Chapter 345: General Yao Xin Greets the Chief Commander
"I ride my horse to the battlefront.
"There comes a fool rushing to his death.
"My treasured saber rises, red light flashing bright.
"The ignorant wretch shall perish on the battlefield!"
Li Banfeng hummed Mount Dingjun as he made his way up the mountain to bring Old Mister Yao the good news.
At first, he had wondered whether he should tell Qiu Zhiheng about breaking the Formation of Misfortune. But after thinking it over, he decided not to spread the news just yet. This might be a good chance to lure out the Star of Misfortune, so he chose to tell Old Mister Yao first.
From a distance, he saw Old Mister Yao standing in the courtyard with a three-pronged purple-gold crown on his head, a red brocade robe embroidered with flowers draped over his body, and lotus-thread cloud-walking boots on his feet. In one hand, he held the three-pointed, double-edged saber. On his back stood four battle banners.
There he was, mighty and imposing. That was exactly the aura Li Banfeng admired.
Hearing footsteps from afar, Old Mister Yao smiled. "Little Qiu, is that you?"
Li Banfeng smiled as well. This old fellow is always so wonderfully ridiculous. Still, that red robe of his, paired with that red beard and the four banners on his back, really does make him look quite imposing when the wind sweeps past.
Wait. When did his beard become red?
Li Banfeng quickened his steps and ran toward the courtyard.
Old Mister Yao spoke again. "Not Little Qiu? Then is it that girl Yu Nan?"
He wasn’t trying to be funny. He really couldn’t see.
Li Banfeng stepped forward. "Old Mister Yao, what happened?"
Old Mister Yao was covered in blood and grime.
The courtyard and the room were both in complete ruin.
"Li Qi, so it’s you, lad!" Old Mister Yao chuckled. "Nothing happened to me. A little thief wandered in just now without knowing his own weight, so I chopped him down."
Old Mister Yao held the long saber in one hand and a head in the other hand.
This is the head of the Star of Misfortune? Li Banfeng thought.
For now, Li Banfeng couldn’t be bothered. He wanted to help Old Mister Yao sit down.
Old Mister Yao waved him off. "No sitting. If I sit, I will not be getting up again. Li Qi, lad, you came too early. If you had come a little later, you would not have had to see me looking so miserable."
Even speaking seemed a little difficult.
"Why are you talking about this? Find a place to sit first."
"I cannot sit. I have to stand. I have to keep standing," Old Mister Yao said and grabbed Li Banfeng’s wrist. He was standing with great difficulty, but he was still standing.
He continued saying, "It doesn’t matter if I look a bit wretched. If you have seen it, then you have seen it. Among the living, I never make friends with anyone, but you really do count as one of mine. Do you still remember why I don’t make friends?"
"I do," Li Banfeng said as he hurriedly searched for the adhesive tape, trying to stop Old Mister Yao’s bleeding. "You said you made a friend when you were eight. He snatched your sugar figurine and ate it."
Old Mister Yao nodded and smiled. "That is right. That little son of a tortoise was my childhood friend. His name was Pan Dehai.
"He had a clever mouth even when he was young. From childhood, he knew how to sweet-talk me and trick me. I don’t even know how many good things he cheated out of me. Later, when I finally understood what sort of creature he was, I treated everything he said as a fart."
Li Banfeng was startled. "Pan Dehai was your childhood friend?"
Old Mister Yao smiled. "That is why I told you before. That old dog is no good."
Li Banfeng found the adhesive tape and pressed it over the wound, but the bleeding did not stop. He went to look for ointment next.
Old Mister Yao called out, "Stop fussing about. Do you think you understand medicine better than I do? I am done for. Is the story from when I was eight the only one you remember?"
Li Banfeng found some wound medicine and applied it as he answered, "I also remember what you said about when you were eighteen. You made a friend that year, and he stole your wife and slept with her."
Old Mister Yao laughed. "I came from a military family. I joined the army at thirteen, earned merit at fifteen, and was promoted to commandant. By eighteen, I had earned more merit and became a miscellaneous-titled general.
"Prince Rui thought highly of me and married his daughter to me. Ah, I was so happy then. I was going to marry a commandery princess.
"On the wedding night, I drank. Cup after cup, round after round. I had a friend named Lin Dexing, the son of the Grand Preceptor. That son of a tortoise sat there drinking with me, cup after cup, round after round.
"And when I was finally drunk, that bastard went to the bridal chamber in my place. He..."
At this point, Old Mister Yao’s hand trembled for a moment. Then he sighed and said, "To be fair, I cannot blame the commandery princess for that. She had been raised so properly that she barely stepped beyond the inner quarters. On the wedding night, before the bridal veil was lifted, I did not even know what she looked like. And she did not know me either. Just like that, all muddled and confused, she was taken to bed by that bastard Lin Dexing."
Li Banfeng asked, "The son of the Grand Preceptor did something like that, and no one dealt with him?"
Old Mister Yao gave a bitter laugh. "If the matter had been exposed, Lin Dexing would have deserved to be cut to pieces. But it wasn’t exposed. Prince Rui would not let me expose it. Grand Preceptor Lin begged me not to expose it. And I myself did not want it exposed either.
"Still, I could no longer live like that. I really couldn’t go on. I didn’t want to see the princess, so I went before the emperor and asked for orders to go to war.
"But even on the battlefield, that thing still sat in my chest like a stone. I led troops with my mind elsewhere. I fought one battle and lost one battle, fought another and lost another. In the end, even my post as general was taken away.
"Fine. So be it. I could no longer lead soldiers, but I could still do other things. I could cook with the camp cooks. I could brew liquor for the men. So I brewed liquor, and I drank liquor. Liquor is a wonderful thing. It raises cultivation, strengthens courage, washes away sorrow, and even cures illness.
"I am not joking. The good liquor I brewed really could heal people. Plenty of soldiers in the army had their lives pulled back from the brink by my medicinal liquor. And just like that, I stayed in the army for decades. Everyone forgot I had once known how to fight. They all thought I was nothing more than a medical officer.
"But I hadn’t forgotten military strategy. I hadn’t lost my martial skill either. When real battles came, I could still offer the generals a few ideas. Sadly, no one wanted to listen to me.
"In the blink of an eye, I was eighty years old, still idling away my days in the barracks. I thought that was how my life would pass.
"Then we encountered a major battle. Before the fight, the generals gathered to discuss strategy, and I couldn’t help myself and offered an idea. I said we should lead troops that very night and raid the enemy camp. The enemy would never expect it, and we would surely win a great victory.
"Everyone laughed at me. They said an eighty-year-old physician with a mouthful of missing teeth was spouting nonsense, and that I should be careful not to let the wind snap my tongue.
"But the chief commander did not laugh at me. She gave me two thousand soldiers and let me lead them out that very night."
Li Banfeng asked as he applied the ointment. "Who is this chief commander?"
"The famous general Zhao Xiaowan."
Clatter!
The ointment pot fell to the ground, and Li Banfeng quickly bent down to pick it up.
Old Mister Yao continued, "Zhao Xiaowan was a real general. She knew how to fight. She was nothing like those people who had grand titles but no real ability.
"She had good judgment, and I did not disappoint her. That very night, I led the troops out, burned the enemy camp, killed their commander, and returned in victory. After that, she let me serve as a general under her.
"I was eighty years old. Do you understand? I was already eighty, yet I became a general again.
"My armor was torn, so I stitched it back together, one needle at a time.
"My saber was rusted, so I polished it until it shone again.
"My old warhorse was long gone, but the saddle was still there. After some cleaning, it could still be used.
"Under Chief Commander Zhao Xiaowan, I first served as a deputy general, then as a vanguard. I fought battle after battle, and while serving under General Zhao, I never lost once.
"I came alive again. Truly, I did. I felt as if I had died at eighteen and only came back to life at eighty.
"But do you know what happened later?"
Li Banfeng said, "You also told me you made another friend when you were eighty. He took everything from you that could be taken."
Old Mister Yao sighed. "That son of a tortoise was Cong Shixiang."
Cong Shixiang. Li Banfeng had seen that name in the history books. It was the Wave-Cleaving General mentioned in the history books.
The moment Old Mister Yao mentioned him, his teeth clenched with hatred. "That bastard kept whispering lies to me. He told me the chief commander no longer trusted me. He said she would never ask me to fight again and would only keep me around as a medical officer.
"And at that time, there really were several battles where the chief commander did not send for me. Instead, she gave me plenty of odd jobs, patrolling the camp and keeping watch. So I believed Cong Shixiang’s nonsense. In a fit of anger, I insisted on guarding Bitter Medicine Pass, and no matter who tried to talk me out of it, I refused to listen.
"I really didn’t know what was happening back then. I didn’t know those bastards were planning to strike at the chief commander from the shadows.
"The chief commander did not send me into battle because, apart from me, there was no one left in the army she could trust. But I was determined to go to Bitter Medicine Pass, and in the end, the chief commander agreed. Not long after I arrived there, news reached me.
"The chief commander had been... by those filthy bastards... She had been..."
Old Mister Yao paused, then let out a sigh.
"If I had still been in the army, those sons of tortoises would never have succeeded. But what is the use of thinking about this now?
"I guarded Bitter Medicine Pass with my life. No matter who came, I drove them back. But what was the point of doing that?
"While I lived, I guarded this place. After I died, I still guarded this place. I treated it as my home. But what was the point of doing that?
"I had nothing left. At eight, at eighteen, and again at eighty, I was backstabbed by the friends I trusted. After that, I never made another friend.
"Then, after I had long forgotten how old I was, I just had to run into you.
"You said you wanted to do business with me. At first, I did not want to deal with you, but I found your temperament very much agreeable. More importantly, I knew that the chief commander was with you."
Clatter!
The ointment pot fell to the ground again, and Li Banfeng quickly bent down to pick it up.
Old Mister Yao smiled faintly. "Our chief commander went to Feng’s General Store. I heard her sing, but I didn’t dare to visit her.
"Later, I learned she had gone with you. I knew you had good character. You saved Fatty Qin, helped Yu Nan, and dealt with those villains from the Geng Family. You are a good lad who knows right from wrong and values loyalty.
"But I still could not stop worrying. So I sent the Liquor Gourd to look in on the chief commander for me. After she came back, she refused to tell me anything. That girl ended up following you with all her heart too.
"Nonetheless, that is fine. You stood against Pan Dehai and saved the Ridges of Bottomless Stomachs. A good man like you is someone I can trust. That was when I felt at ease about the chief commander being by your side."
Li Banfeng gripped the ointment pot tightly. This time, he did not drop it.
Old Mister Yao knew many things, but Li Banfeng was not worried about that now. What worried him was how much longer Old Mister Yao could hold on.
The adhesive tape was used up. The ointment was used up too. Yet the blood on Old Mister Yao’s body still kept flowing.
If even Old Mister Yao, the Medicine King himself, had no solution, then could this really be the end?
Old Mister Yao drew in a deep breath, then turned toward Li Banfeng with a smile. "Brother, judging by the smell of it, the foul luck in Medicine King Gully seems to have scattered. Has the Formation of Misfortune been deactivated?"
"It has," Li Banfeng said.
Old Mister Yao smiled again. "Good brother, I owe you more than a little. Everything I own in this place is yours now. But there is one thing I want to ask of you. I want to see the chief commander one more time."
Could Li Banfeng let him see her?
Old Mister Yao stood where he was, his whole body trembling. He could only keep himself upright by leaning hard on the three-pointed, double-edged saber.
He could not see Li Banfeng, yet somehow, it felt as though he was looking right at him.
He was waiting for Li Banfeng to answer.
Li Banfeng thought for a moment, then said, "Wait a moment."
Old Mister Yao had lost his sight, so he did not know where Li Banfeng had gone.
After waiting for a little while, he suddenly heard something familiar. It was the sound of war drums. Within the drumbeats, there were soldiers marching, warhorses neighing, and weapons clashing against armor.
Li Banfeng opened the door to the Pocket Dwelling and the doorway was facing Old Mister Yao directly.
From inside came his wife’s voice. "Old General Yao, how goes the battle?"
Old Mister Yao tightened his grip on the long saber and straightened his back.
"This humble general, Yao Xin, was stationed at the pass. I repelled the invaders and lost not a single inch of land. I slew more than a hundred enemies and cut down the enemy general in battle. Now, I present the traitor’s head to the chief commander!"
He wanted to lift the Star of Misfortune’s head up but he couldn’t do it.
His wife’s voice came again. "General, your bravery is unmatched among the three armies. When we march again, you shall still lead the vanguard."
"Chief commander! Thank you!"
Two streams of blood slipped down from Old Mister Yao’s eyes. His breath was gone, but he did not fall. He still stood there, gripping his saber.
The Gramophone began playing Mount Dingjun once more.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Hong Ying gently turned her spear around and struck the ground with the shaft, matching the beat of the drums.
This was a martial gesture of respect.
"You were right," Hong Ying said. "He is a good general. Is he still alive?"
The Gramophone answered, "He is alive, but his injuries are too severe. He has fallen asleep."
"Will he wake up?"
The Gramophone did not answer.
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