Fantasy?

The journey to the rally point could be split into two parts. 

The first part could be described as the boring one, it was also the bulk of the process. This was sitting in the carriage and making idle conversation, or staring at the floor, wall or ceiling.

The second part was more interesting, however. This ranged from talking to Sir Lv during camp time, to discussing the things Sir Lv told them. 

The boys learned much knowledge about the state- things that weren't common knowledge as well as things that were difficult to learn without having held office or delved into politics.

For example, "Eunuch Li often brags about having a long member but according to the junior eunuchs it is in fact quite small."

Or, "Mister Gong, a minor court official, has been impeached multiple times but keeps getting away with it because the emperor likes Mister Gong's paintings."

As well as, "Mister Ping pretends to have integrity and pride but is in fact a boot-licker who makes poems praising unimportant things like the glossy sheen of the emperor's hair or the emperor's healthy appearance at every opportunity."

And also, "Mister Ping is a stupid idiot."

Not forgetting, "Not only does Mister Ping possess a countenance similar to that of a half-cooked, obese pig, only to be discarded due to being deemed 'offensive to the palate', but is also extraordinarily ugly."

And, "Did I mention that Mister Ping is an idiot? And a stupid one at that?"

Omitting seventeen scathing remarks detailing Mister Ping's relatives, extended family and eight generations of his ancestors.

Thus, the unfortunate Mister Ping ended up becoming an inside joke between the three brothers.

But back to more serious matters. While Sir Lv had generally displayed a learned air, occasionally breaking character to scold Mister Ping, he often revealed hints of melancholy.

For example, when Xiao Chong had expressed ignorance about the importance of mathematics, Sir Lv had composed an ad-hoc poem about the lack of public education, before launching into a lecture on 'eight ways mathematics can improve the life of a peasant'.

For example, when Mian Ji had unintentionally revealed that he did not know how many states there were, their names, or who they, the state of Liang, were currently going to war with, Sir Lv drew a map of the country on the floor with a stick and proceeded to label every state, province and city.

For example, when Sihai Wuxian had… never mind.

The things that Sir Lv would have admonished Wuxian about had already been lectured to the two younger boys. This was the benefit to thinking before speaking. 

And many things could be gleaned from their conversations. Wuxian was certain that while Sir Lv had left the court, he was not entirely sure whether it was voluntary or not.

The elder often talked about the flaws in the current system and the changes he had been attempting to introduce to alleviate some of them.

Other times, he expressed his growing tiredness at politics, often lamenting that he had not instead decided to become a wandering poet rather than an official, and that he was glad to have left the court.

But whether he had resigned deliberately or not, his conscription was certainly not voluntary.

It was certain that either something he had done, said, or perhaps even his resignation itself had caused somebody higher up to cause his enlistment despite being far beyond the maximum age requirement.

Due to the sensitivity of the topic, Wuxian did not ask directly. He felt indignant of the court politics and the state itself, partly for the war and partly because of what he'd heard from Sir Lv.

If he was asked to describe Sir Lv's character on the spot, the first words to come to mind would be "wise", "kind" and "advocate of education". There was hardly anything negative to say about him and in one word he could be described as "good".

But from what Wuxian had learned, being good did not necessarily mean being a good politician or official and vice versa.

And so Wuxian came to dislike politicians, despite having only come into contact with one in his entire lifetime.

But there were other things that Wuxian, Mian Ji and Xiao Chong had learned from Sir Lv that weren't strictly educational.

The elder had told them fairy tales and folklore from other regions both in and outside of Liang. About mythical creatures and legendary heroes, about immortals who could fly on swords to magic pills that could give infinite lifespan.

Xiao Chong had absorbed these things right away, often wanting to know what happened next, while Mian Ji was immediately sceptical and treated the tales as tales and myths as myths.

Wuxian was similar to Mian Ji at first, merely enjoying the possibility of flying immortals and mythical creatures like dragons and phoenixes.

But when he began to think about how little he knew about the world and how small his horizons were, he decided to be more open-minded.

'After all, I truly wouldn't be opposed to an immortal fairy whisking me away from the battlefield.' 

Something along those lines, at least. But of course, this was merely a fantasy and certainly not an expectation.

Like this, three weeks came and went in a blur. The conscripts arrived at the rally point- a big frontier city called "Dong'an".

According to Sir Lv, the city held a population of around 700,000 people, not counting the peasants and farmers living outside in nearby rural communities.

Additionally, if well stocked, with only a garrisoned force of 100,000, it could be defended for several years even if besieged by a force of 500,000.

And after arriving in the city, the three boys never saw Sir Lv again. He had vanished, almost like an immortal in one of those tales. Perhaps Sir Lv had been their 'fortuitous encounter'.

Wuxian and the other two did not pay much attention to this previously, but after walking through the streets to the city barracks, they had keenly noticed how much taller they measured compared to the average citizen.

And the common folk noticed as well, often staring or gawking at the three as they passed by.

Unbeknownst to the boys, their fellow conscripts had already given them the moniker "Giants of Xi". 

Dong'an was a large city. They had entered from the West gate and though there were respective garrisons for each cardinal direction, the main barracks were situated somewhere between the East and South gates.

The travel there took place on-foot, with the carriages emptying their passengers and leaving soon after, presumably to round up more men, with the drivers and escorts swapping places with one of the West gate squadrons.

The men spent two hours marching disorderly to the barracks under the lead of a new guard squadron from the city garrison. By the time they arrived, the sun had begun to set.

"Everyone, your attention please. You are to take rest in the Southern wing. There is no specific individual assignment of rooms, so take your pick. No fighting over rooms. No vandalism. Supper will be served at the twelfth hour*. You are not to leave your rooms unless called for. The army examination begins tomorrow morning at the third hour."

The captain performed a brief half-salute, before moving to the side along with his unit.

They watched lazily as the conscripts made their ways into the Southern quarters of the barracks. Amongst them, Wuxian, Mian Ji and Xiao Chong waded through the mass of bodies.

Upon reaching three adjacent rooms, the boy shared looks.

"Sleep well, see you tomorrow." Wuxian said, cupping his hands in both directions.

"Likewise." Mian Ji cupped his hands in response.

"Yeah. Say, why the formalities of of a sudden?"

"Practising etiquette. Failure to comply with formalities in the army can lead to beatings." Wuxian answered succinctly.

Xiao Chong cupped his hands in a non-verbal response, giving an exaggerated show, much to his older brothers' exacerbation.

"Whatever. Make sure not to oversleep." Wuxian cautioned.

"That's also punishable by beatings." Mian Ji added with a chuckle, before pushing open the door with his foot and disappearing from sight.

Xiao Chong rolled his eyes and barged through his door using his shoulder.

Sihai Wuxian alone stood in the dark corridor for a few moments, unknown thoughts on his mind, before entering his room in a very normal manner.

The room was unremarkable, but Wuxian did not have much to complain about. He was far more worried about dying on the battlefield than having an uncomfortable bed.

He unloaded his personal belongings by the bedside, carefully laying his armour on the desk. As he sat down on the bed, he clutched his mother's red scarf, staring into the darkness.

Some time later, the food arrived. Generally bland. Barely any meat. A decent cob of corn though.

And then night fell.

That night, Wuxian had a strange dream.

He was back in Xi county. He spent the early morning practising mathematics, had a quick break to read some poetry from his father's private collection and then went out to work the fields.

His mother, who had long since passed away, was there, well and alive. Mian Ji and Xiao Chong were shorter than he remembered, with baby fat still on their faces.

They did their work and goofed off every now and then, but then the thundering of hooves could be heard in the distance.

The ground shook and people began whimpering and shouting.

Chaos filled the air and confusion swirled within Wuxian's mind. He couldn't quite make things out, but he seemed to be running back to his house, looking for his family to make sure they were safe.

The next moment, he was taller and suited in armour, holding a spear in one hand and a horse whisk in the other.

Mian Ji and Xiao Chong were there too, but clothed strangely.

Mian Ji wore strange robes and held a white paper fan in one hand, a horse whisk in the other.

Xiao Chong wielded a jian sword in one hand and a dao sabre in the other.

This felt particularly strange to Wuxian as Mian Ji was neither a tactician nor a strategist and jian and dao were not traditionally used together.

But for Xiao Chong, who was unruly and disliked tradition, a sabre and a sword used in tandem did not shock Wuxian as much as he expected it to.

Wuxian turned to Mian Ji and tried to speak. You idiot, a paper fan and a horse whisk won't help in a fight! But those words wouldn't leave his throat.

He accepted this inability to speak without question. At the same time, he realised he himself held a horse whisk. 

The next instant, they were engaged in a fight. The attackers were all faceless and wielded swords and shields. From behind them came volley after volley of arrow and bolt.

Looking around from his detached view, Wuxian could see Mian Ji fighting amongst a cluster of soldiers. Mian Ji's horse whisk shot out like a whip, each crack entangling the limbs of multiple foes and causing them to tumble.

Each swing would redirect the trajectory of an incoming strike. His paper fan constantly snapped open and shut, confusing the opposing soldiers and occasionally struck behind the ears or poked the eyes.

The scene felt extremely strange to Wuxian, yet familiar at the same time. This fighting style made no sense to him- it would have clearly been better to rush out with a spear or sabre, but somehow this deceptive and flashy style seemed to fit Mian Ji quite well.

To the side, Xiao Chong was a whirlwind of reckless strikes. His sabre hacked and slashed relentlessly and his sword moved like an enigmatic snake, striking where unexpected and stabbing when the enemy was off balance.

The scene changed again. This time, Mian Ji and Xiao Chong lay on the floor, bleeding and immobilised.

Wuxian himself was drenched in blood- both his own and others'. As he was finally cut down, his final view was a mountain of corpses, a burning village and the mountainous view of his hometown.