HMHSE - 94

A team of Imperial Guards stood in the Lulong military camp inside Youzhou Pass.

A palace eunuch stood in front, holding a scroll of yellow silk and reading from it. From time to time, he would glance fearfully at the group of people in front of him—

“By imperial decree, Youzhou Military Governor Li Xiaogu has secretly reported that Shan Zong, the head of the Lulong Army and the General of the Soaring Eagles, has colluded with foreign enemies and plans to lead his entire army to defect. He is commanded to immediately return to Chang’an for investigation.”

Shan Zong had just returned, his sword still in hand. He received the imperial decree while standing, his helmet removed. His black armor was stained with blood, and a blood-soaked cloth containing a human head was on the ground at his feet, making him look like a terrifying Asura. The team of Imperial Guards surrounded him defensively.

Behind him were the eighty-four men who had broken out of the siege with him. Most of them were iron cavalry captains; four were seriously wounded, and the rest were only slightly less injured.

They had fought their way back, not one of them looking human, only to receive this imperial decree.

“Nonsense!” Luo Chong suddenly erupted. “Li Xiaogu is the one who is the traitor!”

The eunuch couldn’t help but step back. “How dare you!”

Shan Zong suddenly strode forward, pulling a man with his hands bound behind his back from behind him and pushing him forward. “Speak!”

This was a Youzhou general they had deliberately captured when they were fighting their way back into the pass. At the time, because Li Xiaogu had died, his troops had finally stopped their assault on the barbican and scattered inside the pass. Someone was shouting that the Military Governor was dead. This man had been with Li Xiaogu’s inner circle and had witnessed his death.

The soldiers below had only been following orders, but Li Xiaogu’s confidants must have known the truth.

Sure enough, the general, his face pale, tremblingly told the eunuch, “It was the Military Governor who colluded with the Khitan people. Sun Guohe, who surrendered at the time, often interacted with our Military Governor. They were like brothers and knew Youzhou extremely well. They had planned it all.”

After speaking, he glanced at the coldly standing Shan Zong and confessed everything in fear. “The Military Governor even sent his wife and children out of the pass.”

Luo Chong almost rushed forward to kill him but was held back by Pang Lu.

Shan Zong looked up at the eunuch. “How is it? Can I now deploy troops for reinforcement?”

The eunuch’s eyes darted over him. “His Majesty only requires Great Young Master Shan to return to the capital for investigation immediately. Nothing else is permitted.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the Imperial Guards advanced, tightly surrounding Shan Zong, their swords drawn.

“Please, Great Young Master Shan, return to Chang’an with us. Otherwise, it will be considered a confirmed act of treason.”

Shan Zong’s hand gripping his sword loosened and then tightened. He tilted his head slightly. “You all wait for me.”

Pang Lu asked, “Are you going with them?”

“I’ll be back.” Shan Zong dropped his sword.

He needed to reclaim his military authority and then go back outside the pass.

...

Late at night, in a side hall deep within the palace, only a single candle flame flickered.

Shan Zong was locked in here, his black hair disheveled, and his soft armor dirty.

A person burst in, and the door was immediately shut again by the Imperial Guards outside.

It was his father, Shan Hang, the Supreme Commander of the Guards. He walked in quickly, his steps hurried. “It’s all right. You can return to the Shan family.”

Shan Zong looked up, his eyes on the majestic uniform of the Supreme Commander of the Guards his father was wearing. His voice dropped. “Have you seen His Majesty, Father?”

“Yes, His Majesty is willing to spare your life.”

“I have already proven my innocence in Youzhou. Why would I face death?”

Shan Hang squatted down, gripping his arm with one hand and lowering his voice. “The general who testified for you is dead! The Khitan people sent a negotiation letter, with a tattered Lulong Army flag attached, claiming that your entire Lulong Army has defected. With the added charge of you killing the Youzhou Military Governor, your death sentence cannot be washed away!”

Shan Zong gritted his teeth. “I killed a traitor. The Lulong Army could not have defected!”

“No one can testify for you. Even the eunuch who went to bring you back to the capital is gone!” Shan Hang’s voice sank to a whisper. “Once His Majesty announces this to the world, your crime will be solidified, and no one will be able to save you!”

Shan Zong’s eyes were heavy. “I understand His Majesty’s intention now.”

He had understood it when Li Xiaogu said that His Majesty intended for him to become the Youzhou Military Governor.

Perhaps they had initially just wanted to test the possibility of a rebellion, which led to the Youzhou conflict and the deliberate request for the court to send troops.

They hadn’t expected the court to send his Lulong Army, which quickly quelled the conflict. Li Xiaogu then set his sights on his Lulong Army, which led to that secret report.

However, the Emperor’s reply to Li Xiaogu was that he intended for Shan Zong to become the Youzhou Military Governor.

The more Li Xiaogu became convinced that he was about to be replaced and fall out of favor with the court, the more quickly he would collude with Sun Guohe to completely destroy the Lulong Army.

The entire battle to retake Jizhou was not a grand feat of reclaiming lost territory or saving the common people. It was merely an imperial stratagem, a scheme to make the Lulong Army and the Youzhou Military Governor check each other.

If Li Xiaogu hadn’t colluded with the forces outside the pass, something else would have likely happened to damage the Lulong Army.

The Emperor trusted no one.

“It’s good that you understand.” Shan Hang gripped his arm forcefully. “His Majesty has been acting strangely lately, often muttering about a threat to his imperial power but unable to say what it is. He has alienated his favored people one by one. It is said that many vassal kings and imperial relatives are gone. How could you be an exception? In times like these, he will be suspicious of any secret report or accusation he receives. The Battle of Jizhou was a test. You returned, proving you did not rebel, but he doesn’t want your Lulong Army to return. The way you are now is the only way he can be at ease.”

Indeed. Shan Zong stared at the two characters for “Lulong” on his chest armor.

He had eliminated the troubles in Youzhou, but in return, Youzhou had cut off his arms.

Therefore, the Emperor would not overturn his case. He would only go with the flow and keep him.

“They couldn’t have surrendered. They must still be somewhere outside the pass, waiting for me to reinforce them.”

“They didn’t surrender; they never went outside the pass. That battle never happened.” Shan Hang pressed him. “I could only beg His Majesty to keep you and cover up this matter. Forget about your Lulong Army and never mention it again. You are still the great young master of the Shan family!”

Shan Zong stood motionless, his disheveled hair shadowing his dark eyes. “His Majesty won’t see me, but he summoned you. There must be a price for saving me. What is it?”

Shan Hang’s brow furrowed, appearing to age in the candlelight. “When His Majesty was young, he was attacked by the Turks on the frontier, and I saved his life. Besides this debt of gratitude, I have resigned as Supreme Commander of the Guards and handed over most of the Shan family’s military power. I will no longer concern myself with worldly affairs.”

“I see.” Shan Zong’s lips curled.

“None of this matters. You are the Shan family’s first-born son. As long as you live, the Shan family will not fall!”

“I must lead troops.” Shan Zong stood up. “I cannot be useless in the Shan family.”

“His Majesty will never let you lead troops again, nor will he let you go to save the Lulong Army!” Shan Hang roared. “The war is over. The Lulong Army is nothing but a tattered flag. They are likely all annihilated!”

Shan Zong stood as straight as a pine tree. “Then I will save them myself.”

He strode to the door, yanked it open, and stared coldly at the Imperial Guards outside. “I want an audience with His Majesty.”

...

The long, empty main hall was vast. The Emperor sat high on his throne, looking old and dejected.

“You said you want a military position in Youzhou?”

Shan Zong knelt below, his back straight. “Yes.”

The Emperor sighed. “You have committed such a serious crime. Out of consideration for the Shan family and the many years of service of the Supreme Commander of the Guards, and because I value your military talent, I have spared you. Why do you still want to go to Youzhou now?”

Shan Zong’s demeanor was calm. “The Youzhou Military Governor is dead, and the Nine Prefectures are in chaos. Youzhou needs someone to defend it. I will only command the single prefecture of Youzhou.”

The Emperor seemed to pause for a moment. “Youzhou indeed needs someone to defend it, but how can commanding just one prefecture resist the allied forces from outside the pass?”

“I only need to station 50,000 troops.”

“50,000 against the forces outside the pass isn’t a lot, and I trust your abilities.” The Emperor paused again. “But on the way to the pass, it could become a snowballing force. They might even follow you out of the pass.”

Shan Zong’s eyes shifted, catching the downturned, sunken corners of the Emperor’s mouth.

He had no troops now and was not a threat, but once he went to Youzhou and got an army, he would become a source of anxiety. The Emperor feared that he would seek revenge for the Lulong Army incident and harbor disloyal ambitions, and did not want him to lead troops out of the pass for rescue.

He pursed his lips and then spoke again. “20,000 troops. I am willing to be stationed in Youzhou forever and never leave Youzhou.”

“Forever stationed in Youzhou, never leaving Youzhou.” The Emperor muttered, his voice filled with a deep weariness.

Shan Zong’s tone was slow and deliberate. “Zhou Jun, the general from Yizhou, was eager to claim the credit. Having failed in this battle, he must hold a grudge against me. He can be transferred to garrison Danzhou. This way, the Nine Prefectures will be governed separately, and authority will not be concentrated in my hands. I will also be unable to easily move troops through Danzhou.”

Putting an enemy in Danzhou was an act of surveillance, a self-inflicted wound.

He then inflicted another wound. “I am willing to be cast out of the Shan family, and from now on, I will no longer have the Shan Family Army to rely on.”

The Emperor placed his hand on the throne and sighed deeply. “Indeed. With such strategy and intellect, I was not wrong about you. If not for this incident, you would have been the perfect candidate for Youzhou Military Governor.”

Shan Zong said, “I only ask that Your Majesty not condemn the Lulong Army. The Lulong Army did not defect.”

After a long silence, the aged voice spoke again. “I promise you, I will completely conceal this matter. The Youzhou Military Governor was killed while pursuing the enemy outside the pass, and it has nothing to do with you. But all those involved must be buried, including your subordinates.”

Shan Zong clenched his fist and then unclenched his jaw. “Yes.”

The Emperor nodded and beckoned with his thin, withered hand. “Alright then. Swear a solemn oath before the Emperor. A secret decree will be sealed. I grant you a special pardon and appoint you as the Youzhou Provincial Commander.”

Shan Zong bowed his head. “Thank you, Your Majesty...”

In the open, the Lulong Army suffered heavy losses after quelling the Youzhou conflict. The remaining troops were all reorganized into the Youzhou Army. The Lulong Army no longer existed.

In secret, a sealed imperial decree stated that the old Lulong Army matter was not to be mentioned. Anyone who spoke of or listened to it would be punished, their crimes lasting until their death and spiritual annihilation.

Forever stationed in Youzhou, never leaving Youzhou.

If this was ever violated, punishment would be swift.

From then on, there was no more Shan family’s great young master or head of the Lulong Army, only the Youzhou Provincial Commander.

...

In the Shan family in Luoyang, Shan Zong returned for the last time.

In the study, Shan Hang was furious. He grabbed Shan Zong’s collar. “How could you do such a thing? Don’t forget, you are still the Shan family’s first-born son! I went to great lengths to save you. How can you be so unfilial!”

An oath sworn before the Emperor was like dealing with a tiger.

Shan Zong broke free. He was wearing an ordinary Hu-style tunic and only carried his personal straight sword. “Then please forgive me for my unfilial conduct, Supreme Commander of the Guards.”

Shan Hang’s eyes widened in anger. “What about Shenrong? You were only married for half a year, and she is still waiting for you to return. If you leave the Shan family like this, what will become of her?”

Shan Zong stood in silence for a moment, then his lips curled down. “You’re right. It was a political marriage to begin with. I am no longer the great young master of the Shan family, and the Sun family probably doesn’t need a criminal for a son-in-law.”

He turned abruptly and walked out.

Guangyuan greeted him with surprise. “Young Master, you’re back!”

“Get me a brush and ink.”

A letter of divorce was sent to the main house where the great young master lived, to Guangyuan’s astonishment.

Shan Zong was already on his way out, deliberately taking the back courtyard.

Lady Yang was the first to hear the news and rushed to grab him by the door. “Zong’er! What are you doing? Others might not know you, but I do. If you were truly so unhappy with Shenrong, why did you marry her in the first place? Who could force you?”

Shan Zong’s lips curled as he pulled her hand away. “I have become unhappy with her.”

“Why would you do this? Do you have to leave the Shan family for this reason?”

Shan Zong paused, remembering the secret decree. The speaker and the listener would be equally guilty. He laughed, nodded, and said, “Yes, I am leaving my family because I am leaving her.”

“Let him go!” Shan Hang’s angry roar came from behind him. His face was ashen, but his eyes were faintly red. “Such an unfilial man who abandons his wife does not deserve to be a son of the Shan family! From now on, whoever dares to look for him will be cast out of the Shan family!”

Lady Yang stared at her husband in shock, unable to speak.

By the time she turned around, her son was gone.

...

Shan Zong carried his sword and rode north, his horse galloping straight ahead without looking back.

He carried the imperial appointment letter in his tunic.

The only thing he took with him from the Shan family was the white jade pendant with the character “Chong” that his mother had given him as a child.

The cool wind was like a knife, cutting his face.

A figure on a horse caught up with him, riding close behind. “Young Master, I’ve been chasing and searching for you, and I finally found you.”

It was Guangyuan, carrying a bundle.

Shan Zong didn’t even turn his head. “Why are you following me?”

“I grew up with you, Young Master, so I should naturally follow and take care of you.” Guangyuan rode alongside his horse. “You are a person worth following.”

Shan Zong suddenly laughed. “Is that so?”

The 50,000-strong Lulong Army. He had joined the camp at fifteen and began planning and selecting people at fourteen. Every iron cavalry captain was chosen by him personally; some were old enough to be his father.

He wondered how many of them were left outside the pass and if they still thought he was a person worth following.

“Was the person sent away?” he suddenly asked.

Guangyuan quickly replied, “Yes, your wife... the noble lady left in a great hurry. I chased after her and delivered the things you left for her. She was very angry, and the Sun family was furious too.”

“Good,” Shan Zong said, narrowing his eyes indifferently as he looked at the pale yellow sky in the distance. “That’s even better. From now on, she will have no connection with a person like me.”

Guangyuan didn’t understand, only saying regretfully, “The noble lady was actually a very good person. If you had lived well with her, you would not have felt a lack of affection or that it was a burden.”

Shan Zong just gave a half-smile and remained silent.

A noble lady from a prominent family. Pei Yuanling had said she was the Sun family’s most precious treasure. Many people would surely seek to marry her. In less than two years, she would have nothing to do with him.

Anyway, there would be no more entanglement between them from now on.

A horse was stopped ahead, and a pale-faced, narrow-eyed Zhou Jun sat on it, looking at him with a somber expression, as if he had been waiting here for a long time.

He was already in Danzhou.

“The battle where His Majesty issued his decree is a failure that can never be mentioned again in this life,” Zhou Jun said, pulling his reins and circling him, his voice so low that only they could hear it, a mocking look on his face.

“So-called Great Young Master Shan, for all your splendor, you’re just a coward. Do you know how long my men fought so hard on that front line?” He suddenly drew his sword.

Shan Zong’s sword was unsheathed in a flash, coldly blocking his. He continued to ride forward.

How could it have been longer than the Lulong Army?

...

The gate of the Youzhou prison’s deep dungeons slowly opened, revealing a dark, profound space. Occasional hoarse screams of serious criminals echoed from within.

The eighty-four men were brought here, shackled with heavy manacles and leg irons.

“Shan Zong!” The scar over Luo Chong’s left eye was red and angry. His hair was cropped short, and he wore a prisoner’s uniform. He tried to rush at Shan Zong, his voice full of hatred. “You actually sent us to prison! To absolve yourself of guilt, you abandoned our brothers outside the pass to their fate!”

Shan Zong stood with his sword, watching silently.

He watched Luo Chong try to rush forward, only to be pulled back by the prison guards.

“How could you go back on your word!” Pang Lu, still wounded, tugged at his shackles, looking at him with fury. “Didn’t you say you would bring them back?”

Dozens of figures, all with unhealed wounds, couldn’t get past the dense prison guards as their shackles were dragged further inside.

“You bastard, I was blind to have followed you!” Luo Chong braced a hand against the dungeon gate, almost scratching a mark into it, and glared at him with venom. “I will kill you one day!”

“Then don’t die,” Shan Zong said coldly. “Save your life to kill me.”

The gate slammed shut.

Shan Zong turned and walked away.

The streets of Youzhou were still chaotic, and many places were filled with outlaws and criminals.

He entered a dim shop and sat down. “Give me a tattoo.”

A man with a pockmarked face emerged from the shop. As he took out his needles, he smiled with a hint of disdain. “Young Master, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Tattoos are not for ordinary people. They are for those with a military designation or criminals in jail.”

Shan Zong unfastened his tunic, revealing his bare upper body, and gave a cold, eerie smile. “That’s right. I should be in jail too.”

The man was startled by his words. When he saw the two bold characters of a military designation on his muscular right arm, he no longer dared to speak, and approached respectfully. “What would the Young Master like to have tattooed?”

Shan Zong tensed his right arm. “A flood dragon.”

The dragon had sunk to the abyss, leaving only a malevolent flood dragon.

That night, he exposed his right arm, still fresh with a tattoo, and single-handedly eliminated the bandits hidden in the city.

The next day, he began to form a garrison, dressed in a solid black Hu-style tunic.

Before long, Zhao Jinjian, the Prefect of Youzhou, arrived to take office.

In front of the first batch of soldiers he had just recruited for the garrison, Shan Zong read out his letter of appointment.

Forever stationed in Youzhou, never leaving Youzhou.

New people appeared by his side: Hu Shi’er, Zhang Wei, Lei Da...

They followed him, killing anyone who caused trouble, and completely pacified Youzhou.

Later, he had a full 20,000-strong Youzhou Army.

He spared the lives of a group of outlaws, making them his loyal informants.

He sent them out of the pass time and time again.

But there was still no news.

It wasn’t until a certain winter day two years later that Zhao Jinjian mentioned to him by chance, “Chongjun, do you know that His Majesty... no, we should call him the late Emperor now.”

Shan Zong’s eyes suddenly flew open.

Later, Zhao Jinjian secretly told him that shortly after he left that year, troops marched into Chang’an in a coup, which led to the current Crown Prince.

Perhaps it was fate. The Lulong Army was gone, but the Emperor’s suspicions didn’t cease. When troops came again, he was powerless to stop them.

That night, Shan Zong secretly gathered a group of outlaws and told them, “Now is the time for you to repay me.”

The outlaws all agreed.

He could now search even more diligently.

Still no news.

He had thought that was how things would be forever.

Living in Youzhou, he had long forgotten about Luoyang and Chang’an, but after a patrol of the city and the capture of a few unfamiliar faces, he was met with a sudden reunion.

“I just want the person in charge to come out and give me an explanation. Who is it that can’t speak properly?”

He was sitting in the shadows, watching the woman who had suddenly barged in. He recognized her at once.

The girl whose veil had lifted for a moment on the streets of Chang’an was now a slender woman three years later.

Sun Shenrong.

...

Shan Zong walked alone through the long night, seemingly in Youzhou but also somewhere else.

Ahead, a bright light shone.

He walked forward and stepped into it. The light revealed mountains and a river rushing in the eastern corner.

On a high slope, a woman’s figure stood in the wind, her cape and sash fluttering.

She turned to look at him, a triumphant smile on her face. “No mountain can challenge me.”

Shan Zong remembered. He had dug a mine for her and was trapped in a mine shaft with her. He had even released the eighty men because of her. She had also pointed her finger and helped him find the eighty men who were about to die in the mud.

He had left the pass privately to look for her; she had also shown him the way outside the pass, allowing him to find Zhou Xiaowu.

It was far more than that. He had thought he would walk this path alone, but she had barged into his life.

He curled his lips and walked toward her.

But her expression faded, and she turned to leave. “You can just sleep alone in Wangji Mountain from now on. I won’t come, and I’m never coming to Youzhou again...”

The surroundings darkened, as if he was returning to the long, endless night on the streets of Youzhou.

Shan Zong heard Hu Shi’er’s tearful voice. “Boss, didn’t you say that as long as we have a breath left, we must live? How can you go back on your word!”

That’s right, he had found the Lulong Army. He had promised to see her father.

Finally realizing he was in a dream, Shan Zong moved forward to chase the figure.

The light grew farther away, and darkness loomed.

His sun was about to set.

Shan Zong gave a cold laugh, gritting his teeth as he moved forward.

He didn’t believe it. He had gotten through so much. He didn’t believe he couldn’t get through this time!

Shenrong!

His eyes opened to a sudden light.

From a blur to clarity, his eyes fell upon the dim bed curtains.

A person at the foot of the bed exclaimed, “Commander Shan!”

It was the military doctor. He was holding a corner of a banner, about to cover his face, but stopped with a look of joyful surprise. “Lady!”

A face immediately turned toward him from the side.

Shenrong stared blankly at his face, and only when his dark eyes moved did she realize it was real.

He was awake.

Her chest began to rise and fall, her throat choked with emotion. She suddenly raised her hand toward his face.

It didn’t land. His right arm, covered with a faded tattoo, was raised and grabbed her hand, lacking its usual strength for the first time.

He held her hand, pulled it to his thin lips, and when he took it away, his lips moved. I’m back.

Shenrong slowly lowered her head, her heart reviving bit by bit. She cupped his scarred arm, pressed her face against the tattoo, and whispered, “Congratulations on your triumphant return.”

In her sight, she saw the corners of Shan Zong’s mouth turn up.

Although it’s a few years late, congratulations on your triumphant return, my Lulong.