Chapter Forty-Four: Liu Dayou’s Ambition

The elderly man spoke with passion and fervor, but the middle-aged woman remained utterly unimpressed. She shot him a scornful glance, pulled the young man away, and, still muttering under her breath, grumbled, "Is that old fool out of his mind? Soldiers being good people these days? What a joke! He just wants to trick my son into joining the army. I won't fall for that!"

Though her voice was low, the old man heard her words as clear as day. He was momentarily stunned, then, realizing the insult, struck the ground with his cane in anguish. "How the times have changed, how people's hearts have grown cold!" he lamented. "The nation is in peril, yet its citizens have no thought to repay their country. What a tragedy!"

With a heavy sigh, the old man, his back slightly hunched, leaned on his cane and slowly departed. Yet as he walked away, his figure seemed more desolate than ever.

The young man could not help but glance back at the old man, a strange look flickering in his eyes. "Could it be... that this is truly a good regiment?" he wondered. He looked once more at his mother, who stood beside him, and a trace of struggle crossed his face. But finally, a resolute determination settled over his features, as if he had made a silent vow.

After escorting his mother home, he found that his father was still out, working on someone’s house and had yet to return. The young man told his mother he was heading out to hunt, then took the sturdy bow hanging on the wall and stepped outside.

Stepping out of his home, he couldn’t help but look back at the house—walls of earth, a simple yard enclosed by a ramshackle wooden fence. Poverty clung to every corner.

He sighed deeply, and the decision growing in his heart became all the more unshakeable.

Composing himself, he set off. As he walked, several young women and housewives from the neighborhood spotted the bow slung across his back and greeted him with cheerful voices, "Off to hunt again, Second Son Liu?"

"Yes, just have some things to take care of," he replied, blushing, and hurried away, embarrassed to speak with the women—his cheeks always turned red, shyer even than a girl.

Watching him hasten off, the women could not suppress their giggles. "Second Son Liu is truly bashful!"

Only after leaving the little village did he finally breathe easier. His mind cleared, and he headed straight toward the county town.

His name was Liu Dayou. As the second son in the family and blessed with decent looks, the neighbors and villagers all called him Second Son Liu. His elder brother had died young, so although he was the second child, he was in truth the only son.

Once out of the village, he quickened his pace toward the county town, intent on seeing the recruitment situation for himself. If it was really as the old man had described, Liu Dayou was resolved to enlist.

Yes, Liu Dayou had made up his mind—he would become a soldier.

Though a peasant and a hunter, he had always harbored a dream, or perhaps an ambition: he wanted to step out into the wider world.

He did not wish to remain unnoticed in the village for the rest of his life. His father was a bricklayer, he himself a hunter. Though they had skills, the hard times left the family destitute, forever toiling just to fill their bellies, scraping a living from the yellow earth.

Liu Dayou was weary of such a life. He didn’t want to live this way any longer, didn’t want to spend his days and years endlessly struggling for subsistence, tied to the land.

He wanted to break free, to leave some mark on the world, some trace that he had once been here.

Better to risk everything for a chance at a future, than waste away in the village, always hungry, always cold. For this ambition, even if it meant risking his life, he would not hesitate.

Clenching his fists, Liu Dayou pressed on toward the county town, his resolve growing ever firmer.

Qingyuan County was not large, but its streets were crowded. With armies gathering in the Xuzhou region, a great battle was clearly brewing, and many villagers had already moved into the county town, seeking safety. Life in the countryside had grown perilous, but here the police and local militia offered at least a measure of protection.

As soon as Liu Dayou entered town, he saw dust swirling in the streets, people everywhere, all converging in one direction. This sight sparked his curiosity.

Though Qingyuan’s population was sizable, it was the dead of winter—usually people preferred to stay home rather than brave the cold. For so many to be out and about was certainly unusual.

He approached an old man basking in the sun at the roadside and asked what was happening.

The old man took a long drag from his pipe before replying with deliberate leisure, "Isn’t this the recruitment drive they’ve been announcing? A regiment has come to our county to enlist new soldiers."

"This unit is generous! Just for joining, they’re offering a twenty-dollar settlement payment, and four dollars in monthly wages after that!"

He clicked his tongue in admiration, envy flickering across his face. "If only I weren’t too old and feeble, I’d sign up myself!"

Liu Dayou barely heard the old man’s sighs—all he registered was the promise of twenty silver dollars for signing up, and a monthly wage of four.

"Good heavens—twenty silver dollars!"

He was stunned, swallowing hard. Four dollars a month would cover his family’s expenses entirely. Over a year, that added up to forty-eight dollars, plus the twenty-dollar settlement—sixty-eight in all!

Sixty-eight silver dollars! Liu Dayou swore he had never seen so much money in his life. With that, he could repair their home, and in a few years, perhaps build a proper brick house.

He gazed ahead, lost in hopeful dreams.

The old man, noticing his expression, tapped the ashes from his pipe and said, "Young man, I don’t mean to discourage you, but being a soldier means putting your head on the line. You never know when you might lose your life. If you die before earning that money, is it worth it? Think it through!"

The old man went on, but Liu Dayou had already made up his mind. The risks and warnings went unheard—the promise of that settlement only strengthened his resolve.

He took advantage of a moment’s distraction, slipped away, and disappeared into the crowd.

The old man, seeing the young fellow rush off, could only shake his head and sigh.