Little People

"The second watch is here! Shut your doors and windows, guard against thieves and burglars..."

Yang Ge sat at the table beneath a solitary lamp, the martial arts manual the Curly-Bearded Saber-Wielder had bestowed on him laid out neatly before him.

On its cover, the words "Eighteen Routes of Chaotic Wind Kicks" flowed like drifting clouds and running water, graceful as a startled swan!

Behind him, Wang Dali deftly fitted the last door plank into place, then eagerly darted to Yang Ge's side. Draping an arm over his shoulders, he said over and over, "Young fellow, young fellow, let me have a look! Let me have a look..."

Yang Ge glanced at him, then silently reached out and turned the manual toward Wang Dali.

Wang Dali's eyes lit up as he reached to leaf through it.

Smack.

A slap landed on Wang Dali's head, knocking it sideways.

"Motherfu-"

Wang Dali sprang up and turned around in a blazing fury, only to find Shopkeeper Liu standing behind him with a thunderous expression. He hastily swallowed the last syllable and sheepishly sat back on the bench, clutching his head. "Heh, Shopkeeper, I was just fooling around with the young fellow!"

Shopkeeper Liu looked down at Wang Dali expressionlessly and said with biting sarcasm, "What are you saying, Master Dali? You're a great man who's going to learn martial arts and become a mighty hero. How could the young fellow and I possibly be worthy of fooling around with you?"

Wang Dali flushed with embarrassment. Lowering his head, he muttered, "I was wrong. I really was wrong. Please stop scolding me, Shopkeeper."

Shopkeeper Liu wanted to say something, but his anger got the better of him. He raised his hand and slapped the other side of Wang Dali's head, knocking it sideways again.

"Why don't you shit yourself a puddle and look at your reflection before dreaming of learning martial arts and becoming a hero? With that brain of yours, someone could swindle you to death the moment you stepped outside, and you'd still be telling the King of Hell what a nice fellow they were!"

Wang Dali clutched his head and dared not make a sound, but his repeated glances at the manual betrayed the restlessness in his heart.

Exasperated by his failure to learn, Shopkeeper Liu raised his hand again, but slowly lowered it in the end. Instead, he turned to Yang Ge and said earnestly, "Young fellow, throw this thing into the stove and burn it. Keeping it will only bring disaster!"

The old man was no great figure, but after half a lifetime of welcoming and seeing off guests, he naturally had his own philosophy for navigating the world.

In his eyes, the handful of them at the Welcome Inn were all little people, running themselves ragged every day for three meals and a place to sleep.

Since they were little people, they had no business prattling about soaring to glory, becoming marquises or ministers!

He had lived more than half a lifetime, and most of the people he had seen whose appetites exceeded their stomachs had met ugly ends...

"We can't burn it."

After his long silence, Yang Ge quietly spoke those few words.

Shopkeeper Liu grew anxious, assuming the martial arts manual had gone to Yang Ge's head as well. He was about to urge him again when Yang Ge added, "Burning it would cause even more trouble!"

Shopkeeper Liu paused, puzzled. "How so?"

Yang Ge tapped the martial arts manual on the table and said slowly, "If trouble doesn't come knocking, this thing is just a few sheets of wastepaper. If trouble does come knocking, this thing is the solution... It might even be our only way to stay alive!"

With that booming voice of Jiang Kui's, that walking jinx, people several streets away had probably heard him bestowing the reward.

If someone really came demanding the thing from Yang Ge, and he said he had burned it... who would believe him?

Not everyone had Shopkeeper Liu's sense.

Wang Dali was the perfect example.

Shopkeeper Liu suddenly understood. Patting his chest repeatedly in belated fear, he said, "You really have thought this through, young fellow!"

He gazed worriedly at the martial arts manual on the table, finding it a thorny problem himself, with no idea how to deal with it.

After a moment's silence, Yang Ge suddenly said, "Shopkeeper, let's close the inn for a while!"

Shopkeeper Liu and Wang Dali both looked at Yang Ge.

Yang Ge said slowly, "The martial trials are drawing near. I'm afraid incidents like today's will only become more frequent. Ours is just a small business earning copper coins. There's no need to risk losing our homes and lives over it."

Luting County bordered Divine Capital Luoyang and was one of the gateways into the capital.

At first glance, therefore, what had happened today seemed like a chance incident brought on by bad luck.

But at this particular juncture, this sort of rotten business was actually inevitable.

After all, martial artists spent their lives amid flashing blades and storms of blood. Most had bad tempers, and to varying degrees, a touch of persecution mania and PTSD.

And inns, as gathering points for travelers, were among the places that dealt most frequently with these martial artists heading to the capital for the examination...

The Welcome Inn had run into martial artists causing trouble two days in a row. That was the best proof.

Besides, Yang Ge was certain that when Jiang Kui had gripped his Pipa Bone, he had genuinely considered killing him!

Torn, Shopkeeper Liu thought for a long time before letting out a lengthy sigh. With a forlorn smile, he said, "If you hadn't mentioned it, young fellow, I'd almost have forgotten that this is a Grace Martial Examination... Thanks to His Majesty, I'll finally get a rest after thirty-five years of running this inn."

Shopkeeper Liu's words caught Wang Dali's attention. With a sheepish grin, he asked, "Shopkeeper, what's a Grace Martial Examination?"

Shopkeeper Liu shot Wang Dali a disdainful glance, not wanting to bother explaining. Only when he saw Yang Ge watching him intently as well did he reluctantly speak. "The regular Martial Examination is like the civil service examination: a list of successful candidates every three years. Most of those selected are outstanding soldiers or sons of military families with unblemished backgrounds."

"The Grace Martial Examination, however, is like a special civil examination. The sage sovereign opens it specially to bestow grace upon the realm and select worthy talent... I hear that anyone accepted this time will be pardoned for all past crimes!"

Understanding dawned on Wang Dali. "No wonder so many officers came along with that nasty customer for a meal!"

Shopkeeper Liu only looked more troubled. "In all my years, this is only the second time I've seen the throne conduct a Martial Examination this way. The last time was when Emperor Taizong personally led a campaign into the great desert... Looks like troubled times really are coming!"

Perhaps this was what it meant for the ducks to be the first to know when the spring river warmed.

Though the old man knew nothing of great affairs of state and had no reliable source of firsthand information, he could always find parallels in his past experiences and discern major developments that were not so obvious.

Yang Ge said nothing, but inwardly felt that the court's move showed tremendous boldness. If it could truly bring those unrestrained wanderers of the martial world into line, it would both reduce internal strife in the Divine Land and strengthen the army's fighting power-two birds with one stone!

Of course, that depended on bringing them into line...

After considering for a moment, he changed the subject. "Shopkeeper, don't you often say you want to go back to your hometown and see your old house? This is a good opportunity."

Shopkeeper Liu glanced at him, his brows slowly drawing together. "You mean..."

Yang Ge nodded. "The inn isn't safe. Just leave me here alone!"

Shopkeeper Liu tugged hard at his beard. "If trouble really comes knocking, you won't be safe on your own either... How about I find you somewhere to hide, too?"

Tapping the manual on the table, Yang Ge shook his head slightly. "Trouble will be looking for me and this thing. If they can't find me, they'll come after you!"

Wang Dali stiffened his neck and said indignantly, "It's only a lousy book, anyway. Just give it to whoever wants it! Surely they wouldn't hound someone to death over it?"

As Shopkeeper Liu watched Yang Ge, he too wondered whether Yang Ge was making a mountain out of a molehill.

"I've already looked through this thing briefly. From what I can tell, it shouldn't be any particularly profound martial art. It shouldn't be worth anyone killing to seize it."

Yang Ge continued softly and calmly, "But the crux of the matter isn't how precious this martial arts manual is. It's how famous that Hero Jiang is in the martial world, and how many enemies he has!"

"If everyone believes Hero Jiang gave me a manual of divine martial arts, then even if it's only a children's picture book, countless people will still come here to kill and plunder, digging three feet into the ground."

"If Hero Jiang has enemies everywhere, and they're all ruthless killers who don't bat an eye at murder, then even a stray dog by the roadside that wags its tail at him might end up slaughtered."

"And right now, we know nothing about Hero Jiang, do we?"

"Of course, things won't necessarily turn out as badly as I've said."

"But with our lives on the line, we have to prepare for the worst, don't we?"

When Jiang Kui had first tossed him the martial arts manual, he had known it meant trouble.

Later, when he had time to think it through carefully, he realized it meant... even more trouble than he had expected!

That also showed that Jiang Kui's loudly tossing him the thing might not have been entirely well-intentioned.

Perhaps that was how great figures looked down upon little people: I've given you an opportunity. Whether you can seize it depends on your own ability!

Shopkeeper Liu and Wang Dali had thought Yang Ge was making too much of it, but after hearing his analysis, both felt chills down their backs, as though a pair of lecherous eyes were secretly watching them from the shadows.

"Heh, heh..."

Wang Dali swallowed hard and forced a smile. "Then if I go home right now, is there still time?"

Smack!

Beside himself with rage, Shopkeeper Liu slapped the back of Wang Dali's head, sending it crashing against the table like a chick pecking grain. "You donkey-spawned bastard! If the young fellow hadn't taken the thunderbolt for you, would he have landed in this mess? Have dogs eaten your conscience?"

Wang Dali raised his head, rubbing the back of it. His eyes darted away, not daring to look at Yang Ge again, and he muttered under his breath, "But wasn't it the young fellow who told us to go home..."

Shopkeeper Liu angrily raised his broad hand to give the wretch another hefty slap, but Yang Ge shook his head and said softly, "Anyone who needs to know about tonight's incident surely knows already. Besides, the curfew is in force now. You couldn't leave even if you wanted to..."

"Tonight, I'll keep the lamp lit and sit here waiting. If anyone comes, I'll deal with them myself. You two should leave the inn first thing tomorrow morning."

"If I can get through this, we'll reopen for business once the Martial Examination is over."

"If my luck is bad... sorry for the trouble, Shopkeeper, but please spend a little on a mat, wrap me up, and throw me into the Bian River."

As he spoke, he actually began to smile, and a light they had never seen before kindled in his eyes.

Seeing Yang Ge like this, Shopkeeper Liu could not help remembering that winter last year, when Yang Ge, dressed in rags, had walked back and forth along the snow-covered street, on and on. No one knew where he was going, or where he could return to...

"Don't think like that!"

Shopkeeper Liu pressed a hand to Yang Ge's shoulder and forced a smile. "You'd better stay alive. I'm still waiting for you to repay my kindness!"

Yang Ge smiled and nodded. "Who wouldn't want to live if they could..."