The days flew by, and before long, the New Year was approaching.
In class, Teacher Zhao went over the examination content and procedures in detail, emphasized a series of things to keep in mind, and finally said, "That concludes this term. May you all see your names on the golden list!"
He asked Rong Zheng to stay behind, his eyes filled with approval. "I've seen how diligently you've studied these past days. Your progress has been truly astonishing. Do your best in the exam. Your chances are very good!"
Rong Zheng bowed respectfully and thanked his teacher!
When he returned home, Ye Yun said, "Ye Lin, the village hunter, came looking for you this morning. He said he'd found signs of wild boars in the mountains and asked whether you wanted to hunt together."
Wild boars were large and ferocious by nature, and once enraged, they became extremely aggressive. Ordinary hunters would find another person to work with, improving their chances of success while making the hunt a little safer.
He had been busy studying these past few months. Apart from the twenty-odd taels he had earned from storybooks, he had had no other major income. By his reckoning, the family had about a hundred taels in savings left. He would have to travel to the county town for the upcoming examinations, which would be another considerable expense.
With the New Year approaching, hunting a wild boar sounded good. At least the family could save some money on meat.
He put down his book basket and went to discuss the timing and strategy for the hunt with Ye Lin.
Ye Lin lived at the far end of the village. He was in his twenties, tall and well-built, with thick, dark eyebrows and sharp eyes.
His family was small: his mother, a younger brother-a regular male-and a younger sister. The older of his two siblings was only twelve. After his father died, he had taught himself to hunt to support the family. He had fumbled his way through the early days and suffered quite a few injuries.
Once he became skilled, the family's circumstances gradually improved, and life became less difficult. They were now considered moderately well-off in the village.
After discussing matters, the two took their knives, arrows, and other equipment up the mountain the next day.
Ye Lin said, "I heard you caught a red fox. That's really impressive!"
"It was just luck."
"I haven't seen a fox in the back mountain for years. Did you cross over it and go deep into the wild forest?" Ye Lin wanted to find out where the foxes were and see whether he could hunt there himself.
Rong Zheng understood his intentions as soon as he heard this. He could sympathize and said frankly, "Yes. You can hardly find any foxes in the back mountain." After a brief pause, he cautioned, "There are foxes in the mountains over there, but I've encountered wolves and tigers too. They're not easy to deal with."
He only dared go because he knew martial arts. If Ye Lin had no martial training, he might never return.
That was all he would say. Having hunted for several years, Ye Lin would surely know how to weigh whether it was worth doing.
The moment Ye Lin heard there were tigers, he knew it was no place for him. Several wolves had chased him once, and he had barely escaped with his life. He could not even fight off wolves; if he encountered a tiger, his chances of survival would be slim indeed. He put the idea aside for the time being.
He still had old and young family members to care for. He could not lose his life out of greed.
As they chatted, the two reached their destination. Ye Lin had already scouted the area and soon found the general location where the wild boars appeared.
Ye Lin crouched in the undergrowth to drive a boar toward the designated spot, while Rong Zheng climbed a tree to look for an opportunity to attack.
An hour later, grunts and squeals came from nearby. Soon, a wild boar lumbered into view, its body thickset and its coat dense.
Ye Lin seized his chance and launched a surprise attack. The boar immediately raised its stiff bristles and bared its tusks. Lifting its front legs high and thrusting forward with its hind legs, it charged straight at its enemy. Ye Lin turned and ran, luring the boar beneath Rong Zheng's tree.
Rong Zheng flung down the vine in his hands, immediately snaring the boar around its body. The boar went berserk, trying to break free. Its violent, ferocious appearance was enough to make anyone shrink back.
"Drag it to the pit! I put a wire fence there. Let it wear itself out inside!" Ye Lin rushed over to Rong Zheng and shouted.
But the boar was thrashing so wildly that even the thick vine looked ready to snap. If it escaped, catching it again would be difficult.
Rong Zheng handed the vine to Ye Lin and told him to tie it to a tree stump. Reaching behind his back, he drew an arrow and aimed at the boar. With a whoosh, the arrow struck its eye. The boar let out a long howl. The pain of the wound drove it into an even greater frenzy, and it charged about wildly until it was exhausted and collapsed on the ground.
Ye Lin drew his large knife and delivered the finishing blow.
"Rong Zheng, that's some amazing archery! You actually hit its eye." He finally understood why Rong Zheng could hunt foxes. This was no ordinary archery, and then there was the strength he had used to restrain the boar. He did not look particularly muscular, yet he was so strong.
Ye Lin now fully understood that he could never hunt deep in the wild forest across the mountain the way Rong Zheng did. Their abilities were on completely different levels. He was a little puzzled. When had this scholar learned martial arts? But that was someone else's private business and had nothing to do with him, so he soon dismissed his questions.
The boar was enormous, weighing close to three hundred jin by their estimate. They carried it down the mountain slung from a wooden pole.
When they returned to the village, the villagers they encountered gathered around:
"Well done, you two! You caught such a huge boar. I'd say it weighs over three hundred jin."
"You won't have to worry about meat for the New Year."
"Are you selling the pork? If so, I'll hurry home for some money."
"Sell some here. It'll save us a trip to town."
Ye Lin called out loudly, "We'll butcher it and sell it right here in the village. Anyone who wants some can come to the shelter outside Rong Zheng's house around the shen hour this afternoon-between three and five. We'll set up a stall there. Twenty-five wen a jin."
The two had agreed on their way down the mountain that they would each keep twenty jin of meat and sell the rest.
Since they were all fellow villagers, they set the price a little lower.
Hearing that it was eight wen cheaper than in town, the villagers all said they would go home for money and asked them to save a portion.
Rong Zheng smiled. "Uncles, aunties, it's first come, first served."
As they approached the gate, Ye Yun had already come out to meet them. Rong Zheng asked him to go heat some water in the kitchen first.
Ye Yun had invited Ming-ge'er over to do needlework that day. Since Ming-ge had less work to do at home, he had been spending more time on his needlework, and his skills kept improving. A ready-made clothing shop in town ordered clothes from Ming-ge'er almost every month.
Ming-ge'er's parents were delighted to discover that their ger had such a talent for sewing. Making clothes alone could bring in about a tael a month. They no longer told him to work in the fields, letting him stay home and make clothes for money instead, though he had to hand over six hundred wen every month.
Ming-ge'er thought this was quite good. He enjoyed needlework, and seeing the clothes he had sewn stitch by stitch displayed in the most prominent spot in the town's clothing shop gave him a sense of satisfaction and pride beyond words.
Once, he had meekly accepted everything. Because he was a ger, his parents looked down on him, and his elder brother and younger sister treated him as though he were invisible. Before marriage, he worked himself to the bone for his family; after marriage, he would work for his husband's family. It seemed his whole life would be like that.
Was that truly the only way things could be? He had felt lost and helpless. When he saw Ye Yun still seeking ways to escape and quietly resisting despite such terrible circumstances, he was drawn to him.
He thought that being as resilient as Ye Yun must be something remarkable!
Now, his life had reached a turning point, and his inner sense of accomplishment had made him confident inside and out.
He had yet to realize that the awakening of his sense of self was like the light of dawn, gradually dispelling the gloom around him. His transformation had made him so radiant.
It was at this moment that Ye Lin noticed Ming-ge'er. He and Rong Zheng carried the boar into the courtyard, one at either end. Looking up by chance, he saw a ger sitting in the pavilion. The ger had a fresh, bright face and held needle and thread in his hands. Drawn by the commotion, he looked over.
Their eyes briefly met. In that instant, Ye Lin's heart raced, and he was utterly captivated. It was like stars falling into the deep night sky, stirring ripple after ripple. He stood there in a daze...
"Lin-ge, why have you stopped? We need to carry the boar over there."
Rong Zheng, who was behind him, reminded him and pointed ahead. Looking at the several-hundred-jin boar on his shoulder, he honestly found it very heavy. Why was Ye Lin just standing there?
"Oh, right. All right."
Ye Lin came back to his senses. By the time he put down the boar and looked over again, the young ger had set aside his needlework and was walking toward them. His ears grew hot, and he suddenly did not know where to look:
Is the young ger coming to talk to me?
How should I answer him?
I need to make a good impression so I can send a matchmaker to propose!
The young ger is so fresh-faced and lovely. Our children would be good-looking too, wouldn't they?
However,
"Brother Rong, this boar is huge. Do you need any help?" Ming-ge'er asked, looking at the boar... without so much as glancing at Ye Lin...
"No. I'll cut you a few jin of meat later for you to take home."
"I couldn't do that. I can't take meat for free. It's expensive. I'll go home and get money to buy some." Ming-ge'er called toward the kitchen to Ye Yun, "I'm going home to get money for meat. I'll leave my needlework at your house." With that, he left.
Ye Lin belatedly realized he had gotten ahead of himself and felt embarrassed. He rubbed his head, let out a breath, and began butchering the boar.
By the time he finished, Rong Zheng had already set up the stall under the shelter.
Rong Zheng cut the meat, while Ye Lin collected the money.
The villagers came one after another, gathering around the shelter and lining up to buy meat.
"Rong Zheng, give me the heart and lungs."
"Cut me three jin of pork."
"I'll have one jin."
"I like pig's ears. I'll take those."
Only when nearly everything had sold did Ming-ge'er come over. His family had asked him to buy four jin of meat. "Brother Rong, cut me four jin." He handed the money to Ye Lin.
Rong Zheng was just about to offer him half price and have the difference charged to his own share.
With a stiff expression, Ye Lin said awkwardly, "We're almost sold out. Half price."
Ming-ge'er looked at Rong Zheng in confusion. Only after Rong Zheng nodded did he take back half the money.
Rong Zheng gave Ye Lin a peculiar look. He had wanted to offer half price because Ming-ge'er was Ye Yun's good friend. But for Ye Lin to do this for no apparent reason certainly gave one something to think about!
The villager who had just bought meat and left felt quite hurt. They had come one right after the other, yet the difference in treatment was rather large...
After everything was sold, they each received three taels of silver.