Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

Chapter 4

As was hoped, the beginning of their journey was relatively calm. Guan Ping had only to contend with Bao Sanniang and her constant attempts at making conversation. It wasn't necessarily the subject matter that was boring, but rather it was her perspective on the subjects that drove him to distraction. He could have cared less about the length of a horses' noses, just one of the many random subjects that she had decided to bring up out of the blue. It aggravated him more when she became distracted by a monkey trying to enjoy its lunch in the trees and had to admonish her for stopping to lag behind for unnecessary sightseeing. With the threat of being left behind ringing in her ear, the thought of straying from her beloved Guan Suo was enough to hasten her speed to keep up with the group.

Sightseeing might have been off the cards, but they certainly appreciated some of the beautiful countryside they passed through. The scenery was far-flung from the war-torn fields they had become accustomed to.

The most leisurely part of their journey had them skirting around villages nestled in the depths of the countryside. The paths were perfectly smooth to navigate, worn over time by hoof and foot. They could see small houses built of stone or wood peeking out from behind larch and fir trees. Young children were seen playing together in small groves, either chasing each other around or kicking about a feather-stuffed ball in a game of cuju. When they noticed the young warriors pass not too far away, they stopped to gape in awe of them, some even brave enough to wave at them. Not wanting to disappoint their young admirers, they returned their waves with earnest regard.

Their brief foray through expansive farmland gave them a view of the farmers and their families hard at work tending to their fields. The land was striped by new crops, a naturally beautiful patterning of smooth earth carefully laid out in straight lines. The sun-bleached faces of the workers were hidden under wide brimmed straw hats, light sweat already glistening on their skin from many hours of long labour. Ping himself appreciated the hardworking efforts of these people, having been born into a farming family before his adoption. The farmers amid their work bowed humbly to the party of warriors as they passed by.

By the early afternoon, they had reached a dense woodland area. Under the shade of the trees they stopped to take a brief respite for lunch. They had found a spring close by to take water for themselves and the horses; they also gathered plenty to top up their supplies. As they ate their fruit and baozi, it was Xingcai who pointed out that the sky was distantly showing signs of unpromising weather.

"It seems like rain could be heading our way soon," she said. "The way the clouds are darkening, I'm sure it will be a heavy downpour."

Ping nodded. "Well, hopefully we'll be just north of De Yang by the time the worst of it sets in. I'm sure we'll avoid the worst of it before we bed down for the night."

Sat around together they made the most of their short time to relax and converse over their surroundings, particularly with Yinping and Sanniang giggling over a rock that was shaped like a duck. All the while Sun Shangxiang listened to them intently, partaking in her food mostly in silence, offering titbits to the conversation when she was asked – mainly by Sanniang who seemed keen to know whether she preferred peaches or kumquats. Shangxiang observed the group and their cohesiveness, enjoying their vibrant humour with a small smile. She quietly hoped to engage more with them casually as time progressed, still sensing some awkwardness over her presence. Guan Ping was still clearly puzzled over the circumstances of her joining the group. She'd caught Guan Xing whispering to him that there was something questionable about it all. He'd even suggested she might be considering heading back to her homelands of Wu and had used them as an opportunity to progress safely part of the way. Ping kyboshed the thoughts, which she was at least thankful for – at least he didn't think that lowly of her. Despite his uncertainty, he didn't want to completely disbelieve that things had possibly not been conveyed to them in the first place about her joining them.

After they finished their food, they promptly continued on their journey, thankful to be flanked by the thickly congregated trees to block out the heat of the sun. Liu Shan had started to make idle comments about how tiring it all was – probably still a little disappointed that he'd been hurried through his lunch – though he was eventually shut down by Xingcai calmly telling him not to complain, that their journey had barely begun and he would adjust to the regimented way of things.

The path remained smooth for quite a few miles as they kept a steady pace. As time went on, they could feel the wind start to pick up, a telltale sign that the bad weather was soon to reach them. The cool current of air began to bluster, tousling the tall trees, causing delicate leaves to detach from the branches and flutter down around them.

"That wind..." Yinping almost shuddered, her hair dancing over her shoulders animatedly.

Guan Ping was keeping hope that they would make it before they were caught by the worst of the weather, but those thoughts quickly crashed down before him after trekking another half a mile further. Just before an incline in the path, there were two huge fallen trees blocking the way. Their thick, wide trunks – partially resting one on top of the other – were wedged between two other trees on the other side, which both seemed damaged and angled precariously. This might not have been an issue if it hadn't of been for the dense congregation of trees on either side of the narrow roadway. They might – though with a struggle – have managed to navigate around the obstacle with the horses alone, but there was no way the carts would get through.

The group halted their progress, with Ping and Xingcai approaching the fallen trees to deliberate over their situation. They were ill-equipped to deal with the problem. They could even end up putting themselves in danger even attempting to move anything. It wasn't worth risking Yinping using her extraordinary strength to try and clear the way just in the case the trees they were wedged against suddenly came toppling down on top of them. Knowing there was little they could do, the two went back to rejoin their companions.

"What are we going to do?" Suo asked. "Is there no way we can move them?"

"We couldn't do it alone," Ping said, dejectedly. "It's far too dangerous."

"When do you think this happened?" Shangxiang wondered, inspecting from afar. She didn't want to get too close, not with the way the other damaged trees were groaning with the ever growing winds. She liked danger and adventure, but not a tree to the head.

"Possibly two nights ago," Xing surmised. "There were heavy winds just before dawn from what I remember. This road isn't too heavily used, which could explain why it appears nobody has noticed or dealt with it yet."

Ping was quietly flustered. They had only just started the journey, and already they were faced with an issue that was disrupting his carefully laid plans. He pulled the map out of the leather pouch at his waist and unfolded it knowing the only thing to do now was to divert their path. But it meant backtracking, and it was going to add more time to their journey; and with the weather ready to turn against them, they needed to move fast.

Xingcai looked over his shoulder. "What are you thinking?"

"We'll have to turn around and divert onto the northern path towards the mountains. That way we can skirt around the forest region." He quickly folded up the map and put it away. "But we'll need to move fast. I have a feeling that the weather is catching up to us fast, and it may end up being hostile than first anticipated."

She wasn't about to disagree. She'd sensed it as well. "We'll need to keep our eyes out for shelter. I doubt we'll make it to the first town today."

His face tightened with dismay. She was right. He didn't like how things were going. "Okay, we need to turn around," he told the rest of them. "There was a turning not too far back. It will take us up towards the mountains. We'll need to hurry though. We may have to find viable shelter." It was looking unlikely they would reach any town or village at this point. They were used to camping out, but not in terrible weather on rocky, unforgiving terrain.

It took a little time to turn the carts around on the narrow roadway, especially with the inexperience of the cart drivers. There were fewer issues with Xing who handled everything with calm precision, while Yinping struggled a bit with getting her cart to angle correctly as she turned. Liu Shan was a complete disaster however. He suddenly seemed to lose the ability to remember his right from his left and quickly became confused over his task, leading to Ping harshly commanding him to step aside before taking over himself to complete the task.

With a more hurried pace, they rode back towards their detour. The mountains looked almost daunting in the distance, especially surrounded by growing grey clouds. Putting the forest behind them – and with a lot of trepidation – they ascended up the rocky path, pursued by the deteriorating weather all the way.

They were halfway up the rocky foothills when the first drops of rain fell. It would enough incentive to move faster, even though they knew they couldn't outrun the full force of the rain. With bated breath, they pushed aside their concerns. They couldn't let the panic sink in with such important cargo in their hands.

Eventually, Mother Nature caught up with them, and down came the heavy torrents of rain. Though they were quickly soaked to the bone, they forged on, their horses battling on the now sludgy path. It was surprising how quickly the rain had caused the ground to become so treacherous. The horses and carts laboured dearly to keep traction.

Shangxiang found herself suddenly taking the lead up the ascent, gaining ground where Xingcai's and Guan Ping's horses were still trying to keep steady footing. Pushing through the downpour, she squinted, trying to keep the water out of her eyes with an arm over her brow. She scanned the terrain, desperately searching for shelter or just some small part of the ground that wasn't bogged down.

Through keen observation she spied two cave openings through a cluster of drooping trees imbedded into the side of the rock-face at the top of the rising path. The ground there mostly levelled out.

This was what they needed. Feeling proud of herself, Shangxiang turned back, calling over to her comrades about her findings. Of course, her hollers sounded very meagre with the rain pounding down around her, washing away the words as they left her lips. It was lucky that Ping had looked up at her, just managing to catch the last couple of words as he drew closer. He gave her a confused look, forcing her to repeat herself at the top of her lungs.

"I SAID, I THINK I FOUND SHELTER!" She clamoured, pointing towards the caves. Ping's attention went to where she was indicating and he nodded, some relief appearing in his eyes. He struggled to turn his horse on the slippery ground, gaining the attention of his comrades as he made gestures as best he could to tell them that they had found somewhere to rest.

The unburdened horses, though struggling, just about managed to battle their way up the slope. Unfortunately those attached to the carts were clearly fighting a losing battle, making little to no progress midway up the slope, their wheels barely able to keep grip as they sunk into the mud.

"It's not working!" Yinping called out.

Guan Suo whistled to grab Sanniang's attention and indicated to the back of the rear cart. They rode carefully to the back of it where he pushed back the cover to reach two coils of rope. He threw one over to Sanniang.

"We can tether our horses to the sides of the carts and try to give extra assistance up the hill," he told her. She nodded agreeably and followed his lead as they struggled back up to the first cart handled by Xing. They tied one end of the ropes to the backs of their saddles, and the other to a large bolted handles on either side of the cart, usually used for manual handling. With the ropes secured for stability, they pushed forward, trying to alleviate the strain between the two of them to battle up the muddy terrain. With much effort, their labours were rewarded as the cart began to make progress.

Ping saw their plan of action and nodded approvingly, turning to Xingcai as she drew up close. "Let's do the same with Liu Shan's cart," he shouted over the rain.

Mirroring Suo and Sanniang, the pair flanked either side of Liu Shan's cart. He was struggling more than the others to keep control. His horses were tired and bogged down with the weight of the cart they were secured to. Ping retrieved the ropes, tossing one reel over to Xingcai and they attached themselves to the cart handles. In sync, they took on the strain of the incline to assist the tired horses, urging them to push on.

Shangxiang had already reached the top flat, not far from the cave mouths. From an initial inspection, she could see that one was just a deep gully in the rock, while the other went in a lot further. As she moved closer, she could see the inside took on a sort of wide hourglass shape. The two caves connected through a weathered hole large enough for an average size person to pass through. The gully cave would be perfect to shelter the horses, as there were ridges worn into the side of the rocks that had openings to secure them to the wall. The Princess dismounted and quickly drew her steed in out of the rain, tying the reigns through one of the prominent apertures in the rocks. She stayed just out of the rain, watching Suo and Sanniang bring Xing and has cart up to the top. She beckoned them to head her way. The quicker they got the horses and carts sheltered the better for them all.

Though they had managed to get one cart to the top, it was a fight to get the other two up with the hard rain pelting them with an almost painful force. Yinping had to hold back with her cart as Liu Shan's was still struggling up the incline just ahead of her. She called out to the uneasy horses as she tried to keep them calm despite the unforgiving weather.

Liu Shan struggled with his own horses, even as they started to make ground. He just didn't have a proper handle of them and they became anxious with the unstable terrain and driving rain. He could hear Xingcai and Ping shouting instructions and support to him, but he found it hard to focus on who was saying what, especially when the rain drowned out their voices.

But it wasn't actually Shan who completely faltered in the next instance; in fact, it was just an unfortunate case of equipment failure. The handle attached to Xingcai's side creaked and with a violent twist, suddenly wrenched off. Her horse lurched forward, skidding as it stopped itself from falling; but in its movement sideways, it jammed Xingcai against the rock face next to her, catching her leg and shoulder. Though the light armour she wore prevented serious injury, the jarring force was bound to leave deep bruising. She stifled a cry, more focused on making sure her horse didn't go down, which luckily it didn't.

Ping called out to her and halted their progress, grabbing onto the harness of one of the closest horses on Liu Shan's cart, trying to instil some control amidst such a problematic situation. Xingcai was favouring her knee as she managed to steady her horse and regain full control.

"I'm okay," she said despite clearly trying to brush off the throbbing pain in her limbs.

Shangxiang quietly cursed over the unfolding situation, not enjoying being an idle spectator as she paced at the top of the slope. But that wasn't going to be for long. Leaving her horse, she headed back down the hill on foot. Guan Suo and Sanniang dismounted and left their horses tied up with Shangxiang's, going back to help as well, leaving Xing to guide his cart undercover.

"Let Xingcai take over the cart," Ping shouted over to Liu Shan, who blinked up at him in surprise. "It's too much for you to handle right now."

Shan seemed to hesitate, wanting to protest, but saw Xingcai dismounting and acquiesced to his orders, clambering off the cart seat and onto the muddy ground with a brief flicker of aversion. He was just reaching to take the reins from Xingcai when he noticed a number of small stones tumble down the cliff face behind her, drawing his attention to a few larger rock dislodging themselves from above. They were suddenly tumbling down towards them.

"Xingcai!" He cried out.

In response, she snapped around, taking a split second to take in the situation before pouncing into action. Before he could react, she was pushing him out of harm's way. He had wanted to be the heroic one, even starting to reach out for her, but suddenly found himself being pushed under the cart, mud splashing up around them as she leapt over to cover him. Most of the large rocks avoided them and the carts, one fair-sized though did manage to catch the side of her ankle. She buried her cry of pain into her arm. Xingcai's horse was startled and attempted to bolt up the hill but started to slip and slide all over the place. Luckily Shangxiang was there to grab the reins and settle the horse down with a gentle hand.

Guan Ping had circled his horse out of the way of the falling rocks, observing that more could be soon to follow. Dismounting, he called back over to Suo to take his horse and he rushed to aide Xingcai and Liu Shan. He almost skidded in the mud as she came to a stop, kneeling by their sides.

"Are you okay?" He asked, offering Xingcai a hand. She accepted, hissing as he hitched her up from beneath the cart; her already injured leg was now shooting with pain.

"I'll manage," she said, trying not to let the injury become the focus, knowing he'd make a fuss if she gave him leeway. "Just get me on the cart."

"Okay." Ping looked over at the shaken Liu Shan. "Get to the back of the cart. You'll need to help push." The order wasn't received with much fervour but Shan did as he was told anyway, picking himself up out of the mud.

Before Ping could even attempt to assist Xingcai to her feet, more rocks came toppling down the rock face; Yinping shouted to warn them and Ping instinctively covered his companion. Shan skittered to the opposite side of the cart for safety. The rocks bounced around them, one clipping his shoulder, a small shard breaking off and catching his cheek. He could feel a slither of warm blood run down his cheek, though it was quickly washed away by the rainwater pelting them. The cart horses were only prevented from panicking by Sanniang and Suo distracting their attention.

"We've got to hurry," Ping told Xingcai, lifting her up despite his shoulder protesting. "We don't know how many more rocks are ready to fall."

She nodded, battling through her pain as he helped her into the cart seat. Ping turned to see both Shangxiang and Sanniang pass him by as they went to the rear of the cart to join Shan, who had returned to his instructed position when it was safe to do so. Suo had taken Ping's horse up the incline to safety as Xing – having finished sorting out his own cart and horses – rejoined them, taking control of Xingcai's nervous horse. Shangxiang gave Ping an acknowledging nod, ready to get down and dirty like the rest of them to get the cart up the slope. The eldest Guan joined his companions, using his uninjured shoulder to press against the cart. He shouted instructions to a returning Suo – who went to the side of the cart where there was still a handle – and to Xingcai, and they began their combined efforts to get the cart moving again.

The cart horses heaved and struggled, their hooves just about gripping into the slick ground as they pressed forward. At the back, the four pushed, slipping and straining to get the cart in continuous motion. Shan and Sanniang stumbled quite a bit in the mud while trying to maintain a grip, the former even falling over flat twice in succession, though he managed to peel himself back up to keep the momentum going. Their combined efforts proved effective as the cart began to gain ground and climb the incline. Once over the top, they left Xingcai and Shan to guide the cart towards the caves while the other five went back to Yinping's cart.

"We should use two horses..." Ping began, hoping to use their original tactic to get the cart moving.

"Brother, this cart doesn't have handles on the sides," Xing pointed out, now riding Xingcai's horse. When Ping noticed this, a scowl etched itself across his face.

"How did we miss that? Damn it, I should have made sure all the carts were the same."

"Don't worry about it," Shangxiang mollified. "You weren't to know they would be a vital feature."

"Let me help push!" Yinping clamoured eagerly.

That wasn't a bad idea. Her strength would be vital. Ping agreed to the suggestion. "Sanniang, can you handle the cart?"

"I'll do my best!" She assured, quickly switching places with Yinping.

Ping with Suo, Shangxiang and Yinping amassed at the back while Xing kept watch on his mount for any further rocks that might fall. With Ping once again giving the order, they began to push, with Sanniang keeping the horses strict under control. Of course, this time, it was so much easier – all thanks to Yinping. Her insurmountable strength had her pushing both cart and horses up the muddy incline mostly with mostly her own effort. There was no surprise amongst the group only sheer appreciation that Yinping's addition made it light work. They reached the top in no time, scrambling to get themselves and the horses out of the rain.

The carts were backed into the larger cave while the horses were separated and kept together in the gully, safe from the wind and rain. Xingcai carefully lowered herself from the cart seat though found she was struggling to bear too much weight on her injured leg. Xing offered a supporting shoulder, which she initially refused... until she almost fell, then quietly accepted, not at all happy with burdening herself on someone else.

The eight travellers were soaked, muddy, and thoroughly miserable. The rainstorm carried on relentlessly, the sound echoing loudly around the cave.

"How long do you think it will last?" Sanniang asked nobody in particular, wringing out her scarf to create a puddle in the entranceway.

"Who knows," Shangxiang said dejectedly, leaning back against the wall. "But those clouds don't look promising. It could go on for hours."

"If that's the case, we probably won't be going anywhere tonight," Xing said conclusively. Nobody liked that idea, but there was little they could do about it.

All they could do was stand around watching the rain liquefy the once solid ground into running muddy water. Ping quietly cursed. This was not how he wanted his first proper mission in command to go. It suddenly seemed like a very bad omen.