Chapter Ninety-Six: Contest of Strength (Thirty)

Liu Wuzhou felt both fondness and resentment toward Xu Le.

As a warlord who held a region in the midst of chaos, he harbored in secret the lofty ambition to soar upward and swallow the world. How could he not take to a young hero like Xu Le, so bold and sharp, fearless before any enemy, always finding a way to respond? If a man of that sort could be brought under his command, what immense help he would be in building a great cause for the future.

And yet he also hated him, because this boy was far too difficult to control and far too full of his own ideas. Liu Wuzhou had always won over worthy men with ease in Mayi Commandery by treating the talented with courtesy and recruiting the bold by lowering himself to them. But with Xu Le, all such efforts had come to nothing. And now this boy had stirred up such a storm tonight. If a man like that truly served beneath him, he would be nothing but a headache. Worse still, one might fear that such a keen blade would ultimately cut the hand that wielded it.

Though Xu Le had refused his offer for the moment, Liu Wuzhou still intended to show goodwill slowly, to work patiently and steadily, until in the end Xu Le would willingly place himself under his banner, just as Yuchi Gong had done.

That was why Liu Wuzhou had sent a troop under his command to help Luo Dun and Xu Le wrest control of the Lianghaite tribe back into their hands. He had also planned, later on, to keep finding ways of showing favor, step by step taking Xu Le into his own grasp.

He had never imagined that Xu Le's journey would end with him becoming the new tribal chief of the Lianghaite tribe.

Xu Le, with nothing but a few wandering knights and estate retainers at his side, had already caused such a disturbance in Yunzhong City. If he were made chief of the Lianghaite tribe, heaven only knew whether he might turn all of Mayi Commandery upside down.

That was why Liu Wuzhou had lost his composure and knocked the earthen bowl from the table.

The officers and soldiers in the watchtower fell silent, staring blankly at him. Such an outburst from Liu Yingji was rarely seen indeed.

In the blink of an eye, however, Liu Wuzhou had already calmed himself.

If one meant to recruit a man, then one had to see the thing through to the end; half measures must be avoided. Since Xu Le had such fortune, then he might as well be shown even more goodwill.

Outside Yunzhong City there were only some of the Lianghaite tribe's young men brought along with them. If Xu Le truly wished to take over the tribe, he would certainly still have to go to Yin Mountain and assume control of the whole people. Sending troops to escort him then would be a fine display of sincerity.

Besides, Xu Le was a son of the Han, and he had repeatedly said that he had a grandfather in Shenwu. Now that the Lianghaite tribe had offended the Turks backing the Thousand-Stride Tribe, how could they still hope to settle in the Yin Mountain region? It was quite possible that Xu Le would lead the Lianghaite tribe southward.

Once he was leading a whole tribe, unlike when he had been acting alone and free to ignore all scruples, he would certainly need some support in Mayi Commandery. He had already captured Zhang Wansui, which meant he had thoroughly offended Wang Rengong. If he did not attach himself to Liu Wuzhou, who else could he possibly turn to? In the end, the reward would not be merely Xu Le alone, but Xu Le together with the Lianghaite tribe.

And now he himself still had too many things to accomplish in Mayi Commandery. The opening move in this struggle for Mayi had already been made, and to leave Xu Le here in Yunzhong was far too dangerous. Better to help him gain control of the Lianghaite tribe sooner.

In the Hengan Hawkwing Garrison, it had always been Yuan Junzhang who calculated everything and devised the plans, while Liu Wuzhou merely nodded at the end. Everyone believed Liu Wuzhou's greatest talent was winning hearts. But beneath that broad, easygoing exterior, his true mind moved through countless turns and layers.

In the instant it took for the earthen bowl to fall, Liu Wuzhou had already turned the matter over several times in his heart. At last he laughed and said, "What greater good fortune than for a son of Han to become the chief of a foreign tribe? In my view, Young Master Le is exactly the sort of man destined to soar upon the wind. A foreign tribe coming to submit—such a feat deserves reward. I shall petition the Son of Heaven in Great Cause for an official title for Young Master Le!"

The officers and soldiers in the watchtower all showed smiles. This sudden appearance of the young lord Le had, in just a few days, brought far too many shocks. Liu Yingji's display of goodwill was plainly meant to do everything possible to win him over for the Hengan Hawkwing Garrison. Even if Young Master Le was still declining for now, once Liu Yingji set his sights on someone, he had never failed to secure the man. It looked as though the Hengan Hawkwing Garrison was about to gain another great general.

With Zhang Wansui captured, it had been proven that Wang Rengong was already colluding with the Turks. Any extra help for the Hengan garrison was a good thing.

The smiles had only just begun when Liu Wuzhou's expression hardened again, and he barked an order, "That Blackfruit from Black-Head has already been taken. Why has the noble of the Zhibi tribe not yet been brought in? Pass word to Chief Clerk Yuan and that fellow Yuchi Gong: before nightfall today, I want the Zhibi noble kneeling before me!"

By the time dawn had fully broken, last night's thunderstorm had become a fine, relentless rain. Wrapped in the chill of autumn, it seeped straight into the bones.

More than ten Azure Wolf Riders escorted Zhibi Luoluo and Zhibi Sili along a mountain road at full speed.

Though they had done everything they could to avoid the encirclement of the Hengan Hawkwing forces on the plains and flee into the mountains, Zhibi Luoluo and Zhibi Sili soon discovered that the Hengan troops had still not shaken them off.

Among the peaks around Yunzhong, along the route of their flight, piercing signal arrows kept shooting up from the ravines and valleys on either side, marking their direction of escape. Soon enough, sometimes ahead, sometimes behind, the dim outlines of cavalry would appear, closing in at an unhurried pace. These riders were often in pairs, one man with two horses, preserving their mounts' strength and merely shadowing them rather than rushing in to fight, as though waiting for the fugitives to exhaust their horses.

Every time this happened, the Turks would spur their mounts desperately, trying to shake off the Hengan Hawkwing troops that had latched onto them.

After several such rounds, even though they were all riding carefully chosen steeds of strong endurance, the horses could no longer hold out.

As they passed through a ravine, one warhorse suddenly gave a miserable cry and collapsed, frothing at the mouth, unable to rise again. The Turk of the Azure Wolf Riders on its back was thrown to the ground and lay there gasping, not even wanting to struggle up at first.

Zhibi Luoluo pulled on his reins and scanned the scene with clenched teeth.

Including Zhibi Sili, everyone else had gone pale. Their horses panted violently in the cold rain, and some mounts trembled on all four legs as though they might fall at any moment.

Zhibi Luoluo lifted a hand and pointed to seven or eight of his men. "Dismount."

Those seven or eight all still had a little strength left in their mounts, and thus a slightly better chance of surviving than the others. Yet at that moment they all slid off without hesitation.

Zhibi Luoluo himself also dismounted. The dazed Zhibi Sili seemed to understand something and cried out in panic, "Uncle!"

Zhibi Luoluo tugged at the corner of his mouth, making it count as a smile. "The young khan of the Zhibi family cannot fall into the hands of the Han."

Several of Zhibi Sili's personal guards silently took up the horses left behind, even leading away Zhibi Luoluo's own mount.

Zhibi Sili finally understood, and with tears in his voice he said, "Uncle!"

Zhibi Luoluo waved a hand, signaling the Azure Wolf Riders to take Zhibi Sili away.

"Young khan, you must understand: the Han will always be our enemy!"

An Azure Wolf Rider struck Zhibi Sili's horse hard on the haunches. The warhorse reared and screamed, then galloped off with Zhibi Sili aboard. Several Azure Wolf Riders stayed tightly at his side and did not look back.

Zhibi Luoluo drew his blade and lined up with the riders who remained, waiting in the rain.

At last, figures of the Hengan Hawkwing troops appeared at the far end of the mountain road.

Zhibi Luoluo gave a cold laugh. "Come then."