Chapter 36: Ancient Book
Liu Xianyang soon came running back with a bamboo basket on his back. Chen Ping'an was by the well, watching the excavation work. Liu Xianyang kicked Chen Ping'an right in the backside, nearly sending the straw-sandaled youth tumbling face-first. Turning back and seeing it was the tall youth, Chen Ping'an didn't make an issue of it. Liu Xianyang said casually, "It's done. Master Ruan told me to behave myself these days, not to run around. Dig the well during the day, forge iron at night. After a week and a half, he'll count me as his first disciple here. Called an 'opening disciple' or something. I got you a basket too. I'll help you find stones. We'll start from the forge and go all the way up to the covered bridge. But I'm telling you now, I can't help you with the water pit at Green Ox's Back. Master Ruan said if I so much as step one foot north or west of the covered bridge these days, he'll break my legs."
Liu Xianyang threw an arm around the straw-sandaled youth's neck and whispered, "Master Ruan said things don't get lost in this town. He also said those outsiders follow a strange rule—they can be honest merchants, swindlers and cheats, even beggars who pick through trash, but they absolutely cannot be sneaky thieves. He said the heavens here never doze off or close their eyes; they're always watching us. Creepy, isn't it? I sure think it's creepy."
Liu Xianyang suddenly threatened, "Chen, you can keep staying at my place, but don't you dare sell that treasure armor of mine while I'm gone!"
Chen Ping'an punched Liu Xianyang in the chest. The tall youth quickly let go and rubbed his chest a few times before catching his breath. "You scrawny little monkey, where do you get so much strength? Can hiking a hundred miles of mountain trails with Old Man Yao every couple of days or chopping wood and burning charcoal in the deep mountains for months really make you that much stronger?"
Chen Ping'an smiled. "Anyway, I can carry a basket of rocks and still beat you back to town."
Liu Xianyang squinted. "Want to see who can hold their breath underwater longer?"
Nearing the stream, Chen Ping'an bent down to roll up his trouser legs. "I won't compete over just holding my breath," he said casually.
Before going into the water, Chen Ping'an plucked a bunch of spring grass from the stream bank and lined the basket with it. He even nagged that after every twenty stones, he'd need to add more grass. Liu Xianyang got so annoyed he tried to toss his basket to Chen Ping'an, who refused, saying that if he carried the basket, Liu Xianyang's impatient nature would just throw the stones straight in, and he'd feel bad about it. Liu Xianyang almost quit on the spot—these gaudy, colorful stones had been worthless for thousands of years, so why had they suddenly become precious and delicate with Chen Ping'an? And how dare he criticize Liu the Great's lack of gentle technique?
But in the end, the tall youth grudgingly went into the water to feel for stones. Chen Ping'an took the left side while Liu Xianyang took the right, planning to sweep this stream thoroughly. The water here was mostly knee-deep, with a few deeper spots reaching waist level. Occasionally there were pits as deep as a man's height, usually where large boulders gathered. At those spots, Liu Xianyang would show off his skills. He'd hand his basket to the straw-sandaled youth, who would crouch on a boulder, then dive to the bottom in one breath, pulling out snake gallstones from between the cracks of giant rocks—even from piles of stacked stones.
Of course, Chen Ping'an could do it too, but it would be much harder and take far more time and effort than Liu Xianyang.
By the time they hadn't even reached the covered bridge, the basket was nearly eighty percent full. Among them was a dark green snake gallstone that Liu Xianyang had to dive three times into a deep pit to finally retrieve. It was as big as a palm, flecked with gold specks, with wavy patterns. The stone was dense and fine-grained, heavy in the hand. When Chen Ping'an rubbed it, it actually felt like tiny sparks were flying off.
You didn't need eyes to know this stone was something special.
Finally, the two youths sat side by side on a large rock in the middle of the stream. Liu Xianyang rested his hands on the rock surface and stared at the slowly flowing water. "Chen Ping'an, have you ever thought about leaving this town?"
Chen Ping'an replied, "Haven't really thought about it. You need money to travel far, and if I leave, what about the house? Nobody would look after it. What if it collapses one day? And I need to regularly pull weeds from my parents' graves."
Liu Xianyang sighed. "Why do you always think about so many useless things? No fun. No wonder Song Jixin says you're cursed to walk in circles, stuck in this tiny place your whole life, never getting out."
Chen Ping'an turned his head and smiled. "Do you remember what I told you last time? About that tree."
Liu Xianyang said disdainfully, "A tree growing on a grave—is that really worth making a fuss over? Besides, that's the grave of an ancestor from another branch of the Chen clan. It doesn't have a single copper coin's worth of connection to you, Chen Ping'an!"
Chen Ping'an sat cross-legged and said softly, "I wonder how many people with the surname Chen there are outside this town."
Liu Xianyang undercut him, "I don't know about outside the town. I only know that in this town, there are only a handful of Chens—like stray cats and dogs. And except for you, they're all bondservants of the Four Surnames and Ten Clans, slaves for generations. The funny thing is, these people act like oxen and horses inside the mansions, bowing and scraping, but the moment they step out of those big houses, they put on a whole new face, looking down on everyone else. So Old Man Yao was right—if you, Chen Ping'an, ever stoop to being their servant, then this branch of Chen that never moved out of town will be completely finished."
According to Old Man Yao, back in the day, there had been two branches of the Chen surname in the town. One moved away early on. Chen Ping'an's branch had once been prosperous, but that "once" was so long ago that even Old Man Yao couldn't say whether it was five hundred years, eight hundred, or a thousand. Later, the branch split into several houses, but the population grew thinner and thinner. It was like luck had been taken away by the branch that moved out. The line of descent often broke, so many graves gradually fell into neglect. And most of the graves were on hills that, one after another, had been sealed off by imperial-appointed overseers.
The last time Old Man Yao took Chen Ping'an into the mountains, they passed one of those hills. He pointed to a spot and said that was where an ancestor from the other Chen branch was buried—right on that hill, with excellent feng shui. As for Chen Ping'an's own branch, Old Man Yao said even the gods couldn't find their graves anymore. In the last few centuries, the descendants of this branch had amounted to nothing but penniless failures. Aside from stubbornly refusing to become servants of the Four Surnames and Ten Clans, they had no redeeming qualities.
Chen Ping'an had once secretly gone looking for that Chen ancestor's grave. When he got there, all he saw was weeds, a few foxes and rabbits, but no grave mound. There was a tree he didn't recognize—not tall, much shorter than the old locust tree in town.
Overgrown with weeds, foxes and rabbits running around, solitary and pitiful, with one tree thriving alone.
Chen Ping'an shook his head. "Before my mother passed away, she made me swear an oath: I could become a beggar, even starve to death, but I was never to become a servant for those big families."
Liu Xianyang blurted out, "Then before your mother died, didn't she also make you swear never to become an apprentice at the Dragon Kiln?"
The straw-sandaled youth's expression darkened. He didn't argue, nor did he get angry at being exposed.
Liu Xianyang felt a twinge of guilt. But he wasn't the type to say "I'm sorry" when he did something wrong, so he pretended nothing happened and stood up. "Let's go, let's go. Time to dig the well. Oh, I'll try to talk Master Ruan into letting you come here as a temporary apprentice. Then it'll be easier for you to find your stones."
Chen Ping'an said, "No hurry. Let's wait until those two groups give up and leave town. In the meantime, I'll watch your house."
Liu Xianyang asked curiously, "Why is it that when I apprentice with Master Ruan, I can escape disaster?"
Chen Ping'an thought for a moment. "It's like when it suddenly rains—you need to find a roof to take shelter under, right?"
Liu Xianyang turned to look at the Sword Furnace and Iron Shop. "Who do you think Master Ruan really is? He doesn't seem all that powerful. Can he really hold off those two groups?"
Chen Ping'an comforted him. "You can't judge a person by their appearance."
Liu Xianyang turned back. "You, Chen Ping'an, look like a poor man. So are you poor?"
Chen Ping'an just grinned, saying nothing.
Liu Xianyang stood up. "Want me to carry the basket to the covered bridge?"
Chen Ping'an shook his head. "No need. It's not heavy."
"Remember to return the basket next time."
With that, Liu Xianyang jumped off the big rock and walked briskly through the stream, splashing water everywhere.
Chen Ping'an shouldered his basket and carefully climbed down from the rock. Once ashore, he walked slowly toward the covered bridge.
After a while, he heard footsteps behind him. He turned and saw Liu Xianyang.
Under the warm spring sunlight, the tall youth snatched the basket from the straw-sandaled youth and carried it himself. He turned back with a smirk. "Watching you from a distance, carrying that basket, you looked like a little grasshopper hauling a big rock. Pathetic. I'll take pity on you and carry it to the covered bridge."
In the spring breeze, the two youths walked together.
"Hey, Chen, if I ever master my craft, I'm going to leave this place and see the world. I'll marry a wife even prettier than Zhigui, drink the finest wine, live in the biggest house, and ride the fastest horse!"
"I want to see mountains that touch the sky, and rivers so much bigger than our little stream."
"In any case, I, Liu Xianyang, am not going to spend my whole life here just waiting to die."
In the spring breeze, the tall youth dreamed of the future, while the straw-sandaled youth chewed on a blade of grass. One talked, the other listened.
---
Chen Ping'an carried the basket of stones back to Liu Xianyang's courtyard. He picked out the few stones that most caught his eye, took them to the side room, and left the rest by the kitchen stove. After locking both the room and the courtyard gate, he ran toward Mud Vase Alley. When he reached his own yard, he saw the black-clad girl sitting in the courtyard, basking in the sun. After greeting her, he began to decoct medicine.
From the neighboring courtyard came the continuous sound of chopping. It was strange. Although Song Jixin lived what outsiders saw as a life without parents, he had never lacked for food or clothing all these years. In fact, he always had plenty of money. He might not have lived better than the young masters of the Four Surnames, but he certainly wasn't worse off than the legitimate children of the Ten Clans. Fine stationery, elegant desk ornaments, study furnishings—many things Chen Ping'an had never seen or even heard of—were constantly being moved into Song Jixin's room. Actually, Song Jixin never had to do any real dirty or heavy work. Pickled vegetables were too smelly—Song Jixin wouldn't let his maid Zhigui do it. Chopping wood was too tiring—every year, Song Jixin simply bought bundles of firewood and bags of high-grade charcoal.
When Chen Ping'an brought the medicinal broth to the black-clad girl, the chopping next door was still going on intermittently. As Miss Ning drank her medicine, Chen Ping'an couldn't help walking to the courtyard wall. He stood on tiptoe and peered over. He saw Zhigui holding a kitchen knife, hacking at a "person"—a wooden mannequin. Chen Ping'an had worked with porcelain for years and seen many fine things, and he had chopped more than his share of wood. He could tell at a glance that the wood was as smooth as jade, obviously very old. The mannequin was covered in countless red and black dots, and Zhigui had already chopped it into several pieces.
Suddenly, the girl turned her head and saw Chen Ping'an. Her face covered in sweat and grime, she wiped it with her arm and forced a smile. "You're back. I wanted to borrow a hatchet from you, but that guest of yours refused to open the door."
Chen Ping'an was taken aback. "I'll get you a hatchet right away. Don't use too much force at first. A hatchet is different from a kitchen knife—it's easy to slip. You might hurt yourself."
The girl sat on a small stool, utterly exhausted. She waved her hand. "I know, go get it quick."
Chen Ping'an fetched the hatchet. The girl was already standing by the wall, smiling. "Do you know what that thing is?"
Chen Ping'an shook his head. "No."
Zhigui didn't offer an answer. She turned and sat back down on her stool, hacking away with all her might.
Her awkward, jerky movements and all the wrong postures made Chen Ping'an anxious. But since she hadn't asked for help, he didn't impose. Turning around, he saw that Miss Ning was no longer in the yard. Remembering something, he walked quickly into the house and placed an object on the table, opposite the black-clad girl.
It was a snake gallstone, just the right size to hold in one palm, like a piece of frozen, solidified honey, fine-grained and perfectly colored.
Ning Yao looked at it curiously.
Chen Ping'an smiled. "Miss Ning, this is for you."
The black-clad girl, who never let the sword leave her side, suddenly asked, "Is this your favorite?"
Chen Ping'an felt a little embarrassed. "This one... I guess it's ranked fourth. The best three are already hidden."
Only then did she accept the stone. She held it between two fingers and lifted it above her head. Light streamed through the window into the room, casting its glow on the stone.
She tilted her head back, squinting, carefully examining the subtle patterns of the stone.
She looked at the stone.
The youth looked at her.
---
In the dead of night, a youth crept into Mud Vase Alley, as silent as a wild cat. He went to Gu Can's courtyard. There, by the corner, was a large water vat. He crouched down and saw that the snake gallstones, originally stacked neatly, had been rummaged through and scattered. It seemed someone had recognized the stones' value even earlier than Chen Ping'an. Gu Can was the only eccentric in town who liked collecting snake gallstones. And no matter how many he found in the stream, he always brought home just one, picking only the stone that caught his eye. Over time, he had collected fifty or sixty stones, using them to block the gaps at the bottom of the water vat.
Chen Ping'an moved aside many of the stones, which had already lost their color, and was relieved to see no signs of digging at the bottom of the vat.
He began to dig the earth with his right hand, bit by bit. When he touched the oiled paper wrapping, his heart jolted. He slowed down.
Finally, he pulled out an object wrapped in oiled paper. It looked like a book.
He tucked it into his chest, then carefully filled the hole back in. He took another close look at the snake gallstones. The ones that remained were all "dead." Compared to the stones he had newly picked from the stream, their color, texture, and weight were completely different. The stones before him seemed like elderly people, lifeless and dull, while the ones he had fished out were like newborn babies, full of vitality.
Chen Ping'an thought for a moment and decided to leave Mud Vase Alley from the direction of his own house.
As he reached Song Jixin's courtyard gate, he heard a creak. A door opened. Chen Ping'an had no choice but to pretend to knock on his own door. "Miss Ning, are you asleep? I came back to get something."
Soon, a lamp was lit inside, and the black-clad girl opened the courtyard gate for him.
On the other side, the maid Zhigui sauntered out of her house. When she reached the yard and saw the flickering shadows on Chen Ping'an's side, she held a large, yellowish book to her chest, shook her head, and clicked her tongue, "Tsk, tsk, tsk," as if she had just caught a pair of adulterers in the act.
She walked alone down Mud Vase Alley, bouncing and hopping.
Her golden double pupils glinted coldly and sacredly in the dark alley.
Making the slender, graceful girl seem like a flood dragon gliding through a narrow stone crevice, as if once she left the alley, she would surge into a river and transform into a true dragon.
---
Although Ning Yao had let Chen Ping'an into the yard and even into the house, her expression was far from pleasant. She sat at the table, one arm resting on her sword scabbard, her fingers lightly tapping the hilt.
Only after confirming that Zhigui had walked into the alley did Chen Ping'an explain awkwardly, "I went to Gu Can's place to get something, and she happened to be coming out. I had no choice but to come here and hide. Miss Ning, please don't get the wrong idea."
She asked, "What was it?"
Chen Ping'an hesitated for a moment, then pulled out the oiled paper bundle. "I don't know yet."
She turned away. "Open it yourself first. Then decide if you want to let me know."
Chen Ping'an nodded. He sat across from her at the table and peeled away the layers of oiled paper. Bits of dirt tumbled onto the table. In the end, an ancient book was revealed.
The cover of the book had only two characters. Chen Ping'an recognized just one of them: mountain.
He placed the book on the table, turned it around, and pushed it toward the black-clad girl. "Miss Ning, what does this character read?"
The girl turned back, glanced down, and said, "Shake."
The title: Shake Mountain.