The Bonds of Brotherhood - Part 2 of 3
Part 1 | Part 3
Guan Yu was back on the road to reuniting with his brother, Liu Bei, when he reached the first of a number of gates he would have to pass through. Dongling Pass was situated on the southern side of the mountains separating Xu from Luoyang. There were other gates Lord Guan could have passed through but nowhere that he could have avoided inspection. The gate spanned the shallow valley with two watch towers at either end to survey the craggy mountain tops. The gate itself was sealed shut, hundreds of archers alert atop the fortification. Lord Guan bid the carriage stop a safe distance while he advanced. ‘I have been granted leave to reunite with my sworn brother by the Prime Minister, open the gate,’ his voice boomed through the valley. The wind blew in response.
The gate yawned open and the commander slipped through on horse back, his helmet plumed with peacock feathers, ‘If that is so, show me your papers.’ The gate closed behind him.
‘My departure was hurried, I have no papers.’
‘Then I cannot let you pass,’ the commander, clad in full scale armour, rested his hand on his sword, while his mount paced back and forth.
A clatter echoed from above as the archers nocked their arrows. Lord Guan gripped the reins, ready to outrun any loosed arrows. ‘What’s your name, commander?’
‘Kong Xiu.’
‘You will not let us pass?’ Lord Guan readied Green Dragon.
‘I cannot without something in return. In the carriage, the Imperial Uncle’s wives I take it? Collateral, until I can confirm your story.’
Lord Guan growled and jabbed his heels into Red Hare’s flank. The legendary horse bounded, happy to oblige his rider. ‘Thank you for telling me your name, it would be impolite to kill a man without knowing that at least.’
‘I cannot allow you to pass, fight me if you dare!’ Kong Xiu drew his sword and charged. Drums sounded from the gate but they had barely finished the first rhythm when the two warriors met.
A heartbeat later the gate commander was dead. Cut in half by Guan Yu’s Green Dragon. He rode towards the gate. ‘Kong Xiu gave me no choice but you are all blameless, open this gate and I will pass through peacefully,’ his voice thundered through the valley. Arrows were returned to their quivers.
The men of the gate nattered for a time and then the gate opened, the massive iron banded doors pushed open by ten men each. Once the gate was opened the men got down on their hands and knees to Lord Guan.
‘When the Prime Minister asks what happened, tell him your commander refused me safe passage. You will all be pardoned of any offence,’ Lord Guan rode through slowly, so the carriage carrying his sisters-in-law and the twenty riders could catch up. Once clear of the gate Guan Yu galloped ahead, crossing hundreds of li before the sun began to dip. It was only a matter of time before news of Kong Xiu’s death travelled and without the Prime Minister’s word the response would likely be aggressive. Luoyang was near, though he would avoid the city itself and instead head east through Sishui Pass.
The road wound through a patch of forest but was blocked by a barricade of sharpened stakes and felled trees. Lord Guan circled his horse, glancing between the trees and atop the nearby cliffs for any sign of an ambush, there was a shuffling of bushes and a man emerged from the forest leading a swathe of soldiers.
‘Halt! Who goes there?’
‘Guan Yu, Lord of Hanshou, sworn brother to Liu Bei and Zhang Fei, and you are?’
‘Han Fu, governor of Luoyang! You are a wanted criminal for slaying a gate commander, the penalty is death, surrender!’
‘I cannot do that,’ Lord Guan sighed. Lady Mi and Lady Gan’s carriage had caught up, he signalled for the driver to stop.
‘Then you forfeit your life!’ Han Fu declared, ‘Who will fight him?’
‘I killed Kong Xiu because he challenged me, do not make the same mistake,’ Lord Guan said, though he knew Han Fu would not listen. He held Green Dragon horizontally behind him, the crescent blade out to his right side ready to sweep across which ever fool dared challenge him.
A man dashed from the line wielding twin twirling swords, ‘I, Meng Tan, will take this vagrant’s head!’ He leapt upon a steed and rushed for Guan Yu. Swords and crescent blade clashed twice before Meng Tan reared his horse and fled. Lord Guan pursued, Red Hare’s preternatural speed allowing him to catch up and split Meng Tan in half.
An arrow screamed from the forest and struck Lord Guan in the left arm. He flinched, gripped the shaft with his teeth and tore out the offending projectile. Han Fu held a bow, his mouth agape at his failed attempt to kill Guan Yu. The sworn brother with the magnificent beard raced forward, ploughing through the lines of soldiers holding the road, sending the troops flying through the air with a few swings of his dragon blade. Han Fu panicked and tried to flee but his horse was scrawny and Guan Yu’s Red Hare caught him easily. He felled the man with a single strike, carving through his head and shoulder. Han Fu’s men scattered.
Guan Yu tore a strip of cloth from the hem of his robe and dressed the arrow wound. Aware another ambush could be moments away he and the riders cleared the road and hurried toward Sishui Pass, crawling ever closer to the Yellow River where he hoped to requisition a boat. Once across they would be Yuan Shao’s territory and a short distance from Liu Bei.
Lord Guan had the party travel all through the remaining day and subsequent night, fearful of another ambush. The Ladies could sleep while moving but the men were not afforded the same luxury. Morning came bright and clear as they neared the next pass, a great deal closer to their wayward lord, Liu Bei.
The road meandered by a temple, the carved wood characters above its door read Zhenguo. Lord Guan slowed his march as a number of men, many of them monks, greeted him. ‘It is a gift from Heaven that I have the chance to meet you, Lord Guan Yu. I am Bian Xi, Commander of Sishui Pass. The realm reveres your name for the loyalty you have to your brothers. Please come inside, a feast has been prepared.’ He was in a modest robe with a sword on his belt, his thin hair pinned under a cloth cap atop his head. A soldier, presumably a bodyguard, was beside him, and the rest of the men were monks wearing various multicoloured robes featuring opposing trigrams.
Lord Guan explained what had happened so far on his journey.
‘While saddening, your actions were permissible, I will petition the Prime Minister myself on your behalf and grant you safe passage through Sishui,’ Bian Xi grinned.
Delighted, Guan Yu dismounted and accepted Bian Xi’s offer. The monks chimed bells and blew pipes. Guan Yu instructed the riders to remain with the carriage and upon hearing that the women were Liu Bei’s wives Bian Xi had a meal prepared for them as well. They passed beneath the temple arch and more monks welcomed Guan Yu with not another soldier in sight. He bowed to each of them, exchanging curtesies until Bian Xi urged him onward.
A monk called out, ‘Guan Yu, how long ago did you leave Pudong?’
Lord Guan paused and scrutinised the monk’s face but he did not recognise his wide eyes nor thin lips, ‘Twenty years.’
‘Do you not recognise this old monk?’
Lord Guan and Bian Xi shared an awkward glance. Guan Yu stroked his beard, ‘I’m afraid not.’
The monk looked saddened, ‘It has been twenty years but our homes were separated by only a stream. My name now is Pujing and I have forgotten my before-name.’
‘Sorry, Pujing, but I have invited Guan Yu to a banquet, may you do this another time,’ Bian Xi stumbled over his words, an eagerness to his eyes that spoke of more than worrying about the wine going cold.
‘Commander, when fellow townsmen meet far from home they should relish the time to reminisce,’ Lord Guan said.
‘Quite, please come and have tea with me before the feast,’ Pujing said.
‘I have my sisters-in-law in the carriage outside, I—‘
‘I will have tea sent out to them at once,’ Pujing fixed his gaze upon Lord Guan.
Guan Yu knew the monk wished to tell him something and he, in truth, wished to catch up on old times and learn about his former neighbour’s travels. He accepted, much to Bian Xi’s chagrin, but in the temple grounds there was only so much the commander could do. Bian Xi agreed to collect Guan Yu in the time it would take for one pot of tea to be prepared and drunk.
The abbot’s quarters were simple. A bedroll sat in one corner, a fire in the centre, a second robe hung by the window, swaying in the breeze. An iron tea pot and two clay cups waited near the fire. Pujing filled the pot with water and set it in the fire, while it boiled he prepared the tea leaves. ‘Old friend, do you know this Bian Xi?’
‘I do not,’ Lord Guan sat on a cushion beside the fire. The walls were bare wood, the floor and ceiling also.
Pujing dipped the leaves in a saucer of water until they began to unfurl, once opened he lowered them into the warming water. Pujing raised his monastic knife to his eyes and looked to the door. After a few breaths he slid it back into his sleeve pocket. The kettle began to boil and the monk served the tea. Lord Guan grasped his meaning and stiffened wishing he had had time to rest.
The pair shared tales and reminisced about old times until there was a knock on the door. ‘Lord Guan Yu, please join me, the meal is ready,’ Bian Xi called.
Lord Guan thanked Pujing for the tea and when he opened the door scowled at Bian Xi, ‘Is this invitation in good faith?’
Bian Xi’s eyes widened, his cheeks turned crimson, and he spluttered out, ‘Of course!’
A soldier peeked out of the door of the main hall across the courtyard and Guan Yu caught sight of the axe on his belt. He stepped into Bian Xi, barging the man backwards, ‘Liar! I took you for a decent man, yet you would try and kill me!’ Lord Guan drew his sword but Bian Xi was already running.
‘Come out! Kill him! Quickly!’ Bian Xi bellowed as he ran. Men armed with axes burst from the main hall, the side chambers, and even leapt down from the roof of the temple.
Guan Yu reached for Green Dragon, his long pole crescent blade, leaning against the wall just inside Pujing’s room. Bian Xi launched an iron spear at him but he brushed it aside and sprinted after the villain. Guan Yu roared, the puncture wound in his arm throbbed, and he swung wildly. The dragon etched blade buried itself into Bian Xi’s chest. The commander fell to the ground dead. The other would-be assassins froze giving time for Guan Yu to hurry out to the carriage where he found his riders battling an equal number of axe wielders. Lord Guan carved through them, possessed by rage and fury at a betrayal made worse by being on hallowed ground. Bian Xi’s remaining men surrendered or fled. Guan Yu instructed those who surrendered to return to Sishui Pass and to open the gate for him.
Afterwards Guan Yu found Pujing donning a travelling robe, rain cloak, hat, and carrying a walking stick. ‘Thank you,’ Guan Yu bowed. ‘Without you I would be dead now. Why do you look ready to leave?’
‘Take care on the road, old friend. I cannot stay here after this, I will return to the road as I did when I was younger. So long as I have my alms bowl I will prosper,’ Pujing gave a wide toothy grin.
‘Farewell, may the road bring you Heaven’s favour,’ Lord Guan thanked the monk again and then continued onward.
Xingyang was the next city on the road towards the coast of the Yellow River. Lord Guan had hoped to pass by without issue but he was easily recognised and with twenty riders and a carriage, hard to miss, and he had a letter for Hu Hua’s son, a task he had given his word to complete. The governor of the Xingyang, Wang Zhi, welcomed him fifty li outside the city and offered a guesthouse for Lord Guan and Lady Mi and Lady Gan to use for the night on his estate inside the city. Lord Guan was cautious but he knew the ladies were tired for he himself ached from long hours on the road. The wound on his arm needed a fresh dressing and the horses, even Red Hare, needed rest. He accepted but declined Wang Zhi’s offer of a banquet. The governor instead sent him a private dinner at the guesthouse.
Finally alone Guan Yu removed his armour, set his sword and crescent blade to one side, and sat down for the first time in days without the feeling that there was a sword at his back. The dinner was more than enough for Guan and both his brothers and so he left a great deal of it. The horses were fed, his men were sleeping, the ladies had their own quarters, but Lord Guan still could not sleep. The events since leaving Xu weighed on him, not out of regret or worry but physically and the sense of imminent danger would not leave him. He read, long into the night when the world stood still, the insects quietened, and the birds ceased to chirrup. The third watch sounded from the drums atop the gatehouses of the city.
‘… like a god…’ a stranger’s voice caught on a breeze and reached Guan Yu as he read.
‘Who goes there?’ Guan leapt to his feet armed with nothing more than his book and a bronze oil lamp.
A young man clad in armour with a pheasant feather from the peak of his helmet entered the room. The fact he had snuck into the house without waking a single man was proof of some talent. He bowed and saluted, ‘I am Hu Ban, lieutenant to Wang Zhi.’
‘Are you the son of Hu Hua who lives near Xu?’ Lord Guan said.
‘I am,’ Hu Ban looked quizzical, his long face becoming longer.
Lord Guan set his book aside and said, ‘I have a letter for you.’ He went to the small chest of belongings he had brought inside with him and found the letter from Hu Hua. ‘It is from your father.’
Hu Ban read the scroll swiftly, his expression shifting from neutral to outraged, ‘We almost killed a worthy man!’ His eyebrows vanished into his helmet. ‘Wang Zhi plots to kill you. Men will come to burn this guesthouse down at the fourth watch but I will go and open the gates for you now, do not tarry.’
Lord Guan rearmed himself, readied his men, and had aides wake his sisters-in-law. The party was ready within a third of a watch but when Lord Guan led the carriage out of the guesthouse walls he could see men with torches approaching. ‘Hurry to the gate!’ he yelled, kicking Red Hare in the flanks. He galloped ahead to find Hu Ban had been true to his word, the north gate was open. The young officer waited by the guardhouse at the side of the road, alone. ‘What will you do now?’ Guan Yu asked him.
‘I will go and burn down the guesthouse and report that you have escaped to the governor,’ Hu Ban said. ‘Wang Zhi may catch you but he is no warrior.’ He saluted, ‘I pray to Heaven you find your brothers.’
‘My thanks.’ The carriage had gone through the gate while the two were talking. Lord Guan trotted behind, wary of pursuers that Wang Zhi would inevitably send.
The fire was a beacon on the horizon. Hu Ban had really burnt down the guesthouse and that meant pursuers would be close. The carriage trundled along, the ladies sleeping peacefully inside. Lord Guan watched over his shoulder and after a few li saw torches bobbing out of the gate. Soon a dust cloud reached the stars and soldiers were shouting for him to halt.
‘Halt, villain!’ Wang Zhi bellowed from the head of a hundred men.
‘What insult did I give you that you would have me burned to death?’ Lord Guan reined in Red Hare while the carriage and the twenty riders continued on.
‘You slew Han Fu! My son and his daughter are married, you may as well have killed my brother!’ Wang Zhi was red with rage and stormed at Guan Yu. He twirled his spear from left to right in order to feint he came within striking distance.
‘Han Fu tried to kill me, like you are doing. You will fail like he did,’ Guan Yu charged, he held Green Dragon low. A single stroke came up and severed Wang Zhi from hip to shoulder. The two halves of the governor slipped from the saddle without a sound. The dead governor’s fellow pursuers fled back to Xingyang. Lord Guan cleaned Green Dragon’s blade before setting off to catch up with his sisters-in-law.
Their route had brought them closer to the war. Deserted villages and ravaged farm houses dotted the land, the crops harvested early or not at all. Great swathes of the land were black from wildfires left to burn crops away that could not be harvested in time. A stone signpost rose at the side of the road with the words “Huazhou” chiselled into it. A few li beyond was a unit of spear wielding horsemen led by the governor, Liu Yan.
‘It has been some time, Liu Yan,’ Lord Guan saluted his old acquaintance. ‘I hope you have been keeping well.’
‘Where are you going?’ Liu Yan cut to the point, a dire look upon his flabby face.
‘To reunite with my brother, Liu Bei,’ Lord Guan said, flatly.
‘He is with Yuan Shao, is he not?’
‘He is.’
‘We are at war with Yuan Shao. Did the Prime Minister sanction your leaving?’
‘He did.’
Liu Yan guided his horse closer, the man was not armed or armoured, dressed only in his governor’s robe. ‘Truly?’ he frowned.
‘It was agreed long ago and Cao Cao is a man of his word.’
‘Very well then. The crossing is guarded by Qin Qi, a man under Xiahou Dun’s command, I doubt he will let you through.’
‘Will you not provide a boat?’
‘I… cannot. Xiahou Dun would hold me responsible for the consequences, I do not seek to make enemies,’ the chubby governor had dark rings around his eyes.
‘When I slew Wen Chou and Yan Liang did I not save you and your city? Had Yuan Shao’s army continued its advance this land,’ Guan Yu swept his arm across the burned farms and ravaged countryside. ‘Would this all not have been conquered?’
‘I am eternally grateful for your martial prowess but I cannot provide boats for you,’ Liu Yan bowed in apology, his hands shook holding his horse’s reins. Though the governor was being ground down by the war he showed no sign of weakness.
There was no moving the governor, Lord Guan saw, and so he bid farewell to his old acquittance and carried on toward the crossing.
The crossing was situated at a narrow point on the river, upstream from where the Yellow River notoriously shifted hundreds of li north or south depending on Heaven’s Will. The small harbour, along with plenty of boats, was well guarded by Cao Cao’s troops. Qin Qi emerged from the barracks decked in arms and armour.
‘Where are you headed?’ Qin Qi asked as he mounted his steed, he gripped the rein with butcher’s hands.
‘I seek my brother, Liu Bei, on the other side. I request a boat for the passage,’ Lord Guan kept his sword sheathed and Green Dragon strapped to his saddle.
‘Xiahou Dun himself commanded me to make sure no one crosses the river. Do you have permission from the Prime Minister?’
‘I am not subject to the Prime Minister’s authority.’
‘Excuse me?’ Qin Qi growled, he came closer until there was only a few zhang between them. He was a small but stocky man with a round face and whiskers for a moustache. ‘You will not pass here, not even if you had wings.’
Rage bubbled up in Guan Yu’s stomach. To be so close only to be stopped by this lackey was too much, ‘I have killed those who blocked my way before.’
‘Then come at me!’
‘You think you the equal of Yan Liang or Wen Chou, you are nothing but a dust mite to those two!’ Lord Guan sallied forth, sword drawn. Qin Qi let out a war cry and flew at Guan Yu. There was no clash of steel. Guan Yu decapitated Qin Qi cleanly and rode towards the crossing. Once there he called out to the men, ‘Your commander challenged me, so I killed him. You are all faultless. Prepare me and mine a boat and we shall cross in peace.’ Qin Qi’s blood still dripped from Guan Yu’s sword.
The men complied and soon Lord Guan, along with Lady Mi, Lady Gan, and their twenty riders were crossing the Yellow River into Yuan Shao’s territory on a ferry along with the carriage and horses. Lord Guan stood at the prow of the boat and sighed, finally letting a slither of a smile reach his lips. The reunion with his brother was close and he hoped no one else stood in his way.
Part 1 | Part 3
Thank you very much for reading, Part 3 will be posted next week.