After delivering the message to the Great Wei border troops, a team of Black Barbarian knights withdrew from the mountain to prevent misunderstandings and avoid provoking a war.
The scouts of the Great Wei border army reported that the barbarians had retreated, prompting the border forces to stand down and return to their camp.
On the Black Barbarians' side, after galloping down the hill, the knights followed their new king. Instead of returning to camp, they ascended another ridge. This ridge was somewhat distant from the Great Wei border, making it inconvenient to occupy during wartime, but in the current peaceful situation, hidden within the dense forest, it provided an excellent vantage point to observe the Great Wei border forces.
They watched as the enemy camp remained ablaze with lights throughout the night, the fires illuminating the area for miles without extinguishing.
The Uman King, wearing a hood, sat astride his tall steed, arms crossed as he observed.
One of the knights behind him spoke: "Your Majesty, why not simply demand that the Great Wei people return their princess? Did you not come here specifically for her?"
The Uman King, his face hidden beneath the hood, chuckled dismissively.
His name was Meng Zaishi.
He was the eldest son of the previous Uman King, to whom Danyang Princess had been married.
A year ago, during the internal strife among the Black Barbarians, the heir to the Uman throne had died, and the princess had departed. Meng Zaishi should have perished in that conflict as well.
Meng Zaishi answered evasively: "The Great Wei will surely send someone tomorrow to inquire about the details. When they do, simply say I am merely a clansman of the former king. Let the Great Wei believe that the former king's family has been wiped out, and I am just a petty usurper who seized power amid the chaos."
Immediately, someone protested: "Your Majesty is a hero, the savior of our Black Barbarians! How could you be compared to a petty thief?!"
Meng Zaishi stared intently at the brightly lit direction of the Great Wei border army, showing no reaction to his subordinate's flattery.
This left the flatterer somewhat embarrassed.
Another knight glared fiercely at the one who had failed to curry favor and cautiously inquired: "Since Your Majesty intends to deceive the Great Wei, why send a message to Danyang Princess? If Danyang Princess learns who you are, wouldn't the Great Wei Emperor find out as well?"
Meng Zaishi replied calmly: "Not necessarily. Our princess may not share the same intentions as her father. I want to see whether she will inform the Great Wei Emperor that I am still alive, allowing him to take early precautions. I wager she will not.
"Our former queen is no ordinary woman."
At this, his subordinates lowered their heads, not daring to speak further. The relationship between Meng Zaishi and the former Uman Queen... even as subordinates, they ought to feign ignorance.
And indeed, they knew very little.
They had only heard vague rumors.
As everyone gazed toward the Great Wei border army, they suddenly noticed cavalry stealthily moving downhill toward the enemy camp. There was little sound of hoofbeats, as the horses' hooves were wrapped in cloth. Though their movement was hindered, they evaded detection by the Great Wei border scouts.
This military unit disappeared into the forest, clearly planning to harass the Great Wei border forces under cover of night.
The Uman King watched intently from his elevated position.
An excited subordinate behind him remarked: "It seems the intelligence Your Majesty received is accurate! The Southern Barbarian King truly cannot resist harassing the Great Wei border troops tonight to seize provisions and territory!"
Among the five Southern Barbarian tribes, the Black Barbarians were but one.The Southern Barbarians also had a king, but the five tribes did not heed his commands. However, the Great Wei, with its delayed intelligence, remained unaware that in recent years, a young king had emerged among the Southern Barbarians, diligently governing and steadily growing in power. This young king was determined to subdue all five tribes of the Southern Barbarians and conquer the Great Wei! Unbeknownst to the Great Wei, this young king had already begun his campaigns, sweeping across the entire Southern Barbarian lands!
Tonight, the young Southern Barbarian King had dispatched troops to harass the border forces of the Great Wei.
Meng Zaishi merely sat on his horse atop a high vantage point, watching the skirmish unfold quietly below. He smiled faintly: "It seems that young king truly intends to subdue all five tribes. Before even fully uniting them, he already seeks gains from the Great Wei? Truly, youth is bold and fierce."
A subordinate remarked, "He is naturally no match for you, Great King!"
Another added, "The Great Wei's border forces, startled by our arrival tonight, are hastily discussing countermeasures. The army sent by the Southern Barbarian King might indeed catch the Great Wei off guard. Great King, though we have not sworn allegiance to the Southern Barbarian King, are we not still Southern Barbarians? Should we follow and seize some benefits for ourselves?"
The soldiers behind them grew restless at these words. Valiant and battle-hungry, they could hardly contain their excitement at the prospect of profit.
Meng Zaishi said calmly, "Go if you wish."
Seeing their king did not object, several subordinates immediately stepped forward, mounted their horses, and rode down the hill to rally their own men.
Yet there were also perceptive subordinates who, noticing their king's ambiguous stance, gritted their teeth against their greed and remained behind, following their king as he looked down upon the chaos unfolding under the cover of night.
One puzzled follower asked, "Great King, why are you not tempted by such an obvious opportunity for gain?"
Meng Zaishi dismounted, standing tall with his black robes wrapped around him. He raised an arm, pointing vaguely toward the direction of the Great Wei: "Stealing and plundering are merely temporary solutions. To spend one's whole life doing so is ultimately laughable."
Those behind him exchanged glances, not understanding their king's words.
They listened as Meng Zaishi rested his chin on his hand, lost in thought: "For so many years, we've eaten when we had grain and raided the Great Wei when we had none. This is how it has been across the Southern Barbarians. Because of constant warfare, we've all become skilled fighters. The Great Wei's strongest army is its border force, but in our eyes, they are insignificant.
"Since we are so strong, why can't we be as prosperous as the Great Wei? Why are our people so ignorant? Why are our dwellings not as sturdy as those of the Great Wei? Why do we engage in endless warfare? Is what we truly desire merely the Great Wei's precious jewels and beautiful women?"
Meng Zaishi turned to face the bewildered crowd behind him.
He smiled faintly: "Originally, I had hoped to find answers through Princess Danyang. Unfortunately, she proved to be an untrustworthy partner. So now I have no choice but to let the Southern Barbarian King experiment in my stead.
"I swear this here and now! In my lifetime, I will not merely remain the Uman King—I will become the ruler of all Southern Barbarians. I will lead my people out of our current state. I will make us as powerful as the Great Wei, even surpass it!"
Under the starlit sky, the riders dismounted one by one, kneeling at the feet of their king. With devout hearts, they paid homage, sensing a premonition—
The mightiest king, the man before them, would lead them toward a future unlike any they had known!The border troops being harassed by the barbarians once again did not attract much attention. This was a perennial occurrence, and precisely the reason for the border troops' existence.
At top speed, the lists of young talents selected from various provinces were sent to Chang'an—these were the candidates for the imperial examinations next year;
Under the stars and moon, news of the Black Barbarians having a new king was also delivered to Chang'an, marking the beginning of new changes in the lands of the Southern Barbarians.
Meanwhile, Lingnan was drenched in rain again, drizzling like sorrow.
At dusk, Mu Wan Yao was still napping. Having suffered from miasma poisoning a few days earlier, she had not fully recovered and needed sleep to restore her energy.
In her drowsy, heavy slumber, she was tormented by nightmares of the past, which drenched her back in cold sweat and set her heart racing. Trapped in the nightmare and unable to wake, she was suddenly jolted awake by a clear, resonant voice reciting texts.
Through the hazy gauze curtains, Mu Wan Yao sat up dazedly on the bed, frowning as she listened to the recitation outside—
"Large rats, large rats, do not eat our millet..."
Over and over, the voice was as clear as rain.
Mu Wan Yao gathered her long hair, pushed aside the bed curtains, and rose with a dark expression. She knew it—it was that annoying Yan Shisheng reading again!
Reading again!
She lifted the curtains, got up, and pushed open the window, indeed spotting the young scholar sitting under the corridor, immersed in his book. Just as Mu Wan Yao was about to scold him for reading too loudly, she noticed a drop of rain slanting through the evening drizzle, splashing onto his eyelashes.
His lashes trembled slightly as he raised a hand to brush away the moisture. Then he lifted his gaze, quietly observing the drizzling sky as he sat in stillness.
His back was austere, his profile refined, his demeanor as vast and profound as distant mountains and clear waters.
Mu Wan Yao found herself staring, mesmerized.
...How could such noble bearing, typically cultivated only in scions of prestigious families, appear in a country bumpkin from Lingnan? Was reading truly so miraculous?
But his studies didn't seem particularly outstanding, either.
After watching the rain for a while, Yan Shisheng returned his focus to the book in his hands. Just as he was about to resume his recitation, a fan flew from behind and struck the back of his head.
Yan Shisheng: "Ouch."
Staggered by the hit, he turned around and fumbled to pick up the fan—a feather fan adorned with numerous pearls. It was the very fan Mu Wan Yao often used. Clutching it, he looked up and, sure enough, saw her red skirt swaying as she walked gracefully along the corridor toward him.
She scolded him: "When reading, one should seek meaning in a low voice, not imitate village students who shout and yell indiscriminately!"
A trace of helplessness flickered in Yan Shisheng's eyes as he stood and returned the fan to her. He said, "This humble student has learned his lesson."
...Truth be told, his reading voice wasn't all that loud.
But it must have disturbed Mu Wan Yao.
Seeing that the princess had no further instructions, Yan Shisheng sat down again, this time reading silently. The rain pattered steadily, and Yan Shisheng sat with his back tense, diverting a part of his attention to wonder why the princess hadn't left yet.
What was she doing, standing behind him?
Mu Wan Yao's eyes shimmered with shifting emotions as she leisurely fanned herself with her feather fan.
She asked coolly, "Yan Shisheng, do you wish to go to Chang'an?"
Yan Shisheng replied, "Yes."
He made to rise and face her, but Mu Wan Yao pressed down on his shoulder from behind, preventing him from turning toward her. She kept him seated, forcing him to speak to her in that position. With her hand resting on his shoulder and her standing behind him, observing him, Yan Shisheng felt awkward and somewhat ill at ease.
Mu Wan Yao: "Do you want to become an official?"
Yan Shisheng paused, then answered slowly, "Yes."Mu Wan Yao found it strange: "Why? Didn't you say you don't care for fame or power? Then why become an official?"
Yan Shisheng remained silent.
Mu Wan Yao poked his shoulder, a light touch that was both teasing and not. Her voice was ethereal as misty rain, carrying a hint of allure: "I'm asking you a question. Can't you speak the truth? Is it so hard for you to be honest?"
Yan Shisheng chuckled softly.
Gazing at the rain, he sighed: "It's not that I won't speak the truth, but the truth is often laughable, and no one would believe it anyway."
Mu Wan Yao said playfully: "What if I believe you?"
Yan Shisheng fell silent again.
Mu Wan Yao hooked her arm around his shoulder and poked him once more. Like a fish's tail lightly sweeping through clear water, starting from his shoulder, Yan Shisheng felt half his body going numb from her poking.
His face flushed red. Several times he tried to stand up, but she pressed him back down.
Forced to sit stiffly upright, he gazed at the continuous evening rain between heaven and earth and answered softly: "Then I'll only say this once. If Your Highness asks again in the future, I won't admit to it."
Mu Wan Yao found this amusing: "Go on then."
In the evening rain, she heard Yan Shisheng's gentle voice: "Your Highness, have you ever seen 'frozen bones by the roadside'? Have you ever witnessed 'the multitudes suffering cold with no salvation'? When I was young, before my mother passed away, my siblings and I followed our parents traveling through the south for studies. We encountered severe droughts, we witnessed cannibalism. My father said the world was unkind, that suffering commoners were everywhere.
"As I grew older, I saw even more. I couldn't help but wonder - what could I do for this world? A mere scholar confined to the remote countryside of Lingnan, if I wanted to change these times, besides taking imperial examinations and becoming an official, I had no other path.
"I want peace and prosperity for the world, I want the people to live without oppression. I want neighbors undisturbed, I want a golden age of peace. Besides becoming an official, I have no other path."
The scholar's righteous spirit, the young man's passionate blood. Yan Shisheng said softly: "Your Highness, did you hear the 'Large Rats' poem I recited earlier?"
The evening rain fell like sand. The two of them stood in the rain, one sitting, one standing. The young scholar sat in front, the young princess resting her shoulder on his. Their voices intertwined through the continuous rain, one after another:
"Large rats, large rats, do not eat our millet! Three years we've served you, yet you show us no kindness. We shall leave you now, for that happy land. That happy land, that happy land - where can we find our eternal rest?"
— That happy land, that happy land, where exactly is it?!
Reciting the poem together with him, Mu Wan Yao felt her heart surge with overwhelming emotion. Unable to contain her full feelings, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, leaned down from behind to press against his face, and gently kissed his cheek.
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