Eighty-three

"Heh, maybe. Speak, then, Mr. Li Yin. What is there, on this little Mount Sky-Pillar of mine, that you want? Say it outright."

Chen Lan’s expression settled again. This time it was Li Yin who had come begging to his door; Chen Lan was not the one bowing and scraping, so mindset was everything.

"What do you mean, want?" Li Yin replied with studied ease. "I merely come to retrieve what was left in your keeping, General Chen."

"Hm?" Chen Lan’s brow furrowed.

"Does General Chen not remember the journey to Shouchun half a year ago, and the item our sovereign entrusted to your keeping?" Li Yin reminded him kindly.

"Half a year ago? The trip to Shouchun?" Chen Lan rolled his eyes. Half a year earlier, he had indeed gone to Shouchun, but not to keep anything there—he had gone to seize it. At the time, Li Shu’s entire army was at the front, the line stretched thin. To halt the enemy advance, Li Shu had sent all of Shouchun’s defenders away.

Shouchun had instantly become hollow. They had thought it their rear base and imagined no foe would appear, yet Chen Lan, that turncoat, had seized the chance to strike, raiding Shouchun and plundering it at will. As a result, the front line ran short of grain and supplies, and Li Shu’s army suffered a crushing defeat.

Before Chen Lan could speak, Lei Bo behind him blurted out, "Nonsense! What keeping of anything? We plainly went to rob it ourselves!"

"Second Brother, stand down!" Chen Lan was utterly exasperated. Robbery might be done in private, but could it be proclaimed in the open? Much less when what he and Lei Bo had robbed belonged to their former lord. If that kind of reputation got out, what face would he, Chen Lan, have left? That was why he forbade Lei Bo from saying more.

"General Chen, some things may be taken, while others must not be. Why not simply return it?" Li Yin said with a smile.

"And if I say no?" Chen Lan narrowed his eyes. He was not the sort to swallow something only to spit it back out later. Once it was in Chen Lan’s mouth, and he still meant to let Chen Lan send it back out again?

"If General Chen is unwilling, then I would truly be failing you," Li Yin’s tone shifted at once, growing hard.

"What, Mr. Li Yin, planning to seize it by force? And on what basis? On the three hundred imperial guards you have down the mountain? Or on you and that young master Li Miao, along with those several thousand old, weak, sick, and crippled men in River Pavilion?" Chen Lan mocked.

"You rebel, how dare you insult the young lord so!" Zhang Xun roared, eyes blazing, his battle saber half-drawn.

Behind Chen Lan, Lei Bo also glared and drew his own long sword. The other minor leaders under Chen Lan likewise unsheathed their weapons. At once, the banquet hall, which had only moments ago been full of laughter and light talk, turned hostile and tense, the air thick with the smell of bloodshed. One wrong move, and a violent clash could erupt.

"Hahaha! Hahaha!"

Li Yin suddenly laughed aloud. The laughter was strange and somewhat baffling, but it at least eased the tension in the room.

Though he was laughing, his small eyes had narrowed, and if one looked closely, there was a glint of cold light hidden within them.

"It seems General Chen still bears loyalty to his former lord, since even the young lord’s condition is known to you," Li Yin said, looking at Chen Lan.

Chen Lan said nothing. Li Yin went on, "Yes, the imperial guards are elite, but there are only three hundred of them. And those old, weak, sick, and crippled men are even less fit to contend with the former elites of the Li family gathered here on Mount Sky-Pillar."

His words carried a biting sarcasm. Many of the leaders present had once been officers in Li Shu’s army.

"But I still say the same: General Chen, some things are yours if they are yours, but some things, once taken, will truly do no good for your future," Li Yin said calmly.

"That is no concern of yours, Mr. Li Yin!"

"Oh? Then what of Chancellor Cao?" A teasing smile appeared at the corner of Li Yin’s mouth.

"Hm?" Chen Lan’s brow tightened.

"General Chen, when you gave up Mount Sky-Pillar back then, Chancellor Cao must surely have made you great promises. Let me guess: a post as commandant? Or perhaps the lordship of an army? Or even the rank of Marquis of Pavilion?" Li Yin regarded him with amusement.

Chen Lan gave no answer, but the pupils that had shrunk within his eyes told Li Yin everything. It seemed his guess and what Cao Cao had intended for Chen Lan were more than close.

Indeed, when Chen Lan had first thought that Li Shu’s proclamation of emperorship would turn everyone against him, he had still not dared to betray Li Shu so decisively. After all, having stayed long at Li Shu’s side, he also feared Li Shu.

Li Shu was no great talent, but he was certainly a brutal man. Whoever struck him, he would kill in return, even if killing them meant he himself would be ambushed and slain by others. Before dying, he would make sure to drag you down with him.

Because of this, Chen Lan had long been wavering. What truly made him finally resolve to betray Li Shu was that the rewards Cao Cao offered him were too tempting to swallow.

Among them was indeed a post as commandant, and the grant of a Marquis of Pavilion.

Alas, dreams were beautiful and reality cruel. After Cao Cao’s army defeated Li Shu, he simply ignored Chen Lan. No matter how many envoys Chen Lan sent to make contact, each one was politely sent back.

"Cao Cao, Cao Mengde—though I have no personal ties with him, I have dealt with him before. He values talent and honors his word. With General Chen’s ability and your merit in surrendering Mount Sky-Pillar, he would surely have been glad to accept you, and there should be no reason to deny it afterward. Yet now Chancellor Cao has made no contact at all. That leaves only two possibilities," Li Yin said with a smile.

"First, Chancellor Cao had far grander designs and meant for General Chen to hold Mount Sky-Pillar for him in hopes of taking all lands south of the Great River."

Seeing Chen Lan unmoved, he knew this was unlikely. If Cao Cao had truly given Chen Lan secret orders, then later events would not have led to Chen Lan’s death at Cao Cao’s hands.

"Second, General Chen must have done something that offended Chancellor Cao’s taboos."

"No, impossible!" Chen Lan blurted out in haste. The moment the words left his mouth, he saw the playful smile on Li Yin’s face and understood he had already been seen through.

But once spoken, the words could not be taken back. So Chen Lan might as well be blunt. "So what if it is? I, Chen Lan, ask myself whether I have done nothing that would betray Chancellor Cao!"

"Yes, you have not betrayed Chancellor Cao," Li Yin sighed, "but you have betrayed your old lord."

Without Chen Lan, Li Shu would not have fallen so miserably. Yet to put it another way, Chen Lan was only one link in the chain; Li Shu had simply been too proud and arrogant.

"General Chen, I still say the same: some things you should not have taken. To abandon your lord and cast off loyalty, one might say you simply chose worthy timber to roost upon—that is the wisdom of one who understands the times. But to betray him and then plunder him as well, that is the heart of a lord-slayer. Would Chancellor Cao tolerate that?" Li Yin asked.

"Lord-slayer?" Chen Lan’s eyes widened. If he had merely betrayed Li Shu, Cao Cao could still have accepted him—after all, that only proved Cao Cao more appealing than Li Shu. But Chen Lan should never, under any circumstance, have added insult to injury. A minister like that—who would dare want him? One day he might betray you too, and trample you underfoot while he did it. That was why, after learning that Chen Lan had plundered Shouchun, Cao Cao had gone silent.

"Mr. Li Yin, teach me," Chen Lan said after a long and troubled silence. Now that he thought on it, it really was because of this. Before, Chancellor Cao had looked upon him with favor, even written him letters, but after Chen Lan plundered Li Shu, everything had gone dead. He had assumed there must be some other reason. Hearing Li Yin now, he was suddenly enlightened, and turned his gaze toward him. Since Li Yin could state the cause, he must surely have a remedy.

"General Chen, after saying so much, I am rather thirsty," Li Yin said.

"You bastard—speak or not!" Lei Bo barked angrily. This was sheer insolence.

Chen Lan glanced over and still nodded. "Someone, bring Mr. Li Yin some water."

Water was brought and set before Li Yin, but time and again it was somehow spilled by him by accident, so he never managed to drink it, and the matter remained unresolved.

Chen Lan looked at Li Yin, and Li Yin looked back with amused eyes. In the end, Chen Lan could only step forward himself and pour him a cup of tea, which Li Yin finally drank.

"General Chen, the journey to Shouchun can be described in two ways," Li Yin said with a smile. "One can say that General Chen raided your former lord and kicked him when he was down. Or one can say that General Chen, cherishing your old lord, merely helped him keep something in safekeeping."

Chen Lan narrowed his eyes. In the end, this Li Yin had come for the goods.

"Speak, Mr. Li Yin. What do you want, and how much?" Chen Lan asked.

"Nothing else: grain, weapons, and warhorses," Li Yin replied. "Ten thousand shi of grain, three thousand battle sabers, eight hundred sets of armor, and one thousand warhorses."

"Impossible. Are you trying to rob us?" Lei Bo roared, his eyes bloodshot. Ten thousand shi of grain, three thousand sabers, eight hundred sets of armor, and one thousand warhorses—between all the people up and down Mount Sky-Pillar, they had only about two thousand sets of heavy armor, fewer than ten thousand bandits with swords, and not even five hundred warhorses. Grain they had, yes, but why should they give it to him?

Robbery? Li Yin was here to rob them.

"Mr. Li Yin, are you joking? You know that is impossible," Chen Lan also growled in a low voice.

"Then I can do nothing about it," Li Yin said, waving a hand. "Many thanks for General Chen’s hospitality. This humble Li takes his leave."

With that, he turned as though to depart.

"Big Brother, this Li Yin is truly a bastard. Give the word and I’ll seize him at once. I refuse to believe he won’t help us!" Lei Bo said directly to Chen Lan.

"Seize Li Yin?" If Chen Lan could have seized him, he would have done so already. After all, Li Yin was half of the Li family. If he truly killed him, that label of lord-slayer would never come off.

But the amount being demanded was indeed enormous. This Li Yin was opening his mouth like a lion. Still, if these worldly riches could be exchanged for recognition from Chancellor Cao, then in the future—when position and wealth came—would he still fear lacking such things?

"Please wait, Mr. Li Yin!" Chen Lan called after him.

"What is it? Has General Chen come around?" Li Yin asked with a smile.

"How can I believe that after I hand over these things you say are being kept here, my reputation will truly be restored?" Chen Lan was no fool. If he gave them these things, what if Chancellor Cao still ignored him?

"Heh. Though my Li family has declined, we will not deceive you in this matter. Once General Chen’s property is returned, your name will naturally be restored. If you still doubt it, I can have our young lord write you a letter to prove your innocence," Li Yin said.

"Hm?" Chen Lan hesitated. After thinking for a long time, he found no better way, and could only nod. Considering the Li family’s lean camel, it should not be lying to him.

"Besides, General Chen, if we fail to restore your reputation, River Pavilion is not far from your Mount Sky-Pillar. By your own words, there are only three hundred imperial guards and several thousand old, weak, sick, and crippled men. You could simply take it back again," Li Yin added, dispelling Chen Lan’s final concerns.

"Very well. I trust you, Mr. Li Yin," Chen Lan said with a smile.

What he truly trusted was his subordinates’ ability to tear River Pavilion up by the roots, Li Yin thought coldly.

"Mr. Li Yin, I can agree to ten thousand shi of grain. But those eight hundred suits of heavy armor, I cannot produce. Three thousand battle sabers are also too many. As for one thousand warhorses, I fear you may laugh, but my army does not even have a thousand warhorses."

Li Yin had come mainly for the grain. Now that the ten thousand shi were secured, he was already at ease. The others were only incidental, but he still asked, "Then how much can General Chen provide?"

"How about this, Mr. Li Yin: of the three thousand battle sabers, I can only give you one thousand five hundred. Of the eight hundred sets of heavy armor, I can only produce four hundred. As for the warhorses, I can only give you two hundred. Add in some packhorses and draft horses, and we can make up one thousand. Will that do?" Chen Lan asked.

Chen Lan had cut everything nearly in half. Though those things were only incidental to Li Yin’s purpose, Li Yin would not let them go so easily.

"No, General Chen. For such a little, I, Li Yin, could not care less. But our young lord certainly would not agree. Coming here to discuss reconciliation with you, General Chen, was already a matter of great risk for me. You must know that after the battle at Mount Sky-Pillar, our young lord has been thinking of you, General Chen, with profound memory," Li Yin said, reminding him.

In the battle at Mount Sky-Pillar, it was Chen Lan who let Cao Cao’s army pass, causing Li Shu’s forces to collapse. Chen Lan was the chief culprit. If Li Miao had enough troops in hand now, he might have already attacked Mount Sky-Pillar directly. If you want Li Miao to help restore your reputation, how could you refuse to give something worthwhile?

"Heh..." Chen Lan looked somewhat embarrassed, but after gritting his teeth, he said, "I truly cannot produce the armor. How about this: four thousand battle sabers, four hundred sets of heavy armor, and as for the warhorses, I will give you two hundred warhorses, plus some riding horses and draft horses to make up the total of one thousand. How does that sound?"

Seeing the pained look on Chen Lan’s face, Li Yin knew this was already his limit. But if one was to act, one must act to the end. Li Yin hesitated, suffered, gnawed his teeth, and finally nodded heavily, wearing the look of a man in anguish, as though he had suffered some tremendous loss.

"This can only do."

To cleanse his own name, Chen Lan had indeed spent a great deal of effort: four thousand battle sabers, four hundred sets of heavy armor, ten thousand shi of grain, two hundred warhorses, and eight hundred draft horses.