Upon leaving the prefecture city, Zhù Ying determined their direction and said: “Let’s go this way.”
Zhang Xiangu asked: “Why?”
“That direction is toward the capital, and I think the new imperial envoy must have come from the capital.”
“What? We can barely dodge them as it is! Why are you heading toward him on purpose? Do you want to file a complaint? We don’t even have a written petition! And we still don’t know what your father did…”
Zhù Ying said: “The case is in his hands — how do we dodge it? Going that way also means we’ll know our situation sooner rather than later.”
“What’s your plan?”
Zhù Ying’s plan was to have a carpenter make a peddler’s carrying pole and disguise herself as a peddler, since peddlers can walk through streets and lanes without arousing suspicion.
An ordinary peddler’s setup didn’t need to be elaborate — a shoulder pole, two baskets, and a flat wooden box placed on top of the baskets, which wouldn’t be heavy. The bundle still had a few strings of cash, enough to pick up some local goods from the countryside and sell them to shops in the city for a little hard-earned income, just barely enough to rent a small room for the two of them.
Then she would buy some needles, thread, and sundry items from the larger shops in the city, and she herself could carve wooden hairpins — make a few small trinkets, spread them on the carrying pole, and it would make for excellent cover.
Zhang Xiangu could simply disguise herself as a blind woman, covering one eye, in case anyone recognized her. A young peddler making a living with his blind old mother — that made for a complete picture.
Zhang Xiangu said: “How come I never knew you had such a talent for scheming?”
Zhù Ying said glumly: “I never thought I’d live this way before.”
“How did you think you’d live?”
Zhù Ying tightened the bundle on her back and said: “Save up a few strings of cash, rent a room in the county seat — next to a City God Temple or anywhere, really. Either apprentice under a craftsman or keep on telling fortunes and doing divinations — which household of wealthy gentry in the county could I not manage to fool? Whatever year the county called for household registration, I’d register one. Once I saved enough money, I’d set up a tea stall. Just enough to get by. Plain food was fine; on a good day I’d braise a chicken. Sit by the stall and bask in the sun every day.
County living costs money for everything, but so does village life — our family had no paddy fields, only half a mu of vegetable plots, and neighbors would constantly drive their chickens and ducks over to eat the vegetables or steal seedlings. Every single grain of rice, every bean, had to be bought at the market with money or traded for with wild game. And when peddlers came by, the prices were even higher than in the county seat. Since we’d be spending money either way, we might as well have moved to the county seat sooner. It couldn’t be worse than the village. At the very worst, it’d be the same as the village. At least I wouldn’t have to suffer the abuse of those pigs and dogs of the Zhū family — I won’t let them relieve their frustrations on me and come out feeling pleased about it!”
Zhang Xiangu walked in silence for a while, then said: “Your father and I didn’t want to suffer abuse either.” She shook her head — without some outside force, she would not have been able to make the decision to leave Zhū Family Village on her own. At least there was a home there! Zhù Ying was young, at an age curious about the world, willing to take risks. But by Zhang Xiangu’s age, one understood: nothing was as good as having a place of one’s own.
But now, through a series of accidents, this was simply how things had turned out.
She changed the subject: “You’re good at saving money.”
Zhù Ying said: “When serving as a divine assistant at religious ceremonies, people sometimes gave me tips. Digging medicinal herbs in the mountains, catching wild game, collecting dry firewood — those also brought in a little. I didn’t spend it on flowers and trinkets, and I didn’t drink wine — so naturally it accumulated. Don’t worry — I never did anything sneaky. I’ve seen what happens to thieves in the county seat.”
Once stealing brought in money easily, it became hard to go back to honest labor; and even if you wanted to go straight, people would always look at you sideways. Lose something and they’d suspect you. Want to sell your labor — most people wouldn’t dare hire you. Eventually unable to sell your labor, on the verge of starvation, you’d have no choice but to return to the old trade.
But a thief whose identity had been exposed, in a place full of people who knew you — what kind of life could you live?
“Some things must not have a beginning!” Zhù Ying said.
Zhang Xiangu had never had such a long conversation with her daughter. She let out a long breath at this point: “That’s exactly it! Oh! We were just talking about a tea stall, and now there’s a tea shed right up ahead. Let’s go in, have some tea, and rest our feet!”
“Alright.”
The two entered the tea shed. A middle-aged couple was tending it; they took a few coins from them and chatted: “You look unfamiliar.”
Zhù Ying said: “Yes, first time going to the countryside to collect rent.”
The middle-aged woman smiled: “Congratulations — you’ve reached the age to head a household.” She asked about news from the city. Zhù Ying mentioned the fire at the prefecture office in an offhand way. The middle-aged woman said: “Oh my, that’s quite a big deal.” Zhù Ying said: “Ha! More taxes and levies coming.” The middle-aged woman sighed in agreement.
The woman also added two flatbreads stuffed with a bit of minced-meat paste — her own food — telling them to eat on the road.
Before leaving, Zhù Ying pressed a few extra coins into her hand. The woman smiled and accepted them.
Past this tea shed, a few more li brought another one; the two rested again. It was not until the third tea shed that they heard mention of a sizable town nearby.
Zhù Ying saw that the afternoon was already well advanced and estimated that, at walking pace, they would arrive at the town just in time to find lodging. She bought some provisions from the tea shed and was preparing to head with Zhang Xiangu into the town when a thundering of hooves swept past — a group of riders pulled up before the tea shed!
This group was unlike anyone they had seen before. The one in the lead was a strikingly handsome young man. In the briefest of moments, a succession of superlatives flashed through Zhù Ying’s mind. But she quickly shifted her gaze away, because the young man was looking over, and the gazes of his attendants were sweeping in their direction too. The largest of the attendants called out: “Clear a table — bring tea!”
This fellow deserved one of the words Zhù Ying had heard when eavesdropping on a private school: “a waist of ten girths” — truly a strapping, imposing man.
Zhù Ying rolled her eyes and said to Zhang Xiangu: “Mother, let’s go.”
Zhang Xiangu also stole a couple of extra glances at the young man: “Oh, alright.” And with that, she and Zhù Ying went to the old man tending the shed to settle the bill.
The tea shed was small, with only space for two or three tables — two inside and half of one sticking out. Before mother and daughter had made their way out and before the young man’s group had entered, a few more people arrived in the tea shed, calling out: “So thirsty! Bring good tea!”
The small tea shed was immediately crowded!
Zhù Ying instinctively felt something was off!
She urged the old man tending the shed to finish the bill quickly. The old man was attending to two sets of new arrivals while slowly calculating her change, dropping coins into a large bamboo tube, then slowly wrapping up provisions. The old man would have preferred to get rid of them quickly so he could serve the newcomers; but being old, his hands were slow, and it took considerable time before the wrapping was done.
Zhù Ying no longer had attention to spare for the good-looking young man — she snatched up Zhang Xiangu and made for the exit. Though she was now barely the same height as Zhang Xiangu, she still managed to steer her mother out of the tea shed before Zhang Xiangu had time to react. Zhang Xiangu was about to mutter a reproach at her daughter for being hasty, but Zhù Ying suddenly stopped.
Zhang Xiangu was about to ask why, when Zhù Ying’s hand darted out and snatched a coin purse from the body of someone brushing past them. Zhang Xiangu looked and erupted in fury: “So! You little wretch — you dare try to pick my pocket?!”
That person was one of the last group to arrive at the tea shed. Caught in the act, far from panicking, he actually bared his teeth in a threatening manner. Zhù Ying thought: this is after all a small place — not as seasoned as the veteran thieves in the prefecture city. She slid one hand to the small of her back, where she had hidden a carving knife. With the other hand she reached forward and produced a small pouch: “Hey, big fellow — didn’t realize your purse had been lifted, did you? I’m talking to you! The one in front — the same width as his height!”
The handsome young man’s attendant had already noticed this small commotion. His gaze swept over sharply and his expression changed; he patted his waist — well, indeed, his coin purse was gone!
Then, something that left both Zhang Xiangu and Zhù Ying staring in astonishment unfolded: this “same-width-as-height” fellow, bringing two men with him, pounced like a hungry tiger and, in no time at all, wrenched the arms of several pickpockets out of their sockets! Zhù Ying sneezed — that technique of theirs, she could not match. She might not even be able to run away from them.
Somewhat frightening!
Run quickly!
She tossed the coin purse to this “same-width-as-height” fellow, dropped one line: “Keep a closer eye on your own belongings!” And to the group of disgruntled thieves she said: “Know when to stop. Five coin purses with five different handiwork styles — does anyone not know you’re thieves? And you had the nerve to try it on me!”
She seized Zhang Xiangu by the arm and made to run!
But both mother and daughter were blocked by this “same-width-as-height” fellow!
The so-called “same-width-as-height” was not, in fact, a purely square cylindrical block of a man — he was actually an extremely powerfully built strongman. The strongman said: “My master requests your presence.”
Ha! Zhù Ying said: “Never mind! High and low don’t mix! Rich and poor don’t mix! No need to request, and no need to meet again!”
No matter how good-looking his master was, that was of no use to her now!
Zhù Ying and Zhang Xiangu dodged nimbly. The handsome young man said: “Jin Liang!” The strongman answered: “Seventh Master?” And ceased blocking them, letting the two of them run off.
Zhù Ying and Zhang Xiangu could not possibly outrun galloping horses, and in open ground they could not outrun a grown strongman either — but as long as no one was pursuing them, they got away quickly enough.
The two reached a nearby small town while there was still a little daylight left. Zhù Ying found two baskets and cobbled together a long flat box and a square box. Mother and daughter opened a room at the only inn in the town. That night, neither slept very soundly, but no one came to disturb them. The next day, Zhù Ying found a drab, nondescript set of men’s clothes in the town and changed into them, and also collected some local goods. Zhang Xiangu also obtained a coarse, grey-brown homespun outfit.
Early the next morning, the two set off again on the road back to the prefecture city, and having traveled it once before, arrived before the sun had dropped to a hand’s-length from the horizon. Zhù Ying, familiar with the terrain, led Zhang Xiangu away from inns they had previously stayed at, away from shops where they had caused trouble, and certainly away from the prefecture office — and instead went to a house just outside the Chen household residence and tore down the rental notice!
Zhang Xiangu asked: “Why are you tearing that down?”
Zhù Ying revealed the faintest of smiles: “Naturally because I want to rent the place and live here!”
“What?”
Following the instructions written on the notice, Zhù Ying walked into a small alley and knocked on a wooden door: “I’m here to rent a room!”
The street outside the Chen household residence had originally been quite lively, but unfortunately, after the Chen family’s lawsuit arose — first the imperial envoy Zhong’s people came to look things over, then the prefecture’s people came to investigate, then the county office sent people to maintain order — the area within ten paces in every direction had become utterly quiet! This was a witchcraft case on top of it all! Those living nearby were frightened out of their wits; those who could move had moved, and those who were renting had given up their leases. Apart from the Chen household’s servants, the only people openly coming and going were constables and night watchmen and the like, who had no choice but to pass through.
Zhù Ying had taken one look at the rent — quite right!