Once the imperial edict came down, there was no way to stay. Going to the Northern Court clearly was not something one could return from in a year or two. Su Dingfang had already lingered in that place for five years. Originally, he should have shone brilliantly in the battle of Liaodong, but the result was that Yun Ye’s appearance meant that the flower of a famous general like Su Dingfang could only eat sand and endure in the Northern Court to build up seniority.
Yun Ye used to view separation very lightly, but after living in the Great Tang for so many years, he had also become somewhat sentimental. When leaving, he held Li Anlan’s hand and said, “Going to take office in the Northern Court this time—at most three to five years, at least two to three years. You and I, one at the northern sea, one at the southern frontier—take good care of yourself. If things don’t go well in the southern frontier, go to Chang’an. That residence has your share.”
Li Anlan was so frightened her face turned white, because her man had never bid her farewell in such a solemn manner before. Pulling on Yun Ye’s sleeve, she said with a trembling voice, “If you feel this journey is inauspicious, why not just not go? Even risking Father Emperor’s rage, we can go live in the great sea. As long as you’re alive, everything can be discussed.”
Yun Ye rubbed his face and pressed on Li Anlan’s nose, saying without good humor, “The atmosphere is completely gone. I was still hoping you’d say some heart-wrenching words to warm a person’s heart. Who knew you’d actually instigate me to be a deserter? No meaning at all.”
After saying this, he vigorously rubbed Li Rong’s head twice, mounted Wang Cai, and set off. This time was terrible—the Great Emperor was left to the Lingnan naval forces. That damned imperial envoy became the supervisor on the Great Emperor. Liu Renyuan only had command authority, not operational authority. Damn it—it angered Liu Renyuan half to death.
Yun Ye was no longer the commander of the Lingnan naval forces, so naturally he no longer had the right to mobilize warships to send himself home. He also couldn’t be bothered to take the slow merchant ships—those things were too dangerous.
This time going to the Northern Court was a huge test for Wang Cai. Now returning to Chang’an was just the right opportunity to test Wang Cai’s ability to travel long distances. For convenience, he specially prepared two extra horses to ride in rotation. Under the escort of three hundred personal guards, they advanced toward Chang’an in grand procession.
After leaving Hengpu Pass, they entered the ancient Meiling Road. The ancient Meiling Road was a deep ancient pathway, no wider than one zhang and two chi. The uneven stones paved the passage of time from ancient times to present. Thin little grasses grew out from the cracks between the stones. The ancient road showed green, looking somewhat young. On both sides of the ancient road, there were many trees, providing considerable shade. The trees were tall and vigorous with extraordinary bearing. Clear ditch water made small sounds—drinkable and washable.
Occasionally encountering a pool of clear water was considered a gift from Heaven. After washing away the dust of travel, Yun Ye thought this was a good place to film “A Chinese Ghost Story.” The roots of old trees twisted and coiled together—seven or eight people couldn’t embrace them. For such thousand-year-old trees not to become spirits would be the strange thing.
The Meiling ridge truly was covered with plum trees, all over the mountains and plains. Unfortunately, the plums had already disappeared without a trace. This thing matured starting in the fifth month—now all that could be found were dried plums.
The cavalry swept through the ancient Meiling Road like the wind. The title of General Huaihua was enough in these remote areas to let Yun Ye walk sideways. After leaving the ancient Meiling Road and traveling another hundred li or so, they reached Dayu Pass in Jiangxi South Circuit. When Yun Ye’s party arrived below the pass, the city gates were tightly closed. This was Li Er’s place for stationing armored soldiers. Previously it was to guard against Feng Ang’s rebellion, now it was to guard against Yun Ye’s rebellion. This was no joke—six thousand of the most elite Xuanjia Army troops stationed here for precisely this purpose. The damned Xuanjia Army commander had even put out word that if Yun Ye’s Lingnan naval forces dared make any unusual moves, they would immediately head south along the ancient Meiling Road and flatten Yongzhou.
The Xuanjia Army commanders generally came from Duan Zhixuan’s family. Duan Meng had previously studied at Yushan Academy—who knew where he was assigned now. The Xuanjia Army had always held hostility toward Yun Ye’s Lingnan naval forces. Since Duan Zhixuan passed away, there had been even less contact. This was probably also Li Er’s strategy. His military governance always placed two incompatible fellows together, believing this was most stable. Who the commander here was, he didn’t know, but he showed disdain for General Huaihua’s waist token, only replying that to enter the pass, one must wait until cock’s crow tomorrow.
This wasn’t making things difficult for anyone. The Xuanjia Army was just this kind of rigid. Getting them to be flexible was harder than killing them. Even now, Yun Ye still didn’t understand—even now, the Xuanjia Army’s military rations were still millet. This thing wasn’t even grown in Guanzhong anymore, yet their grain supervisor still wore a dead man’s face demanding millet. If you gave them rice or white flour, they would turn hostile.
When he was in the Ministry of War, he hadn’t suffered less from looking at these bastards’ faces. In the entire Great Tang, there were only thirty thousand Xuanjia Army troops—not one more, not one less. If one died, one was replaced. This was also the Great Tang’s only military force that required service until fifty years of age.
Over this matter, Yun Ye almost came to blows with the Xuanjia Army’s grand commander Duan He. The physique of Great Tang people was relatively weak. By fifty years old, they had absolutely reached the time for peaceful retirement, especially in the military. Training was arduous, and people aged even faster. Other military forces, if they hadn’t become squad leaders or higher officers by forty-five, would be ordered to retire. Duan He was black-hearted about squeezing out the last bit of potential from old soldiers. The bastard wouldn’t let go until he worked people to death.
Li Er listened with a smile to the reason for Yun Ye and Duan He’s quarrel, then immediately summoned fifty old men from the Xuanjia Army and had Yun Ye bring fifty robust young men from the Lingnan naval forces’ marine corps to conduct martial demonstration combat with wooden swords and spears. Under Yun Ye’s astonished gaze, those fifty old soldiers, using only minimal cost, toppled Yun Ye’s elite subordinates. Moreover, Yun Ye had cheated by putting Lai Chuanfeng in as an ordinary soldier. As a result, Old Lai was also surrounded and beaten by three old soldiers, and before long lay on the ground with a bruised and swollen face.
Li Er and Duan He were both very pleased. Then Yun Ye proposed expanding the teams a bit more, using their respective weapons on the field in organized formation. Li Er’s face immediately darkened. The Xuanjia Army’s combat power was unmatched, but if they went against the Lingnan naval forces equipped with fire oil and gunpowder, there would only be a result of massive casualties.
As the Great Tang’s most elite force, they also had gunpowder and fire oil, but these fools believed the horizontal swords and flails in their own hands were more reliable. Duan He even said sarcastically that since ancient times, strong armies were never judged superior or inferior by weapons. If soldiers lost their blood courage, even holding celestial weapons would be useless.
This was clearly someone who hadn’t suffered losses. When beaten until it hurt, beaten until the pain penetrated to the bone, he would know that a soldier’s blood courage and weapons—these two things were absolutely both indispensable.
Yun Ye could swagger and bluster before other armies, but before the Xuanjia Army he truly didn’t have much face. However, those Xuanjia Army soldiers on the city wall didn’t do things too absolutely either. From the city head, they sent down several large baskets of millet buns—yellowish and unappetizing just to look at. Liu Jinbao gritted his teeth and took these millet buns, following the direction indicated by the Xuanjia Army soldiers, fumbling in the dark toward the Mountain God Temple. Although that place was said to be a ruined temple, having tiles for shelter was better than sleeping in the wild.
The household guards gathered the horses to the rear courtyard of the Mountain God Temple, lit a fire in the great hall, and only after carefully searching invited Yun Ye to enter. Tonight’s dinner was meat soup and millet buns. Originally they had dry rations, but no one would waste food. Of course, Yun Ye was an exception—he really couldn’t eat those rough buns.
The Yun household also made millet buns. After soaking the millet until soft, they pounded it to mush with wooden mallets, then fermented it, mixed with chestnut flour, pinched into small steamed buns, and fried in oil. That was a different matter from these one-jin things.
Yun Ye gritted his teeth and barely managed to eat half, then couldn’t eat anymore. He took a tree branch, skewered it on top, planning to roast it hot to eat. Liu Jinbao took out braised meat and pickled fish and said to Yun Ye, “Marquis, if you can’t eat these yellow buns, don’t force yourself. You should eat our family’s things instead.”
There was no need to put on airs and wrong himself in front of these people. Yun Ye wasn’t too hungry. He found a chicken, tore off a drumstick, and distributed the remaining chicken meat to the guards around him. He himself used a tree branch to skewer the chicken leg to roast.
A gust of wind blew over. Yun Ye covered his eyes with his sleeve. After that strange wind passed, he discovered the chicken leg skewered on his branch was gone. Looking into the fire pit—it wasn’t there either. The other guards were all chewing their portions of chicken meat with relish, eating happily. No one noticed the marquis holding an empty branch in a daze.
Forget it—if it’s gone, it’s gone. He skewered a fish on the branch again and continued roasting. A cat suddenly appeared on the beam, meowing incessantly, very annoying. When the guards drove away the cat, the fish on Yun Ye’s branch had disappeared again.
Yun Ye threw down the branch and said toward the ceiling, “Xiao Miao, come out quickly. How old are you now—why are you still so mischievous?”
“Won’t come out. Master said we can only walk in darkness and cannot let others see us. Drinking East Sea water at dawn, lodging at Mount Cangwu at dusk—this is what we should pursue.”
Everyone holding buns looked up toward the ceiling. A piece of pale green skirt hem hung down from the beam. A fair little hand waved slightly, and the braised meat behind Yun Ye disappeared.
“Don’t listen to your master deceive you. He stays home enjoying blessings, drinking wine and tea with Master Liu Fang all day, driving you out to sleep in the open and eat meals in the wind. What nonsense about drinking East Sea water at dawn—East Sea water is salty. Drink a few more mouthfuls and you’ll die. Come down quickly. What’s a little girl doing squatting on a beam? Come down and put on a blanket. From now on, follow Uncle Yun. Don’t listen to that master of yours. He just finds you annoying following him around. You’ve suffered hardships these days, haven’t you? Poor thing. A big girl should sit in a carriage, not sit on beams. Come down. Soon you’ll need to find an in-law family to marry into. By now you haven’t even settled on a wedding dress yet, right? Running east and west—where’s the time to embroider?”
Liu Jinbao looked at his own marquis with admiration. This was his master’s true face. He just didn’t know if this little girl was easy to deceive or not. He knew Xiao Miao’s abilities. Anyway, Gou Zi always came back with a bruised and swollen face to drink with him. When drunk, he would curse Xiao Miao.
A figure flashed, and a disheveled little girl appeared before Yun Ye. Her hair was messy, the green dress on her body was dirty, and she held a large piece of braised meat in her hand, pouting as if about to cry.