Ashes to Crown

Chapter 160: Chapter 114: The Gathering

Fireworks suddenly exploded in the sky, drawing the attention of many in the Capital City, a place embroiled in a chaotic night of slaughter.

A commoner, who had piled tables, chairs, and benches against his door, stared blankly when he saw the fireworks burst across the sky.

”Why would anyone be setting off fireworks at a time like this? Is this a celebration?” his wife said in surprise.

’Those fireworks are so beautiful,’ she thought. ’Even during the liveliest Lantern Festival in the bustling Capital City, I’ve never seen anything so magnificent.’

At that thought, she was overcome with sadness, wondering if she would even live to see this year’s Lantern Festival.

”Husband—” she said, reaching for him. ”Let’s hurry back inside.”

But her husband didn’t hide with her. The terror on his face was gone, replaced by a calm resolve. He took her hand and led her to the front of a cellar in their courtyard.

”Ah Lan, you hide in here,” he said, opening the cellar door.

His wife jumped in surprise. She never knew they had a cellar. She chided him, ”Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

Her husband first tossed a lantern inside to light the cellar, then helped his wife down.

As his wife looked around, she realized it was surprisingly spacious.

”When did you dig this cellar?” she asked, looking up and waiting for him to follow.

But her husband didn’t come in. He stood above, looking down at her.

”Ah Lan, I have to go out for a bit. You hide here. There’s food, water, and a lot of money inside. It also leads outside the house. If by some chance I don’t come back, take the money, return to your family, and remarry.” ℯℯ𝑙.

Hearing this, his wife was even more shocked than when she’d first heard about the turmoil in the Capital City. ”What nonsense are you talking about?”

’Where could he possibly be going at a time like this?’ The way he spoke, it sounded like he was going off to die.

”Get down here, quick!” His wife stomped her foot in anxiety. ”No matter how chaotic it is out there, as long as they don’t break into our home, we’ll be fine. Don’t go looking for trouble.”

Her husband shook his head. ”Ah Lan, there’s no time. I have to go. A military command is absolute. If there’s anything you don’t understand, I’ve hidden something in the chest. You’ll understand once you see it.”

With that, he lowered the cellar door, cutting off his wife’s shouts.

’What ’military command is absolute’?’ she fumed, standing in the cellar, both angry and terrified. ’My husband is just a mason. He works for half of every month. His skills are excellent, and he earns a lot of money. Even though he was an orphan, he managed to buy land and a house on his own. After we married, I never suffered a single day and could even help support my family—’

’Money...’ His wife thought back to what he’d said. ’A lot of money... What did he mean?’

Her husband was a quiet, honest man. She had thought she knew him well, but today she realized he was a stranger. The man standing in the dim light above the cellar just now... that was absolutely not the man she knew.

She picked up the lantern from the ground and walked deeper into the cellar. After passing through a long, narrow tunnel, she arrived in a spacious area filled with many chests. She opened them one by one, finding dried rations and water. The water was fresh, from the last day or two. When she opened the last chest, the lantern fell from her hand.

Money. Piles of gleaming silver.

Although their family never had to worry about food or clothing, she had never seen so much money in her life!

’Even if he were the best mason in the entire Capital City, he could never earn this much!’

His wife picked up the lantern and saw a letter in the chest. ’Look at that, a mason who knows how to write.’

She had learned to read from her scholarly father. ’Could her husband’s father, who was also a mason, have taught him how to write?’

Trembling, she opened the letter. The handwriting was rough.

”I am not a mason. I am a scout for the Dragon Power Army. Every month, I wasn’t going to work as a mason, but to a training assembly.”

”For more than a decade, I have never carried out my mission. But for all those years, I never stopped training, and General Chu never stopped paying our wages.”

”Ah Lan, if you are reading this letter, it means I have received my orders to go and kill the enemy. My fate is uncertain, but my heart is overjoyed.”

’My heart is overjoyed.’ Looking at the letter, her tears fell like rain.

’That heartless man... to just leave like that, and even say his heart is overjoyed.’

But then she remembered that last look from her husband. In the dim light, the eyes of that quiet, honest man had been blazing with fire.

She stared at the lines in the letter about ”more than a decade.”

’More than a decade of waiting... He can finally fulfill his mission, finally find his purpose. That’s why his heart is overjoyed.’

「...」

「...」

The magnificent estate of the Yang family was engulfed in a raging fire. Few living people could be seen trying to escape.

A troop of soldiers moved like a pack of jackals, finishing off anyone they found still breathing with another blow of their blades.

The slaughter had made their eyes bloodshot. The more they killed, the greater the merit, so each of them scrambled forward. Among them was one man who moved slowly. Whether from fear or reluctance, he appeared somewhat timid.

The man next to him urged in a low voice, ”Old Bai, what are you afraid of? The Crown Prince is already dead. Even if His Majesty gets angry, the Crown Prince isn’t coming back to life. The throne and the world will belong to the Third Prince. If you don’t hitch your wagon to his star now, what are you waiting for? You’re over thirty. Do you want to be a common soldier for the rest of your life?”

He spoke with an excited expression.

”Thankfully, our commander was smart enough to choose the Third Prince. We’ll get to rise through the ranks and make a fortune with him. Those idiots who just stood their ground lost their lives or got injured for nothing.”

He paused, intending to give his old comrade a push in the right direction. This fellow had always been an honest, unambitious sort in the army, never fighting or scrambling for anything. He did nothing but practice his skills in silence. ’What’s the use of practicing your skills in the Capital City?’ But now that his skills were finally needed, he was still cowering.

He pointed ahead at a fat man crawling toward the flower bushes. Judging by his clothes, he was either one of the Yang family masters or a steward. ”Go, kill him.”

The soldier called Old Bai didn’t hesitate, nor was he particularly eager. He walked over numbly. Just as he was about to raise his blade, someone rushed past and shoved him aside. With a flash of a blade, the fat man was decapitated.

”HAHA!” The soldier laughed wildly and gave Old Bai a kick. ”Get out of the way! This kill is all mine!”

Old Bai, however, wasn’t hit; he took a step back and dodged it.

The soldier ran off, still laughing madly. Old Bai’s companion came forward, chiding him in frustration, ”How can you be so useless? You let him steal your kill.”

”It’s all the same whoever kills him. The credit goes to our superiors anyway,” Old Bai said in a dull voice. Just then, he looked up at the sky, his numb expression filling with shock.

His companion, still muttering complaints, also looked up and saw the fireworks.

”Who’s that, sending a signal?” As a soldier, that was his first thought. He sneered. ”What’s the use at this point? The Crown Prince is dead, the Capital Camp is blocked outside the city, and the Imperial Palace is full of the Third Prince’s men. Who are they even signaling to?”

He found it amusing.

”These fireworks are so damn flashy.”

”Old Bai, listen to me. There are sure to be more people in the inner courtyard later, all women. It’ll be easier—”

He turned to continue, only to see Old Bai beside him turn and run away. The big man was surprisingly fast.

”Hey! Old Bai! Where are you running!”

’Is he crazy, deserting now?’

Sure enough, the running Old Bai was quickly spotted. ”Halt! Get back here!” someone barked.

Old Bai seemed not to hear, running outward as if he had wings.

”Cut him down,” a commander said, annoyed.

The situation was already decided. One less useless soldier didn’t matter.

Four soldiers answered in unison. They all recognized Old Bai as an unremarkable guy who just blended in. Thinking nothing of it, they advanced with sinister smiles.

”Don’t kill him in one blow. Each of us take a leg.”

With cruel sneers, the four men lunged, raising their long blades at Old Bai. In the next instant, blades flashed, flesh and blood flew, and screams echoed—

His companion, who had been about to give chase, shut his eyes in despair. ’It’s over, it’s over.’ He slowly backed away. ’Old Bai was courting death; I can’t get dragged down with him—’

But when he opened his eyes, he saw Old Bai leaping onto a horse. The four soldiers who were going to cut off Old Bai’s legs were lying on the ground. Their legs were intact, but their heads were no longer attached to their bodies.

The companion was stunned. The other soldiers were stunned. The commander was furious.

”Kill him!” he yelled.

More soldiers surrounded him, but with his long blade in hand, Old Bai cut them down one by one, sending flesh and blood flying.

He killed so many that no one knew whether to charge forward or flee.

Fortunately, Old Bai didn’t seem to want to kill everyone. He just carved a path for himself, leaving a trail of gore as he galloped away and vanished into the darkness.

His companion no longer heard the surrounding uproar, staring blankly at the spot where Old Bai had disappeared.

’Was that really Old Bai?’

’That was definitely not Old Bai!’

’That was a god of slaughter!’

「...」

「...」

Soldiers like the mason and Old Bai rushed from the dark night toward the place where the fireworks had bloomed. The street outside the Chu Mansion, which had been cleared by Xiao Man and the others, slowly filled with figures. In the end, people even appeared on the walls and rooftops.

Watching this scene, Eunuch Qi lowered his head and wiped away his tears.

Xiao Man pursed her lips.

Chu Zhao’s hand tightened into a fist. Then, she felt a small hand take hers. Startled, she looked down at the child in her arms.

Zhong Changrong’s scarred face flickered in and out of the dancing torchlight. He called out, ”Where are the scouts?”

Seven or eight people stepped forward. ”Scouts at your command.”

Zhong Changrong asked, ”Which gate of the Capital City can be seized for us to break out?”

Just as the scouts were about to speak, a woman’s voice cut in first.

”Wait.”

All eyes turned toward the source of the voice. Illuminated by the torches was a young woman on horseback, holding a child.

Chu Zhao said, ”Uncle Zhong, now that we have the men, we don’t need to break out.”

’Not break out?’ he thought. ’The Capital City is crawling with the Third Prince’s forces. The Capital Camp is outside the city walls. Although the Third Prince has surely tried to seize control of it, not all of them could have sided with him. There must still be men loyal to His Majesty and the Crown Prince. We have to open the city gates to quell the rebellion and ensure the young prince’s safety.’

Zhong Changrong looked at Chu Zhao and frowned, but he didn’t speak, waiting for her to continue.

”We will fight our way into the Imperial City,” Chu Zhao said, her gaze fixed in its direction.