Market Day

The ninth day of the tenth month was Crouching Tiger Slope's market day. People from more than a dozen nearby villages would come here to trade.

The day before, Liu Yuanzhou had arranged to meet his friends at their old spot, beneath the Big Willow Tree at the village entrance. By the time he arrived after breakfast, Liu Chuang and Zhang He were already there. Zhang He was squatting in the tree, while Liu Chuang idly kicked at the trunk.

"You two got here early. You've both had breakfast, right?" Liu Yuanzhou jogged over, stamping his feet. The morning was truly freezing; his breath seemed ready to turn to ice.

"Ate ages ago." Liu Chuang wore new clothes and a dogskin cap. His hands were tucked into his sleeves, his neck hunched, and his feet kept moving nonstop.

Zhang He jumped down from the tree and came over. He too was dressed in brand-new clothes.

"Why isn't Xiucai here yet? He's always the last one to arrive whenever we do something." Liu Chuang complained.

"I've seen him reciting books every morning lately. He's probably only having breakfast now. There's no rush anyway, so let's wait a little longer," Liu Yuanzhou said. Zhang He nodded in agreement beside him, and Liu Chuang said no more.

"He's studying harder and harder lately. He should be able to pass next year's County Exam, right?" As Liu Yuanzhou thought about it, his chest felt a little clogged. His friend's future looked promising; he ought to have been happy for him. Yet compared to that, he himself was still treading water, with his own future lost in mist. The taste of it was truly subtle.

The three of them idly chatted about this and that.

After waiting another quarter of an hour, just as even Liu Yuanzhou and Zhang He were growing impatient, the Xiucai they had been talking about finally arrived. As he drew near, Liu Yuanzhou saw that his complexion was pale and his face slightly weary. He guessed that he must have read late into the night and had not rested well. Xiucai's full name was Li Mingzhong. Though fatigue showed on his face, he was full of spirit, his steps calm and unhurried. He possessed the particular bearing of a scholar that made Liu Yuanzhou and the other two both envious and jealous.

"Our esteemed Xiucai has finally arrived," Liu Chuang called loudly.

Li Mingzhong's expression immediately stiffened. Forcing out a smile, he said, "Sorry, brothers. Your elder brother is late. I'll take the punishment—I'll treat you to Mutton Offal Soup for lunch today." As soon as he said it, his heart gave a sharp twinge. My spending money...

"Wonderful!" Liu Chuang and Zhang He immediately cheered.

"You two are nothing but gluttons." Liu Yuanzhou shot Liu Chuang a look.

Now that everyone had arrived, the four of them set off side by side for Crouching Tiger Slope.

"Zhong Ge, make sure you rest. Studying is important, but your health is your capital. Don't wear yourself out," Liu Yuanzhou said with concern. Though he felt somewhat uncomfortable inside, it was more anxiety over his own future. As for his friend Li Mingzhong, he still cared for him from the bottom of his heart.

"I know." Li Mingzhong nodded, warmth rising in his heart as his earlier displeasure faded away.

"About when is the exam? Are you confident you'll pass?" Liu Yuanzhou asked again.

"Next February. I'm not very sure whether I'll pass or not. You know what the teaching is like out here in the countryside—it can't compare with the city. I may rank among the top two at the academy, but among the several hundred students in the entire county seat, that's nothing." Li Mingzhong sighed, worry appearing on his face. There was an academy in Crouching Tiger Slope, where students from more than a dozen nearby villages came to study—provided they could gain admission. The academy was government-run, and students only needed to pay a small amount for books, ink, brushes, and the like.

"Sigh, you'll always have a day when you make something of yourself through studying. Unlike Xi Zi, Hu Wa, and me, who'll spend our whole lives in this village." Liu Yuanzhou could not help sighing.

"Don't say that. Farming in the village or working as a blacksmith can both lead somewhere. Who can say clearly what the future holds?" Li Mingzhong did not know what else to say and could only comfort him like this.

"Second Child Ge, you're overthinking again. I think farming in the village is quite good too," Liu Chuang cut in.

"Blacksmithing is too tiring. If my family had land, it would be nice to farm." Zhang He also voiced his thoughts. His family had come from elsewhere, and their village had no land.

"What's the point of staying in this little village your whole life? Haven't you ever thought about going out and making a name for yourselves?" Liu Yuanzhou became a little agitated.

"What's so bad about the village?" Liu Chuang asked in return. Then realization dawned on him. "Oh, no wonder you've been sighing all the time lately. Er Ni Jie went to the city, so now you want to go there too, right? Hahaha!" Liu Chuang burst into laughter.

Zhang He joined in the teasing. "Second Child Ge is missing his woman! Hahaha!"

Li Mingzhong felt a wave of discomfort. Looking at Liu Yuanzhou as though casually, he asked, "Do you really want to go to the city to find Er Ni Jie?"

"Don't listen to their nonsense. There's nothing between Er Ni and me." Liu Yuanzhou hurriedly clarified, his face red.

Li Mingzhong quietly breathed a sigh of relief and did not pursue the subject. "Second Child, how did you offend that Li Er fellow? He came to me yesterday and told me to stay away from you." Li Mingzhong's grandfather and Li Er's grandfather, Li Laocai, were cousins. Their relationship was distant, but they were still of the same clan.

Liu Yuanzhou told his friends in detail about what had happened that day, immediately drawing a chorus of condemnation against Li Er.

As the four talked, they soon arrived at the Crouching Tiger Slope market.

Liu Li Village was about seven or eight li from Crouching Tiger Slope—not too near, not too far. Crouching Tiger Slope was the largest village in the area, with over a hundred households. Shi Fu County Yamen had established a township office there and assigned an official to handle matters for more than a dozen nearby villages, including Liu Li Village: public order, lawsuits, household registration, moral instruction, corvée labor, and more. The academy Li Mingzhong attended was also under the township office's administration.

The Crouching Tiger Slope market in the narrow sense was not large, merely a hundred-meter-long main street. On both sides stood shops selling grain, oil, cloth, meat, and daily goods, as well as a medical hall and pharmacy. This year, a new inn had even opened, offering food and lodging. The Crouching Tiger Slope market in the broader sense was much larger. Not far from the main street lay a large open space with packed earth. On market days, it became a temporary marketplace, where villagers from nearby places came to sell vegetables, grain, meat, and other goods they had produced themselves. Traveling peddlers also came by, while more shrewd people set up pots and stoves along the edges to sell foods such as Hulatang and Mutton Offal.

The temporary marketplace was plainly the destination of Liu Yuanzhou and the other three. There were not many people when they arrived, only scattered groups here and there, but the food stalls had already opened for business. The scent of meat filled the entire market. Though the four had just eaten breakfast, the smell still made their mouths water.

They found a traveling peddler's stall and walked over. A piece of cloth had been spread on the ground, with all manner of strange and curious objects scattered across it. The four squatted down and began picking through them. The peddler said nothing, simply letting them browse.

Before long, they found something. Li Mingzhong picked out an inkstone, though Liu Yuanzhou and the others could not tell whether it was good or bad. Just as he hesitated, the peddler spoke. "This is a fine top-grade inkstone from the south. It's the last one. If you want it, young master, I'll sell it to you cheap."

After a round of haggling, Li Mingzhong finally bought the inkstone. He wrapped it in cloth and carefully tucked it into his clothes. Liu Yuanzhou and the other two were merely looking for novelty and bought nothing. More importantly, they only had a few copper coins in their pockets and could not spend them carelessly.

After leaving the traveling peddler's stall, the four wandered around a little longer. Liu Chuang and Zhang He began clamoring to eat Mutton Offal, but since it was still early, Liu Yuanzhou and Li Mingzhong ignored them. Li Mingzhong pulled Liu Yuanzhou aside and whispered, "Second Child, lend me some money. I bought that inkstone just now, and I only have a few copper coins left." He felt a little embarrassed after saying so. His family was well-off, and because he studied, he had always received a fair amount of spending money. This was the first time he had ever borrowed from a friend. Without another word, Liu Yuanzhou took out all his money and gave it to him—only around ten copper coins—and added, "How about we skip the Mutton Offal? Hu Wa and the others are only making a fuss for fun anyway."

Li Mingzhong shook his head. "How could that do? When has Li Mingzhong ever gone back on his word?"

Liu Yuanzhou stopped trying to persuade him.

When they reached a stall selling old books, Liu Yuanzhou was about to squat down and browse when he caught sight of someone familiar not far away. Looking more carefully, he became certain. Uncle came to the market too? That man was his maternal uncle, Zhang Xiaoping. After saying something to Li Mingzhong and the others, Liu Yuanzhou headed toward him. But he saw that his uncle looked anxious, constantly looking around as if searching for someone.

"Uncle, you came to the market too? Who are you looking for?" Liu Yuanzhou went over and asked.

When Zhang Xiaoping saw Liu Yuanzhou, he was immediately delighted. "Second Child, you came at just the right time. Your Dan Dan Jie came to the market with me, but she disappeared in the blink of an eye. Hurry and help me find her." Dan Dan was Zhang Xiaoping's daughter and Liu Yuanzhou's cousin.

"Dan Dan Jie is already grown up. Is she really going to get lost? Maybe she's buying something. Once she's done, she'll naturally come find you, Uncle." Liu Yuanzhou did not understand.

"Aiya, there's no time to explain. Just hurry and help me find her." Zhang Xiaoping said anxiously.

Liu Yuanzhou asked no more and followed his uncle through the market searching for her. The market was not large, and they soon searched all of it without seeing Dan Dan. They then went to the shops along the street and searched them one by one, but still found no sign of her. Zhang Xiaoping was sweating with anxiety.

"Xiaoping, I ran into your daughter Dan Dan on the road just now. She asked me to pass along a message, saying she went home first and told you not to look for her." At that moment, someone came over and spoke. Liu Yuanzhou saw that the man carried a load of potatoes on his shoulders. He had clearly come to sell them and was probably from his uncle's village, though Liu Yuanzhou did not know him.

"Oh, Er Niu. Dan Dan went home? I understand. You scared me to death." Zhang Xiaoping wiped the sweat from his forehead, his expression relaxing. He chatted and laughed with the man for a few more sentences before the man headed off toward the market.

"Uncle, come sit at my house. Have lunch before you head back," Liu Yuan said.

"All right, I'll go over later. You go have a look around first. Don't worry about me," Zhang Xiaoping said. He had not seen his younger sister for a long time either and wanted to visit her while he was at the market.

After parting with his uncle, Liu Yuanzhou returned to the market to look for Li Mingzhong and the other two. Once inside, he looked around in every direction but saw no trace of them. Where did they go? he wondered.

Suddenly, a crowd not far away caught his attention. As he approached, angry roars came from within it, sounding like Liu Chuang's voice. Liu Yuanzhou was startled. He jumped up and peered inside, only to see several people fighting in a tangled mass, with Liu Chuang among them. Alarm surged through Liu Yuanzhou. How had they gotten into a fight in such a short time? He had no time to think further and hurriedly shoved his way into the crowd.