Dawn of the Empire

Chapter 49: Prisoners

Ou Yang was not a skilled rider; he moved on horseback only slightly faster than on foot, slowing down the entire group of three. This frustrated Zuo Jia Nu greatly, while Zuo Hengbai, on the other hand, leisurely and deliberately slowed his horse, trotting alongside Ou Yang at a leisurely pace. “Young Master, the master is urging us on urgently and even had me bring two extra horses. Could we please hurry a bit…” “They’re just two Xidi prisoners,” Zuo Hengbai replied dismissively. “We’re already at the Commander-in-Chief’s headquarters. They can’t die here, and they can’t escape—why the rush?” Ou Yang struggled to control his unfamiliar horse, trying to pick up a bit of speed. Speaking on behalf of Zuo Jia Nu, he said, “It looks like they’ve captured someone important. Otherwise, the Commander wouldn’t be in such a hurry to find us. I wonder if they’ve caught a lion or something.” When they arrived at the Commander-in-Chief’s residence, they saw a crowd gathered in front of the main hall—almost entirely officers—who seemed to be gawking at some rare spectacle. Glancing up slightly, they could see two small heads peeking out of a second-floor window: those of Zuo Shuijing and Wang Lin. Zuo Hengbai led Ou Yang through the crowd, pushing their way inside. Throughout the process, Ou Yang’s right hand, clenched into a fist, never dropped from his chest; here, he had to salute everyone he encountered first. While Zuo Hengbai could rely on his father’s status as Commander-in-Chief and his own rank as a Captain to wait for others to salute him first, Ou Yang dared not do the same. Standing amidst a large group of field army officers, however, were several slave soldiers. Surrounded by so many masters, these men craned their necks and kept their heads down, trying to make themselves as inconspicuous as possible. Only one burly man with short hair strained to hold his head high, gazing directly at General Zuo Yunyi, who sat in the crowd with his back to the main office building. Ou Yang had keen eyesight; he recognized at a glance that the burly man with short hair was Tong Zhongjian, whom he had recently promoted to commoner status. At his feet knelt a cat so emaciated it was barely recognizable and a large dog (or perhaps a wolf? ) bound up like a mummy. Realizing the captives weren’t lions, Ou Yang felt a bit disappointed at first. But upon further reflection, he let it go—if a hundred or so barbarian soldiers armed with bows, arrows, and axes could have captured a lion alive, why would the last incident have resulted in casualties that drove Liu Chenyong into a rage, causing him to slaughter the prisoners? Zuo Hengbai nodded at Ou Yang, then walked over on his own to stand behind his father, while Ou Yang stopped moving forward. Seeing that everyone was present, General Zuo stood up and ordered, “All stand at attention!” The officers, who had been standing around watching, immediately formed ranks on either side of the Commander and stood at attention. Ou Yang looked up and scanned the entire scene. The Field Army officers were all standing to Zuo Yunyi’s right, while the Colonization Army officers were on his left. On this side, there were seven or eight Division Commanders and Company Commanders, along with a dozen or so Senior Officers. He surmised that, aside from himself, the Colonization Army officers present were either the chief officials of the villages and towns near Junwei or private soldiers like Zuo Jia Nu. The uniform ranks of officers on either side exerted immense psychological pressure on the slave soldiers in the center. With a thud, they all dropped to their knees before Zuo Yunyi. Aside from not being bound, they looked little different from that cat prisoner—and at the thought that any one of these two rows of men could execute him at will, Yang Gudai felt his heart was about to stop from sheer terror. At that moment, he couldn’t help but envy Tong Zhongjian. This Jurchen “Tazi” (the Mohe and Jurchen peoples referred to each other as “Tazi”) was a commoner, entitled to refuse to kneel before anyone other than Heaven, Earth, the Sovereign, one’s parents, and one’s teacher, and had the right to stand upright and speak directly in the presence of the Commander-in-Chief. When they went out to fight together, Yang Gudai could still command the troops by drawing on the authority of Huang Qianzong. But when it came to escorting prisoners to Junwei, without a commoner like Tong Zhongjian leading the way, they wouldn’t dare make the trip even if they had ten times the courage—they’d be slaughtered by Han Chinese as runaway slaves before they even reached their destination. Originally, Yang Gudai had hoped that Huang Qianzong would assign a senior unit leader to lead the escort. However, only personnel from the Captain’s headquarters, Unit 1, and Unit 8 had participated in the initial sortie; the leaders of those units had already departed for Junwei ahead of time. Since Huang Qianzong was unwilling to cede this opportunity to gain recognition to others, he simply assigned Tong Zhongjian to lead the escort and deliver the prisoners. Captain Huang Qianzong’s intention was for this convoy to encounter Huang Junxian, Liu Chenyong, and Ou Yang’s party along the way—based on the timing, they should have been halfway back by then. That way, they could take over the convoy and turn it back. Unfortunately, it wasn’t until Yang Gudai entered Junwei City that he learned Huang Junxian and Liu Chenyong had already returned, and the two groups had never crossed paths. Now, Ou Yang was the only officer from the Anxi Garrison left in the city. Tong Zhongjian also spotted Ou Yang. Though he appeared calm on the surface, he was far from it inwardly; thus, he kept pleading with Ou Yang with his eyes to intercede on his behalf. Unfortunately, Ou Yang acted as if he hadn’t noticed, stepping into the ranks of the colonization army officers and, like the others, gazing with curiosity at the prisoners at his feet. Tong Zhongjian knew that presenting a prisoner before the Commander-in-Chief in front of so many officers was a golden opportunity to make a good impression. But decades of hardship as a commoner, coupled with the overwhelming pressure of the Han Empire, had cast such a deep shadow over his heart that the few months he’d spent as a civilian had done nothing to overcome his deep-seated fear of Han military officers. “What is your name? What is your current position?” The Commander-in-Chief eyed Tong Zhongjian with interest. The man had just begun growing out his hair; without a doubt, he was a recently promoted commoner from among the non-Han peoples. To achieve this, luck, merit, personal effort, and an officer who appreciated him were all indispensable. In the Western Regions, where opportunities to earn merit were extremely scarce, such a person was quite rare. “Your humble servant… this one’s name is Tong Zhongjian. I am… a commoner from the 8th Company of the Anxi Garrison… Huang Qianzong ordered this one to bring the newly captured Di tribesman here…” Tong Zhongjian’s reply was stammering, but fortunately, the Commander understood his nervousness and did not hold it against him. “Eighth Unit of Anxi Garrison?” Zuo Yunyi turned to look at Ou Yang and asked loudly, “Qubing, is this one of your men?” Ou Yang shook his head with a wry smile. He hadn’t spoken up earlier precisely because he hadn’t actually participated in the operation to intercept the merchant caravan; he had no idea what had happened during or after the battle. Since the credit for this achievement was already his to keep, why should he step forward and steal the limelight from his subordinates? But now that the Commander-in-Chief had called on him, he had no choice. Ou Yang marched forward and stood before Tong Zhongjian, saluting Zuo Yunyi and saying, “Tong Zhongjian is indeed one of my men.” “Quite right. You’ve brought a fine soldier,” General Zuo nodded, though it was unclear how he’d determined that Tong Zhongjian was a good soldier. “You may all stand up as well. You fought well.” General Zuo Yunyi helped the slave soldiers who were kneeling on the ground to their feet and announced loudly, “Go back and tell your masters that I said this: every slave who participated in this sortie will receive five merit points, and every commoner will receive three.” “Thank you, Master!” Yang Gudai and the others stood up once more; this time, their excitement had overcome their nervousness. Since the General had granted the rewards, their own masters would certainly not object. This was especially true for Yang Gudai, who had already been promised a promotion to commoner by Huang Qianzong before coming here. With three additional merit points, catching up to that Jurchen savage, Tong Zhongjian, and being promoted to commoner no longer seemed like an unattainable feat. Zuo Yunyi then pointed at Tong Zhongjian and said to Ou Yang, “He’s already a commoner. Military merits aren’t something I can decide on my own; we’ll discuss his reward later.” “As you command.” This was only to be expected. A commoner who earned ten merits became a citizen; citizens could then be granted noble titles. Naturally, the awarding of merits to commoners thereafter was extremely strict—which was why civil and military officials at all levels along the Lingxi Road were so excited and generous in their actions upon learning of this opportunity to earn merits. “Now,” Zuo Yunyi flashed a cruel smile that Ou Yang had never seen before, “let’s hear what good news these two little kittens and puppies have brought us.”