Outside the tent, footsteps gradually faded away.
Inside, Pei Yan rose, methodically trimmed the candle brighter, and sat back down. Wei Zhao remained reclined on the bamboo couch, not looking up, focused intently on reading.
Pei Yan slowly gathered the chess pieces back into the box. The only sounds were the soft clinks of pieces and the turning of Wei Zhao’s pages.
As he placed the last piece in the box, Pei Yan suddenly smiled. “Third Young Master, we never finished that game at Baoli Tower. Care for a rematch?”
Wei Zhao closed his book with a faint smile. “If the Young Lord invites, I must oblige.” He rose leisurely and sat across from Pei Yan.
They played unhurriedly, soon reaching the same stalemate as that night in Baoli Tower. Pei Yan placed a piece in the northwest corner, but Wei Zhao lazily played in the center.
Pei Yan stared at Wei Zhao, who smiled silently.
“It seems Third Young Master is determined to be a bystander?” Pei Yan asked with a smile.
Wei Zhao draped his right arm over the chair back, glancing sideways at Pei Yan. “A supervisor merely observes. I’ll watch the Young Lord’s military maneuvers and report to His Majesty, no need to interfere.”
Pei Yan’s expression calmed briefly before he smiled. “Third Young Master, shall we settle this with our fists again?”
Wei Zhao chuckled. “If the Young Lord is interested, my hands are rather itchy.”
Pei Yan smiled faintly. “Third Young Master, I truly admire how composed you are.”
“You flatter me,” Wei Zhao smiled slightly. “I was deeply impressed by the Changfeng Cavalry’s might under your command.”
Pei Yan leaned forward, eyes fixed on Wei Zhao. “Third Young Master, let’s stop the pretense. I’ve waited days for you, and you’ve avoided me just as long. Now, time is short.”
Wei Zhao gazed at him calmly. “If time is short, the Young Lord should focus on luring Bo Yunshan to attack. His Majesty strictly forbade me from interfering in military affairs.”
Pei Yan met his gaze, a cold smile spreading. “So that night in Baoli Tower, when you said you’d cooperate with me, it was all excuses!”
Wei Zhao feigned surprise. “Young Lord, I can hardly bear such words. You wanted me to become a supervisor, and I obliged. I’ve reported everything to His Majesty as we agreed. What’s amiss?”
Pei Yan’s eyes flashed. “If so, I need your help again. Are you willing?”
“How may I assist the Young Lord?”
Pei Yan stared intently at Wei Zhao, his tone low and steady. “I’d like to ask Third Young Master, which one in Bo Yunshan’s army is your man?”
Wei Zhao paused briefly. “I don’t quite understand, Young Lord.”
“Third Young Master, now you’re being evasive.” Pei Yan smiled coldly. “You not only know of Bo Yunshan’s years of treasonous activities but also Yao Dingbang’s actions at court. You had Su Yan kill Yao Xiaoqing and steal his intelligence, luring Yao Dingbang south to be eliminated at Changfeng Manor. You used Yao Dingbang’s death to make Lord Bo think the emperor had evidence of treason, purging court spies, and finally forcing his rebellion with a fake imperial edict. You then had this person keep Bo Yunshan at Niubi Mountain to watch events unfold. Don’t tell me you did all this alone. Without your man in Bo’s army, how could you manage it?”
His tone grew serious. “Moreover, this person must be Bo Yunshan’s confidant, infiltrated for years, someone he trusts most. Third Young Master, who is he?!”
Cricket chirps drifted from the grass behind the tent. The air inside was stuffy. Wei Zhao smiled faintly, remaining silent.
Pei Yan relaxed slightly, looking down at the chessboard casually. “Third Young Master, we can’t delay anymore. If Yu Wenjinglun takes Hexi Prefecture, neither of us can control this chaos.”
“Young Lord is free to go to Hexi to resist the Huan army. Yet you came to Niubi Mountain. I’ve already turned a blind eye, which is somewhat unfair to Prince Zhuang. If Hexi Prefecture falls, it’s the Young Lord’s own doing, unrelated to me.”
Pei Yan smiled. “We both know how loyal you are to Prince Zhuang, no need to elaborate. I’ll just tell the Third Young Master, that in these few days, Tian Ce will gradually deplete High Duke Guo’s troops and supplies. If they can’t withstand the Huan army’s attack, he’ll retreat westward.”
Wei Zhao’s lip twitched imperceptibly before he sneered, “Is the Young Lord threatening me?”
“I wouldn’t dare.”
Wei Zhao said coldly, “That day at Baoli Tower, you threatened me to cooperate. Now you’re doing it again. Do you think I, Xiao Wuxia, am easy to bully?”
He suddenly stood up and headed for the tent exit. Pei Yan moved like the wind to block him. Wei Zhao swept his sleeve, and Pei Yan dodged backward, his right hand darting out. Several thuds rang out as they exchanged blows in an instant, both leaping back as energy surged. The tent’s candles were extinguished by the gust.
In the darkness, Pei Yan chuckled. “Third Young Master, this isn’t the capital. Your injury has healed. If you’re determined to leave, I can’t stop you. But before you go, I’d like to hear your conditions.”
After a long silence, Wei Zhao spoke flatly, “The Young Lord is indeed straightforward.”
Pei Yan turned to relight the candles, smiling. “Please, Third Young Master.”
Wei Zhao sat back down, meeting Pei Yan’s gaze for a moment before slowly saying, “If the Young Lord wants my help to take down Bo Yunshan, I can do it. But I want another decree written by you.”
“Please continue.”
“I want the Young Lord, after achieving his great undertaking,” Wei Zhao’s gaze fixed on Pei Yan’s solemn face, emphasizing each word, “to issue an order allowing my Yueluo to become an independent vassal state!”
Pei Yan’s eyebrow twitched slightly before his expression calmed.
Wei Zhao paused briefly, then continued, “Yueluo is willing to be a vassal, but we won’t pay tribute or offer slaves. The imperial court can’t station troops or interfere in our internal affairs. This must be established as national policy, never to be changed. Is the Young Lord willing to write such a decree?”
The summer night grew deeper, the mountain breeze humid and stuffy.
It was late into the night, and Bo’s military camp was silent. Chunyu Li tossed in his bed, suddenly awakening. He listened for a moment, hearing rhythmic bird calls from behind the tent.
Chunyu Li donned his clothes without lighting a candle. He slipped out through a gap in the tent, ghosting towards the bird calls. He avoided several night patrols, his movements light and agile, unlike his usual scholarly demeanor.
He flashed into a dense forest west of the camp, climbed a rock face like a wildcat, walked another hundred paces along the cliff, and stopped.
In the moonlight, a tall figure stood with his back turned, hands clasped behind him.
Chunyu Li stared at the silhouette for a moment before calmly saying, “Since you summoned me with the signal, show your true face.”
Wei Zhao turned slowly, speaking softly, “Fourth Uncle, thank you for your years of hard work.”
Chunyu Li started, stepping forward to scrutinize the human skin mask on Wei Zhao’s face. His voice grew emotional: “You’re Wuxia?!”
Wei Zhao took out a jade seal and a bamboo flute from his robes, presenting them to Chunyu Li. Chunyu Li accepted them with both hands, examining them closely. His long beard swayed in the breeze, his hands trembling slightly. Finally, he stepped forward and knelt on one knee: “Xiao Li greets the Sect Leader!”
Wei Zhao helped him up, then bowed deeply. “Wuxia pays respects to Fourth Uncle! I’m deeply grateful for your years of toil, with no way to repay you!”
Chunyu Li grasped his hands, his voice choking slightly. “Sect Leader, why did you come personally?”
Wei Zhao gazed at the weathered face of his fourth uncle, recalling his master’s description. His heart ached, but he suppressed it, saying calmly, “Because there’s a crucial task I need Fourth Uncle’s help with. I wouldn’t trust anyone else, and you wouldn’t believe them either.”
The wind swept over the cliff, rustling the pines. Chunyu Li’s eyes brightened as he looked directly at Wei Zhao. “Please instruct me, Sect Leader. Xiao Li is willing to sacrifice his life without hesitation.”
As Chunyu Li’s figure disappeared down the cliff, melting into Bo’s military camp, Wei Zhao stood silently and then looked up at the crescent moon.
This moonlight, pure as water – was it also shining on Mount Yueluo at this moment?
He sighed softly, then moved like a great bird through the mountains, carefully surveying several locations before returning to the Hua Dynasty camp. Just as he avoided the night patrol and was sneaking back to the main tent, he saw a slender figure strolling towards him.
Her right hand held a lantern, her left cradling a book as she muttered, “The west gives birth to dryness, dryness begets metal, metal begets pungency, pungency begets the lungs—”
She had just returned from night duty at the medical tent, still smelling strongly of herbs. The night breeze wafted from her direction, carrying an unsettling, feverish scent.
Wei Zhao stood silently in the darkness, watching Jiang Ci pass by, lifting the tent flap and disappearing inside her small tent.
Inside the main command tent, Pei Yan stood with Ning Jianyu, Cui Liang, Xu Jun, and Chen An before a terrain map, detailing their deployment.
Wei Zhao entered without looking at anyone and lay down on the couch. Pei Yan smiled, turning to Ning Jianyu. “Do you understand everything?”
Ning Jianyu nodded. “Rest assured, My Lord.”
Chen An hurriedly asked, “My Lord, if Bo Yunshan doesn’t attack in two days, won’t all our efforts be in vain?”
Ning Jianyu rapped his head. “Just do as you’re told! Why ask so many useless questions? Our lord’s strategies are brilliant; Bo Yunshan will certainly take the bait!”
Pei Yan’s expression turned serious. “Listen carefully. I want Bo Yunshan’s main force annihilated and the traitor captured alive within five days. Then we’ll rush back to reinforce Tian Ce. Understood?”
“Yes, sir!” Ning Jianyu, Xu Jun, and Chen An saluted solemnly in unison.