Mi señor fiscal

Capítulo 1

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Part 1: Sand Sea

Chapter 1

1. [Zhongfu]

In the winter of the eleventh year of the Zhenguan era of the Tang Dynasty, west of Shazhou, a key border town in Longyou Road.

As dusk fell, snowflakes began to drift from the gloomy sky, and a cold wind howled intermittently. Most of the travelers wore grim expressions. They were merchants from Yanqi, intending to trade goods in Tang China, but they had encountered renewed hostility between Tang and the Western Turks, making the roads treacherous. While trying to avoid a direct route, they were caught in an avalanche in the Qilian Mountains. Fortunately, they managed to escape in time, and most of the people and their horses survived. With the road ahead fraught with danger, the merchants had no choice but to turn back.

Besides the Yanqi merchants with their high noses and deep-set eyes, this group also included a few other travelers from various ethnic groups who were also stranded at the border.

The tall, robust young man, his thin clothes dirty and tattered, wearily rubbed his frozen hands, shivering slightly. Seeing the snow falling heavier and heavier, a sense of worry crept into his heart. He hunched his shoulders, noticing a woman in the distance looking over. He gazed at her clear, beautiful face, her moon-white upper garment and bright green embroidered skirt, and cautiously asked, "A Tang woman?" She nodded tentatively. He smiled softly; it was no wonder, he probably hadn't seen a Tang woman from the Central Plains for over a decade.

Seeing his compatriots on the distant border, and a beautiful woman at that, a strange emotion welled up in the young man's heart. His lips moved, as if he wanted to say something, but after hesitating for a long time, he ultimately remained silent. The woman stopped looking at him and turned her head to the side. Just then, a shrill whistle suddenly came from the sky, and the Yanqi people shouted, "The Turkic bandits are coming!" Immediately, they saw the faint shadows of horses and men in the distance, and everyone scattered and fled.

Though called bandits, they were actually a mix of civilians, soldiers, and bandits. Although powerful, the Turks were still a nomadic people. In spring and summer, they moved with the lush pastures, but in autumn and winter, when grazing was scarce, they would often gather in groups and raid southwards, plundering farmland, seizing grain, property, and abducting men and women. They were warlike, with nomadic herding and hunting being their forte. At a single command, eligible men could immediately join the battle.

From the Guifang, Xianyun (Quanrong), and Shanrong of the Shang and Zhou dynasties to the Xiongnu of the Qin and Han dynasties and the Five Barbarians of the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern dynasties, the Central Plains were constantly harassed by nomadic peoples from the north. These horse-riding peoples came and went without a trace, gathering and dispersing quickly, making them extremely difficult to eradicate completely. During the Han dynasty, the Western Regions were extensively expanded, but often, as soon as the central government left, the small states that had submitted would turn to the Xiongnu. It was not until the implementation of a military garrison system and large-scale immigration, with the military preceding the civilian population, and a steady and methodical approach (basically establishing bases), that stability was finally achieved. At this time, the Tang dynasty was still young, having just recovered from the internal wars of unification. It had pacified the Eastern Turks but was still seriously threatened by the Western Turks. Not only did the Western Turkic army frequently invade, but small groups of itinerant bandits were also ubiquitous. The Western Turkic Khan tacitly approved, and even strongly endorsed, this low-risk, high-return endeavor. Firstly, it kept the Tang army constantly on the move; secondly, it plundered merchants along the route, cutting off trade between the Tang and the Western Regions and damaging the Tang economy; and thirdly, it served as a way to teach disobedient smaller states a lesson and establish Tang's power. No wonder everyone scattered and fled for their lives at the mere mention of the Turkic bandits' arrival. Those with horses mounted, abandoning their goods and treasures.

Seeing the Tang woman standing motionless, bewildered, nearly knocked over by the fleeing crowd, the young man figured she probably didn't understand Yanqi language and was unaware of the bandits' danger. He shouted to her in Chinese, "Turkic bandits, run!" and charged towards her. Before he reached her, the bandits' arrows were already flying, felling many men. He thought to himself, "So fast!" He sidestepped, caught an arrow, and threw it back, killing one bandit instantly. Seeing another bandit about to close in on her, in desperation, he let out a long howl, a sound as clear as a wolf's, so real that the horse reared up in fright, nearly throwing the bandit off its back.

This was the moment he'd been waiting for. Before the bandit could react, he'd yanked her towards him. She was still reeling from the shock, but he didn't even turn around, saying, "Don't run away." He slid down to the bandit's mount and struck it in the belly. The horse, in pain, threw the bandit off balance, and he seized the opportunity to twist the bandit's leg, pulling him down and kicking him hard in the throat, killing him instantly. He quickly picked up the bandit's bow and arrows, instructing the woman, "Stay behind me," while unleashing a barrage of arrows, preventing the bandit from advancing. (Hehe, this is the assassin's skill in my favorite computer role-playing game, *Qin Shang*—Meteor Rain, extremely powerful, but depletes energy quickly).

The bandit leader seemed quite interested and waved his hand, ordering his men to halt. After a brief standoff, the bandit leader shouted, "Hey, who are you? Are you a spy for the Tang army?" The young man flinched slightly and replied in Turkic, "You've already looted enough, wouldn't it be enough if you just left? Anyone who comes near, I'll shoot them dead with an arrow." The bandit leader laughed and said, "The girl behind you is very nice, quite rare, I want to take her. Let her come over and I'll let you go."

The young man said, "That won't do. I've taken a liking to this girl." Hearing the woman behind him, "What did you say?" The young man blushed, concealing his true feelings, and replied, "Nothing, they're just complimenting your beauty." The woman said, "I have a short sword, do you want it?" The young man stared at the enemy ahead and said, "How many arrows do you think I have?" The woman said, "Two." He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Put the sword on my waist." The woman did as he was told. He whispered, "Lie down and don't move. Don't get up." The woman hesitated, but still lay down.

The young man said to the bandit leader, "Look, she's terrified." The bandit leader grinned maliciously, "Then you have no choice." With a wave of his hand, two bandits rode over. Without hesitation, the young man fired an arrow, killing the closest one. He then drew his last arrow and aimed intently at the other. The bandit leader laughed wildly, "Hey kid, you're out of arrows." The young man remained calm and walked steadily towards the other bandit, who was getting closer and closer.

Whoosh! An arrow flew out, grazing the scalp of the nearest bandit, and striking the throat of the bandit leader behind him. The bandit leader's smile was still frozen on his face, but his body went limp and he collapsed. The young man was hit in the left chest near the shoulder by an arrow, but he didn't stop. Instead, he ran even faster, rushed forward, leaped up, drew his sword, and cut the bandit off his horse. He then jumped off his own horse and quickly charged into the ranks of the Turkic bandits.

An inch longer weapon, a foot longer advantage. The young man's short sword was only 1.2 feet long, originally only suitable for close-quarters defense, not for mounted combat. But when he charged into the enemy ranks and engaged in close combat, his opponents couldn't draw their bows to shoot him, and long weapons also had many limitations. Furthermore, the warhorses were difficult to maneuver, so after a short while, both sides dismounted and fought hand-to-hand. The Turks were skilled in archery and horsemanship, and their long weapons proved much more cumbersome in close combat. Relying on his agile weapon and exquisite swordsmanship, the young man fought ten men single-handedly, killing six in a short time. The remaining four bandits surrounded the young man but dared not advance. Suddenly, the young man swung his sword into the air, and the bandits, terrified, quickly retreated a few steps.

But he didn't pursue. He stood there, motionless, as large snowflakes fell from the sky, silently flowing with the blood from his sword tip. Because of a cut on his forehead, his left eye was almost blinded by blood, so he wiped it, making his face look even more ferocious and terrifying. The bandits were all stunned. One of them suddenly whistled, and the group quickly fled back the way they had come. Watching them disappear into the distance, he turned around. The Tang woman behind him was already running towards him.

He let out a long sigh, his legs giving way and he collapsed to the ground. Thinking back on what had just happened, he was still terrified. If the bandit leader hadn't been trying to toy with him, and instead had ordered his entire force to attack him, or unleashed a hail of arrows, or taken advantage of his inability to care for the woman while he was engaged in the fierce battle, simply sending one of his men to capture her and coerce him, he would have been helpless. When only four bandits remained, they were intimidated by his imposing presence; if they had truly fought to a standstill, given his injuries and stamina, he wouldn't have had much of a chance of winning.

As he pondered this, the woman approached him. He was covered in blood and wounds, a broken arrow still lodged near his left shoulder, his tattered clothes soaked through with blood. The young man managed to lift his head and smiled slightly. "Help me remove the arrow." He hadn't had time to pay much attention when he was shot, only temporarily sealing his Jianzhen, Yufu, and Yuzhong acupoints and severing the arrow's fletching. The arrow was deeply embedded, and after the fierce battle, his injury was now extremely dangerous, but he simply didn't have the strength to do it himself. The woman quickly found a dagger and a wine flask among the fallen Turkic bandits' corpses, pouring wine onto the cleaned dagger. The young man was secretly amazed that this frail woman remained unfazed by the carnage, thinking that any other woman would likely have fainted from fright.

Just as the woman was about to act, she hesitated for a moment, then brought the wine flask to his lips, saying, "Have a drink." The young man understood, took the flask, and took a large gulp. It was strong liquor; the first sip felt like a scalding knife. He knew she was trying to ease his pain, hoping he would feel better after getting drunk. He thought to himself, "How do you know I have a huge capacity for alcohol?" He drank a few more mouthfuls. The woman took a small jade bottle from her bosom, tore her skirt into strips, and set them aside. She deftly used a dagger to cut open his wound and pulled out the broken arrow. The young man clenched his fists in pain but didn't utter a sound. The woman pressed the cloth strips firmly against his wound until the bleeding stopped, then applied the ointment from the jade bottle, carefully bandaged it, and then picked up a snowball from the ground, kneaded it in a handkerchief, wiped the wound on his forehead, and applied the medicine to his torn and mangled flesh.

The young man whispered, "Thank you." The woman smiled faintly and continued to wipe the blood from his face. His previously filthy and bloody face gradually became clear, and a small, dark blue tattoo beneath the mud and blood on his left cheekbone became visible: treason and concealment of stolen goods, punishable by life imprisonment.

The woman paused for a moment, then suddenly stood up.

The young man smiled bitterly, "You saw it?" She remained silent, so the young man stood up as well, untying and rolling up his tightly bound cuffs, revealing his arms—both wrists were cuffed with broken iron chains, wrapped with strips of cloth, and his wrists were covered in raw, bleeding cuts, clearly from when he had broken the chains himself not long ago. He looked at the woman's surprised and doubtful face, sighed silently, lowered his sleeves, stood up, and said, "I'm sorry, I frightened you." He turned and trudged forward.

His heart was heavy with sorrow as he trudged through the thick snow, the howling wind seeming to sweep away all the chaos in the world. He didn't know how long he had walked; hunger and exhaustion overwhelmed him, waves of pain washing over him. In a daze, he tripped and fell heavily. Struggling to get up, he was too weak. He took a bite of the icy snow from his lips—it was sweet! He greedily ate another bite. The snowstorm intensified, gradually burying him. His eyes blurred. This was it. It felt so good. No more running away…

He didn't know how much time had passed when he was vaguely awakened by voices. Opening his eyes, he found himself wrapped in a felt blanket, asleep on the ground. A campfire burned in front of him, and many people were sitting or lying around him—Yanqi merchants who had fled during the earlier bandit attack. He sat up, looking around somewhat bewildered, when suddenly he saw the Tang woman standing in the distance, gazing at him tenderly. The young man smiled, stood up, and walked towards her.

The campfire flickered, sometimes bright, sometimes dim. Occasionally, someone would walk by and block its light, and her beautiful face would appear like a dazzling firework in the night—a moment of breathtaking beauty, stunning and awe-inspiring, then vanishing in an instant, only to reappear unexpectedly in its vibrant glory. The young man was mesmerized.

She smiled gently and said softly, "I've been following you for a long time. You walked too fast, and the wind and snow were so heavy that you couldn't hear me when I called you." The young man said happily, "I thought you were disgusted by me being a fugitive." She gazed at him for a moment, "I've never seen such a composed and brave fugitive." She paused, then said tenderly, "You're not... you're a great hero." The young man was deeply moved and hugged her tightly. The woman blushed, struggled slightly, and whispered, "People are watching."

The young man blushed, quickly let go of her hand, and turned to walk a few steps. When he turned back and saw the woman smiling with her eyes crinkled, he suddenly rushed forward, grabbed her soft, warm hand, and led her through the swaying shadows to sit down intimately by the campfire.

“My name is Huan She, the ‘She’ meaning to trek through mountains and rivers. I was originally a military officer in Guazhou.” He gazed at her, mustered his courage, and asked, “What’s your name?” The woman remained silent. Huan She almost regretted asking her name so rashly, but then he heard her softly say, “Li Weiying.” Huan She asked, “Oh, how do you write that?” The firelight flickered, and Li Weiying gazed at the endless darkness in the distance, her thoughts drifting: “I know not where your home is, for we are separated by a single stream.”

Huan She saw her lower her head, with tears glistening in her eyes. He wondered what had touched her heart and wanted to comfort her, but she quickly smiled and said, "Two pieces of wood." Huan She saw through her forced smile and couldn't bear to expose her. "What do you mean, two pieces of wood?" She laughed and said, "You are Huan, and I am Li." He laughed loudly, "Yes, yes, but I am just a rotten piece of wood (Note: Huan originally meant a wooden pillar erected in front of a post station or government office, later known as a Huabiao)."

Seeing the smile on her face, he continued, "We're like two vast rivers. I've traversed mountains and rivers, you're just a gentle stream." Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, her face, which had just brightened, instantly changed color, and tears welled up in her eyes. Huan She was at a loss, and could only offer gentle words of comfort: "What's wrong? Did I say something wrong again? Sigh, I'm such a blockhead." Seeing her struggling to hold back her tears, his heart softened, and he pulled her into his arms, gently patting her shoulder and back: "It's alright, it's all my fault. Cry it out. Hmm? Cry it out." Li Weiying burst into loud sobs.

The arrow wound on Huan She's chest was pressed against her, causing it to reopen and bleed again. He didn't seem to notice, only holding her tightly and whispering softly. After crying for a long time, she was probably exhausted from crying; her voice was hoarse, and her sobs gradually subsided. Huan She was about to comfort her again when he heard his stomach rumble loudly. Li Weiying looked up and listened carefully. "Is that you? Are you hungry?" Huan She gave a wry smile. She quickly wiped away her tears, ignoring her still swollen eyes, and ran to the Yanqi merchant, gesturing and pleading for several flatbreads and a bag of water.

Huan She was so hungry he was practically fainting, so he grabbed a pancake and started gnawing on it. Li Weiying also took a bite—good heavens, what was this? It was so hard it could kill someone. She put down the pancake and was surprised to find that Huan She had already eaten two large ones in one go. Seeing his ravenous and wolfish eating, Li Weiying tentatively asked, "How long has it been since you last ate anything?" Huan She mumbled, "Um, four...four days, I guess." Without any hesitation, he took the pancake she had already taken a bite out of and ate it too.

Li Weiying almost jumped up. Four days? How did he fight the Turks at first? And how did he get so badly injured? Huan She gulped down a mouthful of water, swallowed the last bite of bread, and said contentedly, "It's really delicious." Looking up and seeing her staring at him blankly, he felt a little embarrassed and stammered, "Oh, I ate yours too." Li Weiying was still staring at him. He panicked and said, "Did I say something wrong again?" She said softly, "No." She took out a jade bottle from her bosom, "Your arrow wound is bleeding again." She directly unbuttoned his shirt and silently applied medicine to his wound.

Night had fallen. Huan She borrowed bedding from the people of Yanqi for Li Weiying to sleep on, while he himself, wrapped in a blanket, sat beside her. Before she could speak, he said, "It's alright. I've slept for half the day, and besides, we have to guard against another Turkic attack." Li Weiying nodded and closed her eyes to sleep. In the middle of the night, she seemed to be caught in a nightmare, crying out in anguish, "Don't go. Don't leave me." A pair of rough, broad hands quickly grasped her small hand beside her, tenderly saying, "I'm here, I haven't left." She was still sobbing in her dream, "Cao Ling, don't abandon me." Huan She trembled, but still softly said, "I am Cao Ling. Don't worry, I've always been by your side." She seemed satisfied with this answer and fell into a deep sleep again. After tucking her in, Huan She noticed something peeking out from under the covers. He gently pulled it out and saw a jade flute, its tassel a "Cao" character made of colorful silk threads. His heart sank into darkness, and it took him a long, long time to carefully put the jade flute back in.

The next morning, Huan She awoke from a deep sleep to find the bed empty. Startled, he saw Li Weiying gesturing to a Yanqi merchant in the distance. Intrigued, he wondered how she could communicate without speaking Yanqi. He watched as she took several bottles from the merchant, who shook his head vigorously and snatched them back, repeating this three times. Finally, the merchant pointed to the bottles and then to the jade flute at her waist, implying that she would have to trade it for them. Li Weiying hesitated for a moment before finally taking it off and handing it to the merchant.

Huan She rushed over and asked her, "What are you doing?" She replied, "I traded my pearl hairpins and hair ornaments for two fur coats, a blanket, and some food. I wanted a few bottles of medicine, that's all, but he wouldn't let me." Huan She noticed that her hair was loosely tied up but without any ornaments. Looking at the jewelry the merchant held in his hand, each piece was made of genuine gold and jade, exquisite and elegant, inlaid with rhinestones and pearls, dazzlingly bright. Although he wasn't an expert, he could tell they were all valuable items. Any one of them could easily be exchanged for those clothes and food, let alone two or three bottles of medicine, even thirty bottles wouldn't be too much. He figured she must have been born into a wealthy family, seeing such things every day, yet she didn't realize their value.

"Then you'll trade your jade flute for it?" Huan She asked. Li Weiying nodded helplessly. "Your injuries haven't healed yet, and I've run out of medicine." Huan She's heart warmed. "Then you don't need to take out the jade flute." He reached out and deftly snatched the flute from the merchant's hand. The merchant was greatly annoyed, but seeing how many people he had killed yesterday, he dared not retaliate. Huan She returned the flute to her, not exposing her for being deceived by the unscrupulous merchant, only saying, "I saved many people yesterday; this is worth a jade flute." He repeated it to the merchant in Yanqi dialect. The merchant had already made a fortune, and thinking that he was indeed indebted to Huan She, he handed over the three bottles of medicine as well. She clutched the jade flute tightly, gratefully saying, "Thank you." Huan She said, "I should be thanking you." Looking at her face filled with the joy of having regained what she had lost, he couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness.

The two sat down and ate some food, then saw that the Yanqi merchants were already packing their belongings and preparing to set off.

Huan She asked, "Where do you want to go now?"

"I have no idea."

"Then how did you end up here?"

“I came from Chang’an, intending to visit the grotto murals in Shazhou. When I stopped at Ganquanshui in the Qilian Mountains, I encountered an avalanche. I was walking in front, and the servants behind me were swallowed up by the snow.” She recalled that terrifying scene, a look of horror flashing across her face.

Huan She gently patted her shoulder to comfort her. Li Weiying came to her senses. "I was lucky enough to escape, so I retreated with this caravan. What about you?" Huan She said, "Me? I escaped from prison and hid all the way, afraid of running into the Tang army. Later, I was starving, and when I saw a merchant caravan passing by, I thought I could at least try to survive, and that's how I met you." Li Weiying remembered how he had fought alone against several Turkic enemies on an empty stomach yesterday, which was truly brave and tenacious.

Seeing her silence, Huan She asked again, "Do you want to return to Tang territory?" He was secretly worried; if she said she wanted to go back, he would protect her no matter what. But having tried so hard to escape the Tang army's pursuit, wasn't he now delivering himself to their doorstep? He couldn't help but smile bitterly. She pondered for a long time, "No need. Perhaps they already consider me dead; that would be for the best." Huan She said, "Your family must be searching everywhere for you. I should send you back." She smiled, "You don't understand. Perhaps my disappearance is better for everyone." A hint of sorrow lingered in her voice.

Huan She knew she was burdened with worries and had no way to comfort her. Suddenly, she pointed into the distance, "Look what those people are doing!" Huan She followed her gaze and replied, "The people of Yanqi are praying for the protection of the true god." A thought struck her, "Why not cast a divination?" She casually smashed an empty jade bottle, examining the arrangement of the fragments. He looked at them curiously, puzzled, "What divination is it?" She murmured, "Lower Dui, Upper Xun. Sixty-one, Zhong Fu, the heart is sincere… First Nine… Nine Two… The crane cries in the shade, its young respond; I have a fine wine, I will share it with you…" Huan She became increasingly confused, "What does that mean? Is it auspicious?" She frowned in thought, "It means the crane cries in the shade of the mountain, its young respond; I have a pot of fine wine, I wish to drink and enjoy it with you." Looking up, she saw Huan She drinking heartily from a pot of wine. She paused for a moment, then suddenly exclaimed excitedly, "Do you know about the Heavenly Gift Mountain?"

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PS: Shazhou in the Tang Dynasty is present-day Dunhuang, and Guazhou is to its northeast. The "between Jingkou and Guazhou by a river" mentioned in Wang Anshi's poem in the Song Dynasty refers to Yangzhou.

The vernacular translation of the Zhongfu hexagram is adapted from Mr. Zhang Shanwen's "Introduction to the Book of Changes".