Chinese Generals Summoning System

Chapter 4: Dad Is Back

About a quarter of an hour later, Liu Pi walked into the temple’s main hall carrying a deer on his shoulder. Clad in armor and wielding a long sword, his entrance caused the women to panic. At that moment, Liu Ji quickly called out in a loud voice, “Everyone, don’t panic! He’s one of us! Liu Pi tossed the deer from his shoulder onto the ground and said with a smile to Liu Ji, “My lord, my luck wasn’t too bad. In such a desolate place, I didn’t have to go far before I came across this deer. It weighs at least 120 jin—even after removing the bones, there’ll be enough for everyone here to have a few meals!” Liu Ji couldn’t help but swallow hard, then called out loudly to the women, “Everyone, come help! Let’s butcher this deer, and then we’ll have some grilled meat!” “Thank you, Young Master Liu! Thank you, brave warrior!” The once-dreary hall instantly filled with joy because of the deer; even the children stopped crying and fussing. Soon, six of the eleven women in the hall gathered around the deer. Three of them—no one knew where they’d gotten their short knives—began skinning the animal, while the remaining five kept the twelve children occupied. Seeing the women processing the deer he had killed with a single arrow, Liu Pi did not go over to help. Instead, he said to Liu Ji, “My lord, this region is overrun with marauding bandits and outlaws. I will take a look around the vicinity first, just in case.” At that moment, Liu Ji’s full attention was focused on the sika deer. Upon hearing Liu Pi’s words, he swallowed hard, paused for a moment, and said, “Liu Pi, the view from that abandoned temple over there should be good. Just go out and take a look—but don’t stray too far. The roasted venison will be ready in a little while, and since there are only women and children here, we’ll need you to hold the fort in case anything happens!” “As you command, my lord!” Liu Niuniu watched Liu Pi’s back as he walked out of the main hall and asked Liu Ji in a babyish voice, “Brother, what does it mean when that uncle calls you ‘Lord’? Isn’t your name Liu Ji? He doesn’t call you ‘Lord’ either!” “Well, ‘Lord’ is a term of respect. Uncle Liu Pi will be my personal retainer from now on, so he calls me ‘Lord.’ ” “Oh—does that mean you and Uncle Liu Pi will be like Dad and Uncle Tie from now on?” “Mm-hmm, pretty much. Niuniu, you’re so smart.” “Hehe, then there’ll be one more person to play with me from now on.” The women quickly butchered the deer, then cut about a quarter of the meat into chunks, threaded them onto dry twigs, and hung them over the campfire to roast. Wang Jinfeng also took out a small piece of rock salt and carefully rubbed it onto each piece of venison. Although the salt rock had a very bitter taste, it was still salt after all and could help replenish some salt in the body. Many poor people in the Great Jin Dynasty, unable to afford table salt, used cheap salt rock as a substitute. The piece of salt rock in Wang Jinfeng’s hand was the only salt left among this group of refugees. When Liu Ji’s father first led this group on their flight, they had carried quite a few belongings. Unfortunately, during a skirmish with a small band of marauders, they fought while fleeing, and virtually everything they carried was lost—not even a single iron pot remained. Soon, the scent of roasting meat filled the temple’s main hall. “Big Brother, it smells so good!” Liu Niuniu stared intently at the meat roasting over the campfire. “Miss Niuniu, please wait just a little longer—it’ll be ready in a moment,” Wang Jinfeng said with a smile as she turned the meat on the branches. Liu Ji swallowed hard again. “Niuniu, hang in there a little longer—the meat has to be fully cooked before we can eat it!” “Big brother, don’t forget to save some grilled meat for Dad and Uncle Tie!” Liu Ji then said to Wang Jinfeng, “Aunt Wang, once the venison is done, set some aside for my dad and the others, and we’ll split the rest among ourselves.” “Oh, yes, Young Master Liu, don’t worry. This roasted venison is enough for all of us to have a meal. If we ration the rest, it’ll last us a few days. It’s a shame we don’t have our cast-iron pot anymore—otherwise, we could have simmered a pot of soup with the deer bones.” The venison over the campfire wasn’t quite done yet when Liu Pi hurried into the main hall. “My lord, several men carrying weapons are heading this way. I can’t be sure if they’re Master Liu and his men.” Upon hearing this, Liu Ji immediately furrowed his brow and set his little sister down on a pile of dry grass. “Niuniu, wait here for the roasted meat. I’ll go out and see if it’s Father and Uncle Tie who’ve returned.” Liu Ji prayed inwardly that it would be his father, Liu Hao, and Uncle Tie returning. The other women in the hall also grew tense; they gathered their children around Liu Niuniu. Those with daggers gripped them tightly, while those without picked up wooden clubs. Liu Ji gripped his short blade and, looking anxious, followed Liu Pi out of the temple’s main hall. Soon, however, the tension on his face vanished. Not far from the temple were several figures—none other than his father, Liu Hao, Uncle Tie, and the others who had gone out to find food. Liu Hao was carrying a bulging cloth sack on his back, while Liu Tie had a dead dog slung over his shoulder. One young, strong man was carrying a large iron pot on his back, and another had an open-mouthed cloth sack draped over his shoulder, revealing a stack of large earthenware bowls inside. When Liu Hao, Liu Tie, and the other four young, strong men saw Liu Pi suddenly appear beside Liu Ji, they immediately raised their weapons and approached Liu Ji and Liu Pi with extreme caution. Of the six men, aside from Liu Hao and Liu Tie, who each carried a waist knife, two of the other four young men were wielding wooden clubs, while the other two held kitchen knives. “Father, you’re back! This is a brave man I once saved named Liu Pi. To repay my kindness, he went to my hometown to look for me. Upon learning that our family had gone to Yongzhou to stay with relatives, he followed us all the way here and is willing… willing to protect us all the way to Qi County.” Seeing the wary expressions on his father Liu Hao and the others’ faces, Liu Ji quickly explained Liu Pi’s identity, though he did not mention that Liu Pi was already under his command. But no sooner had Liu Ji finished speaking than Liu Pi clasped his fists toward Liu Hao and said, “Liu Pi pays his respects to Master Liu. My lord saved my life, and I have now pledged my loyalty to you.” Liu Hao and Liu Tie exchanged glances at that moment, both looking surprised. They had no idea that Liu Ji had ever saved anyone’s life before, and judging by Liu Pi’s imposing presence and his full set of armor,his martial arts skills were certainly no slouch. In particular, the iron armor Liu Pi wore—crafted from a combination of iron plates and fish-scale-like iron strips—was worth at least one or two hundred taels of silver. In the Great Jin Dynasty’s army, one had to reach at least the rank of Xiao Wei or Si Ma to be issued such high-grade, commander-level armor, which offered excellent defense and flexibility. Liu Pi’s full set of armor caused Liu Hao to furrow his brow slightly. “Xiao Ji, when did you save this brave man’s life? How come I didn’t know about it?” “Father, I saved Liu Pi’s life when I was studying at the private school in the county seat.” Although his father, Liu Hao, had never attended school himself, he had sent Liu Ji to a private school in the county seat from a young age. Liu Ji used the fact that his family had no knowledge of his whereabouts during that time—when he was studying in the county seat—as an excuse to explain how he had saved Liu Pi’s life. Liu Hao said with a sudden realization, “No wonder I didn’t know about this. Xiao Ji, why didn’t you ever tell your father?” “Dad, let’s put that aside for now. Liu Pi just bagged a fat deer, and some of the venison is almost ready.” “Then what are we waiting for? Your father’s starving! We’ve had quite a haul this time—not only did we kill a wild dog, but we also found over ten jin of millet and an iron pot in an abandoned village.” As Liu Hao called out, he led the way into the main hall of the temple, but he casually shot a glance at Liu Tie standing beside him. Liu Hao had many questions about Liu Pi’s sudden appearance. After all, even if someone owed him a life-saving debt, it was unthinkable for them to simply join his household as a retainer—especially under the command of his own bookish son. Liu Hao knew his son all too well; he had no real abilities that would make someone like Liu Pi choose to join him of his own accord. Something’s not right here. Although Liu Hao didn’t know what this suddenly appearing Liu Bi was up to, he already harbored deep suspicion toward him. Meanwhile, Liu Tie, standing beside him, showed no expression on his face when he caught Liu Hao’s glance, but his eyes inadvertently swept over Liu Bi.