The Child Emperor - Chapter 148: Prisoners

Even before dawn, Cui Teng and his group had returned in the dead of night, banging on the city gates, yelling loudly, demanding entry to rest. Cui Teng didn’t think he was violating military law at all, openly shouting to his companions, “Next time we leave, bring more horses, as well as provisions and water. You useless bunch didn’t even remind me.”

The city gates were tightly shut. When the people outside quieted down a bit, the military officials on the gatehouse shouted loudly, “Without the orders of the Northern Protection General, no one is allowed in or out of the city gates.”

“My brother-in-law is angry,” Cui Teng chuckled dismissively, shouting upwards, “Then go inform the Northern Protection General and tell him I’ve returned!”

The military official on the gatehouse retorted, “The general is resting. He said unless it’s a Xiongnu invasion, no one is allowed to disturb him. Are you Xiongnu?”

Enraged, Cui Teng cursed and threatened, but the soldiers on the simply vanished without a trace.

Before long, Cui Teng was too exhausted to speak. Outside the city, everyone looked at each other. The cold wind of the frontier night whistled. Though the surroundings were desolate, it seemed like there were beasts lurking… Exhausted, thirsty, hungry, and fearful, Cui Teng’s temper flared up again. He shouted loudly, “Follow me. Even if we die, we can’t die here.”

Cui Teng turned his horse’s head and galloped south again. Except for his two attendants, everyone else hesitated, looking at each other, not following.

A quarter of an hour later, the sound of hoofbeats echoed, and Cui Teng returned, furious, swinging his horsewhip wildly, “Traitors! You are all traitors! You’re just like Prince Donghai!”

The others dared not dodge, only shielding their faces with their hands, waiting for his anger to subside. One said, “The city gates will open when it’s daylight. Let’s… wait a while.”

Cui Teng cursed for a while longer, but he had no other choice. Running further would exhaust both men and horses. He had no choice but to dismount and leaning against the city gates. He stayed within the innermost position with the others surrounding him and the horses forming the outermost circle, providing some shelter from the cold wind.

“Han Ruzi…” Cui Teng shivered and cursed his brother-in-law.

After enduring an hour, the sky finally brightened, but the city gates remained closed. Cui Teng was too weak to do anything. Letting others shout loudly, a guard on the gatehouse peeked out, saying, “Without the general’s orders, the city gates won’t open during the day either.”

Stimulated by anger, Cui Teng regained some strength, ran a dozen steps, then turned around, pointing and cursing at the gatehouse. But the guards had already hidden away, leaving only a few flags drooping listlessly.

Cui Teng quickly gave up, and looked southward. He saw towering mountains stretching endlessly. Looking in other directions, only sand rose in the wind. Shattered Iron City was the only human structure nearby. To the west, there seemed to be another small city, but he couldn’t run anymore.

Exhausted and aggrieved, Cui Teng suddenly burst into tears. Not only did his companions nearby startle, but people on the gatehouse also peered out to watch.

A noble youth cautiously approached and advised, “Second Young Master Cui, why don’t we… admit our guilt?”

“Will that work?” Cui Teng sobbed. At this moment, he just wanted to enter the city, and was willing to accept any means to dos o.

“It will definitely work. The general didn’t send anyone to arrest us, so he must be waiting for us to admit our guilt.”

“I… I just want to go home. What did I do wrong?”

The lips of the noble youth were chapped from the wind, but he forced a smile, “Whether you did anything wrong or not doesn’t matter. We should just admit our guilt first.”

Other noble sons also came forward to persuade Cui Teng, giving him some face. Wiping away his tears, he asked, “Won’t I be ridiculed?”

“Who dares to ridicule the Second Young Master?” Everyone chimed in, reaching out to press Cui Teng to the ground, and then they all knelt down too.

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Cui Teng hesitated but eventually knelt down, feeling more comfortable than standing. He shouted loudly, “Please tell the Northern Protection General that I admit guilt. Look, I’m begging for mercy on my knees.”

The heads on the gatehouse quickly disappeared.

Leaning on one of his attendants, Cui Teng grumbled to his closest companion, “If I die here, you must ensure my bones are sent back to the Capital, understood?”

The companion could only nod reluctantly.

After another half hour, the city gates finally opened. A group of soldiers came out. Cui Teng was delighted, about to stand up, but he was held back by those around him. Finally able to enter the city, he couldn’t afford to offend the Northern Protection General any further.

A commanding officer read out the Northern Protection General’s order: all deserters were to repair the city walls, a total of thirty-six men, transporting soil and stones.

Cui Teng and the others only wanted to enter the city. They didn’t care about the punishment. They immediately kowtowed in gratitude, then were escorted into the city by the soldiers. Instead of heading to the noble camp, they turned directly towards the south city warehouse.

After resting for half a day and having a meal of millet and vegetables, starting from the afternoon, the thirty-six deserters began working alongside the slaves in the city, moving soil and stones to reinforce the damaged city walls.

Seeing the wicker baskets filled with mud bricks, Cui Teng was dumbfounded. “My brother-in-law is serious.”

An attendant whispered, “Second Young Master, endure it. We’ve paid the appropriate people. Just pretend to support the basket, and we’ll hire someone to do the actual work for you.”

There were over two hundred slaves in Shattered Iron City, mostly prisoners sent to the frontier. Female prisoners did laundry and pounded rice, while male prisoners did laborious work. Cui Teng and the others were assigned to a camp with over a hundred and forty male prisoners, repairing a corner of the south city. Rebuilding was impossible, so they piled soil and stones inside the city to prevent the wall from collapsing.

Although they didn’t have to carry the baskets themselves, the poor food and lack of sleep made Cui Teng’s life unbearable. After two days, he wanted to escape again, but this time no one followed him. Even his two attendants advised him to stop causing trouble.

On the third day, Han Ruzi came to visit Cui Teng.

Cui Teng had thought of a hundred ways to retaliate against this person, but when they met, he couldn’t help but cry. Tears flowed more and more, begging, “Spare me, brother-in-law…”

Han Ruzi came prepared and said coldly, “Desertion is a capital offense. Sentencing you to a month of labor is already lenient.”

“A month?” Cui Teng looked at himself covered in dust and felt that he couldn’t even last a day. “Change the punishment. If not… kill them instead. I remember there have been cases where someone may suffer execution in substitution of another.”

The two attendants were frightened and knelt down, “Second Young Master, we have always been loyal…”

“I know. Now is the time for you to be loyal again. I will remember the two of you.” Cui Teng only wanted to get out of his predicament, regardless of the lives of others.

Han Ruzi didn’t intend to kill anyone. He turned to the accompanying military officer and asked, “Are there any other punishments that can replace labor?”

The officer replied, “If the offender has titles, he can be revoked of his titles. If he has no titles, he can pay a fine in lieu of physical punishment.”

“I have titles and money!” Cui Teng’s eyes lit up. “I didn’t know you could do this. Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Other noble sons also gathered around, willing to use title or money to redeem themselves from punishment. The smarter ones preferred to pay money. Their titles weren’t high, but once their titles were revoked, they would have to strive for them again, which was more troublesome than paying money.

Revoking titles required approval from the imperial court, while fines were more convenient and quicker. The officer calculated the amounts, and the fines for the attendants were counted under their masters’ names. The gold and silver brought by the twelve noble youths were insufficient, so it was recorded as debt.

Everyone looked disheveled, but the matter wasn’t over yet. The Northern Protection General said, “Although you’ve only worked for two days here, you’ve received quite a bit of help from the people. Leaving like this won’t do. You should host a banquet to thank everyone.”

“It was hired labor, and they were not cheap at all…” Cui Teng wanted to explain, but the other noble sons were already busy agreeing. The required money and goods were similarly recorded as debts.

There wasn’t much good food in Shattered Iron City. Being able to eat preserved meat and drink a few bowls of wine, was a significant improvement for the prisoners who labored year-round. Over two hundred people sat on the ground under the city wall, feasting heartily. Many came over with wine to thank the Northern Protection General and the noble youths who paid. Cui Teng and the others smiled bitterly and accepted the thanks.

Punishing deserters was just one of Han Ruzi’s purposes. He came to meet someone, Fang Daye, recommended by Yang Feng.

Most of the prisoners came to toast. Those who were more timid followed others, standing at the back to have a sip of wine. Only a very few refused to come over. Either they were too old or too unruly, and they continued eating and drinking, ignoring all others even if the emperor himself were present.

Fang Daye was a combination of both. He was tall and robust, sitting conspicuously among the crowd. His hair was hastily tied into a round bun, and his black-and-white beard was neatly arranged, hanging straight down to his waist. His complexion wasn’t great, as if he hadn’t fully recovered from a serious illness, but he had a big appetite. His movements were unhurried, and he made the food and wine disappear much faster than others.

Han Ruzi had already ordered that this meal be plentiful. Soldiers constantly went to refill the wine and meat. Someone kindly reminded Fang Daye to go thank the general, but he didn’t even lift his head.

Han Ruzi was thinking about how to call Fang Daye over for questioning. The military officer beside him had already noticed the Northern Protection General’s gaze and whispered, “It’s a pity for such a fierce general to fall to the level of being with prisoners.”

“Fierce general? Are you talking about that old man? What deeds have he done to deserve the title of a fierce general?”

The military officer’s face changed slightly, and he smiled awkwardly, “That’s what I heard from others so I’m not sure whether it’s true.”

Han Ruzi didn’t pursue the matter. When the banquet was almost over, he said, “The wall in the backyard of the general’s mansion is also unstable. Find five people to repair it.”

“Yes,” the military officer replied, understanding the Northern Protection General’s intention.

Han Ruzi returned to his mansion, while Cui Teng and the others returned to their camp, feeling too ashamed to face anyone. They stayed in their rooms for two days before coming out to participate in cavalry training. From then on, they behaved much more obediently. Although Cui Teng occasionally had mischievous ideas, no one responded.

Han Ruzi didn’t immediately summon Fang Daye for a reason. He had inquired and found out that Fang Daye had served on the frontier for many years, rising through the ranks due to his merit. As he was already old, he was sent to the state of Qi to serve in a military capacity. When the Prince of Qi intended to rebel, in order to confuse the court, he specifically sent Fang Daye to escort the Heir of Qi to the Capital.

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The Heir of Qi was imprisoned, and at first, Fang Daye was not implicated. As long as he did nothing, he could easily escape being imiplicated. However, no one expected that this sixty-something old general would lead a dozen desperados to attempt a prison break to rescue the Heir of Qi.

The prison break failed. It was only through the efforts of Fang Daye’s relatives and friends that he was spared from the death penalty. Instead, he was relegated to the frontier, never to be employed again.

Han Ruzi still remembered the Heir of Qi. Han Ruzi knew that Fang Daye would probably have enmity towards him, so Yang Feng had given his “student” a difficult problem to solve.

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