93
It was already June when the main army triumphantly returned to Ruizhou, it was a vast and imposing procession. Perhaps it was the height of summer, but aside from encountering one heavy rainstorm on the road, they journeyed smoothly back to Ruizhou.
That day was overcast, the fierce early summer sun hidden behind the clouds, and a few gentle breezes lightly swept away the heat. As they approached the Fengyu Pavilion outside the city gates, the majestic gates of Ruizhou were already in sight. Mu Peixuan reined in his horse, unconsciously gazing at the two characters for “Ruizhou” above the gate. Even the usually boisterous Xu Ying fell silent. Duan Linzhou turned his head to look at Mu Peixuan. Throughout the army, everyone wore white headbands and plain hemp armbands; they were bringing Mu Peizhi and Li Yue back to Ruizhou with them.
The day they left Fengzhou, there had still been some excitement, but the closer they got to Ruizhou, the quieter the soldiers became, revealing a solemnity and a nervous apprehension akin to homesickness.
Mu Peixuan and Xu Ying felt the same way.
Perhaps sensing Duan Linzhou’s gaze, Mu Peixuan turned his head, meeting Duan Linzhou’s worried eyes. He shook his head at him, took a deep breath, and then waved his hand, signaling them to continue forward.
Word of their return to the city had reached Ruizhou well in advance. Han Shiqing and the other local officials were already gathered outside the city gates to receive them. Among the crowd, Mu Peixuan immediately caught sight of Lady Li.
It was his elder brother’s wife.
Mu Peixuan hadn’t expected Lady Li to appear at the city gates. His sister-in-law came from a distinguished family, was refined and gentle, and adhered strictly to propriety. But then, upon further thought, it also seemed perfectly reasonable. Since their marriage, his elder brother and sister-in-law had treated each other with respect and had a very loving relationship.
A pang of grief struck Mu Peixuan’s heart, and he almost didn’t dare to look into Lady Li’s eyes.
Li Yixin walked forward a few steps in a daze, looking at the two coffins at the front and back of the procession. One was Mu Peizhi’s, and the other was Li Yue’s. News of their deaths had already been sent back to Ruizhou. But Li Yixin couldn’t believe it; Mu Peizhi had clearly promised her that he would return safely.
Mu Peixuan called out softly, “Sao-zi…”
Li Yixin seemed to snap out of her daze and asked, “Ah Xuan, where is your elder brother?”
Mu Peixuan couldn’t answer.
Li Yixin slowly shifted her gaze to Mu Peixuan, then to Duan Linzhou. Both of them avoided her eyes. Li Yixin took a step towards the coffin, then another. After only a few steps, she broke into a run, her plain garments fluttering like butterflies. The coffin was heavy. Her hand trembled as she reached out, wanting to touch it but not daring to. Her fingertips shook uncontrollably. “Open it.”
“Open it!”
Mu Peixuan said, “Sao-zi, we can’t open it.” His eyes were slightly red as he whispered, “We can’t.”
Mu Peizhi was the Lord Marquis of Marquis Annan Mansion. How could they open his coffin in broad daylight?
Li Yixin seemed to hear him in a daze, or perhaps she didn’t. After a long moment, she suddenly let out a heart-wrenching cry of “Lord Marquis!” and lunged headfirst towards the heavy coffin. Mu Peixuan’s pupils constricted. Fortunately, he had been by her side, watching her, and he grabbed her arm the instant she moved to strike the coffin. Li Yixin was overcome with grief, tears streaming down her face. “Lord Marquis… let go of me, let go of me!”
The sorrow in her voice was so piercing that even the battle-hardened soldiers around them had tears welling up in their eyes, turning their faces away, unable to bear the sight.
After a chaotic flurry, it finally ended with Li Yixin fainting.
The Li family also arrived. Li Yue’s father was the chief administrator of Ruizhou. They and Xu Ying escorted Li Yue’s coffin back to the Li residence. Mu Peixuan entrusted the military affairs to Xu Ying and returned to Marquis Annan Mansion with the coffin and Lady Li.
Upon returning to the mansion, the Old Madam saw Mu Peizhi’s coffin and lost all her usual self-restraint and composure, bursting into loud sobs as she threw herself upon it.
The entire mansion was plunged into sorrow.
Mu Peizhi’s death was like a late winter snowfall, it was heavy, unrelenting, and bone-chilling, leaving hearts in pieces. Inside the mansion, both the Old Madam and Lady Li were consumed by sorrow, unable to emerge from their overwhelming grief. Duan Linzhou stayed by Mu Peixuan’s side, meticulously arranging everything for Mu Peizhi’s wake and funeral.
Duan Linzhou had personally managed the funeral of Old Master Duan and had the assistance of the mansion’s stewards. Everything proceeded according to ritual and propriety, and there were no major mishaps.
The coffin rested in the mansion, the mourning hall draped in white, and many came to offer their condolences. Mu Peizhi had a gentle disposition and was kind to others. He was quite renowned in Ruizhou for his talent. Not only did officials come to mourn him, but also well-known literary figures from afar came to offer three sticks of incense.
Some came with genuine sorrow, while others were motivated by self-interest. Daliang was now in complete chaos, but Ruizhou remained a relatively peaceful corner. Marquis Annan Mansion had returned victorious from this rebellion, greatly enhancing its reputation. This reminded people that for the past century, it was Marquis Annan’s family who had guarded the southern border, ensuring the peace of the various southern prefectures. Those who could step through the gates of Marquis Annan Mansion were either wealthy or noble. They were acutely aware that an era of turmoil had arrived. Various regional kings might very well declare themselves kings. Although the Mu family only possessed half of the tiger tally, their prestige in the Southern Army was extremely high, and they might very well become a regional power.
Mu Peixuan saw these hidden calculations clearly, and his expression grew even colder.
In just a few short days, Old Madam Zhang aged considerably. Mu Peizhi was her eldest son, her most beloved, the child on whom she had placed all her hopes. She hadn’t expected him to leave like this. She couldn’t withstand such a shock, and even more white hair appeared at her temples. She refused to leave, wishing she could stay in the mourning hall day and night, guarding Mu Peizhi. But she was no longer young and had fainted several times. Yet, upon waking, she would try to go to the mourning hall again, and the servants couldn’t stop her.
“Son ah,” Old Madam Zhang sobbed, clinging to the coffin, her tears streaming down as she repeatedly patted the lid. “How could you leave your mother… how could you be so cruel…”
“It would have been better for me to die, let me die!”
Mu Peixuan supported her, his voice hoarse. “Mother, please take care of yourself—”
Before he could finish speaking, Old Madam Zhang had already flung off Mu Peixuan’s hand. She stared directly at Mu Peixuan and said, “Was it you who reduced your elder brother to ashes?”
Mu Peixuan was stunned and didn’t speak.
A sharp “slap” echoed through the hall as the Old Madam raised her hand and struck Mu Peixuan’s cheek. “How dare you? That was your elder brother, your own elder brother!”
The slap landed heavily, shocking Duan Linzhou and all the servants in the hall. Duan Linzhou immediately reacted, frowning as he took two steps forward and looked at Mu Peixuan. He began to explain, “Old Madam, it was a matter of urgency and discretion. Lord Marquis was infected with the plague—”
“Shut up! What is your status?” The Old Madam roared. “Do you have the right to speak here?”
Duan Linzhou’s brow furrowed, and he was about to speak again, but Mu Peixuan grabbed his hand. He then addressed his mother, “Mother, Big Brother contracted the plague. I had no other choice but to do it…”
“What ‘no other choice’?” Old Madam Zhang glared at Mu Peixuan with resentment. “Why did your elder brother have to meet with misfortune just when you left, not before or after?”
These words were deeply accusatory, striking at Mu Peixuan’s heart. He was stunned, staring blankly at Old Madam Zhang in disbelief.
After a few breaths, he finally found his voice, asking in confusion, “Do you think… that I killed Big Brother?”
“Even if it wasn’t directly you, you are still inextricably linked!” Old Madam Zhang’s heart ached with pain. Looking at her younger son, she felt an increasing sense of loathing and revulsion. “I know you’ve been jealous of your elder brother since you were little. You were unwilling when he asked you to marry this merchant back then, but I never imagined you could be so vicious! To reduce your own elder brother to ashes!”
Mu Peixuan’s face instantly turned ashen.
Old Madam Zhang fixed her gaze on Mu Peixuan. “When you were born, you nearly caused your own mother’s death and drove your parents apart.” Her hair was disheveled, and there was a hint of madness in her eyes. “I truly wish I had never given birth to you—”
Duan Linzhou’s voice was sharp. “Old Madam!”
“Peixuan is also your own son! He is Lord Marquis’s own blood brother,” Duan Linzhou said, his expression grim, his voice cold. “Do you truly intend to maliciously speculate about their fraternal bond in front of him like this?”
Old Madam Zhang gave a desolate smile. “What fraternal bond? My son is gone, he’s gone.” She turned her head to look at the memorial tablet, then back at Mu Peixuan. “Why is it you who returned, and not your elder brother?”
Mu Peixuan stared at Old Madam Zhang as if he had never truly known her. His whole body felt cold. Suddenly, a hand grasped his fingers. Mu Peixuan slowly lowered his eyes and saw Duan Linzhou’s thin, pale hand.
Duan Linzhou pulled Mu Peixuan out of the mourning hall.
Mu Peixuan followed him silently, his soul seemingly lost, looking utterly pitiful. Duan Linzhou clutched Mu Peixuan’s stiff fingers, feeling both angry and heartbroken, his chest tight with suppressed emotion. If they weren’t in Mu Peizhi’s mourning hall, if Madam Zhang weren’t Mu Peixuan’s birth mother, would Duan Linzhou have let it go so easily?
Duan Linzhou stopped beside a rockery, looked at Mu Peixuan, reached out to touch his cheek, and whispered, “Peixuan…”
Mu Peixuan slowly raised his eyes, looked at Duan Linzhou, and forced a smile. “It’s alright.” He said.
Duan Linzhou sighed and embraced Mu Peixuan, whispering softly, “Don’t be sad.”
Mu Peixuan paused. “I’m not sad,” he said, “I just didn’t expect…” He seemed lost in thought for a moment and then said softly, “I didn’t expect Mother to dislike me so much.”
He had known his mother didn’t like him ever since he could remember.
When he was young and naive, he had been confused. Mu Peixuan thought perhaps he wasn’t obedient enough or had unknowingly angered his mother. Back then, his mother hadn’t spoken harsh words to him, but her likes and dislikes were never concealed.
She had never hidden them.
When his elder brother returned from the academy, she was always joyful and expectant. When the weather turned cold, she would think about making new clothes for his elder brother. When his elder brother grew taller, her face would be full of smiles.
When Mu Peixuan went to pay his respects to her, his mother was always lukewarm.
His mother admired his elder brother’s excellent essays. Mu Peixuan remembered one year when he too had written an essay that had earned praise from the academy master. It was something he had toiled over for three nights. Mu Peixuan had excitedly taken it to show his mother, trying to appear casual about it.
His mother was uninterested and waved her hand, telling him to put it aside. At that time, the Old Marquis was still alive. Seeing this, he picked it up, read it through, and was quite pleasantly surprised. He joked, “Our Mu family has been a family of warriors for generations. Are we about to produce two top scholars?”
Mu Peixuan felt a little embarrassed.
Immediately, he heard his mother say, “What top scholar? Wasn’t he just fooling around with that Xu boy last time, getting punished by the master for hitting the fifth son of Lord Zhao in the academy? Have you ever seen Peizhi behave so childishly?”
Duan Linzhou stroked Mu Peixuan’s hair and said softly, “They say parental love is deep, but I think sometimes there also needs to be a bit of fate between parents and children.”
Mu Peixuan remained silent.
Duan Linzhou continued, “Without that fate, even blood relatives can end up disliking each other intensely. At best, they become like strangers; at worst, they become enemies.”
After a long while, Mu Peixuan whispered, “I’m sorry. Today you were tired because of Mother…”
Duan Linzhou smiled slightly and gently touched the handprint on Mu Peixuan’s cheek. “Does it hurt?”
Mu Peixuan replied, “No.”
Duan Linzhou said, “Let’s put some ice on it.”
Mu Peixuan let out an “En”. Duan Linzhou couldn’t help but stroke his head. Mu Peixuan looked up at Duan Linzhou, grasped his hand, and held it firmly in his own hand.
94
Mu Peizhi’s coffin lay in state in the Marquis Mansion for seven days. The twenty-second of the sixth month was an auspicious day for the encoffing and burial, a rare good day, so Mu Peizhi’s funeral was set for that date.
Li Yue was buried on the third day. Mu Peixuan, Duan Linzhou, and Xu Ying all went to see him off.
Li Yue was the legitimate son of the Li family and had died for the country, so his funeral was grand. During this time, Mu Peixuan had seen Li Qing once. Knowing how much Li Yue cared for this younger brother, he paid close attention to him. Li Qing looked dazed, his face pale as death, dressed entirely in white mourning clothes, appearing gaunt and frail, both haggard and pitiable.
Mu Peixuan didn’t know what to say. He had experienced the pain of losing loved ones twice already, and words seemed utterly inadequate.
Xu Ying, standing beside him, mentioned that on the day they returned to the city, Li Qing had wanted to greet them at the city gates, but his father hadn’t allowed it and had even locked Li Qing up. Li Qing had broken a window with a stool and climbed out. When they arrived at the Li residence, they saw Li Qing dragging a sword, staggering towards the front gate, followed by the Li family’s madam and servants.
Li Zhizhong’s expression had immediately turned unpleasant.
When Li Qing saw his elder brother’s coffin, the sword clattered to the ground. He hugged the coffin and wept bitterly, and the servants couldn’t pull him away. It was Li Qing’s mother who finally said from the side, ‘Don’t stop your brother from coming home.’
Only then did Li Qing move aside, clutching the coffin as if his soul had left him. It was just like when he was little and would follow Li Yue, holding onto his brother’s sleeve, taking one step for every step Li Yue took.
When the coffin was finally placed, Li Qing’s knees buckled, and he wept uncontrollably.
Li Qing was a Kunze. Although he and Li Yue didn’t share the same mother, he had a gentle and yielding nature, and Li Yue had protected this Kunze younger brother of his since childhood. Once, a good-for-nothing playboy with no sense of propriety had spoken rudely and offensively to Li Qing. Li Yue had knocked out his teeth, leaving him bedridden for two months. Li Yue was usually mild-tempered and calm, rarely displaying such rage and impulsiveness.
Some people in the garrison had joked about him, saying he treated Li Qing like the apple of his eye and wondering what he would do when Li Qing found a husband.
Li Yue had been momentarily stunned, then smiled and said, “Li Qing is a kunze, and his nature is gentle. I can’t rest easy if I’m not looking after him.”
He had stated, “If Li Qing can find a satisfactory husband, I’ll personally escort him to the wedding. If not, I’ll take care of him for the rest of his life. He’s my younger brother, and I’ll protect him in this lifetime.”
No one understood the depth of their brother’s affection for this younger sibling better than Xu Ying and Mu Peixuan.
Xu Ying said softly, “Li Qing has tried to take his own life twice. Fortunately, Madam Li was careful and had people watch over him, so they stopped him in time.”
Madam Li was Li Yue’s birth mother and the matriarch of the Li family.
“I gave him Li Yue’s peace amulet,” Xu Ying’s voice held a trace of grief and pity. The amulet, which he had taken from around Li Yue’s neck, was already blackened with blood. When he gave it to Li Qing, Li Qing had lunged forward and clutched it tightly. Xu Ying had crouched down and said, ‘Li Qing, Li Yue was thinking of you right before he died. If you go to see him like this, how heartbroken do you think he’ll be?’
Xu Ying continued, ‘He said you were going to plant crabapple trees for him, did you plant them?’
Li Qing said dazedly, ‘I’ve planted them. They’re already alive, this tall—’ He gestured, as if trying to tell Li Yue. Xu Ying’s eyes reddened, and his nose felt tight. He said in a muffled voice, ‘They haven’t bloomed yet… you have to let him see them bloom.’
Li Qing slowly raised his head to look at Xu Ying, as if he had heard but hadn’t quite understood.
Xu Ying then said, ‘From now on, Xiao Junwang and I, we’re all your elder brothers. If anything happens, we’ll bear it for you.’
After a long while, Li Qing could no longer hold back his tears. He wept uncontrollably, his whole body trembling, his heart seemingly convulsing, constantly calling out Li Yue’s name, calling out ‘Gege.’
Xu Ying turned his head away and reached out to wipe his own cheeks.
Xu Ying said, “When we set out on the campaign, Li Yue told me that Li Zhizhong wanted to marry Li Qing off to someone in Liangdu to secure a better future for himself.”
Mu Peixuan’s expression turned cold, and he said in a low voice, “Times have changed. Qin Fengyuan has already reached Lingguan, and Liangdu has become a city in peril. Li Yue is about to be buried, and Li Zhizhong won’t have time to use Li Qing’s marriage as a political tool in the coming months.”
Xu Ying nodded. Mu Peixuan looked at him and said, “Leave this matter to me.”
Xu Ying was taken aback. “How can that be?”
Mu Peixuan explained, “Li Qing is a kunze after all. Although your intentions are good in looking after him, you are both unmarried. If rumors were to spread, it would be detrimental to Li Qing, as well as to you and Fang Yuan.”
“If his father tries to make you marry Li Qing, will you marry him then?”
Xu Ying was stunned. He remembered Li Yue’s dying wish and wanted to take good care of Li Qing. But he hadn’t considered that Li Qing was a Kunze. His unwarranted care for Li Qing would appear ambiguous in the eyes of others.
Xu Ying looked at Mu Peixuan and asked, “Then what should we do?”
Mu Peixuan’s expression was calm as he said softly, “Once this matter is settled, I will speak to Li Zhizhong and ask the elders of our clan to come forward and recognize Li Qing as my adopted younger brother.”
“His desire to marry Li Qing into a Liangdu family is solely to advance his own career. But with Li Qing’s status as an illegitimate son, he wouldn’t be a match for the prominent families of Liangdu. Even if he did manage it, Li Qing would only end up as a concubine,” Mu Peixuan explained. “Rather than that, it would be better to have Li Qing bear the name of Marquis Annan Mansion. If a good match arises in the future, I will naturally make the decision for Li Qing.”
Xu Ying hesitated. “Will that old man agree?”
Mu Peixuan tugged at the corner of his lips and said, “Given the current chaotic situation and that we are here in Ruizhou city, he’ll have to weigh carefully whether he can afford to offend me or not.”
“Li Zhizhong is a sly old fox; he won’t miscalculate this,” Mu Peixuan said. “Using his illegitimate son to gain my favor, and I would protect his Li family out of respect for Li Yue. But if he doesn’t know what’s good for him—”
Xu Ying looked at the calm and collected Mu Peixuan. He knew Mu Peixuan was the youngest among them but also the most decisive. Yet, at this moment, he inexplicably felt that the coldness in Mu Peixuan’s words was like a chilling blade, concealing a sharp edge that sent a shiver down his spine.
Xu Ying said softly, “Ah Xuan…”
Mu Peixuan looked at Xu Ying.
Xu Ying seemed to recall something and lowered his voice. “Is Marquis Annan Mansion alright?”
Mu Peixuan lowered his eyes. “It will get better slowly.”
“Jinyu and Jintang are still young. Even if Mother and Sao-zi miss him, they will still take care of themselves,” Mu Peixuan said. “It will be better in a few days.”
Xu Ying responded, and, looking at Mu Peixuan’s thinner face, he advised, “You also need to take care of your own health.”
Mu Peixuan said, “Alright.”
On the twenty-second of the sixth month, Mu Peizhi’s funeral was held.
In the days following his funeral, there were several heavy rainstorms. The rain was torrential and fierce, and the strong winds mixed with large hailstones nearly uprooted the trees in the courtyard.
After this rain, Mu Peixuan, who had always enjoyed excellent health, suddenly fell seriously ill.
