Read Online Daylight on Iron Mountain by David Wingrove - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: David Wingrove
Tags: Science-Fiction, Fantasy
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long been impressed by you… by your integrity and your staunch refusal to use your position for personal gain.’
Tsao Ch’un raised his glass, saluting Jiang, then laughed. ‘You are by far my poorest general, Jiang Lei. But that is no criticism. On the contrary. Such a trait is almost unique among my servants, and there are many of them. Like the ancient Greek, Diogenes, I have been searching a long, fruitless time for an honest man. But now I have found one.’
Jiang sipped from his glass, then nervously asked, ‘Are you sure I am up to such a task,
Chieh Hsia
?’
The instinct to get up from his seat and abase himself was overpowering.Tsao Ch’un had insisted on informality, but to be informal with such a one as he… it was impossible. It was like being informal with Genghis Khan.
Tsao Ch’un smiled, then drained his drink. ‘I have no doubt of it at all, Jiang Lei. In fact, it reassures me to have you in charge. But tell me… how many Banner armies will you need for the task?’
Jiang thought a moment. ‘Ten… maybe fifteen?’
‘Then you shall have thirty.’
Again Jiang Lei was astonished. A single Banner was half a million men. At a stroke Tsao Ch’un had put him in command of fifteen million troops. It was very different from the 10,000 he had commanded as a general.
Jiang shook his head, then, aware that he had Tsao Ch’un’s ear, ‘And my family?’
Those dark, bottomless eyes stared back at him.
‘You want them with you?’
Jiang swallowed, then nodded.
Tsao Ch’un studied him a moment, then smiled.
‘Then so it shall be.’
Early that next morning, as the sun slowly edged its way above the distant peaks, a craft set down on the pad at Tongjiang. As its engines shut down and the door hissed open, a man in the uniform of a marshal stepped forward, out of the shadows.
Seeing the stranger in his imposing outfit, Chun Hua and the two girls began to kneel and bow their heads. But even as they did so, the great man spoke, bidding them get to their feet again.
At the sound of that voice, all three of them jerked their heads up, a look of sheer astonishment lighting their faces.
‘Jiang Lei?’ Chun Hua said, not sure whether she was dreaming.
He stepped closer, catching her in his arms and lifting her up, embracing her, then setting her down as the girls crowded about him, tearful now.
‘My pretty darlings… gods how I’ve missed you…’
From a window high above, Tsao Ch’un looked on coldly. It was a touching scene, if one were of that disposition. But he was not. He had not becomegreat through sentiment. Even so, he felt a certain satisfaction at the sight. It was as he’d thought. Jiang Lei was steadfast in both loyalty and love.
He spoke up, talking to someone in the shadows just beyond him.
‘Stay close to him, Hung. Be his shadow. I trust him… for now… but even those I’ve trusted have proved false, and power can corrupt a man… even a good man like Jiang Lei.’
There was the briefest pause and then the shadows answered.
‘It shall be done.’
Chapter 13
AMOS
A mos Shepherd sat in the shade of the oak, looking down the grassy slope towards the bay. There was the faintest wind, rustling the leafy branches overhead and rippling the placid surface of the water. Out there, across the bay, you could see the peeling whiteness of the old house, embedded in the far side of the valley. Beyond it, the City climbed the sky, so tall it seemed a natural border to the green world of the Domain.
He was painting. Or rather, he was thinking of painting. The easel was set up nearby, his palette set down beside it. But as yet the canvas was untouched, the colours unmixed, for this was the crucial part. The part that took the time. The technical act of painting was secondary. He could do that without thought. It was
this
that was all-important.
It was late morning, and the sun was almost at its zenith. It was the best time of the day, when the valley was flooded with
Tsao Ch’un raised his glass, saluting Jiang, then laughed. ‘You are by far my poorest general, Jiang Lei. But that is no criticism. On the contrary. Such a trait is almost unique among my servants, and there are many of them. Like the ancient Greek, Diogenes, I have been searching a long, fruitless time for an honest man. But now I have found one.’
Jiang sipped from his glass, then nervously asked, ‘Are you sure I am up to such a task,
Chieh Hsia
?’
The instinct to get up from his seat and abase himself was overpowering.Tsao Ch’un had insisted on informality, but to be informal with such a one as he… it was impossible. It was like being informal with Genghis Khan.
Tsao Ch’un smiled, then drained his drink. ‘I have no doubt of it at all, Jiang Lei. In fact, it reassures me to have you in charge. But tell me… how many Banner armies will you need for the task?’
Jiang thought a moment. ‘Ten… maybe fifteen?’
‘Then you shall have thirty.’
Again Jiang Lei was astonished. A single Banner was half a million men. At a stroke Tsao Ch’un had put him in command of fifteen million troops. It was very different from the 10,000 he had commanded as a general.
Jiang shook his head, then, aware that he had Tsao Ch’un’s ear, ‘And my family?’
Those dark, bottomless eyes stared back at him.
‘You want them with you?’
Jiang swallowed, then nodded.
Tsao Ch’un studied him a moment, then smiled.
‘Then so it shall be.’
Early that next morning, as the sun slowly edged its way above the distant peaks, a craft set down on the pad at Tongjiang. As its engines shut down and the door hissed open, a man in the uniform of a marshal stepped forward, out of the shadows.
Seeing the stranger in his imposing outfit, Chun Hua and the two girls began to kneel and bow their heads. But even as they did so, the great man spoke, bidding them get to their feet again.
At the sound of that voice, all three of them jerked their heads up, a look of sheer astonishment lighting their faces.
‘Jiang Lei?’ Chun Hua said, not sure whether she was dreaming.
He stepped closer, catching her in his arms and lifting her up, embracing her, then setting her down as the girls crowded about him, tearful now.
‘My pretty darlings… gods how I’ve missed you…’
From a window high above, Tsao Ch’un looked on coldly. It was a touching scene, if one were of that disposition. But he was not. He had not becomegreat through sentiment. Even so, he felt a certain satisfaction at the sight. It was as he’d thought. Jiang Lei was steadfast in both loyalty and love.
He spoke up, talking to someone in the shadows just beyond him.
‘Stay close to him, Hung. Be his shadow. I trust him… for now… but even those I’ve trusted have proved false, and power can corrupt a man… even a good man like Jiang Lei.’
There was the briefest pause and then the shadows answered.
‘It shall be done.’
Chapter 13
AMOS
A mos Shepherd sat in the shade of the oak, looking down the grassy slope towards the bay. There was the faintest wind, rustling the leafy branches overhead and rippling the placid surface of the water. Out there, across the bay, you could see the peeling whiteness of the old house, embedded in the far side of the valley. Beyond it, the City climbed the sky, so tall it seemed a natural border to the green world of the Domain.
He was painting. Or rather, he was thinking of painting. The easel was set up nearby, his palette set down beside it. But as yet the canvas was untouched, the colours unmixed, for this was the crucial part. The part that took the time. The technical act of painting was secondary. He could do that without thought. It was
this
that was all-important.
It was late morning, and the sun was almost at its zenith. It was the best time of the day, when the valley was flooded with
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