Chapter 141 Part 1

In early spring, the wilderness was still covered with ice and snow, but the wind blowing from the distant snow-capped peaks had gradually lost its harsh skin-cutting coldness. The earth, frozen through a long winter, now lay quietly awaiting the softening of frost—ready to welcome the coming of hidden thunder and the awakening insects.

Outside the walls of Huangsha Garrison, in the vast wilderness, there are countless felt tents stationed densely packed together. As the night wind swept through, the wolf-emblazoned banners danced wildly in its wake.

Linghu Gong had been in charge of Hexi for many years. Beyond his military command, he had also overseen the vital matter of garrisoned troops cultivating the borderlands. This garrison had begun as one such settlement—originally built around farmland and slowly growing into a military town. Within it lay a grain and forage depot. At the end of last year, when the army was under pressure from both the north and the south, the situation had become dire. For the sake of concentrating their forces and preparing for the worst possible scenario, the decision was made to abandon some of the more remote territories. This place was among them.

According to the plan, all the grain and forage were to be moved out before retreating. However, Ashina’s speed of moving southward was much faster than expected. The troops arrived when only half of the grain was moved. Before retreating, the garrison commander set fire to the granary. Unfortunately, hail and snow fell, and the fire was extinguished. In this way, the remaining half of the grain and forage in the granary, along with the garrison town, fell into Ashina’s hands.

After he occupied this place, perhaps to allow his troops to recuperate, he finally halted his advance and ordered them to stay there for rest.

That night, in a spacious hall within the garrison town, fire torches blazed brightly, filling the room with stifling heat. Chengping was reveling with a crowd of generals beneath his command. Amid the rich aromas of roasting meat and strong wine, beautiful dancers from the Western Regions—with their snow-white chests and bare midriffs—moved to wild, pulsing drumbeats, dancing in the center to entertain the crowd. Amid the endless shouting and laughter, Chengping—half-dressed and flushed with drink—suddenly tumbled down from his couch. Staggering on unsteady feet, he made his way toward an official seated nearby.

This official was dressed as a member of the Holy Dynasty. Different from the people around him who were all staring at the dancers with great interest, he sat upright, looking straight ahead, and looked out of place.

“Why, is the wine not to your taste? I see you haven’t had much to drink tonight.”

Chengping raised the jug of mare’s milk wine in his hand, tilted his head back, and drank a few gulps from the jug, letting the wine flow down his neck. Then, with a bang, he placed the jug on the table in front of the man, and put his other hand on his shoulder, asking with a smile.

This official was Cui Daosi.

He had previously been sent north on a diplomatic mission, enduring countless hardships. After much difficulty, he was finally about to rendezvous with Linghu Gong when a snowstorm struck. After the blizzard passed, he found himself completely disoriented and could only continue forward based on instinct. By the time he realized they were heading the wrong way, his party had already entered the territory of the Wolf Court. At that point, many of his companions had fled or scattered, leaving him with only a handful of loyal followers. Lacking food and proper clothing, turning back meant certain death. With no other choice, he bit the bullet and sought out the nearest tribal chieftain. As it happened, that chieftain had already pledged allegiance to Chengping. Upon arrival, relying on his distinguished family name and his deep knowledge of the classics, he cited scripture and reasoned deftly within the tribal chieftan’s tent, promising benefits in return. With nothing but his eloquence, he managed to persuade the chieftain, who was genuinely impressed. Right then and there, the chieftain agreed to relocate his people and troops and pledged allegiance to the Holy Dynasty.

Just when he was joyfully leading his troops back toward Hexi, unexpectedly, they were ambushed by Chengping’s forces. Unable to escape in time, he was captured on the spot and made a prisoner.

This happened almost a year ago.

After being captured, Chengping forced him to serve as the right prime minister, otherwise he would be killed. Under the threat of sword and axe, Cui Daosi had no choice but to agree, and thus he became the right prime minister, doing all kinds of work such as formulating edicts and drafting memorials.

He was getting by mecanically, and not only did he manage to stay alive, but he was actually doing pretty well for himself. Everyone in the Wolf Court knew that he was a famous minister from the Holy Dynasty and a capable man in the Great Khan’s tent. When people ran into him, they didn’t dare show him anything but respect. However, Chengping’s ambition was so great that he wanted to be more than just a Khan. After his rear was stabilized, he sent troops south and brought Cui Daosi with him.

In situations like this, he would usually refuse if he could, but if he really couldn’t, he would just sit there with his nose held tight and deal with it reluctantly. How could he lower himself and have fun with these barbarians?

Tonight was no different.

Linghu Gong was attacked from all sides and had to withdraw his troops. Cui Daosi had heard earlier that his nephew had been trapped in Dache City after a snowstorm when he broke into Xifan territory. By now, it had been two to three months, and he still had no idea what the situation was like on that end. His heart was anxious, like there was a cat scratching inside his chest. He didn’t even have the mood to keep up appearances anymore. However, although Chengping had a smile on his face, his bloodshot and drunken eyes were shining with a faint light. No one could tell what he was thinking. He knew that he was cruel and could do anything. Afraid of ruining his mood and sparking a confrontation, he could only say, “What are you talking about, Great Khan? I’m just feeling a bit unwell today, and didn’t dare go all in. If it displeases Great Khan, I’ll drink right now!” With that, he picked up his wine cup and drank. But he drank too fast, choked, and started coughing, looking rather pitiful and disheveled.

Chengping burst out laughing, laughing so hard it looked like he was tearing up. He even came over and patted his back personally. When the coughing finally stopped, he snatched the wine cup from his hand and tossed it aside, “I thought Lord Cui looked down on us, unwilling to have fun with us beasts and barbarians. Since you are not feeling well, don’t force yourself. Take good care of yourself. When we take Chang’an in the future, we will have to trouble Lord Cui a lot!”

The chatter attracted the attention of everyone at the banquet, and they all stopped laughing and looked over. Cui Daosi paused, then smiled and laughed in agreement.

“Since Lord Cui is tired, then go and have a rest. Among these beauties, you can pick any one you like. Don’t worry, there is no shrewish woman named Wang from your family watching over you here, so you can have as many as you want!” Chengping pointed at the dancers on the stage and said with a smile.

“I wouldn’t dare, I wouldn’t dare! I’m old and weak, unlike the Great Khan, who is full of vigor and strength. I have already received some people in the tent earlier—I’m quite satisfied. Any more and I simply couldn’t handle it. Better for the Great Khan to keep them for yourself!” Cui Daosi hurriedly waved his hand to refuse.

The crowd around them burst into loud laughter, teasing and goading him. Just then, a centurion rushed in from outside, dropped to one knee, and reported in a loud voice: “Reporting to the Great Khan—we’ve just received word. Pei Xiaoyuan has escaped from Dache City and should have reunited with Linghu Gong by now!”

Chengping, who was laughing, became quiet. His eyes lowered slightly, his face unreadable, revealing nothing of what he felt. The musicians and dancers quickly stopped as well.

“How did he escape?”

After a moment, Chengping slowly turned around and asked.

The centurion reported the information he had obtained by sending people to sneak into Xifan, saying that Pei Xiaoyuan led less than a thousand people out of the city that night and attacked the Xifan army camp. His purpose was not to escape, but to lead the people into the canyon and use fire bombs to trigger a great avalanche above their heads, burying them at the bottom of the valley with the pursuers. This move caused Li Meng to retreat in shock. But then the news of the attack on Zhongdu in the direction of Songcheng also arrived. The Xifan army retreated overnight and the siege was lifted.

After the centurion finished speaking, Chengping’s eyes flashed with a complex expression that was difficult to describe. It seemed to contain shock, admiration, relief, and disappointment. For a long while, he did not move, as if in a trance.

“Heaven has eyes! The spirit of Shenhu General watches over us! The eight hundred heroic souls of years past protect us!”

Just when the whole place was in complete silence as they were still unable to process the news, Cui Daosi suddenly shot to his feet from his seat. Overcome with joy, he stomped hard on the ground and burst into loud, hearty laughter, his voice filled with relief and delight, washing away all his earlier gloom. Then, solemnly, he straightened his robes and knelt toward the direction of Chang’an, bowing deeply to the ground. When he got up from the ground, he found that everyone in the hall was looking at him coldly. He froze, suddenly aware of his loss of composure. Hastily, he cupped his hands toward Chengping and explained awkwardly: “Erlang is my nephew… With him safe, I couldn’t help but be a little overjoyed…”

Chengping coldly withdrew his gaze, remained silent for a moment, and suddenly laughed again. He turned to the people around him and said, “What are you all standing there for? Let’s drink! We won’t leave until we are drunk tonight!”

Seeing that he was still in high spirits, everyone naturally respected his words. Soon, the drums started again, and the dancers continued to dance to the drums, and bursts of laughter were heard from the banquet again.

Cui Daosi sighed, thinking it was a close call. He sat for a while longer, bowed to Chengping, and said he was not good at drinking. Chengping did not insist him to stay, casually waved his hand, and continued to drink. Cui Daosi was about to leave when someone rushed in from outside, holding a small bamboo tube that was only the length of a finger high in his hand, kneeling and reporting that a falcon had just landed at the city gate, and someone recognized it as the one the great khan had raised before. He found the tube on its foot, untied it, and wanted to catch the falcon, but it immediately flew away.

The whole place fell silent again. Cui Daosi also stopped and turned to look. He saw Chengping’s expression shift several times. The attendant stepped forward and presented a message tube. Chengping took it, cut the seal open with a dagger, twisted it apart, and shook out a tightly rolled slip of paper. He unfolded it and glanced at it briefly. After a moment of stillness, the corner of his lips lifted ever so slightly in a faint smile. Then, slowly, he crushed the paper into a ball in his palm—and casually tossed it to the ground.

“Why are you all looking at me?” He raised his head and smiled nonchalantly, “Go on!”

As soon as he finished speaking, the banquet became lively again.

Cui Daosi withdrew his gaze from the paper ball on the ground, lowered his head and walked out.

As the night deepened, many people at the banquet were already drunk. They began to hug the rewarded dancers and bid farewell to Chengping, and left one after another. Chengping gave consent to all of them, while he himself just carelessly lay on the couch and fell asleep drunkenly.

At this time, Shi Duo quickly walked in from outside, walked to the front of Chengping couch, and whispered: “Li Meng rushed here overnight and asked to see Great Khan. He is outside now.”

Chengping’s eyelids moved slightly: “Why did he come?”

“The Xifan’s main force heading north was stationed in Guangming City area, about a hundred thousand troops. Recently, the Hexi Army should have been inspired by Dache’s rescue and recaptured several garrisons previously occupied by Xifan. A large Hexi Army is also heading towards Guangming City, so a major battle should be imminent. He came here overnight, so it must be related to this matter.”

Chengping slowly opened his eyes, turned over and sat up, and said calmly: “It’s really lively tonight, everyone is here. Since the person is already here, let’s call him in and see what he has to say.”

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