Chapter 515: Jailbreak

At sunset, a fine rain drifted from the overcast sky, occasionally mixed with tiny snowflakes. On the north bank of the lower Lu'an River, countless people were digging trenches.

Tan Laizi swung his hoe; his hands ached so badly he could barely hold on, and the hoe nearly flew out of his grip. He hurriedly set it down. All around him was the sound of panting and digging. The woman beside him said nothing, her hoe dancing swiftly; her section was already dug much deeper than Tan Laizi's.

Suddenly a clamor rose outside. The company Zhangjing Master rushed over at speed. The Daizi steward in charge called out along the way. The Armored Soldier masters donned their gear one after another and assembled. The Daizi steward's tone carried a hint of urgency. The bondservant crowd stirred in response, and the various estate stewards shouted and cursed loudly.

Taking advantage of this bit of chaos, Tan Laizi squeezed a step sideways. The woman stood there dully, oblivious, and was pushed aside a stretch, leaving a section of the trench she had dug exposed. The trench was crowded with people, and no one else noticed.

A surge of delight rose in Tan Laizi's heart. When the estate steward came to inspect later, he wouldn't be punished for digging too little.

Only then did he raise his head to look outside. The Armored Soldier masters had already assembled and rushed to the river channel. Tan Laizi focused his gaze. From the opposite bank, several dozen cavalrymen came running from afar. They carried no banners and rode slowly from the west, stopping after they spotted the Qing troops.

The bondservants all stood on tiptoe to watch. They were with the Qing army's Left Wing. On the return journey, they had encountered almost no resistance from the Ming Army. Small Ming units were driven off by the Qing army's Scout Cavalry before they could even reach the camp perimeter. This was the first time they had seen Ming Army troops appear.

Seeing the Ming Army across the river, Tan Laizi's heart began to pound wildly. He quickly glanced eastward, his gaze darting rapidly until he finally found Tang Ershuan's figure. Tang Ershuan happened to be looking his way too.

Tang Ershuan looked much thinner as well. Tan Laizi repeatedly flicked his eyes toward the river channel, signaling that Tang Ershuan should find a way to escape.

The Qing army had marched far to the north. Tan Laizi didn't know their exact location — he had never been to Northern Zhili before — but he knew they hadn't yet crossed the border, because the company still caught new bondservants from time to time, all speaking the northern tongue, which meant they hadn't left the border yet.

He didn't know when they would cross, but if they kept walking like this, they would leave one day. If they got too far away, there would be no way to escape.

Tang Ershuan nodded toward him. Tan Laizi hurriedly averted his gaze, cursing Tang Ershuan in his heart for a fool. How could he make a move with so many people around? The Tartars enforced the Mutual Responsibility System here; everyone watched each other. Any unusual behavior was reported straight to the estate steward. Recaptured runaways and those implicated by the Mutual Responsibility System all met a gruesome end.

Fortunately, no one seemed to notice. Just as he breathed a sigh of relief, Tan Laizi suddenly felt a gaze from beside him. He turned his head slightly and saw the woman tilting her head, staring at him with a vacant look.

Tan Laizi had encountered this situation many times, and a chill kept creeping through his heart. This woman almost never spoke to anyone; she had seemed half-witted from the day she was captured. Tan Laizi had only seen her speak twice, both times muttering to herself while facing the ground, her mouth rambling incomprehensibly. Yet she was always watching him.

The various estate stewards waved their swords and shouted curses along the line, forbidding the bondservants from looking around. Tan Laizi quickly buried his head, only stealing a glance while swinging his hoe.

The water in this section of the river channel was fairly deep. The two sides faced off across the river. After probing for a moment, the Ming Army continued eastward. The company Zhangjing shouted loudly, and the Daizi steward led over twenty Armored Soldiers downstream in pursuit.

Seeing those Ming troops leave, a wave of disappointment washed over Tan Laizi. Just then, a horn sounded, and the estate stewards' shouts rang out in every direction.

Steward Wei shouted loudly, "All of you, stand properly!"

The several hundred bondservants under the company quickly assembled in their respective groups, forming a long line along the trench. Tan Laizi stood with his head down in the ranks, waiting for the estate steward to lead them to muster with the squad leader. Despite the large number of people, not a single one spoke.

Five Armored Soldiers appeared on horseback outside the trench. Tied by ropes behind each mount was a person. The five bondservants wept with tears and snot streaming down their faces, wailing without cease.

Tan Laizi dared not look at those men. Just as he lowered his head, he heard the sound of hoofbeats. Startled cries rose around him. Tan Laizi couldn't resist raising his head slightly. He saw the Armored Soldiers spur their horses forward; the mounts began to accelerate. The five men stumbled a few steps before being dragged down to the ground, bouncing and jerking across the uneven earth as the horses pulled them along.

Piercing, wretched screams rang out along the long trench. The five Armored Soldiers rode in a circling route toward the river channel. The screams gradually receded into the distance, then grew loud again as the Armored Soldiers returned.

The Armored Soldiers slowed their pace, dragging the five bondservants past the front of the ranks. The bondservants' clothes were shredded, plastered together with dark red flesh, blood, and mud. White bone was exposed at their knees. They emitted low, constant moans of agony.

A dead silence fell over the bondservant ranks. Tan Laizi trembled all over, his body swaying so much he could barely stand. The bondservant to his left kept making strange noises from his throat.

Steward Wei bellowed from behind, "One of these is a runaway; the rest are implicated by the Mutual Responsibility System. This is what happens if you even think about running!"

Menggetu had just returned. He passed before the ranks, his gaze sweeping sternly over the bondservants.

Steward Wei's voice continued to shout, "Watch closely the people with you. If you see anyone colluding with others, tell the Master immediately. If he runs, you'll be killed. It's not the Master who wants to kill you — it's him who wants to kill you!"

Tan Laizi breathed heavily. Suddenly, the woman's muttering came from his right, but he couldn't make out what she was saying. Menggetu happened to arrive right in front of them at that moment. Tan Laizi kept his head down and stole a glance toward the woman. He saw her gesturing with her hands and babbling, and he couldn't tell whether she was saying that he had been communicating with others.

Menggetu's horse stopped right in front of him. In the suffocating silence, Tan Laizi's entire body went rigid; he could barely breathe.

Whether it was a moment or an eternity, just as Tan Laizi was about to collapse to the ground, he finally heard Menggetu's voice say coldly, "Shut that madwoman up."

Steward Wei rushed over, slapped the woman to the ground with one blow, then followed up with several kicks.

Tan Laizi gasped several huge breaths before realizing his back was already soaked through with sweat.

At that moment, a gong sounded from the company Zhangjing's side. Steward Wei was about to strike again when Menggetu's voice came: "We are about to cross the border. Take these people back and keep them under strict watch."

Steward Wei agreed repeatedly. Hearing the words "about to cross the border," Tan Laizi felt his heart clench violently.

……

The fine rain continued to drift from the sky. The bondservants searched nearby for places to shelter from the rain.

Master Menggetu's tent had long since been pitched. It was really just a piece of oilcloth and a few sticks of wood, barely enough for one person to sleep in. Steward Wei's tent was wedged between two carriages. No one else had a tent.

The bondservants' range of activity was limited to the area around the Masters' tents. Tan Laizi shrank beneath a carriage. This carriage was loaded with cloth and silk. Steward Wei had specifically traded for two sheets of oilcloth within the company. As long as the ground didn't flood, it was a good place to stay out of the rain.

A figure walked over. Tan Laizi looked up from beneath the cart and recognized Steward Wei. Steward Wei came over and kicked Tan Laizi on the top of his head. "What are you lying around for? Go light the fire."

Tan Laizi hurriedly clutched his head and crawled out. Steward Wei went to the side, grabbed the woman by the hair, and dragged her into the tent.

Tan Laizi turned his head away, refusing to look at that ragged tent. He walked a circle around the area. Since he was near Menggetu's tent, he habitually searched around for paper to use as kindling, which drew no attention from others.

Things that could burn, like paper and wood, were all logistical supplies for the army. Every company lacked them, and everyone wanted them. He had managed to grab a little at Hexiwu before, but they had unexpectedly stayed too long at Xianghe, and that bit of paper had been used up. He could only continue using Banknotes to start fires. He wandered around to see if anyone had carelessly dropped some, which could save him a Banknote.

Tang Ershuan's position was not far from him. While his head was lowered, Tan Laizi discreetly signaled with his eyes. Tang Ershuan also pretended to gather firewood and edged closer this way.

When he got near, Tang Ershuan fumbled and dropped the firewood he was carrying. Tan Laizi quickly crouched down and grabbed a piece. Tang Ershuan crouched down as well. Tan Laizi said in a low voice, "Don't wait for the grain burning. The Master says we're about to cross the border. If we don't run now, it'll be too late."

Tang Ershuan immediately replied, "We run tonight. At night, I'll mimic the sound of a horse sneezing. When you hear three in a row, come out. We'll meet outside the trench."

Hearing they would run that very night, Tan Laizi's heart pounded wildly. He had wanted to ask which direction to head after leaving the trench, but someone approached. The two of them made a show of tussling for a moment, then Tan Laizi stood up and cursed fiercely, "Fine, take it then!"

Tang Ershuan didn't reply. He dragged his firewood back and left. Scuffling over things was a common sight in the camp; no one nearby paid any attention.

Tan Laizi turned and went back to where his own group set up their pot. A few other bondservants were piling up firewood. There wasn't much firewood here, but luckily they were marching ahead of the main army and could still pick some up along the way. After they passed through, everything would be stripped bare. That was why the main army usually split into multiple routes — otherwise, with several hundred thousand people on a single road, everything would run short.

The bondservants were all waiting for him to light the fire. Tan Laizi had no choice but to feel inside his clothes. He had three Banknotes left. He pursed his lips and, trembling, pulled one out. Seeing it was his only fifty-tael note, he hastily stuffed it back and fished out a different ten-tael note, feeling slightly better.

But fifty taels would only keep him alive for two more days. Tan Laizi's throat bobbed a few times. Yet thinking that he would run tonight, his heart swelled with both joy and tension. He couldn't help looking up toward Tang Ershuan, but only saw Tang Ershuan's back.

Just then, Master Menggetu's figure appeared in his field of vision. Tan Laizi hurriedly withdrew his gaze. Menggetu called out a couple of times. Steward Wei, holding up his pants, darted out of the tent and scurried over to him, his clothes disheveled.

Menggetu didn't scold him. He called him over and spoke in a low voice. Menggetu's expression was very grave. The distance wasn't far. Tan Laizi kept his head down as he struck the flint. Once the tinder began to smoke, he used a Banknote to catch the flame, his main focus on listening carefully to what Menggetu was saying.

Master Menggetu could speak both Mongolian and Chinese. When he gave instructions to the estate steward, he always used Chinese. The accent was very different from Nanzhili, but after being here so long, Tan Laizi could now understand quite a bit.

He heard the word "plague" twice, and then it came up repeatedly. Menggetu pointed toward the west. Tan Laizi concentrated intently and caught fragments: it was Turge's company, someone had already died, no one was allowed near, and so on.

Lately, Tan Laizi had heard talk of plague quite often, but it had always been far from them. It first came from the Right Wing. In recent days, reports had increased. Turge's company was marching just ahead of them. This was the first time the plague was so close. He had heard that in the Left Wing, an Armored Soldier's household, along with their bondservants, had caught the disease — over ten people had died off completely in two days.

Even under such severe oppression, whispers still spread. There were all kinds of legends about plague-bearing female ghosts and pestilence gods, which kept Tan Laizi's heart hanging high with dread.

The two men spoke in low voices for another moment. Menggetu was simply telling Steward Wei to manage his household people well — don't let them run, and don't let them die. He also said they were about to cross the border and it would be best to bring them back to Liaodong.

He was going to run tonight, which was already extremely dangerous, and now plague had appeared nearby. The road ahead was even more unpredictable. Tan Laizi felt weak in all his limbs, a suffocating pressure building painfully in his chest.

Faint white smoke from the burning paper drifted before his eyes. The cold, fine rain pierced through the smoke and struck his face. In the midst of his distress, he suddenly heard a bondservant beside him say, "Laizi, the fire's gone out. Get another piece of paper."