Crossing the Mountains

Chapter 207 Wine on the Anniversary of Death
Half a month passed in a flash. Recently, Cai Zhu went to Tazichang every day. She paid special attention to the caravans, large and small, that came back with crossbows or black whiskers. She often asked the hired porters if they had seen any trace of the Fengtai caravan.

Others assumed she wanted to win over Fengtai into the Guangli Chamber of Commerce or compete with them for business channels, so they didn't pay much attention. Some said they had seen them near the old capital of Wuxu, while others speculated that they had entered Fengcheng. The news was sporadic and unreliable, which only made Caizhu more anxious.

Fortunately, a few days later, Shen Tu Zhuo returned to her.

The Fengtai caravan set off with twenty or thirty people and eight carts of goods. Not only did they lose everything on this trip, but only a handful of people returned alive. The news quickly spread throughout Tazichang.

All the goods were gone, several camels were lost, and the team leader and farmhands all perished in the desert. Only five hired porters survived, leading two camels back to Tazichang in a sorry state.

The owner of Fengtai Trading Company nearly fainted. He grabbed the five porters and asked what had happened, but they couldn't explain it either. They only said that the leader had led the workers and goods into Fengcheng and said they would come out after the transaction. However, they waited in the camp for three days and three nights without any further news.

Murder and robbery were common in the Western Territory. These porters were afraid of getting into trouble and not getting their wages, so they tried to sell the remaining silk in Wuxu. However, they encountered bandits on the way and were robbed of everything. It was a blessing from heaven that they survived.

Unable to get any information from them, and unable to publicize their business, the owner of Fengtai Trading Company had no choice but to give up.

He asked if Asha, the guide he had hired, had returned. The porters shook their heads blankly, saying he would tell them that he had most likely followed them into Wind City and died there.
With such a big incident, the owner knew things were going badly. He stopped worrying about the caravan and quickly went to send a message to Andu.

Cai Zhu'er didn't see Shen Tu Zhuo or Yan Sha at Tazichang, and returned to the Dunhuang post station with a heavy heart. She couldn't accept the fact that Shen Tu Zhuo was buried in the yellow sand. She wanted to see him alive or dead. Just as she was thinking about whether to ask the King of Qin to send a troop of Zhenxi Army to search Fengcheng, she saw Shen Tu Zhuo remove his disguise and return with a dejected expression.

In an instant, all her anxiety and grief vanished. Caizhu happily pulled him to sit down at the table: "You're back! Was it alright? Were you hurt?"

Shen Tu Zhuo shook his head and comforted him, "I'm fine, don't worry."

Seeing his pale face, Caizhu asked cautiously, "What's wrong? Didn't you get the transaction records? It's alright, we can think of other ways..."

"No, I've got it. I've already sent someone to Andu to inform the Crown Prince."

"Huh? You got it?" Cai Zhu'er came to her senses. "I was wondering why Lord Yan Sha didn't come back with you. He's already gone back to the Crown Prince to report, right? That's great! This will definitely crush the Grand Minister's arrogance!"

"..." Shen Tu Zhuo choked in his throat, and after a long while he managed to squeeze out a "hmm".

He led a camel, carrying his brother's tightly wrapped body, traveling light and arriving back in the city several days earlier than the porters. He first went to see Zhou Wencong, asking him to send his trusted aides to the Eastern Palace with the secret message in the wax pill that his brother had risked his life to retrieve, along with the transaction records he had found. Afterward, he went to the outskirts of Zhangye to bury Shen Tuheng's body.

To avoid arousing suspicion, he dared not exhume his elder brother's solemn and respectable cenotaph, but instead buried him in the open space behind the tomb, building an inconspicuous little grave. Just as his brother had said, from the moment the Zhenxi Army announced his death in battle, Shen Tu Heng had already died completely. He could only remain a lonely ghost, his face burned beyond recognition, hidden in the shadows.

Cai Zhu'er keenly sensed that he was preoccupied and asked, "Now that the mission is complete, why are you so dejected?"

Shen Tu Zhuo forced a smile: "It's nothing, really nothing, I'm just too tired."

Cai Zhu'er said, "I was just about to ask that. It's just stealing some accounts, right? How did it lead to the complete annihilation of the Fengtai caravan? The porters said they entered Fengcheng, and then what? Did you go in with them?"

Shen Tu Zhuo nodded slightly and took out the explanation he had prepared: "They saw that I could speak the language of the crossbowmen, so they let me go with them. I teamed up with... Yan Sha and got the transaction records, but for some reason the team leader and the crossbowmen got into a dispute. They argued for a few words and then suddenly started fighting... Anyway, they were like dogs fighting each other, so Yan Sha and I took advantage of the chaos to escape."

Cai Zhu'er breathed a sigh of relief: "Then I'm relieved. You should rest well and not think too much. Leave the rest to the Prince of Qin and His Highness the Crown Prince; it's not something we can control."

"Mmm." Taking the teacup she handed him, Shen Tu Zhuo poured it down his dry throat.

"I had a dream a few days ago," Cai Zhu'er said casually to ease his fatigue.

"What kind of dream? A nightmare?" "It wasn't really a nightmare, it was just a bit strange." She recalled, "I dreamt of your brother, my deceased husband. I don't know why, even though I've never met him or spoken to him..."

Clang.

The teacup fell from Shen Tu Zhuo's hand, and he hurriedly went to pick it up.

Cai Zhu helped wipe up the tea spilled on the shore: "How could you be so careless?"

"You dreamed about him? And then?" Shen Tu Zhuo pressed.

"He was wearing the same armor he wore when he rescued me in the valley, standing in the yellow sand under the rising sun, with his halberd slung diagonally behind him, and a sand-proof mask covering his face so I couldn't see his features, but it looked like he was smiling at me."

Did he say anything?

“He came to say goodbye to me.” Cai Zhu’er smiled shyly. “He said that in this life we ​​were husband and wife in name only, but not destined to be together. He said he was willing to bear all my grievances and resentments, and would come to me in the next life to apologize and make amends.”

"Yes, he can't let you go." Shen Tu Zhuo clenched his fist, almost revealing the truth, but ultimately did not break his promise.

"Actually, I've never blamed him. He saved me, so I owe him a favor. Marrying him gave me a place to stand. It's just a pity that our fate is so thin that I can only see him in my dreams." Cai Zhu suddenly remembered something, counted the days on her fingers, and realized, "So that's it. His death anniversary is coming soon. He must be coming to my dreams to remind me."

"Really?" Shen Tu Zhuo said with a self-deprecating laugh. "I almost forgot."

"Let's go back to Zhangye in a couple of days. We should pay our respects to him, otherwise Aunt Jun will blame us."
-
Upon returning to Zhangye, it happened to be the anniversary of Shentu Zhuo's death. Caizhu brought him a bottle of bright red Mohe wine, as well as homemade naan and Samusa to pay her respects.

Shen Tu Zhuo also went with her.

After setting out the offerings, Cai Zhu'er spoke a few words to Shen Tu Heng's tombstone, telling him not to worry about himself and to simply follow the customs of the underworld of Da Xuan and be reborn into a good family.

Shen Tu Zhuo said nothing.

He thought to himself, "Let him be a despicable person. I'll bury my brother's secret in my heart forever, and never let Caizhu shed another tear for the hero in my heart."

My brother had a passionate second life and had met the woman he loved.

It's enough that only he remembers.

Before leaving, Cai Zhu noticed a small new grave behind her late husband's tomb and wondered, "When did another grave appear here? Why isn't there a tombstone?"

Shen Tu Zhuo said, "Perhaps it's someone's lonely soul; we can only give it a hasty burial."

Cai Zhu'er nodded: "Yes, it's quite pitiful. Since she's my neighbor, let's offer a sacrifice here as well."

She raised a cup of deep red, sweet fruit wine and poured it on his grave.

Looking back, it seems like there is a next life.
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　Next chapter: The list of imperial merchants has been released.

　　(End of this chapter)