[Translation] Don't Let The Country Go (不讓江山): Chapter 17 — Reunions Always Bring Small Joys

 

Li Diudiu came to see his master, Changmei, but it wasn’t only Li Diudiu who came. Xiahou Zhuo, who usually slept until late morning, came too. Even Instructor Yan Qingzhi, who normally kept himself detached from other people’s affairs, also came.

With his arm still hanging in a sling, Xiahou Zhuo watched the little fellow hugging his master, and his nose turned sour. He even felt a tiny bit envious.

That Daoist was dirty, smelly, old, and poor, yet when Xiahou Zhuo looked at him, he felt that this was probably what a father ought to be like.

And his own father?

A man high above everyone else. At least within Jizhou, no one dared provoke him. Yet no matter how hard Xiahou Zhuo tried, the image of his father could never overlap with that old Daoist’s figure.

The more he thought about it, the more envious he became.

There was a small river in Jizhou City, and people often came there to admire the scenery. On an open patch beside the river, Li Diudiu unpacked his bundle and took out… an iron pot.

That’s right, an iron pot.

There were chopsticks, a skimmer, plates, and all sorts of utensils too.

He set up the pot beside the river, then ran to a nearby well to fetch a bucket of water and started boiling it.

“Aunt Wu said dumplings only taste best fresh out of the pot. Once they sit around, the flavor changes.”

Like performing a magic trick, Li Diudiu pulled out bag after bag of dumplings.

Raw ones.

The old Daoist sat beside him watching, eyes sparkling. Not because he was greedy for the dumplings, but because every time he looked at Li Diudiu, his heart filled with comfort and pride.

The dumplings went into the pot.

Li Diudiu looked especially handsome while focusing so seriously on cooking them.

“Aunt Wu also said dumplings are done once they puff up.”

He squatted beside the pot, staring at the dumplings floating inside.

“Why aren’t they puffing yet?”

Just then, three constables in official uniforms strode over. All three frowned, but after noticing Li Diudiu’s academy uniform, they hesitated for a moment.

Then they saw the old Daoist’s ragged clothes, and the disgust in their eyes deepened.

“Young master,” one of the constables cupped his fist politely toward Li Diudiu, “are you giving alms to a beggar?”

Li Diudiu’s expression instantly turned cold.

“Who are you calling a beggar?”

The old Daoist hurriedly tugged him back.

“Don’t argue with the officers.”

He stood and bowed apologetically.

“Honored officers, I’m only eating a meal here. I’ll leave right after. Very soon.”

The lead constable looked the old Daoist up and down, then suddenly kicked him.

“You dare actually eat because this young master offered it?!”

Li Diudiu’s master had been hungry for days. How could he possibly dodge? He was kicked straight to the ground.

The constable changed expressions faster than flipping a page. After kicking the old Daoist over, he immediately turned polite again toward Li Diudiu.

“Young master, once you’ve had your fun, you should head home. What’s the point of helping an old beggar like this? Lord Jiedushi has strict orders: no beggars are to be seen inside Jizhou City. It harms the city’s image.”

Li Diudiu ignored him completely. He rushed over to help his master up first, asking if he was hurt.

At that moment, Li Diudiu finally understood why he had never seen beggars on the streets since arriving in Jizhou.

It wasn’t because there weren’t any.

It was because every one of them got driven away the moment they appeared.

What he didn’t know was that some weren’t merely driven away—they were thrown into prison and might someday become scapegoats for someone else.

“Why did you hit him?!”

Li Diudiu roared as he stood up, faint killing intent already appearing in his eyes.

He was only eleven years old, yet when the constable saw that look, he actually panicked for a moment.

That gaze was too fierce.

Like a young tiger.

“I’ll beat your damn asses!”

A dark figure suddenly shot over from the side and smashed a fist into the constable’s face.

The punch carried tremendous force. The constable flew sideways, his head smashing against the ground. He couldn’t even get back up for quite a while.

Xiahou Zhuo’s right arm was still in a sling, so throwing punches with his left hand wasn’t very smooth.

But the power behind it was absolutely real.

“You dare attack officers of the law?!”

Another constable grabbed the hilt of his saber.

“You’ve got some nerve!”

Xiahou Zhuo rolled his shoulder and walked forward.

“Do you know who I am? I’ll tell you. My name is Xiahou Zhuo. Go ahead—draw your blade.”

The name “Xiahou Zhuo” clearly carried terrifying weight beyond just the academy.

The constable froze upon hearing it and immediately bowed.

“Young Master Xiahou, forgive this lowly one for failing to recognize you. I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

Xiahou Zhuo wiped the corner of his mouth with his hand, then slapped the constable across the face.

“Recognize me now?”

The constable didn’t dare retaliate. He straightened up again at once, lowered his head, and said:

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’ll remember Young Master Xiahou’s face from now on.”

Xiahou Zhuo said, “You’re all just following orders. I won’t make things difficult for you. Get lost.”

“Yes, yes, yes…”

The three men who had just been acting so aggressive turned and ran immediately.

It would be a lie to say there wasn’t resentment in their eyes, but none of them dared let Xiahou Zhuo notice.

“Thank you, thank you…”

The old Daoist bowed toward Xiahou Zhuo.

Xiahou Zhuo quickly helped him up.

“No need, no need. Just a small favor.”

He looked toward Li Diudiu.

Li Diudiu cupped his fists, about to speak, but Xiahou Zhuo grabbed the chopsticks first, picked up a dumpling from the pot, blew on it a few times, stuffed it into his mouth, and chewed noisily despite the heat.

After swallowing the dumpling, he handed the chopsticks back to Li Diudiu.

“Enough useless talk. We’re even now.”

Li Diudiu opened his mouth, unsure what to say.

Xiahou Zhuo turned and left, waving a hand behind his back.

“Eat your dumplings. Spend time talking with the old man properly.”

After Xiahou Zhuo left, the old Daoist asked:

“Who is that young master?”

“Xiahou Zhuo.”

Li Diudiu scooped the dumplings out and handed them to his master.

“Master, hurry and eat.”

The old Daoist held the dumplings, eyes moist again.

“Good, good… I’ll eat. I’ll eat.”

Li Diudiu took out the five taels of silver from his chest and presented them with both hands.

“Master, I earned some money at the academy. Use this to stay at an inn first. Pick a cheaper one. I asked around—bad inns cost about two taels a month.”

“How could you earn money at the academy?”

The old Daoist’s expression immediately changed.

“I…”

Li Diudiu grinned.

“A reward. Because I perform way better than everyone else. Every time the instructor asks questions, nobody else can answer except me, so the instructor personally rewards me.”

The old Daoist relaxed.

“That’s good then. But you mustn’t earn money through bad means. You’re still young. Your studies come first. Keep the money for emergencies—your master can earn money himself.”

“Mmm…”

Li Diudiu said, “Then I’ll just waste the silver recklessly.”

The old Daoist thought for a moment.

“Better let me keep it for you.”

He took the silver and tucked it into his clothes, then handed the plate of dumplings to Li Diudiu.

“You eat.”

Li Diudiu shook his head.

“I eat them every day. These are all for you, Master. Hurry and eat.”

The old Daoist grinned foolishly and started eating one dumpling after another, cheeks bulging full.

Far away by the roadside, Xiahou Zhuo leaned against a tree, watching Li Diudiu by the river.

He worried those constables might come back once he left.

But for some reason, the more he looked at the old Daoist, the worse he felt inside.

“Even mountains of gold and silver can’t compare to their laughter and conversation.”

Xiahou Zhuo let out a long sigh.

After eating beside the river, Li Diudiu accompanied his master to find an inn.

Xiahou Zhuo continued following from a distance.

And what he didn’t know was that a carriage was also following from far behind.

Xiahou Zhuo was watching Li Diudiu and the old Daoist ahead of him.

Inside the carriage, Yan Qingzhi was watching Xiahou Zhuo.

Only now, compared to before, the look in Yan Qingzhi’s eyes toward Xiahou Zhuo had softened somewhat.

The inn’s conditions were indeed mediocre, but for the old Daoist, having a place to stay, a warm blanket, and a hot bath already felt beyond luxurious.

This was satisfaction.

The greatest satisfaction.

Li Diudiu bustled around nonstop. Seeing his academy uniform, the innkeeper treated him with extra respect and specially arranged the best room available.

It was larger than the others and even had a huge wooden tub for bathing.

Li Diudiu personally heated water, carrying basin after basin into the tub.

Then he scrubbed his master’s back.

The old Daoist felt terribly embarrassed and kept trying to make him wait outside.

But Li Diudiu refused.

Standing behind his master, he wrapped the towel around his hands twice and scrubbed hard.

Sure enough, strips of dirt rolled off one after another.

Honestly, it was pretty satisfying.

“When you were little, I scrubbed your back. Now you’re scrubbing mine.”

As the old Daoist said this, his eyes reddened slightly.

“Oh, come on.”

Li Diudiu laughed.

“Every time we bathed, you just tossed me straight into the river. Don’t think I forgot how you grabbed my ankles and swished me through the water like you were rinsing a rag…”

The old Daoist smiled without speaking.

In truth, he had thought about Li Diudiu far more than the boy realized.

When Li Diudiu was only four or five, he had already been thrown into rivers to bathe by himself while the old Daoist watched nearby.

It looked careless, but that was exactly how Li Diudiu learned to swim.

“Master.”

“Mhm? What is it?”

“Nothing. Just calling you.”

Li Diudiu answered with a silly grin.

The old Daoist leaned back in the tub of hot water, feeling that his whole life had been worth it.

Compared to this moment, what did ten years of hardship matter?

Li Diudiu’s filial devotion filled him with satisfaction.

And a bit of pride too…

As expected of the child I raised. Hahahaha…

“Master, just stay here for now. I’ll work hard to save money and buy you a house in Jizhou City. I asked around already. A house costs about two hundred taels. It shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Focus on your studies!”

The old Daoist turned back and looked at Li Diudiu seriously.

“I’ll stay at the inn for this month. Once I have clean clothes, I can properly go out and find work. Believe in your master’s abilities. I’ll earn money myself. You just focus on your schooling.”

“Got it.”

Li Diudiu answered obediently.

But despite being young, he had a stubborn streak. Once he decided to do something, he would definitely do it.

“There are still twenty days until the monthly exam. Once I pass, I’ll be able to return to the main classes.”

As he scrubbed his master’s back, Li Diudiu chatted endlessly, recounting almost everything that had happened during his ten days at the academy.

Except for the things he thought would make his master worry.

He only talked about the good things.

The fun things.

The delicious things.

“You mustn’t embarrass yourself.”

The old Daoist said seriously:

“At the very least, you need to place near the top. You’re different from the others—you need to work even harder.”

Li Diudiu said solemnly:

“How about top four? Is that okay?”

His master nodded.

“That’s acceptable.”

Li Diudiu grinned.

His master had never truly attended the academy. Both times he entered were because Guo Huaili brought him in.

So his master had no idea there were only four students total, including Li Diudiu.

“Hahahahaha…”

Li Diudiu burst into laughter.

His master asked, “What are you laughing at?”

“Old Meng is hilarious.”