Comradeship
A sense of respect for Li Lanxiu arose in A Qiu's heart.
In that instant, I gained a deeper understanding and resonance with the martial arts tradition I belong to.
Whether she betrayed him or not, Lanling Hall was already her destiny etched into her bones.
She also knew that, as a fellow member of the Lanling Hall, Li Lanxiu had already guessed most of her purpose in entering the palace and what she was going to do next.
That task was extremely difficult and perilous. Throughout history, very few assassins from Lanling have been able to accomplish such a great feat.
That's why Li Lanxiu said, "I will never withdraw my support for you."
This means that from now on, no matter what happens, Li Lanxiu will continue to do her best to remain in the position of Consort Chen and provide cover and support for A Qiu to the best of her ability.
But the rest of the work still had to be done by A-Qiu himself.
A Qiu looked towards the direction of Tangli West Garden, where lights were still faintly lit, indicating that someone was unable to sleep all night.
She bowed deeply to Li Lanxiu and said, "Take care, Uncle-Master."
Li Lanxiu replied, "You too."
The two of them tacitly fell silent.
Everything is understood without words.
Ignoring Consort Chen's gaze, A Qiu resolutely ran towards the lakeside boardwalk.
There, she not only had her fellow geisha sisters, but also her dance master.
She had made up her mind to face with them the terrible fate of being sent north as tribute.
Following his memory of the location of the geisha's quarters, A-Qiu stealthily crept over.
Night had fallen, and the ancient trees in the Pear Garden were bare, their fallen leaves scattered in a hazy mist. She assumed everyone was already asleep. The only ones still lit were probably the two instructors who had not yet settled down.
Familiar houses and buildings came into view, just as they had been when she lived there.
A Qiu used his internal energy to listen and heard dozens of even breaths coming from the dormitory. It seemed that no matter how worried they were during the day, they had fallen asleep due to exhaustion.
Hearing that they were all alright, A-Qiu was relieved and took a step to leave so she could go to the room where the teacher was to see her wife, Sun.
There are some things that can only be resolved by discussing them with my wife, Sun.
Just as she was about to turn and leave, a footstep suddenly sounded in the bedroom.
A-Qiu stopped abruptly, wondering who was still up and moving around so late.
But the footsteps did not come out; instead, they moved around inside the bedroom.
Then she heard the sound of a chair being moved, as if something was being hung up.
The man also tiptoed, as if afraid that making too much noise would wake his companion.
A Qiu suddenly became curious. She recognized all the dancers in the music academy. They were all obedient to Sun Neiren and Xue Hongbi, timid and docile, and would never resist anything, let alone do anything secretive.
It was so late at night; this person had clearly waited until everyone was sound asleep before getting up alone. Who was she, and what did she intend to do?
As A-Qiu pondered this, she quietly walked towards the entrance of the dormitory, but after taking only one step, she immediately stopped.
She had already seen a figure walking towards her from under the corridor.
She recognized the figure; it was Sun's wife. She was slender, and her hair was still tied up in a high bun, just as Ah Qiu had seen her the last time.
Ah Qiu guessed that she was making her night patrol as usual. When Ah Qiu was still alive, Lady Sun often did this, both to check on the safety of the dancers and to prevent any accidents at night.
As A Qiu watched Sun Neiren walk to the entrance of the dormitory, he suddenly heard a "thump" from inside the dormitory, as if something had overturned on the ground.
For some reason, her heart sank suddenly, and she realized that something terrible was about to happen.
At this moment, Sun's wife also heard it and immediately rushed in. Then, A Qiu heard Sun's wife shout, "Green Pearl, what are you doing!"
Suddenly, the dormitory was filled with noise as everyone hurriedly got out of bed. Then the lights quickly came on.
Since no one was paying attention to what was happening outside, A Qiu immediately took the opportunity to sneak over, press himself against the window, and peer inside.
Cui Luzhu, with her hair disheveled and her face blank, had just been rescued from the beam. Zhang Exu was busy cutting the white silk ribbon around her neck.
On the ground, overturned to one side, was a small wooden stool.
Sun's wife's face turned ashen; she was so angry that she couldn't utter a single word and just stood there, frozen in place.
The other dancers, their clothes disheveled and hair loose, sat haphazardly around the bed, most of them with swollen eyes, staring at Cui Luzhu in astonishment. A few of the more timid ones burst into tears.
It took Sun's wife a while to catch her breath. She snapped, "Green Pearl, what are you trying to do?"
He then shouted, "Go and invite Instructor Xue here!"
A Qiu knew that Madam Sun was extremely angry. Madam Sun was always calm and composed, and always took responsibility for everything. If she wasn't really angry, she would never have woken Xue Hongbi up in the middle of the night.
Cui Luzhu just sat there, her face as white as paper, panting heavily.
Zhang E patted her back and then poured her some water. She complained, "We're all in this together, whether we live or die, what are you doing now?"
Cui Luzhu gulped down a large bowl of water before she came to her senses and suddenly shouted, "I'm not going to Beiqiang!"
Upon hearing her shout, Sun's wife's face instantly darkened, becoming even more unsightly than before.
Ah Qiu finally understood why Cui Luzhu had hanged herself at this crucial moment. It turned out that she did not want to be offered as tribute to the Northern Qiang court.
But she wasn't the only one who didn't want to go.
I'm afraid even Sun's wife herself wouldn't want to go.
But the country has its laws, and the palace has its rules. The musicians were not free; they were slaves belonging to the Ministry of Rites. Now that the court needed them, how could they be allowed to refuse to go?
Everyone probably felt the same way, weeping silently, but no one dared to shout it out openly.
At this moment, Cui Luzhu's shout immediately stirred up the crowd, and even the dancers who were crying suddenly stopped crying.
Everyone understood that Cui Luzhu had sought death here because she didn't want to go to Beiqiang.
At this moment, feeling a sense of shared fate, everyone thought of their own impending destiny and, witnessing Cui Luzhu's plight, couldn't help but feel indignant.
But what A-Qiu didn't know was that the personalities of these dancers were no longer the same as when A-Qiu first came.
The reason is simple: after experiencing the "mutiny" in which they assassinated Huang Chaoan with A Qiu, being imprisoned by Mu Huaying's faction, and then being released again, coupled with the fact that one of them became the Grand Master of Music, the only successor of the Junior Master in the current dynasty, their mentality was no longer as naive and innocent as it once was.
Anyone who has faced life and death several times will mature in temperament.
Zhang Exu then said, "Master, if we go to the Northern Qiang, we will die anyway, and after suffering endless humiliation. So why should we go and endure this further suffering?"
Cui Luzhu's previously listless eyes suddenly lit up upon hearing Zhang Exu's words, and she said, "None of you have ever seen the Northern Qiang people, have you? But I have heard of them. I have a relative who works in the music and dance industry; she fled south from the north. She said..."
Her eyes only brightened for a moment before dimming again, and she said listlessly, "She said that if a woman in our line of work falls into the clutches of the Northern Qiang people, she will suffer ten times worse than if she falls into the Divine Hound Camp, and will die without a complete corpse."
A-Qiu was deeply shaken upon hearing this, knowing that what she said was the truth.
The scene flashed before her eyes: the city of Luoyang, where nine out of ten houses were empty, and the bodies of her sisters from the Flower Moon Pavilion lay exposed outside the city walls, as described by Yuan Si Niang.
Since Cui Luzhu had heard about it from her relative, she was now trying her best not to say it openly, so as not to frighten the dancers in front of her and cause greater panic.
But now that Cui Luzhu knew about the cruel treatment the Northern Qiang people had of female musicians, she had no intention of falling into their hands alive.
Currently, they are still in the Tangli West Garden, where they can move freely and even seek death. However, once they leave the palace and travel north with the mission, they will be under close surveillance, and death or injury will not be so easy.
A Qiu clenched her fist, her nails digging into her palm.
At that moment, she made a firm decision.
For the sake of these sisters in the Yuefu, she would never allow the iron hooves of the Northern Qiang to set foot in the Southern Dynasty.
Before she could react, the oppressive atmosphere in the dormitory was shattered by a harsh shout.
"Shut up!"
It was Sun Neiren who angrily shouted to stop Cui Luzhu from continuing.
Veins bulged on her forehead as she angrily retorted, "We are representing our country to present the national music pieces 'Shao' and 'Wu,' not to throw our lives away. Even if we are defeated, a country still has its dignity. That is why the Junior Tutor was willing to surrender—to ensure the country's safe retreat. Why do you think we are going to our deaths?"
The dancers looked at each other, speechless.
After all, Master Gu Yi was someone far removed from them. No matter what Lady Sun said, they couldn't refute it.
But the only things they could and were able to believe were the descriptions of those who were right next to them.
These dancers grew up in the inner palace and mostly experienced war. Although they were still ignorant at that time and only survived under the protection of Consort Sun, they had a general idea of what it was like.
Encouraged by Zhang Exu and Cui Luzhu's courage, the others said in trembling voices, "That's what they say. But once we reach the territory of the Northern Qiang, no one can guarantee our safety. Even if the Junior Tutor wanted to intervene, it's beyond the Emperor's reach."
A-Qiu secretly admired them; the mental development of these geishas had exceeded her expectations. They were actually able to consider so many things.
A clear and loud voice rang out decisively: "I can guarantee it won't happen."
Xue Hongbi, who had been hurriedly woken up from her bed in the middle of the night, was already outside the dormitory.
Sun's wife, who was originally furious and resolute, was now stunned as she watched Xue Hongbi burst in.
The same question was swirling in Ah Qiu's mind as it was with Sun's wife.
If even Gu Yi can't guarantee something, what can Xue Hongbi guarantee?
A Qiu knew perfectly well that once they entered the territory of the Northern Qiang, no one's guarantees would be valid. Even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake, and besides, the Northern Qiang royal family would never reason with a small delegation.
Sun's wife was probably well aware of the situation, so she could only look at Xue Hongbi with surprise.
Xue Hongbi said loudly, "The one escorting the delegation is the Divine Hound Camp. General Pei can guarantee that your safety will be absolutely guaranteed."
Upon hearing the name of the Divine Hound Camp, some dancers showed expressions of alarm.
Zhang Exu and Cui Lüzhu showed no unusual reaction, because they had already rehearsed "Shao" and "Wu" with the officers of the Divine Hound Battalion, and the resentment in their hearts had gradually dissipated.
Sun's wife said, "The Divine Hound Camp has now become our comrade-in-arms, and I believe they will not harm us."
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