Dandere General and his Lord

29. Imprisoned

Cheng Qianye was dejected to discover that after shedding off her “Lord” halo, in reality, she was a very incompetent person.

Now, they had changed their location to a rather concealed col.1

Cheng Qianye had been crouching in front of a small pile of wood for quite some time, her face covered in streaks of black ash. After countless failures, she finally managed to ignite a small flame.

Immediately tossing away the things in her hands, she bent over and cupped her hand together to protect the precious flame.

She cautiously fed the fire with some hay, dead twigs and other flammable materials until the fire stabilized, before gradually adding dry branches, one at a time.

Seeing the fire finally growing bigger, Cheng Qianye collapsed onto her butt, heaving a tired sigh.

She looked at Mo Qiao Sheng who was struggling between his desire to get up and obeying her command and said, “Don’t worry, you can rest at ease. Look, the fire’s burning just fine, isn’t it? This lord of yours is not that useless.”

Although Cheng Qianye’s words were very confident, her heart was actually filled with uncertainty.

She looked at the live fish beside her which she had used every ounce of her strength to catch and really wished she could hide her face and cry.

She could eat fish and she could manage to try and boil a fish, but how was one to one kill a fish?

Cheng Qianye, who had barely even gone into a food market, felt that she was at her wit’s end.

That live fish – which was barely the size of her palm – lay on the ground, its tail swinging back and forth vigorously as it spat out bubbly sounds, as though protesting to her.

Cheng Qianye strengthened her resolve and drew out a dagger.

Hmph! In any case, she had to kill it if they were going to eat it.

An hour later, Cheng Qianye dejectedly took down the fish which had its insides still ungutted and scales still intact and had been roasted until it was black as charcoal.

She broke off some of the scorched fish with her fingers, revealing the barely edible flesh within. After taking a bite, her mouth was overwhelmed with the fishy, overdone flavour and gluey texture.

Cheng Qianye sheepishly snapped the fish in half and handed Mo Qiao Sheng his share.

“Do you want to eat it? This is the only thing there is.”

Mo Qiao Sheng took the fish with both hands and softly raised both of his hands to his forehead in respect before getting up to eat the food cautiously.

He ate it worshipfully, begrudging to waste even a crumb, as though the grilled fish was not a complete mess, but a fine delicacy.

Cheng Qianye looked at him eating so joyfully and felt her appetite roused, sitting beside him to eat together.

The desolate mountain was tranquil, ringing with the calls of birds and insects.

The unpalatable grilled fish suddenly didn’t seem to taste too bad.

From the previous night to now, Cheng Qianye had run around all over the place with all sorts of twists and turns, and had only eaten half a piece of fruit in the morning. Her stomach had been rumbling with hunger since a long time ago, feeling famished. The little piece of fish that entered her stomach did not alleviate her hunger in the slightest, only making her feel even more hungry.

However, she was overcome with weariness now, not wishing to move in the slightest.

She lay down on the ground beside Mo Qiao Sheng, closing her eyes to take a rest.

Her empty stomach rumbled and she curled up her body.

I’ll rest for a bit before going to look for some more food. Qiao Sheng lost so much blood, I can’t let him starve.

In a haze, she seemed to feel a broad pair of hands softly embracing her shoulders. She felt cozy, her tension melting away.

Unwittingly, she sunk into sleep.

~

Cheng Qianye was awakened by a fragrance.

She opened her eyes to catch sight of Mo Qiao Sheng who was busy bustling about by the campfire.

The young man who was clothed in black had his sleeves rolled up to reveal his strong yet slender arms and his forehead was beaded with sweat as he concentrated on carefully prodding the fire with a stick.

Cheng Qianye sat up.

Her hands were filled with fresh, clean fruits. The wild fruits in her hands still had dew drops on them and the little brown fruits had been cooked, its appearance nothing special to look at.

She took one and put it into her mouth, taking a bite. To her surprise, it was sweet and juicy yet somewhat tart. It was delicious.

As if she had hit the jackpot, Cheng Qianye stuffed the fruits into her mouth and called out to Mo Qiao Sheng, “Qiao Sheng, stop working and come here quickly. Come and eat this, it’s delicious.”

When Mo Qiao Sheng saw that she was awake, he picked up a bamboo tube that was beside the fire and poured water out of it, soaking the handkerchief that Cheng Qianye had placed on his forehead before. He knelt on one knee beside Cheng Qianye, holding up the handkerchief with both hands.

Cheng Qianye took it and wiped her face. The originally clean handkerchief was instantly dyed black, obviously from when she had been building the fire before she had grilled the fish, leaving her to cut a sorry figure. 

Mo Qiao Sheng stood in attendance beside her and poured the water out from the bamboo tube so Cheng Qianye could wash her hands and face. The temperature of the water was perfectly lukewarm, extremely comfortable to wash with.

After Cheng Qianye finished washing up, Mo Qiao Sheng put out the fire and pushed the firewood away, revealing a smoky mass of charred mud which was buried in the soil.

He broke open the hard layer of mud with his hands and peeled off the layer of brown leaves beneath it, revealing the tender, white chicken meat within. The air was instantly suffused with a mouthwatering aroma.

Cheng Qianye couldn’t help swallowing her saliva. She took the steaming hot chicken and tore off the two chicken legs stuffed one into Mo Qiao Sheng’s hand before pulling him to sit beside her.

The chicken was tender and succulent, so delicious she nearly swallowed her tongue.

“Qiao Sheng, you’re too competent.” Cheng Qianye’s mouth was stuffed full and her voice was muffled as she heaped him with praises. Recalling the disgusting grilled fish made by herself, she felt herself flush with shame.

“How come you know how to do everything? Great martial arts, great cooking skills, even your writing is better than mine.” She poked Mo Qiao Sheng with her elbow. “Stop fighting later on and cook for me everyday, how about it?” 

Mo Qiao Sheng bowed his head slightly, his eyes filled with pleasure.

But his smile froze abruptly. 

“Someone is here.” He said.

He grabbed Cheng Qianye’s hand, intending to escape.

A group of armed soldiers appeared halfway up the mountain. There were around 30-40 of them, blocking them in their tracks. 

These soldiers were not Quanrong soldiers, but they weren’t soldiers from the Jin Nation either. They were clothed in odd, form-fitting black leather, carrying bows and spears with them.

They were the clothes that naval soldiers wore throughout the year. 

The soldiers were headed by a general who did not waste any words with them and waved his hand as he commanded, “Seize them!”

Mo Qiao Sheng pulled out his dagger and leaned forward, protecting Cheng Qianye behind him.

“Qiao Sheng.” Cheng Qianye grabbed his arm, shaking her head.

There were too many people on the opposing side and Mo Qiao Sheng was injured severely. She couldn’t watch him die.

She stepped forward and cupped her fists together in greeting before saying to the general, “Is General a soldier under Duke Wei Heng from the State of Wei? I2 am a member from the Jin Army. We were ambushed yesterday by Quanrong soldiers and happened to drift off over here. Both our countries are common allies against the Quanrong.”

The man replied, “I don’t care whether we’re friendly forces or not. Search their bodies and tie them up. We’ll discuss what to do later after taking you back.”

Two soldiers stepped out from behind him and pushed Cheng Qianye boorishly, taking out hemp rope to tie her up.

Mo Qiao Sheng felt a surge of fury and couldn’t help resisting. More than a dozen soldiers rushed over and finally subdued him, pushing him down to the ground.

His collar was spread out in the tussle, revealing the mark of slavery branded on the back of his shoulder. 

The leader looked at him and said coldly, “Turns out he’s actually a slave, kill him.”

“Wait a moment, don’t kill him.” Cheng Qianye stood in front of him, blocking them. “I am Marquis Jin Yue; Cheng Qianyu. Take me to see your Lord.”

Although revealing her identity left her in a passive position, if she hadn’t spoken out and they searched her body, the result would be too horrible to contemplate. Not to mention that Qiao Sheng was just an ordinary slave and it was very likely that he would be killed randomly.

“You’re Marquis Jin Yue?”

The man gave Cheng Qianye a once-over. Seeing that she was dressed in luxurious clothes with elegant ornaments, he didn’t dare to be negligent. In the end, he saluted her reluctantly before simply tying up her’s and Mo Qiao Sheng’s hands together and bringing them all the way down the mountains to the Guo He River.

There were several tall warships docked on the river, flying the State of Wei’s flag.

Cheng Qianye and Mo Qiao Sheng were detained on the warship as they travelled down the Ji River.

They travelled for a day and night and entered a tremendous lake river system3 before stopping. Cheng Qianye guessed that they must have arrived in Dayeze in the State of Wei’s territory.

None of the soldiers accompanying them talked to them or asked them anything on their journey. Once they landed, she was imprisoned in a crude and simple room with a couch, bed, chamber pot and other daily necessities. There were even a few books, writing materials, a guzheng and various other objects for leisure.

Nonetheless, the windows were barred with thick iron railing and the sturdy door was locked as well. There was a small opening beneath the door where they slipped in meals for her, three times a day. Obviously, she was being held prisoner.

Cheng Qianye grabbed onto the iron railing and gazed outside the window, just able to see a stable not far away.

Mo Qiao Sheng’s hands were lifted up and he was tied to a pillar in the stable. He couldn’t lie down or sit, he could only lean against the pillar as he was forced to stand on his feet.

Although Cheng Qianye’s food and drink weren’t particularly exquisite, at least she was still guaranteed three meals a day. But even after being locked up for two days, she had still yet to see anyone deliver even some coarse food to Mo Qiao Sheng.

~

1. Col; lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Col 
2. (在下 – Zaixia) – I, Myself [Humble]
3. River System; ie. Drainage System. Whole natural water system in a drainage basin. Water in a drainage basin usually ends up in the sea, but there are places where the water just evaporates, or flows into an inland lake. https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_system