East of the River: Home of the Sun Clan sample (Act I) -- T. P. M. Thorne
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“I am glad to meet you at last, Inspector,” Sun Jian replied as he bowed
low.
“A true hero… not like the other ones,” Tao Qian grumbled. “The court
has appointed former courtiers as generals… foolishness.”
“Perhaps they will prove themselves,” Sun Jian suggested.
Tao Qian smiled slightly, grunted a laugh and gestured that Sun Jian and
his allies should follow him into the city, which they did.
“So this is the old capital,” Zu Mao said as he looked about him.
“…Yeah, I s’pose Fuchun must seem like a pig pen to people that live in a place
like this.”
“They can think what they like,” Cheng Pu muttered.
The city had a bustling market that was selling goods from across the
empire and beyond: some of the traders were visibly foreign, which prompted Zu
Mao to say, “I don’t reckon some o’ these are even tribes. Where are they
from?”
“They’re probably from the far north, the places where we get the big
horses from,” Cheng Pu replied.
“Oh, right,” Zu Mao said. “They have funny features, don’t they?”
“I’m sure they feel the same about us,” Cheng Pu replied. “But at least
they can argue that there’s a difference to see… a man that can treat a person
differently because they have less wealth or didn’t get the same opportunities,
even if they look the same as they do, is worse.”
“…I wasn’t really insultin’ ‘em, Mister Cheng,” Zu Mao insisted. “I was
just saying that their eyes and noses and everythin’ is different; perhaps I
shouldn’t have said ‘funny’, because I-”
“I know… what you meant,” Cheng Pu said with barely-restrained anger.
The group were scruffy, and more than one inhabitant of Chang’an had cast a
disparaging look in Cheng Pu’s direction that he did not care for.
“…Ah… I see,” Zu Mao chuckled. “Ignore ‘em.”
“Has the last half-year taught them nothing?”
Cheng Pu despaired; he failed to notice that Sun Jian had stopped speaking to
Tao Qian and dropped back to join them. “There’s a full-scale peasant rebellion
going on just west of here, and they still…!
…I… I need to calm down, I know that.”
“Good; then I don’t need to tell
you, Demou,” Sun Jian said admonishingly. “Inspector Tao has invited me for
tea, but I’ve declined since our mission is urgent. We’ll depart once we’ve
eaten and rested for a few hours.”
“The sooner we advance, the better,” Cheng Pu replied. “The north is not
to my taste.”
Sun Jian did not reply, but his own observations had left him with
similar issues with some of the seemingly-oblivious inhabitants of Chang’an.
The group stopped in a tavern for a short time and then departed for the
western front in Liang Province.
‘General that strikes fear into the unlawful’ Zhou Shen - a man of
average stature with a confident expression and deliberate manners - met Sun
Jian and his allies at the gates of the wooden encampment at Mei County in
eastern Liang Province.
“Mister Sun Jian,” Zhou Shen said with false politeness.
Sun Jian made a bow that was reciprocated, and said, “General Zhou, it
is a pleasure to be working with you. I should like to introduce you to-”
“We should both go to speak with Commander Zhang Wen and General Dong
Zhuo immediately,” Zhou Shen interrupted. “Your servants can find your tent by
following that path to my left: a sign marks it clearly.”
Zu Mao and Cheng Pu exchanged irritated glances.
“…Alright, well, my friends
can wait for me there,” Sun Jian replied. “Please, lead the way, General.”