Chapter 39: The Terrifying Journey (Part 1)

Flames soared skyward, spewing forth rolling masses of thick black smoke that stained the sky an ominously blood-tinged gray. The surrounding area was crisscrossed with deep ravines and dense forests. Battle cries shook the heavens as the Cheng household’s guards and retainers fought desperately ahead, struggling to block wave after wave of “bandits” surging forward.

In truth, Shaoshang didn’t actually know if they were bandits or remnants of some defeated army, because the blood-soaked armor they wore looked like it belonged to an organized military unit.

At that moment, a bandit on the ground who hadn’t quite died yet let out a weak moan. She glanced over and recognized that just moments ago, this person had been wildly brandishing a large cleaving blade and charging toward the women. She turned to one of the guards and said, “There’s another one here.” The guard acknowledged the order, came over with his blade, and stabbed viciously several times. With low, miserable cries and some spattering blood, another life was extinguished. May Buddha have mercy.

Half a year ago, Shaoshang had still been a young woman whose style was somewhat unconventional but whose worldview was ultimately normal—she would still shriek appropriately when encountering cockroaches or mice. But now, looking at the scattered limbs and broken corpses covering the ground, she wouldn’t even furrow her brow.

She looked down at herself. The dark-colored thick brocade men’s casual outfit with ornate trim that she wore had been altered for her by Yun Shi just a few days ago. It had originally been meant for watching the football matches, but now it was stained with spots of blood. Sweat trickled down the back of her neck to her spine, causing the originally soft fine linen undershirt to stick to her body—damp, cold, and uncomfortable. This was truly what they meant by “extreme joy begets sorrow”—a perfect illustration of her current predicament.

That day, after sending away Young Master Lou, that incorrect demonstration of a marriage proposal, the convoy had continued eastward. The scenery along the way was magnificent, with clear skies and no snow for days on end.

Before they had even left the Capital Region, Shaoshang’s caning injuries had mostly healed. She felt somewhat puzzled—back in the day, a fight had caused a slight fracture in her arm, and it hadn’t hurt as severely as this caning, yet that time she had needed half a semester to recover. How was it that this time she was better after only six or seven days?

Could it be that this body had superior quality? Then why had she remained swollen like a pig’s head for so long back then, when they were using the same medicinal ointments? After pondering this for several days, Shaoshang finally concluded that this body’s quality was primarily manifested in its bones and sinews, not in its skin and appearance.

To put it more vividly: if she encountered domestic violence, she might be disfigured, but she might also attend self-defense martial arts classes and become skilled enough to beat back her attacker, then turn around and accuse them with “Officer, just look at my face—isn’t the situation clear enough?” Wait, why was her mind running so smoothly through such devious thoughts?

Furthermore, she had discovered that this body came with innate musical talent.

When Shaoshang first received that transverse flute, she had been quite anxious, because back in the day she had been known in her instrumental music elective course as “sawing chrysanthemums with a steel saw.” Who knew that after Yun Shi taught her for just a few days, her fingers seemed to comprehend and master it on their own, playing a simple “Bamboo Branch Melody” with pleasant liveliness. Looking at it this way, Great-Grandfather Cheng’s genes hadn’t gone to waste. When she became wealthy and had spare time in the future, she would work on some “Lofty Mountains and Flowing Waters” type pieces to elevate her cultural refinement and avoid being treated as illiterate all the time.

After confirming that her foundation was good, Yun Shi began teaching her breathing exercises and energy cultivation to ensure her breath was even and sustained. To achieve this goal, Yun Shi confidently demanded that Shaoshang ride horses and walk every day while maintaining sufficient sleep and food. Sometimes when truly exhausted to the extreme, whether camping in the wilderness or in the jolting carriage, Shaoshang could fall asleep the moment her head touched down. Yun Shi was quite surprised by the girl’s obedience—she had thought it would take much effort to make her follow instructions precisely.

That night, Yun Shi said to her husband, “Do you think we should find a few clever servant boys to send to Qianzeng to learn his craft? Perhaps we’ll need them in the future.” The so-called carrot and stick approach—only when the stick was shocking enough could the carrot be effective.

Cheng Zhi immediately understood his wife’s meaning. His gaze drifted toward the two tents housing Cheng Wei and the twin sons. After a long while, he said, “…I say, could we perhaps think more positively? Maybe our children won’t need it?”

Yun Shi said nothing, just quietly looked at her husband. Cheng Zhi touched his nose and said, “However, talent is hard to come by. To prevent such exceptional skills from being lost, we might as well send a few over… ahem, ahem, to learn some abilities and broaden their horizons, ahem, ahem…” But learning from past experience, when it really came to confrontation, he was absolutely determined not to play the bad cop!

Nine-year-old Cheng Wei suddenly sneezed at that moment. Shaoshang, lying beside her, quickly helped tuck in her blanket, nagging, “If you read at night again, I’ll definitely tell Aunt!”

“But you won’t let me read in the carriage,” Cheng Wei mumbled.

Shaoshang said, “The carriage jolts and bumps—if you read while swaying back and forth, do you still want your eyes or not?”

“Then I’ll sleep in Ah Guang and Ah Yuan’s carriage during the day, so I won’t need to sleep when we camp at night and can read then.”

Shaoshang put on a stern face: “Humans follow the rhythms of the sun and day—one should naturally work when the sun rises and rest when it sets. If you reverse day and night like this and ruin your health, be careful you don’t grow tall in the future!” She could now express circadian rhythm principles in such literary language—truly cause for celebration.

Cheng Wei still struggled: “Books say that in Western Shu there’s a tribe that lives off bright sand in mountain valleys, which can only be collected at night. That tribe’s people don’t have short lifespans either. Besides, I won’t keep reversing day and night forever—I’ll just switch back when we reach the county seat.”

“If you won’t give up, do you believe Aunt will burn your books?” Shaoshang was too lazy for patient teaching and went straight to threats.

Cheng Wei exclaimed in shock, “Burning books is what the tyrannical Qin did!”

“When the First Emperor initially invited Han Fei, he was full of enlightened thinking too. What happened to the Prince of Han in the end?” You should know that between enlightened parents and tyrannical Qin, there’s only a report card—intellectuals are just so naive!

“Then… then I’ll read when we get back to the county…”

That’s right! Young Lady Cheng Wei was the legendary scholarly recluse embodying “it’s better to enjoy learning than just be good at it.” Just as Shaoshang had inherited Great-Grandfather Cheng’s musical sense, Cheng Wei had inherited Grandfather Sang’s habit of never putting down books or leaving the house. At the Capital Cheng residence, Shaoshang had barely seen this cousin. At White Deer Mountain, besides the study hall and library, hardly anyone could see Grandfather Sang either.

Heredity was just that magical. Amen.

Even more magical were Cheng Zhi and his wife. They truly were a match made in heaven—one was passionate about refined culture, the other passionate about affecting refined culture. They had forcibly turned a journey to take up office into a trip of sightseeing, visiting friends, and recognizing relatives.

When encountering famous mountains and great rivers or spectacular wilderness scenery, Yun Shi inevitably had to go forward and appreciate them, occasionally composing poetry. Cheng Zhi would then want to make the occasion grander, inviting three to five nearby renowned scholars and Confucian students along with their families for everyone to enjoy a wilderness banquet of mutual praise and flattery.

Following Yun Shi, Shaoshang learned another kind of “grandeur.” Not the simple and crude gold, silver, jewels, servants at beck and call, cockfighting and dog racing of the Wan family, but rather to be “carefree” and “unrestrained.” Carefree like flowing clouds and water, unrestrained to the point of boundlessness. Shaoshang couldn’t squeeze two ounces of romance from her bones, but she greatly enjoyed such gatherings.

The Confucian scholars of this era weren’t like the disciples of Confucian teaching in later generations, steeped in the pickle jar. Most wore long swords at their waists, possessed broad knowledge, and would even perform a sword dance when sufficiently inebriated. The content of their conversations wasn’t the nine ways to write the character “hui” but ranged from national policy successes and failures above to the rise and fall of previous dynasties below. When happy they would weep with extreme joy; when contemptuous they would curse without restraint.

Though the wilderness banquets were simple, with dishes consisting of nothing more than dried fruits, hot soup, and roasted meat, Shaoshang found her vision broadened and her heart enlightened as she listened and watched from the side. The hatred and passion of people in this era were as clear and pure as the sky itself.

By the time the convoy entered Chenliu Commandery in Yanzhou, Shaoshang could not only perform half of her great-grandfather’s posthumous work together with Cheng Zhi and his wife, but had also grown two inches taller. Both her front and back had achieved observable growth. Furthermore, because she had engaged in artistic pursuits for several days, her entire bearing had greatly improved, and her already decent appearance finally had a place to shine.

The Assistant Administrator of Chenliu Commandery was a close friend and former classmate of Yun Shi’s older brother Sang Yu. He kept Cheng Zhi and his wife as guests, and his wife, who had a reputation for skillful matchmaking, immediately wanted to arrange a match for Shaoshang. Yun Shi deployed her special technique—her mouth smiled and said “my niece is still young,” while her eyes flashed brightly conveying “if you have good candidates, hurry up and bring them forward, what are you dawdling for?”

If Cheng Zhi hadn’t needed to take up his post by the end of the second month, and the convoy had rested briefly before hastily leaving Chenliu, the Commandery Assistant Administrator’s wife would have hosted a banquet for Shaoshang to meet those several promising young talents.

Thus all the way in high spirits, the Cheng family ate hotpot while singing songs, finally arriving in Dong Commandery.

Then came the days when the atmosphere dramatically changed—before taking up his post in Hua County, on the way they passed through Qing County, and Cheng Zhi insisted on making a detour to pay respects to his senior martial brother who served as County Magistrate of Qing County.

Yun Shi chuckled twice and remarked sarcastically, “You martial brothers serve in neighboring posts and have met every few days these past years—what could possibly be so urgent?” Though she said this, she didn’t stop her husband.

“When I first went to White Deer Mountain, I was just a country boy who truly knew nothing beyond a few characters. Senior Brother came from a distinguished family yet showed no disdain. Not only did he guide my studies, he also taught me how to conduct myself properly with others—truly both teacher and friend!”

Cheng Zhi’s face was full of reminiscence. Yun Shi continued teasing: “That’s because Brother Gongsun saw that though your appearance was beautiful, as a person you were unspeakably stupid. He couldn’t bear to witness it, so he took extra care of you.”

Shaoshang silently translated this into plain language for herself: Senior Brother Gongsun was an appearance-obsessed person.

The “counties” of this era covered far larger administrative areas than in later generations, especially Qing County and Hua County—both were medium to large county seats with populations of over ten thousand households. Before entering the county seat, Cheng Zhi also picked up a village elder from a neighboring township to accompany them. Shaoshang, dressed in men’s clothing and riding a horse, followed along, completing that day’s exercise quota.

That elder was surnamed Li. The villagers called him Elder Li. He looked like a smiling Maitreya Buddha and said, “My son recently wrote saying that in another two years he’ll complete his training. If it weren’t for Administrator Cheng’s care back then, with my son’s dull aptitude, what year or month would he have finally understood?”

Cheng Zhi laughed, “I actually hope Junior Brother will return later. The Chen family of Henan has always been renowned. Master Chen has several daughters who were just recently brought up the mountain to accompany their parents. If Junior Brother studies a few more years, he might even find a bride for this old man!”

Elder Li was overjoyed, his graying beard practically quivering into a heart shape: “If that could happen, it would truly be great fortune for our family!”

Shaoshang couldn’t help interjecting, “That would require even more of my uncle’s guidance—after all, he even married the cherished pearl in the palm of the White Deer Mountain Master!”

Everyone burst into loud laughter. Inside the carriage, Yun Shi was also laughing uncontrollably. She picked up an orange and lifted the carriage curtain to throw it at Shaoshang. Shaoshang pretended to be hit, crying out repeatedly, and the surrounding laughter grew even louder.

The group chatted and laughed as they strolled along leisurely. Just as they could see the city gates in the distance, Cheng Zhi’s expression suddenly changed: “Something’s wrong. The situation in the city isn’t right.”

Elder Li also craned his neck to look, his expression turning serious: “You’re right, it’s not right!”

Cheng Zhi was a frequent visitor to Qing County. In past years at this time, the area before the city gates would be crowded with an endless stream of merchant caravans, farmers carrying baskets to sell their harvests, hunters bringing tanned hides to appraise, and scattered outsiders seeking relatives or directions. But now the city gates were tightly shut, and not only were there no common people before the gates, there wasn’t even a single guard!

Yun Shi lifted the carriage curtain and stuck her head out. Seeing the expression on her husband’s face, she said in a trembling voice, “…You, you’re going to enter the city…?”

Cheng Zhi’s expression was solemn: “Senior Brother must be in trouble. I must go see.”

Yun Shi didn’t want this in her heart, but she also knew her husband couldn’t stand by and do nothing. She could only say, “Then I’ll go with you.”

Cheng Zhi shook his head and said, “If there’s nothing wrong in the city, it’s fine for you to enter. But if there is trouble, it would be better to have a light cavalry of just a few people who can advance and retreat easily. I’ll take one squad of guards. The remaining retainers and soldiers will stay to protect you.”

Shaoshang was somewhat surprised. She had always thought her third uncle loved jokes and had a good temper, always complying with his wife and always contradicting his older brother. But suddenly facing a major crisis, he seemed to have transformed into a different person—acting cleanly and decisively without any hesitation.

Cheng Zhi raised his head toward Elder Li and said, “Elder, I wish to entrust my wife and children to your care…”

Elder Li cupped his hands and said, “Administrator Cheng need not say more. Please have the lady lead the convoy to my village. There are ravines, able-bodied men, and weapons there—sufficient to resist any unforeseen circumstances. Moreover, my village is backed by dense forest mountains with hiding places everywhere.”

In this era of recent peace, people’s memories of the not-so-distant chaotic times remained vivid, and resisting enemies and bandits had become routine.

Cheng Zhi nodded, then said to his wife, “Don’t be afraid. I’ll go and return quickly.”

Yun Shi nodded through tears, reaching out to grasp her husband’s wide robe sleeve. She exerted such force that her knuckles turned white before finally letting go.

After the couple bid farewell, Cheng Zhi led seven or eight guards and rode off at a gallop. Elder Li quickly urged the convoy to turn around and head toward his village. Shaoshang, however, kept gazing toward the Qing County city gates. She saw Cheng Zhi and his group knock on the gate for a long time, then exchange a few words through the gate before it finally opened just a crack to let people in. Only after the city gate closed again did Shaoshang turn to pursue her family’s convoy. As she spurred her horse forward, an uneasy feeling stirred in her heart, as if she shouldn’t have left her uncle.

When she caught up with the convoy, Shaoshang heard Elder Li speaking with Yun Shi inside the carriage.

“Madam, rest assured. His Majesty’s imperial procession just passed through—with the Marshal of the Guards ahead and the Commandant of Guards behind, with the Feathered Forest and Tiger Guards accompanying him. It’s only been a few days since leaving Qing County—who would dare to be so audacious as to commit offense?”

Yun Shi said softly, “Hearing the elder’s words brings me some comfort.”

Shaoshang suddenly said, “Aunt, why don’t we send people to request rescue troops from the Governor of Chenliu Commandery? Even if they make the trip for nothing, at worst we’ll just give the soldiers a generous reward.”

Yun Shi had originally been full of worried clouds, but hearing this she smiled and said, “Oh my, how generous! Has our young lady struck it rich?”

Elder Li also laughed, “Young Lady, even if you want to request rescue troops, Hua County is less than two days’ journey from here, while Chenliu requires three days of light cavalry. Why not send people to Hua County?”

“Before leaving, Father had people carry over a whole chest full of money for my pocket expenses. I can pay the reward money. As for Hua County, let’s send two people there as well—better safe than sorry.”

Seeing her grave expression, Yun Shi knew her niece was alert and resourceful, so she immediately sent people to both places to request aid.

After traveling a bit further, everyone suddenly felt the ground trembling. A fierce sound of hoofbeats pounding the earth approached from far to near. Terror quickly climbed onto every face, followed by waves of rough, high-pitched shouting rising and falling. Then from the horizon, twenty or thirty mounted bandits brandishing blades burst forth, charging rapidly toward them.

The Cheng household’s lead guard reacted fastest, immediately shouting hoarsely, “Form ranks! Protect the household!”