Chapter Twenty-One: Under Escort

  It wasn't until he felt a bit chilly that Zhou Ping realized how much time had passed. He stood up, brushed off the dust from his buttocks and was about to find a place to rest when someone came in through the courtyard gate and said softly, "Ah Ping, you haven't rested yet?"

  "Miss, why have you come so late?"

  "I heard you're going on a long trip, so I rushed to sew a leather coat for you. Try it on and see if it fits!" Yunniang handed over a package, Zhou Ping's eyes scanned the left hand of his opponent, only to see more than ten needle marks on his fingers, apparently stitched in a hurry. A warm current surged through his heart, he reached out and grabbed Yunniang's hands, saying softly: "Yunniang, thank you!"

  The two girls' cheeks suddenly flushed with two red clouds, she lowered her head and whispered: "Don't let go, or else people will see what's going on?"

  Zhou Ping finally came to his senses and hastily let go of his hands. Yunniang pretended not to mind, opened the package, and draped the robe over Zhou Ping's body, saying in a low voice: "You quickly try it on, if the size is not right, I can still modify it overnight!"

  Zhou Ping raised his right arm and slipped it into the sleeve, he slightly noticed that this robe had fine stitches, was the right size, and was made of coarse cloth commonly used in rural areas on the outside, but inside was a layer of cyan gauze with sheepskin sandwiched between. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be the very same one he had given to Yunniang when he returned home, yet she had used it to make clothes for him instead. He hastily asked: "Yunniang, why did you do this? This cyan gauze was something I gave to you, how come you used it to make clothes for me?"

  The young girl was helping Zhou Ping adjust his belt, checking if the width and narrowness of his waist and armpits were suitable, while answering: "What's wrong with that? This good fabric is useless at home, you need to wear good clothes when going out. I heard it's cold in Liao State, you're a bodyguard, so put silk inside as lining, and use coarse cloth outside, it won't hinder your horse riding and archery!"

  Zhou Ping looked at Yunniang chattering away while adjusting her clothes, and his heart was filled with tenderness. He gently reached out to help Yunniang up and pulled her into his arms, softly saying: "You've really had a hard time, this time I'm back, I should also be an official, let's go see your father and tell him about our situation!"

  Yunniang leaned gently against Zhou Ping's chest, not speaking, but only nodding lightly. The two of them nestled in the courtyard for a while, then Yunniang gently broke free from Zhou Ping's arms, helped him adjust his clothes, and said softly: "It's getting late, it's cool in the courtyard, you should rest early! I've also packed your travel expenses, I'll send them over to you tomorrow morning."

  "There's no need for such trouble, I'll serve as an attendant for the Han family, they will prepare all these things!" Zhou Ping hastily dissuaded.

  "How can that be, the poor and rich are different! You can't just go naked to let others laugh at you, you're not one of the Han family, even if you go to someone else's house to work as a long-term laborer, you should bring some household items. You should rest early, I'll leave first!" Yunniang smiled and walked towards the door.

  After waiting until the figure of Artisan's daughter disappeared from his line of sight, Zhou Ping turned around and went back into the house. He pushed open the door and only then remembered that someone had taken over his bed. He recalled that there was a pile of wheat straw under the eaves on the left side, so he took an old cloak from inside the house and lay down beside the straw heap to make do for the night. As Zhou Ping lay in the straw heap, breathing in the fragrance of the wheat stalks, he suddenly felt that his hesitation had vanished, and his entire body was filled with energy. He smiled to himself, saying: "Good, as soon as I get back, I'll go visit Old Man Chen the blacksmith!"

  But the messenger from the Han family did not arrive as quickly as Zhou Ping had expected, and it was not until November, after two snowfalls, that someone from the Han family finally brought news. Xue Liangyu and Zhou Ping, who were already fully prepared, set off for the county town with their luggage and horses. After arriving at the Han residence, the steward gave each of them a string of cash to buy things they needed on the road, and they would depart with Han Xiaoqu the next day.

  "As soon as we arrived, there was a reward! It's really unexpected!" Xue Liangyu smiled and put the copper coins into his money bag. Seeing Zhou Ping staring at the copper coins in his hand, he said: "Ah Ping, I suppose you don't have anything to do either. Why don't we take a stroll around this city?"

  "There's nothing good about a ruined earthen city, it's not even as good as a small town in later generations." Zhou Ping said with a sneer, but his face still had a smile: "Alright, however, Lang Jun please wait for me to arrange my luggage first."

  Two people settled their luggage and strolled around the street. Xiangzhou Anyang is located in Henei, just a river away from Bianjing. Many high-ranking officials in the capital are from this place. When they were in office, they would use their accumulated wealth to buy land for their old age. Therefore, the concentration of land ownership here is much higher than that in Guanzhong and Jingxiang, and the commodity economy is also more prosperous. As a result, although Anyang is only a county town, its market is more prosperous than many state capitals in Guanzhong. Xue Liangyu was not yet seventeen years old, just a half-grown child, and suddenly had some spare money in his hands. Whenever he saw a new product in a store on the street, he would run in to take a look. Before he knew it, more than an hour had passed. Seeing that Xue Liangyu was still full of interest, Zhou Ping couldn't help but secretly sigh.

  Just then, a loud drumbeat came from afar, drawing Xue Liangyu's attention again. He pulled Zhou Ping to hurry over, and they saw a notice posted at the county government office entrance. A literate clerk was loudly reading out the contents. The two listened and found it was an imperial edict changing the year number from 'Zhenghe' to 'Chonghe', and following past conventions, granting amnesty to all under heaven, except for those guilty of heinous crimes, whose sentences would be reduced by one degree.

  "Are they going to change the year number again? What big thing are they going to do this time?" Xue Liangyu shook his head listlessly, he wasn't interested in these vague and elusive things. Zhou Ping didn't respond, his face turned gloomy, this document changing the year number reminded him that the time left was not much, the invasion of the Jin people was like a ticking time bomb, constantly approaching the moment of explosion.

  "You're lucky, you mutts!" At this point, a yamen runner walked over to the cage next to the gate and poked at the prisoner inside with his scabbard, shouting: "Originally, after the Ministry of Punishment's reply came back, all of you would have been dragged out and beheaded. But unexpectedly, the officials showed mercy and reduced your sentence by one degree. However, don't think you're off the hook - being sent to a remote and evil military outpost is inescapable, and the local diseases and people can take your lives at any time!"

  The prisoner in the cage was poked by the bailiff a few times, turned over and revealed a dirty face. Xue Liangyu happened to see it clearly and asked Zhou Ping: "Ah Ping, that guy looks familiar, isn't he one of the thieves we caught?"

  Zhou Ping took a closer look and nodded: "Not bad, this man is indeed the leader of the thieves Yang Wu. Take a look at the cage next to him, it's a dwarf named Yang Shun'er."

  Yang Wu struggled to lift his head, the long-term torture in the cage and the arrow wound on his hand that had never healed, had tormented this strong man to the point where he was no longer human. Yang Wu's eyes fluttered open, looking at the person who had startled him awake in front of the cage, suddenly his eyes widened, and his gaze revealed an unhidden, deep-seated hatred, clearly Yang Wu had already recognized the cavalryman standing in front of the cage as the one who had been pursuing him. Yang Wu furiously pounced on the cage, grabbing the wooden bars with both hands and shaking them violently, letting out a loud roar from his throat, revealing sharp teeth, just like a beast trapped in the cage.

  "You dare, you thief!" Xue Liangyu was not afraid at all, and with a reverse hand, he drew out his waist knife and gestured on the cage: "I'll cut off your five fingers first!"

  "Never mind, Lang Jun!" Zhou Ping pulled Xue Liangyu's arm and advised: "This is the gate of the government office, besides this fellow is a good man, he's just fallen on hard times!"

  "Hum! Ah Ping, you're just too soft-hearted. What a good fellow, just a common bandit!" Xue Liangyu sneered and put his sword back in its scabbard. He also knew that although the other was a prisoner, it wouldn't be right for him to cut off their fingers in front of the yamen gate. He turned around and walked away, saying to Zhou Ping, "We're officials, they're bandits - there's a world of difference between us!"

  Zhou Ping endured the insult, not uttering a word in rebuttal. Looking at Xue Liangyu's spirited appearance, he coldly sneered to himself: "Official? Bandit? Do you know that after a few more years, officials and bandits will be indistinguishable?"

  The next day, Han Xiaoji and his party left the city. At this time, it was already a cold winter in the first month of the lunar calendar, and the Yellow River had also frozen over, making it impossible to travel by water. The group could only ride horses and take carriages northwest towards Heyang, where they would cross the Yellow River and then head southeast to Bianjing.

  After the travelers had crossed the Yellow River, snow began to fall from the sky, growing heavier and heavier. The earth was already a vast expanse of white, and the trees along the road had long since shed their leaves, adorned with snowflakes that looked like blossoming pear flowers. These pear flowers not only adorned the bare branches but also filled the sky, blocking the travelers' line of sight.

  Zhou Ping exerted great effort to urge his horse forward, but the yellow horse unwillingly took a few steps ahead. The animal was not willing to venture out in this weather. Zhou Ping had no choice but to dismount and lead the horse by the reins, walking forward as the cold wind mixed with snowflakes hit him in the face. The hot air from his breath immediately melted them, turning into water droplets that condensed on his whiskers and hat brim, forming a thin layer of ice that isolated him from the outside world.

  He lifted his head, using great effort to see Xue Liangyu more than ten steps ahead. He turned around to look back, but the usual dusty official road was empty, with no one in sight. The mountain path and gully were all covered in a thick layer of snow, making everything appear swollen and unclear. They deceived the vision of both humans and animals, and one misstep could lead to straying from the main path and falling into the dry, snow-covered ditch, resulting in a bloody head injury.

  He gritted his teeth and shouted at Xue Liangyu, "Fourth brother, go tell Lord Han that if we continue like this, we'll end up tumbling into the ditch!"

  (Note: The last paragraph appears to be an author's note or advertisement, not part of the story)