The Commander

 

It’s a twenty-mile ride to the bandit fortress and I’m not in a good mood as I lead the detachment upriver.  I have fifty men with me, plus some of the villagers, led by Cui Wen.  Since they want me to do this, I thought they ought to contribute something.  This is the kind of expedition I hate.  It could so easily turn into a bloodbath. 

Liang Zhou has apologized for challenging me during the briefing and in turn, I have acknowledged his concerns about the women and children.  But the decision as to what to do is ultimately mine.

The ride’s uneventful, the men in a relaxed mood.  There’s no sign of life as we approach the fortress.  It’s a stout construction, perched on a shallow rise not far from the river.  The scouts’ description was accurate.  The ditch is deep and there are sharp wooden stakes driven into the soil, pointing outwards.  The defensive walls are made of half-logs, difficult to scale.

I draw the men up in a long double row and send Shao Ru, who has the loudest voice, to call on the occupants to surrender.  He’s hardly ridden back to the ranks before the heavy gate opens and a bunch of people come out on foot.

“What the fuck?” says Shao Ru, looking back as he turns his horse round.  “Women?”

There are four men in the middle of the group, tied up with rope and looking very much the worse for wear.  Accompanying them are half a dozen women, including a couple carrying swords.  My eyes narrow.  This could be a trap.  But to our astonishment, the women push the bound men down on their knees, then themselves kneel and bow.  One says, “We surrender ourselves to the mercy of the Emperor.  This humble one begs leave to speak with the Emperor’s honorable representative.”

Talking’s better than fighting any day.  I swing down from my horse and say, “Let’s get into the shade.  Liang Zhou, Cui Wen, come with me.  Shao Ru, bring that woman to me and keep an eye on the others.  ”

She’s about my age, tall and athletic.  Her eyes are very clear and direct.  Like the other women, she’s dressed in men’s clothing.  She salutes and says without preamble, “There are twenty-one of us, women and children.  We were taken from our villages and held here against our will.  We humbly request to be allowed to go home.”

Liang Zhou frowns.  “Where are you from?  How long ago were you taken?”

“Ten years ago.  I was taken from Green Hill Village.”

“And the men?” I ask.

“Six men came back from the attack on your wagons.  Two ran away, but we overpowered the others and offer them to you in exchange for our lives.”

“I see.”  This is somewhat unprecedented.  I look at Cui Wen.  “Are you prepared to take charge of these women and see them resettled?”

He doesn’t look too pleased, but I haven't given him much choice, so he makes the best of it.  “This humble person will obey.”

“Very well.  We’ll do as you ask, Lady….?”

“Sun Xinyue,” she says.  “Thanking your Honour.”

“Lady Sun, please tell everyone to come out.  We’re going to burn the fort.  Only bring what you can carry.”

“We haven’t got much anyway,” she says.  She bows again and turns to go.  She carries herself like a queen.  Liang Zhou and I look at one another and he purses his lips in a silent whistle.

The women come out.  They’re all young.  There are half a dozen children and a small baby.  One young girl is very pregnant.  Liang Zhou moves quietly among them, reassuring here and feeling a pulse there. We discreetly confiscate their weapons.  I send men into the fort to check if there are any supplies we can use, but there are none.  They were on the brink of starvation.  My men set fires and soon smoke’s pouring into the sky.  The women and children are distributed among the soldiers for transportation.  I choose men whom I know have families.  Liang Zhou takes the pregnant girl on his own horse, holding her carefully in his arms.  I detail four men to dispatch the captured bandits after we leave.  We set off back to Cliff Village at a sedate pace.

The planned attack has turned into an anticlimax.  But it’s Cui Wen’s problem now.  Liang Zhou will help him sort it out.  I find I’m dreaming longingly about a hot bath and a Cherry Blossom Pavilion massage.  Behind me in the column a child starts to grizzle.  Another joins in and the grizzle becomes a steady wail.  I look back just in time to see Mo Jiang and the Prince each lifting a child onto his horse.  The wailing weakens and dies down.  When I look again, Mo Jiang’s apparently telling a story to a rapt little boy while a small girl has her arms round the Prince’s waist, her eyes blissfully closed.  I can’t help grinning.

Last night, I spoke his name without thinking, because I’ve got used to calling him Jinhai in my mind.  After he left my tent, I wondered if I’d been wise to reassure him the way I did, but now I feel oddly settled, as if speaking has made my mind up for me.  I don’t yet know how I’m going to do it, but there’s no way I’m going to let the King of Qiu have him.

We get back to camp in the mid-afternoon, but any idea I might have about relaxing goes up in a puff of smoke.  Cui Wen meets with stubborn resistance when he tries to persuade his villagers to take in the new arrivals.  After the massacre at Green Hill Village, nobody wants to have anything to do with the bandits’ women and children, however blameless they might be.  So we have to designate an area outside the village where they can be settled temporarily, suitably far from our encampment.  Food and quilts have to be provided, camp fires lit, cooking started.  Some of the women are dazed, unable to understand what’s happening,   Mo Jiang and the Prince divert the children by taking them down to the river and letting them play in the water.  Then Liang Zhou comes over with a concerned face.  The pregnant girl has gone into labour.

“She can’t give birth outside.  Someone’s got to take her in.  Cui Wen’s being difficult.”

“Talk to his wife,” I suggest, thinking, When will this day ever end?

It does the trick, and the girl’s taken into Cui Wen’s house.  Liang Zhou goes with her.  By dusk, things are as settled as they can be, the children asleep, the women quiet in their quilts.  With a sigh of relief, I finally get to my tent, cursing the pig-headed villagers.

Later, after the Prince has seen to my injuries, I sit down to read the two messages that have been delivered during the day.  The Imperial courier’s message tells me that the Emperor’s doctors are predicting his recovery by autumn.  The private message from Minister Li says that he’s unlikely to survive for much longer and that the Crown Prince is now actively dealing with all the affairs of state.  It urges me to make contact with the Lord of Eagle Rock who will be able to give me detailed information about the Kingdom of Qiu. 

I’m so tired I have no trouble falling asleep, even without the sleeping potion.  But in the middle of the night, I come awake suddenly, realizing that someone’s in my tent.  At first it’s just the faintest sound and movement of air, but the person’s unfamiliar with the layout and knocks into something.  I roll out of bed, seizing my sword as I go, and bellow, “Guards!”  Two soldiers rush in, one carrying a torch.  The flame glints on the blade of my sword and on the long knife in the hand of a young woman who’s crouching against the back of the tent.  She makes a sound like a growl and rushes at the guards, but however fierce she is, she’s no match for trained men.  They side-step and one chops down on her arm with the edge of his hand, forcing her to drop the knife.  Then she’s caught, her arms twisted behind her back.  As I reach for the candle, we hear someone else yell “Guards!”  It’s the Prince’s voice.  What the hell’s going on?

“Tie her up,” I snap and stride out, my sword still in my hand.  There’s a scuffle going on over at the medical wagon and as I run over, two guards haul out another young woman, who’s biting and scratching like a demon.  One of the guards hits the back of her neck and she slumps.  The Prince appears, his face pale in the torchlight.

“You all right?” I shout.

“Yes, fine.  What’s happening?”

“Not sure yet.”  I order the guards to bring their captive to my tent then, looking at the people milling around, I raise my voice and bark, ’”Back to your posts!  Double the guard!”

I order Lin Chen to search the camp for any more unwelcome guests.  Back in my tent, I see that the unconscious woman has been thrown unceremoniously down next to her comrade, who’s looking at us with hatred in her eyes.  The Prince follows me in and looks shocked at the sight.  One of the guards lays the two knives down on my table.  Then to add the final touch, the tent flap’s ripped aside and Shao Ru appears, a knife in one hand and an enraged young woman in the other, bent double by the strength of his hand holding her wrists behind her back.  Shao Ru takes in the scene and says, “Fuck me.  I thought I was the only lucky one.”

The girl he’s holding kicks out furiously.  There are bite marks on her neck, her hair’s dishevelled and her clothes are disarranged.  Shao Ru’s unashamedly clad only in a pair of unsavoury underpants.

“Let me go, you bastard,” spits the girl.

“No bloody fear.”  He throws the knife down on my table. “I was just getting into my stride when she pulled the knife.”

I repress the urge to face-palm.  Shao Ru looks at the Prince and grins.  “You had a little present too?”

We all look at the Prince.  He's wearing a white sleeping robe and the belt’s half-undone, so his neck and collar- bones are showing.  His long hair’s loose and untidy and he’s visibly flustered.  My mind goes hazy for a moment.  He gulps and says, “Well, I woke up to find her …. um.... trying to …..”  he flushes pink and averts his eyes from Shao Ru’s dreadful underpants. “I managed to push her off and then I saw she had a knife so I yelled.”

The guards relieve Shao Ru of his captive, tie her up and shove her down next to the others. The unconscious girl’s coming to, groaning.  Lin Chen enters the tent.

“Reporting to the Commander.  No further intruders have been found.  The guard’s been doubled.”

“Find out how these women got in.”  

“Understood.”  He bows and goes out.

I stare down at the three intruders.  “So what’s this all about?  Attempted assassination of Imperial officers and laying hands on a member of the Imperial family.  Do you know what the penalty is?”

Shao Ru’s captive spits at my feet.  “Bastards!  You killed our men!”

“How did you get past the guards?”

She sneers.  “How do you think?  Some men will do anything for a taste of fresh meat.”

I feel infinitely weary.  “Take them outside.  Fetch Lady Sun here.  Shao Ru, Young Master Yan, get dressed.”

Everyone scatters.  I put down my sword and reach for my clothes.  There’s no easy way out of this.

I take my time dressing.  When I step outside, the three women are kneeling outside my tent.  Lady Sun arrives escorted by a guard, with Cui Wen hurrying in the background.  A crowd’s gathering.  Lady Sun looks at the three kneeling women.  The torchlight distorts expressions, but I detect anger and even enmity in her face. 

“These women tried to kill me and two of my officers tonight.  The penalty’s death.  You’re the leader of these women.  Do you agree?”

The kneeling women look at me with their mouths open in shock and then they look at Lady Sun.  They really hadn’t expected this.  I wonder what they were thinking:  that they’d be patted on the head and allowed to go free?   But Lady Sun’s face is now expressionless.

“I agree,” she says.

One of the women says hoarsely, ”You bitch!  You can’t do this.  They deserve to die.  They killed our men.”

Lady Sun's voice is as cold as ice.  “Your men, not mine.” She looks at me.  “Do it.” she says.

I move my hand and it’s done quickly, before the women have a chance to say any more.  The bodies are taken away.  I see that Lady Sun’s shivering.  I say abruptly, “Come into my tent.” She follows me in and I tell her to sit and give her a cup of wine.  She gulps it all down.

“I know it's hard,"  I say quietly, "But there was no choice.”

Her voice is shaky.  “It was my fault.  I knew those three were troublemakers.  They were with the bandits of their own free will, not like the rest of us.  I should have kept an eye on them.”

"Don't blame yourself.  You couldn't have foreseen this."  I refill her cup and once again she knocks it all back in one go.  Then she puts the cup down and stares straight at me.

“The villagers here don’t want us.  And it’ll be even worse after this.  Where can we go?”

“You said you come from Green Hill Village.  You heard about what happened there?”

She nods, biting her lips.

“Why not go back there?  There are empty houses, water, fields to cultivate.  The bandits have gone now, so you should be safe.  And I’ll twist Cui Wen’s arm to get his cooperation.  How about it?”

She takes her time thinking, but I can tell from her expression that the idea appeals.

“That would be a good solution,” she says finally.  “I grew up there.  After I was taken, I used to dream about it every night.  It’s not a bad place.” She smiles.  “I think we could manage there.”

“Good.  I’ll do everything I can to help.  We confiscated a number of horses from the bandits.  You can have them.  We’ll give you supplies.  We buried all the dead outside the village and cleared the well, so the water will be drinkable by now.  There’s nothing to stop you going as soon as tonight’s business is sorted out.”

She gets up and salutes me.  “This humble person thanks you from her heart, Commander.”

I call a guard and tell him to escort Lady Sun back to the women’s encampment.  Then I go and check on Shao Ru.  I find him awkwardly bandaging a flesh wound on his upper arm.

“So she got you after all,” I say, “Serves you bloody well right.  Let go, I’ll do that.”

“It could have been worse.  She could have got me in a more vital part.”

I pull the bandage tight and he winces.  Then his face grows reflective.  “Did you see the little bundle looking as if he’d just been tossed around?  A real treat, that was.”

“Ah-Ru, I wouldn’t trust you with a bucket if it had a hole in it.  Listen up.  There are other people involved in this.  At least one guard and one other woman.”

“Yep.”  Shao Ru says, inspecting the bandage.  “The sooner we get away from this bloody village, the better.  Nothing but trouble.”

I can’t say I disagree with him.

There’s still a light burning in the medical wagon so I go over and knock.  The Prince looks up from the book he’s reading and smiles.

“Just came to check you were all right,” I say, “No damage?  Shao Ru got a bit of a nick, nothing serious.”

“No, I’m fine.   And I think Shao Ru probably deserved it.”  He pauses for a moment, then goes on, “That girl - she was so young.  She can’t have been much older than I am.  She seemed surprised to see me.  I think she was expecting to find Liang Zhou.  She didn’t really know what to do with the knife and we ended up dodging one another round the table.  Ridiculous really.  It – it was a pity she had to die.”

“I had to execute them.  Firstly because letting assassins go free means danger for my men. And secondly because if I hadn’t, the villagers would probably massacre all those women the minute we leave.”

“Yes, I see,” he says slowly.  Then he adds, “I’m sorry you had to do it.”

“Goes with the territory.  Get some sleep now.  And let’s hope there are no more disturbances.”