Chapter 28: The End of the Red Cliff Road

"You must trust the State Preceptor." He Lingchuan gestured with his chin toward the direction of Sun Fuping. "When a dignified State Preceptor is willing to risk his own life, can't you and I have a little confidence?" Sun and Nian walked at the very front, keeping a long distance from He Lingchuan, with over ten rows of soldiers separating them.

They did not even take this newly joined group of bandits seriously.

Situ Han looked at their backs: "If I speak, can they hear me?"

"Rest assured, they definitely can't." He Lingchuan himself couldn't even remember how many bad things he had said about the two in front.

Situ Han then whispered: "These two are truly arrogant. Once we enter the desert and encounter danger, I fear they won't care about our lives. Young Master He, for the sake of our annual New Year greetings, you must look after us brothers. We have over thirty people out here struggling to make a living, and back in Mangshan, there are over a hundred women and children waiting! If we die, they won't even have porridge to drink."

Although he called murder and robbery "struggling to make a living," his expression was still quite sincere.

He wore his worry plainly on his face.

"I know," He Lingchuan comforted him. "I will keep an eye on you all and won't let him send you to your deaths in vain."

Once he walked away, He Chunhua asked his eldest son: "What did he mean by 'for the sake of the New Year'?"

"Doesn't he come to pay us New Year greetings every year?" Most importantly, every New Year, Situ Han would specially prepare a generous gift for Young Master He. For instance, last year, what he gave He Lingchuan was a string of pearl necklaces, each bead nearly the same size, round and lustrous.

Yes, that was the very same string He Lingchuan later gifted to Uncle Hao.

What did he give the year before? Hmm, I can't recall.

Of course, there was no need to tell Father about these trivial matters.

He Chunhua looked at him and shook his head; the brat might be reckless, but he never went soft when it came to accepting gifts.

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Heishui City, He Residence.

Although only two people remained in the house, Lady Ying still instructed the kitchen to cook with care, setting seven dishes on the table, making the meal even more sumptuous than usual.

But she actually had no appetite; after drinking half a small bowl of yellow millet porridge and taking only two bites of the flower roll He Yue placed in her bowl, she set down her chopsticks and stopped eating.

"Yue'er, where do you guess your father has reached by now?" Since He Chunhua left, it was as if he had taken her soul with him; Lady Ying could not sleep at night, and even her exquisite makeup could not hide her haggard appearance.

"He should have passed a few post stations by now," He Yue comforted her. "Ceng Fei is familiar with the desert, and with the great State Preceptor Sun there to hold the line, Father and Brother will surely be able to return before the Sandstorm Season arrives."

Lady Ying sighed: "Everyone says your brother is a lucky general, but this time he really needs good luck."

He Yue found this strange; it seemed his mother did not blame his father for taking his brother along?

Lady Ying asked about some affairs in Qiansong County, and He Yue assured her he could handle them.

Finally, she asked: "Still no news from the east?"

"None. Floods have blocked the roads, and besides, the fighting in the east is intense. The rebel army kills any spies or scouts they catch, so the messengers dare not go there."

In truth, even without his father's repeated instructions, he would still keep an eye on intelligence from the east.

Unfortunately, there was currently no word at all.

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By the next day, there was nothing but vast yellow sand in all directions, and not a single living creature could be seen.

This short stretch of Red Cliff Road pointed toward the former Ancient Panlong City; no merchant caravan would ever travel there.

Everyone walked each step with care, because even such a smooth road was coming to an end.

"There is no more road," came the news from the front of the group.

The He father and son looked east and could still see the massive base of half a mountain peak slanting upward, like a dagger thrust into the sky.

As for the upper half, it had collapsed with a roar nearly a hundred years ago, crashing onto the very Red Cliff Road this group was supposed to be traveling.

Endless mountain rocks had turned it into a dead-end road.

Ceng Fei muttered: "I wonder if this is Heaven's will." Not letting the sleeping heroic spirits in the city be disturbed by those who came later.

"How can there be so much wishful thinking?" Nian Songyu sneered and ordered the group: "Everyone dismount; we must reduce our burden."

There was no road ahead, and the horses were no longer needed. Each person prepared five days' worth of dry rations and water, handing the horses over to a few of the accompanying camp cooks.

Situ Han stared at the boundless desert.

The undulating sand dunes were clean and tidy, without even half a footprint.

"How do we walk from here? If we step one inch off the Red Cliff Road, we will be eaten!"

"Of course not, aren't you sand bandits the most knowledgeable about this?" Nian Songyu shut him up with a single sentence.

Situ Han looked sheepish. As someone who had spent most of his life making a living in the Panlong Desert, they knew the local taboos better than anyone and had their own little tips and tricks.

Nian Songyu pointed at the desert: "You tell me, how should we walk now that there is no more Red Cliff Road? I imagine you have some experience."

"First, everyone, please put away your State Tokens; you must never show them, and certainly never activate them!" There were many officials in this group.

Nian Songyu said "Oh": "Why?"

"The heroic spirits in the desert were protecting their country's borders when they were alive. If we walk in wearing the State Tokens of another country, isn't that deliberately planting a flag to provoke hatred? These things are single-minded; if you can avoid them, you must avoid them—never provoke them!"

That made some sense. Sun Fuping instructed the officials: "Put away your Kite Coins; do not let them be seen."

Afterward, Situ Han asked: "Are we going to Ancient Panlong City? It's still far away; it's impossible to walk there on foot. I have no way to help with that."

Sand bandits ventured into the desert mostly to escape pursuit or blood feuds, and it was only out of temporary necessity; they wouldn't go trekking in this land of death for no reason—that would be courting death.

"Therefore, we must change our mode of transport." Sun Fuping took three items from his robes.

They were three miniature carved boats, each about an inch long, appearing to be carved from half a walnut shell with exquisite craftsmanship. Not to mention the wood grain on the gunwales, even the folds in the boatmen's clothing and their flowing hair were carved with delicate precision.

Looking at the carving alone, it could be called master-level work.

"These are treasures I borrowed from a friend; I must return them when I am done. Alright, everyone stand back!" Having said this, Sun Fuping took out three crystal-clear green pellets, placed them into the raised right hands of the boatmen on the boats, and then threw the three walnut-shell boats onto the sand.

Nian Songyu whispered: "Mystic Crystals!"

The green pellets were the size of quail eggs, and it seemed as if throwing them down would crush the walnut boats. But the reality was completely different; the moment the pellets touched the boatmen's hands, they vanished, and the entire boat began to emit an strange tremor, as if something were about to burst out.

Everyone was not stupid and had already moved away in advance.

Sure enough, the walnut boats expanded at an astonishing speed, their volume increasing exponentially. In just two breaths' time, the one-inch-long toys had turned into wooden boats over five zhang long and one zhang high!

They sat on the yellow sand, the walnut boats scaled up in their original proportions; naturally, the boatmen standing at the bows had also turned into normal human size, walking over to lower the gangplanks so the passengers could board.

(End of chapter)