Zhou Qingyan

Biodata

Background / History

Separation from the Zhou Family

Zhou Qingyan grew up in a household whose earnings were taken by Old Madam Zhou and whose children were denied schooling. He attributed their treatment to his father, Zhou Fusheng, not being the Zhou elders’ biological son 2 11.

After his parents refused to sell Zhou Wanwan to Pockmarked Liu, their family was sent to a roofless old house without grain. Qingyan wanted to confront the elders over their treatment. He accompanied his father back to request a pot and bowls, but they returned empty-handed; Qingyan reported that Old Madam Zhou had told them to die and that the villagers would no longer let them enter the village 1 2.

When Wanwan caught a pheasant, Qingyan cried and questioned how anyone could have wanted to sell her. That night, he accompanied her into the reeds, where he caught two wild ducks while his brothers gathered more. He subsequently accepted Wanwan as the head of their household 2 3 4.

Building an Independent Livelihood

After the family settled in Wild Field Village, Qingyan accompanied Wanwan into the mountains to gather medicinal herbs. He took over the digging and continued until evening despite developing blood blisters, then helped carry their baskets and a valuable agarwood log home. The fleeceflower roots from the trip sold for six taels of silver 7 8 9.

Qingyan began learning to read under Wanwan, starting with five characters from the Hundred Family Surnames. He volunteered to make a sand tray for writing practice and later studied on it at night with his brothers. He explained that all three had previously tried to listen at the schoolhouse, only to be chased away by the teacher 11 23.

When Pockmarked Liu broke into Wanwan’s room and she killed him, Qingyan rushed over after hearing a scream. Although frightened, he checked the intruder’s breathing. He then joined the family’s nighttime trip to dispose of the body and took over digging medicinal herbs afterward 12.

Preparing for Disaster

Qingyan regularly accompanied Wanwan in gathering supplies ahead of the expected locust plague and drought. He helped fetch their parents after the siblings found a dead wild boar, and again when Wanwan discovered the Zhou family’s hidden grain-and-water stockpile 15 17 18.

During a trip to the county yamen’s equipment storeroom, Qingyan selected a woodcutting knife for household use. He initially considered the family’s purchase of discarded weapons for 300 copper coins a waste, not recognizing the items Wanwan could restore 20 21.

His household formally severed its ties with the Zhou Clan and later moved its belongings from Wild Field Village to Liu Family Village. There, Qingyan continued helping secure food, including catching pheasants and assisting Wanwan in filling more than twenty buckets with fish 36 38 46.

The Mountain Ambush

By the later mountain expeditions, Qingyan had learned archery and carried a bow. After Wanwan incapacitated more than twenty would-be attackers from Zhou Family Village, he helped search them and kicked Zhou Fuyu and Zhou Fukang for joining the attack 48 49.

At Wanwan’s direction, Qingyan dug beneath a large tree and uncovered a box containing five silver ingots worth five taels each, a gold hairpin, and a parchment marking Three Purities Mountain 49.

Personality

Qingyan is protective of Wanwan, following her outside at night, warning her about dangerous terrain, and taking strenuous work out of her hands. On their first herb-gathering trip, he refused to let her resume digging even after his own hands blistered. His protectiveness sometimes reflects conventional gender expectations: he tells her that a girl’s hands should hold needles and thread rather than dig herbs 3 8 12.

He is cautious rather than fearless. Large animal tracks prompt him to suggest turning back, Pockmarked Liu’s corpse frightens him, and Wanwan’s handling of a venomous snake leaves him trembling. Nevertheless, he checks the corpse and repeatedly accompanies his sister into the mountains 12 16 19.

He readily credits Wanwan for the family’s gains and accepts her leadership despite being older. He also answers insults directly and reacts fiercely when former relatives threaten the family. His eagerness to study persists after years without access to schooling 4 11 23 29 49.

Abilities & Skills

Archery

Qingyan learns archery and begins carrying a bow on mountain expeditions 48.

• No specific accuracy, range, or combat feat is documented 48.

Hunting and Foraging

Qingyan helps capture animals and harvest resources located by Wanwan 3 24 28 38.

• Catches wild ducks in the reed beds 3.
• Climbs a persimmon tree quickly with his brothers and helps fill a basket with fruit 28.
• Coordinates a simultaneous rush to catch pheasants 38.
• Carefully digs up medicinal plants and carries gathered herbs 24 39.

Literacy and Memory

Qingyan quickly learns the first five characters Wanwan teaches him; all three brothers are described as remembering them after seeing them once 11.

• Practices writing on a sand tray at night 23.
• Has no documented formal schooling or examination achievement 11 23.

Swimming and Fishing

Qingyan assists Wanwan with bait and scoop nets during the family’s exceptionally productive fishing trip 46.

• Zhou Qingshan names him among the brothers he calls on as strong swimmers when Zhou Qiang falls into the river; Qingyan does not perform a rescue 47.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Bow — Carried on his back during a deep-mountain expedition after he learns archery 48.
• Woodcutting knife — Selected from the county yamen’s discarded equipment for chopping household firewood 21.
• Carrying basket and herb hoe — Used while gathering and transporting medicinal plants 8 12 39.
• Sand tray — Used to practice writing with his brothers 23.

Relationships

• Zhou Wanwan — Younger sister, six years his junior, and his reading teacher. He protects her, accepts her as household head, and credits her for their successful finds 2 4 11 29.
• Zhou Fusheng — Father. Qingyan accompanies him to request basic utensils after the family’s expulsion and recognizes the discrimination he suffered as an adopted son 2 11.
• Liu Su’e — Mother. Her warnings about the river and mountains shape his concern for Wanwan’s safety 3 8.
• Zhou Qinghe and Zhou Qingchen — Younger brothers and companions in gathering food, studying characters, and defending Wanwan 3 23 31.
• Old Madam Zhou — His father’s adoptive mother. Qingyan resents her seizure of their earnings, mistreatment of the household, and attempt to sell Wanwan 2 7.
• Zhou Fuyu and Zhou Fukang — His father’s adoptive brothers. After discovering their involvement in the mountain ambush, Qingyan rejects any claim of kinship and kicks them while they are unconscious 49.

Notable Quotes

“I'll listen to you too. From now on, you're the head of our family.” 4

“Wanwan, you don't know this, but the three of us always wanted to study.” 23

“Who shares a root with them? They're not even worth calling people. Who does things like this?” 49