Ashes to Crown

Chapter 185: Chapter 16: Mission

At the crack of dawn, riders and horses galloped through the Capital Camp.

Riders had been galloping through the Capital Camp nonstop, the clamor and chaos persisting ever since the night the upheaval began.

The unrest had hit the Capital Camp even before it struck the Capital City. In the middle of the night, troops were suddenly mobilized, and the slaughter began—

A chill ran down Zhang Gu’s spine every time he recalled the events of that day. Comrades he once knew had turned on and slaughtered each other. Then, they were cut down by forces from the outside. Later, unfamiliar court troops arrived to surround the Capital Camp, and even more men were killed—

Zhang Gu stood outside the barracks, gazing at the pale light on the horizon. The other camps didn’t know it, but his Posthouse Soldier Camp had lost half its familiar faces.

His superior officer had been cut down on the night of the rebellion. He was one of the Crown Prince’s men. With him dead, the Posthouse Soldier Camp was branded as remnants of the Third Prince’s faction.

They were lucky to have avoided immediate execution. Now, they were detained and awaiting judgment, with no idea if they’d ever be able to serve as soldiers again.

”Mr. Zhang.”

A soft voice called out from behind him.

Zhang Gu turned to see one of the posthouse soldiers sidling up to him.

’Thankfully, everyone in my squad is still alive.’

”Here.” His comrade pressed a flask of hot tea into his hand.

Zhang Gu took it and drank a large mouthful, chasing the chill from his body. ”Don’t worry,” he said. ”Looks like things have settled down. Everyone who needed to be dealt with has been dealt with. We should be fine. As long as we’re alive, even if we can’t be soldiers anymore, we’re still fortunate.”

He meant to comfort his brother-in-arms, but the man didn’t look worried or anxious at all. Instead, his eyes were wide with excitement. ”Mr. Zhang, Mr. Zhang! Do you know who it is? The one in charge now... from the court... the Emperor’s man!”

After all the fighting in the Capital Camp, rumor had it that the Emperor’s trusted aides were now in command. Some said it was the Dark Guard Army. The leader was, of course, one of the Emperor’s own men, but grunts like them would never be qualified to meet him.

Zhang Gu didn’t really care. ’Whoever it is,’ he thought, ’what does it have to do with us?’

”Mr. Zhang, it’s someone we know,” his comrade said, his voice brimming with excitement.

’Someone we know?’ Zhang Gu was confused. ’How could simple posthouse soldiers like us know one of the Emperor’s men?’

”Not one of the Emperor’s men, but one of General Chu’s,” his comrade whispered. ”You know... Vice General Zhong.”

For a moment, Zhang Gu didn’t know who he was talking about.

His comrade made a gesture on his face. ”Scarface. Miss Chu. Ah Fu. The ones we met on the road. Ah Fu was—”

Ah Fu, Scarface, General Chu... It all came rushing back to Zhang Gu in an instant, the memories flooding his mind. In truth, it hadn’t even been that long ago.

”Him?” he asked, surprised. ”It’s really him?”

Then again, it wasn’t that surprising. Chu Ling had once been the Emperor’s most trusted man. Perhaps the Emperor had anticipated this and had General Chu send people back in advance—

As Zhang Gu’s mind raced, he heard his comrade whisper something else.

”I also heard... General Chu’s daughter is the Empress now.”

’General Chu’s daughter... isn’t that Ah Fu?’ Zhang Gu was jolted back to his senses. ’Ah Fu is the Empress? Then—’

A sudden shout interrupted the two men huddled together.

”Zhang Gu!” a harsh voice barked. ”Step forward.”

Zhang Gu and his comrade flinched at the shout. ’Is it my turn—’

Zhang Gu looked up. In the dim, pale light, he saw several soldiers and an officer standing not far off. His gaze involuntarily landed on one of them: a young general clad in iron armor, a quiver of arrows on his back and a sword at his waist. He was tall and lean—

He looked familiar, yet so dazzling it was hard to look at him directly.

He stood frozen in place.

The young general was the first to speak.

”Mr. Zhang,” he said. ”It’s been a while.”

...

...

A new recruit in the Posthouse Soldier Camp sat on the ground, secretly wiping away tears. ’Life is so unpredictable,’ he thought. He had imagined that leaving his village to join the Capital Camp would be his chance to make a name for himself, to achieve something great. And now? It had only been a short while, and forget making a name for himself—he was about to lose his head.

’How could I be so unlucky as to get caught up in a Prince’s rebellion?’

’The worst part is, I didn’t even do anything—’

The new recruit was mourning his fate in silence when he was suddenly interrupted. A comrade ran over, grabbed a few others, and started whispering animatedly. The group immediately erupted into a hubbub, like a pot of boiling water.

”Is it really Ah Jiu?”

”Ah Jiu’s an officer now?”

”And he remembers us!”

”He does. He called Mr. Zhang over. No one knows what they talked about. It was just the two of them.”

Seeing their excited faces, the new recruit couldn’t bring himself to cry anymore. He couldn’t help but ask, ”Is there more bad news?”

The men looked back at him. ”You, kid, you’re actually lucky.”

The new recruit was stunned. ’What good luck? Being locked up and waiting to be executed?’

Just then, Zhang Gu returned. Seeing him, everyone crowded around, asking excitedly, ”Mr. Zhang, why was Ah Jiu here?”

Zhang Gu looked at them all. ”Get your gear. We have a mission.”

A mission! Everyone was astonished. Even the new recruit jumped to his feet. A mission meant they were safe. Things were back to normal.

”Really?” they asked, thrilled. ”Did Ah Jiu get us released?”

Zhang Gu looked at them and nodded. ”You could say that. He’s the one who gave us this mission.” Then he shook his head. ”But then again, no.”

’So is it him or not?’ His men were confused.

Zhang Gu rested a hand on his waist and didn’t elaborate. ”Alright, no more questions. Get your equipment. We leave immediately. These are tumultuous times. The court is swamped with military and political matters, and we can’t afford any delays.”

In truth, he didn’t need to explain. None of his men felt it was too rushed. At this moment, they were all eager to get back to work and return to some semblance of normalcy. They answered in unison and went to get ready.

The new recruit stumbled along with them in a daze. ’Is this really happening?’

But the new recruit quickly realized it was all real. They were swiftly outfitted with horses and equipment far better than what they’d had before. Everyone they encountered treated them with the utmost respect, giving them whatever they needed, sometimes even before they asked.

The men appraised the fine steeds, a type of horse they’d never ridden before, their faces alight with excitement.

”Ah Jiu really is a high-ranking officer now,” one of the men said with a sigh of admiration. ”Even as a big shot, he didn’t forget us.”

”Ah Jiu is a true brother,” another remarked with feeling.

The new recruit couldn’t help but ask, ”So, who is this Ah Jiu, anyway?”

The others looked at him with pity. ”You’re just unlucky, kid. You missed out on serving with Ah Jiu.”

The men laughed and joked, the gloomy, worried haze of the past few days completely gone. It was as if they had all come back to life. Watching them from the side, Zhang Gu couldn’t help but smile too. But it wasn’t just Ah Jiu who hadn’t forgotten them. There was also Ah Fu.

...

...

”She was the one who asked for your help,” the young man had said, his tone casual. ”She really trusts you, you know.”

At the time, Zhang Gu couldn’t help but laugh. ”Ah Fu is really... too kind—”

”What’s there to be kind about?” The young man’s phoenix eyes had flickered with that familiar roguish glint. ”It’s because you’re so easy to fool. Of course she can trust you.”

He was, of course, referring to their journey together. Zhang Gu’s smile only widened. He looked at the young man before him and said, ”It was our good fortune to have met and traveled with you.”

The young man seemed exasperated. ”What good fortune? Mr. Zhang, you really need to stop being such a pushover.”

Zhang Gu laughed heartily. He hadn’t been afraid of this young man back when he was a new, untamable arrival, and he wasn’t afraid of him now, even clad in cold iron armor and hailed by generals.

...

...

”Mr. Zhang, what are you smiling about?” one of his men noticed. Now that their hearts were light, they felt bold enough to joke around. ”Did Ah Jiu give us some other perks?”

Zhang Gu let out a laugh and grabbed the reins to mount his horse.

”Mr. Zhang,” the same comrade ran over and asked in a low voice, ”Did Ah Fu... really become the Empress?”

Zhang Gu’s hand on the reins froze.

...

...

”She’s not just ’Ah Fu’ anymore,” Ah Jiu had said, holding his own reins and looking back. ”The Emperor has abdicated in favor of the Imperial Grandson, and has decreed by imperial edict that the Chu Family’s Daughter, Chu Zhao, is to be the Empress.”

The young man had swung himself onto his horse, a faint smile on his lips.

”She is now the Empress.”

With that, he had spurred his horse and galloped away, his retinue of soldiers and officers following close behind.

The Empress is the Emperor’s wife. And the new Emperor is the former Imperial Grandson.

Ah Fu had become the Imperial Grandson’s wife.

’That means... Ah Fu and Ah Jiu can never be husband and wife.’

’Who would have thought? Their families’ elders didn’t break them apart, but fate itself did—’

Zhang Gu looked ahead. The sky was now bright, and the young general’s figure was long gone.

’Ah Jiu must be heartbroken, mustn’t he?’