Encountering Rain at West Lake

Patches of clouds offered a touch of coolness to the city of Hangzhou, while the faint sounds of firecrackers and drums drifted in the air. Xiao Chan carried a wooden bucket into the shade of a tree, hanging the washed clothes on a rope strung across the courtyard. A girl in her most vibrant years, she wore a patched grey dress, yet the occasional sway of the skirt in the gentle breeze hinted at her slender figure. As she hung the clothes, she chatted and laughed, engaging in casual conversation with the young man reading under the eaves.

He was her brother-in-law, and now, her husband.

"So lively... Brother-in-law, do you think they'll choose that martial arts master today?"

She was naturally referring to the "Green Forest Gathering" that had been causing such a stir in the city these past few days. It was said that many extraordinary people had been displaying their skills at the gathering. Several highly skilled generals from the city, along with Holy Duke Fang La himself, had been watching. Now everyone in the city was talking about it, discussing the amazing techniques someone had used, even more enthusiastically than they usually discussed the poetry competitions of various talented scholars.

Of course, poetry gatherings and literary events hadn't stopped in the city either. Several literary societies had been active, and a few good poems and essays criticizing the current state of affairs had been circulating. Some scholars who hadn't been chosen before hoped to secure an official position before the new dynasty was officially established.

The teachers of the Wenlie Academy had also participated in these poetry gatherings and literary events, holding positions of importance, but Ning Yi naturally didn't go. The Badao Camp didn't restrict him from doing so. But firstly, Ning Yi didn't have a strong reputation in Hangzhou's literary circles, and secondly, his status at the Wenlie Academy was complicated. No one dared to provoke him, but he also didn't have an official title. Even if people talked about it, they only did so within the academy, so his name ultimately didn't spread. Furthermore, even if someone invited him, he wouldn't interfere in these boring affairs at this time—his poetic talent was fake anyway, so he would avoid it if he could.

Hearing Xiao Chan mention the gathering, Ning Yi raised an eyebrow slightly. "It's the vice-leader of the martial arts alliance, not a martial arts master... But since they didn't even invite your brother-in-law, who is known as the 'Bloodhanded Butcher', what kind of martial arts gathering is it? Just a bunch of farmers entertaining themselves..."

Ning Yi's jokes were always tinged with boredom and mockery. Xiao Chan laughed, leaning on the clothes hanging on the rope. "Then you should go, brother-in-law! Brother A Chang said you could go."

Ning Yi smiled, holding his book. "But he also said it's just a gathering of farmers showing off. If even martial arts low-hands like A Chang and A Ming are too lazy to go, wouldn't I lose face if I went? It's not like they're asking me to be the leader."

"Oh, but I heard at the clinic that someone can breathe fire..." Xiao Chan said, sounding rather regretful. "And there's someone who can do a hundred somersaults in a row..."

Ning Yi didn't comment on her idea of considering acrobats as martial arts masters. Of course, the girl wasn't stupid; she was just trying to be amusing. After hanging the clothes, she put the wooden basin back in the room and sat down next to Ning Yi, fanning him with a palm leaf fan. Ning Yi read, and she followed along, occasionally chatting with him. After a while, she lowered her voice and said, "Brother-in-law, I heard them saying that you talked about Master Qian's affairs at the academy?"

Since visiting Qian Xiwen, the environment around Ning Yi had actually become more relaxed. Perhaps it didn't start with the visit to Master Qian, but after talking to that young man on the roof that day, the Badao Camp had sent more clothes and daily necessities. Therefore, their world as a couple had become smoother. But what Ning Yi had said about Qian Xiwen in class had caused a reaction at the academy. Most people now thought that Ning Yi had suicidal tendencies. Xiao Chan naturally knew about this and asked about it now. She also knew that her brother-in-law's emotions had been somewhat affected that day.

Ning Yi looked at her, nodded, and said softly as he turned the page, "It's okay. You know that what we did in Huzhou was no small matter. Someone wants to protect your brother-in-law, either they're crazy, or they think your brother-in-law is useful—very useful. That Liu Dabiao... is a reckless madman. Being too conservative won't work, and just being handsome isn't enough... Doing something outrageous now and then will make people value me. And I really do want to help Master Qian do something. I don't want him and his family's bones to remain buried in the potter's field forever, unable to be retrieved..."

Xiao Chan nodded. In fact, she had been quite cheerful lately, but she was actually quite sensitive inside, constantly worrying about this and that. Therefore, Ning Yi didn't avoid talking about anything he could, always chatting with her. Mentioning the old man, the girl fanned the fan and was silent for a moment, then looked at Ning Yi and said, "So, brother-in-law, when you talk about this with those children, do you want to... do you want to really teach them well?"

"Why not?" Ning Yi smiled and looked at her.

"But... they are, after all... they are..."

"Xiao Chan, do you think... am I on the side of the imperial court?"

"Uh." Perhaps she hadn't thought about these things before, and she was startled when asked now.

In her heart, she still regarded Fang La's army as rebels. After thinking for a moment, she stammered, "But... Master Qian's family isn't... isn't..."

"I respect Qian Xiwen because the old man has his own principles, and he implements them greatly. It doesn't have much to do with which side he's on. If I stood on the side of the imperial court, would I have to stand with those officials who only know how to be corrupt, or those cowardly military officers? Those bullies and rascals, people who I think are beyond redemption, I hope they all die cleanly, no matter which side they're on. Xiao Chan, I don't stand on any side. People like Master Qian make me think they should live. As for the rest, except for you, your young mistress, and your family members, I wouldn't care if they all died."

Ning Yi smiled. "Now that I'm here as a teacher, I'll fulfill my duties as a teacher and teach them good things, because they're just students. If they learn something, I'll be very happy, and the world will become a little more interesting. Xiao Chan, it's like those officials when we were running away. Even letting them occupy a place in my mind feels like a waste. They're cockroaches. If I see them, I'll crush them if I can. If I can't, I'll just pretend I don't see them anyway. They're everywhere."

He shrugged. "Anyway, I don't hate them, and I don't like them."

After saying this, he felt like he had spoken a bit coldly, but when he looked at Xiao Chan, he saw that she was resting her chin on her hand and nodding, clearly not being perfunctory. In fact, Xiao Chan was thinking something similar. She was just a little maid, and her world was nothing more than that small courtyard and the sisters and brother-in-law and young mistress in the courtyard. In the future, there might be children that she and her brother-in-law would have. Things outside the courtyard didn't mean much to her either. Of course, she wasn't as open-minded as her brother-in-law. She was still quite resentful towards those bad officials who had betrayed her brother-in-law, and she felt that they deserved to die.

The atmosphere of the autumn afternoon seemed leisurely in such casual conversation. The weather turned cooler, and the wind was light and the clouds were sparse. In such days, along with the festive atmosphere outside, the various battles happening around Hangzhou also seemed somewhat distant. Although wounded soldiers were occasionally still being sent in, if one stayed in the academy, only giving lectures and watching a group of Confucian scholars drinking tea and discussing academic issues that were no different from household trivia, or discussing the recent lively events in Hangzhou, it truly felt like a peaceful and prosperous age.

Ning Yi knew that he still had a hurdle to overcome. No matter how leisurely he was now, someone would eventually come to make arrangements for him. Under low eaves, one could only do so much. But this hurdle came somewhat abruptly, and passing it was actually quite strange.

It was the morning of the third day after chatting with Xiao Chan. After he finished teaching and was preparing to pack up and wait to receive his salary for the day, the head of the academy, Feng Yongli, came to find him, looking somewhat complicated, and told him that Liu Dabiao wanted to see him.

The area around the Wenlie Academy was basically Liu Dabiao's territory, as Ning Yi knew. The Badao Camp had participated in the battle in Jiaxing, and it seemed that they had finally returned. Ning Yi followed Feng Yongli out of the academy, and on the road outside, he saw various flags flying, most of which were already tattered or bloodstained. Groups of soldiers were disbanding nearby, returning home in twos and threes, shouting and pulling each other along.

Liu Dabiao's residence was on the street corner. Perhaps he had just arrived in the morning, as the inside looked messy. Ning Yi entered from the gate, and teams of soldiers were running back and forth, some placing various items, others doing the cleaning. After passing through several gates, Ning Yi was led into a relatively quiet courtyard. Two soldiers carrying sabers opened the door to the front room for him. The room was filled with the smell of medicine. After he entered, the door closed behind him, and the surroundings immediately darkened.

The room in front of him was actually quite large, like a TV set version of the emperor's hall—too small to be the Hall of Supreme Harmony, belonging to the type where they rented a small hall because there wasn't much budget. The area within two Zhang in front of Ning Yi seemed somewhat empty. Further ahead, a gauze curtain was hanging. A window was open on the side of the curtain, and light shone in, allowing Ning Yi to see what was in front of him.

There was a large bed like a dragon chair, with a backrest and armrests, but without the frame above, because it was too big to be called anything but a bed. Through the gauze curtain, he could only see the outline of the bed. Next to the bed were many strange things, tables, books, various bamboo slips, tripods, incense burners. Incense was burning in the incense burner, probably to slightly dispel the smell of medicine. Leaning against the outline of the large bed was a sturdy giant blade, and a figure was sitting there steadily. Since it was a silhouette, matched with the giant blade, it looked very imposing, but it was a bit petite, slightly diluting the atmosphere of murderousness.

Beside the incense burner on one side of the bed, another figure, probably a maid, was standing there, fiddling with something.

In the room, the three people quieted the atmosphere.

At this point, Ning Yi was completely certain that the person sitting opposite him was indeed the woman named Liu Xigua he had seen during the attack on Taiping Lane that day. After waiting for a long time, the first words finally came from behind the curtain.

"I am Liu Dabiao." Half affected and scholarly, half affected and bandit-like, coupled with a voice that was still female despite being rough, it became quite strange.

The voice was unpleasant… Many years later, thinking back, this was Ning Yi's truly deep first impression of the girl named Liu Xigua.