Shan He Zhen – Chapter 17

Chu Yu stood motionless in front of the coffin. Cao Yan narrowed his eyes, “You think I’m truly afraid of you? Young Madam, open your eyes and look. What wood are these coffins made of? What patterns are carved on them? What lacquer is used?”

Without turning around, Chu Yu calmly replied, “The wood, carvings, and lacquer used for my father-in-law and brothers-in-law’s coffins are all by their official ranks and titles. There’s nothing inappropriate.”

“Young Madam, you’re mistaken,” Cao Yan sneered. “Wei Zhong and the others are criminals. They should be buried according to commoner standards. How can they use such coffins? Someone, go to East Street and buy seven ordinary coffins for me. Young Madam,” Cao Yan turned his head and sighed, “I am merciful by nature. Given the Wei family’s current situation, consider these seven coffins as my gift. There’s no need for thanks.”

Pointing at the coffins, Cao Yan continued, “Please step aside, Young Madam. You shouldn’t linger where you don’t belong.”

“Lord Cao, does our Great Chu have any law stating that criminals must be buried as commoners?”

“Does our Great Chu have any law stating that criminals should be buried as dukes?!”

During this exchange, more and more officials and soldiers from the Court of Judicial Review arrived. Cao Yan, unwilling to argue further with Chu Yu, directly ordered, “Bring Wei Zhong and the others out!”

Cao Yan led the soldiers forward. Chu Yu stood motionless in front of Wei Zhong’s coffin. As a soldier approached to open the coffin, Chu Yu placed her hand on it, remaining completely still. The soldier hesitated, and Cao Yan angrily shouted, “What are you afraid of? Pull her away!”

The soldier snapped to attention and moved to drag Chu Yu away, but she clung tightly to the coffin, refusing to let go no matter who tried to pull her away.

True to her word, she didn’t resist or fight back. She simply couldn’t be pulled away, using her body to block the soldiers. A drizzle began to fall. Seeing that they couldn’t pry Chu Yu away, Cao Yan roared at the others, “Use force!”

With that, he charged towards Chu Yu, lashing out with his whip.

The whip drew blood on Chu Yu’s body. People nearby cried out in shock. At this moment, the surrounding soldiers, urged on by Cao Yan, rushed towards the other coffins.

Wang Lan, heavily pregnant, was the first to break down. She threw herself onto her husband’s coffin, wailing, “Sixth Brother!”

“Pull the Sixth Young Madam back!”

Jiang Chun shouted, “Protect the Sixth Young Madam!”

“Do not fight back!” Chu Yu raised her head and called out, “We of the Wei family are not traitors. We will not raise a hand against officials of the court. No one is to fight back!”

Saying this, Chu Yu turned her head and stared at Xie Jiu.

She opened her mouth, repeatedly mouthing a name.

Grand Tutor Xie.

Grand Tutor Xie.

Xie Jiu noticed Chu Yu’s gaze. She stood in place, saying nothing.

Around them were cries and shouts. The soldiers struggled to open the coffins, while the Wei family members rushed forward, desperately clinging to the coffins.

As Chu Yu had instructed, they didn’t resist. They only desperately clung to the coffins, being pulled away repeatedly, to rush back again and again.

“Third Brother… Third Brother, don’t be afraid…”

Zhang Han, unskilled in martial arts, threw her entire body onto the coffin, only to be dragged away by soldiers.

Wang Lan, because of her pregnancy, was held back by servants, constantly crying and trying to move forward.

Jiang Chun faced the coffin, pressing down on it with all her might, her nails digging into the wood.

And Chu Yu lay beside Wei Zhong’s coffin, her back covered in blood.

The entire Wei household was filled with wails and cries.

Yao Jue gritted her teeth, her eyes red. Her whole body trembled, wanting to do something but not daring to step forward.

Chu Yu stared at Xie Jiu, motionless. Xie Jiu’s expression was cold, but her eyes flickered with emotion.

She seemed to see herself on the day she first married into the Wei family, with Wei Ya sitting beside her.

Wei Ya was two years younger than her. He lowered his head and said softly, “I heard the Xie family has a century-old tradition of scholarly pursuits. You might like my name. My given name is Ya, Wei Ya.”

Speaking thus, he trembled and held her hand, “Although I’m younger than you, I’m very reliable. I’ve seen you before, at the Spring Banquet. At that time, my fourth brother wasn’t married yet, so I couldn’t ask for your hand. That’s why I always urged my fourth brother to marry quickly, afraid you wouldn’t wait for me…”

The young man continued, letting out a sigh of relief, and looked up at her, “Thankfully, you didn’t marry so early.”

At that time, she was very surprised. The Xie family was known for being cold-hearted, but she had never seen a young man so pure.

Marrying him was a matter of expediency. As a concubine-born daughter, marrying into the Wei family was not bad. She had prepared herself for the possibility of his death and her remarriage, but she thought it would be ten or twenty years later, never imagining it would be so soon.

Fifth Brother…

Xie Jiu listened to the cries around her, feeling something rise in her throat. She clenched her fists and slowly closed her eyes. After a long while, she resolutely turned around. Yao Jue grabbed her, “Where are you going?”

Xie Jiu gave a bitter smile, “To seek death, I suppose!”

With that, she suddenly pushed Yao Jue away and ran into the rain.

Yao Jue stood in place, looking at the Wei family members fighting against the officials in the heavy rain not far away. She gritted her teeth, then suddenly rushed in, shouting angrily, “Cao Yan, have you truly lost all sense of law and order?!”

“Fourth Miss Yao?” Cao Yan looked up, quite surprised, “I thought Fourth Miss was a clever person?”

Yao Jue didn’t speak. She gritted her teeth, breathing heavily. Cao Yan looked at her and chuckled, “I thought Miss Yao would be as unyielding as the Young Madam. What’s so good about these Wei family young masters? That Wei Fourth Young Master, I remember, even had a severed finger…”

Before he could finish, Yao Jue, in her anger, couldn’t hold back and kicked out, shouting, “You bastard!”

Cao Yan hadn’t expected Yao Jue to kick him. He was immediately knocked over by Yao Jue’s kick. Enraged, he ordered someone to restrain Yao Jue and raised his hand to slap her. Yao Jue, held down, still struggled desperately, cursing, “You bastard, who do you think you are? Just a dog under my cousin’s command…”

“Good, very good…” Cao Yan covered his face, nodding repeatedly, “You wait, I’ll open your husband’s coffin first!”

With that, Cao Yan walked toward Wei Feng’s coffin. He moved quickly and fiercely, unstoppable. Yao Jue, red-eyed, screamed, “Cao Yan, you dare! If you touch even a single nail on Wei Feng’s coffin today, I’ll have you torn to pieces!”

As soon as the words fell, Cao Yan had already swung his sword down hard, instantly splitting the coffin. Others rushed forward frantically, trying to pull Cao Yan away, but he had gone mad, not caring if he might hit someone, hacking at Wei Feng’s coffin again and again. Yao Jue and the others struggled desperately. Chu Yu propped herself up, struggling to stand. Jiang Chun looked up towards Wei Feng’s coffin, then heard Yao Jue’s cry of alarm: “No!” The coffin finally gave way and shattered.

The coffin boards scattered, revealing Wei Feng’s remains.

The body had been treated with special incense and herbs. Although it had begun to show signs of decay, there was no smell of rot.

Cao Yan laughed loudly, pointing at the others, “Look! Look at the legendary Wei Fourth Young Master with his severed finger, who never missed a shot!”

No one spoke. The moment the coffin split open, everyone was stunned.

The entire scene fell silent, all eyes fixed on the coffin.

The man in the coffin had been prepared for burial. He was dressed neatly and cleanly, the blood on his face wiped away, but one could still see that one of his hands was missing, showing the cruelty he had endured before death.

It was at this moment when the body was revealed, that even the soldiers who had come with Cao Yan remembered what the people in these coffins had been through.

They had died on the battlefield. Even if the annihilation of 70,000 troops was their responsibility, while these people were living comfortably in the capital, it was also these men who were on the battlefield, fighting bloody battles to protect their country.

Chu Yu propped herself up and stood, looking at Wei Feng on the ground. She spoke hoarsely, “Lord Cao, what exactly are you seeking?”

Yao Jue rushed over crying, falling beside Wei Feng. She knelt on the ground, picking up the sleeve of Wei Feng’s missing hand, wailing, “Where’s your hand? You bastard, where’s your hand?!”

Cao Yan looked at Chu Yu, watching her walk step by step toward Wei Feng.

“My Wei family has followed the emperor since the founding of the dynasty, for four generations now. In our ancestral hall, there are hundreds of memorial tablets. Every male member has died on the battlefield…”

“Of all the men in my Wei family, only one young man has returned. Is this sacrifice not enough to earn my Wei family a peaceful burial?!”

Chu Yu raised her head, looking towards an old man standing in a corner in the distance.

The old man wore black clothes and stood with his hands behind his back, calmly watching Chu Yu.

Xie Jiu stood behind him, holding an umbrella. Chu Yu was covered in blood and mud. Everyone in the Wei household followed Chu Yu’s gaze to that corner, except for Yao Jue, who was still holding Wei Feng, crying heartbrokenly.

Chu Yu stared at Grand Tutor Xie and suddenly raised her voice, “Grand Tutor! Teacher of the emperor, upholder of the nation’s laws, tell me, is a family’s loyal blood, a hundred years of heroic souls, worth less than the flattery and toadying of petty men? Can it not even earn the last remaining bloodline a peaceful continuation? Can it not even secure a coffin for a peaceful burial?”

Grand Tutor Xie didn’t speak. He looked into Chu Yu’s eyes.

There seemed to be light and fire in that woman’s eyes. She scrutinized people’s consciences, questioning human nature. She made the darkness hiss and retreat in embarrassment.

Seeing Grand Tutor Xie’s silence, Chu Yu turned around. Though covered in blood, she still spread her arms, looking towards the common people watching her.

“In the 31st year of Yuanshun, when Chen suddenly attacked the border and besieged Qian City, it was Wei Chengyun, the third son of the Wei family, who defended the city. He held the city for a full year, tying down 200,000 Chen troops, allowing our Great Chu to win with minimal casualties. But his four children all died of famine in Qian City.”

“In the second year of Pingde, when the Northern barbarians invaded, it was our Wei family’s fourth son who led 7,000 elite troops to defend the city. They fought until only 200 soldiers remained, never retreating a step.”

“In the fifth year of Pingde…”

Chu Yu spoke of one person after another, slowly walking towards the common people.

Her gaze fell on the people until finally, she broke into tears.

“On the seventh day of the ninth month in the 19th year of Pingde, all the men of the Wei family, except for the 14-year-old Seventh Young Master Wei, died in battle at Baidi Valley! Among them—”

Chu Yu raised her hand, pointing to Wei Jun’s coffin, clutching her chest in pain, and wailed, “Including my husband, the heir of the Marquis of Zhenguo, Wei Jun.”

“He was only 24 years old. He should have had a bright future ahead. He could have been like many young masters in Huajing, becoming an official, enjoying the peace of this prosperous era!”

“But he didn’t. He went to the battlefield, he died there, and now he’s returned…”

Chu Yu closed her eyes, turned around, and knelt before Grand Tutor Xie, “Grand Tutor Xie… I only ask for him to be buried in peace. I only ask for justice for the Wei family. I beg the Grand Tutor… to give my Wei family the dignity we deserve!”

“Grand Tutor! Grand Tutor!” The common people knelt, crying out, “Grand Tutor, please help the Wei family!”

Grand Tutor Xie stood among the crowd, his hands behind his back trembling slightly. He slowly closed his eyes, and clenched his fists, as if making a major decision.

“Cao Yan,” he spoke hoarsely, “Kneel.”