Chapter Fifteen: Emerging from the Water

Qijun followed where Liu Qi was pointing and saw several earthen pits scattered near the center of the riverbed. Approaching one, he noticed some stones faintly visible at the bottom. He jumped in, feeling a chill beneath his feet; the pit was only as deep as his waist.

He crouched down, using the lingering light from the mountain to examine the stones beneath his feet. They were a bluish-gray, with a distinct grainy texture to the touch.

Limestone, just as he’d suspected!

A surge of joy welled up in Qijun’s heart. Looking again at the surrounding soil layers, he noticed that the lower strata were noticeably darker than the dry earth above.

He was almost certain that beneath this layer of stone, an underground river flowed.

“The water is right below this stone!” Qijun propped himself up on the edge of the pit, brushing the dirt from his hands, excitement ringing in his voice. “Dig down, and you’ll find water!”

The villagers had all gathered, peering into the pit, and now exchanged confused, uncertain looks.

“Is that really so?” Liu Qi frowned, eyeing Qijun skeptically.

Liu Kui, silent, stood nearby with arms folded and a face full of doubt. He was only helping Qijun because his father had asked him to; deep down, he felt the same as the others.

“You’ll see once you break through,” Qijun said, rising and giving Liu Qi’s shoulder a meaningful pat. “But there isn’t much meat left!”

With that, Qijun turned and walked away without looking back.

By then, the sun had set. The villagers watched his departing figure, glancing at each other, all hesitating over what to do next.

“Stone giving water? That’s the wildest thing I’ve ever heard! The boy’s read himself into stupidity!” one villager grumbled, slinging his tools over his shoulder to head home.

“Exactly! A whole day wasted. How am I supposed to explain this at home?” another chimed in, despondently packing up.

“What’s the point in digging any further? Let’s call it a night!”

“Playing tricks on us all—what’s that scholar really after?”

“Damn it, we can’t just let this slide! Come on, let’s turn that lad’s house upside down!” Liu Qi, growing angrier, shouted and strode off to chase after Qijun.

“Ahem!” Liu Kui, seeing tempers flare and the situation turning, coughed loudly to halt the crowd.

“Kui, you’ve seen the whole day for yourself. It’s not that we’re not working hard!” Liu Qi sidled up to Liu Kui, his face full of complaint. “But this is just impossible! We’re all of the Liu family—how can you trust an outsider over us?”

“Kui, it’s your call. We’ll do as you say!”

The villagers clamored, all watching Liu Kui, who sat on the ground. If he nodded, they’d rush up the mountainside to Qijun’s cottage at once.

Liu Kui was torn. He, too, couldn’t understand or accept Qijun’s insistence, but some instinct told him he should trust this strange scholar.

“Let’s hold on a little longer...” Liu Kui gritted his teeth and finally made his decision. “If we break through the stone and there’s still no water—then you can go and confront him, and I won’t stand in your way.”

“Alright then! If you say so, Kui...” Liu Qi glanced up the hillside with frustration, biting his lip.

“Liubao, go borrow a chisel from Liu Fuyuan! Liangzi, fetch some food from my house for everyone! Get the fire started—whatever the outcome, we’ll know by tonight!” Having made up his mind, Liu Kui stood and issued his orders. Two villagers immediately set off.

“Qijun, I hope you’re right... this is all I can do for you now,” Liu Kui prayed silently.

Dongling Village was small, just a few dozen households, all close together. The Liu clan, having arrived earlier, mostly settled near the riverbank at the foot of the mountain, while families from other surnames, who’d migrated here for various reasons, were scattered along the slopes and in the valleys.

Liangzi soon brought a platter of boiled wild greens and millet cakes, and the blacksmith Liu Fuyuan followed behind Liubao, pulling a small cart.

“Fuyuan, what are all these iron pieces for?” Liu Kui divided the food, curiously rummaging through the cart.

“These are all made according to the blueprints Master Qi gave me. He said to notify him if water was found, but I don’t know what they’re for,” Liu Fuyuan explained as he unloaded the iron.

“What a waste—likely all for nothing. Wouldn’t it have been better to make some hoes?” Liu Qi jeered, chewing his wild greens.

“Mind your own business! I trust him!” Liu Fuyuan snapped, glaring as he unloaded the last piece.

“Heh, eat a man’s meat and you’re his dog, I see!” Liu Qi sneered, his words dripping with envy.

The feud between Liu Qi’s and Liu Fuyuan’s branches of the Liu clan was longstanding, and Liu Qi’s jealousy only deepened after Fuyuan had bartered for meat from Qijun.

“Who do you think you are, Liu Qi? I’ll smash your teeth in!” Liu Fuyuan, not missing the insult, lunged and landed a punch squarely on Liu Qi’s mouth.

Caught off guard, Liu Qi saw stars and sprawled onto the ground, spitting out two bloodied teeth.

Most of those present were from Liu Qi’s side of the clan. Seeing him struck, they grabbed their tools and closed in on Fuyuan, hurling abuse.

But Liu Fuyuan, tall and burly, was unafraid. He rolled up his sleeves, grabbed an iron pipe, and pointed it at them, keeping the crowd at bay.

“What’s this? Have you all eaten too much?” Liu Kui, seeing a fight about to break out, pushed through to the middle, shouting angrily.

“Kui, he started it, we were just—”

“I don’t care what grudges you have, leave them for tomorrow. Now get to work!” Liu Kui swept his gaze over them, and both sides reluctantly backed down.

“Kui! He—” Liu Qi, clutching his mouth, whined in grievance, running up to Liu Kui.

“And by your logic, since I took Qijun’s meat too, what does that make me?” Irritated, Liu Kui kicked Liu Qi over. “Don’t stir up trouble again!”

Liu Qi glared daggers at Liu Kui’s back from the ground, a glint of malice flickering in his eyes as he picked himself up, brushed the dirt off, and disappeared into the night.

Under the cover of darkness, the crisp sound of chisels striking stone gradually rose from the riverbank. The earlier quarrel had left the villagers simmering, and they hammered at the stone with renewed vigor.

Qijun returned to his home, found the wild greens Aunt Zhao had brought, and shared a hearty meal with Qifeng, mixing in the last scraps of meat.

Afterward, he stood atop the rocky hillside, bathed in moonlight, watching the villagers labor below.

He did not know the cause of their conflict; all he wished for was the good news of water at last.

He was not afraid of being misunderstood or even beaten. What he truly could not bear was seeing more people die of thirst.

“Brother, what if there’s no water?” Qifeng stood beside him, his brow furrowed with worry as he gazed at the riverbank.

He’d seen the exhaustion, the doubt, and the despair in the villagers’ eyes during the day, and he feared they would vent their frustration on them.

After all, they were outsiders in this village. Even if their father had once done the villagers a kindness, starving people could not be expected to remember such things.

“We leave it to fate...” Qijun exhaled, looking up at the brilliant moon. “Heaven, grant them a path to survival...”

As if the heavens heard his prayer and could no longer bear to see the land’s living beings tormented by drought, at the very instant the stone layer was finally pierced, a rush of cool water surged out, soaking the chisel in a villager’s hands.

“Water! There really is water!” The villager holding the chisel stared in disbelief, then licked the water and cried out in astonishment.

In a flash, the entire riverbank erupted. Everyone rushed to the pit, eager to witness the miracle.

Qijun saw all this from the hillside and knew he had succeeded.

He let out a long breath into the night wind, feeling as though a thousand pounds had been lifted from his chest.

With water, the village could live again.

Liu Kui pushed through the crowd, pulled the villagers from the pit, and, bracing himself against the edge, climbed down. As soon as his feet touched the bottom, the cool stream swirled around his toes.

He knelt, pressed his lips to the thin flow, and drank deeply, tears streaming down his face.

“Master Qi is here!” someone shouted, bringing the crowd out of their daze. They turned and saw his distant figure approaching, then all fell to their knees, kowtowing before he even reached them.

“Please, everyone, get up!” Qijun hurried forward to help a villager up. But as soon as he did, the person dropped to their knees again, as did the others.

Each villager was now overwhelmed by a mix of shame and gratitude. Those who had doubted Qijun could not even lift their heads, wishing they could sink into the earth.

Liu Kui climbed out of the pit, walked up to Qijun, and bowed deeply. Turning to the villagers, he proclaimed, “Listen, everyone! Master Qi is the great benefactor of Dongling Village! Let us all bow three times to him together!”

Qijun, unused to such reverence, found himself unable to refuse the villagers’ overwhelming gratitude and could only step aside, awkwardly accepting their homage.

“Master Qi—no, Mister Qi! My kinsmen have wronged you in many ways. I, Liu Kui, apologize on their behalf! If ever you need me, you have only to ask!” Liu Kui wiped away his tears and clasped his hands in respect once more.

When he’d first heard that Qijun had caught a wild goat, Liu Kui had thought it was pure luck. But now that water had truly been found as Qijun predicted, he realized at last that this scholar was, as his father had said, no ordinary man.