Chapter 51: The Dungeon

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, you must not!"

"You are the heir apparent, you should carry yourself with more dignity—mind you don't trip!"

The others could not understand why the Crown Prince had suddenly cried out in dismay, hurriedly rushing out of Doshu Hall to order horses prepared.

As the Crown Prince, he had arrived with a very long procession; combined with Gao Yan's following, it made two full trains. To depart fromheshui Temple in the same grand state as he had arrived would take at least three quarters of an hour.

Yet Gao Yin did not want to wait even a few breaths. Even as his golden chariot was turning around, Gao Yin summoned Dieyun Tuyan, Kang Hu'er, and other guards, ordering them to mount immediately and escort him back to the palace.

Before Gao Rui and the others could comprehend what was happening, Gao Yin's figure vanished amidst the galloping of Dieyun Tuyan's steed. The Crown Prince's partisan officials crowded around, asking what had transpired.

Gao Yanzong muttered to himself, "Is this real or a joke? Isn't the Crown Prince acting a bit too wild?"

Gao Xiaoguan shook his board, equally at a loss as to why things had suddenly descended into such chaos.

"Quickly, follow them!" Gao Rui hastily instructed the two to trail the Crown Prince, while he remained behind to pacify the ministers and manage the arrangements for the Crown Prince's retinue. Only after bustling about for a spell did he return to Doshu Hall to sip a cup of tea.

"Why did the Crown Prince leave in such unseemly haste?" Gao Rui wiped the sweat from his brow, finally finding the leisure to question Gao Yan. Seeing Gao Yan remain silent, he raised a hand, "Never mind. If you do not wish to speak, I shall not press."

He lifted his teacup once more, preparing to savor it, when he suddenly heard Gao Yan say, "His Majesty... intends to execute the Third and Seventh Brothers today."

The heat in his body, previously restless, was pierced by a chilling frost at these words. Gao Rui failed to keep his grip, and the teacup slipped from his hand, shattering against the floor with a crisp, piercing crash.

...

"Faster, even faster!"

Dieyun Tuyan led Gao Yin in a frantic dash, exhausting two horses along the way.

The imperial guards were largely unaffected; they had encountered far worse conditions on the battlefield. However, Gao Yin's frail physique could not endure such violent motion. It was now November, the dead of winter, and even with Dieyun Tuyan blocking the wind ahead, Gao Yin felt the biting chill pierce straight through him.

Dieyun Tuyan slightly slowed his pace, probing tentatively, "Your Highness, perhaps you should rest a moment?"

"No need! Continue, onward to Yetu!"

As Gao Yin opened his mouth to speak, the freezing air rushed into his nose and throat, giving his body a sharp jolt. His mind suddenly cleared. He remembered that Gao Huan and Gao Jun were not in the imperial palace, though their exact whereabouts escaped him.

Dieyun Tuyan gradually slackened his speed further, "Your Highness, we have arrived in Yetu. Where to now?"

"We have arrived?"

Gao Yin dismounted. A guard rubbed his limbs to restore warmth. With a brief flash of his imperial tally, the city gate guards dared not obstruct them, and they swaggered straight into the city.

Yet now, Gao Yin was troubled by a new dilemma: Yetu was divided into a northern and a southern city. Were Gao Huan and Gao Jun imprisoned in the south or the north?

"Do you know where the Princes of Shangdang and Yongan are detained?!"

To this question, the guards remained tight-lipped. They could not idly discuss the Emperor's affairs.

"The North City? The South City?" Gao Yin demanded a direction. If they could at least name a quarter, they could rush there first, but the guards refused even this.

They even drew their swords from their waists, warning, "Your Highness, be careful. Someone is approaching."

Shielding Gao Yin behind them, Kang Hu'er faced westward. Because they looked thoroughly formidable, the surrounding citizens and merchants had automatically cleared a wide berth around them the moment they entered the city, leaving a vacant zone. At this moment, a scholar stepped into that domain.

Faced with the guards' drawn weapons, the scholar raised his arms and spun around in a circle to show he posed no threat, then said, "Someone entrusted me to hand this to any noble personage I saw rushing back into the city."

The scholar placed a hand over his chest and asked, "May I take it out?"

Granted permission, he drew a sheet of paper from his bosom. Kang Hu'er took it, confirmed there was nothing amiss, and handed it to Gao Yin. Written upon it were the words "North City of Yetu, Dungeon," followed by a detailed address.

Overjoyed, Gao Yin hastily ordered everyone to mount and ride, not forgetting to bow to the scholar in gratitude, "Many thanks!"

The scholar smiled faintly, retreating behind the common folk, and watched as Gao Yin and his party vanished from sight.

............

"Waters of Longtou, drifting in exile to the west! Pity this solitary self, wandering the vast wilderness!"

A soaring, resonant song echoed through the dungeon. Hearing the sound, two disheveled men started in alarm, lifting their eyes toward the entrance.

A richly dressed man walked into the dungeon. It was their ninth brother, Gao Zhan. With an air of serene complacency, he smiled and asked, "My two elder brothers, how have you fared lately?"

"It's you...!"

...

Gao Jun closed his eyes in despair. Gao Huan, still harboring a flash of raw fury, pointed at him and let loose a torrent of abuse. Yet no matter how enraged he grew, in Gao Zhan's eyes, it resembled nothing more than a performance put on to amuse others.

Their prolonged imprisonment had left Gao Huan and Gao Jun somewhat unhinged. Eating, drinking, defecating, and urinating all took place within the dungeon, surrounded by excrement both fresh and air-dried. The humiliation was already unbearable; having their younger brother periodically bring people to mock them shattered their remaining pride into dust.

"Be good, it's time to eat."

Gao Zhan smiled, taking a plate from a servant. Reaching his hand into the dungeon, he dumped the meat and vegetables from the dish onto the floor, constantly making the clicking sounds used to coax a dog, bidding his two elder brothers to come and dine.

"Buluoqi, just you wait! Once I get out, the very first thing I'll do is kill you!"

"How dare you mimic His Majesty's singing! Are you not afraid of death!"

Hearing their curses, Gao Zhan laughed with quiet contempt. Ignoring their words, he walked straight out of the dungeon and bowed to his second elder brother, Gao Yang, at the entrance.

"Your Majesty. You have heard it yourself; even after being locked away until now, they still possess a fighting spirit. Give it not just a year, but perhaps ten, and they will never change."

Gao Zhan paused for an appropriate number of breaths, leaving Gao Yang room to ruminate, before continuing, "If it were merely my own life at stake, this younger brother would care little. But should they hold resentment toward you and later mean harm to the Crown Prince, what manner of deeds might they commit? This younger brother dares not dwell upon it."

"Hmph, two base-born wretches!"

Gao Yang spoke. Gao Zhan deeply agreed in his heart, yet outwardly he still had to put up a mask of pretense, "They are, after all, our brothers, born of the late Emperor..."

"Oh? Are you attempting to plead on their behalf?!"

Gao Zhan hastily shook his head, "Certainly not. Since Your Majesty deems them base-born, then you should put them to death."

Gao Yang did not immediately agree. After a moment of thought, he said, "I shall see for myself."

Gao Zhan clicked his tongue inwardly, yet his expression remained thoroughly compliant and flattering.

After a short while, the same song rang out through the dungeon once more. This time, Gao Jun and Gao Huan were unafraid. Rushing to the iron bars at the entrance of their cell, they grasped them and cursed furiously, "Buluoqi, come closer and sing! Older brother will applaud you!"

"Indeed, thrust your backside over here! Older brother hasn't touched a woman in over a year, and we shall reward you handsomely for this!"

Gao Zhan appeared before their eyes as they wished, but to their horror, Gao Zhan was not singing.

Then, who was the one singing...

A nightmarish figure materialized before them. Gao Jun had once ordered servants to wipe his second brother's running nose; yet now, he could only kneel before the Son of Heaven, weeping tears and snot alike.

"Second Brother...!"

Gao Huan seemed to shudder; a pathetic iron rail now separated them.

"Hush. Listen to His Majesty's singing."

Gao Yang was still singing in a trance-like state. Gao Zhan flicked the sword at his waist, gesturing for his two elder brothers to join in harmony.

A complex turmoil swelled within the hearts of Gao Huan and Gao Jun. With tears in their eyes, they accompanied the song.

"Setting forth from Xincheng at dawn, lodging at Longtou by dusk; so cold I cannot speak, my tongue rolls back into my throat...!"

"The waters of Longtou, their sound choked and sorrowful... Gazing afar toward Qinchuan, heart and liver snap in two..."

The childhood of the Gao brothers was set in an era of raging flames of war. The people at the end of the Northern Wei found joy amidst their suffering, and the Gao brothers too had learned these folk songs expressing pain and homesickness.

In their youth, when every morning brought uncertainty as to whether they would survive the evening, the ragged, impoverished brothers had no toys to amuse themselves with; they could only sing together for solace.

And now, having ascended to the imperial house and attained the rank of princes, it was in such circumstances that they once again felt the terror of those years, magnified by a profound despair.

They had survived the cruel Wei dynasty and the tyrannical Erzhu clan, yet within the Northern Qi forged by their own family, was there truly no place to shelter them?!

"Ngh! Wuwu...!"

Unawares, Gao Huan and Gao Jun's voices trembled, their expressions fraught with panic. It terrified Gao Zhan while saddening Gao Yang, reminding him of how, some twenty years before, he used to huddle together with his brothers to sing just like this.

Back then, there had been someone taller and stronger to protect them. Their eldest brother, Gao Cheng, had already followed their father into death, and he himself ought to have shouldered the heavy burden of protecting his family.

Yet what was he doing now?

The singing ceased. Gao Yang choked back his voice, two trails of tears slowly carving down his face, revealing the very same sorrow worn by Gao Huan and Gao Jun.

Gao Huan and Gao Jun wept bitterly. They knew not why themselves; they hated their second brother, longing to beg for mercy yet consumed by a sense of humiliation that made death preferable. Yet upon beholding Gao Yang's tears, the dikes of their hearts collapsed. A thousand thoughts surged within them, yet not a single word could pass their lips.

Gao Zhan's complexion darkened. This was no auspicious sign. If His Majesty shared their empathy, a soft moment of weakness might move him to release them.

...

Just as expected, Gao Yang began speaking to his two younger brothers, "You have been shut away here for over a year. How have you fared?"

Gao Jun wiped away his tears, forcing a smile, "We are still alive, and still able to speak with Your Majesty. That means we have fared well enough."

Gao Huan was still sobbing, his voice laced with tears as he cried, "Older Brother, for the sake of the service I once rendered to Northern Qi, spare us... In this life, I shall never forget Your Brotherly grace!"

Gao Yang remained silent, pacing slowly back and forth on the spot, deep in thought. Their fate awaited Gao Yang's decree. Holding their breath for fear that a heavy sigh might provoke Gao Yang's wrath and bring down a death sentence, Gao Jun and Gao Huan dared not move. Gao Zhan likewise remained silent, terrified of drawing Gao Yang's redirected anger.

At length, Gao Yang raised a hand and announced toward the door outside, "Proclaim the decree: pardon the Princes of Shangdang and Yongan."

A response came from outside. To the two men in the prison, it was nothing short of heavenly music; they repeatedly knocked their heads in gratitude, endlessly praising their second brother's benevolence and virtue.

This would never do!

"How can a ferocious tiger be let out of its cave?!"

Gao Zhan stepped close to Gao Yang, his tone resolute, while simultaneously grasping Gao Yang's hand and whispering, "Think of the Crown Prince..."

Hearing this, Gao Yang instantly fell silent. Gao Jun felt as though he had been struck by lightning; gripping the iron bars with both hands, he unleashed a furious tirade, "Buluoqi! Heaven sees your deeds, and you shall pay the price!"

Gao Zhan sneered coldly, then continued to press Gao Yang, "The Crown Prince is weak and indecisive. With such ferocious tigers loose, will he be able to control them in the future?"

Gao Yang's eyes narrowed. Gao Zhan scooped up Gao Yang's hands and placed them over his own heart, "So long as this subject lives, I shall exhaust my strength to protect the Crown Prince."

"Nonsense! Nonsense! Buluoqi, you and your mother, Lou Zhaojun, are the true villains plotting to seize the throne!"

With the Empress Dowager addressed so insolently by name, Gao Zhan flared into rage, no longer able to feign indifference, "Abominable! To be so presumptuous and rude, you deserve this fate! If not for the sake of His Majesty, I would have killed the likes of you long ago!"

With that, he moved to draw his sword. Gao Jun and Gao Huan cried out in unison, "Come then!"

"Kill our third brother, and I will grab you—choke you or bite you to death, and drag you down with us!"

Flustered and enraged, Gao Zhan dared not act arbitrarily on his own accord. This very display, however, convinced Gao Yang of his loyalty. Gao Yang patted his shoulder, "Very well, very well. Go on outside; leave me to sit with them a while longer."

"This, this... As you command."

Gao Zhan realized this was an instruction for him to go outside and block the decree of pardon, and he hurriedly withdrew from the dungeon.

Failing to grasp the true meaning behind this, Gao Jun and Gao Huan imagined that their second brother had remained unmoved. While thanking Gao Yang, they poured out denunciations of Gao Zhan's shamelessness and despicableness, eventually extending their attacks to the Empress Dowager.

Gao Yang felt that what they said was entirely true; yet precisely because they were right, the two of them had to die. If these two were left to the Crown Prince—unsubdued after a full year of confinement—such untamable dispositions would only bring disaster upon the Crown Prince in the days to come, growing ever more intractable and rebellious.

"Older Brother, do you still remember? When we were children, I picked a fruit the size of a fist. Eldest Brother wanted it, but I wouldn't give it up; instead, I shared it with you..."

Gao Jun, being craftier, recounted amusing anecdotes from their past with Gao Yang. Yet Gao Yang merely nodded in silent assent, offering no reply, which only served to make Gao Jun increasingly uneasy.

After a moment, Gao Jun and Gao Huan finally realized that Gao Zhan had likely gone off to execute some other design. Terror gripped their hearts, and daring no longer address him as an elder brother, they began begging the Emperor to spare their lives.

The dungeon door swung open once more. It was Gao Zhan returning with Liu Taozhi, Chen Shantishan, and other guards. Brandishing long spears with stern expressions, they awaited Gao Yang's command.

A crushing wave of despair crashed down upon the two men. The hope that had just been kindled instantly withered into absolute hopelessness. Gao Huan sank to his knees, his face drained of color as he trembled violently.

Gao Jun drew in a deep breath and slowly exhaled a desolate sentence: "Unjust! O Heaven, to be loyal and yet met with execution!"

With that, his expression twisted in pain as he pressed his right hand over his left breast, "I beg Your Majesty to grant me a dagger, that I might prove my loyalty to Your Majesty right here and now!"

"Do it!"

Gao Zhan gritted his teeth. Seeing that the guards did not move, he turned back immediately. Gao Yang's expression was grave, seemingly once more moved by Gao Jun's words.

"Your Majesty, things have reached this point. Do you truly believe that if you let them out, they will feel any gratitude?" Gao Zhan urged anxiously, "Think of the Crown Prince, and your other imperial sons... There is no choice but to make an end of this!"

Gao Yang sighed softly and raised his hand, severing the final thread of hope for Gao Jun and Gao Huan.

"His Majesty has decreed a pardon for the Prince of Shangdang, Gao Huan, and the Prince of Yongan, Gao Jun! The imperial edict is here; why do you not release them at once?"

Holding a roll of white silk, Gao Yin strode into the dungeon and announced in a clear, ringing voice.