Qibi Li was brought into Li Guanyi’s courtyard.
As the Khan of the Tiele Tribe, the Xue Family afforded him high regard, setting the table with eight cold dishes, eight fruits, eight vegetables, eight varieties of different fruits, and eight types of desserts—a total of forty-eight items, each in its small dish yet able to be combined into one large platter, which bore a delicate pattern of a red carp entering the water.
The child, coveting, cautiously stole a glance at Qibi Li.
He then sneakily reached out to grab something, but Qibi Li stretched out his hand and gently slapped it away.
The young Khan smiled and shook his head, speaking in the Tiele language,
"You must have manners, Hunjian."
"Although we are poor, we are not greedy children, right?"
The child called Hunjian scratched his head and sat down obediently, his back straight, saying, "Right!"
Qibi Li smiled. He took a sugar pill from his pocket and handed it over. Hunjian shook his head, saying he didn’t want it, wasn’t hungry, and wasn’t tempted. Qibi Li smiled and said, "You are a good child, so this is a gift from me, and you may eat it."
The young Khan watched as the child from the Tiele Tribe happily accepted the sugar pill.
Holding it carefully in his palm, he licked it gingerly and his face broke into a joyous smile, "It’s sweet, Khan, so sweet!"
Qibi Li smiled and nodded, a sad look in his eyes.
Yet he sat upright, like the red willows of the Western Regions, like the rocks of the Western Regions, until he saw that young man approaching. He then stood up, took two steps forward, and bowed deeply:
"You have arrived, grandson of Golun Yiwushi Mohe Khan, son of Mohe Duo Teler Qibi Ge, I thank you for your kindness."
He mentioned the names of his grandfather and father, signifying formality.
Li Guanyi helped him up, and Qibi Li grinned, patting the nearby child on the head, and said, "This child was sent to me yesterday, but the Western Regions are too far away, and since the officers knew I was here, they came to ask me, saying they had cleared some villains and rescued the child."
"They claimed that under the feet of the Saint Emperor, all evils will be brought to justice."
"I thanked them, but after returning, the child told me it wasn’t those men who saved him; they just claimed your deed as their own, coming to boast to me."
Hunjian said with a smile, "Thank you, big brother, for saving me."
"Those bad guys said they would swallow your merits and then ask the Khan to speak good words for them so they could be promoted. They don’t know, oh, I secretly listened very carefully."
He pridefully raised his eyebrows as if claiming credit.
Qibi Li said, "Today I have come to say thank you, and to invite you to have a meal at my place."
Li Guanyi did not hesitate and accepted immediately, to Qibi Li’s great delight.
He and Li Guanyi did not go to any settled inn.
Although poor, he was still the Khan of the Tiele Tribe; the Court was generous, providing a whole courtyard, with adequate supplies and food, but Qibi Li said that if he were to entertain Li Guanyi in the Emperor’s inn, it would be harming him.
"You saved our Tiele children, I could not repay kindness with ingratitude."
When he said this, the young Khan smiled, his eyes showing the cunning and wisdom of a Western Regions fox, yet also the openness of a lion, as he took Li Guanyi to a somewhat dilapidated courtyard.
In the yard were other children, a large pot set up cooking chunks of meat, the aroma already filling the air. The children were all thin, clad in clothes that clung to their bodies, revealing the traces of their ribcages as the wind blew.
Li Guanyi did not see his donkey.
Qibi Li, with a smile, pointed to the meat chunks in the pot and said cheerfully:
"There’s nothing much worthy to eat, and not enough silver, the officers here said they would give me a gift, but I believe that in thanking a benefactor, one should not want anything from others. This donkey brother carried me for such a long distance, yet it had to be killed to treat you to a meal."
Li Guanyi remembered the words Qibi Li had said before, asked, "Wasn’t this gathered by the elders of your tribe? Just to eat ?"
Qibi Li replied, "Because it was gathered by the elders, it should be used to thank you. This is like our fathers and fellow villagers together inviting you to share a piece of meat; come, meet your benefactors."
He gently patted the surrounding children, who had differing appearances. Li Guanyi deduced they might not belong to one tribe. Qibi Li said, "Nine Tribes of Tiele, Huihe, Pu Gu, Tongluo, Hun Tribe, Sijie, Bayegu, Qi, Abusi, Gulun Wugusi."
"I am the Khan of Qi, Hunjian Rijin, of the Hun Tribe."
"Though they are not from our tribe, they too live in the Western Regions under the name of Tiele, and life isn’t easy for anyone. Though we often fight, no quarrel should prevent the rescue of a child."
"They are their children, and they are our children too."
Qibi Li’s face lightened up as he pointed to the pot, then had the children bring a bowl that contained a sauce with vinegar, soy sauce, green onions, and cilantro, then picked up a piece of skin-on meat boiled with ginger using large chopsticks, saying,
"This is how we eat in our place, good meat boiled then dipped in sauce."
"It’s not as exquisite as in Jiangnan, please try it."
Li Guanyi took it and, under everyone’s watchful eyes, dipped the meat in the sauce and put it in his mouth. There was a distinct earthy and gamey flavor. Under the Tiele people’s gaze, he swallowed the meat and then smiled, asking, "Is there any more?"