[Water Margin] Hu Sanniang with her delicate hands - Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

The din and clamor of battle slowly subsided like a receding tide, leaving only the crackling of still-burning embers and the suppressed groans of the wounded drifting in the cold night wind. Inside and outside the Hu Family Manor, the air was thick with the heavy scent of bl00d and char, mixed with a post-survival exhaustion and a deeper fear.

The manor gate slowly creaked open a crack. Hu Cheng led a team of capable manor guards, torches and weapons in hand, cautiously venturing out to survey the area. The torchlight revealed utter devastation. Black-clad corpses, already lifeless, were impaled on bamboo spikes planted in the hidden pits; less fortunate souls lay near tripwires with broken necks; and more still were broken bodies, felled by arrows, rolling logs, and boiling slops, their dark red bl00d soaking the ground beneath the manor walls, freezing in the cold air.

Upon the wall, Hu Sanniang still stood. Her dark cloak, stained with bl00d and soot, felt heavy. The Sun and Moon double sabers in her hands were sheathed, but their cold touch seemed still branded on her palms. A few spots of dried bl00d marred her jade-like face, standing out like demonic red plum blossoms blooming in the snow. She silently looked down upon the scene of carnage below, her gaze sweeping over the lives that were once vibrant but were now cold, her heart devoid of the joy of victory, filled only with a heavy chill.

This was the chaotic era. This was the bl00d and gore she had to face, had to immerse herself in.

“Third Mistress,” Instructor Chen trudged up, his armor covered in saber cuts and bloodstains, his face showing a mix of shock and relief. “The bandits have temporarily retreated. We’ve taken count… Thirty-seven brothers inside the manor were killed in action, nineteen seriously wounded, countless minor injuries. We eliminated… roughly a hundred enemies.”

Thirty-seven lives. Hu Sanniang closed her eyes. Behind these numbers were the sons of the manor, whose names she might not even know, but who had sweated on the training ground and toiled diligently in the fields. They should not have died here.

“Give the fallen brothers a generous burial, and compensate their families. The money will come from my private vault,” her voice was hoarse, but held an undeniable resolve. “Spare no effort or expense in treating the seriously wounded.”

“Yes,” Instructor Chen bowed and accepted the order, then hesitated before adding, “Third Mistress, though the bandits have retreated, they haven’t gone far. I fear… they will return soon. Moreover, the scouts just reported that the Zhu Family Manor… seems to have fallen.”

The last few words were spoken with great difficulty.

Hu Sanniang’s body subtly swayed. Though she had expected it, the news, when it finally arrived, hit her like a heavy hammer to the chest. With the fall of the Zhu Family Manor, the Hu Family Manor was completely isolated. They were next. Time was running out.

“I understand. Increase patrols, take turns resting, and guard against a night attack,” she waved her hand, her tone regaining its usual composure.

After Instructor Chen withdrew, Hu Sanniang stood on the wall for a long time until a faint sliver of blue light appeared on the eastern horizon before she slowly descended.

Inside the manor, lights were blazing, and shadows were bustling. People were collecting bodies, moving defensive equipment, tending to the wounded… a scene of chaos. In addition to the smell of bl00d, the air was heavy with sorrow and suppression. Seeing her approach, the busy guards and women and children paused, their gazes complex, holding reverence, gratitude, and deep worry.

She walked directly to a large house temporarily used as a casualty ward. The strong smell of herbs and bl00d rushed over her, and painful groans were incessant. She saw Old Squire Hu directing servants to help. The always elegant Squire now looked as if he had aged overnight, many startling white hairs at his temples, his eyes filled with fatigue and compassion.

“Sanniang,” seeing his daughter, Squire Hu’s voice was dry. “Are you… unharmed?”

“I am fine, Father,” Hu Sanniang shook her head, her heart aching as she surveyed the grim scene in the room. “Father, I have things handled here. Please go rest.”

Squire Hu looked at his daughter’s bl00d-stained clothes and her cold, determined eyes. He opened his mouth but ultimately let out a long sigh, patted her shoulder, and walked away with a stumbling gait.

Hu Sanniang rolled up her sleeves, exposing her jade-like hands that were meant for music and silk, yet now they were stained with bl00d without hesitation as she personally pressed down to stop the bleeding of a young manor guard with a severe abdominal wound. The guard was semi-conscious, but feeling the coolness and steadiness of her fingertips, he miraculously calmed down a little.

“Thir… Third Mistress…” he muttered. “Did I… did I not disgrace the manor…”

Hu Sanniang paused her movements, looking at the young face pale from bl00d loss. Her heart felt sour, but her voice was exceptionally gentle: “No, you are a hero of the Hu Family Manor.”

The guard struggled to pull a smile to his lips before passing out.

She was busy for an unknown period until daybreak, when the condition of the wounded was temporarily stabilized. Hu Sanniang dragged her weary body back to her courtyard. Qiu Yan had already prepared hot water and clean clothes.

Removing her bl00d-stained battle attire and sinking into the slightly scalding hot water, Hu Sanniang finally felt a bone-deep exhaustion wash over her. Her arms were aching, and the parts of her palms rubbed raw by the saber hilt were stinging. She looked at her reflection in the water—her beautiful face was still clear, but it seemed to be covered with an unremovable layer of weathering and murderous aura.

“Mistress,” Qiu Yan said softly, eyes red-rimmed, as she combed her tangled long hair. “Just now in the front hall… that envoy from the Zhu Family Manor came again…”

Hu Sanniang suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze in the water’s reflection instantly sharp as a knife. “What does he want?”

“He said… he said the Zhu Family Manor has fallen, and Young Master Biao… his whereabouts are unknown,” Qiu Yan’s voice trembled slightly. “He brought some remnants of the army and wants to seek refuge with our manor. He also said… he said if Young Master Biao is alive, he will certainly remember your kindness, and if… if he is not, he hopes Mistress will take them in out of past goodwill, and that they would… they would…”

“They would what?” Hu Sanniang’s voice was icy.

“They would… pledge allegiance to Mistress and help her restore the banner…” Qiu Yan’s voice was barely a whisper.

Hu Sanniang let out a cold laugh, utterly devoid of warmth. What “past goodwill”! What “pledge allegiance”! It was nothing more than a pretext for desperation, perhaps even harboring intentions to infiltrate or even control the Hu Family Manor! If that Zhu Biao were truly alive, given his disposition, would he ever be content to be subservient?

This delusion must be completely severed!

She abruptly stood up from the water, sending splashes everywhere. Disregarding the need to dry herself, she grabbed the clean underclothes and middle garment and quickly put them on, her tone chilling: “Dress me! I will go see him!”

In the front hall, the atmosphere was solemn. The Zhu Family Manor envoy, in tattered clothes and covered in dust, followed by several equally wretched men, was desperately pleading with the weary-looking Squire Hu, who was seated in the main chair.

“…Squire! The Three Manor Alliance, we are of one spirit! Now that the Zhu Family Manor has suffered this great calamity, you cannot stand idly by! Young Master Biao’s affection for the Third Mistress is true, Heaven and Earth can attest…”

“Let him save his affection for himself,” a clear, cold voice came from the doorway. Everyone turned around to see Hu Sanniang entering slowly, wearing a plain white riding jacket, without makeup, her long hair simply tied up with a silver hairpin. She had just bathed and still carried a faint scent of water, but her eyes were chillingly cold, and the aura she exuded was more intimidating than even during last night’s bloody battle.

The envoy, seeing her, rushed forward as if grasping a lifesaver. “Third Mistress! You…”

“Silence,” Hu Sanniang’s gaze was like two ice picks, stabbing directly at him, cutting off his words. “I grieve for the fall of the Zhu Family Manor. Taking in the remnants is not impossible.”

The envoy’s face lit up with joy.

But Hu Sanniang’s next words plunged him into an abyss of ice: “But, you must abide by my three rules.”

“First, entering my Hu Family Manor means you must follow the rules of my Hu Family Manor and obey the commands of my Hu Family Manor! Any hint of disloyalty, or daring to mention the so-called ‘past goodwill’ to seek undue favors—will be killed without mercy!”

“Second, you must be dispersed and incorporated into the manor guard teams, under the unified command of Instructor Chen. No self-formed units, and no private collusion!”

“Third,” her eyes swept over the remnants of the army, finally settling on the envoy’s face, she stated slowly and emphatically, “If Zhu Biao survives, ask him to leave on his own. My Hu Family Manor is too small for a figure of his stature. My fate, Hu Sanniang’s fate, does not need his ‘concern’ or ‘arrangement’!”

The three rules, each sharp as a blade, completely severed any possibility of Zhu Biao or his forces reaching into the Hu Family Manor, and utterly crushed the last illusion in the envoy’s heart!

The envoy’s face was ashen. He pointed at Hu Sanniang, his lips trembling: “You… you are so heartless! Young Master Biao, he…”

“Clang!”

With a soft chime, Hu Sanniang’s waist saber unsheathed half an inch, the cold gleam reflecting her icy eyes: “Say one more word, and it will be deemed a provocation, and you will be executed here and now!”

A chilling murderous aura filled the air. The envoy, along with the remnants behind him, trembled all over, unable to utter another word. They had no doubt that this woman, who had personally slain dozens of bandits last night and was saturated with killing intent, would truly kill them on the spot!

Squire Hu looked at his daughter with a complex expression, finally waving his hand and saying wearily, “Let it be… let it be as Sanniang says. Take them away and settle them according to the rules.”

After the few men were led away, their faces the color of death, only the father and daughter remained in the hall.

“Sanniang,” Squire Hu sighed. “Was that… too drastic? After all, it was an alliance…”

“Father,” Hu Sanniang sheathed her saber, her voice low yet firm. “One who hesitates to cut off the undesirable will suffer from its after-effects. Zhu Biao is arrogant and conceited, neither a good match nor a trustworthy person. Taking in his remnants is already the utmost benevolence. If we harbor any further delusion, we risk inviting the wolf into our house, and the downfall of my Hu Family Manor will not be far off!”

She walked to the window, gazing at the coffins of the fallen manor guards piled up in the courtyard, ready for burial. Her voice held a barely perceptible weariness and resolve: “The Hu Family Manor can no longer withstand any internal friction or turmoil. We must… and can only rely on ourselves.”

The cold, hard hilt of the saber pressed into her palm, reminding her of last night’s bloodshed and the cruelty of the future.

The threads of delusion had been cut. The path ahead was only one of bl00d and fire.

And she, must walk this path more resolutely than anyone else.