Parting ways (Part one)

The weather had begun to turn cold.

Still, no one came to attend to the refugee camp... This time, thanks to another message from Gao Jian, Liu Rengong's entire family, including Liu Acheng and Liu Jili, knew what was going on.

In truth, even without Gao Jian's message, they would have known.

Or rather, everyone in Jingkou now knew that Grand Commander Chu Pou had not merely caught a chill that day. He had taken to his sickbed and never risen again, grievously ill-so ill that he was almost dead!

Along Jingkou Avenue, parties bringing physicians and medicine from the imperial palace and the great aristocratic houses came and went in an unending stream; rumors spread everywhere among the common people that Chu Pou had abandoned the soldiers at the battle of Daibei and angered the spirits, though everyone had a different version of which spirits he had offended. Some said Jiangshen, some said the Mount Tai Mountain God, and others said the Huai River Water God, though when asked which water god they meant, they were all vague about it. Among the lower-ranking gentry who had migrated south, everyone vividly recounted the rumor that Chu Pou had heard the soldiers' families weeping on Beigu Mountain and collapsed on the spot, as though they had witnessed it themselves. As for the truly high-ranking gentry and officials with real power, they had their own reasons for ignoring the refugees. What concerned them now was who would succeed the Grand Commander in overseeing Southern Xu Province and the Northern Command army, and whether the Northern Expedition would continue. Would there be a wholesale reshuffling of appointments? Everything in their lives over the next few years hinged on these questions.

After sorting through the situation and giving it some thought, Liu Acheng and the others soon reached an absurd conclusion: just as their chances of receiving relief before had depended on when they could meet Chu Pou, their chances of receiving timely relief now depended on when this kindhearted Grand Commander would finally die!

Once the Grand Commander died and the appointments at the top were settled, they really might receive relief. Everyone really might make it through.

But that was only a theoretical possibility.

People's hearts had changed. Most had lost confidence that the refugees who had followed Chu Pou south this time could survive the winter safely.

At the makeshift markets along Jingkou Avenue, many refugees appeared with straw markers stuck on their children, their wives, and even themselves, hoping to sell themselves into servitude and survive the winter. In the camp along Jurong Avenue, people had not yet begun selling their sons and daughters, but large numbers of able-bodied refugees were already slipping away, trying to survive in the urban areas around Jiankang, Jincheng, Jurong, and the Canal... Within a dozen or so days, their numbers had reached the hundreds.

There were also Ruffian Youths fighting, stealing, harassing women, and committing all manner of other offenses.

Which raised a question: leaving other places aside, was Liu Rengong's family doing nothing about the camp on Jurong Avenue?

They were indeed taking action, whipping those who deserved whipping and expelling those who deserved expulsion. But everyone knew they were preparing to leave too, and it was precisely because people knew they were leaving that so much trouble had broken out.

To be fair, the affair on Beigu Mountain had struck this family of refugee leaders harder than it had struck the refugees themselves... As mentioned before, Liu Zhi himself had long wanted to leave, held back only by the ties of native-place loyalty so deeply ingrained in this age. As for his sons, what they really wanted was to use their standing to approach officials and eventually become officials themselves. Now that their chance of gaining office through the Grand Commander had vanished entirely, they had no reason to keep clinging to their status as "refugee leaders."

The first to leave was Liu Zhi's younger cousin and his family. They simply moved straight to Jiangcheng.

When he left, everyone said he resented not receiving any cloth earlier and had stormed off in a fit of anger. In reality, however, since he had settled in Jiangcheng, where Gao Jian was stationed and the Gao Clan currently lived, Liu Zhi must have sent him ahead to prepare the way.

Sure enough, only four or five days later, Liu Zhi's nephew and his family went there too.

By then, it was already mid-September. Liu Acheng had put on his winter outfit and become a proud wearer of long robes. Liu Jili, who shared his quarters, had repeatedly pressed him about where they should go, but the fellow still had not made up his mind.

The choice of paths lay right before him. Following his earlier plan of borrowing a hen to lay his own eggs and establishing a fortified manor, he ought to seize this chance to stay, make a show of commitment, and build up some goodwill. When spring came next year, he might be able to gather a group and reclaim land on their own. The problem was that with no government relief and Liu Rengong about to abandon the place, the camp might well collapse over the winter, leaving all his efforts wasted.

Besides, to be honest, what had happened at the foot of Beigu Mountain that day had shaken him a little too. The feeling that the slightest disturbance among the high officials and aristocratic houses above could overturn the lives of those at the bottom, himself included, was dreadful. It forced him to consider a practical question: With this political system of our Great Jin, even if I establish a fortified manor, won't I still be caught up in politics at the top? Won't I still end up dragged into dealings with officials, clerks, the gentry, and the army?

And if he was bound to become entangled in all that, should he change some of his thinking?

Of course, while some remained undecided, others had already made up their minds.

"Brother Qi, you're going to join the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice?" These past few days, Liu Acheng had stopped overseeing the Grass Sandals work and wandered around the camp carrying a wooden board instead. It was not until that afternoon that he ran into a man who had apparently been looking for him for quite some time. "Have you decided?"

"I have." This man surnamed Qi, certainly a familiar face in the camp, looked distinctly nervous, his hand constantly rubbing the rope looped around his sheep. "But you were the one who brought me into the straw-sandal crew, Acheng, and gave me ten feet of cloth... And on the Huai-on the Huai River, you saved my sheep too... Since I'm leaving, I felt I ought to tell you."

"That was just what I wanted to ask about." Liu Acheng set aside the wooden board covered in charcoal markings, sat down casually on a tree stump, and addressed him seriously. "Brother Qi, joining the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice is your own choice. No one else has any right to interfere, especially now, when everyone is looking for a way out. But as far as I know, the straw-sandal crew still brings in a decent return, and I doubt Lord Ren will give it up. Even so, you still want to leave rather than follow him to Jiangcheng?"

"I've heard Jiangcheng is crowded, and people there don't farm. They only do business in the streets or work boats. All I know is farming and raising sheep, and pounding straw won't be a lasting livelihood." Brother Qi still looked uneasy. "And to be honest, Acheng, I need to marry and have children someday. Those people surnamed Liu... I don't mean you... Those clansmen of yours are all kin of the Liu Clan of Pengcheng. They've always looked down on me. I don't even know how to hire a matchmaker, or whether I need to build a house. If I follow them, who knows what year or month I'll finally get a wife?"

"That brings us to another important point." Liu Cheng nodded, then continued questioning him. "Brother Qi, you do know that women in the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice aren't any individual man's wives, don't you? And the children are raised communally?"

That was right: the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice currently practiced an advanced form of communal child-rearing!

"I know." At those words, Brother Qi's eyes actually brightened, and he began speaking faster. "I asked about it carefully... But isn't that even better? However poor or badly off we are, everyone is still a brother or sister. Whether I'm incapable or die someday, they'll look after my woman and children for me. And you probably don't know this, Acheng, but all the children over there can be kept alive, boys and girls alike. They never abandon babies!"

Liu Cheng had wanted to try persuading him further, but after hearing that, he finally had nothing left to say. He could only nod. "I see. Then are you planning to go alone, Brother Qi, or have you arranged to go with others?"

"There are seven or eight of us. We're going together tomorrow at noon," Brother Qi answered hurriedly. "These past few days, I've heard that some Ruffian Youths nearby have started robbing people."

"Then keep a close eye on your sheep too," Liu Acheng warned him one last time. "Think about where those Ruffian Youths came from. Aren't they all people who drifted away from the refugees? So be careful of your traveling companions too... If any of them have no possessions at all, they might decide to steal your sheep and then join the faith themselves. They might even be in league with those Ruffian Youths from the outset, targeting people like you."

Brother Qi froze, then nodded repeatedly. "You're right to remind me, Acheng! I..."

"If you've made up your mind and won't waver, there's still time to leave now. While it's light, just find two people you trust, explain why, and take your sheep straight there together. As long as you don't run into a tiger on the way, what harm is there in spending a night outside their estate?" Liu Acheng did his best to think it through for him. "Otherwise, if someone has already had their eye on your sheep for a while, you really will be in trouble."

Brother Qi immediately nodded and started to leave, only to hesitate again after a few steps. "But I've already made arrangements with them. We all know each other, and we'll be brothers and sisters in the faith in the future..."

"As long as you trust them. It was only a reminder anyway. In the current situation, there are risks whatever you do, but they aren't that great yet." Liu Cheng nodded and dropped the matter, picking up his little wooden board as he stood. "If I get the chance, I'll come over and talk with you again, Brother Qi."

Brother Qi could only nod once more.

At this point, their conversation was over by any measure. Yet the man who valued his sheep as dearly as his own life still stood there holding its rope, watching the other man walk away with his little wooden board. Even when Liu Acheng met someone else at the corner ahead, he remained motionless.

The person Liu Acheng met as he walked over was Liu Jili. The two had clearly discussed this beforehand, for the latter, dressed almost exactly like him, folded his arms and asked straightaway, "Acheng, have you worked it all out?"

"Give me a little longer." Liu Acheng shook his head. "I still need to calculate things. People are unsettled right now. A lot of calculations can't keep up with the changes."

Hearing that, Liu Jili could only shake his head and walk away with a cold laugh, though he also gestured with his lips.

Liu Cheng turned around and saw that the man he had spoken to was still standing there with his sheep. Helplessly, he could only call back, "Is there something else, Brother Qi? Or do you have some concern? Just tell me."

"Acheng, I asked you before: you only wear that crimson headcloth because a master of the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice gave it to you, and you never intended to join the faith yourself, right?" the man hurriedly asked again.

"I never intended to join."

"That makes sense. Since you're a clansman of Lord Ren's, you must be going with him." The honest man whom Liu Acheng had saved in the Huai River region hesitated, then spoke earnestly. "But in the Way of the Celestial Masters, everyone who joins really is like a brother. Won't you come?"

Liu Acheng was finally a little bewildered, but after a moment, he could only smile and shake his head. "Brother Qi, I'm a proper member of the gentry, born into the Liu Clan of Pengcheng. I still want to become an official!"

Brother Qi finally said no more. He nodded and withdrew with murmured acknowledgments.

The little incident hardly merited mention. But Liu Acheng truly did not have much time left. Another seven or eight days passed, and at last, in late autumn, just as the middle of September was drawing to a close, Liu Acheng was summoned alone.

It was quite a gathering. Liu Zhi's entire family was there: his three sons, his two sons-in-law, and his eldest daughter, who looked after the chest. Everyone else had been told to keep away, giving Liu Cheng every possible consideration.

There was no probing. Seeing him arrive, Liu Zhi, who had been weaving a pair of hemp sandals, freed his hands and went straight to the point:

"Acheng, you're a clever lad. You can see things clearly without my saying much... As for me, I'm an old man. There are still several thousand people in this camp, winter is coming before our eyes, and the authorities won't pay us any heed. I truly have no way to help. Fortunately, back in Pengcheng I knew enough to treat people well and made a few old friends. After spending some effort these past few days, I've finally secured some arrangements. You've met Garrison Commander Gao. He's willing to have his whole clan tighten their belts and take me in. I've also agreed with him to betroth your eldest younger sister to his nephew Gao Heng. We can certainly rely on him. Then there's our clansman Lord Liu Ying, whom you've met once too. He's willing to lend me some money and grain... But all this barely gives our clansmen a way to survive the winter."

At this point, Liu Rengong studied the boy before him closely. Seeing not the slightest ripple of emotion, he could not help letting out a deep sigh. "Acheng, you're my clansman, and so intelligent. Naturally, I hope you'll leave with us. Besides, you've done an excellent job with the Grass Sandals and straw mats. As for hunting that tiger, I'll be grateful to you for the rest of my life... So not only you—even Liu Jili, if you want to take him in, can simply serve as your assistant. In three days, we'll all go and settle in Jiangcheng together. What do you think?"

Nothing about this proposal exceeded Liu Cheng's expectations, and it could certainly be called the utmost in kindness and duty.

By now, he had also prepared himself sufficiently-or rather, he had begun to grasp what he truly wanted.

So he nodded with complete candor. "Thank you, Lord Ren, for taking me in all the way here. But please leave me a fallback in Jiangcheng, and let me stay here to try a little longer. I want to keep this place from breaking apart... If it truly doesn't work, I'll come and seek shelter with you."

At those words, Liu Zhi and his sons and sons-in-law merely exchanged a few glances, showing no obvious surprise. Clearly, they had discussed Liu Cheng beforehand and had even prepared themselves for this choice.

"I told you, Acheng, you have great ambitions. Since you're determined to undertake the Northern Expedition, how could you abandon people lightly?" Liu Huzi looked distinctly ashamed as he spoke. "You must mean to follow Situ Xi's example and never abandon your fellow countrymen, even in poverty and destitution. Otherwise, no one would follow you if you joined the army someday... I've always underestimated both your ability and your ambition."

Had those few words by the stream really had such a lasting effect? Or had some new story spread without my knowing? Liu Acheng was rather startled himself.

Liu Zhi nodded then and beckoned to his eldest daughter. Huzi's eldest sister lifted a familiar bag from behind her and handed it to her father-the very bag that had held the silverware before, though it was much flatter now.

"Don't refuse... I questioned Hu carefully. During the tiger hunt that day, not only did everything depend on you covering for us, but those hundred bolts of cloth and all these utensils were won entirely through your efforts. Since you mean to stay, even with the goodwill you earned by distributing cloth, it will be hard to get things done without money in your hands." As he spoke, Liu Zhi pushed the bundle toward him. "I exchanged all that silverware and bronzeware with Lord Ying for pieces of silver and copper coins. I need to keep the copper coins. The silver, we'll split fifty-fifty."

Liu Cheng had nothing to say. He felt only gratitude.

In truth, the conversation could have ended there, but Liu Zhi and his sons still looked distinctly uneasy, as though something remained unsaid.

Liu Cheng could only wait.

"Acheng, you have ambition. I have nothing to say against that. But you're too young. You have no idea how heavy a burden several thousand people are." After a long while, it was still Liu Rengong who spoke. "With your abilities, I'd say you could surely find a way to get a few dozen, or even a few hundred, through this. But several thousand are truly different... Several thousand people can't even move south to escape the winter... So whatever you do, don't drill yourself into a dead-end corner. If things really become impossible, remember that we're in Jiangcheng. Come over at any time."

"You think too highly of me, Lord Ren." Liu Acheng felt both grateful and somewhat amused. How could he not understand that changes in quantity brought changes in quality? Besides, distributing the cloth that day had already given him firsthand experience. Why did these people think so highly of him? "How could I not know the weight of several thousand people, or fail to know that I'm only a boy? When all is said and done, it's simply that you have a large household and livelihood and can't afford to gamble, while I have nothing but an empty mouth and bare teeth-nothing at all-and so I can afford to gamble. I'm only trying my luck, seeing whether I can find a clever shortcut. If I can hold on until the court and the authorities come to settle them, won't I have won people's hearts for nothing? Besides, I just asked you to be sure to leave me a fallback. I still want to eat big sister's noodle soup."

As he spoke, he bent down and bowed.

Liu Rengong nodded. "As long as you understand."

"Lord Ren, in that case, there are two final things I must make clear." Liu Acheng grew solemn again. "First, from time to time I'll still need to borrow Brother Hu's strength to put down the Ruffian Youths and disreputable fellows in the camp, establish my authority, and maintain order. Second, please allow me to continue making preparations and issuing assignments in your name."

"As for the Ruffian Youths and such, you brothers can discuss that yourselves. You make it sound as though he'll have any serious business once he reaches Jiangcheng." Liu Rengong sighed. "But Acheng, since I'm abandoning them and leaving, aren't you afraid that using my name will have the opposite effect?"

"Without the name of a local gentry leader like you, Lord Ren, I'm afraid they'd immediately fall into infighting and scatter," Liu Cheng explained with a smile. "Besides, these people are your fellow countrymen, after all. Your leaving today isn't abandoning them at all. You simply know you can't save them and can't bear to watch. And if they really do survive this winter, would you keep pretending to be deaf and mute? We'd still need you to lead them in finding nearby land to reclaim. If you ask me, why not leave them something to hope for?"

Though Liu Rengong was usually timid, he had never been seen to lose his composure. Hearing these words, however, his eyes reddened, and only by forcing himself to nod did he hold back his tears.

At this point, Liu Acheng had nothing more to say. He bent down in another bow, picked up the bag of silver, and turned to leave.

"Acheng." Unexpectedly, Liu Rengong spoke again just then. "I've already finished pounding this pair of hemp sandals. They only need the upper edging. Wait for me-just half a quarter-hour. You can take them."

Without a word, Liu Cheng sat back down. Liu Rengong hurried to weave the sandals, while his three sons, two sons-in-law, and eldest daughter all remained silent too, staring blankly at their father's hands... After a little while, Liu Rengong did indeed finish the winter hemp sandals. He snapped the thread himself and handed them over.

Liu Acheng took them and sat on the ground to try them on. Finding that they fit quite well, he pulled the rice straw padding out of his old Grass Sandals and stuffed it into the new pair. Then he put on the hemp sandals there and then, stamped his feet, picked up the bag of silver pieces, bowed once more to Liu Rengong, and turned to leave.