Chapter 3
Because I went to the yamen to report Chao Jianan, I was beaten by Sun Dagui when I got home.
My mother died early. Sun Dagui had always doted on my sister and me, never willing to scold or hit us.
But now, he was forcing my sister to marry and whipping me with a switch. I was so angry I couldn’t help but shout, “Father, why are you currying favor with Chao San like this? Is he your father or something?”
Unsurprisingly, I got another beating.
I had no appetite for dinner and lay on my bed, crying alone.
After a while, Sun Dagui came to see me, bringing a bowl of sweet jujube rice and placing it on the table. He sighed, “Don’t be angry, Chun. Do you know how much effort I spent persuading Chao San to agree to this marriage, only for you to ruin it?”
“Why must we marry him? My sister doesn’t want to marry him at all. She hasn’t eaten for three days. Father, how can you be so heartless?”
“Didn’t I tell you? At the end of last year, a shipment from our rice shop was almost robbed by bandits. If it hadn’t been for Chao San’s help, both the shop’s workers and that batch of rice would have been lost.”
“But didn’t we already thank him? We gave him five hundred taels-those goods weren’t even worth that much. And Chao San isn’t a good person. He’s a local bully, the ringleader of the thugs. Every shop in Guizi Lane, every merchant in Qingshi Town, who hasn’t been forced to pay him protection money? If you don’t pay, his people threaten and intimidate you. Zhao Bazhi, as the magistrate, calls himself Magistrate Zhao the Just, but he doesn’t do anything about it. Is there no justice left?”
“Chun, many things in this world can’t be judged so simply. Chao San truly isn’t a good man. He lost his parents young, grew up eating at many households, and is known for being brave and combative. All the thugs in town follow him, and he’s done plenty of bad things with his gang. Magistrate Zhao is no Lord Bao, but he’s a fair official. Do you know why he lets Chao San do as he pleases?”
“I don’t know.”
“Kaizhou is a crossroads of four provinces. The Heiling area is notorious as a bandit’s den. Xinshui County, under its jurisdiction, is by the sea and often raided by pirates. Qingshi Town borders Xinshui County and is prosperous. It too has been attacked by pirates before. They’re far worse than Chao San-robbing and killing as easily as chopping cabbage, committing every imaginable crime.”
“I know that.”
“The prefecture is far away. Do you think the constables and yamen runners in the county office can protect us? Qingshi Town can’t do without Chao San.”
“…But that doesn’t mean you have to force my sister to marry him.”
“Sigh. Chao San was indeed reckless in the past, but that was youthful arrogance. In recent years, I’ve seen him become much more steady. Though he’s still a bit of a rascal, he knows how to keep himself clean. Even if a widow knocks on his door in the middle of the night, he sends her away. I’m not the only father in the county who wants to marry his daughter to him.”
“…You all know about widows knocking on his door in the middle of the night? What, did the door tell you?”
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
“Hmph!”
“Chun, you and your sister are my only daughters. There are no brothers in the family, and no one to support you in the future. Times are hard, so of course I have to plan for you. The rice shop can keep you fed and clothed, but you two need a strong backer. Chao San is loyal and values relationships-I won’t misjudge him. If he becomes your Brother-in-law, I can rest easy after I’m gone.”
“What are you saying? Don’t talk about dying. You’re fine, Sun Dagui. You’ll live to a hundred.”
“I’m getting old,” Sun Dagui said quietly.
I looked up at him, and only then did I notice the many gray hairs at his temples. Unknowingly, the father who had always seemed omnipotent to me had reached middle age.
Parents love their children and plan for their future… That’s how all parents in this world are, I suppose.
My nose stung, and I said to him, “Don’t worry, Father. When you really get old, I’ll be grown up too. By then, I’ll be able to take care of our rice shop and become the support for you and my sister.”
“Silly child.”