Chapter 76
As the sun sets, the afterglow paints the distant mountains a dark red.
Lu Huaying left the city and went to the camp of the Tulun tribe.
“Afi!”
A bonfire was lit in the open space in the middle of the tents, and people gathered around it to drink and dance, with calls of greeting rising and falling.
Mang Bao came over and warmly invited Lu Huaying to have a drink with him.
Lu Huaying had come to see Paulina, but declined the invitation and headed towards Paulina's tent.
The female slave said that Paulina was not at the camp, and she didn't know where she was or when she would return.
Lu Huaying sat in the tent for a long time. As darkness fell, the burning campfire cast the shadows of the dancing people onto the tent. The night wind lifted the curtains, and the aroma of roasted mutton wafted through the camp.
Paulina still hasn't returned.
Lu Huaying stood up and walked out of the tent.
The campfire grew brighter and brighter. Mangbao, holding his pipa, leaned against the tent, playing and singing. When he saw her walk by, his eyes lit up, and he jumped in front of her, pipa in hand. He plucked the strings, quickened the tempo, and began to dance around her.
Mote snatched the pipa from another person's arms and moved closer to Lu Huaying, playing and jumping as he went.
People around the campfire watched them. Several young soldiers took the lead in cheering, and the two began to compete, twisting their hips and spinning around Lu Huaying. Their dance moves were bold and vigorous, and they were evenly matched.
"Afi, who do you think jumped better?"
"Afi, you can't just say they all jumped well; you have to say who won and who lost!"
"Yes, there has to be a winner today! Otherwise they'll keep jumping."
Seeing the two arguing amidst the jeers of their clansmen, Lu Huaying didn't want them to lose face. She raised an eyebrow, borrowed a pipa, walked between Mangbao and Mote, waved her hand, and began to dance rapidly in the night wind, swaying her waist and taking steps to the rhythm.
The crowd was mesmerized and stunned for a moment before cheering loudly for her.
Mang Bao and Mo Te stopped, looked at Lu Huaying, and cheered with smiles.
After Lu Huaying finished her dance, she tossed the pipa to her host and said to Mang Bao and Mo Te, "Alright, the outcome of today's competition is decided. You have both lost to me. Each of you shall drink a bowl of wine."
The firelight shone on her face, illuminating her bright smile.
Mang Bao and Mo Te chuckled and took the wine bowls to drink.
The atmosphere became lively again.
Lu Huaying stayed and drank and laughed with them for a while, but when she saw that Paulina still hadn't returned, she got up and left.
It was getting late.
Her alcohol tolerance wasn't as good as before. After drinking, she felt a little dizzy, so she led her horse up the hillside to cool off.
A voice suddenly came from the silent darkness.
Someone is crying.
Lu Huaying walked towards the direction from which the sound came.
The crying was intermittent, with a strange tone. It sounded like crying, but upon closer listening, it didn't. It stopped abruptly, turning into a seductive moan, along with a man's heavy breathing.
Lu Huaying sobered up immediately and quietly led her horse away.
She walked down the hillside, tied her horse to the roadside, and sat down on the ground.
It was quiet all around.
Half an hour later, a man's figure turned around from the other side of the hillside, putting on his clothes as he walked towards the camp, the moonlight falling on his face.
Lu Huaying frowned slightly, and after the man walked away, she stood up and walked upstairs.
A woman walked towards them, with long golden hair, skin as white as snow, clothes disheveled, and fastening her belt as she walked.
Lu Huaying looked at her: "Paulina."
Paulina was startled and froze. She looked up, recognized her, closed her eyes, breathed a sigh of relief, remained silent for a moment, and then gave a self-deprecating laugh: "Feifei, you saw it?"
Lu Huaying nodded.
“Paulina, that man just now was the Khan’s son.”
Paulina married the Great Khan, but she was having an affair with his eldest son.
Paulina lowered her head and fastened her belt: "Yes, he is the future chief."
Lu Huaying stepped forward and took Paulina's hand.
Paulina was taken aback.
Lu Huaying said softly, "Paulina, we are friends. You can come back to the capital with me, and we can live together from now on. The Khan has received his title and is in a good mood. I will go and beg him to release you."
The Xiliang people attacked Baolina's tribe, and her family was brutally murdered by their scimitars. She was reduced to a slave and sold by merchants. Wei Mingsu rescued her in Baisha City and asked Shabona to help settle her. She chose to stay in the Tulun tribe and became the chieftain's woman.
The Chief's Year
Ji is old enough to be Paulina's grandfather.
The woman Lu Huaying knew before, Bao Lina, was very similar to her; she was also a spoiled and willful young lady with a handsome lover by her side.
Paulina would not have submitted to the chieftain of the Tulun tribe if she hadn't been forced into it.
Paulina looked up at Lu Huaying with a mocking smile: "Feifei, don't you think I'm promiscuous? You just heard it, I was having an affair with my stepson."
Lu Huaying shook her head.
"Paulina, you have no family left, but from now on I will be your family."
She came to Paulina tonight to tell her this.
Paulina stared blankly at Lu Huaying, tears welling up in her eyes. She shook her head and said, "No, Feifei, you don't need to worry about me. I'm doing very well in the Tulun tribe. I served the Khan voluntarily. The Khan's son likes me, and I went along with it to win him over. I want to stay in the Tulun tribe. There are things I want here."
"Paulina, what do you want?"
Paulina gazed at the dark western sky and said, "Power! I want power! I want the forces of the Tulun tribe... I want revenge for my family..."
She wiped away her tears, her gaze turning somber.
“My enemy has sided with the Xiliang people. I know that your empress has ascended the throne. There will definitely be a great war between the Great Zhou and the Xiliang people. That will be my chance for revenge.”
Lu Huaying said, "Paulina, there are many ways to take revenge."
Paulina gritted her teeth and said, "This is the fastest way. I want to kill my enemy with my own hands!"
"Paulina, have you ever thought about how the chief would treat you if he found out about your relationship with his eldest son?"
"I'm not afraid."
Looking at Paulina's contorted face, Lu Huaying sighed, took her hand, and said, "Paulina, come to me when you need help."
Paulina breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank you, Feifei."
Both of them fell silent, gazing at the campfire-lit camp in the distance.
Things have changed, but people are no longer the same.
Paulina gradually calmed down, turned her head, and said, "Let's not talk about my affairs anymore. Feifei, so your surname is Lu, and you're a young lady from the Lu family. Your husband's surname was originally Wei... He's a prefect now, and I heard from the Khan that he's a very high-ranking official. Have you two made up?"
Lu Huaying was taken aback.
Have she and Wei Mingsu made up?
"He still won't forgive you?" Pauline's face changed, and she was furious. "You risked your life to save him, you went through thick and thin with him, and he still won't forgive you? Is his heart made of stone?"
A few days ago, Lu Huaying came to Tulun tribe for help and reunited with Paulina.
Paulina tried to persuade Lu Huaying to stay in the Tulun tribe and let Mangbao and the others go to rescue people, but Lu Huaying insisted on going with them. Paulina had been very worried about her these past few days.
Lu Huaying smiled and said, "Baolina, I went back to Xizhou to find Governor Wei, just so I could find him and ensure his safe return."
Wei Mingsu was not unwilling to forgive her.
He simply wanted to distance himself from her and didn't want any further involvement with her outside of official business.
Paulina frowned.
"Feifei, you and Governor Wei haven't reconciled?"
Lu Huaying nodded: "Paulina, I'm the one who wronged him."
Paulina frowned even more: "But you're all married."
Lu Huaying gazed at the camp and smiled bitterly.
A cold wind blew across the hillside.
Paulina shivered.
Lu Huaying pulled herself out of her jumbled thoughts and escorted Paulina back to the camp. On the way, she advised Paulina to be careful.
The chief went into town during the day, leaving Paulina behind.
Lu Huaying stayed in her tent for one night, and then, wanting to persuade her to stay, she decided to stay.
They lay together on the carpet as they always had, talking all night long.
The next morning, Paulina opened her eyes.
The tent was dimly lit, and it was still dark. Lu Huaying had been drinking the night before and had spent a long time trying to persuade Paulina, so she was still asleep.
Paulina stared at Lu Huaying, her eyes darting around.
In the morning, the chief returned from the city.
Paulina came over to serve the chief and reminded him, "The Khan will be going to the capital to pay homage to His Majesty in a few days. Before the Khan departs, our Tulun tribe should reciprocate by preparing a banquet to thank Governor Wei and the others for their help."
The chief thought it was a good idea and gave instructions to the tribe.
Paulina sent someone into the city to request an audience with Wei Mingsu, urging him to come to the camp for a banquet.
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