But why?
But why?
Direct Thief! Son of a bitch!
Many people's discontent in life originates from their closest friends.
She's doing well, so why am I faring so poorly?
Humans, alas.
Resentnt.
That's how it begins.
It's as if the simple tea and plain fare before one's eyes
suddenly lose all their flavor!
What General Zheng didn't realize was how much word of his deeds stirred his old acquaintances when it reached a small county town under the jurisdiction of Tiancheng Prefecture.
Just imagine,
when we first t,
you were but a humble, unranked captain in Hutou City,
so desperate for a chance to advance
that you didn't hesitate to stand before Shatuo Queshi and take a blow ant for .
Back then, though I was already a carefree, idle prince, we were still worlds apart.
But now,
behind you, your iron cavalry stands in dense formations, following you on thousand-mile charges. Beneath Snow Sea Pass, you've used countless white bones to build your own monunt of rit.
Even the proud Sword Saint must serve you, taking orders under your command, fighting your battles.
Your righteous ardor is fad in the streets;
the royal court extols your military achievents;
even the humble teahouses are filled to the brim with tales of your exploits.
Young n of Yan State, if you fear a beating from your Ah Daddy and thus can't beco a Lord Jingnan, then learning from this General Zheng of yours certainly wouldn't be a bad thing, would it?
And what about ?
Here in Nan'an County town,
cracking lon seeds,
patrolling the streets,
laughing one mont, stern-faced the next.
I feign indifference, but have the clouds and wind ever truly entered my heart?
You can fool others, but ultimately, you can't fool yourself.
I thought I had let go of everything, that I could relinquish anything. I thought my hatred had run its course, that I couldn't afford to hate, that I... didn't dare to hate.
But in the depths of my heart,
resentnt has long been brewing!
Head Constable Yan slapped his bed.
Only at monts like this,
just for this brief while,
could he vent a fraction of his pent-up frustration and depression.
No need to pretend, no need to restrain himself,
and no need to distinguish which were spies from the Spy Bureau, which were agents of the Silver Armored Guard, or which were the petty informants—those 'little dogs and flies'—set up by his Second Prince brother, the current Crown Prince, who, not trusting this younger brother of his, constantly watched him.
People all say Situ Lei's rise marks him as the phoenix of the Situ Family. His two brothers, Situ Yi and Situ Jiong, no matter what sches they tried, could never outplay him and were ultimately forced into the snow plains to endure a bitter existence.
But what's so great about that Situ Lei? Too soft-hearted. He thought winning once ant winning everything. Those two brothers of his—he just sent them far away? If you weren't going to kill them, why not at least imprison them?
And Situ Lei, even if you are a phoenix, it's only because your father placed you on the board to begin with, giving you the right to contend. Otherwise, you're nothing!
If you're not on the board, you're less than nothing!
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
The sound of knocking ca from the door.
Head Constable Yan paused.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
Head Constable Yan hesitated for a mont, then rose from the bed. He was still fully clothed, the bedcovers undisturbed. Getting up was rely a matter of standing. Rubbing his temples, he walked to the courtyard gate and opened it.
And who should be standing there but the little lady from the butcher's shop?
The little lady held a basket. Seeing Head Constable Yan, she bit her lip, seemingly wrestling with her thoughts, but finally, she spoke, her voice crisp and clear, "I've cut three jin of at and brought half a pot of Yellow Wine. I also made two small side dishes myself. There's so extra money; it's pressed underneath. It's all for you."
Head Constable Yan smiled and reached out, taking the basket.
The little lady stood outside, a sudden pang of disappointnt in her heart. Then, in the next instant, her hand was grabbed, and she was pulled inside.
"I'm really hungry."
...
「The light of dawn filtered through the paper-covered window, illuminating the room.」
Head Constable Yan was jolted awake by the sound of scissors. He opened his eyes and looked. It was the butcher's daughter, using a pair of scissors to cut away a bloodstained piece of the bedsheet.
He recalled his brother, Mr. Zheng, once saying that only an ox can be worked to collapse, never the field itself.
But for this young woman, a maiden only last night, to be up so early, her hair already neatly coiled, made him feel sowhat inadequate.
But then again, he mused, won from butcher families were probably sturdier than ordinary ladies.
As Head Constable Yan sat up in bed, the butcher's daughter saw him. She smiled, took another pouch from her basket, opened it, and poured out so silver pieces, so small, so whole. The whole pieces were actually silver ingots, deliberately exchanged for with loose silver; there was only one such ingot.
"This is my own private savings," she said. "So is from embroidery I've sold, so is what I've managed to skim from the shop. Over all these years, this is all I've managed to save. I'll give it all to you. The loose silver, you can use to buy so pastries and dried fruits to make a pair of gifts. The ingot, consider it the betrothal money; give it to my Ah Daddy."
For a mont, Head Constable Yan was speechless.
The young woman, thinking he had misunderstood her, quickly said, "You're a Head Constable, after all, and we're just small shopkeepers on the street. To put it bluntly, it's I who am marrying up to you; my family is gaining status through you. Now that I've given myself to you, you can rest assured. My Ah Daddy isn't so blinded by lard that he'd think of making you a live-in son-in-law.
"And I won't allow my man to do sothing so spineless.
"Take this silver and give it to my Ah Daddy. In a few days, he'll convert it into a dowry and send it back doubled. Don't underestimate this pig-butchering business; the profits are considerable, you know.
"Besides, the silver given out today, won't it all be ours once I properly marry into your household tomorrow?"
Head Constable Yan opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.
Marrying into the wife's family? Most n had probably fantasized about it. Although many would dismiss the idea because of the need to uphold their manly dignity, it didn't stop them from savoring the thought while lounging with their eyes half-closed.
But Head Constable Yan had never once entertained such a thought.
His father, though he had never treated him well... but imagine if his father were to find out one day that his son was planning to marry into a butcher's family, and as a live-in son-in-law at that! What would his reaction be?
"You must be tired," the woman said. "What do you want for breakfast? I'll go buy it. You don't even have any rice at your stove; this is no way to live."
The woman chattered on, already thinking about what household items they needed to buy.
Suddenly, Head Constable Yan felt a surge of happiness.
He too had once been surrounded by beauties, but they were like the fleeting clouds at sunset—seen, experienced, then gone. What truly accompanied you day after day was the enduring evening sun.
The woman's voice gradually trailed off. Perhaps it was because Head Constable Yan hadn't said a word.
The woman put down what she was doing and said quietly, as if to herself, "If you don't want to marry , I won't pester you."
Saying this, she reached up to pull out the hairpin that styled her hair as a married woman.
Head Constable Yan's eyes were sharp and his hands quick; he caught her hand and said, "I'm hungry. Let's go out and get sothing to eat together."
The woman assented.
Just as the two, looking for all the world like a newlywed couple, had stepped out of the house gate, Head Constable Yan jumped in surprise.
Right in front of their door, his new brother-in-law, He Chu, was sitting there. A jar of wine lay before him, a butcher's knife was fastened to his hip, and his face was unshaven and rough.
He turned his head, looking at Head Constable Yan, his eyes looked like they were spitting fire.
His father had tried to stop her. He had tried to stop her too. But his sister had held a hairpin to her own neck, threatening to die before their father and him if they didn't let her deliver the at.
Helpless, he could only watch his sister go in. Then, he had sat by the door all night.
He Chu stood up, glanced at his sister's hairstyle—now signifying she was a married woman—gritted his teeth, and said, "If you dare treat my sister poorly in the future, I, He Chu, will..."
Head Constable Yan, adopting the mannerism favored by that Mr. Zheng, reached out and patted his butcher brother-in-law's shoulder.
He Chu froze, clearly taken aback. It seed that outside the Shengle Army, no one else in the entire Yan State had yet grown accustod to such a casual gesture.
Head Constable Yan took a deep breath, twisted his neck, and then his gaze sharpened.
Suddenly, He Chu, for all his burly fra, felt a crushing pressure, his earlier imposing manner vanishing in an instant.
Head Constable Yan smiled again, looked at this brother-in-law of his, and said, "Tell , do you want to be a Great General?"
He Chu's first instinct wasn't to refute the young man's wild talk. Last night, this fellow had conned his sister with so nonsense about becoming an empress, and today he was spouting off about being a Great General.
Yet, for so reason, He Chu rely stamred, his voice dropping several octaves, "I... I only know how to slaughter pigs."
Head Constable Yan patted He Chu's shoulder again. He turned to face east, the direction of Yanjing, the capital, and declared boldly, "No matter!"
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