Before long, Flat Rabbit arrived, leading a rescue team.
The five thousand members of the Gao Family Village Militia each contributed one full day of their personal rations. Alone, each portion was modest. Together, they formed a mountain of food. Sacks of dried grain, coarse flatbread, preserved vegetables, and cured meat were piled high onto wooden carts.
Flat Rabbit oversaw everything personally. Soon, cart after cart rolled into the mountain gully beneath Lingwu Cave, spreading out in a wide formation.
Above them, Gu Tianxing and his people began descending from the cave entrance halfway up the cliff.
Going down was no easier than climbing up had been. The elderly were supported on both sides. Children were carried or guided carefully. Some men formed human chains to steady those who slipped. It was slow, tense work.
But when they saw the countless carts below, when they saw real food waiting for them in the open sunlight, something changed.
Even the weakest among them found strength.
Even the children stopped crying.
Once they finally reached the bottom and received the dried rations handed out by the Gao Family Village Militia, the refugees could no longer hold themselves together.
They burst into tears.
"Food… finally, real food…"
"And someone to guide us… to lead us out of these cursed mountains…"
"We can live. We can finally live."
Some knelt while eating. Some cried as they chewed. Others simply held the food in their hands as if afraid it would vanish.
Gu Tianxing followed Li Daoxuan and approached Cheng Xu and the others. The leaders gathered and formed a circle, sitting around Gu Tianxing.
Cheng Xu spoke first. "Tell us your situation. Why were you trapped inside Lingwu Cave?"
Gu Tianxing lowered his head and began recounting everything.
He was from Nanyang. Drought had ravaged the land. Crops failed. Families starved. In desperation, he had been swayed by rebel rhetoric. He joined their swelling ranks, believing perhaps there was hope in numbers.
Instead, he followed them all the way into Sichuan.
They marched, fought, scattered, regrouped. Eventually, what had once been an army became fragments of displaced people trying to survive. When even the rebels abandoned them, they fled into the mountains and stumbled upon Lingwu Cave.
That was how they ended up there.
Flat Rabbit thumped his chest and declared loudly, "So that's what happened. Your suffering truly is tragic. But your hardships end here. With Dao Xuan Tianzun guiding us, you will never starve or freeze again. If you are sharp-minded and hardworking, if you commit yourselves sincerely, I guarantee you will live in abundance."
Gu Tianxing looked up in disbelief.
"From Nanyang, you say?" Zheng Gouzi muttered thoughtfully. "That reminds me… didn't we see something about Nanyang recently in Gaojia News?"
Cheng Xu nodded. "Zhu Yujian, the Prince of Tang from Nanyang, raised troops to aid the Emperor. It was reported."
Zheng Gouzi slapped his forehead. "Right! That's it. These princely names are impossible to keep track of."
Cheng Xu smiled faintly. "Now that the Manchu forces have retreated from the capital, the Prince of Tang must be in an awkward position."
And indeed, he was.
Zhu Yujian had returned to Nanyang.
Halfway through his march toward the capital, news arrived that the Manchu forces had already withdrawn. With no enemy to fight, he had no choice but to pull back.
On his journey north, he had fought scattered rebel forces. He had clashed with Meng Hu and Du Hu's armies in several engagements. Some battles were won, some lost. In his mind, even if he had not truly "rescued the Emperor," he had at least suppressed bandits and rendered service to the dynasty.
Yet shortly after returning to Nanyang, an imperial decree arrived.
He was stripped of his title.
Reduced to commoner status.
The Embroidered Uniform Guard were ordered to arrest him and imprison him for life within the high walls of Fengyang.
Zhu Yujian roared in fury.
"This prince refuses! I refuse! My loyalty to the Great Ming is absolute. I have no selfish ambition. I should not be treated like this!"
The centurion of the Embroidered Uniform Guard showed no expression.
"Save your words for the tomb-guarding eunuchs in Fengyang," he said flatly.
"I demand an audience with the Emperor!"
"You will not see His Majesty," the centurion replied. "And you are no longer a prince. You are a commoner. You may not refer to yourself as 'this prince'."
Rage and disbelief crashed through Zhu Yujian's chest.
He turned to his Guard Commander for support.
The commander avoided his gaze and stepped back.
From that moment onward, he was no longer Zhu Yujian's commander. He would serve the new Prince of Tang, Zhu Yushao, Zhu Yujian's younger brother.
No one spoke for him.
No one defended him.
Zhu Yujian had grown up under confinement, underfed and physically frail. He had neither strength nor soldiers to resist. The centurion seized him easily.
"If you cooperate," the centurion warned, "I will spare you shackles out of respect for imperial blood. If you resist, I will not hesitate."
Zhu Yujian looked up at the sky and whispered, "Heaven is unjust."
"Take him."
He was dragged away.
Within the Prince of Tang's residence, countless eyes watched in silence. No one dared utter a word.
Or perhaps more accurately, everyone had already shifted allegiance to Zhu Yushao.
As he was pushed into the carriage, Zhu Yujian finally abandoned his last naive hopes.
At least, he thought bitterly, he had no wife or children. Otherwise, once imprisoned, they would surely be bullied by his brother's faction.
The carriage began its journey toward Fengyang.
The wheels rumbled on.
Days passed.
They were still within Henan province. Ahead lay a stretch of woodland bordering the official road.
Zhu Yujian stared blankly at birds flying freely among the branches.
Suddenly, the carriage halted.
A lone figure stood in the road ahead.
The person wore the attire of a wandering swordsman. A wide bamboo hat cast a shadow over their face. A fine sword hung at their waist. Their stance radiated exaggerated confidence.
This was not a good sign.
The Embroidered Uniform Guard centurion shouted, "The Embroidered Uniform Guard is on official business. Clear the road immediately!"
"The Embroidered Uniform Guard?" the figure laughed. "Then I have stopped the right people. This mountain is under my command. These trees are mine. Others may pass. Zhu Yujian stays."
Metal rang as Spring-Embroidered Blades were drawn.
The centurion narrowed his eyes. "Bold words. State your name."
"Of course I dare," the figure replied in a singsong voice. "But once I do, every one of you will die here. If I remain unnamed and you flee, I might allow you to live."
The air grew heavy.
The centurion understood. This was deliberate mercy.
He swallowed.
"Then show me your ability."
The bamboo-hatted figure clapped once.
"Come out."
From both sides of the forest, figures emerged. All wore black. Faces covered. Each had a small hand-crossbow strapped to the left arm and a blade in the right hand.
They raised their crossbows in unison.
The bamboo-hatted figure chuckled softly.
"In the past, I would not have warned you. Arrows would have fallen the moment you entered the ambush. But I have been reborn. I offer you a path to live."
Cold sweat ran down the centurion's back.
He cupped his fists respectfully. "My thanks."
He did not hesitate further. He turned his horse and fled.
The rest of the Embroidered Uniform Guard followed in chaotic retreat.
The black-clad figures did not pursue.
The bamboo-hatted figure slowly approached the carriage.
Zhu Yujian stared in stunned confusion.
A soft chuckle came from beneath the bamboo hat.
"Zhu Yujian," the figure said gently.
"Come with me."