Chapter Fifty-Seven: Sudden Rain

When Banxia woke, the sky was already bright. She didn’t feel the kind of aches described in books, as if she’d been run over by a cart, though there was indeed some discomfort. “You’re awake. I’ve prepared some water for you; wash up before we eat,” Gan Sui approached, planting a kiss on her cheek.

“Thank you, husband.”

After freshening up, Banxia went downstairs.

“Sister…” Anzi ran over, but before he could get too close, Gan Sui stretched out his hand to stop him. “You can’t just run over; your sister isn’t feeling well.”

“Oh, I understand. Sister, do you have a baby in your tummy?” As he spoke, he reached out to touch Banxia’s belly. “If there’s a baby, I’ll be the uncle. You have to behave, little one.”

Banxia blushed. “There’s no baby yet.”

“But the headmaster said I’d have a little nephew soon.”

“Master, what did you tell the child?” Banxia complained.

The headmaster rubbed his nose, “Yesterday when we returned, he insisted on looking for you. I was worried about disturbing your wedding night. Still no child? Gan Sui, you must work harder.”

Banxia chose to ignore the old man’s lack of decorum.

“Yes, I will obey Master’s orders,” Gan Sui replied solemnly.

Banxia thought: I’d really like to murder my dear husband right now.

The family sat together for breakfast. “Are you leaving today?”

“Yes. The officials in charge are all absent over there. If we don’t hurry, the situation will worsen. Besides, it’s spring planting season. His Majesty has exempted Mo Chi from two years of taxes and allocated a batch of grain seeds. If we take them now and sow, things will improve by autumn,” Gan Sui said, his head aching at the thought of Mo Chi’s predicament.

“Has the relief grain arrived?” Banxia asked.

“It reached there half a month ago,” Gan Sui replied, having read the reports. The provisions were sufficient for immediate needs.

“I wonder if anything will happen on the way. That grain is truly life-saving. I’ve heard they’ve already resorted to cannibalism in some places,” Banxia said, frowning. The disaster itself was bad enough, but the human chaos that followed was even more devastating.

“The magistrate in Lin Prefecture is a bit pedantic, but he’s honest and upright. The grain is safe in his hands. Gan Sui, you’re an official now. Before you leave, I must remind you: never forget your original intentions and moral boundaries. No matter what, keep your conscience clear.”

“I understand, Master. I will not betray your trust.”

“Alright, finish breakfast and be on your way.”

They traveled swiftly, reaching the outskirts of Lin Prefecture by the tenth day. The weather turned sultry and oppressive, as if a heavy rain were imminent.

Hanshui, seeing an inn ahead, said, “Master, let’s rest there tonight. If we go any further, we’ll have to camp in the wild.”

Gan Sui studied the map. “It’s impossible to reach the prefectural seat today. We’ll have to stay here for the night.”

Anzi had fallen asleep on Gan Sui’s lap.

“This child sleeps like a pig. Who knows what he’s dreaming of—he’s smiling,” Banxia teased, poking his dimple. Feeling her touch, Anzi frowned, and Banxia quickly withdrew her hand.

Gan Sui carefully lifted Anzi. Even after getting out of the carriage, the boy didn’t wake.

The inn was sparsely populated, but the rooms were clean, if a bit cramped. They could make do for one night. Gan Sui placed Anzi on the bed.

That evening, a sudden torrential rain erupted, with thunder and lightning splitting the sky. The innkeeper’s assistant brought hot water. Banxia washed her face and stood by the window, watching the downpour. “Luckily we didn’t continue on. If we’d been caught in such a storm on the road, there’d be nothing we could do.” She turned to see Gan Sui frowning. “What are you thinking about?”

“I’m worried about the post-disaster reconstruction in Mo Chi. With rain this heavy, do the people even have shelter?”

“Lord Gan, you truly have the people’s welfare at heart,” Banxia joked. “But worrying now won’t help—you can’t sprout wings and fly there. Cheer up; there’ll be plenty for you to fret over in the future.”

As they spoke, Banxia suddenly saw someone collapse by the roadside.

“Gan Sui, look—isn’t that a person over there?”

Gan Sui squinted. “It does look like someone. Let’s go check.” In such a downpour, anyone left outside would fall gravely ill.

Gan Sui and Hanshui went out with umbrellas to rescue the person. Banxia told the assistant to make some ginger soup in the kitchen. Before long, Gan Sui carried the man inside. Banxia recognized him immediately. “It’s… him?”

“He’s injured and has a high fever. His condition is serious. Innkeeper, do you have a spare room?”

“Yes, yes, right this way.”

Gan Sui and Hanshui quickly helped the man into a guest room. The fever had made him delirious; his lips were cracked, and his body shook with chills. Banxia fetched some of Gan Sui’s clothes, then stepped outside so Gan Sui and Hanshui could dry the man off.

Standing in the corridor, Banxia suddenly heard Anzi calling for her. She hurried upstairs, where Anzi sat on the bed, on the verge of tears. Seeing Banxia, he held back.

“Was our little Anzi about to cry again?”

“No, I wasn’t.”

“Alright, alright, you weren’t. Were you scared, waking up to find your sister and brother-in-law gone?”

Anzi nodded.

“It’s okay to be scared, but crying doesn’t help. Next time, if you wake up and we’re not here, just call out loudly like you did, and I’ll come right back.”

“Mm. Where did you go just now, Sister?”

“Do you remember the uncle who drove away the pirates and saved us?”

“I do—the general uncle.”

“He’s fallen ill. We saw him collapse in the rain, so we brought him back. Your brother-in-law is taking care of him. Do you want to go see?”

“Yes, let’s go quickly!”

“Alright, but first let’s get you dressed and wash your face.”

“I can dress myself, Sister.”

“Good, but be quick. I’ll wait for you.”

Anzi nodded and set about dressing himself with his short arms and legs.

Meanwhile, Gan Sui changed the patient out of his wet clothes and forced down half a bowl of ginger soup. He handed some money to the assistant, instructing him to fetch a doctor.

Fortunately, the clinic was nearby; in less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the doctor arrived.

“There are many wounds that need attention,” Gan Sui said, lifting the man’s robe to reveal knife wounds across his chest and back, some festering and turning white.

“We’ll need to scrape away the necrotic flesh and apply medicine. The two of you, hold him down,” the doctor ordered. As he began the treatment, Lin Tianyu, feverish and semi-conscious, tried to struggle, but Gan Sui and Hanshui restrained him. The old doctor worked quickly, scraping the wounds and applying medicine. By the time Banxia returned, the bandages were in place and the doctor was writing a prescription.

Anzi looked at Lin Tianyu lying on the bed, his face flushed with fever, moaning in pain. “Sister, uncle must feel terrible. I always felt awful when I was sick.”

“So, you must be careful not to fall ill in the future, alright?”

“Alright.”

The doctor finished writing the prescription, and Hanshui went to the pharmacy. They rented a small stove next to the kitchen to decoct the medicine for Lin Tianyu.

Banxia fetched water, soaked a cloth, and placed it on Lin Tianyu’s forehead. Not wanting Anzi to fall ill in the damp, Gan Sui took him outside to play.

The innkeeper, seeing Gan Sui emerge, approached. “Sir, pardon me for asking, but do you know that man?”

“Yes, he’s an old friend of mine.”

“That’s good then. I was worried he might be a troublemaker, given all those knife wounds…”

“Don’t worry, innkeeper. We’re just ordinary folk. He’s seriously injured and can’t be moved now, but as soon as he recovers, we’ll leave promptly.”

“No need to rush. It’s just that bandits from Mo Chi have been running wild lately, and I’m worried they’ll drift over here.”

“Is it really that chaotic in Mo Chi?”

“Isn’t it just! Some thugs appeared there last month. They robbed an important official who was passing by and hung him from a tree for half the night. The official was furious and borrowed men from the county to hunt them down, but the county was too busy with disaster relief to bother. In the end, nothing came of it. I hear it’s still a mess over there. Are you headed that way?”

“Yes,” Gan Sui replied, a strange glint in his eyes.

“Then you must be careful.” With that, the innkeeper hurried off to greet new guests.

The doctor warned them to keep a close eye on Lin Tianyu that night. If his fever returned, he’d need further medication. Gan Sui dared not be careless. He urged Banxia and Anzi to rest, while he and Hanshui took turns keeping watch.

Lin Tianyu, who had trained since childhood and was strong, broke his fever by dawn and woke up. Banxia had used the little stove to prepare porridge and brought it to him.

Hanshui, having watched the second half of the night, was sent to nap by Banxia, since they’d be traveling soon.

“How did I end up here? And you… ah—” Lin Tianyu winced as he tried to move.

“Be careful. We only just dressed your wounds last night. Don’t open them again. How did you get so badly hurt?”

Still groggy, Lin Tianyu tried to recall. “After quelling the water bandits in Qiongyun Prefecture, His Majesty ordered us to Mo Chi to suppress the rebels. The command was urgent, so I led dozens of vanguard troops, marching quickly. But as soon as we entered Fangzhou, we were ambushed. We’d been careless—some water bandits escaped and allied with Fangzhou’s bandits to stir up more trouble. We were caught off guard. I was wounded and fell into a ravine. Only in the past two days did I make it to this town, and I’ve lost contact with my men.”

“His Majesty relies on the Lin family army for everything? There’s only your unit left in the whole empire, and still you receive no reward. How can the soldiers not lose heart?” Banxia blurted out.

“Banxia…” Gan Sui frowned at her.

“Alright, I won’t say any more.”

Lin Tianyu changed the subject. “What brings you here? And congratulations, Gan—three successive honors in the exams.”

“Thank you, Brother Lin. I’ve just been appointed to Mo Chi.”

“That’s really unfortunate. Did you offend some old official?”

Gan Sui smiled. “An official is an official. It’s the same everywhere. Will you travel with us to Mo Chi, or stay here a few days to recover?”

“A true man shrugs off such wounds. I need to find my men—by now, they must be frantic looking for me.” Just then, there was a knock at the door. Gan Sui opened it to find two unfamiliar faces.

The two men walked straight in. “General, forgive us for being late.” They had been tracking Lin Tianyu, and by chance overheard Anzi and Banxia talking in the inn, leading them here.

“Not too late—I was just speaking of you. Well then, let’s all prepare and head to Mo Chi together.”

Though Lin Tianyu felt ready to travel, Gan Sui worried his condition might relapse. Now that Lin Tianyu had his attendants, they agreed that Gan Sui would go ahead to the county seat to assess the situation, while Lin Tianyu would recuperate for a couple of days and follow once his men arrived.