Li Laosan Was Nothing but a Spendthrift!

A quick-tongued woman was the first to bring it up, envy gleaming in her eyes.

"Exactly!" another chimed in, lowering her voice mysteriously.

"I ran into Li Zhong's wife, Wang, washing clothes by the stream this morning. She hadn't hidden the chicken feathers in her basket properly! And that Li Laosan-I saw him heading toward the mountains again with a bow on his back. He looked full of energy, like a whole different person!"

"Isn't it strange? That boy Li Xuan used to be too weak to carry anything on his shoulders or lift anything with his hands, and he slipped off to town every day. How did he suddenly see the light and become such a good hunter? And bring something back several days running?"

Someone voiced her doubts.

"Who knows? Maybe old man Li's spirit is watching over his family from beyond the grave? Or perhaps..."

The quick-tongued woman glanced around and lowered her voice further. "He stumbled into the Mountain God's good graces?"

Just then, Wang came in from outside the village, her head lowered and an empty basket over her arm. She looked as though she had gone to her family's vegetable plot to gather some dried vines from the late crop for firewood.

She had no desire to join the commotion. Usually, she quietly avoided gatherings like this, so she would not have to hear people gossip about her good-for-nothing younger brother-in-law and her family's straitened circumstances.

"Hey! Li Zhong's wife! Over here! We were just talking about you!" The sharp-eyed, quick-tongued woman spotted her and immediately called out.

Wang stopped, unease drumming in her heart. But with everyone watching, she could hardly walk straight away, so she slowly edged over.

"What... were you ladies talking about?" Wang asked quietly, her fingers unconsciously twisting the basket strap.

"What else? Your younger brother-in-law, Li Xuan!" The quick-tongued woman warmly drew her closer, her face wreathed in smiles.

"Come on, tell us. Did your family's third son really find some treasure in the mountains? How did he suddenly become so capable? You've had meat two days running! That smell had us all drooling!"

The other women chimed in from every side, their eyes brimming with curiosity and scrutiny, even a touch of ingratiation that had never been there before.

Listening to them and seeing those looks, Wang suddenly felt much of the resentment bottled up inside her for so long melt away.

In the past, Li Xuan's outrageous behavior and the Li family's poverty had left her barely able to get a word in among these women.

Whenever she did come up in conversation, she was an object of pity or ridicule. She had never been able to stand tall.

But now...

She took a deep breath and tried to keep her voice steady, but her slightly raised chin and the fleeting sparkle in her eyes still betrayed her feelings.

"There wasn't any treasure... It's just that young Xuan seems to have suddenly grown up and learned to care about his family."

She paused, then could not resist adding, "That boy was a bit of a rascal before, but his heart isn't bad. Now that he's willing to work hard and head into the mountains, he's picked up some of the skills his father and grandfather left behind years ago. He and his eldest brother caught that Mountain Pheasant in a snare, and his aim with a bow is pretty good, too..."

Those few casually spoken words were like a stone tossed into a still pool.

The women clicked their tongues in wonder, their envy deepening.

"Oh my, a prodigal's return is worth more than gold! Li Zhong's wife, your family's good days are still ahead!"

"That's right, that's right! Sister Wang, you must have your family's third son teach that blockhead of ours a thing or two!"

The compliments made Wang's cheeks grow warm, but her heart felt as sweet as if she had drunk honey.

It had been so long since she had felt this way.

Just then, however, a rather caustic voice cut in, laden with undisguised skepticism.

"Well, you make it sound almost true. Good aim? Setting snares? Who doesn't know the Li family's third son couldn't even draw a bow all the way before? Maybe he just stumbled into some shitty luck, picked up a Mountain Pheasant that had died of sickness somewhere, and brought it home to keep up appearances?"

The speaker was Widow Zhao, who lived at the east end of the village. A little older than Wang, she had high cheekbones, thin lips, and narrow eyes that always looked askance at people.

Widowed young, she was fierce and petty, with a notoriously sharp tongue.

Wang was better-looking than she was, and though Li Zhong, the man Wang had married, was poor, he was honest and hardworking.

Li Shan had also once had some means and a good reputation, and an indefinable jealousy had always festered in her heart.

She had often gossiped about Wang and the Li family behind their backs.

Wang's smile faded as she looked at Widow Zhao. "Sister Zhao, what do you mean by that? Our family knows perfectly well whether young Xuan hunted that Mountain Pheasant. The arrow wound was still there. How could he have just picked it up?"

"Hmph." Widow Zhao curled her lip, yanking hard on the hemp rope in her hands as though it were Wang's face.

"I mean a blind cat happened upon a dead mouse, so don't praise him to the skies! And 'suddenly grown up'? Can a dog stop eating shit? I'd say your family couldn't even keep the cooking pot going, so you put on this little act to fool yourselves and everyone else, just to preserve that pitiful scrap of dignity. Who knows where that meat really came from!"

Her words grew increasingly vicious, hinting that the Li family might have done something dishonorable.

"You!" Wang's face went pale with anger, her chest heaving.

However badly Li Xuan had behaved, he was still her younger brother-in-law. Now that he had finally turned over a new leaf, he was the Li family's hope. How could she let an outsider slander him like this?

The confidence she had gained over the past few days as the family's circumstances improved, coupled with her fierce urge to protect her own, made her abruptly raise her voice.

"Zhao Jinhua! Stop spewing shit! Our young Xuan stands straight and walks an honest path. The game he brings home is clean! Your own heart is filthy, so you think everyone else is filthy too! If you're so capable, go into the mountains and 'pick up' a Mountain Pheasant yourself!"

"Oh, now you're cursing at me? I hit a sore spot, did I?"

Widow Zhao stood up as well, planting her hands on her hips, spittle flying.

"Who doesn't know what your family used to be like? So poor your empty pockets rattled, and Li Laosan was nothing but a spendthrift! It's only been a few days, and suddenly he's capable? Tell that to the ghosts! I say he's just putting on a show, and he won't fool anyone for long!"

They traded barbs, their voices climbing higher and higher, until it looked as though they might start clawing at each other.

The women beside them hurried to intervene, some pulling them apart, others trying to soothe them.

"All right, all right, enough. We're all neighbors..."

"Sister Zhao, let it go. Sister Wang hasn't had it easy either..."

Held back by the others, Widow Zhao remained defiant. Then, as though suddenly remembering something, she sneered and said in a mocking tone,

"All right, Sister Wang. You're so protective of that younger brother-in-law of yours. You say he's capable, that he isn't afraid of cold or hard work, don't you? Around noon, I saw with my own eyes that your 'capable' younger brother-in-law had gone into the mountains alone again this morning with his bow! In this weather!"

As she spoke, she looked up at the gloomy sky.

At some point, the lead-gray clouds had sunk low, and scattered flecks of snow had begun drifting down, icy against their faces.

"A heavy snowfall's coming any moment. It's freezing cold, and you can hardly spot even a bird! Yet he still

"dares venture deep into the mountains?"

Widow Zhao deliberately drew out her words. "Maybe instead of showing off his skills, he'll lose his life up there. Then it'll be... heh, heh."

Those words were like a basin of icy water suddenly dumped over Wang's head.

She had been so caught up in the argument that she had nearly forgotten!

Yes, Li Xuan had seemed to be preparing to head into the mountains again that morning!

In this weather... I was so busy rejoicing over the changes in our family and standing up for young Xuan that I forgot to worry about his safety!

Li Xuan had never properly ventured into the mountains in foul weather before!

The anger she had forced onto her face vanished in an instant, replaced by panic. Her gaze involuntarily drifted toward the dark mountains behind the village.

The sparse, drifting flecks of snow now looked painfully cold and harsh.

"You... stop cursing him!"

Wang shot back weakly, but her thoughts were already elsewhere.

She abruptly pushed aside the women holding her and said hurriedly,

"I can't be bothered arguing with you! I've still got water heating on the stove at home, and I forgot to put out the fire! I need to hurry back and check!"

With that, she no longer paid any attention to Widow Zhao's triumphant sneer or the varied looks from the other women.

Basket over her arm, she hurried toward home at almost a run.

The cold wind whipped flecks of snow against her face, but all she could feel was her heart tightening again and again.

I have to get my husband to go look for him right away!

Please, let nothing happen to him!

We've only just found a little hope. We can't withstand another blow!