daoist froze. Li Chi froze too.

Teacher and disciple looked at each other, then both smiled — but in both their eyes, there was something a little damp.

……