History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 184 The Black Whirlwind Strategy

As night fell, Mount Baideng seemed to descend like a mountain god, its giant cheeks puffed out as it angrily blew cold winds into every crevice, causing tree branches to sway and dance wildly. Mountain beasts and birds of prey, accustomed to hunting at night, set out early, their roars filling the high and low peaks.

Fortunately, Wei Yao and her companions successfully reached the first supply camp, where they traded their prey for a small felt tent and hot soup. When it was completely dark, the six women squeezed into the tent.

The tent was really small; it took two people to curl up to lie down comfortably. Just as they were about to fall asleep, the mountain wind became even stronger, and the tent was suddenly blown away by the wind!
"Quick, quick, don't get blown away."

"Don't drive around like that—"

After the group worked together to turn the tent around, Yuan Langxi shouted, "Watch me!" She stepped back and pushed her arm, bracing herself against the top of the tent by herself.

But the wind went even more rampant, as if it had gone mad!
A whooshing sound filled the air.

Bang, bang, bang... The tents of some unlucky group were blown away, rolling away quickly like a giant ball, past Wei Yao and the others.

Then, the more unfortunate blanket was blown away by the wind.

Baskets and basins rattled and clattered past on either side of Wei Yao and the others.

Changsun Zhi was able to hold back her laughter at first, but when she saw clothes and trousers flying in the air and people in the camp chasing after their belongings in a chaotic frenzy, she burst out laughing and lost all her strength.

"Ouch!" Yuan Langxi and Liu Zhenzhu fell down.

Yuan Jingrong urgently shouted to Wei Yao and Guo Yun, "Let go! Stop pulling!"

Their poor little felt tent was blown off the ground with a "whoosh" and quickly disappeared from sight.

Yuan Langxi angrily punched Changsun Zhi: "Still laughing!"

The harrowing experience of that night made Wei Yao and the others abandon their playful spirits. Without the camp and the help of the soldiers, they would have truly frozen to death in the mountains. And this valley was only on the outskirts of Baideng Mountain. How did those brave warriors who braved the wind and cold to trek deeper into the mountains survive such harsh conditions?
Wei Yao's worries were deeper than others', because her mother was one of the brave warriors who crossed mountains and valleys!

The next day, the six of them, undeterred, set off towards the second peak. The slope of this mountain was gentler, and the journey to the second supply camp was longer than the previous day's path, so they had to hurry.

After a night of fierce winds, the ground was covered with tangled branches, and the temperature was noticeably lower than yesterday. Mountain birds perched on the towering branches, and Wei Yao shot several arrows, all of which missed their mark.

"Whoosh!"

An arrow pierced through a mountain fox. The servants picked up the fox's carcass, and Wei Mao immediately praised his mother's archery skills.

The location where Lu Luo and her child were was on the third hillside. After she shot her prey, she ordered her servants to continue clearing the way ahead. It was too cold in the mountains; if they stopped for even a short while, the sweat on their bodies would become icy cold and make them feel uncomfortable.

“Mistress, there is bear dung here.”

Walking behind his mother, Wei Mao breathed a sigh of relief. The bear droppings on the outer mountain ridges were deliberately placed as markers. By following the trails of the markers, he could meet up with Governor Yuan and carry out the "Black Whirlwind" plan.

The specifics of this plan were that he would pretend to be harmed by a tamed bear, and then Governor Yuan would risk his life to save him. The purpose, of course, was to let his mother see that Governor Yuan would disregard his own safety in order to save his adopted son.

“Madam, sir, the bear’s paw prints are heading this way.”

Lu Luo gestured for the servants to clear a path in the direction of the paw prints. She then instructed Wei Mao, "Mao'er, if there really is a bear, you must not rush forward recklessly, understand?"

"I know," Wei Mao replied verbally, but his hand drew out a dagger.

Lu Luo sighed, knowing that her instructions had been wasted. However, Lu Luo wasn't too worried. The dozen or so servants she brought this time were all skilled hunters, and they could easily handle two bears together.

A large, sloping rock juts out from beneath a cliff. The injured Black Whirlwind wants to call for help, but dares not, fearing it will attract strangers who might mistake it for an ordinary bear and kill it. If bears could speak, Black Whirlwind would surely cry out: "Masters, our training has been in vain! Masters, please be careful! There's a wicked bear as black as me, and it's incredibly fierce! Masters, please don't mistake it for me!"

The place where the Black Whirlwind is tamed and waits is not a place that warriors must pass through. Those who come towards this cliff are all those who have discovered bear droppings and are confident that they have the ability to hunt bears.

Searching for wild beasts in deep mountains covered with vines requires more than just skill; luck also plays a part.

The days are short in the cold winter, and another day has passed.

In the camp outside the mountain, Wei Yin and Chief Clerk Gou sat facing each other, with a thick layer of sand spread between them. The latter was drawing the locations of the prefectures and counties with a wooden stick. Previously, Wei Yin had no way to learn these things, and the geographical locations and distances of the few prefectures he knew were far from accurate.

The middle-aged clerk in front of him seemed to have the entire territory of the Great Wei Dynasty in his mind, including who the governor of each prefecture was, which prefecture the court had appointed as a deputy governor, who the prefect of important counties was, and even which granary officers had to be appointed by the court and why. He explained all of this to Wei Yin while drawing the map.

The thick night fog enveloped Baideng Mountain, turning it into a fairyland. Only those inside knew how terrifying it was for mortals to step into this fairyland.

Fog descended upon Luoyang that night.

Crown Prince Yuan Ke walked on the brick path leading to the Empress's palace. The wide and flat road made it difficult for him to clearly recall the desolate years he spent in Pingcheng Palace.

The two people in white leading the way were Zhao Xiu and Ru Hao.

The inner guards protecting the rear were Xue Zhixiao and Kou Meng.

These people are now all the Crown Prince's confidants, but none of them can compare to the status that the nun Ciqing holds in the Crown Prince's heart.

Empress Dowager Ciqing's secular name was Wang Zhong'er. She was originally the tutor of the Crown Prince. Two years ago, the Crown Prince's birth mother, Consort Wenzhao, suddenly passed away on the way to Luoyang. Wang Zhong'er came to the Luoyang palace as a close attendant maid and could only survive by becoming a nun.

Now that Empress Feng has suffered retribution and is confined to another palace, the Emperor has led his army on a campaign. The Crown Prince has been waiting for this day for a long time. After arranging matters in the palace, he immediately brought out his former tutor from the inner palace to "visit" Empress Feng.

Although Lady Feng was still in her original palace, she was confined to a side room. Upon learning of the Crown Prince's arrival, she hurriedly dressed and tidied herself up. This mother and son, who were separated for several months, finally met again.

"Ke'er, did your father allow you to come see me? Or did you sneak away?" Empress Feng asked with concern and worry.

The crown prince evaded the question, saying, "I came to show you someone."

Empress Feng's face changed. "Ungrateful bastards!" This shows they're certain she's fallen from grace and can't recover, so they've stopped calling her "Mother" altogether!
Ciqing is nearly sixty years old. She rose from a lowly female servant to a close attendant of a noble lady, and she has survived to this day after the death of Consort Wenzhao. She is no ordinary person!
“Bhikkhuni Ciqing greets the Empress.”

Empress Feng sneered: "So it's that lowly servant Wang Zhong'er. Did you think I didn't remember you? Ha, an ant that has gained power now dares to come and question me."

"The Empress naturally doesn't care whether ants rise or fall." Ciqing didn't engage in pointless arguments and went straight to the question she wanted to ask: "Two years ago, when Consort Wenzhao was traveling through Ji County, I served her until the second watch of the night before she went to sleep. When I went to check on her at the fourth watch, I found that she had died without any illness. Could this matter be related to the Empress?"

Empress Feng smiled and looked only at the Crown Prince.

Ciqing said to the Crown Prince, "She didn't deny it, so it must have been her."

Empress Feng still smiled: "Even if I deny it, you won't believe me. You should ask me how I did it and who I sent to do it? Yuan Ke, you can't kill me now, but you have to capture that assassin alive to avenge your mother."

Yuan Ke, suppressing his resentment, asked, "Who was that person?"

“If you call me Mother, I will tell you.”

White-robed attendants: Attendants without official rank who serve the emperor or crown prince.

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(End of this chapter)