Paegong's Wife (2): The Return
That evening marked the final night at the mountain encampment. Liu Bang could not sleep. He crouched before the dying campfire, staring up at the pitch-black sky all night long. The moon hung as a slender crescent, thin as a fingernail. Stars blinked overhead. The humid summer night breeze, laden with moisture, licked stickily across his sweat-soaked skin as it passed.
“……”
Normally the camp would have echoed with raucous drinking games until late or the thunder of snoring, but tonight it was as silent as a grave. A perfectly quiet night. Only Liu Bang lay awake, eyes wide open, keeping vigil until dawn.
“……Chia.”
The name carried bitterness before any trace of sweetness. Liu Bang closed his eyes, feeling his chest tighten painfully. Now that their reunion stood just ahead, it was not joy that surged forward first, but the crushing weight of reality.
I haven’t done a single thing for her.
The guilt that had always pressed on a corner of his heart surfaced again. A self-mocking laugh slipped from his lips. While he had hidden in these mountains, hunting wild boar, gulping down wine, and laughing with his comrades, that woman had been fighting alone on the wolf-den streets of Peixian below. Bearing the label of a fugitive’s wife, enduring every insult and the magistrate’s leering gaze, she had still paved the road for his return as a hero.
“……Hoo.”
His chest constricted even tighter. Regret, gratitude, and a fierce heat he could not name swirled deep inside him.
She’s too good for me.
He knew that all too well. Yet at the same time, he had no desire to lose her. Even if it was called greed. Even if it might make her unhappy. No matter what happened. No matter who tried to interfere. He would not let her go, not even a little.
“……I’ll see her tomorrow, won’t I?”
Liu Bang murmured softly toward the night sky. As if in answer, a particularly bright star in the western heavens flickered once, brilliantly.
……And then morning came.
The eastern sky brightened to a pale gray, and the mountain birds—always more diligent than humans—began to sing. Liu Bang, who had barely slept, stretched with a yawn. Strangely, he felt no fatigue. An unnamable flame burning in the depths of his chest drove his body forward with vigor.
“Did you sleep outside, brother?”
At that moment, No Gwan approached, rubbing his eyes. His face looked refreshed, as if he had slept deeply. Liu Bang cracked his stiff shoulders and neck with a loud pop and nodded.
“Yeah. I gave the mosquitoes a feast.”
“Couldn’t sleep?”
“A little.”
No Gwan yawned so widely his jaw nearly dislocated before continuing. “It’ll be fine. Sister-in-law is a strong woman.”
“Out of nowhere?”
“The only reason you’d lose sleep is because of her, isn’t it?”
No Gwan smiled lightly, a soft chuckle escaping him.
“Hah, you really do know me too well.”
Liu Bang let out a small laugh and nodded. Starting with No Gwan, the others in the camp gradually woke and emerged from their huts one by one. As usual, Liu Bang’s group scraped together the last of their provisions at the large central fire for a hasty breakfast. Then they began gathering their belongings.
And just before the sun reached its zenith—
“We’re moving out!”
Liu Bang’s booming voice rang through the encampment. “Let’s go! Out into the world!”
One hundred and thirty-six nameless men, each shouldering their own loads, raised their voices in a powerful shout and fell into step behind him. Thus began the first historic march of Liu Bang’s army.
I hope we can reach Peixian by tonight…
Liu Bang glanced at the sky as he led the way. The march fell behind schedule. No—far behind. Nearly one hundred and forty people on a massive relocation. No mountain beast dared target such a large group, but the problem lay with the women, elders, and children scattered throughout the column. The women and old people quickly tired on the rough mountain paths. They twisted ankles with every misstep, and even a slight increase in pace left them gasping, begging for rest. The children were worse. Parents, busy carrying both their own bodies and their packs, could not tend to the little ones properly. The children soon wailed, threw tantrums, and refused to walk. Because the children had been placed at the very front for safety, their piercing cries stabbed at Liu Bang’s eardrums again and again.
“My legs huuurt…”
“Waaah… carry meee…”
The crying started anew.
“Um… brother.”
When Liu Bang slowed with a sigh, No Gwan approached with an awkward expression. “At this rate, the sun will set before we arrive.”
“……I know.”
Liu Bang clenched his teeth. Helpless irritation boiled up from deep in his chest. Lü Zhi was waiting. The plan to seize Peixian had surely begun, and she was walking a dangerous tightrope alone, waiting for him while watching for any imperial troops that might descend at any moment. Every second counted. For her sake, and to make this enormous gamble succeed, he had to race to Peixian.
Yet—
“Waaah! I can’t walk anymore! My legs hurt!”
Another child’s wail pierced his ears. It was the youngest from a butcher’s family. The boy sat down in the dirt, flinging soil and throwing a full tantrum. His mother tried desperately to soothe him, but an exhausted child would not be comforted. Everyone’s cold gazes turned toward them.
“……”
Liu Bang unconsciously tightened his fists. Honestly, he wanted to roar at the boy to shut up. To tell him to stop crying and walk, or if he couldn’t, to stay behind in this mountain corner with his parents and become tiger food. The old Liu Ji—who had never particularly liked children and even found his own bothersome—would have shouted it without hesitation.
“……What can we do? Let’s rest here.”
But Liu Bang swallowed those words. Yes, he had been the one to decide to bring them. He had boasted he would take them all. If anyone deserved cursing, it was himself, not these pitiful children.
“Brother… but…”
“I know. But forcing them forward will only make things worse. When it’s time to rest, we rest.”
Liu Bang turned and calmly surveyed the group. It wasn’t only the children. The women’s faces were flushed bright red, sweat pouring like rain. The elders could only lean on the shoulders of the men supporting them, repeatedly murmuring apologies. After watching them for a moment, Liu Bang raised his voice.
“Hey! You there, kid!”
He strode over and stopped before the seated child. The boy hiccupped in fear. His mother turned deathly pale and bowed her head, at a loss. Liu Bang bent down until their eyes met.
“Legs hurt?”
“……Sniff, yes.”
“Mine hurt too, you know. Your big brother’s legs are swollen up like this.”
Liu Bang chuckled, then turned his back and crouched.
“Get on.”
“……Huh?”
“I said get on. You don’t want to walk, right?”
He lifted the hesitant child and settled him firmly on his shoulders in a piggyback ride. The boy let out a surprised “Whoa?” and grabbed Liu Bang’s hair.
“There. How’s that? The air feels different up high, doesn’t it?”
“……Y-yes! It’s amazing!”
The child’s tears dried in an instant, his eyes widening. Still carrying the boy on his shoulders, Liu Bang called out to the whole group.
“We go together. I won’t abandon anyone.”
His voice held only firm sincerity. “So let’s endure a little longer. When we reach the next clearing, we’ll make camp and rest for the day.”
Only then did relief appear on the exhausted faces. The men voluntarily took the elders’ burdens, and the women comforted the children. The march resumed.
After about one mealtime had passed, Liu Bang surveyed a large clearing at the edge of Mangtan Mountain and ordered camp as promised. Once he had set the child down and leaned his back against a nearby large tree, No Gwan approached with a dumbfounded chuckle.
“You’ve changed, brother.”
“Changed my ass. I was always like this.”
Liu Bang gave a bitter smile. It wasn’t so much a change as simply that he could no longer abandon them. Because Lü Zhi would surely have done the same. Right now, he simply wanted to act in a way that would not shame her.
At this speed, we’ll be lucky to arrive tomorrow afternoon.
Liu Bang gazed absently at the sky. Yet he no longer felt any fear. Because if it was Lü Zhi, she would surely be all right.
Just wait a little longer.
He closed his eyes and murmured calmly in his heart.
I might be a bit late, but I will come. Without fail.
……The following afternoon.
The endless plains of rice paddies and fields finally ended, and the scent of the air began to change.
“Brother! Look—Peixian’s walls are in sight!”
They had left the mountains and walked across the plains for nearly three double-hours. No Gwan’s voice rang brighter than ever. Liu Bang finally allowed himself a relieved smile and quickened his pace. But as the distance to the walls shortened, his steps gradually, almost imperceptibly, began to slow.
……Huh?
The scene around the walls was strange. There were people. A great many people. Outside the walls, countless figures swarmed like ants, and unidentified shouts rolled in waves.
“What… what is that?”
No Gwan narrowed his eyes in equal surprise. “Are they holding some kind of festival?”
“……No.”
Liu Bang shook his head firmly and strained his ears. Carried on the wind, the sounds from that place began to reach them.
“Come out right now, Magistrate!”
“Return Brother Liu to us!”
“Stop your tyranny and face the judgment of the people!”
Voices ringing with clear meaning.
“……Hah.”
Liu Bang unconsciously caught his breath.
“Brother… did you hear that?”
No Gwan turned to him with a dazed look, having caught the words as well.
“I did.”
With a wry laugh, Liu Bang resumed his steps. Before them, the common people were rising up. They were exploding with long-suppressed rage toward the magistrate. And at the center of it all, astonishingly, stood his own name.
“Return Brother Liu to us!”
Return me? What in the world is going on?
Liu Bang could not grasp the meaning of the chant. But one thing was certain. Everyone was waiting for him. As the hope that would overturn this wretched life. As the standard-bearer who would lead them all from the front.
……Lü Zhi, you…
He had done nothing. He had simply hidden in the mountains, roasting boar, drinking, and trading jokes with his comrades. Yet these people were waiting for him as a hero. And that could only mean one thing.
She succeeded…
Lü Zhi’s scheme had taken root perfectly. As they drew closer to Peixian, the situation grew clearer. Everyone was looking up at the walls, shouting the magistrate’s name. Behind them, sturdy men distributed steamed buns and rice balls from carts to the people lining the streets. Voices fueled by food burned even hotter. And at the very front, atop a hastily erected platform—
Brother Wang…
Wang Ling stood on a cart, raising his voice. At his lead, the crowd roared their condemnation in unison.
“The magistrate stole the people’s land! He tried to seize the fruits of our sweat unjustly! We will endure no longer!”
“That’s right!”
“We will not endure!”
“Drive out the magistrate!”
The people’s cheers exploded. Only then could Liu Bang fully grasp the situation.
He recruited the Wang family, who had suffered at the magistrate’s hands, made them the focal point, and channeled the people’s anger toward the magistrate. And he timed it perfectly for my return.
A strategy that overcame the limitation of having a woman at the center by using the local influential figure Wang Ling as proxy. Liu Bang let out an involuntary laugh. As expected, Lü Zhi was looking far ahead of him. She had analyzed the situation and prepared to move the world.
“Wait, that person—!”
Someone shouted.
“It’s Brother Liu! Brother Liu has returned!”
It seemed the crowd had finally spotted Liu Bang’s group. A momentary silence fell. Every eye turned toward him. And then—
“Waaaaaaaah!!”
“Brother Liu!”
“The hero returns!”
The cheers surged like a tidal wave. People ran toward them, all smiling, waving their hands.
“We’ve been waiting!”
“We believed in you!”
“Let’s fight together! Let’s drag that magistrate out!”
They looked at him as if he truly were a hero.
“Brother, this is…”
No Gwan’s voice trembled; he seemed to have understood the situation as well.
“Brother!”
At that moment the crowd parted, and a familiar voice flew toward Liu Bang.
“Zhou Bo!”
Liu Bang broke into a wide grin and raised his voice. Zhou Bo approached at once and bowed his head.
“You’ve traveled a long way, brother. Thank you for your hard work.”
“Hard work? What hard work. Have you been well?”
“Yes, of course.”
Zhou Bo glanced briefly at the procession following Liu Bang, then continued in his usual direct tone. “I will guide you inside the walls at once. Sister-in-law is waiting.”
“We can enter the walls?”
“Yes. Sister-in-law has already prepared everything.”
Zhou Bo nodded and turned to lead the way. Then, as if something had just occurred to him, he looked back.
“And brother.”
“Yeah, speak.”
“When you see sister-in-law… you may be a little surprised.”
“……?”
Surprised? Not happy? Liu Bang tilted his head.
“Then please follow me.”
The tall men standing beside Zhou Bo began controlling the crowd, and the throng parted, opening a clear path.
“What do you mean? Did something happen?”
Liu Bang quickened his steps to catch up behind Zhou Bo, raising his voice.
“You will see when you meet her.”
A meaningful answer. But no further explanation followed.
……What on earth is going on?
Liu Bang’s curiosity began to swell.