Chapter Fourteen: I’m Not Betraying Anyone

Page 1 of 3

Ma Wencai stopped at the doorway and turned to look at me suspiciously. I merely nodded at him before continuing, “As for what Shanbo said, that we must not recklessly sacrifice the lives of soldiers on the battlefield—I believe that is nothing but the misplaced compassion of a woman, and utterly absurd.”

I turned toward Liang Shanbo. “Brother Shanbo, may I ask whether you know how many civilians’ peace and safety can be secured by the life of a single soldier on the battlefield? Those who go into battle have long since set life and death aside, because they know that if they die, they will have died for a worthy cause.”

“Brother Yiqing, why do you always oppose us now? What part of Shanbo’s argument was absurd? Must everyone be as brutal as Ma Wencai?” Zhu Yingtai shouted at me.

But what could I do? I was a modern person. I could only look at things from the most practical perspective.

Liang Shanbo also stared at me in astonishment. “Brother Yiqing, how can you say such a thing? Must war inevitably bring about even more slaughter?”

I shook my head. I could no longer keep sparring with him over words, so I decided to put it plainly and hoped they would understand.

“Shanbo, I’ll give you two choices. In the first, a war ends after seven days, with fifteen men wounded or killed each day. In the second, the fighting ends after fourteen days, with seven men wounded or killed each day. You would choose the second option, naturally, wouldn’t you?”

Liang Shanbo nodded.

I smiled. “It is the same war. In the end, you have merely reduced the number of soldiers sacrificed by seven, yet you chose to prolong the fighting for another seven days. Shanbo, you have exchanged seven days’ worth of provisions, supplies, and resources for the entire army in return for giving fifty soldiers the chance to live seven days longer. What meaning does that have?”

“That is merely your fallacy. If the fighting continues for fourteen days, perhaps fewer soldiers will ultimately be lost. Are fifty lives truly worth less than seven days’ worth of provisions?”

Zhu Yingtai was still defending Liang Shanbo. I honestly found speaking with the two of them exhausting.

“The longer a war continues, the greater the casualties will be. This sort of misplaced compassion only sends more innocent soldiers to their deaths. During wartime, do you know how many civilians’ lives must be spent to provide an army with seven days of provisions? The number would certainly exceed a mere fifty. This is a matter of probability, but even if I explained it, neither of you would understand.”

As I spoke, an inexplicable anger rose within me. I looked toward Xie Daoyun. Surely a woman as enlightened as she was would understand what I meant.

“Master, am I right?”

Xie Daoyun’s expression grew solemn. After a moment, she said slowly, “Though there is reason in what you say, one must never become so ruthless.”

“Master, perhaps an ordinary person cannot be so ruthless. But anyone who commands troops and wages war must have the heart to make hard decisions.”

Seeing her expression, I cupped my hands and bowed. “Master, these are merely this student’s foolish opinions. Whether they are right or wrong, I ask that you not take them to heart.”

I then bowed to Liang Shanbo. “Shanbo, I have offended you in many ways. I hope you will forgive me. I have always spoken bluntly; I imagine you are used to it by now.”

Liang Shanbo patted me on the shoulder. “Brother Yiqing, to possess such insight is to teach Shanbo a lesson.”

“Shanbo, you—”

Zhu Yingtai was still unwilling to concede. I truly felt that she was the sort of woman whose mind had been completely clouded by love. The moment her beloved Shanbo was involved, her intelligence seemed to drop to zero. I could not help feeling sorry for Brother Wencai. How had he ended up with such a fiancée—one who always took the side of an outsider?

“Class is dismissed. All of you may return and rest. Young Master Liu, stay behind.”

Xie Daoyun gave me a meaningful look.

Seeing that the students had not moved, Master Chen repeated himself. “Class is dismissed. Go back, all of you.”

Page 2 of 3

All the students were dismissed, leaving only Master Chen and me behind. Xie Daoyun glanced at him and said, “Master Chen, Yiqing and I are old acquaintances. Would you allow us some time to reminisce?”

Master Chen immediately put on a deferential smile. “Of course. In that case, I shall take my leave first.”

After Master Chen went out, Xie Daoyun’s expression became extremely grave. She looked around before saying, “Come with me to my room.”

I nodded and followed her. As we passed the cuju field, Ma Wencai glanced at me and gave a slight nod. I followed Xie Daoyun into her room. She gestured for me to sit, then fixed me with another stern look.

“Haitang, what has happened to you? When did you become so cold-blooded and ruthless?”

“I…”

This was bad. I had no idea how close Liu Yiqing and Xie Daoyun had actually been, so how was I supposed to answer? Still, the fact that Xie Daoyun called me by my childhood name suggested that they must have been quite close.

After thinking it over again and again, I finally summoned my courage.

“Master, they say that a leopard cannot change its spots. The truth is, I have always been this way by nature.”

Xie Daoyun sighed. “Perhaps. From childhood, you followed your cousin Yitang in studying the classics and practicing martial arts, and you also read military texts extensively. But Haitang, how could you, as a woman, disguise yourself as a man and come to Nishan Academy to study?”

“My parents gave me permission before I left home to pursue my studies.”

I truly did not know how to answer, so it seemed wisest to say as little as possible.

Xie Daoyun hesitated for a moment before asking, “Ma Wencai is clever and perceptive. Since you share a room with him, might he discover your identity?”

I thought about it, then shook my head. “He should not. Brother Wencai and I share a bed but dream different dreams. We have very little interaction.”

“What?”

Xie Daoyun was utterly horrified. “You sleep in the same bed as Ma Wencai? How can that be?”

I was startled by her reaction as well. “The academy assigns two people to a room, and there is only one bed in each room. Did you not know that, Master?”

“This…”

Even Xie Daoyun was at a loss for words sometimes.

“As a woman, how can you sleep beneath the same roof and in the same bed as a man? No, I must ask the headmaster to move you to another room.”

Page 3 of 3

I caught hold of Xie Daoyun’s arm. “Master, please do not raise your voice. Brother Wencai and I treat each other with courtesy, and he will not discover my identity. I promise. Besides, everyone lives this way. If I were to ask for another room, would that not be as good as admitting there was something to hide?”

Xie Daoyun was still hesitating. I stood and bowed to her.

“Master, I am currently living under a man’s identity, while you have not yet married. Forgive me, but I should not remain here any longer.”

Xie Daoyun nodded. “Haitang, be careful in everything you do. If anyone discovers that you are a woman, the consequences will be unimaginable.”

I nodded and left her room.

That had been close. I had narrowly escaped disaster once again.

After wiping away my sweat, I returned to my room. The moment I pushed open the door, I let out a cry. Ma Wencai was inside changing clothes. Yet as soon as he saw me enter, he immediately pulled his clothes together, as though he were the woman in the room.

I lowered my head awkwardly and walked past him. Then his voice came from behind me.

“Liu Yiqing, after hearing what you said today, I, Ma Wencai, have gained a new respect for you.”

I gave a cold laugh. “I could never presume to receive Young Master Ma’s approval.”

“Ah!”

Without warning, Ma Wencai struck me from behind. The blow sent me sprawling onto the bed, and I cried out in pain.

“Ma Wencai, are you insane?”

He stood some distance away, staring at me strangely.

“You… you do not know martial arts? How can you have so little awareness of your surroundings?”

I climbed off the bed, biting my lip and drawing deep breaths. Ma Wencai was completely deranged. I forced down my anger as best I could.

“Ma Wencai, which of your eyes saw me practicing martial arts? And which of your ears heard that I knew any?”