Acting Bravely

Zhang Xiaohua had not come to the market in Lu Town for the first time. It was, after all, the liveliest time of every year and the most bustling place within dozens of miles. Ever since he could remember, he had come once every year. But when he had come before, all he remembered were treats such as sugar figurines and pastries, with nothing else left in his memories. He had never thought about the crowds—or perhaps weaving through the throngs had been a game to his younger self, something fun. This time, standing at the north end of the street and looking at the packed crowd, the shops and stalls along the roadside selling every sort of goods, trinkets, and food, Zhang Xiaohua only wished he had been born with a few more eyes.

Zhang Cai's family followed the stream of people, slowly making their way from the north end deeper into the street. Every time they passed a shop, they squeezed inside to take a look, whether it sold silk, antiques, or even medicine. The three Zhang brothers did not merely look at the wares for sale; they also watched the people around them. When had they ever seen so many people in Xiao Shan Village? The prettily dressed young women, blooming like branches heavy with flowers, especially drew the boys' gazes. Unfortunately, the three brothers looked ordinary and dressed simply. At a glance, anyone could tell they were from a mountain village. The girls' eyes simply slid past them, far from the way the brothers stared at the girls. Occasionally, a girl would sense their burning looks and hurry away in shy embarrassment. Some even turned to look back at them, making all three brothers flush scarlet and feel deeply awkward. Zhang Xiaohua was only looking at sights fresher than those of his childhood, while Zhang Xiaolong and Zhang Xiaohu were looking toward the days ahead. Perhaps they hoped to meet girls they liked and find their own happiness, but seeing that most of the girls paid them little notice, who knew what the younger brothers thought.

In the middle of the street stood a large storefront with a sign hanging above it: "Qian Family Cloth Arts." Zhang Cai's eyes lit up when he saw it. He called to Zhang Xiaolong and his brothers, then went in first.

A shop clerk stood at the entrance. Seeing Zhang Cai enter, he hurried over and greeted him, "Welcome, sir. What would you like to see?" He seemed not to notice Zhang Cai's unease or his less-than-new clothes.

After entering the cloth shop, Zhang Cai did not go straight to the counter. Instead, he stood awkwardly beside the door, looking at the many male and female customers and the bustling clerks within, unsure what to do. Only after hearing the clerk's greeting did he come back to himself and say sheepishly, "Well, I'd like to get some cloth for the children's clothes, and buy a piece for their mother as well." As he spoke, Zhang Xiaolong and his two brothers entered too. They rarely went into such large shops. Looking around before had been one thing, but now that they were buying something themselves, they did not know how to speak and all seemed constrained. The clerk, however, took it in stride. His smile never faded as he ushered them over. "Then please come this way and see whether there is any suitable fabric."

As he spoke, he led them to a corner of the counter and showed them the cloth laid out there. This corner clearly had fewer people. Two groups had arrived before them. One was two young girls with their heads lowered as they picked through colors; the other was a family of three with a small child. They had already selected their fabric, and a clerk was wrapping it for them. Everywhere else along the counter displayed bright, colorful silks and other fine fabrics, surrounded by many well-dressed people discussing and selecting them. The shop clerks had evidently been well trained. They knew what their customers needed. One look at Zhang Cai's family's clothes told them that they wanted something durable and pleasing to the eye, not flashy finery.

Though the clerk had been thoughtful enough to bring Zhang Cai and his family to the right place, Zhang Cai still looked troubled. Whenever they had come to buy cloth before, the children's mother had always made the decisions. What style to buy, what color to buy—none of it had required Zhang Cai to worry about it. This time, because she had stayed home to keep the children's grandmother company, Zhang Cai had been sent to buy the cloth. He had not thought much of it beforehand, but once he reached the shop, he had no idea what to buy. Seeing the clerk's expression turn somewhat unpleasant, Zhang Xiaolong had a flash of inspiration. He hurried forward and said, "We'll look around first. Please attend to the other customers."

After the clerk left, Zhang Cai could not help regretting aloud, "Look at this brain of mine. I didn't even ask your mother what kind of cloth she wanted before we left. Now look at us—several grown men, and we'll be going home empty-handed."

By coincidence, one of the two girls who had been selecting fabric—the taller one—walked right behind Zhang Xiaolong. She picked up a piece of dark blue cloth from the counter and overheard Zhang Cai's words. She returned to her companion, glanced again at Zhang Xiaolong, and seemed to confer with her sister before walking over to Zhang Cai.

"Uncle, may I discuss something with you?"

Zhang Cai asked in confusion, "What is it, miss?"

The taller girl said, "Uncle, I was thinking of choosing an outfit for my brother, but he did not come along. I think he is about the same build as this elder brother. Would he be willing to help us try some on? I heard you say you had no one to consult about the fabric. In return, my sister and I can help you choose. How about it?"

Zhang Cai was overjoyed. "Excellent, excellent."

Thus, Zhang Xiaolong became a clothes rack for a while, helping the two girls try on several outfits before they found ones they liked. Zhang Cai's need was even easier to satisfy. The fabrics and colors the girls selected pleased Zhang Cai's family immensely; even the shop clerk thought the girls had excellent taste. The only one dissatisfied was Zhang Xiaolong. By the time the clerk wrapped up their fabric and brought it out, the two girls had already gone far away, and he had not even learned their names.

Holding the fabric dejectedly, Zhang Xiaolong followed Zhang Cai onward. Just as he was about to look at the farming tools in a roadside shop, he suddenly heard the sound of gongs and drums. Zhang Xiaohua grew excited at once and said:

"Father, quick! The opera is starting! Let's go watch it first!"

As Zhang Xiaohua called to Zhang Cai, the market crowd also heard the gongs. Everyone surged in that direction. Zhang Cai quickly called to Xiaolong and Xiaohu, then followed the flow of people at a brisk pace.

Lu Town had a New Year custom: in one corner of the market, a large stage would be set up, and an opera troupe would perform on it every day until the market ended. For Agriculturalists with no entertainment, it was one of the major events of the New Year. No wonder Xiaohua was so happy.

By the time Zhang Cai's family reached the stage, the opera had already begun. The area was packed three layers deep inside and out, but fortunately the stage was high enough that the people in front did not block their view. Though there were many spectators, everyone held their breath and listened intently. It was nothing like the noisy bustle around the shops earlier.

The stage was performing a folk tale beloved by all, and everyone watched with great enjoyment. Zhang Xiaolong gradually forgot his earlier disappointment as well.

Just as everyone was engrossed in the excitement, a clamor suddenly arose on the other side of the stage. It grew louder and louder, though with so many people in between, the words could not be heard clearly. Zhang Xiaohua, however, could tell that one of the girls' voices sounded familiar. Could it be someone from his village? There was a tree not far away, so Zhang Xiaohua nimbly climbed up it. One glance, and he cried out, "Oh! I really know them! Elder Brother, it's the sisters who helped us choose clothes earlier! They're in trouble!"

The moment Zhang Xiaolong heard this, he did not even bother telling Zhang Cai. He shoved aside the people around him and forced his way through the crowd toward the other side of the stage. Zhang Cai hurriedly grabbed Zhang Xiaohu, called out to Zhang Xiaohua as he climbed down from the tree, and followed after him.

After Zhang Xiaolong exerted the strength of nine oxen and two tigers to squeeze through the crowd and reached the other side of the stage, the sight before him made his blood surge.

The stage had been built against a high wall. Beneath that towering wall stood two lonely young girls, clinging to each other, their faces flushed red. Two small bundles lay tossed beside them, bits of clothing scattered out from within—presumably the garments they had just bought at the cloth shop. In front of them stood two short, fat men in bright clothes, each holding a folding fan. Muttering to themselves, they pawed at the two girls and forced them to dodge back and forth beneath the wall. Around the two fat men stood seven or eight tall household servants in coarse cloth, separating the opera crowd from them. Several of those vicious-looking servants watched their young masters' ugly conduct with smiling faces, while others turned to stare at the spectators, shooting threatening looks from time to time to prevent anyone from intruding. Though quite a few people wanted to stand up for the two bullied village girls, they were intimidated by the vicious servants' formation and could only watch with unwilling eyes.

After Zhang Xiaolong rushed over and saw this scene, he was about to think of how to deal with it when he saw the taller village girl cast a pitiful, pleading look in this direction. Though she was not looking at him, he could not help wanting to charge forward regardless of everything. At that moment, someone grabbed him from behind. Turning around, he saw his family had caught up, and Zhang Cai was gripping his arm. Zhang Xiaolong said anxiously, "Father..."

Zhang Cai said quietly, "Xiaolong, don't be rash. The few of us can't beat them."

Zhang Xiaolong said, "But if we don't help, those two girls will be bullied!"

Zhang Xiaohua added, "That's right, Father. That elder sister helped us just now too."

Zhang Cai said, "Of course we can help, but we can't fail to help them and get ourselves dragged in as well. Look over there, at that man in black holding a saber."

The three Zhang brothers followed their father's gaze. Sure enough, among the servants stood a burly man in fitted black clothes. He held a saber in his left hand, his arms folded before his chest as he leaned against a tree with narrowed eyes, as though asleep. He seemed to be the bodyguard of those two hooligans.

It seemed that a large part of the reason so many people dared not step forward was the saber in that bodyguard's hand.

What were they supposed to do now? Zhang Xiaolong began to grow anxious too.

Just as Zhang Xiaolong hesitated, the situation by the high wall grew worse. The two short, fat young masters had already pulled the two village girls apart and were dragging them with all their strength toward an alley around the corner of the wall. Zhang Xiaolong could no longer endure it. He violently shook free of Zhang Cai's hand and ran over. The vicious servants had thought the crowd had already been cowed by them. Seeing that the "good show" was about to begin, they had all gathered toward the alley, never imagining that someone would rush over at such a moment. Zhang Xiaolong reached the two village girls, grabbed their arms, and pulled them to his side. How could the two short, fat young masters' strength compare to his, when he worked in the fields all year round? He pulled the girls free in one go. Taking advantage of the men's stunned pause, Zhang Xiaolong shouted:

"What are you doing?"

Seeing their prey snatched away, the two short, fat young masters looked furious. They exchanged glances, and the one in orange said, "We aren't doing anything. Who are you? What are you doing?"

Zhang Xiaolong froze for a moment, then said, "I'm their cousin. Why were you pulling them around? Be careful, or we'll report you to the authorities."

The other man, dressed in black, said, "Report us to the authorities? Fine, then let's go together. In Lu Town, your master here is the official. Your cousins stepped on my shoe just now, and I want them to compensate me for it. Let's see whether the official sides with you or me."

By then, Zhang Cai and the others had rushed over as well. Zhang Cai hastily cupped his hands and bowed to the two men, saying with a placating smile, "Sirs, please calm your anger. These two girls of mine are ignorant. Since they stepped on your shoe, we'll compensate you. Today is a good market day. Please be magnanimous and raise your hand in mercy. You'll be rewarded well this year."

The man in orange gave a lewd grin. "Easy enough. You old man are fairly sensible. Your master here will do a good deed—just compensate me for my shoe."

Zhang Cai's heart jolted. Carefully, he asked, "Then how many copper coins should we compensate you, sir?"

The man in orange held out one palm. Zhang Cai let out a breath of relief. "So it's five coins. I'll give them to you right away."

Zhang Cai took five copper coins from his clothes and handed them over. The man in orange did not even look at the coins held before him. He slapped them to the ground and snarled, "You country bumpkin! Do you think these are straw sandals like the ones you wear? You think your master's shoes are worth five copper coins? Listen carefully—five taels of silver!"

Zhang Cai thought, This is bad. He immediately forced a smile. "Sir, you must be joking. My family's yearly food expenses are only three taels of silver. Are your shoes really worth that much?"

The man in black said, "You little old man, are you doubting our integrity?"

By then, the village girl behind Zhang Xiaolong had recovered somewhat. She poked her head out from behind him and said, "Uncle, they're falsely accusing us! We never stepped on them at all. We had only just come to watch the opera and hadn't even reached the front before they surrounded us here."

Zhang Xiaolong also said angrily, "Father, they're plainly trying to extort us. We should quickly take these young ladies to the government office and report them!"

The man in black burst into laughter and called out loudly, "You mud-legged bumpkins, ignorant fools who have never seen the world! You don't even know Master Zhao, yet you talk about reporting someone to the government office. Men, come tell them what an official is."

With a sweep of Master Zhao's hand, the servants who had been watching the spectacle immediately cracked their knuckles and surrounded them. Seeing that things had gone wrong, Zhang Cai said to Zhang Xiaohua, "Find a chance to run out with these two girls. The three of us will protect you." With that, he joined Zhang Xiaolong and Zhang Xiaohu in fighting the servants closing in, while Zhang Xiaohua pulled the two girls toward the opera crowd.

Though Zhang Cai, Zhang Xiaolong, and Zhang Xiaohu were strong rural laborers with some strength and could hold a slight advantage in a one-on-one fight against the servants, even a hero could not fend off a crowd. After only several exchanges, the vicious servants knocked the three of them to the ground. Their fists and feet came down like raindrops, and injuries soon appeared across the father and sons' bodies and faces. Zhang Xiaohua and the two village girls were quick-witted at first. They dodged several servants and were about to rush into the crowd, but the bodyguard in fitted clothes blocked their way. No matter how they twisted and turned, they could not escape his figure. The bodyguard did not attack; he simply stood in their way and would not let them pass. When servants chased after them, he stepped aside and watched as Zhang Xiaohua and the two village girls were forced back beside Zhang Cai and the others. Seeing his father and brothers pinned to the ground and beaten, Zhang Xiaohua rushed forward in desperation to save them, only to be kicked in the chest. He fell flat on his back into the dirt. Just as he struggled to sit up, two more servants came over, pinned him against the wall, and slapped him several times with sharp crackling sounds. Blood immediately ran from the corner of his mouth. Seeing that Zhang Xiaohua was still young, the two servants stopped hitting him and merely held him down so he could not move.

No matter how Zhang Xiaohua struggled, he could not break free from the hands of the two strong men. Watching his father and brothers curl up under the vicious servants' fists and kicks, he felt as though his heart were being torn apart, and tears instantly streamed down his face.