Chapter Twenty-Four: The Arrival of Various Competitors

“Father, why aren’t you participating in the ‘First Archer of Deer-Crane Ravine Competition?’” Li Dazhuang demanded of Li Sixi.

They were inside Li Sixi’s home—a simple thatched cottage. Apart from a bed, the entire space was filled with things related to archery: broken bows, snapped strings, and well-worn arrows. For as long as Li Dazhuang could remember, these objects had cluttered their house, only increasing in number over the years.

Li Sixi said nothing at his son’s question, simply continuing to fiddle with his battered bow.

“Father! Don’t you want to reclaim the honor of being the best archer in Deer-Crane Ravine?”

“What’s there to reclaim?” Li Sixi replied impatiently, looking up. “I was never the first archer. That title belongs to someone else, as you well know.”

Li Dazhuang fell silent, a wave of disappointment washing over him. Yes, the best archer was that person.

Bowing his head, Li Sixi continued tinkering with his bow. “Before I went to the range, I really thought that even if I wasn’t as accurate as others, I still had some skill. But after a few days of practice…”

He paused, then continued, “A few days at the range showed me—I’m old now. I just can’t keep up.”

Li Dazhuang suddenly found himself at a loss for words.

Li Sixi smiled. “I have improved a bit these days. I rarely hit my arm when drawing now. In the past, bowstrings snapped so quickly, but now I can go a month without changing one.”

Li Dazhuang shook his head. “You weren’t like this before.”

Li Sixi said nothing more.

Angry, Li Dazhuang flung himself onto the bed. His father had never been like this—if someone bested him in archery, he would always catch up, not crumble after a setback.

What he didn’t know was that Li Sixi hadn’t given up. Xu Wenshan had taught him proper bow-drawing techniques and more efficient release methods, and he had earnestly tried to learn. But past forty, one’s reflexes and memory aren’t what they used to be. He’d spent a long time and still hadn’t adapted to the new ways.

He hadn’t surrendered, but he had accepted his age.

What he could see, though, was that his son had inherited his tenacity, and with Xu Wenshan’s guidance, would one day surpass his own archery skills.

No—perhaps that day had already come.

“Dazhuang,” Li Sixi called, “I’ve decided. Starting tomorrow, you’ll go to the range every day.”

Li Dazhuang rolled over. “Why? Then who’ll go hunting?”

Li Sixi replied, “Don’t you want to enter the competition? Go, just go. Practice hard these next few days, and when you win first place, we’ll be set! No more getting up at the crack of dawn to hunt every day.”

Li Dazhuang sat up, his eyes shining. “Do you really think I can win?”

“You can,” Li Sixi said. “You’re my son, after all.”

…

For some reason, Lei Tiger kept hearing about this “First Archer of Deer-Crane Ravine Competition” lately.

The hunters talked about it while hunting, the farmers talked about it at meals, even the old women sweeping the streets gossiped about it.

He thought proudly to himself: What nonsense is this competition? If I don’t participate, it’s meaningless!

That is, until he found out the prize for first place was five strings of cash.

Lei Tiger sped to the Xu family’s archery range to sign up, not hesitating for a moment.

Lei Tiger wasn’t originally from Deer-Crane Ravine; he had fled here. He’d killed a man elsewhere and could never return home. No one leaves their home willingly in these times, but he had no choice.

But with five strings of cash, he could buy a piece of land and secretly bring his mother over.

For this goal, he picked up the bow he hadn’t touched in years.

Years ago, it was with this very bow that he shot six men dead in one night, escaping under cover of darkness.

…

“You’re not from Deer-Crane Ravine! What right do you have to sign up?” a hunter shouted, pointing at a man.

The accused brushed his hand aside. “I said I’m from Deer-Crane Ravine now. What of it?”

Outside the Xiyuan archery range, it had become the village’s favorite gathering spot. Whenever someone went to register, they were greeted with either mockery or encouragement from the villagers.

But this time, the would-be contestant was met with fierce opposition rather than goodwill.

“I know this guy! He’s just visiting relatives from another village—he’s not one of us!”

“Heh, maybe I wasn’t before, but I am now,” the man replied. “My name is Wu Yi, and I’ve married the daughter of the Niu family here. So now I’m one of you.”

Someone questioned, “Came to visit relatives yesterday and married today? Who gets married that fast? Even if you did, shouldn’t you return to your own village? How can you call yourself a Deer-Crane Ravine man?”

Wu Yi declared, “I married into the family!”

The crowd erupted. For the sake of winning first place, he was willing to marry in—he was clearly staking everything on this.

The people cursed him as a madman, but Wu Yi just licked his lips, unfazed.

“These fools! If I’m willing to go this far, I must be absolutely certain of victory!”

…

While the whole village was abuzz over the contest, Xu Wenshan sat alone in the home of the ravine’s only blacksmith, Niu the Smith.

On the table before him lay a stack of blueprints, covered with drawings of oddly shaped circular furnaces and winding pipes.

Niu the Smith picked up one of the sheets. “Young master, what’s all this for?”

“That’s not your concern. Just tell me if you can make it, and how soon.”

Niu the Smith studied the drawings for a long time. “I can make it, sure, but I’ve never built anything like this before. It’ll take quite a while.”

Xu Wenshan said, “Here’s the deal: finish it in ten days, I’ll give you three strings of cash. In twenty days, you get two. In a month, one. If it takes two months, half a string. Any longer than that, forget it—I’ll find someone else.”

Niu the Smith mentally calculated—three strings, three thousand coins, enough to buy over two thousand catties of grain. It wasn’t quite as staggering as five strings, but still an unimaginable fortune for him.

Gritting his teeth, Niu the Smith nodded. “I’ll work myself to the bone to get it done as soon as possible, young master. You have my word!”

The blueprints were for a condensation still, something Xu Wenshan had been planning for a long time.

He wanted to use it to distill spirits. His hope was to get the liquor ready before leaving the mountains for the county, to sell it outside and earn his first fortune.

But distilling spirits wasn’t his only option—if he could acquire the hunters’ furs, his plan to make money outside would be even more secure.