Fish Meat – Chapter 251
by Little PandaThe Tenth Year of Shunde
Like Snapping Dried Twigs and Pulling Up Rotten Wood (18)
Amidst the astonished expressions of the Qingyuan ladies, Ah Zheng’s calm composure seemed strikingly out of place, as if she had guessed it all along. Ah Liao finally stopped crying and lowered the hands covering her face. Ah Zheng was helping wipe her tears away. She looked at Ah Xu, waiting for her to continue speaking. There was no obvious confusion in her swollen eyes, only waiting.
Ah Liao had thought of it long ago, known it long ago, but simply hadn’t said anything.
Even now, Ah Liao was still considering Ah Xu’s feelings, not pressuring her, not embarrassing her, just waiting for her to admit it herself.
Such consideration from Ah Liao only intensified the guilt.
Ah Xu took a deep breath.
“It was jealousy, because of jealousyโฆ”
Ah Xu was somewhat different from the other ladies of Qingyuan. When she came to Ah Liao’s side, she was already heavily pregnant, riddled with ailments, her hair matted. She saw herself as nothing more than a filthy rag.
Ah Liao had never shown any disdain for her. She arranged a warm, comfortable residence, visited often, helped treat her injuries, assisted with childbirth, and even personally heated water to wash her feet in the dead of winter.
Not even her husband, who had starved to death, had ever treated her so well. No one in this world had ever treated her so well.
Ah Liao had saved her life and had always been incredibly gentle with her. She should have spent the rest of her life repaying this kindness.
But instead, she chose to betray her.
From the first moment Ah Xu saw Ah Qin, she understood that Ah Liao must adore this woman. This woman possessed all the qualities that captivated Ah Liao.
Just as she thought, Ah Liao became utterly smitten, pouring everything she had into Ah Qin, taking her everywhere she went. Delicious food, fun things, novelties, special itemsโall the most beautiful and best things were given to her.
In truth, every new lady who joined Qingyuan would have such a sweet period with Ah Liao. After a few months, Ah Liao would return her attention to all the Qingyuan ladies, favoring no single one.
But Ah Qin was different. Ah Liao spent more and more time with her, longer and longer. Half a year later, Ah Liao still loved being by her side. A year passed, and it was still the same. Even in the subsequent years, Ah Liao couldn’t bear to leave Ah Qin. You could sense her disappointment even if her gaze was forced away from Ah Qin for just a moment.
Qingyuan was slowly losing its balance. Everyone knew it in their hearts.
Ah Xu felt a bit lonely.
Ah Xu often went to see her son. There was no need to inform Ah Liao; she could just go directly, and someone would even escort her.
A handsome young gentleman living next door frequently came to visit. Whenever Ah Xu went, he would surely appear.
The young gentleman’s surname was Liu, given name Chao. He was eighteen this year, his features just maturing into handsome lines, with red lips and white teeth, not yet having grown a beard. She had once heard his friends tease him for looking like a young lady.
Liu Chao visited often and offered help. Over time, the two became familiar, progressing from discussing daily trifles to sharing matters of the heart. Ah Xu poured out her inner frustrations to Liu Chao. He comforted her, and gradually, they developed a deeper connection. Ah Xu found the long-lost feeling of being cherished in Liu Chao.
She was carrying Liu Chao’s child.
When Ah Xu discovered her pregnancy, she was utterly desperate and distraught, feeling she had done something unforgivable towards Ah Liao. Liu Chao came again to console her: “It’s not your fault. It’s all the fault of that b%tch named Ah Qin. Why not take this chance to drive that b%tch away? Then you can stay by my side or return to Zhangsun Ran’s side, whichever you prefer. As long as you’re happy, I’ll be at ease.”
“Drive her away? How?”
Liu Chao then told her to inform Ah He, the one she was closest to in Qingyuan, that she was pregnant and that Ah Qin had arranged for someone to secretly harm her. The goal was to drive out the Qingyuan ladies one by one and monopolize Ah Liao.
Ah Xu told Ah He about this. Ah He was livid, immediately wanting to find Ah Qin to settle the score and drag her before Ah Liao to make things clear. Ah Xu hesitated, her heart pounding with panic, and stopped Ah He.
Who knew that this matter would be overheard by other sisters passing by, and it spread like wildfire.
The person who tricked Ming County’s main force into leaving for Xiao County with false information, and who leaked intelligence leading to the entire army being ambushed and killed, was also Ah Xu.
Ah Xu admitted she had been bewitched, solely because Liu Chao had said that if the main force was transferred, he would have a way to send people into Ming County to assassinate Ah Qin. Once Ah Qin was dead, Qingyuan could return to its former state, and Ah Liao would come back to her side.
“I did it, but what I got in return was disaster for all of Ming County. Watching the fire oil bombs fly into the city and countless people die unjustly, I finally knew I had done wrong. I didn’t want innocent people drawn into this, and even less did I want to see Ah Liao looking sad. Only now do I realize how stupid I was.”
Ah He couldn’t listen anymore. She stepped forward and slapped Ah Xu hard across the face.
“You used us like this!”
Tears streamed down Ah Xu’s face. She didn’t flinch, letting Ah He hit her. “It’s my fault. It’s all my fault alone.”
Ah Liao stepped forward and embraced the furious Ah He, then said to Ah Xu, “How could it be your fault alone? It was my negligence that led to today’s disaster. Though you are guilty, I am not without blame either. My feelings of affection for all of you haven’t changed, yet I caused you heartbreak because of me. This truly is an unforgivable sin.”
Ah Liao’s words brought tears to the eyes of all the Qingyuan ladies. Ah Xu collapsed directly to her knees.
Ah Liao went forward and pulled Ah Xu into her embrace, carefully studying her face. “When I first saw you in Suichuan back then, I resented Heaven for letting a beauty like you suffer so much hardship. These years you’ve been by my side, always talking about repaying the debt of saving your life, but it was I who benefited most from your gentleness. These past few days, I’ve been particularly craving the steamed cakes you make with Sophora flower juice, but sadly, those flowers haven’t been found for years. I can only lament not cherishing things enough in the past, just like today’s events. It was because I didn’t do well enough that you were exploited by others. But the disaster in Ming County, the death of the main forceโฆ that cannot be lightly dismissed by my words alone.”
After speaking the last word, Ah Liao gently kissed Ah Xu’s eyes, which had lost all their luster.
Ah Xu nodded while crying. “I knowโฆ I know.”
“As long as the Zhangsun Clan is not destroyed, I will raise your child with utmost care. You can go with a little more peace.”
Smiling faintly, Ah Xu slowly closed her eyes in Ah Liao’s embrace.
Ah Liao’s hands were covered in blood, tears still clinging to her face. Her expression was unreadable, somewhat dazed.
Ah Zheng came up from behind and hugged her, pulling the blood-stained knife from Ah Liao’s stiff hand and tossing it aside. She held Ah Liao, gently patting her back.
“It’s alright now, it’s alrightโฆ If crying will make you feel better, I’ll cry with you.”
Ah Liao personally buried Ah Xu. Xing’er didn’t know what had happened, why his mother had died. His cries shook the heavens.
Ah Liao held him patiently in her arms, comforting him until he cried himself tired and drifted into a drowsy sleep.
Ah Qin was still missing. The Hu bandits surrounded the foot of the mountain so tightly that not even an insect could escape. Ah Liao thought perhaps Ah Qin was still on the mountain, just unwilling to see her.
The Hu bandits had lost over ten thousand men after being harried by the “Gale Wind” for several days and no longer ventured up the mountain recklessly. They had figured it out: no need to risk death charging uphill. They just had to surround the base. The resources on the mountain would soon run out, and the villagers would all starve to death inside. Then they could easily collect the bodies.
Someone suggested to Li Man, the Prince of Yanquan, that he could leave fifty thousand men here while the rest of the troops continued eastward. Now that they occupied Ming County, the priority was to push east rapidly and swallow the fat prize of Dongchun and Pingcang. This would cut off the lifelines of the Wei and Zhangsun Clans, driving them out of the two commanderies and paving the way for their complete annihilation, which seemed within reach.
But Li Man did not leave. He ordered a hundred thousand troops back to Ming County, stationing the rest at the foot of the mountain, waiting passively like waiting for a hare by a stump1.
“Continuing the eastward push now is certainly a great opportunity, but what if our forces are dispersed and the Wei and Zhangsun reinforcements arrive? Not only would Zhangsun Ran be rescued, but they’d retake Ming County. Wouldn’t all our efforts be wasted, falling short at the last step?”
The leader of the Jixi Clan sat in the same carriage as Li Man, voicing his doubts to a strategist fluent in both languages. When the strategist relayed this to Li Man, it provoked his displeasure. Li Man didn’t even look at the Jixi leader, leaning back against the soft carriage seat and gazing outside, drawling lazily.
The strategist hesitated, then relayed Li Man’s words with a modified tone to the Jixi leader. The Jixi leader pressed on, “If the reinforcements arrive, how can you guarantee Zhangsun Ran won’t be rescued? I hear the Wei and Zhangsun families are formidable, and they’ve even allied with some female general. Their forces should be considerable. If we can’t defeat the reinforcements, failing to take Zhangsun Ran’s life is a small matter, but what if instead of waiting for a hare by the stump, we end up waiting for a fierce tiger? If the entire army’s lives are lost, what then?”
Li Man suddenly sat up straight, leaned forward, and stared into the leader’s eyes, his voice low like a venomous snake slithering from a crack in the earth.
“Ever heard of the Red Lotus Cult?”
The Jixi leader shook his head.
“You know nothing, so what gives you the gall to spout nonsense here and doubt This King? Strategy, do you understand strategy? Tell him not to overthink it. Just listen to This King, and nothing will go wrong!”
The Jixi leader looked at the strategist, waiting for him to speak.
The strategist gave an awkward laugh and wiped his sweat.
Two relief forces rushed towards Ming County day and night without stopping. Wei Tingxu also marched with the army. When they were still about five hundred li [approx. 165 miles] from Ming County, both forces were simultaneously attacked by villagers along the road.
These villagers, wielding hoes and sticks, randomly attacked any soldiers they saw. Initially, the soldiers didn’t fight back at all and suffered losses for several days; some were even beaten to death by the villagers.
It was likely because Wei Tingxu’s reputation among the common folk was so bad. These villagers had received news and wanted to vent their anger. Seeing that the soldiers didn’t attack civilians, they grew bolder in their attacks, even resorting to killing.
The advance of the reinforcements was extremely urgent; how could Wei Tingxu afford to be delayed here?
“They are all Red Lotus Cult members. Kill them.”
With that single command, the soldiers’ morale soared. When villagers attacked again, they no longer held back. They quickly broke through the encirclement and continued towards Ming County.
Who knew those villagers would relentlessly continue to harass the army? But this time, their weapons were no longer hoes and sticks but long sabers and spears, along with armored warhorses. Not only did they advance and retreat with ease, employing formations, but they even knew how to utilize the terrain for battle. It was clear at a glance they were not ordinary peasants but had undergone rigorous training.
It had long been heard that one important reason for the Red Lotus Cult’s rapid growth was its organization of an army within the cult, distributing weapons and training cavalry with a very clear purpose. Who else but the Red Lotus Cult could possess such combat capability while disguised as commoners?
Wei Tingxu hadn’t expected her casual remark to actually hit the mark.
This was her first direct confrontation with the Red Lotus Cult. Many powers in Da Yu had suffered losses at their hands. Wei Tingxu had initially been skepticalโthese were princes and nobles, top-tier in both knowledge and wealth in Da Yu; how could they not overcome common folk? After three days of clashing, Wei Tingxu finally understood. Although the Red Lotus Cult members were trained, they were not true soldiers; they lacked any sense of a warrior’s awareness or dignity. While they employed tactics, they were utterly despicable, using the old, weak, women, and children as shields, resorting to pestering and dirty tricks. All sorts of insidious and damaging maneuvers emerged one after another; shit and piss flew everywhere.
Wei Jing’an returned to camp covered in filth, his eyes glazed over. He had seen much in his many years on the battlefield, witnessing all sorts of bizarre tactics, but he never thought he’d live to see dung-throwing used as a tactic to literally disgust the enemy into retreating.
Zhangsun Wu almost didn’t recognize him. Seeing him standing at the entrance to the main camp, eyes vacant, Zhangsun Wu pinched his nose and was about to detour around him when Wei Jing’an grabbed him.
“Zhanying, where were you today?” Wei Jing’an demanded. Zhangsun Wu was supposed to have gone out with him today.
“Zilian-ge, Zhanying had a stomachache just before leaving and had diarrhea until his legs went weak. That’s how he escaped disasterโฆ no, that’s why he couldn’t fight alongside Zilian-ge. I think Zilian-ge should hurry and bathe and change clothes.”
“Youโฆ”
Wei Jing’an pointed at Zhangsun Wu, about to curse him, but saw everyone passing by covering their noses and hurrying past. Wei Tingxu heard the commotion and came out from her tent to greet her Second Brother. Her eyes met Wei Jing’an’s, her steps halted abruptly, and she immediately retreated back into her tent, pulling the flap tightly shut.
Zhangsun Wu stifled a laugh, ducked down, and ran off.
Wei Jing’an followed him to a secluded spot, lunged forward, and hugged him tightly, rubbing the filth all over him.
Zhangsun Wu, smeared and scared out of his wits, yelled, “Wei Zilian! I’ll fight you!”
Zhangsun Wu had been fastidious about cleanliness since childhood; if there was a single hair of unknown origin on his carpet at home, he’d replace the whole thing. How could he ever have been contaminated by such disgusting filth?
Wei Jing’an laughed triumphantly and quickly fled.
Fighting the Red Lotus Cult didn’t pose a great threat to life, but as the days passed, Wei Tingxu grew increasingly anxious. They had to break through the Red Lotus Cult’s entanglement and reinforce Ming County as soon as possible.
The more anxious she was to break through, the more troublesome the Red Lotus Cult became.
By the fifteenth day, they were still four hundred li [approx. 130 miles] away from Ming County.
Ah Liao and the others were trapped on the mountain. The village’s food supplies had completely run out. She herself hadn’t eaten a bite in two days.
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