Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Red Bat snatched the wine pot away and said seriously, “Instructor, you shouldn’t drink anymore.”
Her face bright red from the afterglow, Shangguan Ru giggled and replied, “Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival. Can’t we make an exception?”
It’d been five or six days since Red Bat arrived in Heaven’s Pass. The Instructor drank almost every day – she drank with guests, she drank alone, she drank during the day, and she also drank during the night. Despite the fact that she barely consumed any food, her mind always seemed to be relatively clear. Occasionally, though, she would say some nonsense. “The Mid-Autumn Festival was three days ago. You can’t even remember the date clearly, Instructor.”
Red Bat was about six or seven years older than Shangguan Ru, but she had always believed that the Instructor was her master, and that she was Instructor’s servant. This was the first time that she had talked to Instructor with a reproachful tone.
Shangguan Ru tilted her head and thought for a while before saying, “Three days ago? Does time really go by that fast? I thought… Okay then, this is the last one. No more after.”
She downed the wine in one gulp and then gravely handed the cup to Red Bat, wryly commenting, “You look like my mother now.”
“Alas,” Red Bat said as she carried the drinking vessels to the doorway and called for the waiter to take them away. Then she turned around and said, “How I wish Instructor’s mother were right here. Then I wouldn’t have to worry so much about you.”
The look on Shangguan Ru’s face dimmed slightly. “My mother… She will never come to me.”
Red Bat knew the she had touched a sore point of the Instructor’s, so she didn’t dare ask more about it. Walking beside Shangguan Ru, Red Bat gently asked, “Why do you have to do this, Instructor? Let’s just go back to the Land of Fragrance. Although the world outside is nice, it’s also too complicated. We can’t fix it, so why should we bother involved ourselves with the messy situation?”
“The Land of Fragrance,” Shangguan Ru mumbled to herself. Although she had only left a few months ago, she already felt that land had become unreachable. “My home’s not there.” As she sat on a chair, Shangguan Ru raised her head and peered at Red Bat. The look on Shangguan Ru’s face was one of confusion, with a ghost of childishness. “It’s not that I want to get involved in the messy situation, Red Bat. It’s just that the messy situation has already overwhelmed me. I can’t escape even if I want to.”
Having never seen the Instructor act so vulnerably before, Red Bat’s heart swelled with sympathy as well as the desire to protect her, so she embraced her and gently stroked her black hair as she consoled, “All women are the same. Even if we have bows, arrows and sabers in our hands, we still can’t breach the defenses of men.”
Shangguan Yun burst into laughter and replied, “No matter what I say, you always find a way to tie it back to men, don’t you? Do you miss Long Fanyun? He’s not far from here, actually.”
“Not even a little bit,” Red Bat denied instantly. “I don’t miss him any longer. The Dragon King has transferred a large population into the Land of Fragrance, and there must be some good men among them. I’ll find a new one after I return. Why bother admiring the special fragrance in the deep valley when there’re flowers right beside my hands?”
Her head resting on Red Bat’s chest, Shangguan Ru continued laughing as she remarked, “You’re so bold.” After saying this, she rubbed her head against Red Bat’s chest and purred, “This part of your body’s so comfy.”
Red Bat immediately blushed and pressed her hands down on Shangguan Ru’s head, yet she didn’t push her away. “And you say that I’m the bold one? If anyone else hears this, you’ll become a laughing stock.”
Shangguan Ru stopped laughing and gradually sat up straight. “You were right. I shouldn’t drink anymore.”
Red Bat felt sorry for her Instructor. She even regretted having been too severe just now. ” I hate the Dragon King now. It was all because of him, Instructor…”
Shangguan Ru shook her head. She had just been thinking about another person — Shangguan Yushi, the one whose premature death had changed Shangguan Ru’s entire life. She didn’t know whether it was because of the wine or the sentimental autumn scenery, but she missed her sole friend with all her heart at this moment.
Shangguan Ru started replaying the memories in her mind of when she and Master Yu were hiding in the flower clusters, whispering to each other. The scenes were still so vivid that she felt as if the voices were echoing besides her ears right now. Then, slowly, the image was invaded by the Dragon King, walking into the scene with a sullen face as if he had never smiled before. As he held his saber with his right hand, he stretched his left hand towards her, a firm light in his eyes.
Shangguan Ru shook off the daydream and stood up. “Let’s go. We have to get going.”
“Do you really want to go there, Instructor? Actually we don’t have to. I mean, if by any chance the Dragon King…”
“If by any chance the Dragon King isn’t in a closed door cultivation, then he’ll need us even more.”
Seeing that the Instructor seemed to have recovered, Red Bat was slightly relieved and began to help her change her clothes and make the preparations.
Xu Xiaoyi had been waiting outside the whole time, holding the reins himself.
“Are you sure that the Dragon King’s in closed door cultivation?” Red Bat asked in a muted voice before getting on the horse. “The last thing the Instructor would want is to make things worse.”
“I’m sure. At least, to the best of my knowledge.” Xu Xiaoyi turned to Shangguan Ru and then said, “The Dragon King can definitely handle his own business. It’s just that you have to help them get through Heaven’s Pass, Instructor.”
“Consider it done.” Shangguan Ru agreed to the plan and spurred her horse onwards. The Flame Foal rushed forward quickly and after a dozen steps, it turned around and rushed back to join Red Bat and the few dozen female soldiers.
“Any news of Shaomin?” Shangguan Ru asked. This was another reason why she had stayed in Heaven’s Pass.
Xu Xiaoyi shook his head as he answered, “Not yet, but she has to be in the Western Regions somewhere. Probably Jade City.”
Shangguan Ru spurred her horse onwards again. This time, the speed of the horse was much slower, so the female soldiers were able to catch up.
They entered the city from the south and soon reached the gate of Northern Jade City. They had seen a lot of ox carts and camel caravans ambling along the way. With nothing else to do, the coachmen had gathered together and started gambling, the oxen and camels chewing hay beside them. They didn’t seemed to be worried about the predicament at all.
There was a team waiting outside the gate for them. Prince Duodun watched the Flame Foal approach from afar and said to Shangguan Ru, “Such a good horse. I once said that I would find another one on the grassland. Now it seems that I made that promise too quickly.”
Shangguan Ru affectionately patted the neck of the Flame Foal and stated, “There are faster horses in the grasslands, but there’s only one Flame Foal.”
“Haha.” Duodun gave out a few loud laughs, and then said, “I’m very grateful that you agreed to accompany me to the Xiaowan Kingdom, Instructor Shangguan.”
Shangguan Ru glanced at the Dragon Army’s General of the Right Shang Liao, who was not far away as she replied, “I’m not accompanying you. We just happen to be heading in the same direction.”
“Either way, then it’s my honor to be heading in the same direction as Instructor Shangguan.” Duodun displayed exceptional patience, which greatly surprised his companions beside him.
The two groups merged together and continued on their way. Shangguan Ru was riding side by side with Duodun and she asked him about getting through Heaven’s Pass. “Your Highness, I remember that you had an agreement with the Dragon King. Why did you stop the Western Regions’ provisions from entering the Xiaowan Kingdom?”
Duodun continued looking forward, the look on his face grave. “This is the exact reason why I have to meet the Dragon King. Things are different from what I expected. The Dragon Army is spending large sums of money purchasing provisions. The price has multiplied many times in the past few days. Everybody’s stockpiling their food and hay to the point that they can’t even pay their regular taxes.”
“Are you saying that the people of the Western Regions should hand over their provisions without being paid for it?”
Duodun snorted as he replied, “Paying taxes is their duty. From the Norland to the Central Plains, every resident has to pay taxes, and the people of the Western Regions are no exception. I don’t know what trick the Dragon King’s playing, and neither do I know how much wealth he owns. But things are growing messy in Western Regions because of him.”
“However rich he is, he’s no match for the Norland. The stockpiling won’t last for long.”
“I hope so. But I need to hear it from the Dragon King’s own mouth. This is much more important than his closed door cultivation.”
Knowing that Prince Duodun must have other intentions, Shangguan Ru stopped asking about it. There were rumors that the Dragon King had appeared in Jade City and massacred many people. What Duodun wanted was to confirm the Dragon King’s whereabouts, and this provisions thing was just an excuse.
Their group of several hundred people reached the outside of the Xiaowan Kingdom at dusk. During the rests throughout the journey, Shangguan Ru had kept her word and hadn’t drank a drop.
Long Fanyun came out of the city and welcomed them himself. After they talked to him for a long time, he reluctantly agreed to send their message to the Dragon King who was in closed door cultivation, but he said that they would have to wait until tomorrow at the earliest to receive a response.
Prince Duodun refused to be accommodated within the city and insisted on staying in the army camp outside the city. This was the first time that he had met the cavalrymen from the Norland, so he held a grand feast like he used to in the grasslands, inviting all the off-duty officers, and also bringing out all the food and wine he brought from the Western Regions for the troops.
That night, the whole army camp was ablaze with light.
Shangguan Ru failed to control her addiction to alcohol. On this occasion, Red Bat couldn’t stop Shangguan Ru either, and she could only ask her to drink as little as possible.
Shangguan Ru drew Red Bat aside and said to her in a low tone, “How about this? I’ll allow you to take a leave of absence. You can go anywhere you want, so you don’t have to watch me drinking, and I also promise that I won’t drink too much.”
After that, she gave a naughty smile. Red Bat resignedly staed, “But you’re the female soldiers’ Instructor of the Land of Fragrance-”
Shangguan Yun pushed Red Bat out of the tent and loudly said, “Say hello to Long Fanyun for me!”
Red Bat did indeed want to see Long Fanyun, but she was also worried that the female soldiers might not be able to stop Instructor from drinking too much, so she had someone call Azheba over and entrusted Shangguan Ru to him.
Shangguan Ru didn’t enjoy herself to the fullest. Azheba was only one of the reasons, among which Second Consort was the major one.
Shangguan Ru had traveled a long way to arrive at the gateway to the Western Regions, and there was now only half a day’s journey between her and her admirer. Yet in the more than ten days that had passed, she had only met Prince Duodun twice, and neither of the two meetings were in private. Not only did this make the Second Consort more convinced of the rumors, but it also changed her opinions on Shangguan Ru.
The Second Consort was not a timid woman who kept things to herself, so not long after the feast started, she smilingly took Shangguan Ru around. “This is the men’s place. Let’s go to my tent so we can do some drinking and chatting in peace. Ever since our last meeting in the Royal Court, I’ve missed you a lot.”
Shangguan Ru had a widespread reputation regarding her drinking capability, and she had also brought dozens of female soldiers with her, so the feast lost a lot of its fun after their departure. It was not until Prince Duodun took out some more good wine and regained the officers’ recognition with his approachable personality that joy and delight came back to the tent again.
With nobody else around to disturb them, Second Consort and Shangguan Ru enjoyed their drinks. Although the wine was not much, it was stronger and better than the ones out there. Soon, the Second Consort became slightly drunk. She had the slave girls leave the room and started chatting with Shangguan Ru without reserve.
She talked about her marriage with the Khan as well as the price she had paid all those years ago. Some of the details made Shangguan Ru’s heart beat rapidly and her flush red. Then the Second Consort started talking about Prince Duodun, who was the sunshine in her dark life and the most powerful source of her desire for status on the grasslands.
“Women can never escape from love,” she said, slightly drunk. “Men can fill the void in their hearts with power, while women, even if they have power, always want to trade it for love.”
“Not all women are like that.” Shangguan Ru seldom contradicted her, but she didn’t agree with Second Consort on this point.
“There are different ones in this world. But if a woman has no room for love, then nobody will see her as a woman anymore. This is tragic, but it’s also fate.”
“I won’t marry Duodun,” Shangguan Ru said again, clearly laying out the contradiction between them first. “Whatever they say, I won’t change my mind.”
Second Consort smiled and held onto Shangguan Ru’s hand, “I believe you. But I’m afraid that Duodun won’t give up on you that easily.”
“Then what else can I possibly do?” Shangguan Ru was a little confused and also a little unhappy about the Second Consort’s words.
“You love the Dragon King and the Dragon King loves you back, so why don’t you marry him?” the Second Consort asked sincerely.
Shangguan Ru gently drew her hand back. “This has nothing to do with the Dragon King.”
“You’re not going to marry the Dragon King?” The Second Consort wouldn’t let go.
“I’m not.” Shangguan Ru had no choice but to utter these two words, feeling a stab of pain in her heart, but a ghost of relief at the same time.
“Then maybe you should marry Duodun with me,” Second Consort said — this was her real plan all along.
