18 Origins

“All right, let’s call it a day. Break it up and get back to work,” the village head began to disperse the crowd.

“Hey?” Someone suddenly remembered why they were there and called out loudly, “So, is he really a monster or not?”

What theft of vegetables and work? That’s none of their business—they were here to watch the spectacle!

“Go, go, go! What monster nonsense! Is there no work left in the fields? Get back to work!” the village head barked.

Reluctantly, the crowd started to make their way down the mountain.

Shen Qingyue felt a pang of regret; he had wanted to say yes.

Seeing Shen Qingyue’s reaction, the village head knew there was no way he was a monster, but he was definitely a troublemaking child—a real handful!

He silently cursed—whose child was so badly supervised to be let loose like this?

Once the crowd had mostly dispersed, he called Shen Qingyue inside to sit. The Jiang family, who wanted to ask Jiang Zhu about the situation, left first.

“Zheng, you all go back and get busy. If there’s anything later, come by again,” he said.

“Ah.” Jiang Zheng was naturally taciturn; he glanced at the village head and Shen Qingyue, then at Jiang Zhu.

Jiang Zhu also looked at the village head and Shen Qingyue, feeling a little nervous. The village head was responsible for maintaining order. He feared that if Shen Qingyue couldn’t answer his questions, the village head would drive him away.

The village head certainly wouldn’t believe he was some kind of immortal.

Shen Qingyue, seeing this older man was probably the village chief or headman, sensed he wanted to speak privately.

He said to Jiang Zhu, “Aren’t you supposed to go operate the stone mill? Go ahead.”

“Ah? I…” Jiang Zhu looked at them, hesitating before mumbling, “Not in a hurry.”

Shen Qingyue chuckled inwardly, “It’s fine, go ahead. It’ll get dark soon.”

Jiang Zhu was speechless.

It was only morning.

After observing a while, the village head figured out who was in charge between the two and couldn’t help but smile.

“Go ahead, I just need to ask him a few questions. When you get back, I have more to ask you,” he said.

Shen Qingyue nodded, “Go ahead, go ahead.”

Jiang Jiaojun whispered, “Should I stay here?”

Shen Qingyue laughed even more, wanting to ask who he would protect if the village head and he got into a fight.

Lv Xiangmei slapped her foolish son, “Stop making trouble, let’s go! Zhuzi, come on, the cart at home is already harnessed. I’ll pack some tofu for you so this young master can taste our family’s tofu.”

Shen Qingyue waved goodbye to Jiang Zhu, who walked away with a heavy heart.

The village head found it amusing. In his memory, Jiang Zhu was a rather stubborn and difficult child, not fond of mingling in the village or talking to people. After his father’s passing, he became even more reclusive, often avoiding others. It was a mystery how he had become so familiar with a stranger like Shen Qingyue, who seemed unreliable at first glance.

He studied Shen Qingyue carefully.

Their village nestled against the mountains. Beyond lay an expanse of hills stretching hundreds of miles. When he was young, the village head had gone hunting in the mountains with elders and had encountered tribes who shunned beards and long hair, but Shen Qingyue was clearly not one of those savages.

If he were a deserter from a neighboring country, that would be even less believable.

Though slim, Shen Qingyue’s demeanor showed he hadn’t suffered hardship. His carefree, innocent manner and the boldness to hobble around with a limp while chatting cheerfully suggested he was used to a life of respect. Deep down, he probably believed no one would dare harm him, no matter the trouble he caused.

It was unlikely he’d even been hunting, let alone fought in any battles.

Having been to war himself, the village head knew what the neighboring country’s people looked like—Shen Qingyue wasn’t one of them unless he was a distant noble who never mingled with the common soldiers.

Or perhaps, he was a foreigner from overseas.

Though their county connected to the river and sea, it wasn’t an important hub. Usually, only small merchants and boats stopped here. No one had heard of foreigners arriving by sea in their county.

Besides, how did he get up the mountain? From where? Could he be a relative of some local noble family? Or a privileged youth out for a mountain excursion?

As far as the village head knew, every noble family had their fair share of reckless children who wandered and caused trouble.

Sometimes, the better the family, the more mad children they had.

Pondering this, he asked, “Young brother, may I see your household registration?”

He expected Shen Qingyue to be evasive no matter where he came from—if he was indeed a problematic outsider, at least he’d dodge the question, allowing the village head to find a clue about his identity. But Shen Qingyue responded calmly, “I don’t have a household registration. What should I do about that?”

The village head was speechless.

Why was the question being turned back on him?

He had no choice but to ask, “May I know where your home is? Where do you come from?”

Shen Qingyue replied, “I am not from Yu Country. My hometown is somewhere you probably have never heard of.”

“Are you from a neighboring country?” the village head asked.

Shen Qingyue shook his head.

“Then are you from overseas?”

He thought for a moment. He certainly couldn’t say he came from the heavens. People often said the sea and sky merged—it was close enough. He nodded.

“I was traveling when misfortune struck, and I ended up here. Fortunately, Jiang Zhu took me in out of kindness. I’m resting here to recover from my injuries. To be honest, I cannot return home. I’m looking for a place to settle. Your land is beautiful and the people kind. I wish to register here. What procedures must I follow?”

The village head was silent.

Apart from the kindness of Jiang Zhu and the temporary recovery, he didn’t believe a word.

“You won’t go home?”

“No, I can’t.”

“Is there anyone else at home?”

This time Shen Qingyue hesitated for a long while, trying to say “no one,” but couldn’t bring himself to say it.

The village head understood and pressed on, “Don’t you miss your family?”

“No… I don’t. Now, I’m alone.”

Stroking his beard, the village head pieced together Shen Qingyue’s true background—

He must be a prodigal son of some noble or high official from the neighboring country!

Likely from a failed power struggle, the losing faction.

Perhaps his family was already wiped out. If not, he was smuggled out before disaster struck, or he escaped with them.

Most probably the latter. That’s why he can’t go home and doesn’t even know if his family still lives.

That’s why he makes up mysterious lies to fool the children, speaking half-truths and fabrications. Maybe he cut his hair on purpose to create a false foreign identity, not wanting anyone to know who he really is.

The village head’s gaze softened with pity.

So young, sigh.

It was better in Yu Country—the current emperor had long ago named a crown prince, with few brothers. The king was a capable warrior. Unlike the neighboring country, which had dozens of princes, where the emperor’s death often led to brothers fighting each other like mad dogs, hardly resembling kin.

It had been years; today one was emperor, tomorrow another was killed. He alone knew that in the past three or four years, they had already changed emperors four or five times.

Such misery.

The poor were always the ones who suffered.

Many had fled from the neighboring country to Yu Country over the years. The court had even issued laws to register and gather outsiders. Yet their village, nestled by the mountain and far from the county seat, had not yet registered any newcomers.

The village head wasn’t well versed in the details of the law but recalled roughly:

“If someone like you without household registration wants to create a new one, there are a few ways. You can find a ‘tooth’—a matchmaker—and get sold to a noble family as a servant; or register with the government, who will assign you a place. If you have skills, you can stay in the county town. If not, usually you’re sent to reclaim land or work on dams and dikes. Judging by your patched clothes, I guess you should…”

He swallowed the words ‘have some wealth’ and changed course.

“If you can buy a house or some land, you can register, but you’ll need a local prominent family to vouch for you.”

Shen Qingyue understood.

The first option: find a matchmaker to sell yourself into servitude.

The second: the government arranges a place—skilled workers stay in town, unskilled either reclaim land or do hard labor.

The third: for the wealthy who don’t want a hard life—find a respected person to guarantee you and buy property to register.

The village head added, “Don’t worry, registration only starts in August, so you have time. You can rest here in the village until then. Also, registering is no small matter. Once registered, you can’t leave your hometown for five years. If you run away and try to register again, you’ll be branded a low-class person forever. You should consider carefully.”

He didn’t believe a noble heir would want to live long-term in their remote village.

Better to think it over. If Shen Qingyue made up his mind by August to stay quietly, the village head wouldn’t mind accepting an outsider.

Their Jiang family village was founded by refugees from the previous dynasty and was more tolerant of the downtrodden than other villages. Maybe having a worldly noble heir among them would bring some benefits.

Though his words were a bit harsh, the village youth couldn’t argue.

Unaware of the village head’s plans, Shen Qingyue thought him quite kind and thanked him sincerely.

“You’re welcome. The mountain is quiet. Would you like to move into the village? There are some abandoned houses you could tidy up and stay in temporarily.”

Shen Qingyue smiled and politely declined, “No trouble, please. My injuries make moving inconvenient. I like peace and natural scenery; the mountain is just fine.”

“Oh, that’s fine,” the village head replied politely. “If you find it inconvenient, you can stay in the village anytime. Don’t hesitate.”

“Thank you.”

“If you have any difficulties, have Jiang Zhu come find me. I’m the village head here.”

“Much honored. Jiang Zhu mentioned you before. As he said, you are fair, wise, kind, and generous. With you managing things, it’s no wonder the village is close-knit and thriving.”

The village head laughed awkwardly, “Haha, you flatter me,” thinking about how they had just had a fight—not exactly neighborly.

Shen Qingyue also smiled, “Haha, you’re modest.”

...

After a brief silence,

Shen Qingyue asked, “Would you like some tea? I can pour some.”

“No, no, when Jiang Zhu returns, I’ll be leaving.”

“Ha ha...”

“Ha ha...”

They both stared—one at the sky, one at the ground—each silently thinking:

“This is exhausting. I’ve almost run out of words. When will Jiang Zhu come back?”

“Talking with these noble kids is really tiring, so formal and stuffy. When will Jiang Zhu come back?”

The village head broke the silence, “What happened to your leg?”

Shen Qingyue sighed, seizing the chance to complain, “I originally twisted it and was told to rest by the doctor. Yesterday, I chased after some kids stealing vegetables and twisted it badly again. I didn’t mean to scare them, but if I didn’t, they would have really beaten me up. Those kids... really need to be controlled.”

The village head felt awkward, regretting bringing up the topic.

Seizing the moment, Shen Qingyue asked, “I don’t know if I should ask, but I really don’t understand. They’re not the same age. Jiang Zhu is naturally kind, but he’s not weak or easy to bully…”

Though thin, he was strong and could hunt. He could easily take on several of them. By all accounts, he shouldn’t be the one getting picked on.

He truly couldn’t understand, “Why do they gang up to bully Jiang Zhu?”