Lady Earthquake

Lady Earthquake Chapter 28

Ban-Li had not gone far before Uncle Mo caught up to him. "What was all that about?" the older man asked.

"Nothing," Ban-Li answered, unable to trust his voice for more than one word. A tear like a spark touched his cheek, leaving a hot track behind that was less real to him than the lingering impression of Sun-Sin's hard fingers. "Just a misunderstanding. Madame Jiu asked after you, Uncle."

"Is that where you went?"

"Yes. Is there another bedroll in your tent? The prince...." He sniffed and wiped the heel of his hand over his leaking right eye. "He...he told me to find somewhere else to sleep tonight."

After Uncle Mo's snores had begun in earnest, the boy gave himself up to misery. The musty bolster received blots of tears. "I wish he had beaten me," he muttered. "Then I would just be bruised instead of miserable. I would even read more stupid poetry."

What kept him awake, however, was not the memory of Sun-Sin's anger or even the vision of him marching into the Abode as if on a last-chance rescue mission. He remembered most the look of disappointment when he had told Sun-Sin that he wanted to revisit the scenes of their shared boyhoods without him. His eyes filled up again. Who knew a full-blooded man like him could look so grieved over so minor a matter? "Whenever I think I have finally understood him...."

"Eh? Are you awake?" Mo said, lifting his face from his own bolster.

Ban-Li held still and kept quiet. Uncle Mo would not be sympathetic. He would only encourage An-Xia to re-emerge. And the part of himself that was still female would not be any help either. Ban-Li did not want to hear from that love-struck child. He only wanted to know how to make up quickly with his Senior Brother so they could get over this and go on as they had been.

Silently, he vowed to be more careful, to think before he spoke, and to consider the consequence of every action before he took it. He vowed to protect his highness from every danger, even from pain that had nothing to do with fighting. First thing tomorrow, Sun-Sin would see a different Shu Ban-Li, a sensible, hard-working, and wise fellow. Throwing his arm over his eyes, Ban-Li only hoped such a person existed somewhere in his increasingly crowded mind.

This meritorious resolve expired soundlessly when Ban-Li reached the captain's tent. "The captain is not here, Adjutant Shu," one of the men on guard said.

"Oh? Where is he?"

"He was dressed for riding," the other one volunteered. "Lieutenant Luyo and Sergeant Yan as well."

"Oh, right. I remember now. Thank you."

He walked disconsolately toward the mess tent. As though in his ear, he heard the Third Prince's peculiarly persuasive voice saying, "My brother takes these sudden enthusiasms for people but they do not last...."

Ban-Li waved his hand wildly in front of his ear, scaring off such a memory as though it were a biting fly. "How can it be 'sudden' if we have known each other this long? Anyway, he did not even know I was there so he could not have meant it as a warning to me. Maybe as a warning to her. The Third Prince seems like the jealous type. I bet he likes that girl; I hope he marries her. Better her than me anyway."

An hour later, he waited in the Bashan's Great Hall until Lady Zang could receive him. Dust motes swirled in the air and he occupied his time in watching them. Though his mustache and mole were firmly in place, he did not feel confident. They had met more than once during that last summer before the tragedy at the Li's Summer Residence. Whether or not Lady Zang knew that both her sons had expressed admiration for Li An-Xia, that nervous girl had bowed often before those coolly judgmental eyes.