Chapter 9 An Incident
After bowing to the elder, Zhen Xu stepped out of the cool cave into the stifling pre-evening heat. Lost in thought about the new technique, he didn't notice his feet carrying him along the familiar path to the smeltery.
"Damn, I didn't mean to run into Uncle Lin yet..."
One of the smelters spotted Zhen and greeted him.
"Hey, Zhen! Long time no see. How've you been?"
"Crap..." thought Su Zhen.
"Uh... yeah, everything's fine. Just thought I'd drop by to see Uncle Lin. I'm Doctor Bai's apprentice now, so I'm not learning smelting anymore."
"Oh, right! Su Lin mentioned that. They say Doctor Bai's a real expert. He recently cured Li Bo's back."
Uncle Lin emerged from the smeltery and greeted Zhen cheerfully.
"Hey there, Zhen! What brings you here?"
Su Zhen clasped his hands in greeting.
"Doctor Bai let me train a bit in the forest. I finished early and thought I'd check in, see how you're doing."
Lin grinned and clapped Zhen on the shoulder.
"Nothing's gonna happen to us here. Healthy as oxen! Ha-ha! Orders are pouring in. The Duke's throwing work at us like his treasury's bottomless. Ha-ha!" Uncle Lin was clearly in high spirits, grinning from ear to ear.
The smelters' faces, blackened with soot and heat, gleamed in the sunlight.
"Come eat with us."
"Can't, Uncle Lin. I've still got to water the garden and all that."
"Well, no worries. Drop by my house sometime—your cousins have already forgotten what you look like. Oh, and Fang should be coming by with some meat pies from her grandma. Maybe you'll run into her on the way."
"If I see her, I'll definitely say hi, Uncle Lin," said Su Zhen, bowing before leaving.
Uncle Lin and the smelter headed toward the communal kitchen where the workers usually ate.
"Seems like no one suspected anything," Zhen thought as he walked back to town.
Passing by the Su family home, he stopped in briefly to chat with his brothers and father. Then, he set off for Doctor Bai's estate to tend to his duties as the junior gardener.
As he walked past a half-collapsed, roofless hut—charred from an old fire—he suddenly heard a cry for help.
"He... AHH!" The scream cut off into a shriek.
Whoever it was, this was no joke. Zhen's mind flashed to his cousin Fang, whom he might have met on the way.
Without another thought, Su Zhen sprinted toward the hut. When he reached it, he decided to peek through the window first. The shutters were broken, hanging on a single hinge and covering only half the opening.
What he saw inside made his blood run cold.
A soldier—one of the mine guards—stood there, lightly dressed without armor. On the floor lay a girl in torn clothes—his cousin, Su Fang. The guard was trying to pull down his pants while pinning her down.
Su Zhen's shadow fell on him, and the man straightened up and turned abruptly.
Zhen instantly understood what was happening. Rage surged through him, hot waves of blood pounding in his chest and temples. His heart hammered violently.
"Let her go! You're dead!" Zhen shouted, kicking open the rickety door.
The soldier, startled, scrambled back into the corner and drew his saber.
"Let's see who's dead here, brat," he growled, showing yellow teeth.
Zhen quickly assessed the situation and snatched up a stone by the doorstep. Seeing this, the guard lunged at him with a thrust. Zhen's reflexes were cat-quick—he dodged backward and to the side, then hurled the stone with precision. It struck the man square in the eye, blood spraying from the split brow. The soldier staggered.
Zhen didn't give him a chance to recover. He closed the distance, grabbed the wrist holding the saber, and delivered a brutal kick straight to the groin. The guard howled, but Zhen wasn't done. He wrenched the weapon free, snapping fingers backward and with a kick to the lowered head, knocked the man unconscious.
As Zhen stood over the fallen soldier, raising the blade to finish him with man's own saber, Elder Ge's sharp voice rang out in his head:
"Zhen Xu, do not kill him. Remember the oath. Your heart is not yet strong enough—and it's beginning to deviate. Break his ankles so he cannot flee, then take the girl and run to your father."
Gritting his teeth, Zhen resisted the urge to kill. Instead, he drove the saber into the ground, then grabbed the unconscious man's legs one by one, twisting and snapping the ankles with brutal efficiency.
Then he rushed inside to check on the girl. She was sobbing and huddled in a corner, trying to cover her naked chest with her hands.
"Cousin Fang, it's me—Su Zhen. We're going to blacksmith Su's house. It's not far."
He took off his shirt and handed it to her to cover herself, then took her hand and ran.
They stumbled onto the road. Fang limped, clutching Zhen's shoulder—likely injured her leg when the guard had forced her down. Soon, they rounded the bend and reached the forge. By then, Fang could barely move, was limping badly, mostly hopping on one leg.
"Father! Father!" Zhen shouted from a hundred paces away.
Luckily, Mr. Su was on a break, sipping tea. Hearing the shout, he jumped from his wicker chair and ran out to the road. Seeing Zhen shirtless and Fang limping, he ran up to them and asked:
"What happened? Su Fang?" The blacksmith recognized her.
The girl sobbed silently.
"A soldier tried to rape her in the burned house. I heard her scream and stopped him."
"Where is he now?"
"I knocked him out and broke his legs. Probably still lying there."
"Did anyone see you?"
"Don't think so. Didn't see anyone else."
"Good. Zhen, run to Doctor Bai and tell him. We'll handle things here."
Out of the house ran older brother Li in an apron with a hammer in hand, and behind him younger Ding, carrying a huge cleaver that looked comically large in the boy's hands.
"Father, what's wrong?" Li shouted, wide-eyed.
Blacksmith Su scooped up the girl and ordered,
"Run to Uncle Lin at the smeltery. Tell him a soldier tried to rape Fang, but Zhen stopped him and broke the bastard's legs... Give the hammer to your brother..."
Ding took the hammer in his other hand and scurried after his father, who carried Fang inside. Li sprinted up the road toward the mines.
"Thank you, cousin Zhen" Fang shouted over Mr. Su's shoulder in a strained voice.
Zhen lingered for a few seconds, then turned and ran back to town. Passing the burned house, he confirmed the soldier still lay motionless before continuing.
When he reached Doctor Bai's estate, he stopped, bending over with hands on knees, swallowing thick saliva and gasping for air. Once he caught his breath, he entered the gates and nearly run into Auntie Sun, who was carrying a basin of water, holding it easily with one hand, pressed against her body.
"Su Zhen! Why are you running around town sweaty and half-naked?" she exclaimed.
"I... need to talk to Doctor Bai. It's urgent."
"He's in the garden, waiting for you."
Zhen hurried to the garden and found Doctor Bai holding a watering can, his wide straw hat shielding him from the sun.
"Doctor Bai, there's been an incident..."
Doctor Bai grumbled discontentedly.
"A soldier attacked my cousin Fang and tried to rape her. I passed by and saved her... And broke the soldier's legs."
Auntie Sun gasped, covering her mouth with her free hand.
"You took down a soldier?" Doctor Bai said, slightly impressed, shifting the watering can to his other hand. "Don't worry. The garrison commander won't do anything to you. No one will dare lay a finger on my apprentice in this town."
"Thank you, Teacher!" Zhen clasped his hands and bowed.
"Go water the plants. I'm tired."
Doctor Bai handed the watering can to Zhen, plopped his hat onto the boy's head, and walked off toward his house.