Ashes to Crown

Chapter 28: Chapter 28: A Visitor at Night

Still, many places on the sand table remained without flags, and a look of regret crossed Chu Ling’s face.

”What a pity...” he murmured. As he spoke, he pressed a hand to his chest, but he couldn’t hold back the turmoil within and let out a few coughs.

”General,” a guard at his side immediately offered a teacup.

Chu Ling took it and drank a few sips to suppress his cough. He then held out his hand. ”Where’s the marching map that was just surveyed?”

The guard looked anxious. ”General, it’s time to rest. Mr. Zhong gave orders that you are not to stay up late.”

Chu Ling smiled. ”A little while longer won’t hurt, will it? How long can it take to glance at a map?”

Just as the guard was struggling with what to do, hurried footsteps sounded from outside, followed by an announcement: ”Vice General Zhong has returned.”

The guard, overjoyed, went to greet him. Though Chu Ling remained still before the sand table, his eyes lit up with delight and anticipation.

Vice General Zhong, covered in dust from his travels, stood in the hall and removed his hat and scarf, revealing chapped lips.

”Don’t worry, General,” he said. ”Miss Chu has been escorted by the Heir of Zhongshan King and has met up with Young Master Ao Ke.”

Chu Ling handed him a cup of tea. Vice General Zhong took it and drained it in one go, after which his scarred face contorted.

”Big Brother!” he yelled, sticking out his tongue. ”Why’d you make me drink medicine?”

He feared neither a mountain of daggers nor a sea of flames, only medicine.

”It’s not medicine, it’s medicinal tea—a type of tea,” Chu Ling said with a laugh. ”You’re exhausted from your travels, and the cold has settled in your body. The medicinal tea will help flush it out.” He then called for a guard to bring another cup. ”This second one is just hot tea.”

Vice General Zhong took the second cup and sniffed it cautiously. Once he was sure it had no medicinal scent, he downed it in one go. After two cups, sweat beaded on his forehead. He exhaled a long breath, and sure enough, he felt invigorated. ”You’re amazing, Big Brother,” he praised.

”A long illness makes a good doctor,” Chu Ling said.

At these words, Vice General Zhong’s face fell, contorting into an even uglier expression. ”Big Brother...”

He let out a deep sigh. ’What good is being sad? It only adds to my worries. Getting things done is more important right now.’ He then told Chu Ling about Chu Zhao.

”She must have heard you were ill, which is why she insisted on coming back. I suspect someone is deliberately testing us.”

The warmth vanished from Chu Ling’s face, his eyes turning sharp. ”Someone noticed so quickly?” Then his expression softened again. ”How is Ah Zhao? Was she terrified?”

Vice General Zhong thought for a moment. ”Ah Zhao cried as soon as she saw me, so she seemed terrified. But the things she did... they were incredible. She fooled a lot of people and didn’t seem scared at all.”

Chu Ke’s letter had already provided an embellished account of Chu Zhao’s actions, so Chu Ling was aware. He couldn’t help but smile at the mention of it.

”I never realized she was so good at deception,” he said, then sighed softly. ”She never needed to trick anyone when she was with me, safe and happy. Now that I’m not by her side, she must face hardship and danger alone. That she has to resort to such schemes just proves she’s still terrified.”

Vice General Zhong took a letter from his robes. ”A letter from Ah Zhao.”

Chu Ling reached for the letter and opened it. There were only a few simple lines. His eyes stung as he read the first few, which were filled with desperate pleas to return home. But when his gaze fell upon the last line, his expression froze. He slammed the letter face down on the table.

The sharp SLAP made Vice General Zhong jump.

”What is it?” he asked, his voice tense.

He naturally hadn’t read the letter Chu Zhao wrote to her father. He assumed it was filled with a daughter’s tearful pleas about how much she missed him, or stories of being bullied in the Capital City, all meant to make her father’s heart ache.

’So why does Chu Ling look so angry?’

”She asked about her mother,” Chu Ling said.

Vice General Zhong’s expression tensed, then he frowned. ”That was unavoidable. Forget the people in the Capital City; even our own relatives say nasty things. Big Brother, we’ve been preparing for this. We’ve told Ah Zhao since she was little that her mother was of low birth and that your union was unconventional. After arriving in the Capital City and hearing such gossip, she shouldn’t be too distressed by it, right?”

’She’s bound to be upset, of course,’ he thought. ’She’s just a young girl, being gossiped about in a place of such wealth and splendor.’

Chu Ling’s expression was complicated. He pressed a hand on the letter, about to speak, when another guard rushed in. ”General, we’ve captured—er, there’s a person here.”

Chu Ling and Vice General Zhong both stared at the guard. ’Captured or just a person? Which is it?’

”We captured a soldier from the County,” the guard said, ”but we could tell at a glance that the identity tag wasn’t his—”

Before he could finish, Vice General Zhong’s scarred face filled with a cold fury. ”Then execute him. I don’t care which blind fool has come looking for death.”

’More and more spies have been showing up lately, getting bolder and bolder. What do they take our Luocheng for?!’

The guard looked at Vice General Zhong. ”He says he knows you, Mr. Zhong. He came looking for you.”

Vice General Zhong’s scar twitched. ”Plenty of people know me! Just execute him—”

The guard finished his sentence. ”He says his name is Ah Jiu.”

”—Huh? Ah Jiu?” Vice General Zhong’s tongue tripped over the name, and he nearly bit it. His face went rigid.

’It’s that kid! What is he doing here? Don’t tell me—’

His gaze instinctively flickered toward Chu Ling.

Chu Ling had been listening. Seeing the Vice General’s reaction, he figured it was a misunderstanding and the man truly was an acquaintance. But then Vice General Zhong suddenly looked at him, and his expression was very odd.

”Since you know him, you should go see him,” Chu Ling said, assuming the Vice General was asking for permission.

Vice General Zhong waved for the guard to leave first, then hesitated, looking like he wanted to say something but couldn’t.

”What is it?” Chu Ling asked with a smile. ”He isn’t some relation of yours, is he?”

Vice General Zhong said, ”This Ah Jiu... he knows Miss Chu.”

Chu Ling was momentarily taken aback, but his mind worked quickly. ”He’s one of the posthouse soldiers, isn’t he?” he mused with a small smile. ’It’s not surprising he’d come looking for a reward after learning Chu Zhao is my daughter. Since he’s come to us, we won’t need to make a special trip to the County to thank them.’

Vice General Zhong chose his words carefully. ”Miss Chu and this Ah Jiu... well, they’re very close.”

Chu Ling understood. The smile at the corners of his mouth faded. ”Is that so? How close, exactly?”

Vice General Zhong wasn’t sure how to explain it. What he’d seen with his own eyes was Miss Chu, who had been crying and demanding to return to the Border County, call out for Ah Jiu. After just a few words with him, she had quieted down completely.

That was one thing. The truly damning part was what he’d heard from others.

Although the posthouse soldiers and the Heir of Zhongshan King had been discreet, the Princely Heir’s guard, Tie Ying, had been brutally frank. He told Zhong that back at the river, Miss Chu had thrown such a tantrum at Ah Jiu that she’d jumped into the water. After his Princely Heir saved her, Miss Chu actually complained that he was being nosy.

”As for what kind of ’nosy,’ you’d have to ask Miss Chu herself.”

Tie Ying had even added that last part with a strange, sarcastic tone.

As a married man with a son, Vice General Zhong knew exactly what that implied. He was so furious he’d nearly dragged Ah Jiu over right then and there, but his reason had prevailed.

However, Ah Jiu hadn’t tried to get close to him during the journey. The posthouse soldier surnamed Zhang had also subtly hinted that Ah Jiu and Miss Chu didn’t get along well, that Ah Jiu had been against bringing her, and that they often argued. He’d added that everyone’s intentions were good, and any poor treatment of Miss Chu was purely due to ignorance of her identity and their duties as posthouse soldiers.

Then he recalled how Ah Zhao had tricked everyone to travel with the posthouse soldiers. Vice General Zhong calmed down, concluding that his young miss’s attitude toward Ah Jiu was merely a means to an end—a way to get to the Border County.

’If that Ah Jiu has any sense, he’ll understand her intentions and won’t get any funny ideas. The whole thing will just blow over.’

’But who would have thought the boy would come looking for General Chu in the middle of the night? What is he up to? Has he not thought this through?’

Vice General Zhong’s fists clenched so tightly they creaked. ’In that case, maybe I should help him see things more clearly.’

Chu Ling smiled, signaling for the Vice General to calm down.

”In that case, I will see him myself. Whatever needs to be said will become clear once we speak.”