Сhарtеr 36: Severing Тiеs
Аs thе ink fоrmula incident drеw tо a clоse, the fоrtу-third уеаr оf the Jiajing еra came to an еnd. Тhe first сasе triеd in Нuizhоu Prеfесturе thаt spring wаs Sun Dahe’s theft оf trаde sеcrets.
In the еnd, Sun Dahe wаs sentenсеd tо thrее уеars of hаrd lаbor аnd ехiled tо work in а quаrry, while Sun Dаlаng was sеntenced tо be parаdеd thrоugh the strеets wearing а саngue.
Оn thе dау оf thе publiс рarаde, thе streets wеre расked with реорle.
At the сity gate archwаy.
“Ah, the Sun fаmily truly hаs the hеаrt of а wolf and the lungs of a dog! Back when the Sun family lived by the city gate archway, they were so poor they couldn’t even get a full meal. It was Young Master Li Jingxuan of the Li family who took a liking to Sun Dahe, recruited him into the ink workshop, and nurtured him with great effort. That’s how the Sun family got to where they are today. Who would have thought that, tempted by the reward offered by the Tian family, the Sun family would secretly steal the Li family’s ink formula and sell it to the Tians? What they did was utterly dishonorable.” On the street, crowds of onlookers gathered to watch Sun Dalang’s public humiliation.
As they waited for the parade to arrive, people whispered among themselves.
“I just don’t understand—do you think Sun Dahe is a fool? In the Li Family Ink Workshop now, the old lady is aging, and Steward Shao is getting old too. Isn’t it obvious? As soon as Steward Shao steps down, the manager of the Li family’s ink workshop will surely be Sun Dahe. That’s a bright future ahead. Do you think Sun Dahe would really be so greedy for the Tians’ silver?” This was the confusion of someone who understood the situation.
“Isn’t it obvious? Sun Dahe was implicated by his eldest son, Dalang,” someone nearby said.
“That makes sense,” a few others nodded in agreement.
“By the way, Sun Dahe was sent to the quarry, and Sun Dalang is being paraded through the streets. So why hasn’t anything happened to the Tian family?” someone else asked curiously.
“The yamen gates are wide open, but justice won’t enter without money. The Tian family has plenty of people and money. If they throw enough at the yamen, what trouble could they possibly face? Besides, the Tian family only offered a reward—they didn’t force the Sun family to steal. So naturally, the Tians got off scot-free,” an elderly man with worldly wisdom said, baring his teeth.
“That’s true. In this day and age…” someone nearby shook their head.
“They’re coming, they’re coming! Everyone, quiet down.” Just then, the sound of gongs echoed from the front—the parade had arrived.
At that moment, Zhen Niang and Sun Yuejuan stood on a staircase by the entrance of the Tiger Stove. From their elevated position, they could see over the crowd as a group of yamen runners escorted several prisoners forward. The prisoners all wore cangues—wide, heavy wooden collars that pressed down on their necks and shoulders, threatening to force them to their knees with the slightest misstep.
Some of the cangues had turned a reddish-brown hue, stained over the years by the blood of countless necks.
“Ah, isn’t that the young master of the Luo family?” A sudden exclamation erupted from the crowd. Zhen Niang looked into the distance and saw that following Sun Dalang was none other than Luo Wenqian, the young master of the Luo family, now reduced to a prisoner.
“Yes, it’s the Luo family’s young master. Haven’t you heard? In the imperial court, the emperor has already issued an edict. Yan Shifan and Luo Longwen have been sentenced to beheading, and they’ll be executed as soon as the time comes. This time, the Luo family won’t be able to recover,” a loafer nearby chimed in. Though such idlers might seem aimless in their daily lives, they were often the most well-informed.
“By the way, what about the rest of the Luo family? Why do we only see the young master?” the earlier person asked again."I heard that a while ago, Luo Wenqian had already sent people away and moved much of the family wealth. Everything was going smoothly, but unexpectedly, Tian Rongchang, the second young master of the Tian family, found out about it and reported it to Lord Fang of the Imperial Guards. The Imperial Guards sent men to recover all of the Luo Family's property. As for the other members of the Luo Family, there are many rumors—some say they were killed on the spot, while others say they escaped and are nowhere to be found. In any case, the only one still in Huizhou now is Luo Wenqian. Fortunately, the official saw him as a refined gentleman and sentenced him to only three days in the cangue, sparing his life," the idler said.
Then, grinning broadly, he added, "Life is truly interesting. Once a distinguished and dashing young master, Luo Wenqian has now become a lowly prisoner. Who knows, he might even have to beg for food among idlers like us in the future. Interesting, interesting."
The idler rambled on.
Zhen Niang, standing nearby, felt deeply unsettled. Only an idler like him would find this amusing, while she could only think of the phrase "life is unpredictable."
She hadn’t seen him build his high tower, nor had she seen him host grand banquets, but she witnessed his tower collapse—this was the current state of the Luo Family.
"Move faster!" A nearby yamen runner, seeing Luo Wenqian walking slowly, gave him a hard kick, causing him to stumble and nearly fall. Luo Wenqian gritted his teeth and steadied himself, turning back to glare fiercely at the runner.
His face was now hidden behind disheveled hair, but his eyes were bloodshot.
"What, not satisfied? I’ll hit you again," the runner said, punching Luo Wenqian in the head before taunting, "What are you going to do about it?"
Luo Wenqian said nothing, only stared at the runner for a moment before turning around and limping along with the procession.
The procession gradually moved farther away.
"A tiger fallen to the plains is bullied by dogs," Zhen Niang thought to herself.
Beside her, Sun Yuejuan watched Sun Dalang’s figure disappear into the distance, sniffed heavily, and then headed down the stairs. Zhen Niang followed.
"Uncle Shui, do you have scissors?" Sun Yuejuan glanced at Zhen Niang and asked Uncle Shui.
"What are you doing?" Zhen Niang was startled by Sun Yuejuan’s look and immediately grew wary. Could Sun Yuejuan be planning to settle scores with her over her father and brother’s affairs, even to the point of violence?
Though she thought this, it seemed unlikely.
"Yuejuan, what do you need scissors for? Your father and brother’s matters have nothing to do with Zhen Niang," Uncle Shui also exclaimed in alarm.
"I know it has nothing to do with Zhen Niang. But now that my family and the Li family are at odds like this, my friendship with Zhen Niang is over. I want to cut ties with her," Sun Yuejuan said, her eyes reddening.
"Cut ties"—Sun Yuejuan must have read too many operas and storybooks, Zhen Niang thought, both amused and exasperated.
Fine, if she wants to cut ties, so be it.
Uncle Shui handed a small pair of scissors to Sun Yuejuan.
Sun Yuejuan lifted the hem of her garment, cut off a corner, and handed it to Zhen Niang. "Cut off a corner of your garment and give it to me."
"But this is a perfectly good garment. If I cut off a corner, it’ll be ruined. What a waste—my mother will scold me," Zhen Niang replied calmly.
"You…" Sun Yuejuan glared angrily.
"Alright, I’ll cut it, I’ll cut it," Zhen Niang quickly relented.
She took the scissors, cut off a corner of her own garment, and exchanged it with Sun Yuejuan’s piece. In her heart, she couldn’t understand what kind of "cutting ties" this was supposed to be."Uncle Shui, do you have needle and thread?" Zhen Niang called out to Uncle Shui.
"Yes, yes, yes, I'll go get it for you," Uncle Shui quickly replied. As a lonely old man, mending clothes was a daily necessity.
Soon enough, Uncle Shui brought over the needle and thread.
Zhen Niang took them and sewed the piece of fabric from Sun Yuejuan's clothing onto the corner of her own garment that was missing.
"What are you doing?" Sun Yuejuan asked angrily.
"This corner is missing, so isn't this the perfect way to patch it up?" Zhen Niang said matter-of-factly.
"Who told you to patch it? You're supposed to burn the other person's piece of fabric—that's how you sever ties!" Sun Yuejuan was speechless.
"Oh, so that's how it's done," Zhen Niang said, as if suddenly enlightened. But then she frowned slightly, looking at the sewn-on corner. "Forget it, a missing corner on clothes looks too ugly. Let's just leave it like this."
Then Zhen Niang waved at Sun Yuejuan. "I'm going home. There's a lot to do there. You know how my mother is—if I slack off even a little, she'll scold me."
With that, Zhen Niang left.
Sun Yuejuan watched Zhen Niang's retreating figure, stamped her foot in frustration, and then looked at the piece of fabric in her hand. Finally, she picked up the needle and thread left on the table and sewed the fabric onto her own clothing as well.
"Uncle Shui, I'm leaving. It'll be hard for me to visit you in the future," Sun Yuejuan said before quickly departing.
Watching the two young women walk away in opposite directions—one heading south, the other north—Uncle Shui sighed. What a fine pair of friends, yet their paths in life had diverged so completely.
As she walked, Zhen Niang glanced at the sewn-on corner. In truth, her friendship with Sun Yuejuan wasn't particularly deep. However, the original owner of this body had been friends with Sun Yuejuan since infancy—they were true childhood companions. This piece of fabric was something she had left behind for the original soul.
OpenNovel