The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 698 Adopted Son
Amu Lang is sixty-eight years old this year, almost seventy years old. His hair and beard are all white and his face is full of wrinkles, but he is still quite healthy and can ride a horse and shoot arrows without any problem.

At this moment, Amulang was getting off a maid. The maid was beautiful, with smooth, radiant white skin, full of youthful vitality. A young body is always captivating, but Amulang only lingered on her for a few seconds before reluctantly withdrawing. Even the effects of snow lotus wine couldn't withstand the ravages of time; no matter how much he drank, it was useless. He couldn't deny the effects of aging. Back in the day…

"Godfather, Godfather..."

As Amu Lang was feeling sentimental and reminiscing about his past glories, he heard his adopted son Shanba calling from outside the door. He had no choice but to tighten his belt and lightly pat the maid's large buttocks. The latter reluctantly got up, dressed, and then opened the door, whereupon her eyes were immediately drawn to something bright.

A tall, imposing man stood outside the door, with a high nose, deep-set eyes, and a thick black beard that made him look even more dashing. His pectoral muscles bulged high, exuding power and masculinity.

This man was none other than Amulang's adopted son and capable assistant, Shanba. He was only nineteen years old this year, a strong and extremely energetic man. Amulang's maidservant knew this all too well, so when she saw Shanba, her eyes seemed to be filled with longing.

Shanba glanced quickly at the maid's voluptuous figure, swallowed hard, and bowed to Amulang inside the room, saying, "Godfather!"

Amulang seemed oblivious to the flirtatious exchange between Shanba and his maid, or perhaps he noticed but simply didn't care, nodding and asking, "Shanba, where have you come from?"

Amulang had many adopted sons, and Shanba was just one of them. However, Shanba was the most capable among them, both in terms of skill and conduct, and was therefore the most valued.

Amurang originally had many biological sons and grandsons, and even great-grandsons. However, during the coup launched by Baiwa, all his descendants were killed. In recent years, he has been wandering around with Princess Ayina, adopting many sons. This is a common tactic he uses to win over people, just as powerful figures like Cao Cao and Zhu Yuanzhang adopted many sons.

However, as good as an adopted son is, he is ultimately just cannon fodder to shield one from swords and spears. To carry on the family line, one must have one's own flesh and blood. So, although Amu Lang is nearing seventy, he still hopes that the old tree can sprout new buds. Recently, he has drunk quite a lot of snow lotus tonic wine, but the effect does not seem to be ideal.

Getting back to the main point, Shanba took out a snow lotus wrapped in sheepskin, as big as a washbasin, and presented it to Amulang with both hands, saying respectfully, "This is a top-quality Tian Shan snow lotus that I picked on the snow-capped peak, and I specially present it to my godfather!"

Amulang's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed with delight, "This is the best-quality Tian Shan snow lotus I've ever seen in my life, Shaanba, good boy!"

Amu Lang reached out and stroked Shanba's forehead, and the latter closed his eyes, like a child enjoying his father's loving touch.

"Maya, take the snow lotus and process it," Amu Lang ordered. The maid took the snow lotus from Shanba's hands, swayed her hips, and left the room.

Shanba watched the maid's graceful figure leave until she disappeared from sight before turning his gaze away. His unbridled behavior showed that he was not worried about his godfather's reprimand.

Amulang truly meant no blame, for in his eyes, servants were no different from cattle and sheep. Sometimes, when his adopted sons performed meritorious service, he would even reward them with his maids sleeping with him. Maya, for example, slept with Shaba.

"Shaanxi, Man Gui and Tie Niu recently took away 500 cavalrymen. Did they really go back to Jiayuguan to escort grain?" Amu Lang asked.

Shanba nodded and said, "I sent people to follow them secretly all the way, and it seems they really have gone back to Jiayuguan."

Amulang frowned and muttered to himself, "That's strange. Man Gui is Jia Huan's right-hand man, and Tie Niu is Jia Huan's personal guard captain. They shouldn't be needed to escort grain and fodder, right?"

Shanba nodded and said, "I don't know what kind of tricks Jia Huan is up to again, but I can confirm that Man Gui and Tie Niu did indeed lead five hundred cavalry back to Jiayuguan."

Amu Lang sighed, "Jia Huan is a very cunning fellow. He wouldn't do this without a reason. Knowing that Amahei had escaped and that Turpan might send troops, he still transferred away his capable general. There must be something fishy going on!"

Shanba's eyes flashed, and he said in a low voice, "Should we send someone to remind Ah Mahei?"

Amu Lang shook his head and said, "No need. From now on, do not take the initiative to contact Amahei."

Shaanba asked, puzzled, "Then why did our godfather help Ahmahei escape?"

Amulang sneered with a wise expression: "Jia Huan is a clever fellow. He not only plundered two million taels of wealth from my Hami royal palace, but also tried to assimilate our people by opening a school. It is clear that he has no intention of returning Hami to Ayina. Naturally, we should teach him a lesson and leave ourselves a way out."

Shanba suddenly realized, "So that's how it is! Father, what a brilliant plan!"

A smug glint flashed in Amulang's eyes. On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, he secretly sent men to rescue Amahei from prison. Then, he deliberately misled Jia Huan and Duan Yong. The foolish eunuch fell for it and sent Chu Sheng with cavalry to pursue and intercept Yibusili overnight. Yibusili, that unlucky fellow, had a fiery temper and got drunk that night, indeed engaging in a fierce battle with the Jin army, ultimately leading to the massacre of his entire clan. As the saying goes, "the rabbit mourns the fox's death," regardless of whether Yibusili was the traitor who rescued Amahei, the Jin army's massacre of the clan, especially their act of not sparing even women and children, naturally aroused resentment and vigilance among the local people of Hami. In this way, no matter how many schools Jia Huan built, it would be useless.

From the current perspective, Amulang's plan has been executed brilliantly, and the results are quite obvious. Without the support of the local people, it is believed that the Jin army will not stay in Hami for long and will eventually leave in disgrace. Therefore, Amulang is quite proud of his "masterpiece".

However, Amu Lang was cautious and did not let his guard down. After rescuing Amahei, he cut off all contact with Amahei, and Amahei himself did not even know who had saved him.

At this moment, Shanba said again, "Since Godfather knows that Jia Huan has ill intentions and will never return Hami to us, why don't we join forces with Amahei to kill him?"

Amu Lang shook his head and said, "Shaanba, you are still too young. If Jia Huan is a fierce tiger, then Ama Hei is a greedy wolf. A fierce tiger usually only eats meat, and the prey will eventually be left with a pile of bones, but a greedy wolf will gnaw the prey until there are no bones left."

The hypocritical people of Jin, though they want to annex Hami, still care about saving face and won't go too far. As long as we submit, we can still live a life of luxury. But Amahei is different; he doesn't care about etiquette or face. He will only swallow us whole, leaving not a single bone behind.

Shanba nodded and said, "I understand, but we saved Amahei this time. Even if Amahei defeats the Jin people and occupies Hami, he should spare our lives, right?"

Amulang nodded and said, "This is what I meant by leaving a way out. However, I would prefer the Jin people to win. They are outsiders and are destined not to stay for long. Hami will eventually return to our hands."

As he spoke, Amulang placed his hand on Shanba's shoulder and said earnestly, "Shanba, I am an old man and I don't have many years left to live. In the future, I will only be able to rely on you to assist Princess Ayina. She is a woman, and even if she becomes the Queen of Hami, she will still need the help of men. Do you understand?"

A flicker of eagerness and excitement flashed in Shanba's eyes as he nodded and said, "I understand. I will protect Princess Ayina with my life."

Amulang nodded in satisfaction and said, "Ayina should be at home today. Go find her and go horseback riding and hunting. This girl has recently become obsessed with playing the flute and poetry. These are all useless things. I teach her Chinese so that she can learn the skills of governing a country, not the vulgar elegance of the Han people. It seems that I will have to restrict her from associating with those Han women in the future."

“Alright, I’ll go find Princess Ayina to go hunting outside the city right away.” Shanba said excitedly and left.

When Shanba arrived at Ayina's residence, he discovered that she was indeed practicing calligraphy and copying a book called "Du Fu's Poetry Collection".

Shaba's heart sank, and he asked, "Ayina, what are you doing?"

Ayina was engrossed in copying when she noticed Shanba's arrival. She quickly put down her pen and said with a smile, "Shanba, I'm learning to write Chinese characters. How do you think I'm doing?"

Although Ayina's handwriting wasn't beautiful, it was still quite neat. However, Shanba had no interest in looking at it and shook his head, saying, "Ayina, my godfather said that Han Chinese poetry and songs are useless things. What's the point of learning them? Come on, let's go hunting outside the city. We should use this time to practice our riding and archery skills."

Shanba is five or six years older than Ayina. The two have played together since childhood and have a relationship like that of siblings. They usually call each other by their first names without any sense of hierarchy.

Ayina shook her head and said, "Not today, I have an appointment to learn to play the xiao (vertical flute) with Sister Lin and Sister Xue."

Shanba said somewhat displeasedly, "Jia Huan set up the school to assimilate our people, but you, on the contrary, delivered yourself to their doorstep. What's the use of learning these tedious things from the Han people?"

Ayina said irritably, "The Han people have many good qualities too. Otherwise, how could their country be so powerful? We don't even know how to make porcelain or smelt iron. Shouldn't we learn from them?"

Shaba frowned and said, "Ayina, I'm worried that your ideas will become like those of the Han people in the future."

Ayina smiled and said, "There is an old Chinese saying: 'The stones from other mountains can be used to polish jade.' What's wrong with learning from others' strengths and using them for our own purposes? Don't worry, no matter how things change, my heart will always be with my country."

Shaanba said helplessly, "Fine, I can't argue with you, but the snow lotus flowers in the meadow are blooming. Do you want to come with me to take a look?"

"Tomorrow, please. Today is really not an option!" Ayina refused.

(End of this chapter)