The standard bow for Song Prefecture military archers was a one-dan bow. However, the one in Xu Yi’s hands didn’t even reach the draw weight of three dou. When the wooden arrow was shot, the hand holding it still shook from the vibration.
He shook his arm and looked at Zhang Tiegou beside him, who stood there dumbfounded, and asked, “When can you give me the thumb ring?”
Zhang Tiegou’s mouth hung open, the shock not yet faded from his face. “Have you practiced this before?”
Xu Yi answered honestly, “No.”
Zhang Tiegou wore an expression that said “do you think I’m an idiot?” He didn’t believe it and ran to the target to examine the wooden arrow. Seeing that the arrowhead had embedded itself into the target, he pulled it out, bringing some dry grass along with it.
He walked back in a daze and said to Xu Yi, “Back when I trained with the old soldier, my teacher spent half a month teaching me before my arrows even touched the target. I practiced for another five years before I achieved today’s accuracy.”
After saying this, he rallied his spirits and asked mysteriously, “Brother Xu, could it be that you really are an immortal descended to earth? In all my years, I’ve never seen anyone learn something just by looking at it once like you do.”
Xu Yi analyzed seriously with him, “It’s because you taught well. The stance and techniques for drawing the bow are all very important, and you taught me everything. Also, this bow isn’t heavy. My arm strength is sufficient, so when the wooden arrow is shot, it flies steady.”
Traditional archery was difficult to master, so Xu Yi was somewhat surprised he could shoot this accurately.
He had thought at best he’d manage to hit the target.
One success didn’t mean consistent success. Under the expectant gazes of Zhang Tiegou, Ah Xu, and Ah Jin, Xu Yi shot two more arrows.
One missed the target, one hit it but deviated from the bullseye.
This was Xu Yi’s true level.
Xu Yi maintained a calm mindset, but Ah Xu and Ah Jin felt somewhat disappointed. In their eyes, the young master was the most capable person, and no one could compare to him.
“You two really think highly of me.” Xu Yi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “I’m a novice. Just hitting the target is already good.”
But Zhang Tiegou strongly objected, “Brother Xu, you’re truly remarkable. Two hits out of three arrows. No novice shoots like that.”
Xu Yi blinked. “…”
He felt he might have been blessed with “beginner’s luck.”
Xu Yi asked, “What does the wolf bone thumb ring look like?”
Hearing this question, Zhang Tiegou pulled a bone thumb ring from his pocket to show him.
This wolf bone thumb ring was made from a wolf’s leg bone. He had polished it for over two years. The bone had turned slightly yellow with an oily luster. On the inner side, there was a small groove, presumably where the arrow would rest.
After examining it, Xu Yi returned the wolf bone thumb ring to him.
But Zhang Tiegou didn’t accept it. “This one is yours now. I’ll make another one.”
Xu Yi smiled. “A gentleman doesn’t take what others treasure. I’ll wait for the new one you make.”
During the remaining time, Zhang Tiegou said his hands were itching to hunt some game, so he told Xu Yi he wanted to take Ah Xu along to experience what hunting was like.
At this time of day, some small animals would be returning to their nests and dens, making the probability of catching prey quite high. A child of Ah Xu’s age was full of curiosity about new things, and especially after hunting sparrows with Zhang Tiegou last time, he held great fascination for this kind of activity.
Seeing how much he wanted to go, Xu Yi agreed.
He instructed him that the small cloth pouch tied to his waist contained snake-repelling medicine and couldn’t be left behind. Then he took out another cloth pouch, extracted some medicinal powder, and rubbed it on the clothes covering his limbs.
Ah Xu had been with Xu Yi long enough to know this powder was for repelling insects. He said gratefully, “Thank you, young master.”
Xu Yi patted his head with the hand covered in powder, then straightened up and said to Zhang Tiegou, “Watch this child carefully.”
Zhang Tiegou puffed out his chest. “Don’t worry. I know this mountain very well. Where there are many venomous snakes and where there are few, I know it all like the back of my hand.”
“Mm.” Xu Yi nodded at him.
Watching Ah Xu and Zhang Tiegou leave, Xu Yi turned back to look at Ah Jin, who had been quietly staying by his side.
The little girl’s gaze fell on the departing backs of the two, showing slight longing.
Noticing Xu Yi’s gaze, Ah Jin blinked and called out softly, “Young master.”
Xu Yi asked her, “Are you bored?”
Ah Jin quickly shook her head. This was her first time following her brother into the mountains. Previously when her brother went to the mountains to dig medicinal herbs, she worried every day, afraid something would happen to him on the mountain.
Now she realized how difficult the mountain paths were. The young master and her brother were both very good, very hardworking people.
Instead, she was the most idle person in the household.
Ah Jin suddenly said, “Young master, just assign me tasks. You pay me fifty wen in monthly wages, yet I can only do chores like tending the fire and wiping tables. Young master, you not only pay me wages but also teach me to read, write, and practice martial arts. You’re really losing out.”
Xu Yi: “…”
What had gotten into this child now?
So it was true what they said about raising children being difficult. He often couldn’t keep up with these two little ones’ train of thought.
Unable to figure it out, and unable to get a clear answer by asking, Xu Yi decided he’d better continue practicing archery.
Practicing archery was like practicing martial arts. There was only the path of diligent hard work, no shortcuts. Even naturally gifted people, if they didn’t study hard, would gradually lose their innate talents over time.
The quiver Zhang Tiegou left him contained only ten wooden arrows. Every time Xu Yi shot a round, he had to run back to retrieve them.
After going back and forth a dozen times, Xu Yi suddenly heard rustling sounds in the distance. His gaze sharpened, and he quickly moved to Ah Jin’s side.
“Young master?” Ah Jin was completely unaware. Seeing Xu Yi suddenly become alert, she looked around in confusion.
Xu Yi had sharp hearing, a skill he’d developed while studying medicine.
This sound didn’t seem like a person.
It was more like the noise made by a reptile moving.
The rustling sound suddenly stopped. Xu Yi furrowed his brow and abruptly looked to the right.
Three meters away from him and Ah Jin, there was a venomous snake with a white head and surrounding light brown markings. After a moment’s consideration, Xu Yi recalled this was an extremely venomous white-headed viper.
Xu Yi: “…”
He reached for the quiver hanging at his waist and pulled out a wooden arrow.
Ah Jin beside him, seeing this, poked her head out to look and also saw the white-headed viper. She instinctively cried out in alarm.
At that moment, the white-headed viper moved its head, flicking its tongue in their direction, seemingly locking onto them.
Xu Yi said in a low voice, “Ah Jin, don’t scream later. If it comes over, when I shout, run to the left. Don’t run too far. Open the pouch I gave you, grab a handful of powder, and scatter it around you.”
Ah Jin nervously bit her lip. “What about you, young master?”
Xu Yi said, “I have my own way.”
After they’d said only a few words, the snake began slowly crawling toward them.
Snakes relied on smell, vibration, and body heat to detect objects around them. At this moment, running was most dangerous.
However, the white-headed viper moved slowly, unlike some terrestrial snakes with strong aggression that would rapidly contract and extend repeatedly, accelerating their crawling speed to attack.
But regardless, this was still a venomous snake.
Without further hesitation, Xu Yi drew the bow, aimed at its vital point, and released the bowstring.
The instant the wooden arrow flew out, Xu Yi drew and shot again without hesitation.
This white-headed viper was more agile than he’d thought. Before the wooden arrow hit it, it actually arched its body to dodge, then accelerated toward them.
“Run!” Xu Yi shouted.
Hearing this, though very frightened, Ah Jin obediently ran to the left as Xu Yi had indicated.
In that instant, because of Xu Yi’s shout and Ah Jin’s movement, the charging snake’s body paused, as if judging something.
Xu Yi had been waiting for this moment. The instant its movement slowed, he crouched down, raised a rock, and smashed it toward the snake’s head.
It was somewhat stunned by the blow, its entire body coiling up in a defensive posture.
After throwing the rock, Xu Yi retreated, his face cold as he drew a wooden arrow and shot.
This time, he successfully hit the snake’s belly. The white-headed viper, feeling the pain, twisted and writhed on the spot.
“Sss sss sss—”
As it rolled and writhed, the surrounding sounds grew louder.
Xu Yi exhaled, didn’t shoot another arrow, and turned his head to search in the direction Ah Jin had left.
He had given all his snake-repelling medicine to Ah Xu and Ah Jin. Right now, the only weapon he had for self-defense was a bow and seven wooden arrows.
Fortunately, Ah Jin hadn’t run far. She was hiding under a camphor tree, and following Xu Yi’s instructions, had scattered a circle of snake-repelling powder around herself.
Seeing Xu Yi, Ah Jin’s eyes immediately reddened.
“Young master.” Ah Jin ran over and buried herself in Xu Yi’s arms. When she’d seen the snake, her mind had gone blank with fear. Only after running did she remember that the young master had no medicine on him.
Now seeing Xu Yi safe and sound, tears streamed down her face.
Xu Yi smiled and comforted her. “It’s all right. I’m fine. The snake is injured and can’t harm us anymore. But we still need to go back, otherwise Tiegou and Ah Xu won’t be able to find us.”
“Mm mm.” Ah Jin nodded while wiping her tears.
This child had been quite frightened.
That was understandable. She was only an eight-year-old girl who, though she’d lived a hard life before, had never experienced such danger.
When they returned to the target area, Zhang Tiegou and Ah Xu had already arrived. They had killed the white-headed viper and were thinking of going to search for Xu Yi and Ah Jin.
“Young master, little sister!”
Seeing Xu Yi return with his sister, Ah Xu anxiously ran to them.
Zhang Tiegou was more composed and said to Xu Yi, “I knew you’d be fine. A venomous snake like that couldn’t stump you.”
Xu Yi said, “When entering the mountains, it’s still better to bring a machete. That’s more useful.”
“Exactly!” Zhang Tiegou patted the machete hanging at his waist. Just now, he’d used this machete to chop the injured white-headed viper in half.
“This snake is petty. If we let it go, once its wounds heal, it’ll ambush people. Can’t let it live.” Zhang Tiegou said.
Xu Yi nodded and asked if he’d caught anything.
“Look.”
Zhang Tiegou pointed to the ground nearby, where two wild pheasants were tied up, both hit by arrows and not captured alive. Since they couldn’t be kept alive, they’d need to be plucked and cooked after returning home.
They descended the mountain following the original path. Dusk was approaching. The evening glow in the west was beautiful, brilliantly red like ardent flames, with clusters of fiery clouds forming a magnificent spectacle.
“Wow, those clouds are so beautiful~” Ah Jin exclaimed cheerfully.
Zhang Tiegou: “Too ordinary. I see them every day. I’m sick of looking at them.”
Xu Yi nodded appreciatively, admiring the sunset scenery. “The setting sun is infinitely beautiful, though it’s already near dusk.”
Time to go back.
Zhang Tiegou scratched his head. He didn’t quite understand, but he knew that if they didn’t return now, the city gates would close later.
“Brother Xu…” he called out, “Take one of these wild pheasants home later. You can roast it, braise it, or stir-fry it. Whatever you prefer. I’ve seen Ah Xu can cook, so he knows what to do.”
Xu Yi didn’t refuse. At his signal, Ah Xu accepted the pheasant Zhang Tiegou handed over.
The Zhang residence.
Old Liu had been guarding the house at the foot of the mountain. Bored with nothing to do, he’d fallen asleep basking in the early autumn sun.
When he woke and saw the evening glow, he wondered why Doctor Xu hadn’t returned yet.
Walking out of the courtyard, he saw them returning in pairs. Not only had they returned, they were carrying game. Two rather plump-looking wild pheasants.
Old Liu felt envious. Being able to hunt was wonderful. You could eat meat every day.
The longing in his eyes was almost tangible. Seeing this, Xu Yi couldn’t help but smile. Old Liu was indeed a very interesting old fellow.
He was about to say something when he saw Zhang Tiegou beat him to it, pulling Old Liu aside and chatting at length.
“I used to think you just liked to boast, but I didn’t expect it to be true. This Brother Xu can not only fight, he learns archery quickly too. Today he was able to shoot a snake.”
“A snake?” Old Liu was startled.
Xu Yi’s figure paused slightly.
Just as Zhang Tiegou was about to continue, he immediately stopped him. No joke. If Old Liu found out he could shoot snakes, within a few days, quite a few people would know about it.
Zhang Tiegou, having been interrupted, looked at him in confusion.
Xu Yi urged, “It’s getting late. If we don’t return now, we’ll be too late.”
Only then did Zhang Tiegou give up on chatting with Old Liu about what had happened on the mountain earlier. He asked Xu Yi and the others to wait a moment, then quickly went to the kitchen and retrieved a piece of dried meat to give to Old Liu.
Old Liu hadn’t expected he’d also get meat, and his face broke into a smile so wide his eyes nearly disappeared.
Due to this little interlude, on the way back, Old Liu was so happy he forgot to ask Xu Yi about shooting the snake.
…
Over the following period of time.
Xu Yi took the bow Zhang Tiegou had given him and went up the mountain daily to practice archery.
As usual, he wore narrow-sleeved short brown clothing when going out, wrapping the wooden bow and arrows in cloth and placing them in a bamboo basket. No one knew he went to the mountains to practice archery for two hours, then to dig medicinal herbs for another two hours.
Old Liu didn’t know either. Last time at Zhang Tiegou’s house, he’d thought Xu Yi had gone hunting with Zhang Tiegou.
Who would have thought Xu Yi had learned archery, and his accuracy wasn’t bad. Though not every arrow hit, he managed six out of ten.
Unfortunately, wooden arrows had too little power and short range. Beyond twenty meters, the speed of a shot wooden arrow would slow down.
A slowed wooden arrow would wobble precariously in the air, then fall from midair before long. Forget hitting a tree target. If someone had fast enough reflexes, they could even catch it bare-handed.
This was also unavoidable. The government strictly controlled the civilian use of iron and copper. Song Dynasty’s “Criminal Code” had explicit regulations stating “anyone privately possessing prohibited weapons shall be imprisoned for one and a half years.” With such laws in place, who would dare privately forge weapons? However, common people’s daily knives and tools weren’t prohibited, so Xu Yi and Zhang Tiegou could still buy tools like machetes and axes.
But arrows… those were absolutely forbidden.
Bows and arrows were military weapons. What blacksmith would dare secretly make iron arrowheads for you? That would be like having an itchy head and wanting to move it elsewhere.
Xu Yi had to abandon this idea.
Though wooden bows were inferior, they could at least serve as life-saving weapons.
This day, coming down from the mountains and sitting in Old Liu’s ox cart, he told Old Liu not to come pick him up tomorrow.
Tomorrow was the day Xu Yi would conduct business with Jishi Hall over the digestive pills.
When he went to Jishi Hall to find Doctor Yan, he saw dark circles under his eyes and severe bloodshot eyes. Surprised, he asked what had happened.
Five days ago when he’d seen him, he hadn’t been in such a dejected state.
Doctor Yan laughed bitterly twice, his eyes full of indescribable suffering. He said, “Life is unpredictable. I, Yan, served as a physician at Jishi Hall for over twenty years. How could I have imagined that in the end I’d receive the judgment of ‘accomplishing nothing’?”
Xu Yi frowned. “What kind of reasoning is this?”
“It won’t hurt to tell you. After all, before long, you should know about this matter anyway.” Doctor Yan looked at him, his gaze very complex.
“Do you remember Jishi Hall’s young master?”
He asked.
Xu Yi was stunned for a moment, then nodded.
Since the Shen family’s young master had angrily left Yanting County last time, quite a long time had passed.
Xu Yi had almost forgotten about this person.
Could this matter be related to the digestive pills? Thinking of how Doctor Yan had spoken up for him, had he been implicated because of this? If that was truly the case, then this Jishi Hall young master was too excessive.
Doctor Yan continued, “After he returned to the prefecture city, he assembled many physicians in the prefecture to research the digestive pill formula. In recent days, a friend wrote to inform me that although they haven’t completely cracked the digestive pill prescription, they’ve managed to produce pills with similar effects.”
Having said this much, Xu Yi could guess about seventy to eighty percent of it.
“Could it be that Young Master Shen wants to transfer you away from Yanting County?” Xu Yi asked in a low voice.
Doctor Yan sighed and closed his eyes, rubbing his forehead as he said, “Indeed. The young master feels I’ve stayed in the county too long and can’t be flexible, so he’s ordered me to depart soon for the branch hall in Jinmao County of the Mao Prefecture to serve as the resident physician.”
Xu Yi was shocked. “Mao Prefecture is constantly harassed by the Qiang people, and the journey is full of deep mountains and wild forests. It’s fraught with danger. How can they send you there?”
At Doctor Yan’s age, if he caught a fever or chill on the journey, the probability of dying would be extremely high. Moreover, if he truly went to Mao Prefecture, he would likely never return to Yanting County in this lifetime.
Furthermore, Mao Prefecture was located deep in the mountains, with no city walls built around it, and frequent unrest. The people living in the city were very unsafe, as outsiders would often sneak into the city at night to plunder.
What calculations the Shen family’s young master had in arranging for Doctor Yan to go to such a place, even Xu Yi could see through.
Xu Yi knitted his brows tightly. “Doctor Yan, you can’t go.”
Doctor Yan remained silent.
Xu Yi said, “If you go, it will be a narrow escape from death. That place is too dangerous, incomparable to Yanting County.”
“I know.” Doctor Yan sighed deeply. When he received his friend’s letter, he too hadn’t believed it.
Even though he hadn’t done much for Jishi Hall, he worked diligently and conscientiously for it every day. If not meritorious, at least he had worked hard.
Who could have known it would be because of this one small digestive pill?
It was precisely because of this digestive pill that he saw clearly many things he’d never thought about before. The Shen family was no longer worth his continued service.
“Doctor Yan.” Xu Yi called to him.
Doctor Yan waved his hand. “Rather than worrying about me, you should think about yourself.”
Xu Yi said, “My situation isn’t important. If the Shen family can produce an imitation, that’s their capability. It won’t prevent me from continuing to sell Chen’s Digestive Pills. The county isn’t dominated solely by the Shen family’s Jishi Hall. They can’t stop me from doing anything.”
He was unwilling to sell the prescription to the Shen family because he felt the formula didn’t belong to him alone.
So whether the Shen family could truly make it or not didn’t matter. What mattered was that the common people would still benefit. Without Jishi Hall as a channel to sell digestive pills for him, he could continue setting up a stall to sell them himself.
But this matter involved Doctor Yan…
Doctor Yan nodded in agreement, saying he was indeed young and promising.
“If only I’d had your courage back in the day.”
After finishing this sentiment, facing Xu Yi who wanted to continue persuading him, he said, “Actually, I agreed to go to Mao Prefecture not because of the Shen family, but because the people there need me.”
He told Xu Yi that the Jishi Hall branch in Mao Prefecture had been without a resident physician for five years. It relied only on two shop assistants and one shopkeeper responsible for liaising with the prefecture city. With these three people, they barely kept the branch open.
Actually, it wasn’t quite right to say there were no physicians. Jinmao County still had physicians, just too few of them. How could one physician be enough?
When Doctor Yan received the letter, he went two whole nights without sleep. During those two nights, he thought about many things but still couldn’t let go of that bit of obsession in his heart.
When he first studied medicine in his youth, he had wanted to practice medicine to help the world and leave behind a reputation for future generations.
Now, having wasted several decades, it still wasn’t too late.
“I’m already this old bag of bones. If I don’t go out and see the world now, I probably won’t have another chance.” Doctor Yan smiled broadly at Xu Yi.
The melancholy that had hung over him gradually dispersed with his smile.
Having spoken his heart to Xu Yi, Doctor Yan felt his spirits lift, experiencing a wonderful sense of having met a “kindred spirit.”
Xu Yi stood up respectfully and bowed. “Doctor Yan’s righteousness is admirable. I was shallow and petty.”
“No, no, no. You’re a kind-hearted child.” Doctor Yan shook his head, then said, “Now you can set your mind at ease.”
Xu Yi knew he couldn’t dissuade Doctor Yan and didn’t bring up any more disappointing topics.
He changed the subject and asked, “Doctor Yan, when do you depart?”
Doctor Yan said, “Three days from now at sunrise.”
The next day he wouldn’t need to come sit at the medical hall anymore. In the remaining two days, he could arrange his travel luggage.
Going on a long journey wasn’t easy. He’d also need to go to a broker to hire a donkey cart, then exchange half of the silver money he’d saved over the years into silver ingots and half into paper certificates for easier storage. He couldn’t skimp on provisions and dried food either. Yanting County was very far from Jinmao County in Mao Prefecture. Over four hundred li and he didn’t know how many days and nights he’d have to camp in the wilderness. If he ran out of food, that would be troublesome.
The entire route consisted of mountainous and forested terrain, making travel very difficult. None of the medicines he should prepare could be omitted.
This time accompanying Doctor Yan would only be the cart driver.
Xu Yi suggested hiring a guard as an escort.
Doctor Yan smiled. “I’m just a physician. I don’t need to hire a guard to protect me.”
An additional guard meant an additional mouth to feed, which would be a burden for him.
The two chatted at length about preparations for travel. Listening to his arrangements, Xu Yi benefited greatly, learning how difficult it was for people of this era to make a long journey.
The Song Dynasty didn’t require going to the government office to obtain travel permits and allowed commoners freedom of movement.
However, travel funds were very important. Just hiring a donkey cart alone cost quite a bit daily. There were also compasses and maps. All these needed to be prepared in advance. Inconvenient transportation was also a major problem. If the donkey cart couldn’t get through somewhere, they’d have to take a detour.
As they talked, Xu Yi thought about whether to hold a farewell banquet for Doctor Yan.
He was alone in the world, with neither wife nor children. His friends were in the prefecture city and unable to come see him off. In the county, there were very few people who could chat with him this freely.
Hearing that Xu Yi wanted to give him a farewell banquet, Doctor Yan was deeply moved and couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
So Xu Yi made plans with him to have the farewell banquet at noon tomorrow at the restaurant run by Tao Qinghao.
not doctor Yan!!! 🙁 he was such a cool guy, i will miss him