Cai Xingzhe's Audience Hall - Donga

[paladinrpg]

On a beautiful midsummer's day, there appeared on the hazy horizon a a rather large merchant caravan. The cloth tarps that covered the goods-laden wagons were a light indigo, the color of the fading sunlight, a scheme that was mirrored on the several thousand horsemen and footsoldiers who followed in escort. As they methodically traversed the well-trod past the city of Qufu and beyond, a single rider broke away from the main body to progress to the gates proper. The lone woman made haste to the administrative heart of the city, as the sunlight glinted off the light green patina of fine bronze armor under a traveling cloak, and short black hair held back with a conservative headband to catch the sweat of the long journey. A long antique jian of familiar native construction was sheathed at her back, its steely blade a match for the silent strength in her eyes as she soon met the gaze of those standing watch.

"I am Yu Yinzi, matron of the Twilight's bazaar," declared she in a neutral tone to the guardsmen, as this name was all the introduction usually needed. "I have come here today to visit an old customer of ours... the Prefect Cai Xingzhe... and discuss business of a mutual interest. I trust he is available for a meeting?"

[Wokimo]

Word of an approaching army had quickly reached Qufu and the surrounding countryside, prompting a mass exodus from the fields and into the shelter of the city walls. However, when it eventually emerged that the army in question was the escort of the Twighlight Bazaar Convoy, the panic subsided slightly and under the instructions of the Prefect, everyone went back to their work, except Haoqi himself, who expected a visit from Yu Yinzi now that he knew it was her forces marching by.

At the gates, the captain of this particular group of guards nodded and gave a somewhat forced smile to the matron, displeased that his own grandmother had been caused anxiety by the approach of such a large force earlier in the day, but under orders to be polite.

"You're in luck, Madam Yu. The Lord Prefect is awaiting your arrival at the palace. Sergeant Ling will show you the way." the captain motioned for his men to clear the way, "Sergeant, take the lady to the Palace."
"Right away sir!" a lean and muscular guard spoke, indentifying himself as the aforementioned Sergeant.

With Yu Yinzi's permission, Sergeant Ling tool the reigns of the horse and guided it from the gate in the city's main curtain-wall, through the busy streets to the palace itself, which was surrounded my a smaller but still formidable wall. This city had once been the seat of power within the old Kingdom of Lu and the Dukes there of had clearely taken their safety quite seriously. Here the sergeant left her in the care of another cadre of Cai Xingzhe's finest warriors and marched off back the way he'd come.

"We'll take care of your horse while you meet with the Prefect; see that it gets fed and watered." the senior guardsmen of this group said.

Then he beckoned for Yu to follow on as his men opened the gate to the palace compound for them. Two of the guards then marched along a respectful distance behind the visitor as the gate was closed behind the party. Normally, unexpected visitors would be required to disarm before seeing as cautious a man as Cai Haoqi, but as the Prefect had prior knowledge of her coming, he had left orders to let her pass into the actual palace unmolested. The Prefect waited with twenty personal guards in a high-ceilinged room, with intricately woven rugs and lacquered wood supprt beams. The windows that faced onto the palace gardens were open to allow the room to remain cool and to allow the intermingling fragrances of the many flowers to waft in.

"Welcome to Qufu, you must be Madam Yu." he stated and invited her to have a seat about ten paces from his dais. "How was your journey?"

He'd get to business soon enough, but he was nothing if not polite, so the social niceties would be exchanged first. An explanation of why the Twilight Bazaar had chosen to risk causing a public disorder by marching ten thousand men into his territory could wait.

[paladinrpg]

The woman entered the audience hall calmly behind the escort, pausing a moment to take in the fragrance of the open-aired place. The gardens were in full bloom, and it was certainly a beautiful sight -- one certainly had to admire and respect the tastes of the master of this palace. Yinzi was also thankful for the chance to relax a brief moment after her long journey to get this far. Though it seemed rather odd to the men on watch in the chamber that this woman would relax so much visibly with an entire platoon of armed guards eying her every move. Was the Iron Butterfly so confident of her abilities with the sword sheathed at her back, or was it merely a desire to make them lower their own guards as well? The tension in the air certainly was an unfortunate introduction to work with.

The middle-aged woman proceeded to bow quite low to Cai Xingzhe, the practiced gesture of a servant. There was little aura of hostility, moreso the ever cool and solid presence of a reliable matron and sword teacher. "That I am. It is good to meet you, Lord Cai. It has been a long while since you delt with the bazaar last -- I hope your horse is doing well?" Letting this little piece of small talk hang in the air for a moment, she then straightened up with a slight smile putting her hand to her armored chest, the plate sitting over a loose monk's robe. "Oh -- please accept my humble apologies for causing undue alarm in your lands. I can assure you the caravan is simply passing through and means no harm to Qufu. Though the goal of this journey may however interest you..."

[Wokimo]

The Prefect inclined his head in response to Yu Yinzi's bow and smilled genuinely at the mention of his stead, whom he had named Firespark in honour of the fiery colour of its mane as it fluttered in the breeze. The horse had borne him to safety on many occasions when his enemies had come close to taking him captive.

"Yes, Firespark has proved to be a most trusty companion in my campaigns against the Duke of Yan. The Bazaar has my thanks for breeding such a fine animal, once again." Haoqi replied happily.

For his part, the Prefect was pleased to see that the abundance of guards in his audience chambers was not causing any anxiety in his guest, because it was certainly not his intention to intimidate her. He always had an accompaniment of guards when giving audiences and it was only larger today because he'd allowed Madam Yu to enter the palace armed.

"Very well, There was no real harm done in any case, so I accept your apology. What is it you wish to discuss with me then?" his voice betrayed his interest in what his guest had to say.

[paladinrpg]

"Well then, first I must ask you a question," began the mastersmith as she glanced aside at the flowers once again. "It has been a long time since I have passed through my old homeland of Qi and the recent events of this year have unfortunately escaped my notice. I had expected your great capital to be in the port of Dongga within Jibei, until the local merchants told me of your lands now in Qufu in the shadow of Tian Dan which caused me to take this detour."

Yinzi turned back to face him with her steely-eyed gaze, her steady tone continuing. "Tell me, what has happened to cause you to move your headquarters? Has the war between the two great powers of Yan and Zhao already consumed your former home as fuel for its fire?"

[Wokimo]

Haoqi's mood soured slightly and his smile faded at the mention of what was something of a sore point for the Prefect. He'd been too busy with his work in Qi to think about Jibei of late, but to have it brought up now made him remember all of the emotions that had accompanied his ignamonious withdrawal from his homeland.

"The King Tian and Duke Fei both wanted Jibei, along with my support in achieving their designs on conquest, so I was forced to choose a side. My family were once retainers of the King's ancestors, but in truth it was the haughty way in which the envoy from Yan acted which settled the matter: I would support the King of Qi." he explained with little joy. "Initially Duke Fei was repelled, but he returned again in force and engaged myself and the King seperately. I won a victory at Donga, but His Highness was captured in the other battle and forced to concede his holdings within my home province to Yan. The Duke could never defeat me in an open, even contest."

Cai Xingzhe's words bordered on arrogance and one would have expected such bravado of a man who possesed such illustrious fore-bearers as Haoqi did, but they were not all born out of simple vanity. In the past he had proved himself a capable tactician on the battlefield and shown an uncanny aptitude for survival against the odds, as well. Perhaps such brash comments were not far from the truth, even if they were hard to prove one way or another.

"However, Fei Lak had the resources of an entire province and more behind him and without the armies of Qi for support, I could not successfully fight an extended war against him. Following a withdrawal of my armies and people to Qi, I captured this place from the incompetant fool who had ruled in the King's name but done little to manage the city and now I am embarking on a series of construction projects to improve the province. Perhaps you have heard of the expansion efforts at Bozhang in your travels? I am building a city there to accomodate the refugees from Jibei." he concluded, trying to steer the conversation back to more pleasant topics.

[paladinrpg]

(made a small edit due to new info coming to light ^^)

Yinzi remained quiet as he recounted the tale of what had transpired, showing little problem with the surge of arrogance at the wound being touched by her question. It was obvious to her that it was something very close to his soul, and his reactions showed it even a bit more than she imagined.

Of course she was not insensitive to Haoqi's wishes to move away from such a topic barely before it began, and like a river flowed with him for the moment. "Yes, I have seen some of those refugees... it is very good that you are supporting the less fortunate. Such an investment is certain to pay great dividends to you over time, sir Prefect." Pausing a moment to run her eyes over the pavilion again in thought, she then continued. "Perhaps in this matter we are rather similar, you and I. I did not return to the region simply to engage in trade, but to seek partners in raising a great city that could serve the needs of my followers and clients. I had thought before that Chu could have been the fertile ground for this experiment -- and perhaps it will be in time -- but the winds of fortune have guided me here first, whispering of a great opportunity."

The middle-aged swordsman sighed a bit. then allowed her hands to fall to her hips and her voice strengthened. "You spoke of King Tian as a great ally once, but it seems as of late that he and his illustrious family have been very withdrawn from matters external to Qi itself. While giving the refugees a place within this land is admirable, the best course of action would be to stop the flight from Jibei itself at the source and bring stability north of the border. The two cities of Donga and Boyang may be under the Zhao flag, but a time is coming soon when they will be vulnerable..."

At this mention, Lady Yu produced a small scroll from her monk's robe and offered it to master Cai. Upon it was inscribed a good deal of the region's standing armies -- something she must have paid a pretty penny to acquire. "If I could provide you with the Twilight's Hammer mercenary corps, and a great ally in Yan to stand beside us... would you be willing to walk down this path along with me, one that ultimately ends in retaking the jewel that was once stolen from you?"

[Wokimo]

Cai Xingzhe's brow furrowed once again at the suggestion that he should ally himself with Fei Lak in order to aid him in driving back Li Zhi from Jibei. Haoqi and the Duke were sworn enemies and it would prove impossible to persuade the Prefect to assist him in destroying an enemy that was not his own. Certainly the document suggested that it might have been an ideal opportunity for expansion, but Haoqi could not see beyond his own hatred for Yan's ruler.

"I thank you for this information and your offer, but so long as we both live there will be perpetual emnity between myself and Fei Lak. Besides, I am far too busy attending to the betterment of Qi to trouble myself with external matters, so I must decline the proposal to jointly attack Jibei." he said politely but firmly. "As for the matter of raising a city, perhaps a visit to Chenggao would be beneficial. I'm sure the King would not be adverse to the trade opportunities that having you in Qi would bring. I would be happy to introduce you to His Highness."

((Sorry but as much as Phailak and I get along OOC, ICly it's just not going to happen.))

[paladinrpg]

Yinzi nodded once to his response, obviously a bit saddened at the result even if her face and voice remained very neutral throughout. She had definitely not known of the great hatred between the two that seemed even greater than his longing for his old home that she had thought to play upon after his opening remarks. It was an unfortunate miscalculation that she had made in her plan, but being a warrior herself she certainly had to respect the leader's feuds and would not press the matter any further.

"That is unfortunate, Prefect, but if that is what your heart truly desires then I cannot change it. I have not been present for the great battles that have driven a wedge between your two lands, so I have no right to impose my will on such a enmity." The woman then gave a bit of a somber smile, and seemed at once quite motherly despite the subject being discussed. "You have chosen Qi as your path already, and in that I wish you well. Should these plans in Jibei come to fruition despite the difficulties, however, I shall use what influence I have to at least to shield your sanctuary here from his war machine."

The Iron Butterfly then bowed. "With that settled, I would very much like you to introduce me to the great Tian Dan. My concerns of his lethargy in recent months were sincere, and I feel that my return to the land of my birth is not done until I know why such a great man & his family sits idle in this time of opportunity after only a few small setbacks. At least you understand the need to bounce back and not give up hope, if the tales of your slow but steady victories are accurate."

[Wokimo]

The Prefect nodded with a thin smile playing across his lips, aware of but not adverse to the flattery of his guest. It was true though, he had a knack for always bouncing back from the most adverse circumstances to proposer: a veritable desert rose. The result of that battle at Donga had never been certain until it was won, but it had been Haoqi's patience and resolve that had won the day, defending diligently until the opportunity to rout the forces of Yan had presented itself.

"I suspect the quietude of His Majesty and his court are only temporary, so you need not worry for the time being. We should leave tomorrow or the next day, if it pleases you." Haoqi said. "Until then, please stay as my guest in Qufu. The official guest house is just outside the palace and far more comfortable than a tent, no doubt."

Haoqi awaited Yu Yinzi's response.

((I'll make a post in Tian Dan's AH after you reply here and hopefully someone will pick it up. ))