209 BC, First Year of Qin Er Shi Hu Hai’s Reign, Zhongyang Village, Feng Town, Pei County

Three-year-old Liu Ying, wearing straw sandals and ragged hemp clothes, held pine cones he had just picked from the forest as he stumbled through the mountains.

He didn’t really want to walk alone in such desolate mountains, but his father hadn’t returned home for a long time, and his mother had gone alone to search for him days ago. Since then, his mother rarely came home, and even when she did return, she would only gather money and provisions before leaving again. The neighbors all said his father had committed a great crime by privately releasing corvée laborers and was hiding in the mountains, not daring to return home.

But wasn’t his father a pavilion chief?

Liu Ying pursed his small lips and decided to find his father himself. Although his sister said their father was hiding in mountains very far from their home, he had still secretly run away.

It was midsummer, and though the forest was somewhat cooler, it was still swelteringly hot. Wiping the sweat from half his face, Liu Ying felt his throat was dry, so he thriftily licked the sweat drops from his palm.

Salty… it made him even thirstier…

Looking around, Liu Ying’s sharp eyes spotted a figure sitting vaguely among the trees ahead. He walked over on his short legs and noticed the person was holding a bowl-like vessel, looking down at it intently.

Since the person was sitting on the ground, Liu Ying could easily see that the bowl was completely empty, containing nothing at all.

A yu bowl was a vessel for holding rice and water – Liu Ying recognized it because he had a small yu bowl too. But this yu was extraordinarily exquisite, made of lacquered wood. The interior was painted with bright vermillion red lacquer, the exterior with noble black lacquer, and decorated with cloud patterns in red lacquer. Black and red were the most prestigious colors of the time. Even though his mother Lu Zhi came from a well-off family and brought substantial dowry, Liu Ying had never seen such an elegant yu bowl.

But no matter how exquisite and eye-catching it was, to Liu Ying right now it wasn’t as precious as a bowl of water. He looked the person up and down and found him filthy and disheveled, apparently having wandered outside for who knows how long, forming a stark contrast with the spotless yu bowl in his hands. The person’s hair was disheveled and his head was lowered, so his face couldn’t be seen clearly, but Liu Ying thought he should be quite young. Because his sister had told him that children like himself were called “垂髻之年” (drooping topknot age), when hair hung down freely. His sister said when he grew up, he could tie his hair up, which would be called “及冠” (coming of age).

Liu Ying was somewhat disappointed because he discovered this person had no belongings except for the lacquered yu in his hands. Touching his empty stomach, Liu Ying felt he should head back home – with luck, he might still catch the steamed buns his sister would make in the evening. It seemed his father was right – no matter how great one’s ambitions, they must bow before basic needs like eating and drinking.

Before leaving, Liu Ying still kindly said to the person: “Go home quickly – there are monsters in the mountains that eat people!”

Just as little Liu Ying finished speaking in his childish voice, a mountain wind happened to blow through, making him shiver and become even more frightened. When he had determinedly left home to find his father, he had been full of confidence, but now he was retreating, only now remembering what his sister had said, which made him tremble even more.

At the same time, an irrepressible thought arose in his mind – could the person before him be a monster?

Liu Ying’s whole body stiffened. He wanted to leave but couldn’t move his feet, whether from hunger, thirst, or fear, and could only watch helplessly as the person slowly raised his head.

When he saw the person’s true appearance, Liu Ying was even more horrified. The person wasn’t old, with delicate features and the appearance of a scholar. But at his neck was an unhealed wound, as if someone had slashed him across the throat. The hideous wound extended from the collar of his shabby clothes and couldn’t be concealed no matter what.

Liu Ying thought mountain spirits couldn’t possibly fall to such a state. In these times of Qin Er Shi’s tyrannical rule throwing the world into chaos, refugees were everywhere – perhaps this person had encountered something that forced him to flee into the mountains. Though Liu Ying was young, his sister had taught him well, so he kindly suggested: “Have nowhere to go? You could come to my house.”

The young man’s eyes had been lifeless, but after hearing Liu Ying’s words, he slowly blinked and forced his lips into speaking a few words: “No need, thank you.” His voice was hoarse and rough, as if he hadn’t spoken for a very long time.

Seeing him speak, Liu Ying’s curiosity overcame his fear, and he pointed at the lacquered yu in the person’s hands: “Is this lacquered yu yours?” This wasn’t really Liu Ying’s fault – seeing this person so destitute yet holding such a precious lacquered yu was truly strange.

The young man didn’t answer but instead asked: “Do you know what lacquerware is?”

Liu Ying tilted his head. The people around him didn’t speak so formally, but he could at least understand what the person was saying. What is lacquerware? He shook his head in confusion. Lacquerware was all very magical – light yet sturdy, so bright and alluring, like treasures.

“On the slopes grows lacquer, in the wetlands grow chestnuts… Yu Shun made eating vessels, cutting mountain wood to obtain materials, carving and polishing them smooth, flowing lacquer and ink upon them… Yu made sacrificial vessels, dyeing their exteriors black, painting their interiors red…” Perhaps finding his speaking rhythm again, the person spoke more and more fluently, his voice growing louder. Though still hoarse, it carried a piercing quality that traveled far through the mountain forest with the wind, with faint echoes appearing. Liu Ying actually understood only one out of ten sentences, but he found the rhythmic cadence pleasant to listen to, so he forgot his hunger and thirst for the moment, listening with unusual attention with his bright, clear eyes.

“Do you know the Book of Changes?” The young man suddenly changed topics, asking in return. But he didn’t expect three-year-old Liu Ying to answer this question, so after a brief pause he continued: “The Book of Changes has eight trigrams: Qian three solid lines, Kun six broken lines, Zhen upright yu, Gen inverted bowl, Li hollow center, Kan full center, Dui upper gap, Xun lower break. These eight phrases aren’t simply for memorizing the trigram symbols.”

Liu Ying listened with partial understanding, politely not interrupting.

“King Wen of Zhou, Ji Chang, not only wrote trigram and line interpretations, but actually created the objects represented by each of the eight trigrams.” The young man sighed lightly, stroking the lacquered yu with his finger. “This is the Zhen Yang Yu.”

“Zhen Yang Yu?” Liu Ying repeated in confusion. This lacquered yu looked precious, but he hadn’t expected it to have such a strange name.

“The Zhen trigram’s symbol resembles an upright yu bowl. When the Zhen trigram appears, it shakes the very foundation of the nation…” The young man’s throat suddenly became hoarse again, and he covered his mouth, coughing heavily.

Probably because his throat wound wasn’t fully healed, Liu Ying could see blood slowly seeping from the hideous scar. The lacquered yu in the man’s hands also slipped from his grasp, falling to the ground and rolling to Liu Ying’s feet.

“Are… are you alright?” Liu Ying couldn’t help but pick up the yu bowl, intending to return it to the young man, but he felt the weight in his hands suddenly increase, nearly causing him to drop the yu bowl. Looking down, he saw that the yu bowl, which had been completely empty, now contained a full bowl of clear water!

Liu Ying was so shocked he couldn’t speak. Just now when this lacquered yu was in that man’s hands, it had clearly been empty – why did it fill with water as soon as he picked it up?

The young man looked at the Zhen Yang Yu in Liu Ying’s hands with a complex expression. After a long while, he sighed deeply: “Treat this object well. Don’t let it fall to the ground and shake again.”

“Huh?” Liu Ying looked up in confusion, but saw the man had already stood up and was staggering toward the deeper parts of the forest.

Liu Ying held the lacquered yu and chased a few steps in the man’s direction, but could no longer see his figure. Looking down at the clear water in the lacquered yu, little Liu Ying restrained himself again and again, but finally lowered his head and tentatively took a small sip.

Sweet and throat-soothing, Liu Ying blinked his big eyes and held the lacquered yu, drinking it completely dry.

But clear water appeared in the lacquered yu again, still a full bowl. Liu Ying was astonished. Though young, he knew that ordinary yu bowls couldn’t continuously produce clear water. Could it be that the man had been looking down at this lacquered yu in disappointment because in his hands, it could no longer produce clear water?

Little Liu Ying didn’t have much time to study this problem. His sister soon found him and was about to pick him up for a good beating when little Liu Ying immediately offered his treasure, sharing the lacquered yu with his sister.

Strangely enough, as long as the lacquered yu was in Liu Ying’s hands, it would be full of clear water, but in his sister Liu Le’s hands, it was just an ordinary yu bowl.

Liu Le was already nine years old this year, precociously mature unlike ordinary girls. Little Liu Ying told the story of meeting that young man haltingly, and she could see this lacquered yu had quite some origin, so she instructed her younger brother to keep it safe and not tell anyone else.

“Not even father and mother?” little Liu Ying asked, tilting his head.

“Let’s wait until they come home…” Liu Le touched her younger brother’s soft hair, also thinking this matter must be discussed with their parents.

The two siblings’ thoughts were beautiful, but reality was cruel. Not long after, news came that their father Liu Bang had killed a white snake and raised a rebellion at Mount Mangdang – he had rebelled!