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Shan-Yu's Victory	By : lightbird Category: +M through R > Mulan (Disney) > Mulan (Disney) Views: 16642 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own the cartoons of Disney Studios, nor any of the characters from them. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Shang took a small sip of his rice wine and observed the scene from the table in the corner where he sat with Gao and Chien-Po. It had been Gao’s idea to remain in the city that evening and spend time in one of the busier taverns. It was a loud, crowded, bustling bar on a street off of the main square and right now they were observing a completely soused young boy rushing forward and trying to grab a sword from one of the Hun soldiers. Gao had placed a hand on Shang’s shoulder instantly as he instinctively started to rise from his seat to rush over and stop the young boy.

“Don’t, Captain. You must not call attention to yourself here.”

Fortunately, this particular Hun soldier was nearly as drunk as the boy and the drink had altered his humor for the better. He laughed at the boy and began to tease him without hurting him.

“Foolish child!” he chortled and his friends laughed along with him. “You are too small to handle such an impressive weapon as this.”

He sheathed the sword and pushed the boy away without effort.

Shang released a sigh of relief as the boy’s friends that had rushed up to stop him now pulled him away, dragging him back to the table where they’d been sitting.

He raised his cup and took another sip of wine, trying to suppress the grimace that came to his face. Gao had insisted on buying it for him, but he really couldn’t abide rice wine or anything with alcohol in it; he had never been able to hold his liquor very well and he hated the smell of it.

The scent of the wine, of the entire tavern, made him think of his father now. Li Kuang had always loved his drink. Fortunately it hadn’t made him ill-tempered most of the time, like many men he’d seen; one night, purely by accident, he’d witnessed one of his schoolmates at the Imperial Academy get beaten within an inch of his life by a drunken father. And somehow drink never interfered with Li Kuang’s ability to fight well, at least until his last battle. Shang was sure he must have been drinking that day. It was bitter cold in the mountains and he remembered how his father always commented that it was one of the better ways to keep warm, second to only one other thing.

A melancholy sigh escaped him and he raised his cup again, taking a gulp this time so that he wouldn’t taste it. Maybe it would dull the pain, he thought absently.

“I think that we should spend a few evenings in places like this, Captain,” Gao suggested. “Someone here may have heard something, and liquor has a loosening effect on the tongue.”

Shang nodded and continued to observe in silence for a long while. More than half the patrons there were Chinese citizens, not Hun soldiers, and they went about their business and their socializing as if absolutely nothing had happened. Barmaids moved swiftly throughout the tavern, serving drinks, flirting, slapping drunken men that took one liberty too many with them. Men drank, argued heatedly, headed off brawls before they started, gambled.

“It’s odd how they just carry on as if nothing has happened,” Shang mused. “No one seems to care at all that an enemy has come into power.”

They were joined by a man that Gao waved over a few minutes later and introductions were made.

“Odd to find a monk in a tavern,” Gao’s new friend Jin commented jovially. “You are a Taoist?”

Chien-Po nodded. “It’s all a matter of balance. Everything in moderation,” he answered serenely.

Jin chuckled heartily. His gaze shifted to Shang and he observed him quietly.

“He is quite a somber young man,” he finally commented softly to Gao.

Shang scowled at him.

“Li Shang recently lost his father in the war.”

“Oh. I am very sorry for your loss, young man.”

Jin looked around carefully then leaned in to speak to them all quietly.

“This is an odd state that our land is in right now. We’re being ruled by the enemy now.”

“Yes,” Shang sighed. “It doesn’t seem to make a difference to anyone.”

“Oh, but it does. I am from a village several miles from here. Hun soldiers arrived there recently and spoke to our local leaders. It was a non-confrontational meeting however, and it has been suggested that this new ruler is very wise. It seems he is trying to create a peaceful transition.”

Shang just stared at him in disbelief. “What? This is a man who came with his troop and burned down an entire village of civilians!”

Jin shrugged. “I can’t vouch for their logic. But our leaders have made it clear that they don’t feel they are being forced to do anything. They were given some new orders, but their impression was that this new ruler’s intention is to let them carry on with their duties peacefully. It looks as if he is trying to not rule with a stranglehold.”

“I can’t believe it,” Shang muttered.

“Well, I would have never expected that from Shan-Yu either,” Chien-Po remarked. “But people can surprise us often. And maybe Mulan has had an effect on him.”

~~~

Two men were outside his door when Shan-Yu stepped out the next morning, standing on either side of it, their postures alert, their swords out. He raised his eyebrows in surprise. He was confident that Suren would alert him to any danger before it got near him and had never felt the need to have bodyguards; and he had never even asked for this guard to be posted outside of his bedchamber.

His eyes narrowed into a suspicious glare.

“Boke is waiting for you on the main balcony,” one man that he identified as Burilgi said, quietly. “He will explain.”

Shan-Yu gazed at him through still-narrowed eyes for another moment, then whistled through the door that remained halfway open and made a clacking sound with his tongue. His falcon swooped toward him, coming to rest on his shoulder as always but turning his head to look at his master with a look that was almost questioning.

He headed for the front balcony overlooking the Imperial Square, the two men falling into step with him.

“There is dissention within the ranks,” Boke told him quietly when he had arrived with the two men.

“Yes, I had a sense of that,” Shan-Yu answered, keeping his own voice low.

“I fear that your life is in danger. I have assigned Burilgi and Vachir to be your bodyguards and to look after you.”

Shan-Yu let out a deep rumble of laughter.

“Thank you for your concern, cousin, but Suren will warn me of any danger nearby.”

“I strongly suggest that you let my men watch over you.”

“Hmm,” he grunted, eyeing his younger cousin with a glint in his eye. “Such worry over my life. Perhaps it is you that I am in danger from.”

Boke’s eyes widened and he gasped.

“How could you suggest such a thing?”

Shan-Yu put his hand up, gesturing for him to be quiet.

“Thank you for your interest in my safety. But I have my own men that have served me well for many years. If I need bodyguards in addition to Suren here, I will ask them to look out for me.”

He turned to Burilgi and Vachir.

“You’re both dismissed.”

They turned and left the balcony and Shan-Yu shut the doors behind him. He withdrew his jagged sword from its sheath, holding it in a casual, relaxed position. He walked slowly to the edge of the balcony, stopping to stand beside his cousin and glancing down at the daily market below them, continuing to keep Boke in his peripheral vision. His cousin’s weapon was still in its sheath.

At his unspoken command Suren alighted from his shoulder and perched down lightly onto the balcony ledge. He straightened his posture then and turned to face his cousin, raising his sword and extending it toward him swiftly, letting the blade lightly rest on his shoulder, barely touching the skin of his neck. He grinned playfully at Boke, whose face had paled, eyes wide.

Seeing that his cousin was adequately spooked, he withdrew the sword without hurting Boke.

“Be careful with me, Boke. Perhaps it is you that needs a bodyguard.”

~~~

Boke paced back and forth behind the desk in his chamber, fuming.

“He will make a mistake. He is too sure of himself.”

“Yes,” Burilgi answered. “And we must make sure that we don’t make the same mistake of being too sure of ourselves. Although most of the troops were led by you, many of the men admire and respect him and his men because they took the city by siege on their own. One wrong move and you might lose their loyalty.”

“There were ten men with him, but four of them are his closest companions. We need to take them out first, and quietly. Batu is his council. That’s the archer that he’s always talking to. Keep him in sight at all times but don’t make a move on him yet.”

“Very good. I know the other three that you’re talking about. Their names are Altan, Qulan and Chinua. They’re expert martial arts fighters, all deadly with their hands or a sword.”

“Keep them all under surveillance for now. And keep an eye on that woman Mulan, too.”

~~~

“I’m still being watched, Mushu,” she said quietly as she moved casually through the market place. “I’m surprised that I was even allowed to come out here.”

“All you’ll be doing is talking to Dr. Kong for now. And at least that falcon is hanging around his master these days. You can actually talk to Shang if he’s around.”

She made her way through the myriad stalls of food, silks, trinkets and other goods, pushing her way through haggling merchants and buyers. Her eye finally caught the familiar medic from the village and she made her way over to his cart.

“Dr. Kong,” she greeted him softly.

“Hello, Mulan. This is Gao, one of the leaders from our village.”

“Hello.”

“So, are you looking for any particular remedy?”

“Yes. I’ve had a bad stomach ache lately. I think it may be a nervous stomach. My man is very possessive of me and he has me watched all the time,” she told them casually.

“Well, you are a very lucky woman to have such a devoted…husband.”

Mulan suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and merely sighed. “Yes, I’m very lucky.”

“Come and sit down and Dr. Kong will consult with you.”

“Thank you.”

“Have you been eating or drinking anything out of the ordinary, young lady?”

She shook her head.

He gestured for her to hold her arm out and she obeyed. He placed a hand on her wrist, appearing to be feeling her pulse.

“We are camping in the forest to the east of here as it is too long a journey to venture back and forth to our village. After we have made enough money we will go home,” Gao conversed with her casually as Dr. Kong listened to her pulse and checked her reflexes. “There are several of us here everyday, working. Your old friend Li Shang comes here too. He is staying at camp with us.”

“Oh?”

“He says hello.”

“Give him my regards.”

“I’m sure that he would like to visit you himself. Maybe he can meet you here the next time you come to buy herbs.”

“It will be good to see him again. I don’t come to the market much, but I will get out here again I’m sure.”

“Are you getting fresh air?” Dr. Kong asked her.

“I walk in the palace garden everyday,” she answered. “It’s at the eastern end of the palace, surrounded by a courtyard. It’s very peaceful, with a lot of orange trees at one end. I like to sit there at that spot.”

“Very good,” he said with a nod. “You have a bandage on your body.”

“Yes. I was injured in a fall.”

“Stitches?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“I should check them,” he told her in a hushed tone. “It’s been too long.”

“It’s not possible here.”

He nodded. “And you cannot get out to our camp. Maybe you can ask the Emperor to let me come in and see you.”

“Tell him that you met a very good doctor and that you haven’t been feeling well,” Gao suggested. “He can send his men to check Dr. Kong out before he brings him to you.”

“That’s a good idea,” she agreed. “I’ll see what I can do and send a message to you.”

“Are you in pain at all?”

“No. And the wound hasn’t reopened.”

He nodded, his face grave.

“Well, young lady, you seem to be in good health. I will give you some herbs for your injury. You need to remove the bandage and see what it looks like. Apply the herbs if there is any sign of infection. If there’s any problem, have your guardian seek me out immediately.”

“Thank you. I will.”

Mushu spoke up suddenly, poking his head out of her collar. “She’s been drinking Dong Quai tea.”

Dr. Kong’s eyebrows went up at that.

“Mushu!” she hissed, shoving his head back into her collar.

“Where did you get Dong Quai tea?” he exclaimed.

“From Bi,” she confessed.

“You should not be drinking that without supervision. It can have a very adverse effect on the body if not used properly.”

She explained that Bi had given her instructions and that she was following them to the letter. He nodded after listening to her report back the exact method she used to prepare the tea and the length of time that she used it.

“If you start to bleed, I want you to have Mushu come and tell me immediately.”
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Shan-Yu's Victory