Chapter 87

Chapter 87

When the Sun father and son arrived at Sunset Village, dusk was just settling in.

Originally, it was supposed to be just Brother Sun coming to deliver the warning, but Old Man Sun was worried, so he had Second Son Sun take the grandchildren to hide in the mountain cellar and forbade them from coming out. He then brought Brother Sun to Sunset Village.

Fearing they might run into people, they took mountain paths the entire way. The mountains between Stone Forest Village and Sunset Village weren’t continuous—they had to go into the mountains, descend, and then enter again. Not only were they on edge, terrified of bumping into Officials, but they were also worried about the old women and daughters-in-law back in their village, unsure if they could handle the Soldiers.

But lives were at stake, and at this moment, they couldn’t afford to worry about anything else. The father and son didn’t dare stop along the way, fearing that if they notified their in-laws too late, the entire Zhao family might not escape conscription. Those Zhao men—if he were an Official, he’d be eyeing them greedily too. Each one was tall and burly, perfect for being seized as able-bodied men. One of them could do the work of five; capturing one was already worth it, capturing two was even better, and if they could round them all up, it would hit the jackpot.

Old Man Sun had no intention of letting his son-in-law go out to seek military glory. He just wanted the whole family to live in peace. In these times, being alive was the greatest blessing.

The father and son were also cautious. When they reached Sunset Village, they didn’t enter immediately. Instead, they hid outside the village and observed for a while.

This time of day was usually right after supper, when the men sat in the yard swatting mosquitoes and shooting the breeze, and the women washed dishes in the kitchen and heated bathwater. Although they had been hiding in the mountains and didn’t know the situation in the village—especially Brother Sun, who had never experienced such a thing—Old Man Sun was different. In his childhood, the court had once conscripted soldiers. The scene of Officials coming to the countryside to round up able-bodied men was almost like the King of Hell descending with a sickle to claim lives. It raised hell. In households where someone was taken as an able-bodied man, forget about cooking meals, extinguishing oil lamps, or sleeping—their throats would be hoarse from wailing, their eyes raw from crying. The village wouldn’t settle down for ten days to half a month.

How could it be as tranquil as it was now?

Old Man Sun breathed a huge sigh of relief. With the danger gone, he hurriedly brought his son into the village.

He didn’t pay attention to the few villagers sitting under the big tree at the village entrance, fanning themselves to cool off. Instead, he kept running downhill, shouting at the top of his lungs as he went: “In-laws, in-laws! Quickly take the children into the mountains! Officials have come to the countryside to round up able-bodied men—”

The old men under the big tree at the village entrance were dim-sighted and hadn’t noticed anyone running past on the small path. But the sudden shouting startled them. They were about to curse, wondering who was yelling so loudly in the middle of the night, when they suddenly processed what was being said. Their bodies trembled, then stiffened like corpses that had been dead for three days.

It could be said that in all of Qingzhou Prefecture, only their village was constantly on edge about the “conscription order.” These past few days, the Village Elders had grown increasingly anxious and restless, especially sensitive to phrases like “Officials coming to the countryside to round up able-bodied men.” Upon realizing what was happening, they jumped three feet high, hastily slipped on their straw sandals, and chased after the voice.

“Who? Whose in-laws?!”

“You said Soldiers have come to the countryside to seize people? Where have they reached?”

“Is it far from our village? Which village are you from? Whose in-laws are you… Are you San Di’s father-in-law? I remember you—you and your wife just visited recently. Wait, wait—which village are you from again? I remember it was from a neighboring town…”

The originally tranquil village was completely roused by Old Man Sun’s shouts.

Households that had already closed their gates, preparing to wash up and sleep, almost simultaneously pushed their doors open. Countless heads poked out from courtyards; men hurried out, slipping on their shoes; women dropped pots and pans in fright; children followed their fathers and grandfathers, running downhill toward the old Zhao household…

In just a few breaths, Sunset Village was in an uproar. Chickens flapped their wings, ducks quacked loudly, and even the firewood in the stove crackled and popped, adding to the commotion.

Everyone was running downhill toward the old Zhao household.

And the old Zhao household was also in chaos. Just as Old Man Sun and his son entered Sunset Village, Zhao Dashan—who had finished his supper and was bored out of his mind—wasn’t allowed to do heavy work due to his injury and poisoning. His parents and younger siblings forbade it. Being a diligent man in his prime, he couldn’t stand idleness. Feeling that he had mostly recovered, and seeing his little sister running back and forth in the yard right after eating, he picked her up and gave her a piggyback ride, as if to show that he was well enough to work.

She had often ridden on his shoulders before, so Zhao Xiaobao sat comfortably atop her big brother’s shoulders, gripping his hair with both hands, giggling like a clear bell. But the words she spoke were oddly chilling: “Giddy-up, giddy-up! Big brother, run fast! Take Xiaobao and run! There’s going to be a war! The official men with big knives are coming to seize able-bodied men!”

“Giddy-up! Giddy-up! Giddy-up!” She bounced her little bottom up and down, just like riding a horse, still chattering about officials coming to the countryside to seize people, urging them to run, run.

Zhao Dashan’s heart pounded wildly. At first, he thought she was just joking, as children do. After all, since the autumn harvest, the atmosphere in the village had grown tense. Even the children didn’t dare misbehave. The adults talked endlessly about not knowing when the county would conscript soldiers, not knowing when the Soldiers would come to round up able-bodied men, not knowing whether the rumors Zhao Dagen heard were true or made up… Over and over, it was the same phrases: “conscription,” “Soldiers coming to the countryside to round up able-bodied men.” It was normal for his little sister to pick up such talk and parrot it.

But what wasn’t normal was that his father-in-law had also come running over in the middle of the night, shouting the same thing!

“Father-in-law! Quick, quick…” Old Man Sun saw his wife’s older brother and younger sister in the yard. His weak legs could no longer support him. Leaning against the bamboo fence, he nearly collapsed to the ground. “Quick! Soldiers have come to the countryside to round up able-bodied men! Hurry into the mountains and hide!!”

Old Man Zhao was currently planting wild pear trees in the Spirit Land. He had gone in right after supper, so naturally, he couldn’t hear. Sun Shi reacted the fastest. She knew her own father’s voice better than anyone. Earlier, she thought she might have heard something but couldn’t believe it. Now, she heard it clearly. Immediately, she dropped the fire tongs and ran out: “Dad! Big brother! Is it really you? Have you eaten?”

“Eat what? What time is it, and you’re still thinking about eating! Your head is full of nothing but food!” Old Man Sun was furious. This foolish girl—what time was it, and she was still asking if they’d eaten? He slapped his thighs loudly. “What are you still standing around for? Quickly tell your husband to take your son into the mountains!!”

His eldest grandson, Xi’er, also ran out of the house to support him: “Grandpa, are you hungry? I’ll get you a steamed bun to eat.”

Old Man Sun grew even angrier, but he couldn’t bring himself to scold his grandson. He huffed and puffed, too exhausted to speak.

In just that short while, the villagers had all come running over, chattering and asking what was happening.

“In-law Sun, speak quickly!” Zhao Shanao repeatedly slapped his thighs, pacing anxiously.

“In-law, come inside first and rest for a bit. Eldest daughter-in-law, prepare two bowls of sugar water.” Wang Shi quickly turned and called toward the kitchen, then gave a look to her eldest grandson. Zhao Xiaowu ran over and brought a chair for Old Man Sun to sit on. Old Man Sun was truly exhausted. Without any pretense of politeness, he sat down—he was breathing unevenly, and if he didn’t rest soon, he’d collapse from exhaustion.

While no one was paying attention, Wang Shi had Zhao Dashan take Zhao Xiaobao inside. Zhao Xiaobao went to the Spirit Land to fetch Zhao Lao Tou.

Brother Sun was a young man. Though also tired, he remained composed. He spoke clearly and concisely, explaining the situation in a few sentences: “My father and I hid and sneaked the whole way, not daring to take the main road. From Stone Forest Village to Sunset Village, we passed through several villages. In some, the Soldiers hadn’t arrived yet; in others, they were already seizing people. It was chaotic everywhere, people all over the place. We don’t know how many people the county sent down this time, but they were all Officials carrying big knives. Terrifying. They seized anyone they saw.”

As Brother Sun spoke, his body trembled. If his in-laws hadn’t warned them in advance that the county would come to round up able-bodied men, perhaps he and his second brother would have been like those villagers fleeing and hiding everywhere. Even now, thinking about it made him break out in a cold sweat, his fingers involuntarily twitching and shaking.

It was too frightening. That scene was truly too frightening.

Old Man Zhao hurried out of the house. His hands and feet were covered in mud, but at that moment, no one paid any attention to him. Everyone was panicked and at a loss. They wanted to run, but seeing that no one else was moving, they didn’t know whether they should.

“What are you all standing around for?” Old Man Zhao scolded when he saw them frozen like idiots. “Not running? Waiting to be seized?!”

He wasn’t confident either. Although earlier, they had schemed a bit regarding conscription, everyone knew that circumstances could change easily. Regardless, hiding first was never wrong. “All of you, go into the mountains now. Don’t go home to fetch things. Later, if you need anything, have your wives and mothers bring it. Gather the boys—big and small, take them all into the mountains! Now, immediately, into the mountains!”

The crowd immediately erupted into chaos. Almost half the village’s men were crowded in the Zhao family’s courtyard. Old Man Zhao was their anchor. As soon as he spoke, the village’s young men reacted first, grabbing their sons who had been watching the commotion and sprinting toward the mountains.

The older ones asked: “Uncle Da Gen, will the Village Head tell the Officials about our village’s situation? Maybe if the Officials know our village has no men, they won’t come to seize us.”

“Whether he tells or not, what does it matter? Whether they come to our village or not isn’t up to us or the Village Head.” Old Man Zhao felt like cursing when he heard this. “Putting on an act is one thing, but don’t fool yourself into believing it. Whether the Officials come or not isn’t up to you, me, or the Village Head. What we did earlier was just a gamble, trying to protect the village’s men. Now that my in-laws have come all this way to warn us, you should quickly hide in the mountains. Don’t rely on that sliver of luck.”

He couldn’t stand this kind of false sense of security. They’ve come to warn you, and you’re still dawdling instead of running!

They had deceived their fellow villagers, deceived the Village Head, and with a bit of luck, they might even deceive the Officials. But if luck truly ran out and the Officials did come, even if they seized just one person, all their earlier efforts would be in vain. Only by covering both ends like this—deceiving the Village Head and fellow villagers while also having their in-laws from the first affected area come to warn them—and hiding in the mountains in advance, could they truly cover all their bases.

Not wanting to engage with that person further, he turned to his eldest son: “You take your mother and the others into the mountains first. Not a single one of our family should stay in the village.”

Then, he said to Zhao Shanao and the other old-timers: “Old brothers, you stay in the village. Unless the *Daxing Dynasty* is about to collapse, the government won’t seize you. They’d even consider you a burden if you led the way. Just act like you know nothing. If the Village Head really brings the Officials here and asks about our newly built house, you say it’s yours, that you took over our homestead. Keep the benefits within the family, after all!”

Lies, as long as they aren’t exposed, become facts.

In just that short while, the courtyard had mostly emptied. All the men who considered themselves eligible for conscription had run into the mountains. Dense clusters of figures moved like a great migration, yet they didn’t dare light torches, forcing them to grope their way into the mountains in the dark, stumbling and rolling. They wanted to cry and curse but didn’t dare make loud noises, fearing they might attract attention.

“Da Gen, don’t worry. We old folks will guard the village well.” Zhao Shanao nodded repeatedly. “Then I’ll stay at your house these few days? Assign me a room to sleep in.”

“Sleep in Xiao Wu’s room. The bamboo mat and bedding are clean; it’s fit for sleeping.” Old Man Zhao trusted Zhao Shanao completely. After all, all the valuable items were in the wooden house in the Spirit Land, so there was no need to guard against anyone.

With that, he stood up and hurried into the house. Wang Shi and the others packed the bedding. Their family was like this—whenever they went out, they brought a lot. Whether in a hurry or not, they made sure to bring everything they needed.

By the time the sky had completely darkened, the group heading into the mountains had grown even larger.

Old Man Zhao and his in-law, Old Man Sun, walked at the back. Old Man Sun and Brother Sun each held two large steamed buns, eating as they recounted everything they had seen and heard along the way in detail. Old Man Zhao listened, breaking out in a cold sweat, thinking to himself: These aren’t just Officials—they’re Soldiers!

This is disastrous!

Fortunately, their village was remote and small. Even if it was their turn, it wouldn’t be until tomorrow. Soldiers holding household registers would never pass up gold to pick up pennies. Even if they had horses, this place wasn’t even passable for oxen or horses.

Now it was a gamble—betting whether the Soldiers would make the extra trip for what amounted to half a copper coin.

“Why haven’t I seen my son-in-law?” Old Man Sun belatedly realized. Right, where was his son-in-law??

Old Man Zhao slapped his thigh: “Your son-in-law went out to trade for grain! Don’t worry, he’s the second smartest in our family. He’ll be fine.”