Chapter 29: Hu Xiangnan
When Chun Tian awoke, she stretched lazily inside the wool blanket, her entire body aching and limbs limp. As she blinked open her eyes, she saw the sun already high in the sky, it was clearly well past morning.
Li Wei was by the dying embers, sharpening his arrows. Hearing movement, he looked over and saw her clumsily emerging from the blanket, cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She lowered her head and murmured shyly in apology, “Da-ye… I overslept…”
Li Wei knew how exhausted she had been. He raised an eyebrow and pointed to the small copper pot on the fire. “The soup’s about to go cold.”
She nodded hurriedly and turned away to fix her hair and clothes. After washing up, she came to sit by the fire and saw the pot filled with alfalfa broth. Li Wei had also pulled from the coals the birds he’d roasted the night before, slow-cooked overnight in the embers, their aroma was rich and mouthwatering, perhaps even more enticing than last night’s rabbit. Just the smell alone could stir one’s appetite.
Her stomach growled audibly. Shoulders slumping, she looked a little downcast and murmured, “Da-ye…”
Li Wei glanced up with a quiet mm of acknowledgment.
She hesitated. “Am I a burden to you? I don’t know anything… Am I dragging Da-ye down?”
Li Wei looked at her, a faint smile on his lips, and asked, “You walked from Chang’an to Hexi all on your own?”
She nodded, then shook her head slightly.
“How did you manage such a long journey?” he asked.
Chun Tian blinked and replied earnestly, “I walked for a long time. At first, I joined some officials and their families who were relocating, there were a lot of people on the road, with carts and servants. It was safe to travel with them through the cities and passes. Later, after we passed Guanzhong, the towns became fewer. I was on my own for a while and stayed in a nunnery in Lanzhou for a month. Then I followed a merchant caravan across the Yellow River and entered Hexi… and eventually met Da-ye in Suzhou.” There were countless dangers and strange encounters along the way, stories she could never finish telling in just one sitting.
Li Wei chuckled. “You made it three thousand li alone, how could you possibly be a burden?” He added, “That kind of cleverness and luck, not everyone is born with it.”
After breakfast, the two packed their bundles and resumed their journey. Changle was a land of year-round sun and rare rain, notorious for its fierce winds and scorching heat. Locals even said, “One wind a year, and that one wind lasts all year.” In just a day, Chun Tian’s cheeks were already chapped and red from sun and wind exposure, stinging at the slightest touch. She herself was unaware of how she looked, but Li Wei, seeing it, fished out a face covering and handed it to her.
With the cloth wrapped around her face, only her eyes were left visible, and only then did Li Wei realize just how striking her gaze was. Her eyes shimmered like light dancing on water, clear and luminous like moonlight on a tranquil river. She clenched her fists to cheer herself on, mounted her horse, and through the veil, gave Li Wei a cheerful smile: “Da-ye, let’s go.” Her eyes curved into crescents, sparkling like stars.
As before, they traveled one behind the other, riding slowly across desolate hills and open plains. That day, they finally heard the sound of rushing water and saw a river winding through the land. The banks were lush and green, studded with bright red flowers, like fire embers. The soil was moist and rich, washed of the dull, ashen hues that had filled the road behind them.
Still weary, Chun Tian sat slumped on her horse. But when she heard the water, she let out a happy cheer and leapt down, scooping up a handful of the icy mountain melt to wash her hands. The cold water jolted her awake, she felt alive again.
Downstream was a small village named Stone Trough Village, under the jurisdiction of Changle County. Tucked near the frontier, it was sparsely populated, home to just twenty-odd households that survived by raising sheep and tending flocks. The two spent the night there. Beyond this point lay a vast, barren sand-flat stretching a hundred li. Once across, they would reach the official road to Yiwu.
Their host was an old man surnamed Hu, uncommon in the Central Plains, likely of foreign descent. When Li Wei inquired, the old man tapped his dry tobacco pipe and grinned, “Our family is of Xianbei1 descent. Our ancestors were from a branch of the Murong clan of Northern Yan. During the early Tang Dynasty, one of them even served as a general for the Imperial Court. But later, the title was stripped, and we were exiled to this remote land.”
The elder’s face was deeply wrinkled, and no distinct features of foreign blood could be seen in him. But when his eighteen-year-old grandson returned home, the boy’s appearance told the tale: fair skin, light-colored hair, deep-set eyes, a high nose, broad shoulders and a narrow waist, with a well-built frame. With his upper body bare and a tunic tied at the waist, he was soaked in sweat and rode in on horseback with commanding presence.
Chun Tian turned her gaze away and hurriedly hid behind Li Wei. Li Wei reached back to shield her and laughed as he greeted their host, “Your son is indeed striking, handsome and strong, surely a worthy heir to your noble lineage.”
The young man’s name was Hu Xiangnan. When he smiled, his neat, white teeth flashed brightly in the sunlight. Glancing over at Li Wei and Chun Tian, he asked, “Father, do we have guests?”
After exchanging names, Chun Tian, half-hidden behind Li Wei, lowered her gaze and offered a modest curtsey. Hu Xiangnan gave her a look, then grinned and said, “So it’s a young lady. Is she Li-xiong’s younger sister?” Li Wei gave a vague affirmative. Seeing Chun Tian’s downturned head and the faint flush blooming on her cheeks, Hu Xiangnan ducked into the house, wiped off his sweat with a hand towel, and pulled on his clothes before returning to join the conversation.
When Chun Tian looked up, she found herself facing a fine young man, sharp eyes under arched brows, tall and well-built, with a smile like the sun in midwinter. Standing beside Li Wei, he didn’t seem the least bit raw or unrefined.
When Elder Hu heard that Li Wei had once served in the army, he chuckled and gestured at his son. “This boy’s always talking about enlisting. Says he’s not afraid of blood or death. We can’t talk him out of it.”
“The books say that a good man should have ambitions beyond his home,” Hu Xiangnan said, eyes wide under thick brows. “What’s the point of herding sheep all day? Grandfather named me Xiangnan, meaning ‘to go south again’, didn’t he?”
“And as if you can read the words in those books,” Elder Hu snorted, tapping his pipe against the bench and exhaling a puff of white smoke. “You’ll get yourself fooled out there so bad we won’t even recognize you when you come back.”
Li Wei studied the young man and smiled. “A bit of training in the military wouldn’t hurt. Since your ancestors earned their name through military merit, it’s only fitting that their descendants show the same spirit. Your son’s got the makings of a fine soldier.”
In a remote village like this, it was rare to see outsiders, rarer still someone like Li Wei, skilled in both martial arts and archery. The spirited youth eagerly brought out his bow, arrows, and blades, laughing as he laid them in front of Li Wei. “I’m not very good with a bow yet. Li da-ge, I’d be grateful for a few pointers.”
“A bit of sparring, perhaps, but I wouldn’t presume to instruct,” Li Wei replied with a smile.
Hu Xiangnan swung a massive stone bow with ease, his natural strength allowed the heavy weapon to move like a willow switch in his hands. Li Wei held the makeshift wooden bow he’d fashioned days earlier during the hunt. The two stood side by side, aiming toward a red willow tree ten paces outside the courtyard. A breeze passed through, and their arrows loosed in unison, slicing through the air like lightning, striking deep into the tree trunk.
Chun Tian had heard in Ganzhou that Li Wei was an excellent archer, but she hadn’t known just how skilled he truly was. The legendary General Li Guang of the Han dynasty had earned the title of divine archer by splitting stones and piercing poplars at a hundred paces. Li Wei had served in the army; his skill surely wouldn’t fall short of Hu Xiangnan’s.
Hu Xiangnan rushed forward to inspect the arrows. Both had lodged deeply into the tree, but his own arrow was nearly fully embedded, only a sliver of feathered tail sticking out. Li Wei’s arrow still had an inch left exposed, yet when Hu Xiangnan pried it out, he realized the arrowhead had snapped off inside the tree. And Li Wei’s arrow hadn’t even been tipped with an iron head, only whittled to a sharp point. At that, Hu Xiangnan was overjoyed. He ran back to the courtyard and gave Li Wei a formal bow: “Begging Li da-ge to teach me.”
Later that day, the matron of the house returned from the fields with sweet melons and wild greens. She went to the kitchen to prepare a meal for their guests. Chun Tian went to assist her, and that evening, the table was filled with hearty country fare amid warm laughter and conversation.
Since they’d been traveling, Chun Tian had only managed to freshen up with damp clothes. Now, taking advantage of staying in someone’s home, she insisted on bathing properly. The Hu family had no dedicated bathhouse; instead, a small dark room stood behind the kitchen, with a shallow basin of water and a ladle for washing. Water was precious in the north: used bathwater was saved to clean laundry, and that water in turn was used to water the fields.
After scrubbing for a long while, Chun Tian emerged with her damp clothes in hand. The matron, seeing she’d finished, kindly offered to wash them for her. Chun Tian declined, but at that moment Hu Xiangnan came in from the courtyard and saw his mother holding a snow-white inner robe. Chun Tian stood nearby, wet hair draped over her shoulders, cheeks flushed pink, like a lotus just risen from water.
He wasn’t well-read and had never seen a lotus bloom himself, but suddenly remembered a storyteller in town describing Yang Guifei stepping from a warm spring: “a beauty like a lotus emerging from the water.” Looking again at Chun Tian’s rosy lips and snowy skin, his heart gave a loud thump as something unfamiliar stirred within.
“Ma… Miss Chun Tian…” he scratched his head, face burning, and stammered, “I-I’ll go fetch more water for the laundry.”
When Li Wei returned on horseback, he found Hu Xiangnan perched at the threshold, eyes uncertain, stealing glances toward the side yard. Following his gaze, Li Wei saw Chun Tian and the Hu matron sitting together on small stools under the moonlight, washing clothes. Beneath the silver light, with her simple robe and pale hands, Chun Tian looked delicately beautiful.
Li Wei’s hair was damp too, he had simply gone to the river to bathe in the cold water, as men often did without ceremony.
“You’re back,” Chun Tian called, tilting her face toward him, flushed pink from the warmth of the bath.
Hu Xiangnan, watching from the side, couldn’t help the envy rising in his chest. The two of them didn’t quite look like siblings, there was a faint unfamiliarity between them, yet also a sense of closeness. He couldn’t quite tell what their relationship was. He scratched his head again, thinking: if only she looked at him that way.
Leaving Stone Trough Village and heading north meant passing out of Changle County’s borders. Between Changle and Yiwu lay a vast expanse of saline wasteland, known as alkaline sandy land, barren land that held no water on its surface and rarely saw rain. The land was dry and thin, often lashed by poisonous winds, and travelers were few.
Before their departure, Li Wei stocked up on grain, water, and salt in Stone Trough Village. He also bought a light, warm sheepskin cloak, and paid the Hu family for their meals and lodging. Old Hu was adamant about refusing the money. When he could no longer turn it away, he simply handed Li Wei a bag of homemade dried meat instead. Thus prepared, Li Wei and Chun Tian resumed their journey.
Hu Xiangnan insisted on escorting them for dozens of li, seeing them safely out of Changle’s borders. Li Wei repeatedly told him to return, but the boy refused. “This path is hard,” he said, “Let me go a bit farther with you.”
A bit more, and then more again until finally Li Wei reined in his horse, turned back, and made a formal gesture: “Even a thousand-li farewell must come to an end.”
Hu Xiangnan scratched his head, then asked, “Li da-gei, if you and Chun Tian-meimei return, which road will you take? I’ll treat you to wine.”
Li Wei smiled faintly. “We might return through Dunhuang.”
“Ah” The young man furrowed his thick brows, then turned to Chun Tian, stammering awkwardly, “I–I noticed your riding whip seems a bit thin, so I brought one from home… I made it myself. Please don’t mind if it’s rough…”
Chun Tian paused in surprise, then accepted the whip with a bright smile, eyes curving like crescent moons. “Thank you, Xiangnan-gege.”
Seeing her smile, the boy blushed furiously and couldn’t manage another word.
Li Wei gave a quiet laugh and shook his head. He gave Hu Xiangnan an address in the Blind Alley back in Ganzhou. “If you ever pass through Ganzhou,” he said, “please come to visit. My house may be simple, but there’ll always be food and drink for a guest.”
Hu Xiangnan nodded eagerly. “I will! I will!”
After a moment of contemplation and looking at the vigorous young man, Li Wei added, “If you’re truly set on joining the military, I happen to know someone who could help.” He nudged his horse forward and gave Hu detailed instructions. “Go to Suzhou and find a general named Chen Ying. Tell him you come with a recommendation from Li Wei.”
“Many thanks da-ge!”
After Hu Xiangnan departed, the two rode side by side in silence for a while. At last, Li Wei said casually, “Among the various ethnic peoples, Xianbei features truly stand out.”
Chun Tian nodded. “Madam Hu, in her youth, must’ve been a real beauty.” Then, catching Li Wei’s sidelong glance, she asked slowly, “And what do you think of that young man’s looks?”
“Graceful and striking,” Li Wei replied. “Full of spirit and youthful strength. Every move draws the eye.”
She turned her head thoughtfully. “I imagine many young ladies must be quite fond of him.”
“Do you think so?” Li Wei chuckled. “If we meet again and he hears that, he’ll surely be overjoyed.”
Footnotes:
- Xianbei: Ancient nomadic people that once resided int h eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia and Northeastern China. Likely the Xianbei people did not consist of a single ethnicity, but rather a multilingual, multi-ethnic confederation consisting of Proto=Mongols and to a minor degree, Tungusic and Turkic peoples. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xianbei ↩︎
TN: Hope everyone is doing well! Li Wei seems like he is a man of many secrets and layers…
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