In the evening, the border of Chonghua was dusted with fine snow, and the ground gradually accumulated a smooth white layer. Wheels ran over it, and pedestrians walked by, leaving lines of different shades over it.
Selling biscuits at the market, Wang Ermazi shouted and shouted, exhaled, and shouted loudly: "Come, biscuits fresh out of the oven!"
Continuing his racket, he shouted: "Nothing in this world is thicker than my cooked biscuits - even Gu Mang’s face[1]! Come and buy! Come and buy!!”
Passerbys listened and laughed to themselves.
This biscuit stall had been running for over ten years. In the early years, Wang Ermazi was singing quite a different tune. At that time, his go to slogan had been: "Look, look, General Gu loves eating. Eat my biscuits, after you eat them, you will be as good as General Gu, and get better step by step!"
Through the snow, a row of cavalry and a strong military force approached slowly. At the head was a young boy who was about seventeen or eighteen years old. With a golden fur hat, the young, handsome face wrapped in a rich collar looked rather indolent.
The boy, named Yue Chenqing, was the deputy of the Wei Weijun.
This person had two unpredictable types of abilities that made others feel inferior. One of them could be seen clearly. As the saying went, “Other’s anger does not touch me.” If anger led to illness, no one could take their place[2]. Yue Chenqing thought anger was a waste of energy. He was the most easygoing of the pampered young heirs.
The second one was “Make yourself comfortable, and as comfortable as possible.”
Therefore, he sat when he was meant to stand, and lay down when he was meant to be sitting. Yue Chenqing’s favorite saying is that “Drink all you own now, drink what your brother’s own tomorrow.” So anything good he had today wouldn’t survive the night, drink all he could, and bedded women before talking to them.
As for his patrol….it was “play now, patrol later”.
The market at the city of Beiguan north of the border, sold mostly animal skins, herbs, spiritual stones, slaves and the like. Although the market was not that interesting, in the bitter cold, the army had no better way to waste their time.
"The seven-tailed civet cat, I want."
"Take that bird’s tail feathers and buy it for me."
"The tumbleweed that's being sold looks good. We can use those to make purifying medicine. Give me a basket of ten."
He walked all the way, commanding his followers to help him buy large and small commercial goods in the Cao Market, rather neglecting his duties, and although they were uneasy, it was no good to say anything to the general’s face.
Strolling around, Yue Chenqing felt hungry, looking around and eating, and suddenly heard the screaming of Wang Ermao in the distance, his deep, throaty shouting making its way through the wind and snow:
"Buy my cooked biscuits! As thick as Gu Mang’s face! Look for yourself!"
Yue Chenqing listened to this slogan, the corner of his mouth twitching, his heart said: Oh no, this guy’s actually using Gu Mang’s name to sell biscuits! Was that even ok? It’s going to be a disaster!
So he thought as he went to open his mouth, but it was a strong scones. So Yue Chenqing's swearing to the mouth, and even the drool that almost flowed out was swallowed back.
His cursing became: "...give me a biscuit."
“Well!” Wang Ermazi took out a piece of roasted browned biscuit from the hearth and put it in a wax paper bag, and handed it to the guest in front of him. “Come, here, be careful. This biscuit, you definitely have to eat it hot!"
Yue Chenqing took the hot biscuit, and bit down. With a crunching sound, the golden crispy biscuit released some hot oil. The taste of wheat bran, minced meat and pepper bloomed on his tongue. Overflowing, he swallowed it.
He couldn’t help but compliment them: "It tastes good."
“Doesn’t it? I have two sesame seed biscuits, that one is called Best in the World," Wang Ermazi boasted proudly, "After all of Gu Mang’s glorious past conquests, he would return to the city after he finished playing, and he’d definitely come to my booth. He’d eat five or six!"
After he boasted, he did not forget to add: "However, I should have known that the one with the surname Gu would eventually turn tail and become a traitor. Laozi should have poisoned his cake in the past. Humph!"
Yue Chenqing chewed his biscuit and said: "Don't talk about that so carefully. If you still can, change that slogan of yours."
Wang Ermazi’s eyes widened: "Junye[3], why is that?"
"Whatever Junye says, you’d be right to listen to." Yue Chenqing bit a large chunk out of his biscuit and stuffed it into his bulging cheeks. “I am going to fight Liao country soon. I am afraid that the army will be here for three years, five years. If you do this, you will pay for for having Gu Mang’s name on your mouth." He smiled intensely and said, "Hey, beware poking some general or other’s sore spot."
Yue Chenqing clearly meant Mo Xi when he said “some general”.
Mo Xi, appointed by the first king and granted the emperor’s seal, was born with the status of the noble Mo family, one of the four Mo family generals, who were respectively, his paternal maternal grandfather, and father. It was natural, therefore, for Mo Xi to have terrifying skill in cultivation. Take into account that he’d studied under the most rigorous elders at the Xiuzhen Xue Palace and this year, he was Chonghua’s number one general.
And he was only twenty-eight years old.
Because of his clan’s upbringing, Mo Xi was as cold and sharp as ice. He said what he meant clearly. His father used to remind him "gentle towns bury their heros, stop bothering women, work more," so Mo Xi was always clear-minded, and his character extremely virtuous. You could say that he hadn’t done a single wrong thing in twenty-eight years.
Except Gu Mang.
Gu Mang’s relationship with Mo Xi was the ink on paper, the mud in the snow, and, upon the gentleman’s neat white bed, a provocative drop of blood.
Gu Mang was a stain[4] in his life.
That night.
In the campsite outside the frontier fortress, there was the sound of a clear wind blowing over sand. The sound of singing continued, and ghostly wafts of snow seemed to float through the frost.
"... Young green tea leaves, fresh new rain. Young gold trees, and fine pavilions. Sweet love songs, take them with wine. Even faced with the lowest of life forms, isn’t your heart moved…?[5]"
The military guards outside the deputy's big camp looked around like quaisl[6]. Seeing a tall black figure in the distance, they couldn't help but change their expression and hurriedly opened the tent doors, shouting, "Incoming! Incoming!"
"What's incoming?" The general in the tent, Yue Chenqing, yawned and raised his eyes, asking from his side profile.
"Oh! It’s time for you, the deputy, to get up and go fix it, don’t listen to this show."
"What are you in a hurry for?" Yue Chenqing said lazily, "Leaving when the show’s ended won’t be too late."
To the actor, he said: "Don't just stand there, keep singing."
The singer's voice was threaded outwards as thin as smoke drifting to the heavens: "The land rises through yin. The wind threads past the corners of our eyes. Qi Xuan's still teaching Buddhist sacred texts. All to ask the east wind when we'll awaken from this dream. [7]"
"Oh general, general, general, sir, you can let them stop singing," the military general hurriedly said, "It’s about finished."
"Life is short and miserable, you should enjoy today." Yue Chen gnawed at his nails contentedly. "Otherwise your days will be bland."
"This, if Xi Hejun sees ..."
"Xi Hejun is not here, what are you nervous for?" Yue Chenqing smiled. "Moreover, Xi Hejun has never had a happy moment in his life. He never celebrates, never cheers up. He gets angry when I curse. Look at me, always having to try and keep him in a good mood. It’s horribly exhausting."
"General," his soldiers rushed up, near tears. "Speak a little softer..."
"Eh? Why?"
"Because, because..." The soldiers watched the curtain of the tent, whispering, "because..."
Yue Chenqing jumped on his seat, and put the silver outer clothes of Xi Hejun on his head. He smiled and said: "Are you completely terrified of Xi Hejun? How does even a mention of him have you guys forgetting how to speak properly?"
"Oh, but this is also the case with Xi Hejun." Yue Chenqing said, "He wants to abstain from sex, and he’s forced the whole army to abstain with him. Look at this army, you can’t even see female dogs."
This is true. Throughout the entire army, this was the greatest source of bitterness.
Although under his rules, the cost of eating and drinking weren’t high, as Yue Chenqing said, this guy was boring, serious, couldn’t appreciate beauty, and he wouldn’t let others either.
Yue Chenqing clearly thought the situation was funny, but suppressed a smile and sighed: "He is a good person, it’s just that, he wants to control too much. You see, he’s so terrified of disorder, he’s just ended up becoming responsible for all the mess here, and without any of the soldiers interested in his agenda, all his efforts gone to waste."
His bodyguard, seized with a horrible feeling, hurriedly said: "Yue Shao, stop speaking..."
Yue Chenqing not only kept on, but got more and more excited: "Hey, you guys are all acting awkward, are you all getting angry too? Hey, well, whatever about him, I quickly give you guys the chance to get loose. I’ll take us to the visit the maidens soon. Abolish the ban, let's do a beauty contest, I will pay tribute to the most beautiful girl in the village -"
"Who will you pay tribute to?"
The low, cold voice of a young man spoke up, the tent flap fell back onto the ground, and a pale, silver armoured man walked in.
His uniform was straight, his shoulders broad yet slender, and his long legs were wrapped in black leather boots. At a glance, one’s first impression was that of a handsome, frosty man with eyes that were cold and sharp.
It was no one but the very man Yue Chenqing was mocking, Mo Xi.
How could Mo Xi return so suddenly?!!
Yue Chenqing was dumbfounded. After his wits returned, he immediately shivered and wrapped himself tighter with his fur jacket.
"General Mo," General Yue said, doing his best to look pitiful, "When you decided to come back early, why didn’t you tell the others?---Agh!"
Agh, because Mo Xi had felt so disgusted, he had called his spiritual sword to him and slashed it over Yue Chenqing’s cheek.
Yue Chenqing, almost beheaded, got up and patted his cheeks frantically: "Xihe Jun, why’d you hit me?!"
"You’re asking me questions, I haven't started questioning you yet. By all means, continue. You said, how come there’s not a single woman in our army?"
Mo Xi shot a quick, assessing glance at the performer, who was scared silent, and turned to stare at Yue Chenqing. "Did you bring this in?"
Yue Chenqing originally wanted to reply, but changed his mind in terror upon meeting Mo Xi’s eyes: "... Don't be like that. I just wanted to listen to a song. It’s Chun country’s famous piece, Xihe Jun, do you want to hear a verse?. ......"
Mo Xi’s expression was cold as he snapped out: "Obscene music. Drag it out.[8]"
Thank goodness he didn’t mention any decapitation.
Yue Chenqing hugged his knees and rocked back and forth in front of him, weeping and crying. "You are so cold and unfeeling, I’m telling my dad you’re always mean to me."
Mo Xi glanced at him: "You leave too."
Yue Chenqing: "..."
Waiting for Yue Chenqing to leave, bawling all the while, Mo Xi went out alone into the camp. He took off his black dragon hand guards, and pressed slender fingers between his eyebrows, and closed his eyes slowly. In the light of the candle, his face seemed slightly tired and pale. The weary expression in his eyes was a sharp contrast to his usual alert expression.
He looked incredibly exhausted.
Not long ago, he received a secret letter from the Emperor of China, which was personally written by Chonghua Jun. After receiving the letter, Mo Xi read it three times before finally confirming that he was not mistaken.
Gu Mang wanted to return to Chonghua.
The letter was currently nestled inside his coat. With a heavy, dull heartbeat and an increasingly warm face, he thought, Gu Mang wants to return to China. The news was like a thorn in his heart, with endless pricks of pain.
Mo Xi frowned and attempted to force down his trepidation, but eventually the dread flowed back out. He opened his eyes suddenly as long legs clad in black boots slammed onto the floor before him.
There was a crashing noise.
"Ah, General Mo!" The bodyguards who had stayed out of the tent came in, and tremulously asked, "You’re angry, but little Yue is young, loves to play and fool around, which is normal. It was actually the subordinates who were wrong, we did not stop little Yue from listening to the drama, you have us to blame for the punishment, but don’t anger yourself unnecessarily..."
Mo Xi turned towards them, and in the darkness, his eyes seemed to flicker with an electric fire.
"Get out of here."
"..."
"Without my permission, no one is allowed to come in."
"Yes……"
The curtains fell back down, and both inside and outside, the silence was so terrible that they could only hear the sound of the north wind and the snow; the movement of the soldiers in the distance; the squeaking of the military boots on the snow, and the distant sound of camp horses.
Mo Xi turned his head, looking downwards, and stared at the mulberry berries that were rolling on the ground. Those fruits were, for a moment, the heads that Gu Mang had left in his wake.
He wondered, how could a person do so many horrific things, wicked things, wrong things, betray their country, fellow soldiers, and friends, and now, associated with such a notoriously bloody past, with so many holding a deep hatred, actually have the nerve to come back.
How can Gu Mang still have the audacity to try and come back?
Mo Xi stopped for a while, attempting to calm down, and then re-examined the private letter that he’d repeatedly read so many times. The king’s handwriting was neat and exact:
Liao country intends to initiate a truce with our state. It’s a sincere proposal. Gu Mang has been escorted back to our city.
Gu Mang, a Chonghua countryman, who’d once had deep trust, but he’d written off his loyalty, and decided to selfishly commit treason. In the past five years, the motherland had been plundered, the peace of the homeland had been destroyed, the soldiers of the past had been slaughtered, and the relatives and friends of his past had been abandoned. His sins were difficult to forgive.
After ten days, Gu Mang will return to the city, and the hatred and grievances will be renewed. No one can decide what he deserved. Therefore, the officials are discussing the dilemma together. Although Qi Hejun is far away from Guanshan, he’s a trusted advisor, and as such is invited.
Please take care of yourself, dear subject.
Mo Xi stared at the letter for a long time, and suddenly sneered, bitter laughter making its way out of him. His face gradually filled with a bit of bitterness, a bit of a hateful expression.
This person has committed a treasonous felony, and what reason was there for him to continue living?
Pull him into pieces with horses, cut him into a thousand pieces, slice him up.
He’d deserve any death he got!
So he thought hatefully.
He’d deserve any death he got.
But when he lifted his pen to write “kill,” he was forced to stop halfway. His hand trembled, staining the page with ink.
A faint, musical noise made its way through the tent suddenly. Who knew which homesick soldier decided to begin playing his village’s song, hidden in some corner.
Mo Xi’s black eyes flickered with a strange light. In the end, he crumpled his reply into a ball and threw the pen down. He picked up the letter and burnt it to nothing. Ashes.
Ash fluttered in the wind, Xi Hejun exhaled, and turned the ashes into a butterfly that could fly thousands of miles.
"Gu Mang was once close to this subordinate. He committed treason, and he cannot escape that blame. As for the trial, to avoid suspicion, I should not participate." He paused and added a sentence, "North border, Mo Xi. I ask the emperor to understand."
As he said this, he raised his hand, and the butterfly flew away.
He looked towards the place where the butterfly disappeared, thinking, well, his and Gu Mang’s entanglement which went back more than ten years would finally end. Gu Mang had killed so many Chinese soldiers, and even more civilians. Now that he’d earned his due, had been used by the enemy and returned, it made sense that the Emperor and military officials were not in a hurry to get revenge.
It seemed as though now he, with his two years of border duty, would not be able to see Gu Mang’s death penalty.
He slowly closed his eyes, and although his expression showed no emotions, his nails dug into his palm.
It was all over.
His friend had walked too far on a different path.
When they reunite, things would be the same, but the people would have changed.
What kind of feeling was this? Perhaps it was one outsiders would never understand.
Mo Xi sat down in the empty army tent, exhausted.
After all, he had failed to save Gu Mang from the path he’d been walking.
Enemies, lovers, nemesis.
This will be the final conclusion of the relationship between the two of them in the history books.
Beside the gods, he was afraid no one would ever know their shameful, personal secret. That is, these two seemingly hate filled opponents of life and death ―
Went to bed together.
Yes.
Many years ago, the repressed Xi Hejun, pushed Gu Mang down on his bed and ravaged him. The rigorous and cold Xi Hejun, once he lost control, all control inside Gu Mang, sweat dripping down his chest, lost in his desire to catch his eyes.
And the heaven rebuking, earth shattering Gu Mang? He’d been reduced to tears. He’d once had soft, soft lips eager for Mo Xi’s kisses, indulging in the firm press of Mo Xi’s body against his, allowing him to leave those dark, purpling bruises all over him.
They were adversaries, and their hatred had only grown with time. Only death could solve this hatred.
Before this, though, before their paths had diverged so drastically ―
The two of them, younger, had come together so enthusiastically.
Their love and desires were so thickly entangled. Separation[6] would be painful and unwilling.
Author’s Notes:
Translation Notes:
[1] “Thick Face” means shameless. So the only thing thicker than his face is apparently his biscuits.
[2] 别人生气我不气,气出病来无人替. Basically, staying calm when others are angry, and avoiding the consequences
[3]军爷 Respected elder or “grandpa”, debatably.
[4] 污 that’s a repeat of the word used in the title. Read carefully, this will come back into play.
[5]玉茗新池雨。金柅小阁晴。有情歌酒莫教停。看取无情虫蚁也关.
It's the first few lines from Record of Southern Bough by Tang XianZu.
Story-wise, it's just talking about how he attended a friend's birthday party, got drunk, hallucinated he traveled to another country/world made of ants where 3 of the princesses talked to him about their younger sister who's about to be married. Ideologically, this quote is about how even emotionless/non-sentient ants have emotions/sentience too. On a whole, it's about how humans think sentience, emotions and ambitions are important to living but they're actually not.
Official translation can be found via this book with the ISBN 9787119041650 for the low low price of 17.99. If anyone has it, just DM it to me and I’ll replace mine.
[6] 状如鹌鹑 Literal meaning, acting like a quail.
[7] “国土阴中起。风花眼角成。契玄还有讲残经。为问东风吹梦几时醒。” He’s singing a story. Qi Xuan is a famous Chinese speaker.
[8] He doesn’t use a pronoun here, but his tone is rather annoyed. To preserve grammar I have used the "it" pronoun.
[9]Alluding perhaps to the imminent execution, the permanent seperation.
Dante’s Notes:
Translating flowery prose is a unique stage of grief, Meat Bun.
Betaed by divva shijie <3 love you 3000
Help provided with poetry by @Shibb on Novel Updates.
This chapter translated by Dante.
Updates are every Friday! Thank you for reading Yu Wu.