Khawn walked with the Tanggolian soldiers. The road from Chono Gate to Tanggolia's first city was about a four-hour walk. The terrain was quite harsh, with army checkpoints every hour. As they passed through the third checkpoint, Khawn wondered why each one had two large towers on each side. He stared at the path winding through the small forest, trying to remember every detail. Suddenly, a stone hit him in the head, disrupting his thoughts.
"Hey! You!" a soldier shouted at him.
Khawn felt another stone hit him in the back of the head again.
"Hey, you! Stand there! Are you deaf?" The soldier walked up to him and kicked his right calf. "Are you deaf or just stupid?"
Khawn turned around, lowering his head timidly. He saw two Tanggolian soldiers standing before him.
"What are you doing here?" shouted the soldier holding a handful of stones.
Khawn noticed the stone in the soldier's hand. He immediately knew this was the one who'd thrown the two stones. He wanted to turn around and break the soldier's neck. But he knew the task Chinua gave him was far more important than his pride. So, he kept his head down, his gaze fixed on the ground.
"Answer the damn question!" shouted the soldier, his hand still full of stones.
"Hey, look at him," the second soldier said to the first. "He's scared already." The second soldier pulled the first one back and stepped up to Khawn. "Answer when you're spoken to," he ordered. "Does your training teach you to stand there like a mute?"
Khawn stammered timidly, "Yes, but... I..."
The second soldier watched him closely, noticing how eerily quiet the young man remained despite his fear. "Where is your tag?" he demanded.
Khawn quickly reached into his robe and handed the wooden tag to the Tanggolian.
The first soldier took the wooden tag from Khawn. "Li Bo," he read aloud. He pushed the tag back against Khawn's chest. "So, Soldier Li," he said, repeating his earlier question, "what are you doing here?"
Khawn still lowered his head. "I was just looking at the road," he said timidly.
The second soldier asked, "Why?"
"I miss home," Khawn replied, "and don't know when I can go back."
The first soldier probed, "Why do you miss home?" He looked at Khawn, noting the young man was probably in his early twenties. "Do you miss your little wife?" he guessed.
Khawn nodded. "We were married only two months before I was called to serve," he said.
The two soldiers laughed. The second one patted Khawn's right shoulder lightly. "Brother," he said with a chuckle, "don't worry, you'll see your little wife in two years." He pointed to the towers. "Look at those. The fire hasn't been lit, and the gong hasn't sounded yet. That means no war. Since there's no war, you'll finish your service and see your wife in two years."
Khawn looked up at the two soldiers with a smile. "Really?" he asked happily. "So, what are those two towers for?"
The first one looked surprised. "Have they not taught you yet?" he asked.
"No," he said. "I was chosen to go to Hmagol before they assigned me a checkpoint, so I wasn't taught that at all."
The first soldier shook his head, smiling. "The silly captain is getting lazy nowadays," he said. "I'm sure they'll assign you a checkpoint when you come back, but let this older brother tell you a little something." He stared at Khawn, his expression softening with pity for the young man. "The right tower has a basin of oil on top, and the left tower has a gong." He gestured towards them. "You can't see the oil basin from here, but you see the gong, right?"
Khawn nodded.
The first soldier continued, "If the enemy invades during the day, we use the gong to relay the signal down the line, informing our brothers that the enemy has crossed our border." He paused, then began, "If the enemy attacks us at night..."
The horn sounded, and the second Tanggolian soldier looked at Khawn and said, "Aren't you supposed to be leaving with Prince Geming and his group to Zhugow City."
"Oh, I forgot. Thank you, brothers," Khawn said. He waved quickly to the two soldiers. Then he turned and ran towards the main road. He saw a group of soldiers ahead, behind the last carriage, heading towards Zhugow City. Even though the soldiers hadn't finished explaining the towers, Khawn had guessed their purpose. He ran to catch up, falling in behind the final carriage.
As the sun set below the horizon and dusk approached, the large group of soldiers arrived at Qijin City, the first city of Tanggolia. In front of the city gate, many white military tents were pitched, and two wooden walls stretched for several miles, from the roadside to the foot of the mountain.
The white tents were neatly lined up in rows outside the gate. Khawn estimated three hundred tents stretching horizontally from the road to the mountain foot, with two hundred tents in each vertical row extending from the Qijin City entrance. He recognized this as a military base, a logical presence given its status as Tanggolia's first city and its proximity to the Hmagol border. But upon entering, he realized the scale was even greater—the city itself was packed. Qijin City was indeed very large, and soldiers patrolled every street corner. He finally understood why it was called the Impregnable City of Tanggolia.
Early the next morning, Khawn followed the Tanggolian army to Sujiang City. The journey from Qijin City took only half a day. In Sujiang, the environment changed—he saw more civilians and fewer military personnel. The city and surrounding areas were lush and green, with miles of rice paddies stretching as far as he could see. Sujiang reminded him of the green landscapes near Hosha City. Sujiang City was built on a mountain, with the main road from Qijin leading directly to its center. From other soldiers, Khawn learned this road continued all the way to Zhugow City. He also learned that Tangong City was the last city before Zhugow. The journey from Sujiang to Tangong took sixteen hours by foot. From Tangong City, it was another eight hours to Zhugow by foot, or just four hours by water.
Once again, early the next morning, the Tanggolian royal army moved. This time, their destination was Tangong City. According to Khawn's understanding, Tangong was the last defensive point before Zhugow City. In Tangong, most inhabitants were civilians or military families. Khawn initially couldn't understand why this city was set up that way for a defensive point. But based on the training he'd gained from Hye over the years, he concluded the Tanggolian Emperor expected his soldiers to be unflinching because their families and loved ones lived there.
During their lunch break, a Tanggolian captain walked up to a group of soldiers sitting on the ground. "Attention!" he announced. "Prince Geming would like to thank you all for traveling to Hmagol with him. His Highness will reward each of you with twenty gold coins and three days of rest." As he spoke, six soldiers carried three large boxes and placed them at his feet. "Come forward and receive your reward," the captain instructed. "After lunch, you'll have leave to visit your families."
"So, we don't have to follow His Highness to Zhugow City?" one of the soldiers asked.
The captain shook his head. "No," he said. "His Highness and the other royals have already boarded the ship and returned." He looked at them. "According to the Prince's order, you can continue to work around the camp or take three days' leave. Come and line up for your reward!"
The soldiers exclaimed happily, stopping their meal, and quickly lined up for the money.
After receiving his reward, Khawn knew he couldn't travel directly to Zhugow City with the group he'd arrived with. For two days, he used his leave to find out everything he could about the city from people he met, because his deadline to meet Chinua at Lao-Da Pass was approaching. On his last day, he stood looking at the workers on the port. He suddenly realized he could go home—back to Chinua and their people—with this crew.
Khawn quickly attracted the ship captain's attention. "Dear Sir, are you going to Hai Yan City?" he inquired.
"Why do you ask?" the old captain replied cautiously.
Khawn smiled, looking innocent. "I'm going to see my lover," he said. "I just found out today she moved to Hai Yan City. If you'll give me passage and food, I'll work for you for free."
The old captain glanced at Khawn. He found the young man looked innocent and posed no threat to him or his crew. So, he agreed. "Okay, kid," he said. "What are you waiting for? Go and help them load the ship. We'll set off in an hour. We have to stop in Zhugow City to pick up more cargo and some people."
Khawn nodded happily, quickly picked up a wooden box, threw it on his shoulder, and walked onto the ship with the other crew members.
In the evening, with the sun still high on the red horizon, the ship docked in the harbor. The captain refused to let anyone leave the port, but Khawn had a clear enough view of this side of the city. He knew that as long as he could see it clearly, Chinua and Hye were smart enough to figure out the other side. He sewed every important detail from the cities he visited into his clothes, and this time would be no exception.
"Hey boy!" shouted the old captain. "Do you want to stay here or go on to Hai Yan City?"
Smiling at the captain, Khawn quickly got back on board. Looking at him, he said, "Sorry, Sir. I've never been to Zhugow City before, so I got carried away." He innocently scratched the back of his neck.
The captain smiled. "Yeah," he said. "Zhugow City is called the City of Dreams, but I call it the City of Status."
"Why do you say that, Sir?" Khawn asked, his curiosity piqued.
The old captain leaned closer. "Only the richest and most powerful live here," he said in a low voice. "Those with the highest royal status. Ordinary people aren't even allowed in Zhugow City." He looked around before continuing. "Why gather them all in one place? It seems to me, if a country wanted to change Tanggolia's ruler, they'd simply take this city." He lowered his voice further. "Don't tell anyone I told you that, boy, or we'll both be beheaded. Do you understand?"
Khawn nodded and said, "I won't tell anyone about this." He smiled and looked out at the glinting sun on the waves, thinking to himself that Chinua is going to love the information he had gathered.