Chapter 55: Who Is Fu Zihou?

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“Duxing, what on earth has happened?”

In the main hall, as Cui Duxing arrived, the elders of the Cui clan, including Cui Hebo and Cui Jingong, all stepped forward.

“Uncles!” Cui Duxing quickly cupped his hands in salute when he saw Cui Hebo and Cui Jingong. Hearing their inquiries, even though he was now a middle-aged man, he couldn't help but show a bitter smile.

“It’s a long story. To be honest, Uncles, I’m here precisely because of this matter!”

After saying this, Cui Duxing glanced at the many people in the hall, then turned to the front and bowed to Li Jingjie.

“Greetings, Second Young Master Li!”

As an official in Qinghe County, Cui Duxing naturally knew the second son of the Li family, Li Jingjie. Although Qinghe and Tiao counties were not in the same prefecture, they were not far apart, both located near the respective borders of their prefectures.

“Master Cui!” Li Jingjie promptly returned the salute. As he watched Cui Duxing greet the others in turn, Li Jingjie became even more curious—what exactly had happened in Qinghe County?

In the main hall, as greetings and formalities concluded, the elders, eager for answers, pressed Cui Duxing for news: what had transpired in Qinghe County? Where had the rebel Zhang Jincheng and his army retreated to?

Cui Duxing, however, did not answer immediately; instead, his gaze settled a few paces away on Cui Wenjin.

Noticing this, Cui Hebo, Cui Jingong, and the others exchanged puzzled glances, not understanding why Cui Duxing was looking at the Cui siblings rather than responding.

By then, the injured Cui Yuzhe had somewhat recovered, thanks to the Li family’s servants who had welcomed Cui Duxing into the house. Cui Wenjin, seeing her uncle’s gaze, was also confused.

“You two, come here,” Uncle Cui Duxing said.

Cui Yuzhe and Cui Wenjin obediently stepped forward and raised their hands.

“Yuzhe greets Uncle.”

“Wenjin greets Uncle.”

Just then, Cui Duxing nodded to a soldier standing outside the main hall. The soldier promptly brought in a long bundle wrapped in cloth.

Everyone inside, from Li Jingjie to Magistrate Wang and the rest, looked at each other in bewilderment, uncertain what Cui Duxing intended.

At Cui Duxing’s signal, the soldier unwrapped the bundle before the questioning gaze of the siblings, revealing a long sword and a wooden plaque.

At first, Cui Wenjin was merely puzzled—why would her uncle bring such a dirty, slightly bent sword?

But in the next moment, as she recognized the sword inside the cloth, her eyes widened in shock.

“This is my sword?”

Cui Wenjin stepped forward, reaching out for the grimy blade. If not for the pattern on the scabbard just visible through the mud, and the familiar shape of the sword itself, she might not have believed it was her own.

Why was there so much blood on it?

And how had her sword become so bent, its blade pitted with so many tiny, dense notches?

Countless questions crowded her mind. Just as she was about to ask her uncle, her gaze fell on a wooden plaque beside the scabbard.

“My brother’s identity tag…”

She murmured, when suddenly, a figure flashed through her mind—a young man.

“Hm? Is this… my identity tag?” At that moment, Cui Yuzhe noticed the plaque beside the scabbard was his own. He stepped forward, confused, and picked it up.

Having been unconscious earlier, Cui Yuzhe hadn’t realized his identity tag was missing. Now, seeing it in front of him, he wondered how it had come to be lost.

What in the world was going on?

“Did the two of you entrust your sword and identity plaque to someone named Fu Zihou?” Cui Duxing asked the siblings quietly, as the whole hall frowned in confusion.

“Zihou?”

“Zihou??”

Two voices rang out instantly—Cui Yuzhe’s, shocked, and Li Jingjie’s, puzzled.

Cui Yuzhe stared at his token, utterly baffled—when had he ever given his identity tag to Fu Zihou?

“Where is he? Uncle, where is he?” Cui Wenjin, coming back to her senses, anxiously questioned her uncle.

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As she looked at the sword and the identity plaque, a possibility rushed into her mind—he really had gone to Qinghe County! He really had gone to slay those rebels!

But why was only her sword and her brother’s plaque returned, but not the person himself?

Why hadn’t he come back?

A dark premonition rose in Cui Wenjin’s heart, filling her with unease.

Not far off, Li Qiong was equally perplexed—why would her uncle mention Fu Zihou, and why did Cui Wenjin look that way?

Could it be that Fu Zihou had also gone to Qinghe County?

Impossible! Why would he go there?

But then, why did Cui Wenjin’s uncle know him?

“Duxing, what exactly happened? And who is this Fu Zihou?” Cui Hebo, exasperated, saw that everyone was as confused as he was and pressed Cui Duxing again.

Under the scrutiny of everyone present, even those just outside the hall, Cui Duxing glanced at his distraught niece, then turned to his uncle and saluted.

“Uncle, early this morning, I, together with Assistant Prefect Yang and others, had prepared ourselves to die. But as dawn broke, when Zhang Jincheng ordered his rebels to attack, not long after, a relief force of less than a thousand men struck the rebel army from behind. In the ensuing melee, the relief force’s commander slew Zhang Jincheng’s trusted general, Xu Jinpeng. Terrified, the rebels scattered and fled, and thus Qinghe was saved!”

Cui Duxing related the events.

“What? Xu Jinpeng was killed? But he was Zhang Jincheng’s right hand!”

“That Xu Jinpeng was famous for his prowess, having slain many Sui officers. That relief commander must be formidable!”

“No wonder the rebels panicked and fled when Xu Jinpeng fell. I wonder who this commander is! Most of the Sui’s great warriors are to the north these days…”

The listeners began to discuss the matter excitedly.

They were all familiar with Zhang Jincheng, and even more so with his favorite general, Xu Jinpeng, whose exploits were widely known.

But who would have thought that outside Qinghe’s city walls, Xu Jinpeng would be slain by a relief force’s commander? Who was this man?

As the questions mounted, Cui Duxing glanced at Cui Wenjin.

“According to the soldiers of the relief force, their commander’s name is Fu Zihou,” he said to her, implying—niece, do you not know Fu Zihou? Your sword and Yuzhe’s identity plaque were both in his possession.

“Fu Zihou? Who is that? Never heard of him!”

“Fu Zihou!!”

“Zihou!!!!”

Most in the hall exchanged puzzled looks—they’d never heard of anyone by that name. But Cui Yuzhe and Li Jingjie stared at Cui Duxing in astonishment.

In Cui Yuzhe’s mind, the memory of that youth he once met in the Li family’s attic came flooding back.

Li Jingjie was equally incredulous—had he misheard?

Fu Zihou?

The youngest grandson of his uncle from the Fu family? The one once betrothed to his daughter?

Not far away, Li Qiong, upon hearing Cui Duxing’s words and seeing the bent sword in Cui Wenjin’s hands, was momentarily dazed, her beautiful face betraying disbelief.

Fu Zihou had not only gone to Qinghe—he was the commander of the relief force.

And he had slain the fierce rebel general, Xu Jingpeng!

Thinking of the youth she once knew, Li Qiong found it hard to believe that he could have achieved all this.

“He was the commander…”

Cui Wenjin, upon hearing her uncle’s words, was lost in a daze. She could not help recalling the young man’s helpless words when he left her room:

“I didn’t want to go either, but those others were all useless.”

As she remembered his look then, and now heard her uncle say the commander was Fu Zihou, tears welled in her eyes.

He had truly gone—and accomplished it.

Remembering her bent and chipped sword, Cui Wenjin dared not imagine the peril he must have faced.

“Uncle, where is he?” she asked anxiously.

Cui Duxing understood her concern.

“Don’t worry. He’s already taken a few close companions to pursue Zhang Jincheng,” he reassured her.

Though Cui Wenjin nodded, she was still worried. Yet, remembering that he had slain Xu Jinpeng—a man feared and respected even among heroes—she tried to comfort herself.

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Surely, he would be all right!

Just as Cui Wenjin was trying to reassure herself, her uncle spoke again:

“But according to the soldiers, he took a slash to the chest in his battle with Xu Jinpeng; his armor was breached and he bled. We don’t know how serious his wound is.”

Cui Duxing recalled what Kong Yan had said and spoke quietly.

He hoped that this young commander, Fu Zihou, would catch up to Zhang Jincheng and kill him, so they would no longer have to fear the rebels.

This ordeal had left him shaken.

“What? He was wounded?” Cui Wenjin’s heart leaped at her uncle’s words, her worries returning in force.

“And he still went after them?” she cried, frowning. She couldn’t understand why he would keep fighting while injured—was he trying to get himself killed?

Without realizing it, her tone now carried a hint of reproach.

“He probably doesn’t know Xu Jinpeng by reputation. He must be worried that Zhang Jincheng will regroup and attack again, so he went after him. Now, tell me—what is your connection to him? Where is he from? Assistant Prefect Yang has insisted that this matter must be reported to the court to request recognition for his achievements.”

Cui Duxing sighed. After answering his niece’s questions, he realized he still didn’t know Fu Zihou’s background, which was what mattered most now.

“He…” Cui Wenjin was about to answer but, after a moment’s thought, she turned to look at Li Jingjie, standing a few steps away.

Cui Yuzhe also gave a strange look at his… Uncle Li.

Seeing this, not only Cui Duxing but Cui Hebo, Cui Jingong, and the others all turned to Li Jingjie.

Could it be that Li Jingjie knew this Fu Zihou?

In the main hall, under everyone’s gaze, Li Jingjie’s Adam’s apple bobbed. The middle-aged man forced a smile, though there seemed to be an awkwardness behind it.

“The Fu family and my father’s family were old friends. Fu Zihou is also my nephew.”

Li Jingjie raised his hand and replied to Cui Duxing. For some reason, his chest felt tight, his breath unsteady.

After speaking, he couldn’t help but glance at his daughter, lost in a daze nearby.

……

In the rear courtyard of the Li residence, Zhangsun Nonggui turned to the old Madam Li.

“When Chai’er went there, the old Master Gao ordered his servants not to let her in at all…”

After explaining, she glanced at Li Chai, who stood with her head bowed. Earlier, when she had taken Chai’er to the Gao family’s door, not only had they refused her entry, but Master Gao Shining himself had come out and, as her maternal grandfather, pointed at her face and berated her.

“…Master Gao said himself that if Li Chai still wanted her mother’s name to be entered in the genealogy of the Bohai Gao clan, in the branch of Gao Mai, then she should die at once. Otherwise, she must never claim her mother was a member of the Gao family again.”

Zhangsun Nonggui recounted this, then looked at Madam Li. “I fear the relationship between our Li family and Master Gao has reached its end.”

Hearing this, the old Madam Li couldn’t help but frown slightly as she looked at Li Chai’s swollen, red eyes. Clearly, Gao Shining had vented all his anger at the Li family on his granddaughter, using Chai’s deceased mother to pressure her toward despair.

The old Madam Li felt a headache coming on and glanced at Madame Zhou.

If not for Zhou’s interference back then, the marriage contract would have returned to its original form, with Li Qiong marrying Fu Zihou. Then, none of this would have happened.

“Mother, Qiong’er is your granddaughter too! Her maternal grandfather may not be as esteemed as the Gao family, but he still loves her…” Madame Zhou said with some grievance. Thinking of her own parents and her brothers’ deaths, her voice quavered.

“That’s enough.” The old Madam Li sighed. If not for her sympathy for Zhou’s family, Zhou’s actions would have earned her a day and night of kneeling in the ancestral hall—or even exile from the family.

She knew both her second son and daughter-in-law Zhou looked down on the Fu family, and on Fu Zihou.

Even when the Fu family arrived, Li Qiong’s attitude had been clear.

Now, Zhou’s mention of her lost family was nothing but a ploy to prevent the marriage contract from being restored. The old Madam Li saw through her intentions clearly. Even if Zhou’s family were still alive, she would have tried to stop the marriage, asking her family to intervene or even speaking directly to the Fu family and Fu Zihou.

After everything that had happened, the old Madam Li had seen through her daughter-in-law’s schemes.

“Chai’er.”

Ignoring Zhou, the old Madam Li turned to Li Chai.

Seeing the girl’s tearful, red-rimmed eyes, she beckoned her over and took her hand.

“The Gao clan may refuse to record you and your mother’s names, but in our Li family’s genealogy, you both will be listed. Not just your mother—Grandmother promises that your children will also be included in the Li family’s records! Our family may not be as grand as the Gao’s, but your grandfather was once the Crown Prince’s tutor, renowned throughout the land! There’s no shame in having your mother’s name inscribed in the Li family’s genealogy.”

She smiled as she comforted Li Chai, wiping the tears from her face with her aged hands.

But as she watched the grieving girl, the old Madam Li knew well—though her mother’s name would appear in the Li family records, the Gao branch would never acknowledge her again.

This was a rift that neither the Li nor the Fu family could mend.

(End of this chapter)