“Ah, now that’s a sharp eye.” Ji Mian laughed even more heartily, as though he had finally found a kindred spirit. He leaned toward Song Chuyi. “Huaijin, I feel like we’re going to get along famously. How about we go out for a proper drinking session today? We can head to the courtesan house and listen to some songs. I’ll cover the cost.”
“Let’s leave the courtesans out of it. I’m still rather fond of this tender flesh of mine and don’t want to ruin it just yet.” Song Chuyi laughed. “Why don’t we simply warm some wine and drink to our hearts’ content instead?”
Ji Mian found Song Chuyi even more amusing. He immediately turned around and called out to the others, “Come on, come on! Let’s all go for a drink and give Huaijin a proper welcome!”
Guests like them generally had a great deal of freedom with their time. They were not required to remain in the residence at all times. Whenever they went out, they only needed to report where they were going, so that Longgu Qing could find them whenever he needed to.
As luck would have it, it had snowed that day, making it the perfect weather for drinking. After some discussion, they settled on a tavern they frequented regularly.
Song Chuyi asked a servant to look after Zi Zhao and Zi Ya and see to their meals, then went out with the others.
However, they soon found themselves at odds over how to travel there. Song Chuyi suggested riding horses, while Nan Qi insisted on taking a carriage. After going back and forth, Nan Qi simply climbed into the carriage, leaving everyone else with no choice but to follow. It was a trivial matter, after all, and there was no point in letting it spoil the mood.
…
A moment later…
Three carriages without walls, each topped with a copper canopy, crawled slowly through the howling wind and snow.
Nine people, young and old, huddled together in the three carriages, shivering violently. Song Chuyi gritted his teeth and glared at Nan Qi. “I said we should ride horses, but you insisted on taking a carriage. How is it now? You can spread yourself out and enjoy the wind and snow to your heart’s content.”
“Only the ignorant ride horses. How could a man of status possibly do such a thing?” Nan Qi retorted, his lips trembling from the cold, yet somehow still managing to maintain his composure.
During the Spring and Autumn period, anyone of even modest status would generally avoid riding horses, as they considered it an undignified and rather disheveled way to travel. By the late Warring States period, however, cavalry had become increasingly important in warfare, and horseback riding gradually grew more common. Many scholars and gentlemen likewise chose to ride horses when travelling.
“The Son of Heaven of Zhou rides a horse, and he’s still the Son of Heaven. A courtesan rides in a four-horse carriage, and he’s still a courtesan,” Song Chuyi said coldly.
At this, Nan Qi’s eyes practically caught fire. “I’m stating a fact. Why are you insulting me? That’s an affront to my dignity!”
“I’m merely making an argument,” Song Chuyi shot back. “If you insist on forcing the analogy onto yourself, what can I do about it? No state has ever issued an order forbidding scholars from using such language.”
Though Song Chuyi’s words might have seemed deliberately provocative, scholars often used allegorical stories and indirect language when admonishing those in power. When their words grew sharper, their analogies naturally became less flattering as well.
“Gentlemen of the Daoist school, could you spare a thought for us common folk who are currently suffering in these dire conditions?” Ji Mian interjected from one corner, his voice trembling as he shivered.
Nan Qi gave a cold snort and turned his head away. Song Chuyi buried her face in her sleeve and fell silent as well.
They had been assigned to the carriages according to age; otherwise, there was no way Song Chuyi would have ended up sharing one with Nan Qi.
Ji Mian glanced back. In the carriage behind them, Xi Hong, Hui Shuyun, and Ji Yan were grinning from ear to ear, arms folded as they watched the spectacle. He could not help laughing. “The three of you certainly make swallowing wind and snow look remarkably graceful.”
The three of them cupped their hands with matching smiles. “You flatter us. You flatter us.”
The horses hauled the exceedingly heavy bronze carriage through the wind and snow for roughly half an hour before they finally reached the tavern they had mentioned.
A dark-brown wine banner fluttered fiercely in the wind and snow, bearing a single enormous character, 酒 (“wine”), written in bold, vigorous strokes.
Everyone’s hands and feet had gone stiff with cold, and it took them quite some time to climb down from the carriages. Song Chuyi now thoroughly resented Nan Qi. They could have simply enjoyed a good drink, but he had insisted on putting on airs. Thick felt curtains had already been hung over the tavern’s doors and windows. One after another, they lifted the felt and went inside.
When it was Song Chuyi’s turn, she stumbled and nearly lost her grip beneath the weight of the felt. She pushed the heavy curtain aside, and the moment she stepped inside, warmth enveloped her.
This was a moderately sized tavern in Puyang, with two floors. At the back of the main hall, against the north wall, stood a raised platform measuring roughly one meter by meter. Song Chuyi took one look and realized that a Go board had been painted across its surface. On either side of the platform stood a pair of wide-mouthed ceramic jars filled with Go stones. From the railing on the second floor, one could see the entire board below and watch the game in progress.
“Gentlemen, would you prefer to sit in the main hall or in a private chamber?” a young attendant came over and asked the group.
“Private chamber,” Ji Mian replied.
“Please follow me.” The young man led the way, taking the nine of them upstairs.
The so-called private chambers were not completely enclosed either. They had walls on only three sides, with curtains serving as the fourth.
The group brushed the snow from their clothes, removed their shoes, and entered the private room. Ji Mian huddled beside the small brazier used for boiling tea, shivering violently. “Now I finally understand why scholars from all over the realm refused to enter Qin in the old days. They were all afraid of freezing to death.”
“By your logic, then, everyone entering Qin nowadays must be unafraid of death?” Hui Shuyun shook the remaining snow from his sleeves.
“Not unafraid of death. They simply have courage,” Xi Hong chimed in.
Having warmed up a little, Ji Mian laughed. “Ha! By that logic, everyone who goes to Yue must be a coward clinging to life.”
Their banter might have seemed meaningless, but each remark actually alluded to the political realities of the time.
Ever since the reign of Duke Xiao of Qin, Qin had issued edicts seeking talented men, and its treatment of capable scholars was arguably the most generous among the Six States. Yet Qin was poor, so there was only so much it could offer in material terms. What it could provide was freedom from excessive political restrictions. Any scholar who went to Qin with practical ideas was treated with extraordinary respect.
Yue, on the other hand, was a large state, but it occupied a remote corner of the realm. Though the King of Yue was hardly incompetent, he was simply not a ruler of great talent or foresight.
“Three kilograms of roast mutton and ten jars of fine wine,” Xi Hong said.
“Our little establishment has Chu wine, Wei wine, Qin wine, Yue wine, and Lu wine. Which would you like, sir?” the young attendant asked with a smile.
“Come, come! One jar of each. Let us sample the flavors of every corner of the realm!” Ji Mian exclaimed.
“Please wait a moment.” The young man bowed and withdrew.
The food and wine soon arrived. Ji Mian patted Song Chuyi on the shoulder. “Huaijin, you need to eat more. Being so thin and frail simply won’t do. I’ve heard that many men in Anyi put on rouge and powder, cultivating a delicate, feminine appearance, and are even adored by all the young ladies. You mustn’t turn out like that.”
“Exactly, exactly.” Everyone nodded in agreement, clearly not particularly fond of that sort of beauty.
A maid brought water for them to wash their hands. As Nan Qi washed, he remarked icily, “Wumei needn’t worry. There isn’t a single part of him that he could possibly flaunt for its appearance.”
“I wonder what I have done to offend you,” Song Chuyi asked bluntly. “Why do you go out of your way to make things difficult for me at every turn? I’d rather not spend every meal swallowing my food along with my anger. If this can be cleared up, all the better.”
Nan Qi dried his hands and glanced at her. “When I take a dislike to someone, I’ve never needed a reason.”
Song Chuyi was so furious that, suddenly, she laughed. She laughed several times before abruptly sobering. “You really are a man with nothing better to do than stuff yourself full and then look for something to complain about, aren’t you? You can’t stand me? You? You can stomach the King of Wei bullying the State of Wey? You can stomach the rites and music of the realm collapsing into chaos? You can stomach the common people living in misery? Yet somehow you just can’t stomach little old Song Huaijin? What an extraordinary display of character, dignity, breadth of mind, and ambition. You’ve truly opened my eyes.”
Everyone stared at her in stunned silence. For a long moment, no one said a word. Ji Mian froze with a piece of meat halfway to his mouth, sneaking a glance at Nan Qi from the corner of his eye.
It was not only their private chamber that had fallen silent. Even the surrounding rooms had gone quiet.
