The Bottom Rung

Qinghe County, Blackwater Bay.

Late autumn, frost seeped into the bones.

Before dawn had broken, Xu Qing followed his second uncle, Xu Erniu, through the darkness toward the fishing boat docks.

The river wind carried a heavy stench of fish and water as it rushed into their faces, scraping across their skin like knives and instantly wiping away the last traces of sleepiness.

Xu Qing instinctively tightened his ragged padded jacket and quickened his pace.

In his previous life, he had been a workhorse on Blue Star. In this life, he was a sixteen-year-old fisher boy.

"A-Qing." Xu Erniu carried a fishing net on his back, his spine slightly hunched and his voice dry. "Your aunt counted yesterday. The household has eight taels and five qian in all. This money... was originally saved for you to take a wife."

"Since you've set your heart on practicing martial arts, your aunt and I won't stop you. I had someone ask around in the city. The Zhao Family Martial Hall in the west of the city teaches well, and its apprenticeship fee is the cheapest—but it still costs ten taels of silver."

"Of the eight taels and five qian, we need to keep two taels for the poll tax and another five qian for emergencies. We're still short four taels for the apprenticeship fee."

Xu Erniu did not turn back, nor did he slow his pace. "After we sell the fish today, I'll go into the city to see your younger aunt. Back when your father was alive, when she got married, he added three taels of silver to her dowry. Your uncle-in-law is an honest man. We might be able to borrow two taels."

"We're still short two taels. Your aunt and I discussed it—we'll have her return to her parents' home today."

"You don't need to worry about the money. Your uncle can still work now, and I'll be able to earn more in the future. We can slowly pay back what we borrow."

After saying that, Xu Erniu fell silent.

Looking at his second uncle's slightly bent back, Xu Qing felt a pang of bitterness.

Xu Erniu was not yet forty, but years spent bending over to haul nets and enduring the wind and water had left his joints with lasting ailments. Whenever autumn turned cold, the pain became unbearable.

Xu Qing's parents had died early and entrusted him to the second branch of the family. His second uncle and aunt had treated him like their own son. They had never let him lack food or clothing. Even though they had not sent their own daughter to private school, they had gritted their teeth and supported Xu Qing's studies for two years.

The moment he said he wanted to practice martial arts, his second uncle had immediately found out the details through others. He was even willing to empty the family's savings and borrow money to support him.

Even if his parents had still been alive, they could not have done better than this.

Xu Qing had always kept this kindness in his heart.

Xu Qing clenched his fist in secret. One day, he would make sure his second uncle's family lived a good life.

He had the confidence to say so.

His desire to practice martial arts was not some hotheaded whim, either.

Three days ago, when he awakened the wisdom of his past life, a passage of text had appeared in his mind.

[Fate: Innate Martial Seed]

[The martial path is boundless, my body unrestrained; when cultivation is practiced, attainment will surely come, as water naturally flows when the channel is formed.]

There was no doubt about it—this was his golden finger.

This golden finger had been made for martial arts.

The uncle and nephew walked through the darkness for roughly half a ke before they reached the mouth of the bay.

Several hundred fishing boats crowded shoulder to shoulder in the natural river inlet, their masts standing like a forest. A crude shack had been built at the entrance to the berths, light shining from within.

Before they even approached, they heard cursing.

"You poor-boned trash! You lowborn bastards! If you've got no money, what are you doing running boats? Hurry up and get lost to scrape some together!"

"If you don't pay the guard fee and berth fee before dawn, I'll bore holes through your rotten boat!"

It was Song Ba's voice.

He was a "night watchman" sent by the Leviathan Gang. His name contained an eight, and a scar marked his face, earning him the vicious nickname Scar Lord.

On the surface, the authorities ruled Blackwater Bay. In the shadows, the Leviathan Gang was the true sky. Though the fishing boats large and small mostly belonged to fishermen, they all had to submit to the Leviathan Gang's control.

Every day without fail, there was a five-cash "guard fee" and a five-cash "berth fee."

Refuse their control? Refuse to pay?

Having one's boat sunk was the lightest punishment. Families destroyed and lives lost were common enough.

"Don't say Scar Lord hasn't shown you a clear road. The Fish Pens are issuing autumn wind loans right now. If you can't scrape together the money, go to the Fish Pens for emergency help. Now get lost!"

The moment Song Ba's words hit the ground, the door curtain was lifted.

An old man with a face full of wrinkles and dead eyes staggered out.

Xu Qing recognized him. He had once been a wealthy household head at the eastern end of the bay—Old Master Zhou.

The Zhou family had once been as glorious as they were now miserable. Their only son had been lured by the Leviathan Gang into gambling until his eyes turned red. Their family fortune had scattered overnight. First they sold their house, then sold the son's wife. The old master had been angered to death, and in the end the son had plunged headfirst into the river.

If not for the little grandson still tethering him to this world, the old man would have followed his son long ago.

Old Zhou looked up and saw Xu Erniu. A tiny glimmer suddenly lit in his ash-gray eyes.

He knew Xu Erniu was kindhearted. Borrowing ten coins from him might just work.

But just as he opened his mouth, a shriek suddenly came from the distance.

"Uncle Zhou! Something's wrong! Your shack collapsed—Shunzi is buried underneath!"

Old Zhou's entire body shuddered, and he froze where he stood.

A middle-aged man ran over in a panic, gasping for breath. "I heard the noise and rushed out... but by the time I dug Shunzi out, he was already gone... Uncle Zhou, hurry back and take a look..."

Old Zhou swayed. The last bit of color drained completely from his face. He did not mention borrowing money again. Like an empty shell, he dragged his feet along the ground and shuffled back one step at a time.

Xu Erniu watched that hunched figure recede into the distance. It felt as though a lump of soaked, rotten cotton had clogged his chest. He wanted to say something, but swallowed the words once they reached his lips.

In Blackwater Bay, whose roof did not hide bitter water beneath its eaves?

The government's taxes peeled away one layer of skin, while the Leviathan Gang's exploitation sucked out the marrow.

People endured their days by boiling in bitter water.

Every family had its own hardships.

He could not help others, nor could he manage so much.

He lowered his eyes and stopped looking at that desolate retreating figure. Turning back, he said quietly to Xu Qing, "A-Qing, wait outside. I'll go pay."

He lifted the cloth curtain. Under the dim yellow oil lamp, Song Ba sat behind a broken wooden table, the light shining on the old scar that cut from his brow bone to the corner of his mouth.

Xu Erniu set down the fishing net, bent forward, and pulled out a small oilcloth packet. He unwrapped it layer by layer, revealing ten copper coins inside. Forcing out a smile, he gently placed the money on the table.

"Morning, Scar Lord. This is today's guard fee and berth fee."

Song Ba lifted his eyelids slightly and snorted a puff of white breath through his nose without speaking. He merely opened the ledger and drew a tick beside Xu Erniu's name.

Only after paying the "toll money" were the uncle and nephew allowed into the berths. They walked deep-footed and shallow-footed across the slick mudflats, soon finding their own small fishing boat.

Xu Erniu boarded and inspected it once over. There were no leaks. He tossed down the net and called Xu Qing aboard at once. Untying the mooring rope, he pushed with the bamboo pole, and the little boat silently slipped out of the crowded berths.

Once they left the waters so tightly "guarded" by the Leviathan Gang, even the river wind seemed to breathe freely at last.

"A-Qing, sort out the nets. The water's cold today, so the fish should be moving down deeper," Xu Erniu said.

Xu Qing answered and quickly began arranging them, his fingers reddened by the fishing nets soaked in autumn chill.

"Autumn fish are plump, and the tide is good today. We might get a fine haul." As Xu Erniu spoke, he put away the pole and took up the oars. The black-canopied boat cut through the cold-rippled water, heading deeper into the bay.

"Second Uncle, I heard Uncle Li from the western end is giving his daughter to Manager Wang of the Fish Pens as a concubine? She's entering his household next month? If I remember right, his Erya is only twelve..." Xu Qing asked tentatively as he sorted the nets.

Xu Erniu's movements stalled. After a long silence, he said quietly, "When autumn began, Li Laoda borrowed an autumn wind loan from the Fish Pens. Thirty percent interest, to be repaid at the start of winter. The deadline is almost here, and he knows he can't repay it..."

The Fish Pens were a Leviathan Gang business.

Xu Qing said nothing more.

Lend in autumn, collect in winter—this was an old tactic of the Leviathan Gang.

They issued loans before the cold set in, then pressed for repayment in the depths of winter. How many families had sold sons and daughters because of it?

The Leviathan Gang controlled everything here.

From boats to fish sales, without their permission, not even a single fish scale could be taken out of the bay.

The black-canopied boat drifted over the water for more than an hour.

Xu Erniu signaled to haul in the net.

The net was heavy and freezing to the touch. The uncle and nephew pulled together, and silver scales leapt and flashed beneath the autumn sun. There were a good forty or fifty jin of fat autumn fish.

Xu Erniu had not even had time to rejoice when his breath suddenly caught!

At the bottom of the net was a golden carp, over a foot long. Its golden scales gleamed like a gold ingot.

"Golden-Scaled Carp!" Xu Erniu's voice trembled as he hurriedly looked around.

Xu Qing's heart also began pounding.

This kind of "treasure fish" greatly nourished qi and blood. It was a prized tonic among martial artists and wealthy households in the county seat.

One fish could sell for at least ten taels of silver.

Even if half the fish money was taken by the Leviathan Gang and the authorities, what remained would be enough for a fishing household like theirs to live in warmth and fullness for half a year.

With this Golden-Scaled Carp, they would not need to borrow money. It would be enough for Xu Qing's apprenticeship.

"Don't make a sound... don't make a sound." Xu Erniu suppressed his excitement and carefully placed the Golden-Scaled Carp in a separate bucket. He covered it tightly with ordinary fish and lowered his voice. "A-Qing, we need to avoid people on the way back."

On the return journey, a rare smile appeared on Xu Erniu's face. Xu Qing was in high spirits as well.

By the time the black-canopied boat docked, the pier was already packed with fishing boats selling their catches. The Fish Pens stood right beside the docks, and the air was saturated with fish stench that would not disperse.

After mooring the boat, the uncle and nephew carried their fish buckets and silently joined the line. The fishermen hunched their shoulders in the autumn wind, their eyes numb as they poured their catches into the large wooden basins used for weighing fish.

Manager Wang wore a thick padded jacket and sat beneath the eaves, several gang members gathered nearby.

When it was the Xu family uncle and nephew's turn, Xu Erniu did not dare hesitate. He poured out the Golden-Scaled Carp.

"Oh—Golden-Scaled Carp!" Manager Wang's small eyes lit up, and the flesh on his face quivered. "Xu Erniu, what kind of dogshit luck did you step in?"

"It's all thanks to Manager Wang's good fortune." Xu Erniu bent at the waist.

Manager Wang weighed the fish in his hand and narrowed his eyes. "The quality's passable. But there's plenty of stock on the autumn market, so the price is down. Eight taels."

"Manager, this fish is worth at least ten taels..." Xu Erniu's voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.

"Hm?" Manager Wang snorted through his nose and shot him a sidelong glance. "I said eight taels, so it's eight taels."

Xu Erniu lowered his head. "Eight taels... eight taels it is."

"Lowborn bastard." Manager Wang cursed and flicked his abacus. "Thirty-five jin of miscellaneous fish, seventy cash. One Golden-Scaled Carp, eight taels. Deducting the fish tax and Fish Pens management fee, you get four taels and thirty-five cash."

Xu Qing forced down his fury, his heart turning cold. A treasure fish worth at least ten taels had been purchased for only eight. More than forty jin of fish had been weighed as thirty-five. Half their money had been deducted as well.

Xu Erniu lowered his head and accepted the broken silver and copper coins with trembling hands.

Just then, a commotion suddenly broke out at the Fish Pens.

Black Fish Liu San, a minor leader of the Leviathan Gang, stormed into the Fish Pens with several men. A few gang members dragged along a middle-aged fisherman whose face was covered in blood.

Xu Qing recognized him. Uncle Chen Fourth from their alley.

"Look carefully, all of you!" Liu San's cracked-gong voice rang across the Fish Pens dock. "This dog Chen Laosi caught a silver-thread perch yesterday and dared to secretly sell it in the county seat! He broke Blackwater Bay's rules!"

Chen Laosi was thrown onto the icy mud like a dead dog. His left leg was twisted at a grotesque angle. He was barely breathing, with only faint groans left in him.

"The rules of Blackwater Bay are that every catch must go through the Fish Pens!" Liu San's gaze was vicious as it swept over the fishermen, who were silent as cicadas in winter. "Whoever dares to do it again will end up like Chen Laosi! First offense, broken leg! Second offense, sunk in the pond!"

Everyone lowered their heads and trembled. One woman covered her mouth and wept.

Satisfied, Liu San turned his head. His eyes fell upon Xu Erniu's clenched right hand. "Xu Second, Old Wang says you caught a Golden-Scaled Carp and sold it for four taels of silver? An autumn treasure fish—by custom, we have to take another ten percent in lucky red money."

Xu Erniu's face went pale in an instant. "Master Liu, this... wasn't it five percent before...?"

"Before was before. Now is now." As Liu San spoke, he strode forward. With a grin, he pried open Xu Erniu's hand with five fingers like pincers and snatched away several bits of broken silver.

Perhaps dissatisfied because Xu Erniu had held it too tightly, Liu San was not content with taking the silver. He casually shoved him as well.

Xu Erniu staggered and fell to the ground. Copper coins and broken silver clattered across the earth.

Liu San burst into laughter and swaggered away with the gang members.

Xu Qing felt a rush of blood shoot straight to his head. Looking at his second uncle's embarrassed, sorrowful face, then at Chen Laosi, who lay barely alive in the mud, he ultimately said nothing.

He merely bent down to help his second uncle up, then crouched to gather the scattered copper coins.

Xu Erniu sighed and bent down as well.