Eighty-five

At such an hour, who would be out by the edge of his own fields? Wang Bo felt a little puzzled, though the figure looked somewhat familiar. After walking a bit farther, he finally saw that it was Wang Cai, and a surge of anger rose in him at once. The more he looked at Wang Cai, the less he liked him. What good could come of arriving so early?

"Ha ha, Brother, you're here awfully early," Wang Hu said with a hearty laugh when he saw Wang Cai.

"Nothing much, just came by to take a look. You came early too, Brother. And Xiao Bo is up early as well." Wang Cai glanced at Wang Hu and then at Wang Bo, speaking with a smiling face.

Seeing that false smile, Wang Bo wanted nothing more than to ignore him, but for his father’s sake he could not show it. He could only step forward helplessly and bow with cupped hands. "Good morning, Uncle Cai." Though he disliked Wang Cai, he could not let it show.

"Ha ha, what a polite child," Wang Cai said, still wearing that same honest-looking smile. If one did not look closely, one might truly be deceived by it. Seeing him like that, Wang Bo could not help but curl his lip. How could there be such a shameless man?

"Brother, your household’s harvest is quite good this year," Wang Cai said falsely.

"Ha ha, not at all. Your household is doing no worse, Brother," Wang Hu replied with simple sincerity.

Listening to Wang Cai, Wang Bo grew angry again. Your harvest is good only because my father helped you, and you did not even say thank you. He was too annoyed to listen to Wang Cai’s hypocritical words any longer, so he said to Wang Hu, "Father, you and Uncle Cai can chat. I’ll get back to work."

"All right, go on, Xiao Bo. Take care of yourself," Wang Hu said with a nod.

"What good fortune your family has, with such a fine son as Xiao Bo."

"Ha ha, you flatter me, Brother. My Xiao Bo is simply dutiful." Hearing Wang Cai praise Wang Bo, Wang Hu’s face also brightened with satisfaction.

"Very well, Brother, you go on with your work. I’ll head back now." With that, Wang Cai turned and left.

"Take care on the road, Brother." Wang Hu waved once, then turned back to the fields and resumed his work.

Seeing that detestable Wang Cai had gone far off, Wang Bo drifted over to his father’s side and asked, "Father, what did he say to you? I saw you smiling so happily."

"Ha ha, nothing much. Your Uncle Cai was just praising you," Wang Hu said in great spirits, as if he himself had been praised. To be honest, what father would not be pleased to hear others praise his son? To Wang Hu, Wang Cai’s praise of Wang Bo made him happier than any praise of himself.

"He’s suddenly so kind as to praise me?" Wang Bo muttered inwardly, but he could not bear to spoil his father’s good mood, so he could only grumble silently to himself. "Why would he suddenly praise me?"

Wang Hu was momentarily stunned. "How would I know? Perhaps your Uncle Cai also knows you’re a dutiful boy." Looking at Wang Bo, Wang Hu’s face was full of a smile.

"Is that so?" Wang Bo remained doubtful. He felt that Wang Cai was like a weasel paying a New Year visit to a henhouse, up to no good. But he could not understand why Wang Cai had praised him in front of his father. Little did he know that in his parents’ hearts he was precious as a jewel, and that praising him was often more effective than any word of thanks. In the past, Wang Bo had been frail and sickly, and rarely left the house, so Wang Cai had little chance. But now things were different. Wang Bo’s health had improved, and in Wang Cai’s eyes that meant a potential extra laborer. How could Wang Cai let such an opportunity slip by? So he had specially come to the fields early to wait for Wang Hu and his son. Praising someone a few times cost nothing, after all. Wang Cai’s little scheme was quite clever, but how could he know that Wang Bo already hated him to the bone and would never give him what he wanted?

After thinking for a long while and still not understanding why Wang Cai had bothered to come here and curry favor for no reason, Wang Bo could only shake his head and let it go. Forget it. Whatever the reason, one look at his backside would tell you he was not up to anything good. Men like him are too good to be actors. Maybe he’d sell you off and you’d still be helping him count the money. Best keep your distance from people like that. There’s still plenty of work to do; I’d better get back to it.

With a shake of his head, Wang Bo flung away those cluttered thoughts and lowered his head to work in silence.

Not long after, Lady Li came to the fields with a smiling face. Wang Bo rarely saw his mother this cheerful and could not help but freeze for a moment. What’s going on? Why is Mother so happy? Without much thought, he hurriedly rose to meet her.

"Mother, what happened? Why are you so happy? Did something good happen at home?" Wang Bo asked, full of bewilderment.

"Ha ha, nothing special. I ran into your Uncle Cai at the village entrance just now, and he gave you such generous praise. He only said I have a fine son. How could a mother not be happy?" Lady Li said, smiling from ear to ear, her eyes shining with maternal warmth.

"Of course. Your son is very impressive," Wang Bo said without modesty. Seeing his mother like this, he understood immediately that Wang Cai was trying to win people over, and aiming right at the heart of the matter too. What a move. So that’s what he was up to. A playful smile appeared on Wang Bo’s face. Just wait; when I have the chance, I’ll deal with you.

"Fine, go on and be proud of yourself," Lady Li said, tapping Wang Bo lightly on the head. Her words sounded reproachful, but there was not a trace of real blame in her expression; it remained filled with warm smiles.

Heh heh, Wang Bo laughed sheepishly and scratched the back of his head with his right hand.

"All right, get back to work," Lady Li said, patting Wang Bo’s head affectionately before turning back to the fields. Wang Bo set Wang Cai aside in his mind and devoted himself fully to the labor at hand.

Time passed quickly, and with the concerted efforts of the family of three, every task had nearly reached completion. Looking at the grain they had harvested, the whole family felt gratified. Though these few days had been tiring, Wang Bo had not seen Wang Cai again, and that alone left him in a fairly good mood.

During supper, Wang Hu mentioned that he was planning to go into the county town, and Wang Bo’s heart itched at once.

"Father, can I go with you to the town tomorrow and have a look around?" Wang Bo asked expectantly, eyes fixed on Wang Hu. But Wang Hu looked a little embarrassed. He did want to take Wang Bo to see the town, but if Wang Bo went too, only Duo’er and Lady Li would be left at home, and that made him somewhat uneasy.

"If Xiao Bo wants to go out, then let him go with you. He’s never been to the county town from the day he was born. It would be good for him to see the world," Lady Li said, quite understanding of Wang Bo. "Duo’er will be at home with me, so there won’t be any problem."

"Exactly, Father. If you’re still worried, I can ask Brother Feng to come help look after things," Wang Bo said, adding fuel to the fire beside them.

"Then..." Wang Hu was still hesitant.

"Then what? Just agree, Father," Wang Bo said, taking Wang Hu’s hand and shaking it back and forth. It was terribly awkward to act spoiled in front of someone who, in spirit, was more than twenty years old. He felt as uncomfortable as could be, almost sick with embarrassment. But there was no helping it.

Seeing Wang Bo’s pleading gaze, Wang Hu’s heart softened further. "All right, then you can come with us." After hesitating a little longer, Wang Hu finally agreed.

"Thank you, Father." Having received Wang Hu’s assent, Wang Bo was overjoyed. He truly wanted to go to the county town and broaden his horizons, but he also had another purpose: he hoped to find work there and earn money. If he remained in the village for life, he would never surpass Wang Cai, and Wang Cai would never hold him in esteem. If he had the chance later, he could even move his parents into the town. After all, even if the Yellow Turban rebellion were to come in the future, being in a city would still offer some measure of protection. Of course, all that depended on his being able to establish himself there first.

"All right, go rest for now. We have to get up early tomorrow. If you can’t rise tomorrow, Father will not wait for you, Xiao Bo," Wang Hu said coldly, paying no mind to Wang Bo’s elation.

"Mm, I know, Father. Don’t worry, I won’t oversleep." Wang Bo nodded. "Then, Father, Mother, I’ll go back and rest. You should both turn in early too."

Watching Wang Bo’s departing figure, Wang Hu shook his head with a smile, then turned to Lady Li and said, "Xiao Bo has grown a great deal, but however one looks at him, he still seems like a child."

"Yes," Lady Li said softly. "Since he woke up after fainting last time, he’s changed a lot. But he’s still only a child. Have we placed too heavy a burden on him?" Thinking of Wang Bo’s youthful face, she felt a pang of heartache. His filial devotion truly made her happy, but ever since that time he had fainted and awoken, Wang Bo had worked hard at training himself. In the first few days, he had returned home every day with exhaustion all over him. It pained Lady Li terribly, but since he was doing it for his own good, she could not bear to make him stop. Later on, Wang Bo’s body really did grow stronger and stronger, and she felt much more at ease.

"Xiao Bo has grown up. I think there are some things he now has his own thoughts about. He’s different from us. He won’t be merely an ordinary farmer. Right now, it is we who are hindering his development," Wang Hu said with a somewhat desolate expression. He knew Wang Bo was filial, and precisely because he was so filial, he dared not travel far. But as the saying goes, while one’s parents live, one should not journey far. Yet what future could there be in staying cooped up in a tiny village?

"Forget it, don’t think about it anymore," Lady Li said gently, coming to stand beside Wang Hu to comfort him. "No matter what he becomes in the future, you and I will support him. All right, it’s late. You should rest early too, or you won’t be able to get up tomorrow."

"Ha ha, true enough. We can’t let Xiao Bo look down on me," Wang Hu said, and then turned in for the night.

The next day, before dawn had broken, Wang Bo was already out of bed. He could not sleep anyway, so excited was he. He had been in this world for so long, and had not even seen a single ancient city; that was embarrassing enough to tell others. On top of that, he kept thinking about what he would do after reaching town, and as a result he had more or less dreamed the whole night away.

"If I keep dreaming like this, I’m afraid I’ll give myself a nervous collapse," Wang Bo said, shaking his head as he walked into the courtyard. "Back when I had not yet transmigrated, I could sleep straight through until broad daylight and hardly ever dreamed. Why is it that since coming here I dream every day? Even when I’m not thinking about anything, once I fall asleep I sometimes hear strange sounds by my ear. I can’t tell whether it’s dreaming or something real." Wang Bo could never quite make sense of this matter. Every time he fell into a deep sleep, he felt as though there were strange voices beside his ear. Yet he could never make out what they were; they were so vague that he could only tell that something was there, not what it was saying. And so, he could only conclude that he was dreaming.

Forget it. Wang Bo shook his head. What was the use of thinking about that? Better to practice my boxing first. Once Father gets up, there’ll be work to do again.

Forcing those inexplicable thoughts out of his mind, Wang Bo resumed his training.

After finishing a full set of boxing forms, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked up at the sky. "It’s already quite late. Father should be getting up soon. I’d better wash up first."

By the time Wang Bo had finished washing up, Wang Hu had already come out of the house, yawning.

Seeing Wang Bo in the courtyard, Wang Hu was plainly stunned.

"Xiao Bo, why are you up so early? Why didn’t you sleep a little longer?" Walking over to Wang Bo and noticing his somewhat pale face, Wang Hu asked with concern. At that moment, he felt a little regretful, thinking that perhaps he should not have said those words last night and upset Wang Bo, which might be why his son had gotten up so early.

Wang Bo read Wang Hu’s expression and guessed what he was thinking, so he hurried to comfort him. "It’s like this, Father. I was just too excited knowing I could go into town tomorrow, so I couldn’t sleep." He scratched the back of his head with his usual honest air, then continued, "You know, Father, this will be my first time going into the county town to have fun, so I..."

Before Wang Bo could finish, Wang Hu had already pulled him into his arms with a pair of big hands. Wang Hu said a little choked with emotion, "It’s all your father’s fault."

"Father, how can you say that? If not for treating my illness, our family would never have been reduced to such poverty. It’s all my fault. I..." As he spoke, Wang Bo’s voice also began to tremble.

"All right, stop saying that. You are my son, and I am your father. That is only proper and natural. Besides, you are our family’s only heir. I’m still waiting for you to marry a wife and give me a fat little grandson."

"Father, how can you say that again? I already told you, I’m still young," Wang Bo said, and his face reddened once more. The trembling in his voice changed into embarrassment.

Suddenly, Wang Bo felt a strange stirring. A strange feeling, from nowhere. After thinking it over carefully, he realized that he himself was changing—becoming unlike the person he used to be, growing somewhat childlike. The old him would not have blushed so easily, and the old him would not have kept brooding over a little girl in her teens.

"Hahaha, all right, all right, I won’t say it anymore," Wang Hu laughed, using the sound to cover his earlier awkwardness. "Now go get ready. We’re setting out for town right away."

"Mm." Wang Bo nodded in agreement, and shook the irrelevant thoughts from his mind. If he could not work something out, then there was no need to keep thinking about it.

"I’ll go prepare myself."

At the mention of going into town, Wang Bo immediately looked lively again. Besides, he did not want to keep talking to his father about marriage or not getting married. He hurried away, afraid that if he lingered a moment longer, his father would catch him and start talking about marriage again.

When he came out again from the house, Wang Hu had already loaded all the sun-dried grain onto the cart.

"All right, let’s go," Wang Hu called when he saw Wang Bo come out. Then he pushed the cart out through the gate, and Wang Bo hurried after him.

Since they were leaving that way, Wang Bo did not inform the village head or Wang Feng. After all, Wang Feng was on holiday, and there was no need to bother the village head with this sort of thing either, especially when the autumn harvest already kept him so busy. Filled with hope, Wang Bo followed Wang Hu toward the county town of Zhengding, chatting and laughing all the way.

Zhengding, once called Zhending in ancient times, is a historic and cultural city of the nation. Located on the central Hebei Plain, it was once ranked alongside Yanjing and Baoding as one of the three great strongholds of the north. It is also the hometown of the hundred-year emperor Wang Tuo and the ever-victorious general Zhao Yun, serving as the northern gateway to the provincial capital of Shijiazhuang. The location is excellent. As he walked toward Zhengding, Wang Bo recalled the information he had looked up before his transmigration. Since this really was Zhao Yun’s hometown, and since Zhao Yun was Wang Bo’s favorite general in the Three Kingdoms, he had specifically researched the place. Thinking of that, Wang Bo could not help but smile with a touch of pride. Back then I admired Zhao Yun as an idol; now Zhao Yun is my elder brother. What a twist of fate. If my old friends knew, they would be amazed. Hee hee. As he thought, Wang Bo gave a silly little grin.