147 I can wait

Second Master settled himself into the Boarding House and prepared for a long wait. He suspected his half brother would ignore the request and hope it would just melt away, but he would not have prepared himself for the stubbornness of Second Master.

Wandering around the province, Second Master gleened more detail about his father's exploits. He was well known as a philanderer, a racketeer and worse, a cheat at cards. His reputation as a drunkard was well accepted and his handiness with the ladies a given. The more Second Master learned about his father during those early years, the more he found his whole personality abhorrent. He found it even harder to reconcile himself as having come from the loins of this man, his brother too, who was gentle, polite and reserved.

He shook his head, 'must be our mother's influence, we must be more like her.'

Taking advantage of the time, he visited the various barracks in the area. It was useful in so much as he was able to form friendships and  alliances which would be beneficial in the long run.

It was nearly two weeks before a reply came through. Curt and to the point, Commander Zhang declined an audience and wished Second Master a speedy and uneventful return home.

The grin on Second Master's face said it all, 'you may not wish this audience, but it will happen and at my convenience.'

With that, he went downstairs, paid his bill and left for the Zhang Pass, his two trusted men at arms alongside him. 

 

 Hao watched Niao as she and her pack prepared to leave. Do I ask to go? Do I stay behind? Am I of any use? Could I be of use?

Niao watched it all, "You coming?"

It was all she said but it was enough. He packed his roll, collected some provisions, found his knives and silent boots for hunting and stood waiting, ready. For the first time since the Zhang pass, he let out a sigh and relaxed.

Xin watched on. She was glad Niao had seen his unease. She nodded to her, "he'll be more useful to you than us,"was all she said, but Niao understood and grinned.

"Have fun and don't get caught! I'm not ready to come all this way back to bail you out!"

"You know me, I'll be in my element and I promise, there will be watchers out all the time. Good luck with finding Yiran and the children, I just hope they are still alive."

Niao nodded and giving her sister a hug, she mewed toward the pack and they set off toward the lake. 

Dragging the wooden raft into the water, they piled the bed rolls and provisions onto it, holding it all still with one of the old fishing nets. Stripping down, they silently dropped in the water, and prepared to swim. It was over twenty kilometres, so a few would swim and push the raft from the side, as others held on and rested. To start with, one person could get onto the raft and paddle, creating the speed they needed, but the raft was flimsy and wouldn't support more than one at a time. Turn and turn about, utilising the men who's sculling skills were the best, the raft maintained good speed and within a few hours, they had already drawn level with the warfs at Chenxi. At this rate, they would cover the majority of the distance before the daylight cast it tell tale shadows across the lakes surface and the fishermen would be leaving harbour to enter the fishing grounds. The aim was to get to the other side of the feeder river, beyond Chenxi. Niao knew that area well and had a couple of good landing points in mind.

 

"I have come to see Commander Zhang. I do not have a pre-arranged audience but I shall wait here until I am invited to confer with your Head of Zhang Province."  Second Master stood in an intimidating stance. He would not be fobbed off and if worst came to the worst, then he would just walk in. "I am prepared to wait but I am also prepared to be rude enough to walk straight in. Please pass this message to your Commander. Please insure he is fully cognisent with my position."

The aide half bowed nervously, and retreated into the residence, leaving Second Master and his two chosen Hammers standing directly in the way of anyone leaving or entering the premises.

"Stand at ease, gentlemen, we maybe here some time. I will not be brushed off a second time."

"Sir!" and the two Hammers positioned themselves so they flanked their Commander and occupied even more of the entrance. People came and went. The three stood like pillars refusing to yield position. Their presence was becoming intimidating, people scurried as if in the presence of a great demon, mutterings under the breaths of those passing by exhibited their fears, the intimidation these three, giants of men created.

Second Master smiled, 'not long and Zhang will have to let us through.' Within a matter of moments and aide came rushing outside, flushed and flustered, "Sirs, I am sorry to have left you standing for so long. My master has been discussing matters of state and has only recently become aware of your presence." 

Second Master grinned, raising his eyebrows.

The aide continued, "Commader Zhang has asked you come into the inner courtyard for some tea and he will join you shortly." With that, the aide bowed and with his left arm held out, palm up, gestered the way. 

Again, Second Master grinned, "I do hope your master does not keep us waiting as long as he has so far this trip? I seem to feel we have been held waiting for," he paused, mainly for effect, "ah, yes, two weeks and now a further three hours. It is rather, how shall I put this politely, rather rude for the Head of one Province to ignore another," again he paused, "or is this slur intentional?" The innocence with which it was said, carried the barbs of something far deeper and the aide felt it through to his core.

"I will pass on your message," and with that he beat a hasty retreat. 

A flurry of activity proceeded the grand entrance of the peacock, "Commander Chen, I did not realise it was you or I would have held an audience with you sooner. How does the transportation of the Mu soldiers back to their homeland progress? I presume this is what you are here to discuss" He sat with a flurry of gown and cape, "Bring fresh tea." He gestured to the aide who stood to one side nervously waiting for his instruction. Returning his gaze to Second Master, Zhang smiled like the wiley fox he was.

Second Master stood up, towering over the now seated Zhang. He held out his hand, in greeting, "I thank you for seeing me at such short notice, but please, call me brother." A grin appeared on Second Master's face as the two brothers locked eyes. He continued standing holding out his hand. "No pleasantries toward your guest?" He grinned at Zhang, knowing he had won round one.

"Brother?" Zhang failed to touch the hand, " I fail to see the relevence of this statement. Since when are we brothers?" Without realising he had walked into Second Master's trap.

"Since we share blood ties, brother, since we have to acknowledge Old Master Chen is our father and since we would be advised to call this feud to an end."

"Feud? I see no feud between us. We fought together side by side and once the enemy was under our control, you returned home. Isn't that what kin should do?" The peacock smiled, round two to him.

"We did indeed come to your aid brother, but it was Chen who seemed to be expected to take the lead whilst most of your soldiers remained in barracks, obviously too tired to participate? Or was it, they were advised to allow their kin to take up the struggle and bear the number of dead?" Round three to Second Master.

"Me thinks the ploy of getting most of the Chen forces out of Chen and far away was indeed a clever strategy by the Mu family, who I would say, have a greater reason to wish us and our father in particular, a rapid and not so speedy death. However, brother, do you not feel you were used as an unwilling paticipant in this aggression toward the Chen family? I realise our father is to blame for all this misunderstanding between brothers, but we should not carry this forward as a pennant, but as a reminder of correct manners and decorum." Sitting forward as he spoke, Secnd Master poured tea into two bowls and lifting one toward the Peacock, "Tea brother?" 

The war of verbal banter continued, but neither could win over the other. Second Master remained unflustered refusing to call Zhang anything other than brother. Zhang on the other hand refused to either acknowledge or deny, remaining ensconced in his robes and finery, taking the upper moral ground.

Second Master sat back in his chair. "Brother, we can trade these barbed comments at each other but it achieves nothing. We have to accept we share blood and we share a father. I have informed the man he can rot in Shipao until the day he dies, he will not be allowed back on Chen land even in death, and there will be no place for him in the ancestral hall. He was lucid that day and his face showed horror at what he had done. In his defence he knew none of it until then, but that does not excuse his actions. For my other brother and myself we lost our mother within six weeks of our younger brother's birth. He has been beaten and whipped repeatedly as the scapegoat for our father's loss, so one could say, A'Hao has experienced similar to yourself. Like you, I had no mother, so there are parallels here which are both cruel and heartless." Second Master paused as he took a sip of his tea, then continued. "I fully appreciate your desire to have nothing to do with me or my other brother, but it must be accepted that we have blood ties between us. Now, how you deal with this truth is your decision. Mine is to acknowledge you as my half brother and make peace with you and your province. I have no interest in pursuing things further than that." 

Zhang sat silently. He dropped his head as he pulled on an imaginary thread.

"I have suffered a great deal because of the actions of our father. I find it hard to reconcile myself to this fact and I find it harder to reconcile myself to the knowledge if there had ever been any other progeny, I would have been set aside as the bastard child who had no claims, no rights. I have carried this stigma." He looked up at Second Master, "I cannot let it go so lightly, brother." That final word was spat out with the distain he felt. He stared at Second Master with a burning dislike bordering on hatred. "I have no desire to make amends. I have no desire to speak kindly with your family. I have no mind to develop close ties with your nation. Understand this. I have lived under the shame and guilt of your father all my life. This is not something I can put down like a tea bowl."

"And now, knowing the wrongs of our father," Second Master interrupted, "I too, find it hard to accept him as one. I am ashamed of his actions, but equally, I am at a loss as to why no-one has ever mentioned any of this to us. I am at a loss as to why you were made to carry the stigma, but then I am at a loss at my level of admiration for you to have risen so successfully to the top of this province. I am proud to call you brother even though you do not wish to acknowledge it in return. I hope you exhibit the best of your mother as we exhibit the best of ours. Our father is a bitter and twisted man who will die in exile and his truth will be spread around the lands he once called his. The closeness of your province will be acknowledged by us, even though you are unwilling to return that courtesy," Zhang went to interject but Second Master held up his hand, "and I can understand why. Now we have made our positions plain, I think it would be useful to have cross border talks of mutual trade and travel, if you feel this would be of benefit to the Zhang province,  that is?"