Chapter 25
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: The Partisans' Sealed Gold
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A week had passed since Lu Bu was turned away at the gate.
The quiet daily life of the Chae sisters had developed a small crack. It was all because of the regular broom sounds echoing from outside the front gate every morning at the crack of dawn.
—Swish, swish, swish.
At first, they had been wary. The next day, they felt puzzled. By the third day, the two sisters had silently come to accept the sound.
The one making the noise never once knocked on the door or peeked inside.
He simply pulled weeds from the crumbling wall's base in silence, dusted off the weathered gate plaque, and swept the ground in front of the entrance.
"Oh my, sister. That 'disciple' is here again?"
Peeking out the window, the younger sister Chae Jeonghui called out to her book-absorbed older sister Chae Yeom with a voice full of mischief.
Chae Yeom didn't lift her eyes from the bookrack, merely furrowing her brow slightly.
"...Jeonghui. Your tone is strange."
"Hee hee hee, but don't you actually like it, sister? In this day and age, what's all this talk of separating men and women—"
—Thud.
Chae Yeom closed the book she was reading with a loud snap. Chae Jeonghui flinched for a moment at the sight, but soon pouted and continued.
"Aren't you being too uptight, sister? He comes every day and handles all the dirty work—serving him a cup of tea isn't such a big deal."
"Chae Jeonghui."
The moment her sister called her full name sharply, Chae Jeonghui grumbled as if she couldn't bear it anymore and rose from her seat.
"Fine, fine... But honestly, don't you have feelings for him too? Guys like that are rare these days."
As her younger sister left the room, silence returned to the chamber. Yet the regular broom sounds still rang clearly in Chae Yeom's ears.
—Swish, swish, swish.
In the end, Chae Yeom rose from her seat and approached the gate where the sound came from. She cautiously peered outside through the small gap in the door.
"....."
Through the crack, she could see the broad back of a massive man.
The hero who had pacified Hena—the very man her father had praised lavishly in his letters—was bent over, sweeping the street.
There was no showmanship or ulterior motive in his actions. Just quiet diligence.
After watching him for a long while, the tension drained from Chae Yeom's shoulders.
"Hoo..."
A long, deep sigh escaped her lips. She decided it was no longer courteous to leave the man outside the gate any longer.
—Creak.
At last, the bolt on the firmly shut front gate unlatched with a groan, and Chae Yeom slowly opened the door.
The room was serene.
Bookshelves lined the walls, filling the space with the scent of ink and aged paper.
—Pour, pour, pour.
The woman before me silently poured tea.
My hands, rough and callused from gripping a sword, held the teacup, while her slender, pale hands grasped the teapot.
In the awkward silence, only the clear aroma of tea wafted through the air. It was the woman who first broke the quiet.
"......Do you... like tea?"
I set down the teacup and replied.
"I prefer tea to liquor, but I've never tasted tea this fragrant before, so it feels rather novel."
"I've often heard that warriors enjoy liquor more than tea, so this comes as a surprise. Why do you prefer tea, my lord attendant?"
Her clear eyes turned directly toward me. I savored the warmth of the teacup for a moment before quietly speaking.
"Liquor clouds the mind and muddles judgment, but tea clears the spirit and steadies one's resolve. What better companion could a martial artist have?"
Her eyes widened ever so slightly at my answer. She seemed lost in thought, quietly pondering its meaning.
Seeing this, I rose from my seat and knelt down. Without hesitation, I bowed my head to the floor.
—Thump.
A dull thud echoed through the room. I heard her gasp in surprise, her flustered panic palpable.
"How... how can you perform such a grand bow to a mere woman! My lord attendant, this is excessive courtesy—please, rise at once!"
Keeping my forehead pressed to the floor, I spoke without lifting my head.
"I received a profound teaching from Master that words alone cannot repay. This bond is no less than that of father and son. Yet in all the months since arriving in the capital, I have not once paid respects to his family."
I bowed my head to the floor once more.
—Thump.
"Even beasts repay the grace of those who raised them—how much more so a man? As a disciple and as a son, I have committed a grave sin. Please accept this atonement."
"........."
She fell silent for a long time. At last, a soft voice reached me.
"I received your sincerity the moment you first knocked on that door. Please rise. Such formality... is too much for me to bear."
Only then did I slowly straighten up and return to my seat. I cleared my throat awkwardly to mask the discomfort.
"...Ahem. That is..."
"Yes?"
I felt my face burning.
"Your... name. Might you tell me? With no acquaintances in the capital, I don't even know Master’s family members' given names..."
At my words, the woman covered her mouth and let out a small laugh for the first time.
"...Hee hee. I am Cai Yan. My courtesy name is Zhaoji. And—"
—Bang!
At that moment, the door nearly burst off its hinges as a girl with an energy utterly unlike Cai Yan's dashed in.
"Hello! I've heard so many rumors about you, my lord attendant! I'm the younger sister, Cai Zhenji~!"
Without a hint of hesitation, she rushed over, peering at me curiously and chattering away. Cai Yan's face turned icy cold as she watched her sister.
"...Chae Zhenji, men and women—"
At her sister's voice laced with killing intent, Cai Zhenji startled, froze, and hastily stepped back two paces.
"...should keep their distance... Aah! Sister is way too prudish!"
Cai Zhenji pulled at the skin under her eyes with her finger, stuck out her tongue at her sister, and fled the room in a flash.
"......My younger sister has been dreadfully rude to you, my lord attendant."
Cai Yan let out a deep sigh of apology.
"—Ha ha ha ha ha!"
"...."
Watching the amusing sisters, I burst into the clearest laughter since arriving in the capital.
"??"
Startled by the laughter, Cai Yan stared at me with wide eyes.
The imperial palace's grand hall was shrouded in a heavier silence than ever before.
Hundreds of officials held their breath between the massive dragon-carved pillars, their eyes fixed on the jade throne.
He Jin, newly appointed Grand General and wielder of the Han's military authority, prostrated himself on the floor far below the throne, forehead to the ground.
"Your Majesty, I beg your forgiveness... but the Yellow Turbans' momentum is overwhelming, and the front lines are too vast. We sorely lack generals to command the punitive forces. I beseech you to release the partisans' sealed gold, granting those who erred and withdrew a chance to atone through merit!"
He Jin's desperate plea echoed hollowly through the vast hall.
Emperor Ling, lounging obliquely on the throne, made no effort to hide his boredom.
—Tap, tap.
Only the sound of the emperor's fingers drumming on the throne's armrest broke the silence. At last, Ling spoke in a cold voice.
"...I appointed you Grand General for your military talent, yet you say you cannot suppress them. How peculiar."
Cold sweat trickled down He Jin's back at those words.
'D-Damn it... His Majesty still harbors resentment toward the partisans.'
The other eunuchs standing beside the emperor watched He Jin, who dared not raise his head, with open sneers.
"......."
It was just as He Jin faltered, unable to continue. From the cluster of eunuchs, an elderly man stepped quietly forward.
He was none other than Chief Attendant Yeo Gang.
Yeo Gang stood beside He Jin but did not tremble like him. Instead, with a leisurely smile, he addressed the emperor in his distinctive androgynous voice.
"Ho ho ho... How could this servant not understand Your Majesty's feelings? The partisans who triggered the partisan ban are truly unforgivable traitors. Your Majesty's resolve is utterly righteous."
By first echoing the emperor's words, Ling's stern expression softened slightly.
"...Hmm...."
"Your Majesty, yet even in ancient history, when great calamities struck the realm, sinners were given chances to redeem themselves through merit. Now, foolish commoners have lost their way, ensnared by a deluding cult. As the father of all under heaven, should not Your Majesty wield the rod to correct his wayward children? The partisans can be that rod for you."
Ling rested his chin in thought, his drumming fingers falling still. Finally, the emperor nodded.
"...Very well. The Chief Attendant speaks truly. They are great criminals deserving death, but I shall grant them a chance to wash away their sins with merit—they must exert themselves like loyal dogs and steeds."
He Jin inwardly sighed in relief at the approval. Yeo Gang, however, took it further, bowing deeply and never missing a chance to flatter.
"With Your Majesty showing such magnanimity, how could they dare not exert themselves? Ho ho ho... Truly a wise and enlightened decision."
"...."
The other Ten Attendants glared at Yeo Gang murderously. But Yeo Gang, unfazed by their stares, simply smiled toward the throne.
On this day, the partisan ban that had bound the realm's talents for fifteen long years was finally lifted, and the campaign against the Yellow Turbans entered an entirely new phase.