Laughing in the Wind Chapter 1 – Part 1

Clan annihilation.

The spring breeze caressed the hanging willow leaves carrying the intoxicating flower fragrances—basked in the glory of the season.

On West Gate Avenue in Fuzhou Prefecture¹ of Fujian Province,² a cobblestone road stretched straight towards the western gate. Before a grand residence stood two stone platforms, each bearing a flagpole some twenty feet tall, with dark blue banners rippling at their peaks.

The right banner bore a fierce lion embroidered in yellow silk, teeth bared and claws extended, its majesty enhanced by the wind that made it seemed to come alive. Above the lion’s head, a pair of bats worked in black silk spread their wings in flight. The left banner displayed four black stitched characters reading “Fuwei Armed Escort”,³ the strokes as bold as silver hooks and iron lines.

The mansion’s grand vermillion gates gleamed with copper studs the size of teacups, whilst a wooden plaque above proclaimed “Fuwei Armed Escort” in large golden characters with the smaller “Headquarters” written beneath them. Inside the entrance, eight hardy men sat tightly girded and ready on two rows of benches, each back ramrod straight, exuding an air of hardy competence.

Suddenly, hoofbeats thundered from the rear courtyard. The eight men sprang to their feet and rushed through the gate. Five riders burst from the Armed Escort’s western side entrance and charged along the carriage path to the main gate. The lead horse gleamed snow-white, its saddle and stirrups wrought of pure silver. Astride it sat a youth of eighteen or nineteen in brocade robes, a hunting eagle perched on his left shoulder, a sword at his waist, and a longbow slung across his back. He spurred his mount forward with a flourish. Four riders in identical blue cotton followed.

As the riders approached the Armed Escort’s gate, three of the eight men called out in unison, “The Young Escort Chief’s⁴ off hunting again!”

His whip cracked through the air and his white steed tossed its head with a long whinny before charging onto the cobblestone avenue. One of the men called out, “Captain Shi, bring back another wild boar today so we can feast!”

A man of about forty riding behind the youth called back with a laugh, “A wild boar’s tail is yours for certain, just don’t fill yourself with yellow soup⁵ first!”

Amidst the laughter, the five horses had already vanished into the distance.

Past the city gate, the Young Escort Chief Lin Pingzhi⁶ squeezed his legs lightly and his white steed’s four hooves churned, shooting forward to leave his four companions far behind within moments. He spurred up a hillside and released his hunting eagle, which flushed a pair of yellow hares from the woods. He took his longbow from his back, drew a carved-feather arrow from the quiver at his saddle, nocked and pulled. The arrow whistled forth and one hare dropped instantly.

As he prepared a second shot, the other hare darted into the undergrowth and vanished. Escort Captain⁷ Zheng rode up with a laugh. “Young Escort Chief, what fine archery!”

Then Scout⁸ Bai Er⁹ called from the left woods, “Young Escort Chief, quick—pheasants here!”

Lin Pingzhi spurred toward him. A pheasant burst from the trees, flying directly over his head. His arrow rustled and missed. A pheasant burst from the trees, flying directly over his head. His arrow whistled past. Lin Pingzhi snapped his whip upward with a sharp crack, striking the bird from the sky in an explosion of five-coloured feathers.

The five men roared with laughter. Captain Shi said, “Young Escort Chief, that whip could bring down not just pheasants, but even great eagles!”

They pursued birds and beasts through the forest for over two hours. Captains Shi and Zheng, along with Scouts Bai Er and Chen Qi¹⁰, kept driving game toward the Young Escort Chief whilst foregoing their own opportunities. Lin Pingzhi shot two more hares and two more pheasants, but bagged no larger game like wild boar or roe deer. His enthusiasm still unsated, he said, “Let’s try the mountains ahead.”

Captain Shi thought to himself, If we go into the mountains, we won’t return until nightfall. When we get back, Madam will have complaints for us.

Aloud he said, “It’s getting late, and the mountains are full of sharp stones. Best not risk the white horse’s hooves. Tomorrow we’ll rise early and hunt for that big boar.”

The magnificent Ferghana steed¹¹ had been purchased at great expense in Luoyang by Lin’s maternal grandmother as a gift for his seventeenth birthday two years past.

Hearing concern for his horse’s hooves, Lin Pingzhi patted its head. “My dear Snow Dragon is too clever to step on sharp rocks, your four nags might not manage. Very well, let’s all head back—wouldn’t want to bruise Chen Qi’s arse.”

The five laughed as they wheeled their mounts around. Lin Pingzhi galloped ahead but avoided retracing their route, turning north instead. After a vigorous ride, he finally satisfied his restlessness and slowed to an easy pace. A wine shop’s flag appeared ahead by the roadside. Captain Zheng said, “Young Escort Chief, how about a drink? Fresh hare and pheasant meat, perfect for perfect for stir-frying with wine.”

Lin Pingzhi laughed. “You claim to come hunting with me, but drinking is what you really care about. If I don’t let you drink your fill, you’ll be too lazy to join me tomorrow.”

He reined in and dismounted with a casual leap, then strolled toward the wine shop.

On any other day, Old Cai the proprietor would have rushed out to seize his horse’s bridle, exclaiming, “Young Escort Chief bagged so much game today. Truly divine archery, rarely seen in our times!”

But now, as they reached the shop, silence greeted them. A young woman in blue with her hair bound in two buns secured by simple thornwood pins¹² tended the wine brazier, her face turned away.

Captain Zheng called out, “Old Cai, where are you? Come take our horses!”

Bai Er and Chen Qi pulled out benches, dusted them off with their sleeves, and presented the seat to Lin Pingzhi. Captains Shi and Zheng took seats to his right,¹³ while the two scouts occupied another table.

A cough sounded from within, then a white-haired old man emerged, speaking in a northern accent, “Please sit, honoured guests. Wine?”

Captain Zheng asked, “Wine—did you think we came for tea? Bring us three jin¹⁴ of Bamboo Leaf Green¹⁵ to start. Where’s Old Cai? Did the shop change owners?”

“Indeed, indeed,” the old man replied. He called out, “Waner, serve three jins of Bamboo Leaf Green.”

He continued, “I’ll tell it straight, honoured guests, my humble surname is Sa. I’m originally from these parts, but I’ve been doing business abroad since I was a boy. After my son and daughter-in-law passed, I thought, ‘A tree may grow ten thousand feet tall, but its leaves must ultimately return to the roots.’ So I brought my granddaughter back to our ancestral home.

“Yet after forty years away, not a single familiar face remained. As luck would have it, Old Cai wanted to sell this wine shop, so I bought it for thirty taels¹⁶ of silver. Ah, at least I’m back in my homeland. Hearing everyone speak the local dialect brings such comfort to this old heart, though I’m ashamed to say I can no longer speak it myself.”

The young woman in blue approached with head lowered, carrying a wooden tray. She placed cups and chopsticks before Lin Pingzhi and his companions, set down three wine pots, then retreated without daring to glance at the customers.

Lin Pingzhi noticed her graceful figure but rough, darkened skin marred by what seemed numerous pockmarks on her homely face, her stiff movements marking her as new to serving wine. He paid her no further mind.

Escort Shi handed Old Sa a pheasant and a hare. “Clean and dress these, then stir-fry two large dishes.”

“While you gentlemen wait for your game, please enjoy some beef, broad beans, and peanuts to go with the wine.”

Without waiting for her grandfather’s instruction, Waner brought the appetizers to the table. Captain Zheng said, “This young gentleman is the Young Escort Chief Lin of the Fuwei Armed Escort, a young hero who upholds justice and spends silver like water. If your two dishes suit his taste, you’ll recover your thirty-tael investment within a month or two.”

Old Sa said, “Yes, yes! Many thanks, many thanks!”

He took the pheasant and hare and left.

Captain Zheng poured wine for Lin Pingzhi, Captain Shi, and himself, then drained his cup in one gulp. He licked his lips. “The owner may have changed, but the wine tastes the same.”

As he poured a second cup, hoofbeats sounded. Two horses thundered up the official road from the north. A voice called, “There’s a wine shop here, let’s have a drink!”

Captain Shi recognised the Western Sichuan accent.¹⁷ Turning, he saw two men in blue robes. They tied their mounts to the great banyan tree before the shop and strode inside, casting a glance at Lin Pingzhi and the others before seating themselves brazenly.

The two men had white cloth wrapped around their heads and wore blue robes in a scholarly style, yet their legs were bare and their feet clad in simple hemp sandals without ear-straps. Captain Shi knew this was typical Sichuan attire—the white headcloth was worn in memory of the Marquis Zhongwu,¹⁸ who was so beloved that a thousand years after his passing, the people of Sichuan still wore white in mourning.

Lin Pingzhi, however, found it peculiar, thinking to himself, These two are neither scholars nor warriors. What a strange look.

The younger man called out, “Bring wine! Damn, Fujian’s¹⁹ got too many mountains—wore the horse clean out.”

Waner approached with lowered head and asked softly in a clear and melodious voice, “What wine would you like?”

The young man started, then suddenly reached out to cup her chin with his right hand, laughing. “What a pity, what a pity!”

Waner gasped and jerked back in alarm. The other man laughed. “Brother Yu, this flower-faced girl has a body worth having, but that face—it’s like a hobnailed boot treading in mud, a pomegranate skin turned inside out. Damn, what an absolute mess of pockmarks!”

Yu roared with laughter.

Lin Pingzhi’s anger surged. He slammed his right hand on the table. “What filth! Two blind curs dare come to Fuzhou Prefecture to cause trouble!”

Yu laughed and said, “Second Brother Jia, someone’s cursing in the street. Care to guess who this pansy²⁰ is cursing at?”

Lin Pingzhi took after his mother in looks, with delicate features and striking beauty. Whenever any man dared give him a lingering look, an immediate slap followed. Now, hearing this man call him “pansy,” his fury exploded. He seized a pewter wine pot from the table and hurled it at the man’s head.

Yu dodged, and the pot flew out the door and splattered wine across the grass. Captains Shi and Zheng sprang up and rushed toward the two men.

Footnotes

1. 府 – fǔ. Prefecture in the Ming Dynasty was the secondary administrative division supervised by a province. See Wikipedia. ↩

2. 省 – shěng. Province in the Ming Dynasty was the primary administrative division. See Wikipedia. ↩

3. 福威镖局 – Fúwēi Biāo Jú. Fuwei is literally prosperity and might. An armed escort was a security company that guarded valuable goods and people in ancient China. See Wuxia Wiki ↩

4. 少镖头 – Shào Biāotóu. Literally young escort captain. Used to refer to the child of the escort chief, head of the armed escort. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

5. A chiding term for huangjiu, literally yellow wine, a type of Chinese rice wine. See Wikipedia. ↩

6. 林平之 – Lín Píngzhī. His name meaning “Level-minded” or “Fair and just”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

7. 镖头 – Biāotóu. Literally head escort. Team leaders and middle management within armed escorts commanding teams. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

8. 趟子手 – Tàngzishǒu. Literally hand that makes a trip or patrols. Support personnel who assisted armed escort missions with various auxiliary tasks. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

9. 白二 – Bái’èr. Literally Bai Second. A common way to refer to someone’s by their surname followed by their position in the family or household. ↩

10. 陈七 – Chén Qī. Literally Chen Seven. A common way to refer to someone’s by their surname followed by their position in the family or household. ↩

11. 大宛马 (Dàyuān mǎ) - Ferghana horses were legendary steeds from the Ferghana valley in Central Asia, highly prized in ancient China for their speed, stamina and “heavenly” bloodline. They were considered the finest horses available. See Wikipedia. ↩

12. 荆钗 (jīng chāi) - Simple hairpins made from thorns, typically worn by common women, in contrast to the elaborate gold and jade hairpins worn by wealthy ladies. This along with the blue robes for commoners and servants suggests the girl’s humble status. ↩

13. Being on the right is 下首 (xiàshǒu), which literally means lower head, a sign of a lower position. The left side is 上首 (shàngshǒu), literally higher head, and is considered a more honoured position. ↩

14. 斤 – jīn. Chinese unit of weight, approximately 500 grams or 1.1 pounds, translated as catty in the past. See Wikiepdia. ↩

15. 竹叶青 – zhúyèqīng. Literally bamboo leaf green. A famous variety of rice wine known for its green colour and medicinal ingredients of more than a dozen Chinese herbs. It gets its green tinge from bamboo leaves and is traditionally aged in bamboo containers. See Wikipedia (Chinese). ↩

16. 两 – liǎng. A unit of measurement equivalent to 50 grams or an ounce. It was used as the standard weight of currency in ancient China. ↩

17. 川西 – chuānxī. Western Sichuan. See Wikipedia. ↩

18. 忠武侯 – Zhōngwǔ hóu. Literally Marquis of Loyalty and Martial Prowess. The posthumous title given to Zhuge Liang, the legendary strategist and Chancellor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period, whose profound influence on Sichuan culture persisted for centuries. See Wikipedia. ↩

19. 福建 – fújiàn. A province in southeastern China. See Wikipedia. ↩

20. 兔儿爷 – tù’er yé. Literally rabbit lord. Derogatory term historically used in northern China to mock men for being pretty or effeminate. ↩