A Wanderer's Song at One Forty

Seeing Luan Yi hang the crucifix from his own neck onto Xu Shu's, Xu Shu was greatly shocked. "What is Brother Yi doing? Why are you giving the Pope's Command to Shu?" With that, he made a move to take it off.

"Do not panic, Brother Fu, and listen to Yi." Luan Yi pressed down on Xu Shu's hands and continued, "Zhang Rang holds a high position, and this time, framed by him, my future is uncertain. To ensure that the incense of the Holy Mother Church burns eternally, preparations must be made. Therefore... if something happens to Yi in Luoyang, the position of Pope shall be taken over by Brother Fu, to continue passing on blessings to the Jinan Kingdom and the people of the Great Han. At the same time, you must keep the church knights and the metropolitans of all states suppressed to prevent them from stirring up trouble. Pay special attention to my third brother; although he is a good man, he is prone to acting on impulse. At that time, you must use the Pope's Command to keep his temper in check and make sure he does not provoke conflicts or bring trouble upon the church!"

"Brother Yi!" Xu Shu burst into tears instantly. "Since it is this dangerous, shall we not go to the capital? Let us do as Third Brother Zhang said and fight our way back to Jinan Kingdom. Right now, there are many believers in Qing and Yan provinces, and we can take both provinces in the flip of a hand. With these two provinces as a barrier, it will be quite enough to keep Brother Yi completely safe."

Luan Yi smiled with bittersweet satisfaction, wrapped an arm around Xu Shu's shoulder, and said, "Brother Fu, you and I are brothers of many years, closer than blood brothers. There are some things I will not hide from you. To be honest, upon seeing the letter from your father-in-law, Yi also thought of defying the imperial decree and returning to Jinan to seek a temporary peace. However, we are currently stationed in Nanyang, a full ten thousand miles away from Jinan, with numerous passes and checkpoints along the way. Furthermore, our army is short on grain; during pacification, we could obtain supplies from various counties, but now that we have become rebels who defy the imperial decree, where are we to get grain? Without grain, how can we return to Jinan? Therefore, this path is impassable. Even if it were passable, Yi would not take it. Yi does not want to leave behind the foul reputation of a rebel after death, nor does Yi want all my brothers to bear this foul reputation and die with me. Yi can die, but all of you must live well!" Luan Yi's eyes grew moist.

"Brother Yi!" Xu Shu knew that everything Luan Yi said was true; given the current number of church guards and grain supplies, they would indeed be completely wiped out before reaching Jinan. Thinking of this, he hugged Luan Yi and wept bitterly. "Brother Yi cannot die either!"

"Heh!" Luan Yi gave a self-deprecating smile and comforted Xu Shu, saying, "I, Luan Yi, am blessed with supreme fortune. I've survived through thousands of troops and horses, so what is there to fear about the capital? Presumably, it won't be so easy to meet with disaster. My father-in-law is currently looking everywhere for connections; perhaps by the time Yi arrives in Luoyang, both fathers-in-law will have resolved the problem?"

"I hope so!"

Luan Yi straightened the crucifix on Xu Shu's neck and instructed, "Remember, you must not let anyone within the church make any rash moves, otherwise not only will it fail to save me, but it will harm me instead. If needed, I will have Luan Fu ask you all for help!"

Xu Shu sniffled and said, "Shu understands!"

"And another thing..." Luan Yi thought for a moment and said, "Send someone immediately to notify Luan Fu and have him arrange all matters in the capital properly. Especially the prison—spend more money and get this young master a better cell, preferably one facing the sun. There must be meat with every meal, and if he can have the dishes from the Qifeng Pavilion delivered every single meal, that would be even better. If he can also find a young maiden to keep me company, that would be simply splendid!"

Xu Shu laughed so hard that snot sprayed out, and he cursed, "You rascal, go on with you! Even at a time like this, you're still in the mood to joke!"

"Crying is a day, and laughing is a day. Rather than living in tears, it's better to live with a smile. Am I right?"

"Pfft!" Xu Shu shook his head. He had to admit that Luan Yi's thick-skinned optimism cheered him up quite a bit. "Such warped logic!"

Right at that moment, a gatekeeper came in to report, "Reporting... Pope, someone claiming to be an imperial envoy wishes to enter the camp gate to read an imperial decree. We know not whether he should be admitted."

Luan Yi replied, "Let them in... Oh, and make sure to treat them with utmost courtesy! Tell the envoy that I will burn incense and change my robes before going to listen to the decree!"

"Understood..." The gatekeeper strode away.

Luan Yi walked over to the bedside, opened a wooden chest, and selected a brand-new official robe. This was sewn for him at the end of last year by his mother, Madam Diao, and had just been sent to him from Jinan by someone entrusted with the task. He tightly gripped the black official robe, unable to help thinking of his loving mother—that woman who silently stood behind him, caring for and protecting him. He had originally wanted to keep this garment as a medium to gaze upon the object and remember the person. Now that disaster was imminent, what if he didn't wear it and never got another chance? Would his mother feel disappointed, and would he have any regrets? He was his mother's last surviving son; his older brother Luan Xun had frozen to death in a prison cell, would he also freeze to death in one? Why were the descendants of the Luan family always entangled with prisons?

Thinking of this, Luan Yi sighed sorrowfully, "From the hands of a loving mother comes the thread for a traveler's garment; before leaving, she stitches it close and dense, fearing he will be slow to return. Alas..."

"Brother Yi!" Hearing this "Song of the Traveling Son," Xu Shu's tears flowed once more.

"It's nothing!" Luan Yi forced a smile. "Come! I'm not very good at putting on this robe; Brother Fu, I must trouble you for your help!"

"You, oh you!" Xu Shu walked over to Luan Yi's side. Neither of the two grown men was very good at handling an official robe with one sash here and another button there, and after fumbling about clumsily, they finally managed to get it on, both of them drenched in sweat.

Luan Yi held his arms out straight and spun around in front of Xu Shu. "How is it?"

Imitating Luan Yi's habitual posture, Xu Shu raised his thumb and said, "Magnificent! Shu dares to say that this year there is no prisoner in the entire Great Han handsomer than Brother Yi!"

"Haha..." Luan Yi laughed out loud. "That's more like it! Life isn't lively without a few words and smiles!"

"This is what they mean by 'near vermilion one is stained red, near ink one is stained black!'" Xu Shu curled his lip.

"Then Brother Fu is the one near the vermilion!" Luan Yi laughed again.

"Alright, I can't argue with you! Let's go, time to meet the envoy!"

"Wait!" Luan Yi took a suit of armor off the wooden rack and began putting it on.

"Huh? What is Brother Yi wearing this for?" Xu Shu asked in bewilderment. "We're not marching to war; how tiring would it be to travel while wearing such heavy armor?"

Luan Yi knew all too well the hardship of wearing armor. But... "Although I, Luan Yi, am about to be imprisoned, I am, after all, a military general who has achieved illustrious battle merits. Since I am a general, I should have the dignity of a general. Even if I cannot return wrapped in a horse's hide, I shall be imprisoned with my chest held high and wearing my armor." In fact... besides what he had just said, Luan Yi had another deep underlying motive for choosing to wear armor into the capital.

"Very well! If Brother Yi is determined to do so, then wear the armor!" Xu Shu walked around behind Luan Yi, helped him tie the robe sashes, and personally fastened the cape for him. "What an awe-inspiring general!"

As soon as Xu Shu finished speaking, a loud roar came from outside the tent: "Which bird-witted scoundrel dares to come capture my fourth brother? See if I don't tear you apart!"

Upon hearing this, Luan Yi cried out that it was bad. Clutching his helmet, he ran toward the door, shouting before he even cleared the tent, "Third Brother, you are not allowed to make a scene!" When he stepped outside, he was so frightened he nearly lost control of his bowels, seeing that Zhang Fei had already charged up to the envoy and actually grabbed him by the collar, lifting him right off the ground.

"Third Brother..." Luan Yi screamed until his voice cracked. "Put the envoy down quickly!" Luan Yi rushed in front of the envoy, thrust out his arm, seized Zhang Fei's wrist, and gave it a twist. Using only thirty percent of his strength, he heard Zhang Fei let out a miserable shriek, "Ouch..." and drop to one single knee. Shaking his shoulder, Zhang Fei discovered to his dismay that his arm could no longer move, and he stood there holding his wrist, wincing and baring his teeth. He cursed inwardly: Good for you, Fourth Brother, your old Zhang here is just acting, does it really warrant breaking out Tai Chi?!

Luan Yi had no idea he was acting and genuinely thought he had come to pick a fight. Boiling with rage, he glared at Zhang Fei and scolded, "What did I tell you just now? Why are you coming to cause trouble again? Fall back this second!"

"Eunuch! You listen well to my old Zhang. If my fourth brother loses even a single hair on this trip to Luoyang, my old Zhang will certainly not spare you! Even if you hide at the ends of the earth, my old Zhang will spend the rest of his life dragging you out and throwing you to the dogs!" With a grievance-filled expression, Zhang Fei clutched his wrist and strode away.

Watching Zhang Fei's departing back, Luan Yi felt both helpless and heartbroken. However, this was not the time for heartbreak; forcing a smile, he looked at the envoy before him, and seeing that the man had no beard, he instantly guessed his identity. He repeatedly apologized, saying, "This honorable eunuch, that brother of mine is truly reckless and has startled you. Just now I twisted his arm as punishment! I hope the honorable eunuch will be magnanimous."

"No matter, no matter!" The envoy straightened his ruffled collar, squeezed out a smile, and said, "Since the General Who Conquers the East has arrived, shall we begin reading the decree now?"

"General Who Conquers the East, Luan Yi, receive the decree!"

Hearing this, everyone in the camp knelt down in unison.

"By the mandate of heaven, the Emperor decrees: When the General Who Conquers the East, Luan Yi, served as the Magistrate of Licheng County, he established the heretic Holy Mother Cult, deluded the common people, privately recruited soldiers, and harbored sinister intentions. The Tingwei Office is hereby ordered to arrest him and bring him to the capital immediately, to be imprisoned and await trial!"

"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!" Luan Yi raised his hands to receive the imperial decree, stood up respectfully, and asked the envoy, "May I ask how Your Excellency is addressed?"

The envoy replied, "I dare not accept 'Your Excellency,' this humble servant is Yu Du!"

Yu Du? Luan Yi searched his mind through the names of the Ten Eunuchs, but there was no such name as Yu Du. Clearly, the envoy before him was merely a minor eunuch in the inner court. But come to think of it, "big officials" like the Ten Eunuchs would disdain to do chores like traveling a thousand miles to deliver a decree.

"So it is Eunuch Yu, a pleasure to meet you!" Luan Yi's attitude was respectful as he bowed deeply to the ground.

Yu Du, who had been closely observing Luan Yi's every move, could not help but inwardly marvel when he saw that Luan Yi's expression remained unchanged and his heart calm upon hearing such devastating news. For many years, the imperial decrees Yu Du had delivered numbered no fewer than two or three hundred, containing good news naturally, but bad news as well. Those who heard bad news displayed all sorts of expressions—some cried, some made a fuss—but he had truly never seen anyone take it with such composure as Luan Yi. One had to know that this was falling all at once from a General Who Conquers the East with a two-thousand-shi stipend down to an ordinary prisoner tossed into a dungeon, and worst of all, he might even lose his life!

Even if they had heard wind of it beforehand, after the final verdict was cast and the decree was in hand, people invariably wept and mourned for a good long while. Not like Luan Yi, who wore a smile as if nothing at all had happened.

Could it be that he had long since prepared a foolproof plan? Did he have a way to turn danger into safety after entering the capital?

Yu Du began calculating in his heart. If that was the case, would this Luan Ziqi make a comeback? The more Yu Du thought about it, the more he felt it was highly probable.

Although Yu Du was in the inner court, he frequently traveled to various places and had long heard of Luan Yi's fame. He knew deeply that once Luan Yi rose to prominence, his future would boundless. Not only did he say this, but many court ministers he was acquainted with said the same. Yu Du thus believed it implicitly.

Although he had encountered disaster now, he would eventually turn misfortune into a blessing, and when that time came, he would soar a thousand miles a day and hold great power. If he could cling to such a towering tree... his own grievances would be avenged too!