A Gathering of Heroes series: Anhu

Epilogue (Zhang)

Dong Ying

A post-winter breeze rustled the branches of the budding cherry tree overhead. In the next few weeks, flowering blossoms will decorate this place into a sea of pink. I drew my cloak a little tighter around my shoulders with one hand as I gazed out over at the placid Han Lake; the pagoda in the distance glimmered on lake's mirror surface. The landscape here was the same as I remembered, but the scar left by the destruction a year ago still remained in the hearts of the people. Before me, Wei was setting up the incense burner before Huiliang's gravestone. It had been quite some time since I had been here. Today there was something important that I had to confess to my sister.

"The preparations are complete, Hui-jie," Wei announced, brushing off her skirt as she gave me room. I nodded, knelt, and undid the small bundle, revealing a pastry box and an old handkerchief. Using the old handkerchief, I wiped the grime from the stone. Satisfied, I placed the pastry box before the stone and opened it. I smiled. Three liu sha bao were picked just for her.

"Here, Hui-jie." Wei passed me three smoldering incense sticks that she prepared. I nodded and together we paid respects to my sister. I knelt again and placed the sticks in the burner. Wei followed suit and knelt beside me. From my robes, I took out a folded letter addressed to Huiliang that I had written the night before. I let out a slow breath and held the letter between my palms as I silently prayed to my sister.

***

Dear Huiliang,

I apologize for not visiting sooner. The events following our journey home from the capital left us busy. Prior to leaving with her group, Chun warned us to steel our hearts against the devastation that would greet our return. The captured civilians of Dong Ying, on the other hand, cautioned that there would be no warm welcome from the newly installed imperial-sanctioned government. We resolved to prepare regardless of what awaited us. Thus, we, along with the captured civilians and a few royal officials, were escorted back the city with An's associates from the martial arts school in the capital and a few monks from the capital's sect. The journey home was uneventful, but we remained vigilant. As Yu-xianzhang tentatively set foot into razed city of Dong Ying, a few people slinked out from the rubble to greet him with a ragged cheer of welcome much to his shock. From the populace, we learned that Mao-daren, who had been installed as governor during the upheaval, had been captured and was awaiting judgment. Yu-xianzhang and the royal judge, Chen-gong, oversaw and conducted the trial. Mao was sentenced to exile and his title and possessions were stripped. His followers were given punishments by degree of their collusion in Mao-daren's scheme. Mao-daren had begged that the severe punishment would not be extended to his son and family, but his request fell on deaf ears. In the end, they too were exiled and stripped of titles and possessions.

While it all seemed well and done, we had other matters to attend to, such as the state of our households. We were fortunate that handmaid Kang and my father's steward ardently defended our home and the most precious possessions. It was a tearful reunion all around. Shen-shaoye's family was less fortunate; the servants fled in fear of falling to the same fate as that of their former master. Shen-furen and Shen-xiaojie wept at the sight of the ruined manor: the main gate was forcibly torn down, the rooms looted, and the valuables stolen. Some thieves had the nerve to take up residence, requiring Ganzorig, An, and a few soldiers to get the rabble to leave.

Throughout all of this, I observed that Shen-shaoye barely restrained his fury. Later, my father offered to help Shen-shaoye and his family in any way possible, but somehow I felt that it cost Shen-shaoye his pride to accept my father's aid. In private, I tried to offer words of encouragement after he had spoken to my father, but he merely brushed past me, murmuring that he wished to be left alone. Even Ganzorig tried to rouse his spirits to no avail. I figured that he had a lot on his mind and resolved to support him in any way possible.