Part 17 (2/2)
The old , a co out of the west They said they had served the king of-as the na the scornful way this king's generals treated them, they had deserted and struck out eastward to seek their fortunes in Khitai”
Leng Chi took up the tale ”They passed a few leagues north of here, through the village of Shaulun They found favor with the villagers because they destroyed a band of robbers, and they did not loot or rape Therefore the villagers warned the But they would not listen, and
”There, we heard, they offered their swords to Yah Chieng He feigned acceptance but had other plans in ht of which he had their captain's head cut off and the rest cast into his dungeon”
”Why did he do this?” said Conan
”It seereat rite of devilish ic!”
”What became of them?”
”At last accounts, they still awaited their dooh that is three months since”
”How did you hear of it?”
”A wo a love affair with one of the Two Hundred, fled to Shaulun, and thence the tale ca,” said Conan, ”tell me about /our palace I shall need to findlines on the earthen floor of the hut ”You know that the usurper s since I dwelt therein
But this is how they were in reat hall”
Hours later, plans were oblet high, the aht He cried in a ringing voice: ”To the future and honor of great Paikang, and may the head of the Snake soon be crushed under the boot of the Avenger!”
An answering shout went up, and Conan esture and drank His brain whirled with the realization that he was at last within reach of his goal
Dust rose in choking clouds on the road that ran west fro
Hundreds of Khitans in blue and brown shuffled along it towards the city
The sun glea The waters of the moat reflected the white walls, the brown hills, and the blue sky, save where the wakes of a flock of swi ducks disturbed its surface Over the walls rose the paGodas of Paikang, their reen, blue, and purple and glittering with gilded ornaons and lions snarled down froate
The dusty lines of countryfolk streaate, afoot and on donkeyback For once Yah Chieng's soldiers stood back, leaning on their bills and tridents and watching the throng without stopping each one for questioning, search, and extortion Now and then the drab coluhtened by the brilliant costumes of the dancers The lion dancers of Shaulun ilded liontongue this way and that The man in the forequarters must have been of unusual stature, for the headpiece of the lion costume towered far above the heads of the Khitans
Inside the city, the countryfolk poured along a winding avenue toward the palace Conan, peering through the holes below the lion ent smells of a Khitan city and pricked his ears at its sounds At first it sounded like a h each horn, bell, whistle, and rattle was used by tradesmen of a particular kind tothe crowd, he ca open in it The folk poured in The coluons, ten feet high and thrice as long, and joined again on the other side They were in the courtyard of Yah Chieng's palace, for 's servants ladled out rice stew and rice wine Many of the guests were already in a sti talk of the crowd rose to a roar Here a juggler tossed balls and hatchets; there a s, though only those within a few feet of hi Chi's voice in his ear: ”Over this way The dancing will soon begin Be not so proficient as to win the prize It would not forward our plans to have the judge demand that you doff your headpiece to receive it”
The long stone corridor was dark Deathly silence reigned in its le cat, avoiding the slightest sound, carrying his sword unsheathed He was clad in a Khitan jacket and silken trousers, bought froe
As he had planned, so had things befallen During the rising tur torchlight that one of the lion dresses was now borne by only one carrier Shadows and nooks had aided Conan's swift entry Noas on his way into the heart of the enehold
His senses were sharpened to the utmost It was not the first time he had entered the abode of a hostile wizard Mes he had met on similar occasions thrust the de that could send tendrils of fear probing into his brain But with iron self-possession, he shrugged off his atavistic fears and continued his catlike stalk