Chapter 54 — The Last Seed Keeper

Trung Lo Station appeared in the middle of Dong Tro like a small island in a vast sea of ash — a cluster of large tents built around a public well constructed before any of the Domes in the area officially established their territorial boundaries, where caravans of traders from various Domes still stopped to rest and exchange goods according to an unwritten convention of neutrality.

Ngan The Binh, who had visited this place countless times during his traveling career, explained to the group as they approached. "Central Station belongs to no Arch," he said. "It is maintained by the merchants who use it, according to a simple set of rules — no naked weapons, no conflict, no distinction of birth. This is the only place in the Ashes where I have ever seen Salt Dome and Sand Dome people eating at the same table."

As the group entered the tented area, Khe Mien immediately noticed the surprising diversity of those present — traders dressed in light clothes suitable for the desert climate of Sand Dome, standing next to people carrying the rougher signs of Salt Dome, and a little further away, a small group with the coal-dusty clothes typical of miners, probably from Stone Dome, making the group suddenly more wary even though no one in the group seemed to pay attention to them.

Near the central well, a debate was going on, loud enough to attract the attention of nearly everyone in the station, between two men who clearly represented two opposing positions.

“Water is the common property of all Vom who rely on Dong Tro,” a younger man, dressed in the light beige cloth typical of Sand Dome, spoke loudly, his voice carrying a passionate conviction. "Charging fees to use public wells is no different than taxing the very survival of those who have no other choice."

"Common property does not mean free maintenance," the man opposite responded, taller, wearing heavy leather armor bearing the familiar mark of Binh Diem even though he had removed his weapons according to station regulations. "Someone has to pay for deepening the well, reinforcing its walls, protecting it from contamination. The Salt Dome is simply asking for a fair contribution to what we maintain."

"In what way is it fair, when small settlements have nothing to contribute but their own drinking water?" the young man countered, his voice now harsher.

Bach Lam signaled the group to stop at a sufficient distance to observe without getting caught up in the argument, but Khe Mien, unable to contain her curiosity, quietly asked a woman standing nearby who was observing the argument with the familiar expression of someone who had witnessed it many times.

"Who are they?" she asked.

"Diep Ba Nhan, emissary of Vom Cat," the woman replied, pointing towards the younger man. "And Co Dinh Vuc, Confucius' messenger. They argue like this almost every time they are both here. It's been three months now."

"About what?" Diem Quynh asked, also caught up in curiosity.

“About the future of all of us,” the woman replied, a tired smile on her lips. "The Sand Dome wants to establish a network to share water and supplies between the Domes and small settlements, open to all who need it. The Salt Dome wants all resources to be tightly controlled, exchanged fairly but not free, on the grounds that unchecked generosity will only lead to faster depletion for everyone."

Khe Mien listened, feeling a strange familiarity in that argument - it almost exactly mirrored the debate between Bien Ba Uy and Su Dinh Lam at the Green Dome many months ago, except now, that debate had gone beyond the boundaries of a single Dome, becoming an ideological war spreading throughout Dong Tro.

The debate calmed down when both envoys realized the presence of a new group, and Diep Ba Nhan, with his sharp diplomatic instincts, turned to greet Khe Mien's group with a friendly smile.

"Sorry for this noisy display," he said, bowing politely. "Which Arch do you come from?"

"Green Dome," Bach Lam replied, stepping forward as usual to protect his group.

Diep Ba Nhan's face lit up with genuine concern. "Green Dome! I heard Cau Bach Thinh mention you with great respect. He said you asked about very profound things during your recent visit — about history, about Thien Ho."

Co Dinh Vuc, standing nearby, turned to look at them with a much sharper gaze when he heard that name, and Khe Mien felt a familiar wariness rise in her heart, remembering how Han Dinh Sang had reacted to this very topic.

"Green Dome," Co Dinh Vuc repeated, his voice carrying a cold assessment. "Mr. Kong Ba Truc still remembers your group, from their not-so-smooth visit a few months ago."

"We hope the relationship between the two Domes is not affected by a personal misunderstanding," Khe Mien said, choosing his words carefully, not wanting to rekindle old conflicts but also not wanting to appear frightened by the implicit reminder.

"We'll wait and see," Co Dinh Vuc replied, a thin smile that didn't reach his eyes. "The Salt Domes keep a close eye on which Domes choose to side with chaos, and which Domes choose to side with order."

Diep Ba Nhan, sensing the rising tension, quickly interjected with the familiar conciliatory tone of a seasoned diplomat. "We don't need to turn Central Station into a battlefield," he said. "This is a neutral place, in the spirit in which it was established."

Co Dinh Vuc nodded reluctantly, took a step back, but his eyes still did not leave Khe Mien's group with an undisguised scrutiny before he turned and walked towards the Salt Dome's tent set up at the far edge of the station.

When he was gone, Diep Ba Nhan sighed and turned to Khe Mien with a more sincere expression. "Please don't let what he said bother you," he said. "But I advise you to be careful. The Salt Domes are tightening their control in this area, and they do not like anyone who questions the order they are trying to establish."

"What about the Sand Dome?" Bach Lam asked. "What is your position, exactly?"

“We believe that long-term survival can only come from sharing, not control,” Diep Ba Nhan replied, his voice ringing with sincere conviction. "The Green Dome is trying to build a network of mutually supportive Domes and settlements, not based on anyone's power, but on mutual trust. If the Green Domes ever consider joining such an alliance in the future, our door is always open."

Khe Mien nodded, remembering that suggestion even though she knew this was not a decision she could make alone. “I will take this message back to the Green Dome Council,” she said. "Thank you for your candor."

That night, as the group sat around a small fire set up at the edge of the station, the noise of conversations and goods exchanges continuing to echo from the center of the tent area, Diem Quynh spoke up, breaking the contemplative silence that had enveloped the group since the tense meeting that afternoon.

“I don't understand why the Salt Dome would send a messenger to a neutral place just to argue,” she said. "If they just want control, why not simply do so within their own territory?"

"Because power is not just about controlling what belongs to you," Ngan The Binh replied, his voice thoughtful. "It's also about convincing others that your way of controlling is right, even necessary. Co Dinh Vuc didn't just come here to argue — he came here to sow doubts about the sharing model that Vom Cat is promoting, before it spreads too far."

Bach Lam nodded in agreement, his eyes looking towards the distant fires of the main tent area. "This is a war of words and beliefs, before it can become anything worse," he said. "And I worry that we're only seeing the beginning of it."

Kien, sitting quietly listening, finally spoke, his voice carrying a new maturity that the long journey had gradually built up. “I think the most important thing we can do,” he said, “is make sure the Green Dome chooses sides based on facts, not based on fear or empty promises from anyone.”

Khe Mien looked at him with warm pride, then turned back to look at the distant fires of Trung Lo Station, where Diep Ba Nhan and Co Dinh Vuc, representing two opposing visions of the future, continued their endless debate under the starry night sky.

As the group continued to prepare for the rest of the journey, setting up a temporary camp near the edge of Trung Lo Station to rest for the night before leaving, Khe Mien couldn't help but feel that she had just witnessed, more directly and clearly than ever, the line of demarcation gradually forming between the Arches — a line that, she knew, Green Dome would soon have to take sides, whether they liked it or not.