Duke Kun's carriage troupe traversed the rocky path. A sizeable horse-drawn carriage escorted by several horsemen in front and many infantry behind. This carriage was warm and wide enough to support eight men. They last used it in the summer, while Father, Lan, two brothers, sister, and Mom had a vacation.
Snow-covered carriage roof blanketed a dirt path like sugar flour poured on a pine forest.
Lan thought, Sugar flour… It tasted sweet. Is that snow here lovely? He wanted to taste it and let snow fall on his tongue. It's cold!
A giggle from two maids on daddy's side didn't bother him, but his Duke Father's groaning voice made him a little nervous.
"You could get sick."
Lan pouted. He peeked behind him. Two ladies-in-waiting massage the feet of the Father, who is reading the parchment.
His Duke Father is busy while Lan sticks out his tongue. He likes snow. In the capital, he often saw snow, especially when sprinkled with sugar.
But, His Duke Father pulled his collar backward. Then tapped on Lan's head using a parchment roll, a light tap but quite felt.
"You always argue. Want to go horse riding?"
Lan shook his head. "Ah no, no, I want to be here. It's warm."
"Warm?" His Father laughed. "Aiya. You want warmth, but your mouth wants snow."
"Just like father, wants to be warm here but likes to undress with two maids and moan."
"What are you talking about?" The Duke's voice rose.
"I'm bored." Lan propped his cheek against the pile of his arms on the window frame.
Father continued to read his precious manuscript. But, when Lan tried the same thing, Duke pulled him. This time he faced Lan directly.
"You would get sick."
Two girls giggled, seeing what happened. One fixed Lan's blanket while the other prepared hot tea.
The snow already filled the straw hats of the cavalrymen over their cloaks of dry leaf knitting.
Lan said, "White should become Kun colors, not red."
"White is a bad color, Son." Father's eyes kept on the manuscript. "While red is a fire. Red would warm the Kun land. Red is us."
"But it is still cold."
"Because our red is small. Our job was to keep the small red for the remains of Kun until came for red to burn everyone who is not red." His Duke's Father grabbed one maid on the left, then told her something.
"That's scary." Lan poured snow into his mouth. His tongue started to feel nothing. Even when he bit his tongue, there was nothing to feel.
"Second Prince. Here." Maid gave Lan snow with sugar flour and milk. "His Excellency asked me to make this.
"Yay! I love Father." At last, he could… No, his tongue now has frostbite.
The road gets bumpier on the earthly path. The speed of his Excellency's horse-drawn carriage and entourage slowed dramatically. This means they were already in the inner part of Kun.
"It's going to get colder tonight, Son." Duke pulled Lan onto his lap.
"Dad, when do we get home?"
"You miss your bed?" Duke laughed.
"Not Really. I miss my sister and brothers. I miss my sword mentor. I miss my mother and my friends."
"Not a bed, I see?"
Lan shook his head. He doesn't enjoy sleeping and prefers outdoor activities with some friends from Linzu, the capital of Kun.
"You are close with your brothers and sisters, huh?" His Father gave him a kiss on the cheek.
Lan nodded. "They are nice."
Duke Kun opened a tiny, cracked wooden window, checking out the conditions around his entourage.
Ulan mountain stretched from the west to the north, which became the boundary wall between the Empire and the Khergit Khanan in the north. "Soon. We will arrive in Laozu. After that, we will arrive in Linzu."
"Father, when will Linzu become like Luo Yang?"
Lan remembered how the Ahn capital was. It a bustling with life, and everything seems beautiful. From the stone house roofed with mossy tiles, men and women dressed beautifully and smelled like flowers.
"A beautiful rose is born in a flowerpot. Jizu flowers only exist in barren lands." Said His Duke Father. "We never would become like the citizens of Luo Yang, or build a city like Luo Yang, because we are Kun."
Lan got what his Father tried to say. That was an old poem. Life in Kun was like hell. Kun was the first to feel winter and the last to leave. Surrounded by forests and mountains, Kun's land was barren and difficult to cultivate.
The Kun population was scarce due to natural circumstances. However, they were considered the strongest among the others.
Like the Jizu flower, it is not pretty but costs ten times more than a rose.
"Mother nature protected us from outside, but it also became a barrier to us stepping out," said Duke. "I'm not afraid of Han and Ning. They will die if they recklessly attack our innermost dominion."
"Why do you always surrender to them?"
"Our inner dominion was safe, but our outer was not. Some of our cities were on the outer ring, unprotected by a natural barrier."
Lan pouted and propped his chin watching the beauty of nature outside. "If this continues, that outer city will soon become the territory of Han and Ning."
Lan felt his Father was a coward. Father should fight tooth and nail for the Dukedom.
"Aia Kun Lan, my son. We must pay attention to the people. How many wives would become widows when we go to war? How many children must grow up without a father? How many parents lost their children? Besides, it also burns out our limited resources. How would we survive the winter if we lost every drop of our rice?"
Lan imagined that in his head. His Father may be a coward, but he is always benevolent. Lan hugged his Father tightly, leaning against his chest like a maid and mother always do.
"Father, I swear I will take back our territory. I swear I will make our Dukedom become the strongest."
Duke Kun embraced his son, gently stroking him. "I wish I married your mother instead of an official's daughter. Maybe you would make a good Duke."
Lan was born to a Sui concubine that was presented for his Duke father. His mother had died after giving birth to Lan. He had a good relationship with his siblings, but many people didn't like him.
A sudden sound of horses continued by carriage stopped abruptly, startled Duke Kun.
"Ambush! Protect Duke and Prince Lan!" Several armored infantry cast their shields around the Duke's carriage.
Two girls cried loudly, covering themself on the blanket.
Large piles of trees blocked the road. The carriage couldn't go forward and back. Three trees fell and blocked their back.
A large log rolled down from a hill on the left, hitting several cavalrymen and pushing them down a ravine on the right.
Many Duke guards fired several arrows at the sky. The arrow whistled before exploding red in the sky.
Several archers appeared on the hill, showering Kun soldiers with arrows. From the ravine, dozens of black-robed men emerged, killing several guards. In an instant, chaos was created around the carriage.
The skin on Duke's right arm was exposed. He always pulls the gauze when holding the sword. Knocking open the carriage door, Duke turned to the two girls. "Protect those two women and my child!"
"Understood, his excellency!" Several troops formed a defensive formation.
"Where is my horse? Li Bi! Where is my horse?"
Captain Li Bi is a loyal captain. Always near Duke. He approached without a horse. "Sorry, His Excellency. Our horses have fallen!"
"Then fetch the carriage horse! I have to save Lan!"
"Father, I want to fight!" Lan crawled out of the carriage with his wooden sword. Two maids tried to pull him back but failed.
"Kun Lan, my son, you stay here. It's too dangerous outside, boy."
Kun Lan came out. "I can fight! They're probably after you. You should hide now, Father."
Li Bi came with one horse. "His excellence! This is the horse you asked for!"
Suddenly a robed man slashes, separating Lan and Duke. Strange. The robed man wasn't aiming at the Duke but attacking blindly at Lan.
"My Son!" Duke tried to protect Lan amidst the chaos.
Lan himself liked to play with swords. Several years ago, he started studying swordsmanship. But his ability was mediocre. He realized that his enemy's moves were just like the moves of Kun's troop.
"No way, who are you?!"
The robed man kicked Lan down and prepared to stab him.
However, Duke brushed aside the robed man's sword. The attackers seemed to back off after they exchanged moves. He didn't want to attack Duke.
Several arrows targeted Lan, and he began to understand their true intention was to kill him.
"Lan!" Duke bolted, and an arrow pierced his right chest.
"Father!"
Duke's muscular body began to sway. His body rolled, hit Lan, and they rolled down into the chasm.
****