Chapter Bonanza (7/10)

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Sometimes, telling one lie requires a hundred more to cover it up.

That was exactly the case with Zheng Er.

That day, he left home and went straight to town, where he found a friend—a fellow student from his school days—to drink away his sorrows.

“I heard Brother Yaqiu went to take the provincial exams. I wonder how he did?”

Zheng Er was just about to speak when he paused and sighed. “Ah, don’t even mention it.”

The scholar surnamed Wei said, “You seem to have something on your mind. Come on, let’s go have a drink together. I’ll help you take your mind off things.”

Back when they were studying in town, Zheng Yaqiu had always been very generous, frequently treating them to drinks and meals, so the scholar surnamed Wei was happy to spend time with him.

The two went to a nearby tavern, ordered half a tael of meat and two small dishes to go with their drinks, and only then did Zheng Yaqiu speak up: “To be honest, I’m a bit ashamed to talk about this…”

He didn’t mention the lie he’d told, but instead recounted his experience taking the provincial examination.

“You know how long I’ve been preparing for this provincial exam over the past few years. Even if I didn’t go so far as to suspend my head from a beam or prick my thigh with an awl, I still started studying before dawn every day and didn’t dare rest until late at night. I even went out of my way to study at the county academy, which cost me quite a bit of silver.”

Scholar Wei agreed, “Brother Zheng, you’ve certainly put a great deal of effort into this.”

“I had originally thought that if I passed the provincial examination this time, my mother would no longer have to worry about me.” Zheng Yaqiu sighed. “But I never imagined that my eldest brother would actually hold me back!”

As soon as Wei Shusheng sensed there was some juicy gossip to be had, he eagerly asked, “What happened? Tell me all about it!”

“My eldest brother used to serve in the military camp. Over the years, he’s sent quite a bit of silver back home. But as you know, studying is an extremely costly endeavor—not only do you have to pay tuition, but what about ink, brushes, paper, and inkstones? None of those come cheap.”

“That’s right! I remember you bought a block of Huai ink a while back—it cost over ten guan. That was really expensive!”

“Never mind that. Studying isn’t just expensive—it’s exhausting, too. I’ve lost so much hair I can’t even count it. After my eldest brother returned from the barracks, he showed no consideration for my hardships. All he ever talked about was asking me for silver to marry a wife, and he even took all the money I’d saved up to take the provincial exams in the prefectural capital!”

Scholar Wei said, “That really wasn’t the right thing to do. At the very least, he should have waited until after you’d taken the provincial exams.”

“You’re absolutely right!” Zheng Er grew angrier as he spoke. “Because he took my money, I was extremely strapped for cash on this trip to the prefectural capital—I haven’t been eating or sleeping well, and on the day of the exam, I was drowsy and completely lacking in energy.”

Hearing this, Scholar Wei had already guessed the outcome. He patted Zheng Yaqiu on the shoulder and said, “Don’t be too upset. You’re still young—it’s not too late to try again in three years. Didn’t we have an old scholar in our county who didn’t pass the provincial exam until he was forty-seven?”

Had he not offered that consolation, it would have been fine, but his words only made Zheng Er feel even worse.

That old scholar was able to pass because his family owned plenty of farmland and could naturally afford to support him through a lifetime of exams.

His own family had only a few mu of farmland; his father was gone, his mother was too frail for heavy labor, and he certainly couldn’t count on his wife for support—it was already a blessing if they didn’t take anything from him.

Now that he’d split from his older brother, his brother would certainly stop providing silver for his education. The mere thought of him—a scholar, no less—having to farm for a living in the future made his future seem utterly bleak…

What was even more terrifying was that he had no idea how to cover up the lies he’d told his family. Thinking of this made him even more restless, and the wine lost all its flavor.

He drank until nightfall. Seeing that he showed no sign of leaving, Scholar Wei’s eyes began to dart about.

“I can tell Brother Zheng is feeling really down. Why don’t I take you out to cheer you up a bit?” 

“How exactly?”

The scholar Wei licked his lips and leaned in, saying, “A few new girls have shown up in Chai Family Alley—all fair-skinned, beautiful, with slender waists and ample bosoms. Brother Zheng, why not go and enjoy yourself for a while to forget your troubles?”

In the past, although Zheng Er had been extravagant and wasteful, he’d never dared to go to such places, for fear that someone would catch him in the act and tell his wife.

Today—whether from drinking too much or simply giving up on everything—after settling his tab, he actually followed Wei Shusheng to that sort of place. He had a wild night.

When he woke up the next day, Zheng Er felt dizzy and disoriented. As he was getting dressed, he reached into his money pouch and suddenly realized that the twenty taels of silver his wife had brought back from his parents’ home were gone!

The shock sobered him up instantly. He nudged the courtesan beside him, saying, “Wake up, wake up!”

“Why are you up so early, young master? After all those times last night, aren’t you tired yet?” The woman reached out to wrap her arms around his shoulders, but Zheng Er pushed her away urgently, demanding, “Did you steal my money?”

“What money?”

“Where’s my money pouch? It had twenty taels of silver in it!”

Upon hearing this, the brothel girl jumped out of bed and said, “Don’t go slandering me out of thin air. I’m completely naked—I don’t even have a place to hide anything. How could I have stolen your money pouch?”

Zheng Yaqiu wouldn’t listen to her explanation. He hastily pulled on his clothes and began searching the room frantically.

“You’re not trying to get a free ride, are you?” The brothel had seen plenty of men like this before. The woman immediately got dressed, called the pimp over, and confronted Zheng Yaqiu, demanding payment for last night’s services.

How could he pay when he couldn’t find his money pouch? Seeing that the pimp was about to hit him, he finally had no choice but to borrow two taels from Scholar Wei to pay off the brothel, then slunk home in disgrace.

He’d hoped to drown his sorrows, but instead, his troubles only deepened.

Upon returning from town, as soon as he entered the village, he saw a crowd of people running toward the east side of the river. Zheng Yaqiu stopped a neighbor he knew and asked, “Where are you all heading?”

“Oh my, you haven’t heard yet? Your older brother hunted three wild boars on the mountain! His family can’t eat it all, so he’s selling the meat in the village—it’s two or three taels cheaper per jin than in the city. We’re all heading over to buy some to satisfy our cravings!”

Zheng Yaqiu was momentarily dazed and, without realizing it, followed this person to the east bank of the river.

The courtyard of the Zheng family’s new house was packed with people.

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That morning, Zheng Beiqiu had followed the trail he’d marked the day before deep into the mountains and, sure enough, found the herd of wild boars again.

Among this herd were two boars, four sows with several half-grown piglets. The boars weighed over four hundred jin each, while the sows weighed two or three hundred jin.

For an ordinary person, the sight of so many wild boars would have been enough to scare the pants off them.

Not only was Zheng Beiqiu unafraid, but he was actually trembling slightly with excitement. Crouching low and gripping his spear tightly, he crept stealthily toward the herd. As he drew closer, one of the boars spotted him!

The sows let out a cry and scattered in all directions with their piglets, while the two boars charged at him, brandishing their tusks! The boars were massive and ran with tremendous force; if one were to ram him head-on, his guts would be squeezed right out.

Although Zheng Beiqiu was no slouch in martial arts, he didn’t dare take any chances; he turned and ran in the opposite direction.

Up ahead was the pitfall he’d dug the day before. The moment the wild boars charged, he deftly dodged, and one of them plummeted straight into the pit.

The pit was over three feet deep; once the boar fell in, it couldn’t climb out. It grunted frantically from below, and upon seeing this, the other boar dared not charge recklessly anymore and turned to flee.

Zheng Beiqiu wasn’t about to give it a chance to escape; he grabbed his spear and charged forward.

His strength was extraordinary; with a loud “thud,” the spear actually pierced through the boar’s thick hide and sank deep into its flesh! The boar let out a pained screech and, tugging on the spear, dragged him forward as it ran.

Zheng Beiqiu tightened his grip, driving the spear several more inches into the boar’s belly, and blood gushed down the spearhead. In excruciating pain, the boar actually charged straight into a tree, trying to fling the man and the spear off its back.

Zheng Beiqiu quickly let go.

The Chinese pine, as thick as a bowl, was snapped clean in two by the boar’s force, and the animal, spear and all, bolted deep into the forest.

Zheng Beiqiu inwardly gasped—this beast was truly powerful; if it had rammed into a person, it would most likely have killed them.

Following the trail of blood, he continued the pursuit and soon found the wounded boar again. It seemed the boar knew that the two-legged creature facing it today wouldn’t let it off the hook, so with bloodshot eyes, it resolved to fight him to the death.

Zheng Beiqiu took a deep breath, his gaze fixed firmly on the spear lodged in the boar’s body, and shifted his shoulders slightly.

The boar scraped its hooves against the ground and charged at him once more. Unfortunately, its strength had waned due to its injuries, and Zheng Beiqiu easily dodged the attack. He reached back, seized the spear lodged in its body, and with a single, forceful thrust, ripped open the boar’s belly.

The boar let out a wail and tried to flee, but with its internal organs spilling out, it managed only a few steps before collapsing on the ground, lifeless. Zheng Beiqiu wiped the sweat from his brow, hoisted the boar onto his shoulder, and headed back to the trap to deal with the other one.

It was a stroke of luck, really. The wild boar in the pit must have been screaming so pitifully that it attracted the rest of its litter to come to its rescue—and as a result, a female wild boar fell in as well.

In the end, he bagged all three boars, tied them together in a row with a hemp rope, and only managed to haul them down the mountain after driving his mule to the spot. Luo Xiu was stunned when he saw the three wild boars. “T-this—you brought all of these back yourself?”

Zheng Beiqiu beamed with pride. “Isn’t your husband amazing?”

“Amazing, absolutely amazing! Are you hurt?” Luo Xiu anxiously checked him over.

Apart from a few scrapes on his thighs and arms from tree branches and a bruise on his forearm from bumping into a log, he was essentially unscathed.

Luo Xiu was once again awed by his husband’s skills. He’d always known his cousin was strong, but he never imagined he’d be this impressive!

This was a wild boar that struck fear into the hearts of even seasoned hunters! Not only did he bring it back with ease, but he’d bagged three of them in one go!

“We can’t possibly eat all these pigs. Why don’t we take them to town to sell?”

“All right, this one with its belly slit open probably won’t keep much longer. Let’s sell it in the village for a bargain price. As for the other two, we’ll set some aside to cure into salted pork, and take the rest to town to sell.”

“Okay, then… then I’ll go out and see if anyone wants to buy them!” Luo Xiu took the child off his back and handed him to his husband, then hurried out. He went first to the Li family next door. “Is Li Fulang home?”

Li Fulang came out of the house upon hearing his voice. “What’s up, Xiu?”

“Daqiu hunted a few wild boars on the mountain. See if anyone wants some wild boar meat—since we’re all from the same village, we’ll sell it to them at a discount.”

“Wow! Your Daqiu is really something!” Li Fulang clapped his hands in amazement. “Wait here—I’ll go inside, get some money, and come check it out at your place!” 

“Okay, I’ll go ask some other neighbors.”

Luo Xiu went around asking all his nearby neighbors. Since the harvest had just ended, every household had a little extra money on hand, and as soon as they heard about the cheap pork, everyone wanted to buy some to satisfy their cravings.

Soon, people from the west side of the river also heard the news and rushed over, forming a long line in the Zheng family’s courtyard.

“I’ll take that fatty cut!”

“Give me a piece of pork from the hind leg.” 

“How much are the offal?”

Zheng Beiqiu, carrying Xiaoyu on his back, sliced the meat while keeping the crowd in order. “Don’t worry, there’s plenty for everyone—we still have two wild boars in the back that haven’t been butchered yet.” 

Pork in town cost seventeen wen per jin, but the Zheng family was selling it for fifteen wen—and wild boar meat tasted better than domestic pork, after all!

In those days, domestic pigs were raised next to outhouses and grew up eating manure; at most, they were fed a little pig fodder—other than that, there was nothing else to feed them.

After all, people couldn’t even get enough to eat themselves.

Ordinary domestic pigs rarely grow beyond a hundred jin; they have more lean meat than fat, so it’s not easy to render any fat from them.

Wild boars are different—they eat anything in the mountains and forests, grow sturdy, and have a layer of snow-white fat on their bellies that looks absolutely mouthwatering!

By the time Luo Xiu returned, more than half the pig had already been sold, and there were still quite a few people waiting in line.

Zheng Beiqiu handed him a knife. “You stay here and keep selling. I’ll go butcher another pig and bring it over.” 

“Alright.” Luo Xiu took the kitchen knife and got back to selling meat.

He had a gentle disposition and spoke politely; when weighing meat for customers, he always set the scale weights high. Some people, seeing how easygoing he was, tried to take advantage and get extra meat.

“Mr. Zheng, could you give me those pig ears? A pair of pig ears isn’t worth much.” Seeing that he was buying a lot, Luo Xiu thought for a moment and cut off the pig ears to give them to him.

Seeing this, the people behind them began asking for extras as well: “Give me the pig’s tail.” “Then I’ll take the pig’s trotters!”

Luo Xiu’s face flushed as he said, “No way. Pig’s trotters are ten wen each. If you want them, you’ll have to pay.” 

“Why did you give the Lin family the pig’s ears?”

“Exactly! That pig’s tail isn’t worth much—just give it to me!” Before Luo Xiu could say a word, the man snatched up the pig’s tail and ran off. “Hey, you!”

Hearing the commotion, Zheng Beiqiu walked over with a stern expression and slammed his kitchen knife down on the cutting board. “Are you still buying?”

The man who’d tried to snatch the pig’s trotter turned pale with fright, pulled his hand back, and said, “I’ll buy it—isn’t that good enough?”

Luo Xiu took the copper coins from his hand and handed him the pig’s trotter. The man grabbed the trotter and muttered under his breath as he walked away. Even though he was unhappy, he didn’t dare provoke Zheng Beiqiu—this guy was the sort who could take down three wild boars in a single go. If he angered him, he’d probably end up getting chopped to pieces…

After that, selling the meat went much more smoothly; everyone lined up in order and didn’t dare to scramble for it anymore.

Zheng Yaqiu stood at the doorway for a moment, his heart filled with a mix of emotions, then turned and went home.

No sooner had he stepped through the door than Yang-shi, coming out to meet him, slapped him across the face. Zheng Yaqiu clutched his cheek, his eyes wide. “You—you shrew, have you lost your mind?!”

“Where the hell were you last night?!”

“W-what do you mean ‘loitering’? I was just having a little get-together with a classmate. I had a few too many drinks… and ended up falling asleep at his place.”

“Where’s the silver my mother brought back for me?”

“I used it to grease the wheels.”

“To grease the wheels?” Yang-shi, who didn’t understand such matters, stammered, “I—I thought you’d taken the silver out to chase after some little vixen…”

Zheng Yaqiu, struck to the core by his words, flew into a rage: “Stop letting your imagination run wild all day long. Do I look like that kind of person? Do you think passing the provincial exam means I can rest easy?

So many people pass the provincial exam every year—how many vacancies are there to fill? What if they assign me to some godforsaken place? Am I supposed to go or not?”

“It’s my fault. Don’t be angry, my husband—I’m just worried about you. Last night, our second son kept asking for his daddy. With you away, the child wouldn’t stop crying, and I was so worried…”

At the mention of his youngest son, Zheng Yaqiu’s anger subsided, and his sense of guilt grew even stronger. Flinging his sleeves, he went into the room alone.

When Zheng Laotai saw him return, she said a few words, but she still felt sorry for her son. “You haven’t eaten yet, have you? I’ve got something warming up for you in the pot. Go wash your hands and eat.”

Zheng Yaqiu said, “When I came back just now, I saw quite a few people heading to the east side of the river to buy pork. They said my eldest brother hunted three wild boars in the mountains.” 

Zheng Laotai replied, “So he hunted them. No matter how capable he is, he’s still just a rough-and-tumble man—how could he compare to you? Once you become an official, you’ll never have to worry about not having enough pork to eat.” Zheng Yaqiu looked at the bean rice and plain-boiled cabbage in his bowl and felt no appetite at all.

“Come to think of it, you’ve been back for a while now. When will the examination results be announced?”

Zheng Yaqiu’s face paled, and he froze, unsure how to answer.