Chapter Thirty: Harvest

The next morning, the two of them rose early, settled the inn bill, and returned to the county. Gan Sui went first to the county yamen, where Magistrate Lin had just finished breakfast and hurriedly welcomed him into the inner hall.

“Well, did you find a shop?”

Magistrate Lin had always been a decent man, so Gan Sui did not withhold the truth and explained everything.

Magistrate Lin was stunned for a long while before finally saying, “This is truly a stroke of fate. To receive the recognition of Master Shen and become his disciple—your future is boundless.”

“I have to thank you, sir, for your support along the way. If your son would like to study in the city, I’d be happy to exchange knowledge with him.”

“He’d love that—how could he not?” It was like a prodigy offering to tutor a struggling student; even if you didn’t know what you’d learn, it was bound to be beneficial.

“Then I’ll trouble you, my young friend. As for my son’s aptitude, I don’t expect him to make it into the Cloud Hidden Academy, but the nearby Green Mountain Academy is quite good. They’re strict there—if we pay a bit more silver, he can get in. If you could guide him during term breaks, I’d appreciate it.”

“Of course. My wife and I are moving into the city in the next few days, so we’ll come find your son then.”

“I heard you’re going back to harvest the rice this time. Let him go with you, so he can experience some hardship and understand the value of study.” With that, he instructed someone to bring in Lin You.

“Gan, you’re as merciful as the Bodhisattva Guanyin herself,” Lin You said emotionally, gripping Gan Sui’s hand. He was really at his limit with his father’s daily demands to recite texts.

Magistrate Lin cleared his throat. “Stand properly. No more fidgeting. You’ll go with our young friend—these next couple of days, they’ll be harvesting rice, and you’re to help. If I hear you’re loafing, you’re in for it when you get back.”

“Seriously, Father? I don’t even know how…”

“Then you’ll learn. You’ll see that nothing comes easy. Maybe you’ll stop spending all day eating, drinking, playing, and gambling.”

I don’t do any of that, Lin You thought, looking at Gan Sui with a pitiful, helpless, aggrieved expression.

Gan Sui coughed gently. “If there’s nothing else, sir, your student will take his leave.”

Magistrate Lin gave a few more instructions and then waved them off.

Banxia went to the shop to buy a silver lock. There were many types, all beautifully crafted, and she nearly couldn’t choose. In the end, she picked one engraved with auspicious clouds, said to protect children, and also selected a necklace.

She went next to the fish market, where Gan Sui had already arranged prices. Banxia was just there to set the pickup time. After both sides confirmed, she bought a few more things, then headed to the city gate to wait for Gan Sui.

She didn’t have to wait long before she saw Gan Sui, with Lin You following behind, both on horseback.

“Why is he coming too?”

“Little Banxia, am I not welcome?” Lin You said, wounded.

“It’s not that, just harvesting rice is hard work, and the weather is hot. I’m worried you won’t stand it.”

Indeed, the heat was oppressive—Banxia had stood there barely half a quarter hour, and her back was already soaked in sweat.

Gan Sui wiped her brow. “Let’s hurry home. It’ll only get hotter as the day goes on.” It was still before noon; come mid-afternoon, it would be stifling.

Gan Sui helped Banxia onto his horse, holding her lightly from behind. “Don’t be afraid, I won’t let you fall.”

Banxia’s cheeks flushed in his arms, and she nodded shyly.

“Little Banxia is actually blushing…”

“Oh, shut up, you,” she replied.

The weather was sweltering, and there were few travelers on the road. The three of them spurred their horses and reached home in less than half an hour. Gan Sui handed the reins to Lin You to tie up the horses, while he took their things to the village chief’s house.

Banxia quickly put the watermelon in the well to chill, washed her face with well water, and Lin You collapsed onto the bamboo bed. Banxia, meanwhile, still had to cook.

After a while, Lin You felt guilty for lazing about and went to help Banxia prepare the vegetables, earning a look of approval from her.

“What’s with that look? I can be hardworking, too.”

“Yes, yes, you’re right. Young Master Lin is both handsome and industrious.”

“That’s more like it.”

Everyone was exhausted, so they kept lunch simple. In the afternoon, Gan Sui went around the village looking for people to help with the rice harvest. Lin You was relieved—not having to do the harvesting himself. He was terrified, having heard tales of blood-sucking leeches in the water that were impossible to shake off.

“You don’t have to harvest, but you do need to mind the drying rice. There’s only one drying yard in the village, and everyone fights to use it. Tomorrow we’ll need to get up early to reserve a spot,” Banxia explained, already well aware of the situation.

“I’m going home tonight, though.”

“Don’t worry, the magistrate said he’ll have you up by dawn,” Gan Sui replied mercilessly.

“Just let me die,” Lin You groaned in despair.

“Or you can go home and recite military texts.”

“I think I can manage after all.”

The next day dawned bright and clear. Banxia waited at the drying yard early, while Gan Sui led the workers to the fields. He didn’t just stand by watching after hiring help—he joined in the labor himself.

“Young scholar, are you sure? Don’t strain your back,” a farmer cautioned.

“It’s fine. I’ll treat it as learning something new,” Gan Sui said, imitating the others as he wielded the sickle. Though it was his first time, he quickly picked it up with the others’ careful guidance and his own intelligence. Seeing the master of the house working so hard, the rest of the workers could hardly slack off and all set to work in earnest.

There was a huge banyan tree by the drying yard, and Banxia placed a pot of mung bean soup beneath it, instructing Lin You to guard it from ants and flies while she swept the yard. It was still early, and everyone started heading to the fields at dawn to save time. The broom was taller than Banxia herself.

Lin You hurried over. “I’ll do it, you rest.”

“No need, you’ve never done this kind of work.” Despite Lin You’s flirtatious talk, he had a good heart and had already helped them a lot. Banxia and Gan Sui had invited him to the village to let him relax, never intending for him to do real work.

But Lin You insisted, taking the broom and sweeping clumsily but carefully.

They’d barely finished when a worker brought over a load of rice—the other was Gan Sui himself. Banxia saw his arms and legs covered in small cuts from the rice leaves, and a leech was clinging to his calf, sucking blood. She quickly scraped it off with a knife and pressed it under a rock in the sun, then wiped Gan Sui’s face with a handkerchief.

“Why did you help with the harvesting? If there aren’t enough people, we can take a few more days. Look at you…” Banxia’s heart ached.

“I’m fine, really. Just wanted to experience it. Don’t worry, I know my limits.” Gan Sui tried to comfort her. He wanted to pat her head, but his hand was dirty with rice chaff, so he refrained.

Seeing she couldn’t persuade him, Banxia handed out mung bean soup and salted water to Gan Sui and the laborer. After drinking, they returned to the fields.

The rice was dumped in damp, heavy piles. Banxia used a rake to spread it thinly over the yard, then gathered the straw with another rake to toss aside. Lin You copied her method, and they began to sun-dry the rice. By the time they finished the first batch, the sun was already blazing down. Banxia looked up with satisfaction. “If it doesn’t rain today, it’ll dry in one day. Tomorrow, we’ll sun it again, and then it’ll be ready to store.”

“Today I realized how hard the rice harvest really is,” Lin You sighed.

“We’ve had the easiest work. Gan Sui’s doing the real labor.”

Just then, more rice arrived, and Banxia hurried to bring water over.

Around midmorning, Banxia checked the time and said to Lin You, “I’m going back to make some food for everyone to eat during their break. You watch things here.”

“Sure,” Lin You replied, using a small stick to shoo away birds trying to peck at the rice.

Banxia went home and cooked a big pot of sweet rice wine dumpling soup with eggs, then called everyone to take a break and eat.

She’d used plenty of good ingredients, and with Gan Sui providing ample funds, everyone worked with energy. By midday, all the rice was harvested and laid out to dry.

Among the workers were two brothers of upstanding character. That evening, when Gan Sui and Banxia were collecting the rice, the brothers even came to help. Gan Sui learned their story: both parents deceased, they’d grown up on charity, now barely getting by with a few acres and an old house. They were honest, good-hearted souls.

Banxia realized they wouldn’t be able to farm their own land much longer. After consulting with Gan Sui, they decided to rent their fields to the brothers for a token fee. The brothers were astonished—at a time when land was so precious, and even relatives charged steep rents, Gan Sui and Banxia’s offer was an extraordinary kindness.

The brothers were not ungrateful. That night, they caught two wild pheasants and brought them over the next day. Banxia tried to refuse, but the brothers dropped off the birds and ran. She could only laugh and shake her head.

For Lin You, it was his first rice harvest; the rice chaff clung to his skin and burned like fire. That night, as they collected the harvest, seeing Banxia, a delicate woman, carrying baskets, he refused to just stand by. He tried to carry loads like Gan Sui, but, unused to such labor, his legs were jelly by the time he got back on his horse. Banxia wanted him to stay the night, concerned, but Lin You insisted on returning. She had no choice but to urge him to be careful again and again.

That night, after his bath, Banxia saw Gan Sui’s shoulders raw from the carrying pole and wept as she applied medicine, but Gan Sui didn’t even feel it—he was so exhausted that he snored for the first time.

The next day, after sunning the rice again and drying it completely, their work was done. Banxia looked at the full granary, exchanged a smile with Gan Sui, and laughed. This was their first harvest together in this ancient world—perhaps their last—as a new journey awaited them.