Step Down, Let Me Come! - Chapter 2

The bright moon looked bleak, and the stars were sparse.

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Today’s night resembled a dense, hard-to-dissolve ink, it was desolate and profound.

The prisoners subjected to a scorching sun with cangue* on their heads were already marching for the whole day, no matter if it was their bodies or spirits, both were squeezed to the limit. Consequently, one small, rancid and smelly pancake became the most delicious food in the world for them.

After eating they laid on the ground, and a moment later the sound of snoring rang in succession. Sometimes the sound of wood cracking coming from the ignited bonfire could also be heard.

The guards encircled the bonfire as they took out liquor sacks, and started sipping alcohol.

The dried meat in the pottery urn has already been boiled until soft, and then the spices were added, to bring out a strongly concentrated aroma.

For these weak prisoners, that for a long time didn’t satisfy their hunger, it had close to a fatal attractive force.

Gudong, gulong. Shen Tang heard the sound of others swallowing, as well as the rumbling of their bellies. She lowered her head and stroked her shriveled belly, downcast.

She was also hungry.

“Do you want to drink?” one of the guards scooped out a bowl of soup from the pottery urn. He blew at it before drinking. He noticed the fervent gazes that were directed towards him from the corner of his eyes. Suddenly he looked around harboring malicious intentions and smiled “This meat soup is extremely expensive. If you want to drink it, you need to take out your things for an exchange”.

The convicted immediately became quiet.

Shen Tang lifted her eyelids, pursuing the corner of her mouth. Indignant feeling flashed in the depths of her dark pupils.

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She merely didn’t remember, it didn’t mean that she really turned stupid. She understood his meaning – who knows what the future holds for them? The women on the verge of entering the brothel, even if they had some money, later everything on them was taken clear. So how can they still have the things to exchange?

The answer was obvious.

After the guard’s words, his eyes frivolously swept through a group of women. He appreciated the expressions of hesitation or grief on their faces as if watching a play.

Another guard smilingly patted the back of his head.

He mocked him “You didn’t look at yourself in the mirror and see if you are qualified enough to climb their couch. These certainly are the “nobles” of the Gong family “.

He deliberately put emphasis on the word “nobles”.

“Nobles? What kind of nobles?” guard touched the back of his head, intentionally raising his voice, then shouted “people that serve the aristocrats in the brothel?”

“That’s right!” The three tipsy guards also came to join in the fun. “Brothel is not the place that anyone with money can enjoy? It’s not like us brothers really can’t afford this dirty money. If one person can’t then just gather it together. If we can’t afford a whole night, then we will buy half of it. You’ll come for half of the incense, and I’ll come for the other half.

“Old three, who do you look down on? Who’ll take half of an incense stick is my grandson*!”.

Sooner or later they’ll have to begin making transactions, starting it here or in the brothel, is there any difference?”

Facing this kind of tremendous shame and humiliation, even if it made the male offenders angry, they still didn’t dare to say anything. More attractive females even trembled in fear, ashen-faced.

Seeing them saying more and more outrageous things, the head guard could only make an appearance to stop it.

“The few of you calm down a bit! You are becoming more and more absurd! Wait for our assignment to end. It’s okay if you like going to brothels, but there is no need to gaze at these women! Cheer up and watch these people! The superior instructed that if any of them escaped, no one would be able to eat and walk around!”

Guards fell silent, after a moment one person mumbled.

“All of them had their wenxin and wudan destroyed, how could they escape?”

Wenxin?

Wudan?

Shen Tang keenly caught these two words.

Without any indication, a sharp burst of pain that she couldn’t ignore came from the depths of her mind.

She heard guards starting to quietly fawn over head guard again, one of them said smilingly: “If it goes for these criminals from the Gong clan, no matter how well-off they were before, right now, it is all in the past. We are only low-grade gongshi*, yet you are 3-grade Zanniao”.

Others also added: “that’s right, that’s right. Head, these criminals are not women but abolished and useless people, how can they escape?”

Low-grade gongshi?

3-grade Zanniao?

What are those things?

Shen Tang frowned and gritted her teeth, enduring continuous bursts of strong pain. Unknowingly, her forehead was already covered in a thin layer of cold sweat, her complexion has also turned pale. Even though she already restrained herself, the trembling movements alarmed the surrounding prisoners.

The women opened their eyes to glance at Shen Tang. Seeing her supporting her forehead with a look of unbearable pain, moreover groaning, they turned around.

Murmurs sounded “Crazy…”

Unaware of time, the pain seemed to cross over a critical point. Hong! After that, the ache receded like a tide.

Shen Tang panted lightly as if she had received an amnesty, she appeared bewildered.

After she regained soberness, she recalled one more scrap of unfamiliar memory. She closed her eyes tightly – Two years ago, the world was fixed. On the night that meteorites descended like rain, there was one star unlike others, it spread a strange dazzling light, dyeing the whole sky purple.

This meteorite rain reversed the factors of the war and let the overlord who was only one step away from reaching the top bear a grudge. What’s most important, It rapidly changed this world.

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Since then, the group lost a leader, and all the warlords and princes started to assemble their own troops.

The world reverted to chaos. Subsequently, it split into 100 endlessly warring countries.

When the people were unable to make a living, some of them started to realize the unbelievable changes that occurred in their bodies.

Scholars practicing martial arts could better absorb the qi from heaven and earth and gather it to the pubic region, to temper one’s body.

The dantian is divided into the literary side and the martial arts side. The energy of heaven and earth can be condensed into pellet and then changed into “Wenxin” or  “Wudan”, both of them had their own merits.

Along with the people continuously exploring, gradually the system of division was created.

Wenxin was divided into 9 ranks. Their words came true, they could create something from nothing, form troops, and then while talking and laughing win from a distance of a thousand miles.

Wudan had 20 ranks, one man could hold the pass against a thousand armies, but a magnificent army could only kill 7 people and lose 7, suffering a crushing defeat.

Gongshi and Zanya ranks belong to Wudan. They are distinguished into low-level and Third Class, respectively. The highest level of Wudan is 20th, Chehou.

After the wily star descended from the sky, only the three people have gotten the rank of “Chehou”. All of them were heroes with an unequalled spirits, able to move mountains and protect the heavenly pillars of the country!

Shen Tang arranged this unfamiliar memory, and she became speechless.

She just guessed she should be a wenxin or wudan artist and even if her physique was abolished, it should still be better than that of an ordinary person. Perhaps she could use her ability to escape. Who knew that when she just thought of that, in her mind appeared a small line of information that cut short her extravagant hopes.

She is a woman.

In this world, women’s bodies were like broken bags, even though they could realize the existence of qi from heaven and earth, they still had no way to gather it into their pubic region. Naturally, they don’t have so-called wenxin, wudan.

Shen Tang “…Dang!”

This broken meteorite could also be sexist?

She just stopped swearing in her heart, when she heard the head guard sternly reminding his subordinates.

“What do you fools know?” the head guard was flattered and felt happy, but he didn’t get carried away. “Shi clan was searched, and their possessions were confiscated, but not everyone got caught. I heard that the wudafu (9 rank) still managed to escape if we meet… humph!”

3rd-rank zanniao can let the low-grade artist cry and shout for mum and dad, lost. Wudafu is classified as a 9 grade. He can beat Zanniao (3-grade) like a grandfather, his grandson. If Wudafu appeared to seize people, I’m afraid that they can’t even escape with their lives…

Of course, the possibility wasn’t big.

Everyone understood, and at the same time felt sorry for each other.

Because of this small episode, they had no choice but to put away their [wanton] hearts. They didn’t dare to rush.

The surroundings were quiet, only the sound of crying birds remained. Shen Tang had nothing to live for now. At this moment, she became keenly aware of the movement of the hemp rope around her waist, followed by the rolling sound of a small stone being thrown out.

After hearing the movements, the guard came over.

He warned quietly: “What are you doing?”

The woman who snatched Shen Tang’s pancakes during the day, swallowed her saliva, and asked, “Is there still broth in master’s place?”

Shen Tang was already nodding off to sleep, but the tip of her brow still trembled.

T/N:

*The 20 ranks of Wudan refer to the 20-grade military title system of the Qin Dynasty (二十等爵). From low to high, it is Gongshi, Shangzao, Zanniao, Bugeng, Dafu, Guandafu, Gongdafu, Gongcheng, Wudafu, Zuo Shuchang, You Shu Chang, Zuo Geng, Zhong Geng, You Geng, Shao Shang Zao, Da Shang Zao, Si Che Shu Chang, Da Shu Chang, Guan Nei Hou, Che Hou.

*The division of Wenxin was born out of the nine-rank Zhongzheng system (九品中正制) used in Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. Unlike Wudan, which can be upgraded, the rank of Wenxin is fixed under normal circumstances. It is like a blind box and has a few ranks_(:з”∠)_

Cangue – wooden collar-like stocks used to restrain and punish criminals in China

Grandson—it’s a saying, the one with the lowest status in the group is a grandson.