Chapter 90 - 42: Growing Chaos (2)

Chapter 90: Chapter 42: Growing Chaos (2)

"Uh, Brother Rui, there’s no need to be so formal..."

After a couple of pleasantries, Uncle Zao Hua, who was never a man of many words, couldn’t hold it in any longer. "Brother Rui," he asked, "I wanted to ask... are the rumors going around outside true?"

Fang Rui was silent for a moment before nodding. "It’s true."

"My goodness..."

The hand Uncle Zao Hua used to hold his bowl trembled. The expression on his face was a complex mixture of sorrow at such disastrous news and the relief of a great weight being lifted from his heart now that the truth was confirmed.

Fang Rui said nothing, giving the other man time to process it.

He knew that Uncle Zao Hua’s unfinished sentence wasn’t meant as a sigh or a question, but simply an expression of his inner turmoil.

The room fell silent.

After a long moment.

Uncle Zao Hua finally spoke. "Brother Rui, what does your family plan to do?"

"We’ll stay in the city."

"Right. Brother Rui, you have connections, so you don’t have to worry about conscription. You also have martial skill, so you won’t be afraid when things get most chaotic."

It was a rare, long speech for the usually quiet and taciturn Uncle Zao Hua.

More than anything, it was a way to vent his inner panic, his unease, and his fear of the unknown.

"And you, Uncle Zao Hua?" Fang Rui asked.

"Probably... leave the city," Uncle Zao Hua said after a moment’s thought.

"Flee to the city in times of minor chaos, flee to the countryside in times of major chaos. From what I can see, I’m afraid this is major chaos. So, logically, you should leave the city... However,"

Fang Rui frowned. "In times like these, leaving the city won’t necessarily be any better."

"But it’s still a path!"

Uncle Zao Hua gave a bitter smile. "The situation is dire. If they start conscripting men, I’m not afraid for myself, but there’s still Ah Huai. My eldest son’s fate is already unknown, I can’t let Ah Huai also..."

"I have to leave a descendant for the Sun Family."

"Besides, once the county seat is breached, during the height of the chaos..."

Uncle Zao Hua mumbled, partly to sort out his own thoughts and partly to ask for Fang Rui’s opinion—this was, after all, a large part of why he had come to confirm the news.

"That’s true."

Fang Rui thought for a moment, then nodded. "It’s a way to find life in the midst of death. You could leave the city, hide out for three to five days, maybe ten days to half a month... If you’re lucky, you can come back once things have settled down in the city, and everything will be fine."

He didn’t offer to let Uncle Zao Hua’s family stay under his protection.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t protect them, but that there were too many other problems.

For example:

To look after them, they’d have to be nearby, but Uncle Zao Hua’s house wasn’t that close... Should he have their whole family move in?

Even if they managed to squeeze in together, what about food? Uncle Zao Hua’s family barely had any wheat bran, while the Fang Family’s staple was cornmeal.

How would they handle that? Even if he helped Uncle Zao Hua’s family out with wheat bran, it would be awkward for everyone’s pride. So, should they all eat together?

Then there were the secrets that might be exposed, like his true strength...

...

In short, the word "protection" was easy to say, but the implications involved were far too numerous.

It was true that Fang Rui repaid all debts, whether of hatred or of gratitude. But favors came in all sizes, large and small.

In the end, the favor from Uncle Zao Hua’s family was just that they had spoken up for him regarding the Song Dashan incident... For that, helping them with some grain was his limit.

Anything more would be excessive.

Fang Rui was no saint, incapable of saving everyone. Forcing himself to do certain things would only create trouble for himself and wouldn’t be good for Uncle Zao Hua’s family either.

While it was unlikely that Uncle Zao Hua’s family were the type to be ungrateful, if he truly took on everything, arranged it all perfectly, they might grow dependent.

People’s hearts are fickle. A great favor can breed resentment. An act of kindness can become an expectation, and when it ceases, it breeds hatred. Who could say for sure?

’People... aside from your spouse and closest kin, it’s best to maintain a certain distance. It gives yourself an escape route, and it gives others some space,’ Fang Rui thought to himself.

"I hope so. I hope we can hide away and get through this, just like you said, Brother Rui."

Uncle Zao Hua stood up with a bitter smile. "Alright then. Thank you, Brother Rui. I’ll be going now..."

"And, Brother Rui, the kindness your family has shown mine, I’ll remember it... Thank you!"

He wasn’t a man accustomed to putting his gratitude into words, but this time, he might be leaving to never return, to never see him again. This word of thanks was the only thing he could do.

"Uncle Zao Hua, wait!"

Fang Rui suddenly called out to Uncle Zao Hua, went into the inner room, and quickly returned with a burlap sack. "This is twenty jin of wheat bran. And like I said before: just consider it a loan. When times are better, you can pay it back!"

It wasn’t that he was unwilling to give more, but that twenty jin of wheat bran was the limit. Any more wouldn’t be helping someone, it would be harming them.

"Brother Rui, I..." Uncle Zao Hua tried to say something more.

"Take it."

Fang Rui pressed the burlap sack into Uncle Zao Hua’s hands, holding them steady. "Uncle Zao Hua," he said earnestly, "I won’t say any more. Have a safe journey."

"Just one thing: if you’re going to leave the city, do it as soon as possible! Otherwise, delays could bring unexpected trouble... If you wait too long, it might not even be easy to get out."

In the end, Uncle Zao Hua accepted it. Before leaving, he insisted on kowtowing, and Fang Rui couldn’t stop him. He said it was on behalf of Ah Huai.

...

Uncle Zao Hua took Fang Rui’s words to heart. After going outside and briefly relaying the information to the others, he took Xiang Lin’s wife back to their house to pack, his actions decisive.

Before long, the sound of CREAKING and GROANING came from outside.

Fang Rui went to the window and saw that many families in Willow Alley were already on the move. They were leaving with their entire families, carrying bedding, pots, pans, and bowls... Those who had them pushed small, single-wheeled wooden carts; those who didn’t carried their belongings on their shoulders or in their hands.

Among them were many familiar families, like Uncle Zao Hua’s, Uncle Fu Quan’s, Uncle White Stone’s...

After a moment’s thought, Fang Rui went out to see them off.

"Brother Rui, thank you for the news!"

"Have a safe journey!"

"The White Stone Family is leaving the city too? Want to travel together?"

...

At this moment, no matter who it was, anyone passing by would greet each other in a show of perfect harmony.

’The cry of a bird about to die is sorrowful, and the words of a person about to die are good.’ It might not be the most fitting saying here, but it captured some of the meaning. For many of these people, this departure was a final farewell. Against such a backdrop, the past neighborhood squabbles and minor conflicts seemed like nothing, and no one cared about them anymore.

Of course, some families didn’t leave, like Uncle Changlin’s. He was standing not far from Fang Rui, watching, greeting the passersby, and saying farewell with auspicious words.

"Uncle Changlin, your family isn’t leaving the city?" Fang Rui asked.

"Hah. My family isn’t like Zao Hua’s family and the others. I only have that one son, and he was in the first wave of the Official Army sent to suppress the bandits... Brother Rui, you know..."

"Who knows, if the Taiping Bandits break in, I might get to see my boy one more time... As long as I can see him just once, I can die with my eyes closed in peace! HAHA! HAHA!"

Uncle Changlin was clearly laughing, but it sounded more like he was crying. "So, leaving the city is a gamble on my life, and staying is also a gamble. Since I’m still hoping to see my boy one more time, I don’t have the heart to go through all the trouble of leaving!"

"It’s not just my family. It’s the same for Uncle Man Tang’s family..."

"I see."

Fang Rui was reminded of his own father and felt a pang of sympathy. He offered some comfort, "That makes sense. Who knows, maybe your boy, and my father and the others, will come back with the Taiping Bandits."

"Besides, Uncle Changlin, don’t you still have two daughters? In the future, you could find a live-in son-in-law to carry on the family name..."

"With my family’s financial situation, how could we possibly attract a live-in son-in-law? But Brother Rui, what you said is another possible path... Thanks for the auspicious words!"

After exchanging a few more words, Uncle Changlin took his leave and turned to walk home. His hair was flecked with white, his figure stooped... as if his spine had been broken by the weight of the world.

In Fang Rui’s eyes, he carried an air of inexpressible desolation.

He shook his head and looked again at the families leaving with all their worldly possessions, and he could still vaguely make out the figures of Uncle Zao Hua’s family.

"I hope... we’ll meet again."

Though he said this, Fang Rui knew: of all the families leaving today, a considerable number of them would never be seen again.

The red sun sank in the west, its blood-red afterglow filling the sky. Layers upon layers of fiery clouds looked like a prairie fire spreading in all directions.

Beneath this canopy of sky, those families gradually disappeared into the distance.

He went home.

Under the eaves, Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family and Third Lady were brushing each other’s hair.

The two little girls, Fang Ling and Nannan, had been told not to go outside, so they were playing in the courtyard. They were playing a game similar to the hopscotch from Fang Rui’s previous life, jumping and skipping about, lively and full of energy.

’This is so nice,’ Fang Rui thought.

He sympathized with people like Uncle Zao Hua and Uncle Changlin, but he didn’t want to become one of them. Wasn’t his tireless pursuit of power all for the sake of having more choices? Choices like the one he had today.

As for the more distant future... Fang Rui didn’t know. But at least for now, he pursued power not just for power’s sake, but also to protect something.

His gaze softened as he looked at Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family and Third Lady under the eaves, and at Fang Ling and Nannan in the courtyard.

「At that moment.」

The sun shifted, and the light of the evening twilight flickered between bright and dark. A warm, orange glow bathed the entire courtyard. A gentle breeze rustled through the twilight, making the grass and trees WHISPER.

...