Undercover - In China - Book 7

Part 41 - WHO WILL FIGHT ME?

Zhang Fei rode back across the bridge and resumed his vigil. His up-curled whiskers bristled and his round eyes stared into the distance. The butt of his long, double snake-headed spear rested on the ground. The fields were deserted. The only sound was the noise of men dragging branches over the dusty soil behind the wood.

It seemed an age before the distant thunder of hooves announced the arrival of Cho Cho's vanguard. They stopped out of bowshot range when they saw the solitary horseman guarding the bridge. Zhang Fei levelled his spear, as if signalling an attack, but didn't move. 

 The horsemen waited until another group rode forward. Deng Fu pointed out the colourful canopy and the banners which indicated Cho Cho himself had arrived with his bodyguard. Then Zhang Fei issued a challenge in a voice louder than any man had ever heard before. Licia translated.

'I AM ZHANG FEI OF YAN. IS THERE A MAN AMONG YOU WHO WILL FIGHT ME TO THE DEATH?' Zhang Fei's words echoed, with supernatural force, from the speaker on the carriage and again from the trees behind us. Cho Cho visibly recoiled and the horses in his entourage jittered nervously. The banner and canopy quickly disappeared. Cho Cho obviously didn't want to be a recognizable target. One of his men pointed at our carriage and Deng Fu stood up and bowed waving Kongming's trademark heron feather fan in greeting.

'Zhang Fei roared again, 'ZHANG FEI OF YAN WILL FIGHT ANY MAN WHO DARES.' 

Some of Cho Cho's cavalry shuffled about nervously as Zhang Fei raised his spear and shouted again, 'WHAT'S IT TO BE! DO YOU WANT TO FIGHT? OR, DO YOU WANT TO LEAVE?'

I stuck the second microphone in front of the speaker which emitted an ear bursting banshee shriek of feedback as the microphone picked up and amplified the sound from the speaker. I switched the amplifier off. The sudden silence was even more menacing than the noise.

One of Cho Cho's commanders fell off his horse as it reared in terror. Cho Cho turned and rode quickly away. His soldiers, seeing their leader leaving, retreated also. Within minutes some of them threw away their weapons in panic. Others crashed into those unable to get out of the way. Soon, the entire army was in chaos and retreating in disorder. Zhang Fei began to laugh uproariously. 

 I switched the amplifier back on and his roars of laughter echoed eerily after the fleeing soldiers. He was still laughing when he trotted his horse over to us and handed the microphone back to me. 

 Licia told us, 'He would like to borrow the thunder voice wand again.'

We rode around to the back of the wood where we stared at the ghostly terra cotta coloured horsemen. They were covered in dust. Zhang Fei roared with laughter. 

 'He's congratulating them,' Licia said, 'on being the first soldiers to defeat an enemy with a cloud of dust. Cho Cho probably thought Kongming had conjured up the first emperor's terra cotta warriors.'   

As Zhang Fei's men started dismantling Steep Slope bridge, our horse grazed contentedly on the long grass at the river's edge. Licia, Miguel and I sat on the carriage trying to decide what to do.

 'Zhang Fei told me Xuande is not going to Jiangling,' Licia said. 'He's heading for Xiacou and the only place with a working time connect is at the Immortal Mountain Temple near Jiangling.'

 'We can't go back without Dr Zhang,' I pointed out. 'But we know Denny is somewhere near Jiangling.'

 Miguel said, 'Jiangling is roughly south from here.' 

 'How do you know which is south?' Licia asked. 'Well, I noticed the sun rose in the east,' Miguel answered sardonically. 'And it sets in the west, so south must be that-a-way.'

Licia said, 'I vote we go look for Denny first and hope that Dr Zhang can escape from Murga.'

 'This could be dangerous,' I pointed out.

'I don't think anyone will harm us,' Licia said. 'What's wrong with a bunch of students looking for their teacher?'

'Murga is on the loose out there?' I said.

'Well, I vote we head for Jiangling,' Miguel said, 'and hope we don't meet Murga again.'

 Zhang Fei rode back with a basket full of sticky rice wrapped in bamboo leaves, and Licia told him that we were going to look for Denny. He grimaced and told Licia he had to finish dismantling the bridge and then look for Xuande at Hanjin. But, he could let us have a few men as escorts.

Licia, Miguel and I quickly agreed that a couple of soldiers wouldn't help much and they would just attract attention.

'Well, be careful,' he said. 'There are many bandits on the roads. They're looking for horses, loot or hostages. If you don't find Zhang Lee soon, meet us at Hanjin. From there, we will be heading down the Han river to Xiacou at the junction with the Long River.'

We unloaded most of the rice and said goodbye to Zhang Fei, Deng Fu and the terra cotta coloured soldiers and headed south.

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