Chapter 230: Sending Off the Plague God

Noon on the third day after Lion Camp marched to war.

At Ten-Li Post east of Pingliang City, the Prince of Han gripped a spoon, scooping watermelon and eating with great relish.

Mid-bite, he frowned and looked at the melon farmer beside him: "This prince eats one of your melons, and you keep staring — have you never eaten melon?"

The melon farmer stood to the side, practically drooling, and nodded: "Your Highness, this humble citizen truly never has."

The Prince of Han glared: "You grow melons and you've never eaten one?"

How could that be?

The Prince of Han was no longer enjoying it quite so much. He glanced at Cao Huachun, and Cao Huachun glanced back at him, saying, "Your Highness, one must be virtuous and kind. When you eat something, you must pay."

"Who says otherwise? This prince simply didn't know he'd never eaten melon."

With that, the Prince of Han looked at the half watermelon before him, pushed it over, and said to the farmer, "Here, try this half. It's fine — Eunuch Cao will pay you in a moment."

Cao Huachun stood to the side and glared at these words: "Your Highness, have you ever seen anyone leave the palace on business carrying silver?"

"Tch, some eunuch you are — not even a bit of silver on you."

The Prince of Han rolled his eyes at Cao Huachun, buried his head, and kept eating. After two bites he looked up at the farmer: "Then… put the melon on credit. Depends whether the front lines win or lose."

The melon farmer did not eat, still looking pitifully at the Prince of Han.

"Look, staring at this prince like that is useless. If the front lines win a victory, this prince will go borrow a few taels of silver to give you; if they lose, whoosh—" Accompanying the sound, the Prince of Han raised a hand and pointed north: "The routed troops will tie this prince to a tree."

"With Eunuch Cao keeping me company — who'd be left to pay you then?"

Cao Huachun rolled his eyes: "Your Highness, this servant still must return to the palace to attend His Majesty — I am not keeping you company!"

The Prince of Han shot him an exasperated look, thinking to himself: You can't even manage flattery or telling a white lie. You only got anywhere by clinging to the chief attendant of Prince Xin's estate; otherwise you'd never amount to anything in this life.

Zhou Riqiang, the Prefect of Ningzhou, stood to the side, watching the Prince of Han carry on with utter nonchalance — eating melon, joking and jesting — his heart pounding with anxiety. He had been standing at the door of the express relay station the whole time, gazing east.

Even more people stood outside the station — a crowd of generals and commandants, families in tow, straining their eyes eastward.

Everyone was waiting for word of victory or defeat to come back.

Zhou Riqiang, thoroughly annoyed by the two inside the station nattering on, turned, fished the melon money from the ruyi-embroidered pouch at his waist, placed it in the farmer's hand, and said, "His Highness told you to eat, so eat. Don't be afraid."

At the sight of the money, the farmer offered profuse thanks, but did not hug the melon and start eating. Instead, he looked cautiously at the Prince of Han: "This humble citizen would like to give the melon to his child to eat. Your Highness…"

The Prince of Han waved a hand. The farmer retreated backward, half a melon in his arms. Only then did the prince turn to Zhou Riqiang with a displeased look: "Prefect Zhou, that's not right. If you had money, you should have lent it to this prince first, and then this prince would have paid the melon money!"

Zhou Riqiang, whose mind at this moment had no room for the dozen-odd coppers a melon cost, waved a hand: "It's only a few coins — what's this talk of borrowing?"

"What do you mean, what's this talk of borrowing? What the hell do you know!"

The Prince of Han actually grew agitated: "If I give him the melon money, and Pingliang revolts in the future, he'll remember I paid for my melon and stay home obediently! What's the point of you paying? You'll just dust off your backside and leave — completely useless!"

Cao Huachun and Zhou Riqiang exchanged a glance, both stunned for a long moment. Finally Cao Huachun shook his head: "If His Highness the Prince of Han applied his cunning in the right direction, he would become a virtuous prince of the Great Ming."

"Tch!"

The Prince of Han rolled his eyes, thinking: What does a little prince know? This little prince didn't even know you had to pay for melon — it's all thanks to the Grand Commander's fine teaching.

He raised a finger to the sky: "With a blade hanging over your head, anyone becomes virtuous."

Cao Huachun neither agreed nor disagreed. As far as he knew, sometimes even with a blade hanging over their heads, many people still could not become virtuous.

The Prince of Han took another bite of melon and spat seeds nonstop — ptoo, ptoo, ptoo — like a pea shooter.

Seeds spat, he looked at Zhou Riqiang's displeased expression with the full air of a wastrel scion: "Hey, none of us have money — how come you have money?"

"Earned it at Lion Camp."

Zhou Riqiang said matter-of-factly: "I didn't bring money either. Commander Cao said the Grand Commander's son would be old enough to start schooling in a couple of years, and asked me to write a little essay."

"A s-son? He doesn't even have a wife and he has a son?"

The Prince of Han rubbed his chin, astonished. Didn't this call for becoming sworn brothers?

"Where is he? How come I've never heard him mention this?"

"A foundling child, over in Zhenyuan."

The Prince of Han shook his head regretfully. Too far.

Not seeking to be born on the same year, same month, same day — but seeking to die on the same year, same month, same day.

He could become the elder brother, and through metaphysics directly extend his own lifespan — killing two birds with one stone.

The Prince of Han even felt like doing a little dance. To him, the happiest thing in the world was leaving Pingliang.

Leave Pingliang, and living a dozen-odd more years would be fine.

Stay in Pingliang, and living a few decades would also be fine.

In this life, he had to land at least one of those two, right? To land one, the simplest solution at the moment was to become sworn brothers with Liu Chengzong's eldest son.

That way, he might get to leave Pingliang, and would certainly live a few more years.

Ten thousand dan of stipend rice every year, no work to do — never mind the generational chaos in seniority; he'd happily trade away a father.

But Zhou Riqiang doused him with a bucket of cold water: "The Prince of Qin dammed the river and cut off the water. The Grand Commander heard a baby crying in the ruins and rescued the child from its mother's arms. When this child grows up, he probably won't be done with the imperial clan."

Cao Huachun, however, watched the Prince of Han and Zhou Riqiang, his mind turning with unreadable thoughts.

Abruptly, he cupped his hands toward Zhou Riqiang and asked, "Prefect Zhou, I heard from Viceroy Yang that for winning over General Liu, he would recommend you for a fourth-rank post. Allow me to congratulate Sir Zhou in advance."

"Many thanks, many thanks."

Zhou Riqiang smiled and clasped his fists, then shook his head: "To be frank, my prolonged stay in Commander Liu's camp has stirred many feelings in my heart. I have no further interest in an official career and intend to resign and return home."

"Hold on — there is actually another fine destination."

Cao Huachun said to Zhou Riqiang, "His Majesty has decreed: Liu Chengzong can be guided toward virtue, but requires someone to earnestly counsel and exhort him… Assistant Administrator of the Qinghai Pacification Commission, full fourth rank."

"Surely not?"

"Surely not!"

The first was spoken by Zhou Riqiang — just when he thought he had escaped the sea of bitterness, now they wanted to fling him off to Qinghai. In his heart, neither publicly nor privately was he willing.

Privately, he could return to Beizhili and compile books, eating fresh perch from Nanjing every day via the canal — what sort of immortal's life was that? Wouldn't that be far sweeter than staying by Liu Chengzong's side in constant fear?

Though following Liu Chengzong around, seeing unusual things from a perspective unlike that of traditional scholars — especially now that he was no longer a rebel — it was rather like a deeply compelling grand adventure.

But Zhou Riqiang had no confidence he could fulfill the Emperor's charge. If Liu Chengzong rebelled again someday, the Emperor in Beijing couldn't lay a hand on Liu Chengzong — but could he not crush the man's son in Baoding?

The latter to decline was the Prince of Han.

Cao Huachun merely smiled at Zhou Riqiang, pretending not to have heard his refusal, and instead asked the Prince of Han, "Your Highness finds it unsuitable?"

The Prince of Han did not find it unsuitable. He simply felt he had been neglecting Zhou Riqiang lately, and feared that if Zhou Riqiang went to Qinghai, he might badmouth him to Liu Chengzong.

But could he say that to anyone?

He thought for a moment, looked at Zhou Riqiang, and shook his head. "This Prince is not blocking your official career, Master Zhou, only that the journey is too arduous. Very well — I have heard that in the old days, merchants on the Tea Horse Road traveling to Ü-Tsang would always bring Yunnan bowl sugar, eating it whenever they crossed the mountains."

Having said this, he addressed Zhou Riqiang: "This Prince shall send a letter to Lanzhou, instructing them to prepare plenty of it, to relieve your toil and hardship, sir."

Zhou Riqiang looked utterly baffled. Since when had I agreed to go into Qinghai!

You people are just arranging this for me?

As he spoke, the Prince of Han's eyes lit up. He raised a hand and pointed upward beside his head. "Right — we must prepare some for the Great King as well."

He added silently in his heart: Who knows, if the Grand Marshal is pleased, he might forgive this Prince's debts!

Watching this, Cao Huachun grew deeply troubled. How had the descendants of the Great Ancestor Emperor turned into this?

Just then, a page from the princely mansion up ahead came running in great haste, shouting as he ran, "They're back, they're back!"

The Prince of Han could not stay seated. He dropped half a melon onto the table and, mouth full and barely intelligible, nearly choked: "Victory or defeat?"

"Victory! A great victory!"

The Prince of Han rose and spat out a string of watermelon seeds with a series of splutters, tugged a servant's sleeve to wipe his mouth, ran out of the relay station, leaped high into the air, and shouted at the generals and commandants, "We're not going to die!"

"Hide all the spirit money from this Prince... spread yellow earth on the roads, sprinkle the streets with clean water!"

With a roar, utter chaos erupted — some hid the spirit money, some hid the funeral wreaths; those writing elegiac couplets grabbed suona horns and small drums, mourning staves were tossed into the relay station, and basins of water were snatched up on the spot.

By the time Liu Chengzong returned leading the Lion Battalion, everything was in perfect order.

The several commandery princes and princess consorts of the Han fief, led by the Prince of Han, went ten li beyond the city walls, two great banners raised on each side, gongs and drums beating thunderously. The left banner read "The Guardian Fief Goes to War," the right read "Banners Unfurled to Victory." Generals and commandants, each with their families, led sheep and prepared wine to welcome them along the road.

The Prince of Han was so delighted his face seemed to bloom like a flower. He rushed ahead and seized the reins, saying over and over, "This little prince knew the Great King would triumph on this campaign!"

Liu Chengzong, from horseback, searched the crowd for Yang Dingrui and asked, "Master, does His Highness the Prince of Han truly know I could win?"

Yang Dingrui nodded with a beaming smile. "He knows about half of it."

Liu Chengzong thanked the imperial clan of the vassal state for their warm hospitality, but did not hurry back into the city. Instead, he discussed the matter of buying burial ground with the Prince of Han.

After returning to the city, Cao Yao went into action despite his wounds and made a batch of Shaanxi-style authentic Henan donkey-meat huoshao.

These were probably the most expensive donkey-meat huoshao he had ever made in his life. Four donkey-meat huoshao, traded for two hundred mu of burial ground from the Prince of Han.

Originally one hundred mu would have sufficed, but the Prince of Han said he feared the fallen soldiers would feel cramped sleeping there, and insisted on giving two hundred mu.

It was only later that Liu Chengzong discovered this Lord Prince of Han actually had no idea how large even one hundred mu of land was.

Because he feared that if another rebellion broke out in the future, someone might dig up the graves of his fallen soldiers, the Prince of Han personally selected a burial site that would absolutely never be disturbed.

It was at Nine-Peak Plum Blossom Mountain east of Pingliang City. Two Princes of Han from two different dynasties and one emperor were buried there — it was considered an auspicious geomantic site.

The two Princes of Han were, respectively, Prince Gong of Han of the Ming dynasty's Han fief, and Prince of Han Wanyan Heng — the finest polo player under heaven of the Jin dynasty — along with his son Wanyan Yangti.

Also buried there was the shortest-reigning emperor in Chinese history, the last emperor of the Jin dynasty, Wanyan Chenglin.

Wanyan Heng had originally been Prince of Rui. He died during the rebellion of Prince of Hailing. His family brought his and Yangti's remains to Anding, where old subordinates of Wanyan Wuzhu were stationed, and buried them there. Seven years later he was posthumously rehabilitated and elevated to Prince of Han.

Seventy years later, at Caizhou City, the allied Mongol and Song armies pressed up to the city walls. The emperor within the city, Wanyan Shouxu, unwilling to be a sovereign of a fallen dynasty, abdicated to Wanyan Heng's grandson, Wanyan Chenglin. Before the enthronement ceremony could even be completed, the city fell.

Routed soldiers carried Wanyan Chenglin's remains to Anding and buried him there as well.

Liu Chengzong thought this place was quite nice — lively. It had an emperor if you wanted an emperor, a prince if you wanted a prince, and in their spare time they could even play a game of polo. They wouldn't be lonely.

At the funeral, he asked the Prince of Han, "How about you get buried here too someday? It's a fine place, lively."

"I'm not getting buried there. If I go down, who the hell could I beat?" The Prince of Han, whenever his life was not in danger, never had a pleasant expression. "Nothing left but getting bullied."

While the funeral for the fallen soldiers was underway here, a scout from the east relayed word that another force had arrived and garrisoned at Jingchuan. They had come from Ningzhou, just three to five hundred men.

This unit was far more docile. They encamped beneath the walls of Jingchuan and did not move, sending local commoners to pass word to the relay riders that they were men of Supreme Commander of the Three Frontiers Yang He, not here to fight, and asking not to be attacked.

Later, their commander came over himself and gave his name as Zuo Guangxian.

Liu Chengzong knew of this man and summoned him over.

The year they left Yuhe Fort, Zuo Guangxian had still been a military officer at Xuanfu, until Grand Coordinator Yue Hesheng requested his transfer to Yansui Garrison to serve as a firearms instructor.

But before it was Yuhe Fort's turn to be trained, Liu Chengzong and his elder brother had already been released.

When Zuo Guangxian arrived, he was mortified. From a distance he saw that a funeral was underway and thought to himself that he had come at a terrible time.

Who brings money on a military campaign? Should he offer a funeral contribution or not?

In any case, he brazenly came over, though he still had a somewhat stooped, unable-to-straighten-his-back air about him.

The scale of this funeral was terrifying. Setting aside the army, even a great crowd of princes had to stand toward the back. With exceptional self-awareness, Zuo Guangxian stood at the very end of the procession and followed the funeral cortege.

He followed for quite a while. Up ahead, Liu Chengzong was puzzled and asked those beside him, "Wasn't it said that Zuo Guangxian was coming? It's been so long — has he still not arrived?"

The Prince of Han said, "He came long ago. Earlier, several Bulwark Commandants were bowing at the front, and there was an unfamiliar face among them. That should be him."

This left Liu Chengzong not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "Go find him, then. I don't know the Bulwark Commandants either."

Sure enough, this task had to be done by someone in the know. The Prince of Han went over, scanned the crowd, and without asking a single question, very precisely plucked the disguised Zuo Guangxian out of the procession.

In the past, even if He Renlong stood before him, Zuo Guangxian would not have lowered his posture when speaking. But now the circumstances were different. He saluted first, then asked, "General Liu, your official appointment and seal — you have them now?"

"I have them. My elder brother hasn't arrived yet. What is the matter?"

Zuo Guangxian said, "The Supreme Commander has sent me to clear the path ahead and cover the rear for you, General. If there is nothing else, please set out as soon as possible. As for your elder brother's official post — if it cannot be helped, confer it on the road. Make haste to assume office."

Cao Huachun was displeased. "What do you mean, 'confer it on the road'? Do you intend to make us fellows follow all the way to Xining?"

"Aiyo, Gonggong." Zuo Guangxian dared offend no one and said with an ingratiating smile, "This humble general meant no such thing. Supreme Commander Yang wishes for General Liu to assume his post as quickly as possible, so as to avoid further troubles in the region."

The meaning was actually quite clear: make Liu Chengzong get the hell out immediately, and stop fighting battles in the region.

Cao Huachun snorted. "Wait, then. Once General Liu's elder brother arrives and the official post is conferred, we will set out."

"You people just don't know how to speak properly with military officers, do you, General Zuo?"

Liu Chengzong thought to himself that Yang He's idea was not bad — bringing the Emperor's childhood companion to Xining would help them intimidate the Xining Guard officials and local native chieftains, with no downside.

Smiling, he asked Zuo Guangxian a question, then turned his head and said, "Let's go then, Eunuch Cao. Come take a tour around Xining with us. Is Prince of Han coming?"