Walking Heaven Street (15)

Standing among the prisoners, Zhang Xing stared coldly at the man in his new clothes until the laughter around them gradually subsided.

Once it stopped, Zhang Xing walked over with a hand bracing his waist and instead began to smile. "Should I call you General Gao, then, or Brother Liu?"

"Either works." Gao Changye-Brother Liu himself-turned his head to follow him, never showing the slightest panic. "My surname was originally Liu, and my name Liu Changye. Later, the Duke of Ping bestowed the surname Gao on me, so everyone, high and low, called me Gao Changye... As for you, little brother, with the friendship we have, call me whatever you like!"

"Brother... Lord Black Emperor's Demon-Slaying Scripture says it clearly: vengeance must be taken, humiliation must be washed away. For a father or son's death, three generations is not too late; a sovereign or nation's disgrace may be washed away after seven. So I won't ask why you wanted to kill Minister Zhang." Zhang Xing crouched down, raising his voice as much as he could to avoid suspicion. "But if you meant to conceal yourself and seek revenge, why have children?"

Silence surrounded them. In the distance, Inspector Chai and the Black Sash watched with their hands behind their backs, saying nothing.

"They aren't my biological children."

Gao Changye answered with a grin. "Of the children, the youngest was an orphan I picked up by the roadside. The eldest came with the wife. When they met me, his father had committed a crime and been beheaded, leaving them with nowhere to go... Besides, it wasn't as though I made no preparations. Not long after you moved out, when Zhang Wenda went to the Jing'an Directorate to take custody of the prisoners, I sent them away with the family assets. Once they fled to the Eastern Territories or Hebei, who would really go looking for a few women and children? It isn't the business of someone wronging someone else that you imagine."

"After sixteen years, these brothers of yours still answered your call in droves?" Zhang Xing turned to look around.

An uproar rose around them, full of laughter and curses. It took quite a while to settle.

But Gao Changye finally grew a little more serious. "You're imagining too much, little brother. Back when the Duke of Ping was unjustly killed and we fled to Hedong Salt Lake and swore to kill Zhang Wenda, there were two hundred and twenty-seven of us...

"When Zhang Wenda entered the capital twelve years ago and we came to the Eastern Capital as agreed, we could only find one hundred and twenty-three...

"Over these twelve years, some died and some left. By this year, seventy-six were still in contact...

"And on the day of the prison break, only forty-three sent their families away as agreed and gathered by the Luo River... Today, only these thirty-five lay in ambush together at the north gate... Where is all the heroic spirit you imagine?"

Zhang Xing nodded, then asked solemnly, almost as though sowing discord, "Do you resent the nearly two hundred who left?"

"What are you thinking, little brother?"

Gao Changye shook his head repeatedly. "Why ask me that? Isn't it because you think human hearts are made of flesh, and after more than a decade, even if they aren't my own flesh and blood, I shouldn't abandon my wife and children to do this? Did you want to mock me? If even an outsider like you understands that, tell me, how could I, who lived it myself, not understand? Why would I resent them? They were the ones whose hearts were made of flesh. And not a single one turned against us as Zhang Wenda did back then. I can't thank them enough. What right have I to resent them?"

Zhang Xing nodded, half relieved and half unwilling to let it go. "You planned and directed everything today, brother?"

"Yes." Gao Changye countered proudly, "Who else could it have been?"

"Your plan nearly got me killed in Zhengping Ward today!" Zhang Xing sounded almost reproachful. "Heluo Huaibao couldn't beat those experts, so he spent the whole time desperately killing helpless Jinwu Guards and Brocade-Clad Cavalry like us to draw the authorities away for you."

"Leaving aside that you're an officer and I'm a bandit... why resent me for this, little brother?" Gao Changye could not help laughing. "I won't hide it from you. How could I control Heluo Huaibao? He wanted to kill as he pleased in the first place. There was no primary or secondary target between Zhengping Ward and Xiūyè Ward."

For a moment, Zhang Xing had no answer.

"But in all conscience, I really did consider what would happen if you ran into Heluo Huaibao." Gao Changye composed his expression a little. "Still, deep down, I felt you were a man of ability and good fortune who wouldn't die so easily. Besides, people only grow by going through more things like this. You're still young, little brother. Don't take it to heart."

By that reasoning, I ought to thank you?

Amid the laughter, Zhang Xing sincerely wanted to give the man a resounding slap.

"Then I'll ask just one more thing." Zhang Xing rubbed the slightly itchy corner of his eye. He had been drenched in rain all day. "I appreciate you thinking of me, brother, but were all those innocent people in Zhengping Ward part of your calculations too?"

"That couldn't be helped." Gao Changye composed himself again and answered earnestly. "But allow me a word in my defense... Heluo Huaibao and his men weren't the only ones in Zhengping Ward. Most were agents planted by the Yang and Li families during Yang Shen's recent rebellion. Yang Shen simply fell so quickly that they were left behind in the confusion... With the searches continuing like that, whether we were involved or not, Zhengping Ward couldn't escape a slaughter."

Zhang Xing nodded, then abruptly asked, "Was Lord Zhang of the Southern Office part of your calculations too?"

In the distance, Inspector Chai's gaze suddenly grew stern.

"I know what you mean, little brother." Gao Changye laughed. "Actually, some things were more a matter of pushing the boat with the current and showing leniency. It was like that everywhere from the Jing'an Directorate to here... Only that fellow Zhang Shizhao really was maneuvered into place by me. Someone as excessively clever as him always overthinks things. After I maneuvered him into Zhengping Ward today, he probably thought some other great figures were setting him up and toying with him. His expression must have been a sight!"

In the distance, Inspector Chai took two steps forward, hands behind his back.

Having received his answer, Zhang Xing finally stood, but then hesitated to speak.

Seeing this, Gao Changye laughed until tears came out and called aloud, "Little brother, after asking this much, if you don't voice that final question, not only you, but all your colleagues standing guard around us will be dissatisfied... Hasn't Inspector Chai held back this long just to hear that question?"

"Then I simply won't ask." Zhang Xing considered it, shook his head calmly, and walked straight toward the north end of Crossroads Street. "Let's see whether you can keep it bottled up!"

Sure enough, Zhang Xing had taken only two steps when Gao Changye's face suddenly flushed red, and he roared:

"Don't you just want to ask whether, after fifteen or sixteen years, with everyone's resolve almost scattered, it was worth insisting on all this for a wretch who betrayed his master? Isn't that it? Don't you want to ask whether it was worth it?

"But this isn't about whether it was worth it! It's about whether, when you wake from dreams at night, with your wife and children warm beside you in bed, there's still a thread of injustice lodged in your heart! If even a thread remains, and today we've finally had our release, how could it not be worth it?!

"Brother Zhang! Others may not understand, but how could a man of loyalty like you fail to understand?! Did you have to leave me choking on this once before I die?!"

Without looking back, Zhang Xing walked through the roaring to Inspector Chai and gave a slight cupped-hand salute. "Regular Inspector, I've finished my questions."

Inspector Chai's eyes remained on Gao Changye in the distance. Paying little attention, he merely nodded slightly and stepped aside.

Zhang Xing went to untie his horse.

"Is it because I harmed innocents?!"

Throughout this, Gao Changye still showed no sign of stopping. "If we hadn't known we would harm innocents, hadn't known we were doomed never to return, why would we be waiting here quietly for Cao Lin?! We never claimed ours was some grand and righteous cause! Nor did we say the powerful hadn't used us as knives. But we wanted to release this breath trapped in our chests! We wanted revenge!! Both sides were willing, and that was all!!!"

At the end, Gao Changye smashed his head against the wet paving stones of Crossroads Street. Blood covered his face and the stone cracked, yet he raised his head again and let out a long, mighty howl.

The howl clearly carried surging true qi, making the Brocade-Clad Cavalry on duty around them tense. Some even instinctively looked toward Inspector Chai, hoping he would stop Gao Changye.

But they soon gave up.

For as Zhang Xing swung into the saddle, nearly every one of the thirty-odd bandits began howling after Gao Changye... Their cries rose one after another, resounding throughout Xiūyè Ward, like both morning bells and evening drums.

Zhang Xing rode farther and farther away. When he passed through the ward gate onto Heaven Street, he inexplicably felt those cries resembled the familiar Street-Clearing Copper Alms Bowl, urging him home.

But when he reached the Luo River, it was already late. Seeing no one around, Zhang Xing inexplicably halted his horse on the bridge, secretly circulated his true qi, and then let out a long howl with all his strength.

By then, the rain had stopped. When his howl ended, Zhang Xing felt all his meridians tighten with it. In particular, the sixth Orthodox Meridian, running from his temple to his left hand, had only just been opened by one-third. Stirred now, its entire length actually shook. He hurriedly urged on the government horse beneath him and headed for the home where he had barely stayed a few days since renting it.

"Your Majesty, this old minister risks death to ask a question."

Just as Zhang Xing howled on the Old Central Bridge over the Luo River, an audience involving only two people had reached its most critical juncture inside Qianyang Hall in Ziwei Palace, built against North Mang Mountain. The man addressing the reigning emperor, Cao Che, was naturally his father's cousin, Cao Lin, the current Intendant of the Jing'an Directorate and a Great Grandmaster.

"Among the officials responsible for responding to events today, the foremost were myself, Duke Niu, and Left Chancellor Zhang. I dare ask: could these three possibly be disloyal to Your Majesty?"

"That is precisely what is most hateful!" Behind the jade curtain, the sovereign Cao Che spoke coldly. "Do even you think I cannot handle this matter properly?"

"Your Majesty!" Cao Lin's brows rose, and he spoke with his head held high. "I have absolutely no such intention, and I must also protest the injustice done to those other two... Since the summer rains began, Left Chancellor Zhang has gone to inspect the Western Market every noon. He was clearly maneuvered into this. With so little time, what could he do except make a perfunctory response and quietly watch developments? Duke Niu took even less initiative. He merely held command at the Northern Office and only acted upon Your Majesty's decree or a request from the Southern Office."

"And you, Imperial Uncle?" Cao Che suddenly interrupted from behind the jade curtain.

"I have done right by our ancestors, by Great Wei, by the late emperor, and above all by Your Majesty!" Without the slightest hesitation, Cao Lin raised his voice in rebuttal. "Does Your Majesty suspect even this old minister?"

"True." Cao Che seemed suddenly to calm down. "If I cannot rely even on Imperial Uncle, there is hardly anyone under heaven I can trust... But consider this, Imperial Uncle. Matters have reached this point, and even Zhang Wenda is dead. If I draw things to a close now, won't everyone under heaven think I can be bullied?"

"That is precisely what I wish to discuss."

Cao Lin's tone also suddenly grew gentle and elusive. "We opposed Your Majesty's sweeping implication of others because all two hundred thousand troops at the front had been lost, and the Central Plains were exhausted... To force through collective punishments now, tearing them out by the roots, might truly frighten them into rebellion. The Western Capital, Taiyuan, and other places would surely fall into chaos, for under Your Majesty's pressure, they had already begun forming connections and sounding one another out. Today's unrest in the Eastern Capital confirms this... If that happened, what would we use to suppress them?"

Perhaps hearing something unusual in his words, the emperor of Great Wei behind the jade curtain retained a measure of patience.

"But Chen Wenda's death today has made them lower their guard toward Your Majesty and suspect one another internally. Now, instead, we can prune them somewhat..." Cao Lin cupped his hands and explained unhurriedly. "The chief offenders of the Yang and Li clans must be punished along with those implicated, but we might ease matters slightly for the other houses, suppressing them without touching their foundations. For prominent great clans like the Bai and Zhao, leave their Supreme Pillar of the State and Minister positions untouched, taking only their Vice Minister and general posts. As for houses like the Han, where there were already underlying circumstances, what harm is there in cutting off a branch's Pillar of the State? Take a little from each, and together it will amount to a pruning, enough to restrain them for a time and display both Your Majesty's grace and might."

"Pruned today, regrown tomorrow..." The emperor sneered. "I am the emperor, supreme upon the land, yet I must suffer coercion by these mortals."

"Timing is crucial."

Rather than contradict him, Cao Lin continued to lay out the basis of his thinking. "Your Majesty... while pruning them, we must quickly reestablish the Upper Five Armies and rebuild the Guard Prefectures in the Eastern Territories, Hebei, and the Central Territories... Or go further still: abandon the old system outright and build a new army. And this time, wouldn't that new army happen to be much cleaner?"

The emperor considered for a moment, then gave a faint, cold smile. "Very well!"

Cao Lin felt a weight lift.

But immediately afterward, the voice behind the jade curtain continued, "Leave no prisoners at or above the Condensing the Core Stage beneath the Black Tower."

Cao Lin froze briefly, but still nodded slowly.

"Heaven's will is hard to fathom." The voice behind the jade curtain continued its reflections, still inexplicably. "Heaven's will is hard to fathom."

Cao Lin had meant to take his leave directly. Hearing this, he froze again, yet merely sighed. "Indeed. Heaven's will is hard to fathom!"

By the time Zhang Xing returned to his lodgings, darkness had fallen completely. He casually tethered the government horse in the courtyard of his rented home and saw Qin Bao coming out with a lantern.

Qin Erlang seemed to have something to say, but did not speak in the courtyard. When the two entered the main room, Zhang Xing simply raised a hand slightly, sat down, and began trying to circulate his qi in meditation.

Having killed many people over the past several days, Zhang Xing's true qi had long since become so abundant that he felt swollen with it. Over those preceding days, he had continually meditated to open his meridians while expending large amounts of true qi to maintain a balance. Just now, whether because he had undergone too many life-and-death struggles today or because the howl by the Luo River itself held some significance, he had clearly sensed an opening. His sixth Orthodox Meridian seemed to have revealed itself plainly.

As for Qin Bao, though he did not know the details, he understood meditation and opportunities to open meridians, so he simply waited beside him without a word.

After an unknown length of time, Zhang Xing finally exhaled deeply, then forced himself to his feet.

"Third Brother Zhang, did you open the sixth Orthodox Meridian?" Qin Bao asked. "What triggered the opportunity just now?"

"There was an opportunity, but I didn't open the entire meridian," Zhang Xing answered truthfully. "I'll keep working at it over the next few days."

"That's all right," Qin Bao consoled him. "You can't rush the Orthodox Meridian Stage. Being able to stir the sixth so quickly is already remarkable."

"I'm not discouraged." Knowing he had misunderstood, Zhang Xing merely sighed. "I'm too tired today, too dirty... and now too hungry... It isn't about opening the meridian."

In the lamplight, Qin Bao nodded repeatedly, seeming to have something else to say.

"If you have something to say, say it." Zhang Xing watched him, speechless. "Did you buy food in the ward?"

"I did, but that's not what I mean." Qin Bao pointed behind Zhang Xing. "See for yourself, Third Brother Zhang."

Zhang Xing turned in bewilderment, then froze.

"There's no dry firewood left in the house!" Using a cloth to hold a steaming clay pot, Fenniang came over and set it straight down. "All the split wood is wet. It took me so much effort just to warm up what Qin Erlang brought."

With that, she turned and left again.

Zhang Xing watched in bewilderment, wanting to say something but unable to get it out.

Fenniang soon returned, however, and pressed a familiar object into Zhang Xing's hands. "While you were here these past few days, my father took your Compass. He only brought it back yesterday... He said to thank you. Otherwise, he couldn't have found Yang Shen's people."

Zhang Xing took the Compass without a word, but his hands were already trembling.

Fenniang, only fourteen or fifteen, turned away again. At the threshold, she stopped once more. When she looked back, she could no longer hold herself back. Clutching the edge of the main room's doorway, she began to cry. Soon tears covered her face, and her voice choked. "My father... my father said there was a thirty-percent chance you would drive me away. Will you drive me away?"

Zhang Xing clenched his fists in an instant. He truly wanted to charge straight to Xiūyè Ward and stuff the Compass in his hands into Gao Changye's mouth.

"Third Brother." Qin Erlang was an honest lad. "I know roughly what happened. What does any of it have to do with Fenniang? Besides, you already did what you did for Feng Yong's family. How could we refuse to shelter a girl like her in these circumstances? If we really drive her away, she'll probably be arrested and killed immediately."

"Let's eat."

Zhang Xing tossed the Compass onto the table, actually without losing his temper.

As his words fell, Qin Bao breathed a sigh of relief, and Fenniang turned away. At the same time, perhaps because the rain had stopped, and because Chengfu Ward had the Luo River behind it and the Jing'an Directorate's deep pool before it, frogs slowly began to call. Their croaking rapidly swept across the entire Eastern Capital.

Zhang Xing merely buried his head in his meal.

As the verse went:

Wind drove fierce rain across the lofty city; clouds pressed down, low thunder rumbled through the earth.

After the rain, none knew where the dragon had gone; a pond of grassy green, ten thousand frogs calling.

PS: Thanks to our new alliance leader, Nanbei Chang'an a. Happy New Year's Day again, everyone... I got so sleepy this afternoon that I fell asleep and only just finished writing. Sorry for the wait.

. Bringing you Water-Fearing Grenade's Exorcising the Dragon: Zhang Xing and Bai Yousi.