Desert Rhapsody - Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Men of Arabia came of age at fifteen, so Abal was technically old enough. It was said that even in the modern Middle East, such customs still remained: a young man was to venture into the wilderness alone and, by his own strength, bring down prey worthy of recognition-a deer, a wild goat, a fox, even a bison, a leopard, or a wolf. The only helpers he could have at his side were hounds and a gun. Only then would the elders around him acknowledge that he had grown into a brave man, one who could straighten his back and speak to them as an equal.

There were no elders around Abal older than himself. To demonstrate his position as leader-and even more so out of his own ambition-he had to complete this rite and come of age beneath the glory of a brilliant feat. In this era, guns obviously did not exist. It was said that somewhere far away, or perhaps in the army, there was a kind of firearm, but Abal would not be using that. He intended to take only hounds and hawks, and hunt a lion with the scimitar and bow he carried on him.

Jiang Yuan said, “Am I not a person?”

Abal glanced at her and said without the slightest concern, “I need someone to help me carry the lion. Besides, you are a woman.”

Women did not count as people, apparently. They could also serve as witnesses and assistants for Abal-truly the most convenient of tools. Jiang Yuan asked, “How can you guarantee we won’t be bitten to death by a lion?”

“Fate is fickle. I cannot guarantee such a thing, but I can guarantee that I will do everything in my power to protect our safety,” Abal said. “Otherwise, you will simply have to cross the wilderness to Baghdad on your own.”

Dying alone on the road was far more believable than dying under Abal’s watch in a lion’s jaws, so Jiang Yuan agreed to help him pack. The two of them would bring a camel caravan, five dogs, three hawks, and their most trusted mounts, Night and Sun. Over the past winter, under Abal’s instruction, Jiang Yuan had also learned how to gallop on horseback and wield weapons, and Abal knew her progress like the back of his hand.

“I go into the desert every year to observe it. I have also cleared the routes around here. Aside from two wandering male lions, there is no threat at all.” Abal was extremely generous. “I can give one to you, my dear Jia Nan. My men will compete to dance before your tent, all so that you might gift one of them that Lion Tooth as a token of love.”

Jiang Yuan cursed him bloody in her heart while listening expressionlessly as he listed the things they needed to bring. Hunting a lion was no easy task. They had to make every possible preparation, and once they entered the desert, the harsh natural conditions would be an even more difficult opponent.

Across the entire Arabian Peninsula, most of the central region was shrouded in highlands and desert. The only areas suitable for human activity were the north nourished by Mesopotamia and the coastal south. In the north, the port of Sharjah, the holy city of Jerusalem, and the ancient city of Damascus occupied crossroads that connected in every direction. From there, heading southeast led to the wilderness of Syria, while heading west led to the Nafud Desert. The Nafud Desert was not entirely desert. Oases of various sizes cut across it, and by following this trade route, one could reach Mecca and Medina. Stray from the trade route, however, and there would be nothing but endless Gobi and wasteland.

Jiang Yuan also needed clothes, shoes, and weapons that fit her, and several extra sets had to be prepared for replacements. Abal took her along to give instructions to Jamal and Faisal, and both of them revealed knowing looks. Clearly, taking a woman along to hunt a lion-anyone could imagine the suggestive scene without even trying. Jiang Yuan simply pretended not to hear their teasing.

They brought ample water, milk, and several bags of date wine, along with plenty of food and clothing. On a day of fine weather, they set out southward and plunged deep into the wasteland. The ground was covered in gravel, and when the wind blew, it seemed ready to howl up and sweep straight into one’s eyes. Jiang Yuan swayed atop her camel. The hounds from Aden barked, each of them sleek and long-bodied, racing beside Abal’s camel as they advanced in a half-circle patrol around them. The hawks cried, circling above Abal’s head. The cobalt-necked fellow who had once squared off against Jiang Yuan-its name was Moonlight-suddenly dove down. When it beat its wings and rose again, a wild fowl was clutched in its talons.

As it flew past Jiang Yuan, it even deliberately buffeted her with one wing. She avoided it expressionlessly and watched as it dropped the hare in front of Abal. Abal cut a piece of meat from the hare to reward it, then put the dead hare into the bag beside his saddlecloth.
That night, they ate roast rabbit. The hounds had also flushed out a nest of wild pheasants, so it could be called a plentiful haul. They made camp beside a large boulder. Dig a pit beneath it, and enough water would seep out to form a small, not particularly clear pool-good enough for the animals. The moonlight was bright, as if it could illuminate a thousand miles. In any case, Jiang Yuan finally did not have to eat mutton. In the desert, salt was inconvenient to carry. Aside from the coarse salt blocks and bean cakes meant for the camels, Jiang Yuan and Abal each held a little bowl made of rock salt, cut off pieces of rabbit, rubbed them against the bowl, and stuffed them into their mouths, eating in silence and at speed.

After they finished, Abal said, “Sleep for a while first. I’ll wake you in the middle of the night. The hounds will keep watch for us, so don’t worry.” He buried the bones in the sand, then packed up the leftover meat. There was quite a lot of it, enough to bulge a whole sack. The hounds were sharing two wild pheasants, rustling and tearing, all slick with blood. Jiang Yuan and Abal each dug a shallow pit beside the fire. With a hollow to hold them in place, they would not roll into the flames in their sleep. The weather was gradually getting hotter, and with the boulder blocking the wind, there was little need for a tent, so they only put up half of one to keep off the sand. When Jiang Yuan lay down, pulling her blanket over herself, she saw above her an endless expanse of starlight.

She fell asleep. In the middle of the night, she felt someone poke her shoulder. When she opened her eyes, those blue eyes and a sand-dusted headscarf were bent over her, looking down. They mounted their horses without bringing the camels, setting off lightly through the darkness and retracing their route. Cloth was wrapped around the horses’ hooves, muffling each strike against the ground. The road the camels had taken their slow time to cover during the day took only about three hours on horseback. When they were close to returning to the camp, Abal signaled for Jiang Yuan to dismount. He patted Night on the neck and gave a soft whistle. Night neighed once, then led Sun away at an easy run through the pale light of dawn.

Abal took Jiang Yuan on foot for about two hours. Once they could see traces of the camp in the distance, he found a hiding place nearby, and they lay low to wait. The remaining rabbit and pheasant meat, though cold, was enough to fill their stomachs with wine and water. The blue-eyed bandit chief had planned this in advance, using his own camp as the bait in an ambush. Jiang Yuan found a good spot beside him, concealed herself properly, and took charge of slicing meat every now and then, passing food and water to Abal’s hand. The bandits did not merely stay inside the camp. They rode out for a few laps as well, and with their leader gone, they reveled all the more wildly. In one day, Jiang Yuan saw at least three camel races and seven or eight open-air trysts.

They kept watch until the following dawn. Jiang Yuan had already fallen asleep, lying beside Abal, her cheek near his curved blade and headscarf, the gemstones on the scabbard cold enough to chill the bone. The moment she heard a sound, cool fingers pressed down with force, covering her mouth and nose to keep her from making a noise. Abal, needing leverage, braced himself over her so he could lift his body and look farther out.

The sound of hoofbeats gradually receded. Dawn came again, sunlight spilling across his face and making those blue eyes look hard and cold as ice. He lowered his head and glanced at Jiang Yuan before curling his lips into a smile, though it could not dispel the shadowed viciousness in his expression. Once the bandit chief had waited for what he wanted, he got up, put the little cap that held his hair back in place, and covered it with his headscarf. Jiang Yuan climbed to her feet, feeling as though after a whole day of barely moving, every bone in her body could creak. Abal, however, was still full of energy, as if he felt no fatigue at all. They walked to the place from the day before, where Abal whistled to summon Night.

The sound of hoofbeats gradually became audible. Abal suddenly asked Jiang Yuan, “Aren’t you going to ask who it was?”

“I don’t want to ask. I also think you’d be better off not telling me,” Jiang Yuan said calmly. Abal gave a laugh. “I’ve never met a woman as incurious as you.” Yet he insisted on saying it anyway. “The one who left was Faisal.”