The officers' expressions grew contorted with anger and impatience as they waited under the hot sun for the villagers to finish their goodbyes. There were 6 guides in total, all sitting proudly on top of grand horses with hats covering their heads and towels around their necks.
Hao Shoucheng had tears in his eyes as he carried a cloth bag hanging off a stick on his shoulder, filled with food and other necessities. The waterskin around his waist was heavier than normal but not as heavy as his heart. His mother incessantly spoke, warning him, advising him but most importantly stalling time. Hao Er, Hao San and Hao Si bawled as they clung onto their eldest brother’s legs, their childish vice grip silently pleading him to stay. Hao Zhu Lin patted his son’s shoulder while looking at him with guilt and sadness.
The officers urged them to hurry on as their patience grew thin. Hao Shoucheng decided it was time to let go or he would never want to leave. He gave his family each a tight, bone-crushing hug before he walked away from them. Hao Zhu Lin had to hold Hao Fengmeng back as she struggled in his arms.
“No! I’m sorry! A-cheng come back! Mother is sorry! Please come back!” She cried but what’s done is done; nothing could make her son stay anymore. The other villagers bid tearful goodbyes to their families and friends before joining Shoucheng. They were all similar in age and a sense of relief swept through their hearts as they walked closer to each other.
The guides started trotting slowly, 2 in front, 1 on each side and 2 at the back, encasing the 40 young men and women into a rough circle. Their families wails and cries echoed loudly in the sandy landscape and even when the village couldn’t be seen anymore, those cries still resonated in the young adults' hearts. The men and women walked with red eyes and tear-stained cheeks, and stopped to take sips of water before continuing their journey.
Hao Shoucheng walked alongside Han Shuli, a young maiden from Hanzai village. She had beautiful brown eyes, long curly black hair and thin pink lips. She smiled at Shoucheng, sadness pooling in her eyes.
“You know, I feel like we will never be able to meet our families again.” Han Shuli started talking, her eyes looking listlessly at the scenery in front. Hao Shoucheng walked closer to her while giving a small ‘Hmm’, clueless as to what he should say.
“Though I am glad I’m not male. I heard that emasculation is a very painful process.” Shoucheng swallowed thickly at her words. Han Shuli looked at him with pity before giving an apologetic smile.
“But you don’t have to worry! I’m just a scaredy-cat so I’m fearful of many things. I heard that the knifers(surgeons) the Emperor appointed are very skilled! The rate of mortality after emasculation has considerably gone down. It’s going to be alright Shoucheng!” Shoucheng gave Han Shuli a tight smile as he internally sighed.
“Shuli, do you know how the...uh...process goes?” A light blush coated Shoucheng’s cheeks after his question. Han Shuli gave Shoucheng a gentle pat before sighing.
“My great, great, great grandpa once wanted to enter the imperial palace as a eunuch but the survival rate of emasculated men during that time was a little lower than now. One of his friends was emasculated earlier than expected, thankfully he got some medicine from the knifer so that the procedure wouldn’t hurt. But that night great, great, great grandpa was woken up by an agonizing scream. In the hut where his friend was resting, screams erupted along with curses of pain. The surgeons immediately went to see what was going on but couldn’t do anything to help the suffering friend. In the end the friend died while screaming and crying. After that many men decided to withdraw their resolve of becoming eunuchs.” Shuli gazed at Shoucheng who gulped at her story. She could see the fear looming inside him but she continued on. At that moment many other young men and women were gathered around her, looking at her with curious eyes. The guides looked at them with contempt but didn’t do anything to stop Shuli from speaking.
“The whole procedure, including the healing process takes about 100 days. You are held down by assistants of the knifer and then the knifer asks you a question. Depending on your answer, the knifer will decide whether to go on with the process. Once it starts, the knifer will first give you a concoction, supposedly to help reduce the pain. Then after some time he will start and in one swish move, he will cut your two eggs and jade stem!” The men fearfully clutched their crotches at Shuli’s words while the women giggled at their actions.
“Then he will put something like a plug inside your passage, not the back passage we all have but the passage discovered after the jade stem is removed. He will put the plug inside it and wash the area with pepper water and then wrap it in something like cloth or paper...paper cloth? I don’t know. The scariest part though is during and after three days of the castration. You won’t be allowed to drink water for three days and after those three days, the knifer will remove the plug and then finally allow you to drink water. If the water does not come out of that small passage, it means that the process has failed and you will...inevitably...die.”
Gasps of horror echoed round Shoucheng, his own gasp mixing in with theirs. Shuli had a grim face as she looked forward and walked, not daring to look at the males beside her. She debated on telling them or not but she felt that it would be better for them to know what they were going to go through. She also wanted to tell the young women about the situations they might occur inside the palace but refrained as such things couldn’t be said in the open. Though, she knew, that they all knew the horrors of the imperial palace.
Silence ensued in the group of 40, they all kept to their own thoughts and fears, unable to speak a word. The fear was paralyzing to Shoucheng, he felt his throat choke up and tears burning in his eyes. He could see others silently crying and silently wiping away tears which were soon replaced with new ones. He sniffled and let a few tears flow while inwardly laughing at himself. “I’ve shed more tears these past few days than all 20 years of my life…”
The sun was setting, it’s last orange flames of parting soon disappeared and the white crescent moon replaced it. The group of 46 had already passed the sandy terrain and were now in a neighboring village-Shen Ming. The villagers from Hanzai were very familiar with this village as they normally traded food and other things with the Shen Ming villagers. But the journey to Shen Ming village from Hanzai was very long, especially by foot. The distance between Hanzai and Shen Ming was 50 kilometres and it took 10-11 hours for the group to reach the outskirts of the village. The lush greenery and the fresh air was the only thing pushing the young men and women to walk further. Their legs were burning and they breathed heavily through their mouths. The guides gave them just 30 seconds to 1 minute to rest and stopped only 5 times during the journey.
Shoucheng touched the now only quarter-filled water bag and sighed. Shuli was walking beside him and wiped her sweat with a damp towel before fixing her crooked straw hat. Shoucheng internally cursed the guides as his legs and throat burned with each step and gulp of air he took. The road was narrow and dimly lit by the yellow paper lamps held by the six guides. Finally, they reached a huge clearing of green grass; tents and huts were littered all round the large expanse.
There were men and women who seemed to be from various different villages and soldiers and officers wearing the official uniform in various spots. The snobbish officer who forced Shoucheng and his father to seal the scroll trotted forward, attracting curious gazes from everyone. A young soldier with light brown hair and tired hazel green eyes came forward and greeted him.
“Officer Fan! Welcome back!”
“Hmm…we’re back. Jun Shu, take a few soldiers with you and start preparing the necessities for the new addition of 40 people.”
Officer Fan’s voice was sweet and coaxing, a complete 180 from the rough and overbearing voice he used on the Hanzai villagers. Han Shuli grimaced at his sickly sweet voice and shivered in disgust.
The young and bright officer, Jun Shu immediately hurried away to do his task making Officer Fan nod twice in satisfaction. He turned his head slightly back to look at the Hanzai villagers, his indulgent gaze disappearing in a flash.
“You all will be staying here tonight. Tomorrow, once the sun has risen, the young men shall begin the emasculation process while the women, in groups enough to fit four carriages shall set off to the imperial palace. Do not loiter around at night, if anything happens to you it is not our responsibility. Dinner will be served soon, do not be rash in taking food or you will be punished. Now, wait for the other officers to arrive to lead you to your dwelling place.” Officer Fan’s voice was stern and proud and with a sharp glare he trotted forward. The other guides yawned and stretched and one by one made their way to different directions.
Confused, Shoucheng sat down along with the others and waited for Jun Shu to return. The young officer took a ridiculously long time to return and Shoucheng didn’t know if it was on purpose or had something unforeseen happen. His eyes moved across the huge camp before him which seemed to extend farther than his eyes could see.
There were countless bonfires lit up with small and big pots on top of them. The tents around the camp were built with cloth and some with animal hide. Bamboo poles held up a few candle lamps, illuminating the dark areas where a fire wasn’t needed. Villagers from other villages were sitting huddled together around big bonfires, some sleeping while others chatted. The soldiers and officers took turns stirring the unknown dishes inside the pots with wide smiles on their faces as they laughed, drank and talked.
The Hanzai villagers occupied a rather dim space, far from the warm fires and yellow lights. Chilly breezes would lightly stroke the villagers bare arms and legs making them shudder. They huddled closer to each other in an attempt to generate body heat. Shoucheng sighed as he and Shuli sat close along with his other friends from the village.
Wang Lei, who was the same age as Shoucheng and Shuli, had short dark blonde hair and beautiful light blue eyes. He sneezed and rubbed his nose as he leaned closer to Shoucheng and scowled at the fiery orange flames far from him while muttering quietly under his breath. Wang Min, his younger sister, who was 17 years of age, had shoulder length dark brown hair and blue eyes like her brother. She was buried inside Shuli’s embrace, her eyes half-lidded. The only thing stopping her from sleeping was the occasional freezing breeze.
After what seemed like an eternity did they finally see that bright, shining face, hurriedly running towards them. Shoucheng gave a sigh of relief as he shifted and shook the half-asleep Wang Lei. With a groan Wang Lei rubbed his eyes and yawned while stretching his limbs. Jun Shu stood in front of them with a couple soldiers behind up. He had such a radiant smile on his face that Shoucheng unconsciously turned the corner of his lips upward.
“Hello, I am officer Jun Shu. Welcome devoted young men and women. Come, I will lead you to your tents!”
Jun Shu’s voice was cheery and light yet his words sounded mechanical and practiced. The villagers stood up and brushed their backs before following Jun Shu. They walked past the soldiers and other villagers who gave them a single glance before looking away.
Shoucheng rubbed his arms as the passing fires warmed his body. The supposed dwelling tents soon entered his line of sight and he silently gasped. The tents were big and made up of cloth and wood. There were 8 in total and a bonfire was made next to each one. Jun Shu left them once he finished his task but not before repeating Officer Fan’s words.
Shoucheng sighed as he settled down near one of the fires. Wang Lei, Wang Min and Shuli sat next to him. They all kept silent as their own thoughts ran through their minds. Shoucheng sniffled but the tears in his eyes never fell. All sounds soon couldn’t be heard and all that he could feel was the agonizing dread and the warmth from the dancing flames.
