Cucumber

"I wandered carefree, alone atop a mulberry tree; to the northeast stretched a vastness without kin.

Cucumber is a blade of grass. Why sigh over the spring breeze? Remembering you, my tears fall in streams."

During the spring plowing season, amid a drizzle as fine as ox hair, Liu Acheng rode his little horse past a stretch of busy farmland and between a low hill and a small lake. The Qianxi stream flowing into the lake was already in sight when he heard someone singing. The voice was clear and lovely, its melody winding gracefully, drawing him to rein in beside the wet road and listen closely.

When the song ended, it began again, but Liu Acheng could no longer contain himself. He asked the man beside him, "Brother Ajin, this song is beautiful, but what does this cucumber mean? Is there a special kind of melon here called a cucumber? But how could a cucumber be a blade of grass? It doesn't sound as though they mean an actual fruit."

At these words, the faces of the mounted servants accompanying Shen Jin stiffened, and Shen Jin himself looked a little embarrassed.

For one thing, the other fellow's sudden switch to calling him Brother Ajin had already left him helpless. In terms of age, the boy was a year older than at their last meeting-sixteen, or seventeen if one stretched it. But he, Shen Jin, was also a year older, thirty-three now, and still old enough to be his father! Had the boy simply called him Brother Shijian, he could have endured it, but what was this Brother Ajin? And now he was asking him about cucumbers in front of everyone?

Could this get any more awkward?

"You guessed correctly, young Brother Acheng. Cucumber doesn't refer to a fruit." Shen Jin merely smiled calmly through the fine drizzle. "It refers to a young maiden awakening to love. A tender yellow cucumber stands for a girl on the verge of ripening, but not quite ripe yet... in the song, it is how the lovestruck maiden describes herself, and there is actually an element of seduction to it."

Understanding dawned on Liu Acheng. "So that's it! Just like cardamom buds, or the way women compare themselves to flowers in so many poems, and Minister Qu compares himself to fragrant herbs in 'Encountering Sorrow.' It's all the same thing."

"Exactly, exactly." Shen Jin nodded repeatedly. "It's a metaphor for oneself."

"Then the lyrics mean that I was once carefree atop the mulberry tree, but when I looked northeast, I saw no family or friends. Now I'm as frail as a blade of grass, and even a gentle spring breeze could knock me down, yet it cannot shake my heart anymore. Only when I remember you can I not help weeping... is that right, Brother Ajin?" Liu Acheng continued asking in earnest.

"That should be it." Shen Jin nodded in bewilderment.

"But I can understand the latter part. Why does the beginning say there's a vastness without kin to the northeast? Did the cucumber have no kin to begin with, or did she lose her kin because she became a lovestruck cucumber?" Liu Acheng grew increasingly curious.

How should I know?!

Shen Jin was increasingly speechless, but he patiently nodded. "Perhaps your guess is right. Because she became a lovestruck cucumber, and her lover was a good-for-nothing, all her family shunned her, and her friends stopped taking her along to play or work, leaving her alone atop the mulberry tree."

So it was still a love story with a delinquent!

"That makes sense." Liu Acheng nodded, still deeply moved. "But in today's world, they're all slave retainers. If the man were respectable, how could he seduce another household's cucumber, then disappear? And once she's become a lovestruck cucumber and can no longer give her family something to rely on through marriage, of course her parents suffer too... yet then again, for a woman like this, those few days as a cucumber might be the only time in her entire life when she has a feeling or two that truly belongs to her. Who can deny human nature?"

Was there a hidden meaning in that? Was he using this as a metaphor for our Shen Family? Or saying our family mistreated its slave retainers? Surely he wasn't hinting that he wanted a couple of cucumbers?

Shen Jin was at a loss for a moment, unsure what to say.

"Then let me ask one more thing. Was this song really composed by your father, Brother Ajin?" Once Liu Acheng had finished expressing his feelings, his curiosity returned.

"Yes and no." Coming back to himself, Shen Jin considered the question seriously and gave a very practical answer. "There were probably folk melodies first, but they lacked structure, and lyrics of this sort about spring desire, but they were excessively wanton. My late father established the Qianxi Music Troupe and collected and arranged them from throughout Wuxing... the Several Qianxi Songs circulating today all have very orderly forms and clean lyrics."

Liu Acheng nodded in agreement. This was collective creation by the common people, but the one who had gathered the material, arranged the music, and promoted it was Shen Jin's father, Shen Chong.

If one insisted on assigning authorship, it could only go to Shen Chong.

"Let's go." Having finished his explanation, Shen Jin listened to the endlessly winding melody and felt inexplicably uneasy. Instead, he took the initiative to hurry them along. "Once we pass Xiazhu Lake, we'll reach Qianxi Village. If you want to hear songs, young Brother Acheng, they have the fullest selection there."

Liu Acheng had nothing more to say and urged his horse forward.

Qianxi Village lay southeast of Wukang County in Wuxing Commandery, almost bordering Wu Commandery. Using the mouth of the Qiantang River and Xiaoshan as reference points, Liu Acheng reckoned it lay somewhere between the later cities of Hangzhou and Huzhou, about a hundred and sixty or seventy li from Qiuting, with a river crossing along the way. He had come with Liu Dage and Wu Fusheng, a nephew from Gao Rou's wife's family who also served as a local guide-three men on three horses. They had not traveled particularly fast, yet had arrived in only three days. It truly was not far.

Moreover, only after arriving did he learn that the main settlement of Shen Jin's clan was nearby, which allowed him to find Shen Jin first and then come straight here.

Yes, Xi Chao had finally agreed to let Liu Acheng fetch the so-called Qianxi Music Troupe and lay some groundwork with the Shen Family.

This was not because Liu Acheng had again persuaded Xi Jiabin with some argument about their interests, or because anything had happened over the past few days. Quite the opposite: nothing had happened at all. Watching Liu Acheng spend his days as though he had not a care in the world, the Xi Family's eldest young master had been the first to crack... At least show that you're unhappy!

Don't you want to climb higher? Didn't you explain all the reasoning perfectly clearly? I still haven't given you a definite answer, but I haven't refused either. Come and try persuading me again! Instead, you ride in the morning, watch those dozen or so music troupes rehearse songs and chant scriptures in the afternoon, practice calligraphy in the evening, and even insist on reading a book over fragrant tea at noon. Now and then you come ask me what a word or passage means, or earnestly ask in the afternoon whether a lyric fits, and whether it could be replaced with the Tao Te Ching... you really aren't going to make another move!

If it were me, Xi Jiabin, I'd remember anyone who made me swallow such frustration for the rest of my life!

And so, after spring plowing began, with time visibly running out, Xi Chao finally spoke up of his own accord and told Liu Acheng to fetch the Qianxi Music Troupe from Shen Jin.

Naturally, this was in the name of the Way of the Celestial Masters and had nothing to do with the Xi Family.

After meeting Shen Jin, Liu Acheng spoke even more directly-or rather, more comprehensively and thoroughly. He laid out everything one by one: what he had seen and heard during his brief month or so in Kuaiji, the situation in Jiankang and Jingkou, what they intended to bring about, his own ambitions, the Xi Family's stance, and Xi Chao's somewhat wavering attitude.

He deliberately omitted only the delicate relationship between the Way of the Celestial Masters and Lu Song, because he was unsure how close the Shen Family was to Master Du Ming's household in nearby Qiantang. But he emphasized the starkly different attitudes of the Xi father and son toward the Daoist faith, laying some groundwork.

Of course, he also did not say that he wanted to use their family's influence as a stepping stone. That would have been far too pointed.

He addressed the matter on its own terms, kept a lid on the potential danger surrounding the Daoist faith and Lu Song that might erupt here with the Shen Family, then directly asked to borrow the troupe.

It was just as Liu Acheng had imagined... if he said all this to those aristocratic clans, they might mock him, or eagerly jump aboard and then shout about it until the whole world knew. Shen Jin really was different. This head of a native southern magnate clan, who had lost his father as a child, spent half his life confined to Wuxing, and belonged to a punished family, was extremely pragmatic.

Upon hearing that Liu Acheng had nominally come in the name of the Way of the Celestial Masters but in fact still had Xi Chao's permission, he agreed on the spot. After hearing the developments in the political situation to the north and the true political purpose of this undertaking, he became even more decisive, personally accompanying this youth half his age to Qianxi to fetch the troupe.

That was how the discussion of "Cucumber Is a Blade of Grass" came about.

The Qianxi Music Troupe lived up to its reputation. With the head of the Shen Family present in person, its members, most of whom were already the family's slave retainers, were immediately assembled. They performed on the spot in a broad open area beside the stream, braving the fine spring drizzle... the vocal, dance, and instrumental divisions were separate, each numbering thirty or forty people.

Then, at a word from Shen Jin, more than a hundred people performed "Cucumber Is a Blade of Grass" together.

At first, they were clearly a little at a loss, since these short spring songs were meant for solo singing and dancing. But soon, very likely because they were accustomed to practicing together, they gradually adapted. Several dozen played instruments around the perimeter, several dozen danced in the open space, and several dozen sang together along either side.

Once they had successfully performed the song in chorus, Shen Jin was the most astonished of all. "How is this a 'blade of grass'? This is a great tree, an ocean of forest! No wonder the King of Qi liked hearing people play the reed pipes together."

The other slave retainers accompanying them also erupted in excitement.

Liu Acheng reacted a little more calmly, having seen and heard such things before. But the moment these professionals swiftly adjusted on their own and completed the choral performance, he realized that he would find no better music troupe in this era. This was the most professional, most accomplished musical ensemble of the age, and the only one currently capable of crushing every other troupe from an entirely higher dimension.

It was the unrivaled choice for the trouble he intended to stir up.

You, Liu Acheng, should be grateful this troupe happens to be in Wuxing rather than somewhere else.

"What do you think?" Once his astonishment had passed, Shen Jin took the initiative to ask.

"Excellent!" Liu Acheng answered earnestly. "They're the ones. Brother Ajin, I will never dare forget your kindness in this matter."

"It's no more than lifting a hand." Shen Jin thought nothing of it. "When my father was alive, he used them often. In these twenty-odd years under me, we haven't had many visitors, so we only use them for the holidays... I'll have them prepare now, bring all their instruments, and provide them with clothes, dry rations, and such. As we discussed, they'll go to Qiuting first?"

"To Qiuting first, but there's no hurry." Liu Acheng waved a hand. "I saw along the way how busy everyone is with spring plowing, and just now I noticed that many musicians arrived with mud on their feet... let them finish the spring plowing first. Most of it is already done, so a few days won't matter. Once they've finished their work in two or three days and have no worries on their minds, they'll play, sing, and dance well... if you don't find me a nuisance, Brother Ajin, I'll stay at your house for two or three days before setting off."

Shen Jin stared at the youth before him, his gaze drifting, his thoughts unreadable, and simply nodded.

And so, the gathering at Qianxi immediately dispersed, while Liu Acheng and the others returned to Shen Jin's home through spring rain as fine as silk threads.

There was no need to dwell on that day's banquet of fragrant tea, spring vegetables and fruit, and assorted meats. By the time the feast ended, it was already dark. Liu Acheng and Wu Fusheng asked leave to return to their guest rooms and rest, and Shen Jin personally escorted them to the veranda outside the hall doors.

His manner toward them had truly risen another notch.

Yet after watching Liu Acheng leave, he turned to the leader of the slave retainers beside him with something like a smile. "Has everything been arranged?"

The leader immediately nodded. "Everything is arranged. Of the two men who came with him, the young man from the Wu Clan of Kuaiji has a separate courtyard, and the other is drinking with our people. Neither will disturb him."

Shen Jin nodded in satisfaction.

The leader of the slave retainers, however, was a little puzzled. "Master of the Household, is all this really necessary for a ruined northerner drifting south? And with such careful arrangements?"

"What do you know?!" Shen Jin was momentarily speechless.

Then, too lazy to explain, he returned straight to the hall and had someone serve fragrant tea to sober him up.

Meanwhile, Liu Acheng knew nothing of these arrangements. Seeing that Wu Fusheng also had his own guest quarters, he merely thought the Shen Family was showing them respect. Hearing that Liu Dage was still drinking did not put him on his guard either... What was there to guard against? Never mind whether Liu Dage counted as a bodyguard; now that you've walked into their home base, do you really expect him to act like Dian Wei or Fan Kuai all by himself?

Besides, he, Liu Acheng, was only a ruined northerner drifting south. Even if he had come under the Xi Family's name, he was at most a broker working a shady sideline, not a regional lord like Cao Aman. Who did he need to guard against?

"Who are you two?"

Liu Acheng entered the empty courtyard and stepped into the candlelit room. At first, when he saw two figures, he thought little of it-someone had to light the candles, after all... but soon, seeing two girls of only thirteen or fourteen standing motionless beside the bed, he understood and could not help laughing.

One of the girls raised her head, blushing. "Young master, Steward Shen, who came to find us, told us to tell you that we are Cucumber and Little Grass."

Liu Acheng froze for a moment, then burst into laughter, laughing until tears came to his eyes. Yet he shook his head. "It's all right. Stay here tonight, but I still have something to discuss with your family head, Brother Shen Jin. If I come back late, go to sleep first."

With that, he immediately turned and went outside.

Once he left the courtyard, the Shen Family servant stationed at the entrance seemed to want to ask something but did not dare. Liu Acheng retraced his route and quickly found the hall, just in time to see Shen Jin about to make himself scarce. He called out to stop him. "Brother Ajin! This is a rare opportunity. I must tell you about the situation in Hebei!"

Helpless, Shen Jin could only turn back. The two resumed their previous seats and discussed the situation in the north over fragrant tea.

The infighting in Later Zhao, the rise of the Murong clan, the Di people, the Qiang people... but however much they talked, it was still the same old material. After all, news between north and south was cut off. Here in Jiangdong, they did not even know about Ran Min's coup in the twelfth lunar month. What more could they say?

After talking until his mouth was dry, he moved on to anecdotes about celebrated men, including General Huan, then ran through the famous scholars of Kuaiji. He even discussed the internal struggles of the Way of the Celestial Masters and Master Du Ming's sons, and the extent of development and underlying economic strength of Wuxing, Kuaiji, Wu Commandery, Jinling, and other places.

By the time they reached the end, the candle had already been replaced once. Shen Jin finally could not hold back. "Young Brother Acheng, the cucumbers are fresh and crisp. Aren't you going to eat them?"

If you'd offered watermelon instead, I would've eaten it!

Liu Acheng smiled, inwardly speechless... to be honest, he was not a man of particularly iron resolve. If this body of his had been a little older, and those two had not been children, he probably would have gone with the flow.

Moreover, he knew perfectly well that this would not damage the two girls' reputations. They might even take pride in it. For one thing, that was the prevailing social climate. Leaving everything else aside, the stronghold of the Way of the Celestial Masters was right next door in Qiantang, and he had only just heard "Cucumber Is a Blade of Grass" today. For another, their status was what it was: they were slave retainers, and their ancestors had been the Shen Family's slave retainers for generations. They were already very likely to be selected as household courtesans.

Precisely for that reason, Liu Acheng had let the two little cucumbers remain in his room instead of making some righteous, stern declaration.

But the problem was that people had different principles. To Liu Acheng, those few years of difference made it unacceptable. Besides, he intended to accomplish great things and needed to cherish his health. Otherwise, why did he ride his little horse every day?

And what if he fathered a child this early?

Furthermore, although Shen Jin thought he had concealed it well, Liu Acheng had seen enough of people to recognize these little expressions of psychology among the powerful in this era quite easily. He had therefore realized at once that behind this seemingly normal, even kindly act lurked a condescending malice.

Shen Jin probably still looked down on him!

At its heart, this gesture meant the same thing as the invitation to become a household retainer during their first evening conversation... So you're the lofty one, the one putting on airs, as though our Shen Clan ought to curry favor with a ruined northerner like you? If you weren't wearing the Xi Family's skin, would you even qualify to sit in my house?

You even took my silk and gave it to that checkpoint official as an apology on my behalf? You worried about the spring plowing of my slave retainers for me? And "Brother Ajin," no less?

Our Shen Family may be a punished family now, but who gave someone like you permission to climb onto our faces and put on airs?

Of course, he had to admit that compared with the earlier bluntness, this malice and anger were very well concealed. So well that everyone, whether outsiders or those involved, ought to-and could only-regard it as kindness.

"To tell you the truth, Brother Ajin..." At this thought, Liu Acheng sighed, then slowly answered with a smile. "Cucumbers are delicious, but I'm a northerner who came south alone. I fear that I may achieve nothing in the future, without Chancellor Wang Dao's Short-Shafted Ox Cart and long-handled Dust-Tail Fan to rush back and forth in. And I also fear encountering something like what happened to Prefect Deng You, leaving me without descendants... tell me, Brother Ajin, at a time like this, how could I dare indulge in cucumbers?"

Liu Acheng had used two anecdotes familiar to everyone South of the Yangtze. One concerned Wang Dao, who kept mistresses outside his home and fathered many children. When his wife discovered them, he was so frightened that he forgot to take an ox whip and used the Dust-Tail Fan he carried for philosophical discourse to drive his ox cart to the rescue. The other was the family tragedy of Deng You, regarded as Wu Commandery's finest prefect since the migration south. Having no son after moving south, Deng You took a concubine and doted on her. Later, he suddenly discovered that she was the daughter of a nephew from whom he had been separated during the migration. It struck him like five thunderbolts crashing down upon his head. He never married again for the rest of his life, and his line ended there.

These two anecdotes also made his answer watertight-I still need to marry in the future, so I cannot fool around now; moreover, wandering far from home alone, I should not be fooling around in the first place.

After hearing him out, Shen Jin looked at the youth before him and remained silent for a long time. He knew that, in any event, he had underestimated him... at the very least, the other man could hold his own, and his attempt to make light of him had failed.

Liu Acheng continued, "Brother Ajin, there is one more thing... I know you've been confined to Wuxing for decades, unable to fulfill your ambitions, while watching one person after another, splendid on the outside but hollow within, soar to success beside you. That is why you have long harbored resentment. It's only human. But if, after seeing too much of this, you assume everyone is the same, won't you miss true heroes for nothing? Let me tell you plainly: I cannot speak for others, but Xi Jiabin and I are neither of us what you imagine. Don't underestimate us because he and I are young."

With that, he cupped his hands and took his leave, but went to sleep in Wu Fusheng's courtyard instead.

As for Shen Jin, head of the Shen Clan of Wuxing, he lay in his own bed unable to sleep the entire night.

-----I am the cucumber dividing line-----

Shen Jin, courtesy name Shijian... though of a punished family, he still possessed over ten thousand servants and a hundred li of farmland. Once, Emperor Taizu passed through Yixing and borrowed lodging in the Shen Clan's garden. That night, he played a transverse flute, its melody mournful and tender throughout. Jin happened to pass by, praised him, and spoke with him until dawn. Greatly astonished in his heart, he came to regard him as someone upon whom he could rely.

-Old Book of Qi, Biographies, volume fifteen

P.S. Thanks to Master Waiting for Others for the auspicious trio of alliance-leader donations! Wishing everyone great luck and prosperity on April Fools' Day!