Chapter 20: Cause and Effect

A procession of several hundred people, some riding horses, others leading them, moved onward for a full day and night. Wu Yueling glanced back at the long line trailing behind her—most were women, frail and unarmed, who had been imprisoned in Yiju Stronghold for varying lengths of time, serving as slaves there.

Only a handful among them knew how to ride; the majority could not even mount a horse. Those leading horses carried bundles of grain and clothing on horseback—supplies taken from the stronghold.

Upon reaching Jiangling County, Wu Yueling and her three companions dismissed the innocents, giving each a horse and some provisions to fend for themselves. As for the two pampered daughters of Prefect Liu, they were handed over to the county constables to be escorted back to Jingzhou under official guard.

They paused briefly in Jiangling County, during which Lady Lu, who had been unconscious all this while, finally awoke in their inn. When she recovered her composure and learned what had transpired, her first act was to express her heartfelt gratitude to Wu Yueling for saving her life.

Wu Yueling felt somewhat undeserving—she had simply acted on impulse, and when she attacked the stronghold, she could not guarantee that no innocents would be harmed. Still, her heart went out to Lady Lu—for she saw in her a kindred spirit; in this ancient world, survival was indeed a harsh endeavor.

“What really happened that night in Yiju Stronghold?” Lady Lu asked, sitting primly while Wu Yueling, reclining on the couch and stroking the lynx cub in her arms, answered, “It’s simply retribution for evil deeds. The bandits of Yiju Stronghold, having exhausted all their humanity, met with divine punishment—so they were poisoned and perished… Well, actually, it was all consumed in a great fire.”

Lady Lu remained perplexed and turned to Tie Lihua, “Was it really heaven’s wrath?”

“I’m not sure myself, but I suppose so. There was a huge boom, then another, and then flames engulfed the whole mountain slope,” Tie Lihua gestured with her wine cup, speaking with dramatic flair.

“Nonsense!” Tian Qing retorted solemnly, eyes fixed on the wine cup in Tie Lihua’s hand. “It was clearly Miss Yueling who summoned the immortals, and with a single mystical technique, flattened the entire mountain.”

“Tian Qing, call me that again and I’ll send you flying out of this tavern with a single punch!” Tie Lihua made a fist and twisted threateningly toward him.

Tian Qing shrank back at once, falling silent—he knew better than to provoke the Iron Maiden of Jingzhou.

Lady Lu looked incredulously at the usually taciturn Chief Escort Tie, who shrugged helplessly and nodded toward Wu Yueling, indicating that she should be asked instead.

So Lady Lu turned again to Wu Yueling. “Was it truly you, my benefactor, who set Yiju Stronghold aflame?”

Wu Yueling relented and admitted it was so—there was no explaining otherwise. How could the ancients understand the concept of explosives?

“Dearest benefactor, may I ask you to take me as your disciple?” Lady Lu—whose full name was Chen Yanfai—knelt and bowed deeply.

Wu Yueling, momentarily at a loss, set the lynx cub on the table and lifted her up. “I’m not even a third-rate martial artist, nor do I belong to a sect. If you trust me, I believe you would do well to join the Shui Jing Escort Agency and study under Chief Escort Tie.”

She looked at Chief Tie, who blinked. As an honest man, he felt compassion for this woman. If she joined the agency, she would learn their inner arts and become a proper escort. However, “Madam, you are past the optimal age for martial training. Even with ten years of effort, you’ll at best reach the level of a second-rate fighter and may not surpass your own limits.”

“Is that true?” Chen Yanfai gazed plaintively at Wu Yueling, who nodded affirmatively. Only then did she turn and bow to Chief Escort Tie. “If you will not look down on me, Master Tie, I, Chen Yanfai, wish to be your disciple! Please accept me into Shui Jing Escort Agency!”

Chief Tie looked at Wu Yueling, who nodded, and so he slapped the table, catching a wine cup as it spun into his hand. “Lihua, pour the wine!”

Tie Lihua quickly filled the cup, then stood aside, awaiting the formal acceptance. “Today, Chen Yanfai joins our Shui Jing Escort Agency. Henceforth, you will share our fortunes and burdens. Lihua, you may take her as your disciple.” Chief Tie stepped aside, handing the cup to the dazed Tie Lihua.

The lynx cub, having been startled off the table, now climbed back up and mewed at Tie Lihua, as if urging her not to stand there in a daze. Wu Yueling chuckled quietly—Chief Tie was certainly unconventional. She picked up the lynx and watched as Tie Lihua at last accepted Chen Yanfai as her apprentice.

In the ensuing conversation, they learned that Chen Yanfai was already a mother, with a son not yet seven named Lu Yi. After reuniting with her son, Chen Yanfai bid farewell to Jiangling and joined Wu Yueling’s party on the road back to Jingzhou.

By the time they reached the city, it was deep into the night several days later. Scaling the walls—over twenty feet high—was out of the question for ordinary folk like Lady Lu and her young son; bringing them over the wall would only attract attention and trouble. So they headed first to Ten Mile Village.

Wu Yueling returned to the familiar, now desolate Ten Mile Village. Only a single mud-brick cottage remained intact. They entered the hut, and Wu Yueling lit an oil lamp and brought out a jar of wine brewed by Lu Ziji, her heart filled with emotion. The journey to Chang’an would take three months at a regular pace, or perhaps only a month and a half by relay and fast horses—so Chief Tie had told her.

Unsealing the wine jar, she saw a layer of green lees at the mouth. She covered it with a cloth, then poured cup after cup of clear green wine for everyone.

The fragrance warmed her as she drank a bowl, feeling the heat rising through her chilled body. She kindled the firepit, and they all squatted together for warmth. After a while, she settled Lady Lu and Lu Yi to sleep, while she, Chief Tie, and the others remained by the fire. There was still one matter she wished to resolve, and with three capable fighters present, it was the perfect time. She shared her plan with them.

Later, Wu Yueling watched as the three set off into the night, already thinking of leaving Lu Ziji a letter and a piece of gold.

Sitting at the table, she readied brush, ink, and paper, propping her chin on her hand as she stared at the flickering lamp and sighed. The lynx, hearing its master’s sigh, left the warmth of the fire and leapt onto the table, nuzzling her sleeve and watching her with bright, intelligent eyes.

She fondly rubbed its head—the creature had grown since the day she found it. Remembering she still had some chrysanthemum preserved from before, she made herself a bowl of chrysanthemum tea and sat on the couch, lost in thought as she gazed at the yellowed paper.

The lynx circled the table, sniffed at the steaming bowl, then stepped back and accidentally placed a paw in the inkstone, leaping in fright. The inkstone crashed to the floor, spilling black ink everywhere. Flustered, the lynx scampered across the table, leaving mischievous paw prints on the paper.

Wu Yueling, amused by its panic, nearly laughed aloud, but remembering Lady Lu and her son were asleep, she held it in, quietly delighted.

Once the lynx slunk off to sleep by the fire, she tidied the table, looked at the paw-marked paper, calmed herself, and began to write.

“To Brother Lu Ziji:

Since our farewell in autumn, I have missed you dearly. I recall our joyful days together. With a heavy heart, I pen this letter to bid you farewell; please do not grieve for me.

Once I was alone in this world, but with your support, I managed to survive. I owe a debt to your family, and regret I could not serve your mother as I wished. Alas, fate is cruel—disaster struck without warning. Of the thirty households in Ten Mile Village, not one was spared; your mother too fell to the bandits.

Now that my vengeance is complete, nothing ties me here. I have resolved to wander the world with my sword, righting wrongs wherever I find them. If fate allows, may we meet again someday.

I wish you great success in your endeavors. With these words, I bid you farewell. May you find peace in Chang’an.

Wu Yueling”

She tapped the brush on the table, then decided to add “With highest respects,” the date—Spring, 743 AD—and her signature, “Your sister, Wu Yueling.”

She wrapped the letter in the silk cloth Lu Ziji had given her, added a piece of gold, and, together with an unopened jar of wine, buried it in the cellar at the back of the hut, in the very spot Lu Ziji had once dug.

Finally, she took a wooden plank from the cupboard, wrote “No wine to be found here,” and planted it in the center of the room—so that when Lu Ziji returned, he would know to dig behind the house for the letter, wine, and gold.

With the last chrysanthemum flower from the jar, she made another bowl of tea and waited. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Tian Qing called from outside—the task was done.

Wu Yueling stepped out to join him, and together they made their way to the graveyard on the wild slope near Ten Mile Village. In the dim night, Wu Yueling shone her flashlight on her face and drew close to Zhang the Mule, who was tied to a tree.

Tie Lihua, seeing that Zhang was still unconscious, slapped him awake with a resounding blow.

Zhang the Mule awoke in terror, and the first thing he saw was Wu Yueling’s face—the very sight he dreaded most.

“No, no, please! Don’t come for me… Are you dead or not?”

Wu Yueling stuck out her tongue and, under the harsh glare of the tactical flashlight, gave a ghastly, hoarse wail, “I died so horribly, all because of you! Give me back my life!”

“Aaaaaaah!” Zhang the Mule thrashed violently, wetting himself in fear, sobbing uncontrollably.

“Give me back my life!” Wu Yueling pressed on, her voice shrill and ghostly.

Zhang’s nerves shattered. “I didn’t mean to, I swear! I really didn’t! That day on the back hill, I only saw you alone and was tempted by your beauty—I beg you, forgive me! When I saw you impaled by a branch and not breathing, I panicked and ran! Please, have mercy—I’ll never do anything vile again.”

“Vile deeds?” Wu Yueling, puzzled, continued her ghostly interrogation, “Such as?”

“Ah… I once stole Zhang Jiu’s chickens next door…” Zhang wailed.

“And?”

“And… and I had an affair with Old Wang’s wife…”

Wu Yueling could hear Tian Qing next to her, so convulsed with laughter he could barely breathe.

At last, Wu Yueling understood. She was both amused and angry—it was Zhang the Mule who had killed the Wu Yueling of this world. No wonder she’d felt such pain in her abdomen upon awakening that day. Perhaps her transmigration was Zhang the Mule’s doing? But the original soul was gone—now she was herself, a new Wu Yueling, no longer the mute girl of before.

“Miss Yueling, have you thought about the Gu family’s affairs?” Tian Qing asked as he sipped a bowl of plain water.

Tie Lihua shot him a strange look, quickly turning away—clearly, Tian Qing was unaware of Wu Yueling’s intentions.

“I’m still considering it. Are you heading back to the city, Guard Tian?”

“Yes, I’ve been away from the Gu family long enough. I’ll take my leave now!” Tian Qing hefted the unconscious Zhang the Mule over his shoulder, pinched his nose, and left.

“I suppose I’ll never be able to repay the Gu family’s kindness,” Wu Yueling said, adjusting the lamp’s wick.

“When do you plan to leave, Miss Yueling?” Chief Tie had guessed she would go and didn’t try to dissuade her.

“Won’t you join our escort agency? I think highly of you—especially those marvelous ‘weapons’ of yours,” Tie Lihua said, somewhat disappointed.

“Let it go, Lihua. Don’t try to persuade her. Where do you plan to go, Miss Yueling? The martial world is perilous; trust no one but yourself,” Chief Tie said, growing verbose. “Out there, only you can rely on yourself. I hope you see your path clearly.”

“I understand, thank you for your advice. I plan to see Chang’an, to witness the great world!” Wu Yueling clasped her hands in thanks.

“Chang’an is a good choice. Tomorrow I’ll have Axue see you off, and I’ll gift you a fine sword.”

“Thank you, Chief Tie!”

The next day, Wu Yueling poured wine before Madam Lu’s grave, bowing three times to bid her farewell. She drank the wine on an empty stomach, shattered the jar on the ground, startling the lynx cub awake in her arms.

Chief Tie and Tie Lihua, along with Chen Yanfai and Lu Yi, returned to Jingzhou. Though Lu Yi was only seven, after learning the truth of his father’s fate, he comforted his weeping mother and also became Chief Tie’s apprentice—a precocious child indeed.

Wu Yueling packed her belongings, donned a black military coat over her modern clothes, and tied her hair in the fashion of ancient men, which she thought both handsome and neat.

That afternoon, Tie Lihua and Axue came to see her off. They were startled at Wu Yueling’s strange attire, even wondering if she was a foreigner.

Receiving a precious sword, Wu Yueling was delighted. She put on the snow-fur cap, slung the sword on her back, mounted her steed, accepted the willow branch Axue offered, encouraged the girl with a few words, and galloped away down the ancient road, waving her long whip in farewell.

Soon, her dashing silhouette vanished into the long road, leaving Jingzhou behind.

(Thus concludes the Jingzhou arc. The next section will be a brief transition to Chang’an, not too long. The cast of characters in Chang’an is large and still being organized, so the story will unfold as it is written.)