The Longest Day in Chang’an: A Race Against Time - Chapter 83

“Yes, Your Highness,” the Crown Prince’s trusted follower answered and immediately left. At this time, Crown Princess Wei walked inside and asked what was going on, a worried expression on her face, but surprisingly, Li Heng lost his temper and thundered at her ordering her to leave. He closed the curtain barrier himself and then began twisting his belt with his fingers, pulling knick-knacks like stationary bag, knife, whetstone etc. left and right — Li Heng had a habit of doing this when he was fidgety.

Jing’an Department was the fruit of his painstaking labor, and Li Bi was his trusted subordinate, neither of which Li Heng could afford to lose. This was such a serious incident, but he had been unaware of it until a handmaid risked life and limb to come here to inform him. Apart from indignation, Li Heng also felt faint panic.

Tanqi silently watched him, signing repeatedly in her mind. ‘His Highness has so few henchmen he could trust. Without Li Bi, he couldn’t even get access to the most basic intelligence.’

Li Heng flicked a glance at Tanqi and then mumbled, “Changyuan is too intelligent to let anything happen to himself… right?” By this remark, he was more like encouraging himself than consoling Tanqi. Tanqi took a step forward and observed in a muted voice, “Your Highness, currently, our priority is not my master but Zhang Xiaojing.”

“Zhang Xiaojing?” It took Li Heng a few moments to recall this name. Because of this prisoner, Li Bi had nearly fallen out with He Zhizhang. Till this day, He Zhizhang was still in a coma.

“Currently, Commandant Zhang is our only hope of resolving the crisis of Kailu Hodo, but for some unknown reason, Jing’an Department issued a warrant for his arrest. There’s a citywide hunt for him ongoing. Your Highness, you must figure out a way to handle this! Otherwise the whole Chang’an… and my master will be doomed!”

But Li Heng asked in disbelief, “Haven’t those Turks already been wiped out?”

In her anxiety, Tanqi forgot about due formality and took another step forward, saying aloud, “Your Highness, those Wolf Guards were under the command of a mastermind. The crisis facing Chang’an hasn’t been resolved yet, and Commandant Zhang is the only one who can put an end to it!”

Li Heng frowned, “Is this man really as good as you said he is? Ur, our first priority should be to figure out what happened to Changyuan…ur, and Jing’an Department. Let’s just wait for my trusted man to report.”

Tanqi felt that the Crown Prince was too indecisive. Currently, they couldn’t afford to waste any time, and neither could they afford to misjudge the urgency of the problems they were faced with. She was just about to prod him when Crown Princess Wei opened the curtain for the second time. She skeptically gave an appraising glance at Tanqi and then informed Li Heng, “Your Highness, the spring banquet is about to commence.”

It was after hearing this remark that Li Heng recalled this event. An embarrassed look appeared on his faces.

This spring banquet was not just any spring banquet — it was the Lantern Festival Spring Banquet held by the emperor in the Xingqing Palace. The banquet would start at Zi Hour (23:00) and last until Chouzheng (02:00). All members and relatives of the imperial family as well as high-ranking officials in the capital city would participate. After filling their bellies with food and wine, the emperor and all high-ranking officials would gather at the Industriousness and Pragmatism Pavilion to enjoy the Ba-lantern performances of entertainers selected and sent to the capital city by various provincial governments. This was the case on Lantern Festival every year.

On such an important occasion, the Crown Prince must not be late or absent.

Li Heng said to Tanqi, “Get on my carriage. Let’s go to the Xingqing Palace first. I’ll make a decision after my man reports to me.”

Hearing this, Tanqi had no choice but to resignedly walked outside and stood beside Crown Princess Wei impersonating her handmaid. Crown Princess Wei, who had just been scolded by her husband and was not in a good mood, gave Tanqi the cold shoulder. But she could tell that her husband was not having an affair with this woman, so she felt uninterested in her.

The four-windowed carriage and the guard of honor departed again. They split the uproarious crowds heading for the Xingqing Palace which was not far away. The closer they got to the palace gate, the more glaring lantern light was. Tanqi could already see that there was a gigantic lantern pavilion over fifty meters high on the square in front of the Industriousness and Pragmatism Pavilion. In the shape of a gourd, decorated with colorful silk ribbons as well as gold and silver baubles, it silently stood in the dark.

Tanqi had watched many lantern-shows held on Lantern Festival over the years, but there had never been any lantern pavilions as huge as this one within her memory. She felt that it was literally more imposing than the Industriousness and Pragmatism Pavilion, that even the Wild Goose Tower was overshadowed by it.

It was not Chouzheng yet, and the lanterns hanging on the lantern pavilion still stood unlighted, but its majesty could already be distinctly felt. Tanqi could not imagine what a splendid scenery it would be when all the lanterns on it were lit.

Zhang Xiaojing and Es, after leaving Pingkang Fang, headed straight for Guangde Fang. Es had found a wide-brim pointed Persian-style hat in some store and put it on Zhang Xiaojing. He had also drawn two circles around his eyes with ink. Thus, Zhang Xiaojing looked like an entertainer specializing in performing Brahman drama. The funny eye makeup perfectly concealed the fact that he was one-eyed, which was a striking characteristic of his.

With this disguise, nobody would be able to recognize him unless he was stopped and scrutinized.

Currently, the whole Chang’an had fallen into revel. Every street and every corner were crowded with people jostling one another. They had feasted their eyes on the first part of the lantern show and were now shifting their attention from lanterns to acrobatics, singing and dancing performances. Surging crowds in the streets were like dozens of fast-flowing rivers crossing each other.

In these circumstances, strong mules were better means of transportation than tall horses. The two of them each stole a mule and started their journey through the city. They specially chose to go wherever there were relatively fewer people, worming their way through the crowds. Sometimes, they gave up the main road and went through a Fang gate to traverse the whole Fang instead.

Thanks to the excellent makeup skills of Es, they managed to get through over half a dozen guarded intersections without any trouble. The terrible congestion made it impossible for guards to thoroughly carry out the order for arrest issued by Jing’an Department. Most guards were merely going through the motions. Only one Fang soldier, seeing Zhang Xiaojing dressed like an entertainer, wanted him to tell a joke from Brahman drama. Of course Zhang Xiaojing had no expertise in this. Fortunately, Es proffered his good offices and muddled through.

Zhang Xiaojing’s lips had been clamped tightly together all along, anxiety glinting in his eyes concealed by eye makeup.

The changes of Jing’an Department that had happened in the past four hours were too strange, and messages from watchtowers were too vague, so he felt that the only way to figure out what had really happened was to go back to the department.

Especially that message of warning sent by Yao Runeng — “Do not come back. Do not come back. Do not come back.” Zhang Xiaojing believed that it must have been in extreme despair that the stupidly naive and inflexible young man had sent him this word of warning.

‘Exactly how bad the situation in Jing’an Department is?’ Zhang Xiaojing wondered.

Zhang Xiaojing was in deep concern. Apart from Yao Runeng, Xu Bin and Li Bi were also unaccounted for. And then there was Tanqi, who had been left in Pingkang Fang. Where could she have gone to? What concerned him even more was the safety of Wen Ran, who was the only child of his army comrade. If anything happened to her, how was he supposed to face Wen Wuji in the underworld after he died?

All those who had been risking life and limb trying to save residents of Chang’an had been devoured by this dark city one after another. Zhang Xiaojing felt that he was entangled in despair like his ankles in vines, that darkness was closing in on him like falling walls, isolating him from all light.

This was the same feeling that he had the year before when he walked into the Wen’s Incense Store, saw the whole place in total disorder, saw Wen Ran weeping with her head down, saw the document with the seal of the Ministry of Mining and the signature of the Vice County Magistrate of Wannian County on it, saw Wen Wuji placed on the ground covered with a piece of torn cloth. Zhang Xiaojing felt as if he was sinking deeper into a mire and powerless to take a single step forward or make the faintest sound.

The tension in Zhang Xiaojing kept building up as he walked forward, since he had no idea what was waiting for him ahead, but the next instant, his squinted his only eye and a ferocious look appeared in it — this was fierceness resulted from subdued anxiety that had fermented to the extreme.

‘If worse comes to worst, I might as well risk it once again,’ he thought.

Es was unaware of the resolution that Zhang Xiaojing had just made. He had been looking around all the time until he caught sight of the front gate of Guangde Fang.

At this moment, there were dozens of guards standing at the front gate, and the security check was very tight. Since there had been a serious attack in this area not long ago, the level of alert here was much higher than that of other places. Es volunteered to make some inquiries. However, after only a short while, he returned in dejection, saying that all Hu people were forbidden to enter.

Zhang Xiaojing was greatly surprised. This order was too unwise. It was not only of no practical significance whatsoever but also prone to cause people to suspect each other. Only the laziest official would adopt this kind of sweeping approach.

Es was not allowed to get in. Zhang Xiaojing couldn’t enter as well, because his only eye was too obvious a personal characteristic, which undoubtedly wouldn’t escape the notice of those guards. While the two of them were pondering trying to figure out a way, a petty official of Hu origin happened to walk out of the front gate, looking depressed, a pack in his hands.

Zhang Xiaojing recognized him. He was a staff member of Jing’an Department. But Zhang Xiaojing didn’t dare to go and talk to that man. On this occasion, Es proved himself helpful. He was handsome, had a learned style of conversation and seemed like an eminent monk in the eyes of outsiders. Es stopped the petty official, made some inquiries and wormed the information he needed out of the petty official without much effort.

The official told him that the attackers of Jing’an Department were from an organization going by the name of “Termite”. They had also abducted Li Bi in passing, and then a censor named Ji Wen had taken over the whole Jing’an Department, who was also the very person that had ordered the hunt for Zhang Xiaojing and the dismissal of all officials of Hu origin. Currently, the new Jing’an Department was being rebuilt in the compound of Jinzhao Office. Unfortunately, the batch of experienced officials of Hu origin who had survived the attack were removed from office.

As regards the whereabouts of Yao Runeng, Xu Bin and Wen Ran, the petty official was unable to provide any useful information.

Zhang Xiaojing’s face stood tense as he heard the news. The severity of this upheaval had exceeded that of the worse-case scenario he had imagined. The background of this organization called Termite was still unknown, but there was no doubt that it was extremely powerful. And from the vantage point of the present, he wouldn’t be able to get any help from Jing’an Department. Instead, the whole department had become his most formidable enemy.

He was faced with two enemies at the same time, which was such a terrible situation.

Standing outside Guangde Fang, Zhang Xiaojing watched the black smoke rising into the night sky from the depths of Guangde Fang. ‘It should be from the burning hall of Jing’an Department,’ he thought. Even the one who had trusted this matter to him and promised to pardon him was gone, not to mention this hall. Zhang Xiaojing had lost legitimate authorization and was now completely on his own.

Under the circumstances, why would a convict condemned to death risk his own life continuing the mission?

If Zhang Xiaojing turned around and left, nobody would blame him for being disloyal or failing to fulfill moral obligation. In fact, whether anybody in Chang’an would be able to survive this night to remember his name was still unknown.

Standing on the side, Es was a little confused. He could feel that the air about Zhang Xiaojing was fluctuating constantly, as if there was some kind of inner battle ongoing inside him. Es didn’t dare to disturb him, so he crossed himself and prayed for him silently.

After a short while, Zhang Xiaojing slowly raised his hand, lightly brushed his eye socket out of force of habit and, surprisingly, gave a smile.

“Deacon Es, one time when you were talking with Tanqi, you mentioned that the Nestorian God pitied mortals having to endure all kinds of sufferings, so he descended to our world with the intention to atone for the sins of mortals. Was that true?”

“Yes.” Es was puzzled as to why he suddenly brought up this matter.

“I remember Tanqi also said that there was a Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva in Buddhism, who swore that he wouldn’t ascend to heaven to become a Buddha until the Underworld was empty. Even these deities, no matter in Nestorianism or in Buddhism, were willing to take responsibility for their choices and descended to the mortal world even the Underworld, why couldn’t we mortal people do the same?”

As he said this, Zhang Xiaojing’s only eye lit up again, clear and bright, with no perplexity in it whatsoever. “Yes. I was mistaken about it. Given the current circumstances, I, a convict condemned to death, should not be wondering whether this is worth risking my life, but come to realize that I’ve been rid of all misgivings.”

After saying this, he burst into laugh. His laughter, which was full of heroic spirit, resounded in the night sky. Slightly confused, Es squinted his eyes, feeling that the man before him seemed to have something glaring about him.

“Let’s move.” Zhang Xiaojing gave a wave of his hand.