Chapter Two: The Last Straw
Cao Bei tried to keep as still as possible, to ensure that his armor did not make any sound. In spite of the fact that his armor was ingeniously padded with layers of silk, it was still no safeguard against clinking and clanking. Also, the bronze had been allowed to accumulate a green patina. While this was normally frowned upon, he had to admit that the greenish layer over the metal helped to keep him invisible from even very keen eyes. And right now, silence and invisibility were of the utmost importance.
He turned his head very slightly, afraid that someone would hear the creaking of his neck – even though he knew that, in these ancient woods, it was very easy to mistake it for the creaking of the aged limbs of the trees. Just out of the corner of his eye, he could see her: her body perfectly still, like the statue of a prowling tiger, yet there was a sense of alertness about her that reminded him of a coiled snake, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
He smiled slightly; making sure that his teeth did not appear between his lips. "No movement, no sound, and no indication of our position." Those were the words that had been drilled into his head, and the heads of all the other commanders, before they had started this mission.
The moon was full that night, and while it worked to their advantage, it could work to their disadvantage as well.
The Imperial Princess has learned her lessons well, he thought.
He had known Ren Ziyi since she was a child. He was a soldier then, one of the elite few who were chosen to guard the grounds of the Imperial Palace. When the Princess was first presented to the world and recognized as the child of the Emperor when she was three years old, he could hardly have imagined that one day, he would be teaching her the martial arts; that one day, he would help her run away to the temple on Mount Song where she furthered her training in the martial arts; and that one day, he would be helping her lead a small but extremely loyal army against the Imperial forces commanded by the usurper Dong Shao.
She was an extraordinary woman, the complete antithesis of what an Imperial Princess should be. Not for her were the perfumed and decadent halls of the palace; she preferred the freedom of wide, open spaces, and the cool, sweet tang of mountain air in the back of her throat. She gave up a world of luxury and pleasure for a harder, simpler one, one that was slowly eating away her youth and her beauty – all because she had promised to her father that she would protect the Empire to the best of her abilities.
He bowed his head. Even now, just thinking about it, he felt humbled by such a display of filial loyalty and love of country. It was already considered admirably extraordinary for a man to have such qualities, but a woman?
He mentally shook his head, remembering all the sayings and adages that he had been told since he was a boy. It was said that Woman was a weak, indecisive, flighty race, and it was because of this fact that Man, being the rational half, had to take over and guide Woman.
Ren Ziyi had just proven that wrong, and so many other things besides. While most men would balk at being commanded by a female, Cao Bei was proud, and extremely honored, to be marching under her banner.
And right now, she was using her skills to their best advantage. Thanks to the intricate network of spies and informants that she had built up over the years, they had learned that a supply train from the capital was heading towards one of the outlying towns where a sizeable contingent of Dong Shao's troops was based. While they were not running low on supplies just then, it was important to sabotage the supply trains of their opponent. As the old tenet said: an opponent that lacks food, water and sleep is an opponent that is half-defeated.
Just then, the sound of hooves walking over soft earth and dead leaves reached his ears, and he immediately focused on the path that lay just below him. Just like the spies had told them, the caravan of wagons, peasants and armed men started plodding a slow path in front of them, completely unaware of their presence. The gorge they were passing through was narrow and long, and their baggage was heavy and large. It would not be hard for them to close up the gap on either end of the gorge and surround the caravan.
A messenger appeared at his side then, nearly startling him out of his wits. It was a young boy, no older than ten or nine, with nimble limbs, silent feet, and an agile body, making him perfect as a courier between the small groups that were stationed all around the gorge, invisible in the shadow cast by the trunks of the trees. He gazed at Cao Bei, and the general knew what the message was even before he read the small strip of silk that the boy had given to him.
He turned his head more fully towards Ren Ziyi, who looked back at him with a questioning gaze. No words were spoken between the two of them, but they did not need words to communicate with each other. They more or less knew how the other thought, much in the same way that a teacher can know the thoughts of his best student, and vice-versa.
Ren Ziyi nodded, and then turned back to the road at the bottom of the gorge, while the sound of nickering horses and rumbling wheels echoed up to them. She lifted a whistle to her lips, and an owl quietly hooted into the night.
Cao Bei counted three heartbeats, and then the night air was filled with whispering doom as arrows descended on the supply train, bows singing a high-pitched dirge all around him.
Horses screamed and oxen bellowed as chaos exploded all around them. The peasants screamed and shouted in pain or in fear as they fell facedown on the ground, praying to the gods that they would survive. The soldiers, however, were not as lucky, as one by one, arrows knocked them off their horses as they whirled around, bewildered, trying to find the source of the arrows that were slowly taking them down. Some tried to ride back to the entrance of the gorge, and others rode ahead to try to make an escape, but they only met with a thick wall of spears and arrows.
The battle was over in less time than it took for Cao Bei to descend to the bottom of the gorge. Some of the horses and oxen were dead, but a good number of them were still alive, albeit scratched and battered from the rain of arrows. The peasants, too, were still alive, though many were injured – mostly scratches where they had been grazed by arrows. Still, some who had not been as quick as their other companions had not been as fortunate: a few had shafts sticking out of their shoulders, arms, or legs – nothing too deadly, but still quite painful.
The military escort, however, was not as lucky. Almost all members were dead, but the few who were still breathing were so far gone that it was better to kill them with a quick sword swipe so as not to prolong their suffering.
Cao Bei lifted the edge of the cloth covering that was thrown over one of the carts, and caught a glimpse of large clay jars. Lifting the cover off one of the jars, he peered in, and smiled when rice grains gleamed like tiny pearls in the silver moonlight. But Cao Bei knew that right now, rice was more valuable than even pearls or jade.
Ren Ziyi came up beside him, and nudged him gently out of the way so that she could have a look. Cao Bei did as she bade him, and smiled at her as she peered into the jar. "You were right," he said. "These supplies could last the Usurper's troops for months."
Ren Ziyi's face remained impassive. "Well then, it is good that they are ours and no longer his," she said. "If we starve them long enough, they will turn on him, and we will have fought him without even lifting a finger."
"Your servant bows to your superior intelligence."
Now a smile broke on Ren Ziyi's face, and she shoved Cao Bei teasingly in response. "My intelligence is superior to no one. I am merely attentive and very lucky."
Cao Bei shook his head. "This had nothing to do with luck." He waved his hand to the caravan. "The gods are kind to you, Ren Ziyi. You have Heaven's hand upon you shoulder, guiding you and protecting you. When you have Heaven's blessing, how long can Dong Shao stand against you?"
It never ceased to amaze him how Ren Ziyi's face could change to reflect her emotion. She frowned, and her eyes darkened with a familiar shadow, one that seemed to take possession of her more and more often lately. "If the gods are indeed on my side, how come Dong Shao has been able to withstand me for so long? It has been nearly five years now, Cao Bei – five years since we began this campaign against him. If Heaven is indeed on my side, why hasn't he fallen yet?"
Cao Bei did not respond, knowing that she did not expect him to answer those questions. He had tried, long ago, but he had stopped answering, knowing that there were no answers to those questions.
One of the officers of their troop approached them then, bowing respectfully when he was close enough. "Pardon my intrusion, General, but what shall we do with the peasants?"
Cao Bei watched as an expression that he had labeled "the Mask" settled upon Ren Ziyi's face, and she was no longer Ren Ziyi, but General Lang, a leader respected both as a warrior and as a tactician. "I will deal with them myself," she told the officer, who bowed once more and headed to the rear of the gorge.
After standing still for a few moments, Ren Ziyi sighed, and pulled a red silk scarf over her face. While Cao Bei had not approved of this before, he had to admit that Ren Ziyi was right when she proposed the idea: the mask gave her a sense of mystery that would inspire awe and fear in those she encountered. Those emotions worked very well for them – both when fighting against enemy troops and when making allies.
With her face covered, Ren Ziyi made her way to where the peasants were lined up. Cao Bei was glad to note that the soldiers had followed Ren Ziyi's policy regarding peasants who were found working in Dong Shao's army: they were to be treated humanely, given food and drink enough to last them for a journey to the nearest town, and if any were injured, those injuries were to be treated to the best of their abilities and as time permitted them.
Cao Bei had to admit, it was a very clever tactic on Ren Ziyi's part. Thanks to her magnanimous treatment of the peasant folk, she had won the respect and adoration of the people – an important factor if she was to win this war against Dong Shao. Even if she had Heaven's approval, it would not matter much to the people if they did not think she was treating them well enough to deserve Heaven's blessing.
And, as he and Ren Ziyi well knew, the leap to be made from unhappy farmer to bloodthirsty rebel was not a very large one at all.
A murmur rose over the peasants when Ren Ziyi strode into their line of sight, and then they prostrated themselves on the ground, their faces against the earth in respect.
"Rise," Ren Ziyi said, waving her hand smoothly. "You have no need to bow to me. Someday, perhaps, you will, but not now. There is no time."
The peasants got back to their knees, though Cao Bei noticed that they kept their gaze firmly fixed on the tips of his and Ren Ziyi's boots. There was an unspoken law that stated an inferior could not look his or her superior in the eye. It was very bad form, and spoke of bad breeding.
The oldest of the peasants – a man with a stooped posture, wrinkled skin, and a long white beard – bowed once more before he spoke. "Great General, we are eternally grateful that you have spared us. We have heard stories of your kindness, and we are very happy that the stories are true."
Though Cao Bei could not see it, he sensed the small smile that appeared on Ren Ziyi's face. "That does not matter now," she said, and her voice took on an official tone. "My soldiers will treat you as best as time will allow. If any of you are injured, I suggest you speak up now, because we only have so much time to stay here before we must move on. We will give you some food to last you on your journey to the next town. From there, you will be on your own."
Murmurs of gratitude and thanksgiving went up amongst the peasants, but Ren Ziyi did not stay long enough to hear all of them. She immediately turned around, and walked away.
"Cao Bei," she murmured, "how much food do you think the peasants will need?"
Cao Bei looked over his shoulder, quickly calculated the amount in his mind, and relayed the information to Ren Ziyi.
The young woman nodded, her eyes thoughtful in the dim light. "I see. Make sure that they are given that, and perhaps a little more. We do not need all of these supplies immediately, and some of their injuries are grave. Make sure that they take two of the wagons with them, and a few of the oxen."
"And what of the horses?"
"Those we take with us. Give them one or two, but no more than that, and keep the better ones. We need the horses more than they do."
Cao Bei nodded. "As you wish."
She waited until she had entered her tent before she sighed, allowing her shoulders to sag underneath the weight of her armor. She removed the silk scarf from her face, and pulled the helmet off her head, tossing both carelessly aside. She collapsed into a nearby chair, surprised at how tired she was feeling at the moment.
She should not have felt so weary. Tonight had been a routine ambush – everything had turned out as she had expected. And yet, tonight it felt as if the gods had decided to lay the cares of the world on her shoulders.
Not so much the cares of the world as the fate of a dynasty and the Empire, she thought with a tired smirk. There were times like these when she wished that she had not sworn that oath to her father, that she had not promised him that she would protect the Empire at whatever cost. There were times when she wished that she were living a quiet life in the palace, away from the cares of the world.
She shook her head then, remembering that she had wished this life upon herself. She had wished the life of a warrior, a life of excitement and ever-changing circumstances. In her childhood her pride had rebelled against the idea of being locked up in the women's quarters, and she chose this path, even if she had to run away from home to do it.
But this was the consequence of her choice: that she be allowed no moment to rest, no moment to simply stop and enjoy the pleasures of life – and of love.
She closed her eyes, and an image flashed briefly in her mind: warm, dark brown eyes, a cheerful smile, and sunlight dappling the grass underneath the peach trees in full bloom.
She shook her head violently, clearing the image from her mind. It had been a long time ago, in a place that she had not seen for many, many years. She was a different woman now, and she had different things to think about – things that were more important than him.
The Empire must come first – even before herself.
She stood up, and walked slowly to the nearby table. A map of the Empire lay spread out upon it, and everything was clearly marked: towns, villages, rivers, plains, mountains – everything that was considered a part of the Empire.
But there was something missing, and those were the lands far to the west of the Empire. She carefully placed a finger on the leftmost edge of the map, fingering the silk, which was beginning to fray somewhat from constant use. There had to be something that lay beyond the border of the map – after all, there were tales and legends enough about the lands in the West to indicate that there were people there.
She believed that all stories had some grain of truth in them, no matter how fantastical or impossible the tale. It was simply a matter of sifting through the words, of separating fancy from reality. She had become quite clever at it; something she had learned out of necessity, to be able to tell friends and allies from foes and enemies.
And she began to employ such logic now. The tales and legends she kept on hearing about the lands in the west were so many, that the existence of such lands had to be true. If that were the case, then there had to be people living there. And she needed those people now to help her in her battles. She would not be able to win against Dong Shao otherwise.
What was she to do? She could not risk losing men on what could possibly be a fruitless venture. What if the stories were indeed just that: stories, and nothing more? What if they went as far west as they could, only to be greeted by an ocean with no horizon in sight? What if, as some claimed, there was nothing there except the edge of the world?
What then?
She then remembered the words of Ng Mu, the Shaolin nun who had been her mentor while she was studying at Mount Song: "There is something to be lost in trying, but it is nothing when compared to the loss if you do not try at all."
Was that really the case here? If she went on this venture, she lost time and supplies – both of which were very important to their cause. She could not waste them on something that could potentially end in failure.
But, she realized, she did not have much of a choice. Unless her side gained the strength it needed, the deadlock between her troops and Dong Shao's forces would continue, and it would only bring more suffering to the people of the Empire.
"My Lady?"
She did not turn around, recognizing the voice that spoke to her. "I am at a loss, Cao Bei," she murmured. "I know that we need the strength of those in the west to fight against Dong Shao, but…what if we fail? What if we find out there is nothing? We would have lost time, and maybe much more, to Dong Shao. He could make all our hard work crumble to dust in the span of a night."
Cao Bei did not reply, and all she could hear was the sound of his footsteps against the leather flooring of the tent, and the soft whisper of silk against his skin. She did not look up even when he pulled up one of the chairs and took the place next to her.
It was only when he was comfortably seated that Cao Bei spoke. "But what does your heart tell you, My Lady? What does your conscience dictate?"
"My conscience dictates that I go forth into the west and seek aid from whoever could be there," she answered softly. "The promise I made to my father impels me to do this. But I remember the lives that could be lost, both on the journey and back here, and I wonder whether it is worth it or not."
"Ah." Cao Bei was silent for a moment, but at length, he said, "My Lady, you must remember that all those who have joined your troops would be glad to die for you."
She turned to him, and his face remained calm though her temper flared to life in her eyes, on her face, and in her words. "Do you think that I would willingly allow innocent people to go to their deaths for what could be nothing? No, I will not have it! I will not let faultless people sacrifice themselves for something that could be nothing!"
"You do not understand my words," Cao Bei replied, his voice as serene as ever – a balm to soothe her fire. "To we who follow you, no venture would be worthless, so long as you deem it important. And even we, who see your affairs from the outside, find that a sojourn to the west is important." He smiled slightly. "You seem to have forgotten that you are the daughter of the Emperor, and are exalted as the Phoenix to your brother's Dragon – the Phoenix who wields the Sword of the Empire when the Dragon cannot. You have lived far too long amongst us humble mortals."
She had to smile at his words. "But living with you 'humble mortals,' as you call yourselves, has taught me more about my people and the Empire than a life in the Palace ever could. I understand the peasants more, and I know that, although I am not suited to sit upon the throne and guide the Empire with my own hand, I could guide my brother's, and teach him, until the time comes that he may rule the Empire with wisdom and good judgment. With or without me…that is not important."
"A noble aspiration indeed, My Lady. But you will not be able to regain the throne from the Usurper unless you seek for aid." Cao Bei's face turned serious. "If you will permit me to speak freely, My Lady, I strongly advise you to go the West. If you are worried about Dong Shao wreaking havoc and destroying what we have built, then leave a majority of your troops here, and take only a small contingent with you on your journey. That way, you will have a sizeable delegation to protect you, while at the same time, your power here will remain safe."
Ren Ziyi nodded, her thoughts coming to her swiftly now. "Yes, yes of course," she murmured quietly as she pressed the back of her right index finger to her lips – a gesture that she often did when she was thinking fast. "I could take a small group with me, with gifts, perhaps, and then we could be on our way. We would be able to make swift progress, and our strength here would not be depleted."
Cao Bei smiled in agreement. "As I was thinking, My Lady."
Ren Ziyi's gaze was focused firmly on the map on the table in front of her. She stared at the leftmost edge with renewed hope. The journey was starting to sound more and more like an enjoyable adventure than a burden to her. If she could find those fabled kingdoms in the west, if she could ask for their aid, the Empire would be secure.
And while her heart ached for the lives that could be sacrificed – that would have to be sacrificed – along the way, she knew, in her very depths of her soul, that the would not have died in vain.
Her hand fisted on the tabletop. No, she thought. She would make sure that they did not die in vain.
She turned around, and looked at Cao Bei, who was now standing up, obviously awaiting the orders she was going to give him. "Tomorrow I will call a meeting," she said, "and I will review the troops and the supplies that we have at our disposal. This journey is important. I do not want it to be any less than successful."