Henry Walker's eyes flashed with a sharp light that quickly vanished, his expression turning gloomy, as if he was lost in memories from which he could not extricate himself. Caleb Carter saw his face grow extremely grim, his gaze shifting from fierce to sorrowful, from dark to gentle, changing several times in an instant. He couldn't help but regret asking such a question, fear rising within him, unsure what to do. Fortunately, after only a moment, Henry Walker's expression returned to normal. He shot a vicious glance at the four people in the distance and said, "Do you really want to know?"

Caleb Carter met his gaze, hesitated for a moment, then nodded firmly.

"Very well, let's find another place, lest those four dogs notice something."

The two settled their bill and left the teahouse, finding another eatery by the Jinshui River. Seeing no one in disguise, they sat down at ease.

"Up along the Jinshui, about three hundred and fifty li from Jiangjin City, there is a small town called Boling, under the jurisdiction of Qinghe Prefecture in Yongning Commandery. My The Walker Family is a great clan in Boling; every Boling governor has come from our The Walker Family. Though Boling has only a little over ten thousand households, it controls both the Jinshui and Huai Rivers, making it a strategic military location. John Bolton had just risen in Yongning Commandery, holding only Yixing and Baishi, two prefectures and eight towns, bordering Donghai Commandery to the east, where he was blocked by Ethan Brooks, and to the northeast was the The Evans Family of Qingzhou. At that time, Steward held Jiangjin, Qinghe, and Nanyang, but his rule was cruel and oppressive, like wolves herding sheep; both noble families and commoners could not endure his tyranny, so they secretly plotted to bring John Bolton into Jiangjin to drive Steward out of Yongning. My father led over a thousand elite soldiers of our The Walker Clan to follow John Bolton. John Bolton passed through Boling to invade Jiangjin, and my The Walker Family blocked reinforcements from Qinghe for him, later helping him seize Qinghe as well. When John Bolton returned to Jiangjin and passed through Boling, his army camped by the Jinshui, and he invited my father and three elder brothers to drink and celebrate outside Boling city. My father was wary and had me feign illness in the city, commanding troops in case of trouble. Sure enough, after the banquet, ambushers appeared; John Bolton brought my father and brothers, bound, to the city gates, demanding I surrender the city and hand over the Qinghe charge formation technique. My father and brothers could not bear the humiliation and bit their tongues to kill themselves. The city held out for half a month before falling; only seventeen of our clan broke through and escaped, the rest either killed or captured. In the struggle for supremacy, nothing is off limits. Our clan held the strategic Boling and possessed the secret Qinghe charge formation, and though we did not seek to expand in the chaos, the powerful still deeply feared my The Walker Family. In troubled times, if you do not strive forward, you are eliminated—there is no right or wrong to speak of. But that dog John Bolton is hateful—he captured my beloved wife and tried to force himself on her. When she resisted to the death, he put a knife to my infant child's neck to threaten her. My wife died in disgrace, and John Bolton cooked my son and fed him to those who had contributed in that battle. The one hundred and twenty-three of my clan who were captured were all slaughtered."

At these last words, Henry Walker's body trembled violently, his voice choked, his eyes brimming with tears of hatred. Caleb Carter felt as if a great weight pressed on his heart, making it hard to breathe, and at last he could not hold back his own hot tears.

The two fell into their own thoughts, saying nothing more, sitting until the sun sank behind She Mountain and the evening glow filled the sky. On the Jinshui, the shimmering waves looked like hidden gold, rippling beneath the long, trailing branches of the willows. At this time, dozens of painted boats were moored by the shore, and faint singing drifted over. Listening closely, it was the heroic and mournful song: "The nation is broken, yet mountains and rivers remain; in the city in spring, grass and trees grow deep. Moved by the times, flowers shed tears; hating separation, birds startle the heart!" The singer repeated the verses, the melody growing ever more sorrowful and stirring. As the sun set behind the mountains, mist rose from the water, dusk deepened, but the song lingered in the air, growing ever more resonant.

Suddenly, the sound of a zither rang out, its notes sorrowful and stirring. Caleb Carter recognized it as the ancient melody "Guo Shang," a funeral song for warriors who died defending their land. The singer paused briefly, then, with that mournful voice, sang again:

Wielding Wu spears, clad in rhinoceros armor,

Chariots' axles clash, short weapons meet;

Banners block the sun, the enemy like clouds,

Arrows fall in volleys, soldiers rush to the fore;

Breaking through ranks, trampling over lines,

Left horse slain, right blade wounded;

Dust clouds the wheels, four horses restrained,

Grasping jade, striking the war drum;

Heaven's wrath, divine fury,

Slaughtered to the last, left on the plain;

Gone, never to return,

The open plain suddenly far and remote;

Wearing a long sword, holding a Qin bow,

Head and body parted, heart undaunted;

Truly brave and valiant,

In the end, unyielding and unconquerable;

Though the body dies, the spirit endures,

Your soul becomes a hero among ghosts.

Caleb Carter recalled something his father once said: When warlords rise and vie for the land, they become each other's enemies. The common people, like ants, are either enslaved or slaughtered; the living have nowhere to return, and families are left in ruins. The warlords make it so, and the world sees them as enemies. Henry Walker, blinded by hatred, turned to the The Evans Clan of Qingzhou, and after ten years, trained thousands of ghost riders to raid Yixing, Baishi, and other places—of the two prefectures and six towns, barely one household in ten survived. Those who suffered at his hands must hate him deeply. Thinking of this, Caleb Carter's sympathy for Henry Walker faded, his grief subsided, but he became even more immersed in the boundless sorrow of the song. His father often said that people are easily blinded, clinging to their own beliefs and causing harm to others. In this light, hatred is just another blinding belief. Even on his deathbed, his father urged him to forget revenge, perhaps not wanting him to be blinded by hatred. But hearing Henry Walker say his meridians were damaged and he would not live long, the matter of revenge was even more out of reach.

He sat in a daze for a while, until Henry Walker roused him with a slap, and only then did he realize the moon was already high in the sky, the Milky Way shining bright.

Chapter Six: The State of the World

It was not until Henry Walker roused him with a slap that he realized the moon was already high in the sky, the Milky Way shining bright.