Section 085: Farewell to My Parents and Departure

Lu Rou stood inside the room and watched, with her own eyes, as Li Dong and Cui Shiling went from sharp-tongued argument to open blows, yet she did not stir an inch.

She trusted Li Dong utterly. There was no way he would lose to such a man. Du Yu had once told her that Li Dong was not only unmatched in commanding troops, but also concealed extraordinary martial skill. Her own cry had distracted him; that would have been no different from harming him.

Besides, she could not abide Cui Shiling’s arrogance. A man like that deserved no courtesy. A lesson was exactly what he needed.

Li Hun, who had spent most of his life in official circles, knew all too well how tangled and intricate such relationships could be. He groaned and complained to Li Dong again and again: “Governor Ye Jishan of Qi Commandery is on very close terms with the Cui family. You have offended a great man this time, and you’ve gotten yourself into serious trouble!”

Mentioning anyone else might have helped, but if it was Ye Jishan, it was as good as saying nothing at all. Li Dong laughed and tried instead to comfort his father. “Please don’t worry, Father. Everything is fine. All is well.”

“Alas—an untested calf fears no tiger, but the price can be burial in the tiger’s jaws. This time I can’t help you either…” Li Dong said with a mournful face, as though calamity were about to descend.

The moment he brought up the governor, Lu Rou’s heart leapt into her throat as well.

The governor of Qi Commandery was her father Lu Li’er’s immediate superior, the one who held life and death over the region. It had even been Ye Jishan who arranged for Li Dong to go to Liaodong to meet the sovereign. Now, to offend the Cui family was to offend Ye Jishan as well—wasn’t that simply destroying his own future?

Lu Rou also began to worry for Li Dong. With anxiety in her voice, she urged, “Why not let me go back and speak to my father? He can go to the Cui family and ask them to let this pass. After all, they were the ones who went too far first…”

“Absolutely not!” Li Dong waved her off decisively, then laughed. “It’s really nothing. Don’t take it to heart.”

Neither his father nor Lu Rou knew that when Ye Jishan saw him, he was like a mouse meeting a cat, eager only to curry favor and avoid him; how could he possibly make trouble for him? In the Great Sui, beneath the vast sea and across the land, who did not live by the Emperor’s favor? However powerful the Cui family might be, could they be greater than the man at the very top?

Besides, after the Sui fell and the Tang Dynasty was founded, the foremost clan in the realm was not the Cuis, but the Lis.

After leaving the Li residence, Cui Shiling wore a face as long as a funeral banner. He walked while rubbing his backside and waist, both of which throbbed terribly; he had likely injured the bones. He had been beaten so severely and robbed of all face before the Cui family. That fellow must have the courage of a bear and a leopard to do such a thing. If he was not taught a harsh lesson, he would never know whose family was running the dye works.

When he returned to the Cui household, he was received by the patriarch, Cui Shaoling. A man past fifty, with a sallow face, he sat firmly in the main hall. One glance was enough to see that, after long years of standing above others, he had cultivated an imposing aura. His expression was stern, and even without anger he inspired fear.

The old man was shocked at the sight of Cui Shiling and sprang to his feet. “Th-this... what happened?”

“Oh, don’t mention it! Don’t even mention it!” Cui Shiling cried out in an exaggerated wail of pain, like a child who had been beaten and had finally found the grown-up in charge. “What a so-called rising talent, what a genius! He’s nothing but a rash fool! Before we’d even exchanged three sentences, he struck me with ruthless force and hurled me right out the door. It still hurts now!”

“What?” The old man paced twice inside the hall, then suddenly turned and fixed Cui Shiling with a stare. “You fought him and came away on the losing end? In our Cui family, your skill may not be the best, but it is still among the better ones. Could it be that he…”

“Yes, yes!” Cui Shiling nodded repeatedly and said bitterly, “His skill was hardly top-tier either, but his techniques were bizarre to the extreme. Obviously such a move was dangerous, yet he insisted on using it, and me... I still couldn’t beat him!”

When Li Dong fought Cui Shiling, he used close-quarters combat and grappling techniques, the kind of boxing every special soldier knew. Distilled through the ages by the Sui, Tang, Yuan, Ming, Qing, and Republican periods, it was the essence of the essence, the practical of the practical.

Though the stance was not especially elegant, it was a hundred times more ferocious. To use such boxing in the Sui Dynasty was like using a pistol against an archer: one shot, one hit. With the advantage of the era on his side, how could Cui Shiling not become Li Dong’s defeated hand?

After hearing this, the old man paced for quite some time. Suddenly understanding dawned in his chest, and he turned back to ask, “Did you go to the Li family and act arrogant, as though no one in the world were beneath you, and were you thrown out because they took offense?”

Cui Shiling’s scheme was exposed, and he broke into a cold sweat on the spot, his body freezing where he stood. But he reacted quickly, putting on a mournful face. “Patriarch, you have wronged me! He was not beating me at all. He was plainly striking the face of the Cui family—striking your face!”

At that, the old man nodded in silence, carefully savoring the implications of Cui Shiling’s words, and something about them seemed off. He got beaten on the backside, and yet it counted as a blow to my face?

This... this... what sort of business is that?

His face changed several times in an instant. He had suffered a hidden loss, yet dared not make it public. If word got out, would he not be laughed at until his teeth fell out?

“You worthless thing!” the old man roared in fury. In a flash, like a specter, he moved to Cui Shiling’s side and slapped him twice across the face, barking, “You’ve brought disgrace on the Cui family, and you still have the nerve to cry in pain! Ride at once for Qi Commandery and report to Governor Ye. Be sure to ask him to intervene and cripple Li Dong. We must absolutely not let him leave Qi Commandery for the capital in perfect safety and complete condition to meet the sovereign.”

Cui Shiling had just been beaten below by Li Dong and now beaten above by the patriarch; both ends of him were burning with pain. Yet the patriarch had long enjoyed his authority, so even when beaten, he could only endure it.

Still, the moment he heard that he might go to Qi Commandery and meet Governor Ye, he felt a burst of joy. Ye Jishan would surely provide fine wine, fine food, and lavish hospitality, and Qi Commandery was a place of great prosperity after all, with lovely young women aplenty. That would make up for today’s suffering.

Cui Shiling covered half his face, stood up, and agreed before going to handle the matter. In his heart he cursed fiercely: Li Dong, Li Dong, we shall see who wins in the end.

After comforting his father and Lu Rou, Li Dong said, “This time I came back in too much of a hurry to spend more time with you. There is still one major matter I have not fully settled, so I must head back to Qi Commandery this afternoon.”

Though reluctant, Lu Rou could only endure it. With deep attachment, she bid farewell to Li Dong and took her carriage back to the Lu residence.

After Lu Rou left, Li Dong immediately packed his things, fastened the meteorite longsword across his back, and after taking leave of his father, mounted his horse and prepared to leave Zhangqiu at speed.

As he passed along a road not far from the Zhangqiu county offices, he happened upon a patrol of men on duty with Du Yu, and Li Dong dismounted to speak with Du Yu for a while.

Du Yu was much the same as before, changed little. The difference was that his clothes were new and his complexion had become rosier. Presumably, now that he served as county lieutenant, he was thriving in both career and spirits, and his life had changed greatly for the better.

Knowing that Li Dong was hurrying to Qi Commandery, Du Yu reminded him to beware of Ye Jishan. That man was treacherous and cunning, two-faced and honey-tongued, with a knife hidden behind his smile. He should not be offended lightly.

If he must be offended, then go to Ye’s estate and speak to his wife. Since Ye Jishan was very much afraid of his wife, once she stepped in, there was no problem that could not be settled.

Li Dong smiled and thanked Du Yu. In his heart he thought, I’ve already offended Ye Jishan badly enough, but I didn’t know he also had the weakness of being afraid of his wife. That’s one fine little leash I’ve found on him.

After chatting with Du Yu for a bit longer, and not wishing to delay his duties, Li Dong hastily took his leave, urged his horse onward, and galloped out through Zhangqiu’s western gate, heading for Qi Commandery.