As soon as Fu Congzhao entered the courtyard after being exposed to the sea breeze all night, he saw Jin Shanyao sitting at the doorway.
A table was set up in front of her, and a long queue had already formed around it.
Jin Shanyao pen and wrote something. Soldiers stood awkwardly in front of her. As soon as one left, the next one stepped forward. They obediently placed a coin on the table and began to give their names and home addresses.
Fu Congzhao patted the last person in the group, who turned around and said in surprise, "Young General."
What are you doing?
"Oh, we're here to have Master Jin perform a ritual for us, it's one coin per person... Are you going to cut in line?" the soldier said, looking at Fu Congzhao.
Fu Congzhao's head buzzed, and his voice involuntarily rose, "What, a penny for a funeral??"
The long line turned around at his call, and when they saw it was the young general, they panicked. Some wanted to run away, but they stopped themselves. They had been queuing for so long, they couldn't leave.
The soldier was bewildered by the shout, "What's wrong, General??"
What else? Fu Congzhao's heart was bleeding. His grandfather had used up his entire life savings to ask Jin Shanyao and perform a ritual for him, and it turned out that it could be done for just one penny.
He was filled with regret; who knew this could be negotiated!
Jin Shanyao glanced up and saw Fu Congzhao standing at the back of the line. Thinking he was also going to have his prayers answered, she said, " Congzhao... you don't need to wait in line. Your grandfather has already given money... Be good, go back to your room and sleep."
This kid is really suffering... His eyes are dark circles, and he looks completely blank when he looks at people.
Jin Shanyao took notes for three consecutive days before finally stopping. On the fourth day, she left the military camp with the notebook in her pocket.
As you pass along the coastline, many women and children carry bamboo baskets, bending down to pick up seashells and conches. These things may seem useless, but if you collect enough, you can exchange them for a few coins to supplement your household income.
The Jin Shanyao as she walked past them toward Prosperity and Peace Village.
Prosperity and Peace Village is large but sparsely populated. The empty village is overgrown with weeds. She walked around the village for a while before she saw a family repairing a boat.
He stepped forward and gently knocked on the hull of the boat. "Brother, would you mind having a drink of water?"
The man stopped what he was doing, straightened up, glanced at Jin Shanyao, and then called out into the courtyard, "Wife, someone's come asking for water."
"Hey... come in, come in, there's hot water inside," a woman's voice came from inside the house.
Following the sound Jin Shanyao pushed open the door and entered, where she saw a gray-haired peasant woman mending a fishing net.
She looked up, exclaimed "Oh dear!", and quickly stood up, deftly pouring water for Jin Shanyao. "Miss... I've seen you before. A few days ago, I went to the military camp to deliver some small yellow croakers... and you were standing next to the young general."
The woman smiled and handed her a bowl of hot water, then sat down to continue mending the fishing net. Every now and then, she would glance up at Jin Shanyao; she was truly beautiful, unlike the dark-skinned women of the seaside...
Jin Shanyao held the slightly warm bowl, blew on the water, and took a small sip. "Sister-in-law, I see there are few people in the village. Have they all gone out to sea to fish?"
The woman laughed heartily, "You inland folks know nothing! Who would go out to fish in the dead of winter if they weren't starving?"
Jin Shanyao taken aback. "Didn't you say you were going out to sea to fish that day?"
The woman's fingers flew as she wove the fishing net, explaining with a smile, "General Fu led his troops to repel the Japanese pirates half a month ago. Those small yellow croakers were collected by our whole village; they weren't caught at sea."
Jin Shanyao glanced around the room, placed the bowl on the windowsill, and noticed a small bucket of broken rice in the wooden tub. "Was the harvest bad this year?"
The woman glanced at the rice jar, her smile fading slightly. "It's saline-alkali land. Plant one bushel, harvest two. After paying taxes, there's hardly anything left."
Is there enough to eat?
The woman smiled bitterly, "Whether it's enough or not, we still have to get by, don't we? Last year's harvest was pretty good, and I thought we could have a peaceful year, but who knew that the Japanese pirates would sneak in at night and rob us of all our stored grain. Luckily, General Fu led his men to retrieve some of it."
My husband and I couldn't bear to eat it ourselves; we saved it all for our three children. We had only a few bags of grain to last until spring, so we could only cook thin porridge for every meal.
The child cried from hunger, so I went to the beach every day to collect seashells, exchange them for a few coins to buy bran to eat. We managed to get through it. This year, General Fu, fearing the Japanese pirates would come to rob us again, has been drifting at sea day and night. We see it all... and it breaks our hearts."
The woman took a deep breath. "Why are these Japanese pirates so hateful? Don't they know how to find food? Why do they keep their eyes on us?"
As she spoke, she called into the house, "Nizi... come out and see your aunt."
A moment later, a five- or six-year-old child peeked out, thin with a pointed chin but large eyes, looking timidly at Jin Shanyao, "Hello, Auntie."
Jin Shanyao looked at her and smiled, "Good Niuniu..."
The little girl smiled shyly, her big eyes curiously scrutinizing her. Jin Shanyao felt a tightness in her chest as she looked at her. She asked softly, "Weren't there three?"
The woman said, "There's a wedding in town; the two older girls went to help with the work."
These families, who make their living by fishing, all like to send their children to the city to work at banquets. After the banquet, they can bring back some leftover food, and if they're lucky, they can even get a few coins as a reward to supplement their household income.
Jin Shanyao glanced at the little girl, grinned at her, and made the little girl cover her mouth and giggle secretly.
She turned to the woman and said, "Sister-in-law, I'd like to bring some beach souvenirs for my children. Do you have any small items?"
The woman thought for a moment, then put down the fishing net, got up, took a bamboo basket from the shelf, rummaged through it for a while, and pulled out a large snail shell, handing it over.
"Take this, it's pretty, bring it home for your child to play with."
Jin Shanyao took it, listened to it to her ear, and asked with a smile, "How much?"
The woman turned around to tidy the shelf and casually said, "Don't worry about the money, it's yours."
Jin Shanyao didn't say anything, but took out ten taels of silver from her sleeve and quietly put it into the bamboo basket. When she looked up, she saw the little girl staring at her intently.
She smiled at the child.
"Sister-in-law, I have something to attend to, I'll be leaving now."
"Oh... young lady, let me see you out," the woman said, freeing her hand to follow behind. "If you're not feeling well, come and sit down... I'll make you some fish."
With Jin Shanyao responded and left.
The woman closed the courtyard gate and went inside. She saw her daughter playing with a ten-tael silver ingot. Startled, she cried out, snatched the silver, and chased after her.
The man repairing the boat shouted, "What's all the commotion about?"
The woman stood on the village road, looking around blankly. There was no sign of the woman with the Jin Shanyao. In her anxiety, she slapped her thigh and handed ten taels of silver to the man.
The man was so startled that he slammed his hammer on the ground with a thud. "Where did all this money come from?"
The woman said anxiously, "That girl just now... I only gave her a conch shell, and she... do you think we should take it back?"
"Send it back, it must be sent back! What kind of conch is worth ten taels of silver?" The man wiped his hands, grabbed the silver, and chased after her, but he didn't see Jin Shanyao's figure even when he reached the village entrance.
When Jin Shanyao returned to the military camp, it was already evening.
She found Fu Congzhao and said, "Tell them that I'm going to hold a memorial service for the deceased at the end of the month. Anyone who wants to see their loved one one last time can come... but remember, don't disturb me, or I'll send them off with me."
Fu Congzhao asked uncertainly, "Seeing him one last time, is that what I think it means?" He had heard Su Wenqian say that he had personally witnessed the Jin Shanyao a ghost, and the ghost floated in the air, looking exactly the same as before it died.
Jin Shanyao glanced at him. "Are you afraid of ghosts??"
Fu Congzhao: "No? They are all my comrades and common people. Why would I be afraid of them? I just wanted to confirm, so as not to convey the wrong meaning."
Jin Shanyao her head, "If anyone is afraid of ghosts, they don't have to come, or they can close their eyes..."
Fu Congzhao: "Okay, I'll go prepare."