Moma Liangshan

Chapter 24: Meeting Li Shishi and Emperor Huizong, Carving a Chang'e Statue in the Imperial Gar

Lu Zhishen and Yang Zhi arrived at the center of the training ground. Yang Zhi spoke first, saying, "I am a criminal, please go first, brave Lu." Lu Zhishen shouted, "If I hadn't accidentally killed someone, why would I have given up my position as a military officer to become a monk? Enough talk, take this!" With that, he swung his 62-pound water-milled monk's staff, aiming for Yang Zhi's face. Seeing Lu Zhishen's fierce attack, Yang Zhi dared not resist and quickly retreated, dodging the staff's attack. He then thrust his spear straight at Lu Zhishen's shoulder. Lu Zhishen hurriedly withdrew his staff and struck the spear with his crescent-shaped shovel. The spear's base was impacted, the blade rose, and the thrust missed. Lu Zhishen gained the upper hand, and in the blink of an eye, his shovel drew a semi-circle, smashing down on Yang Zhi's head. Yang Zhi's spear, still in mid-air, couldn't be withdrawn in time and instead grazed the staff. However, the bell shovel fell like a meteor, unstoppable. Yang Zhi's face turned solemn, and he shifted his feet to the side, quickly avoiding the plane of the staff's trajectory. There was a loud bang, raising three feet of dust, and a half-foot-wide pit appeared in the compacted ground.

Seeing Yang Zhi's face covered in cold sweat, Lu Zhishen was quite pleased with himself. Unexpectedly, Yang Zhi suddenly took a step back, left hand in front, right hand behind, simultaneously holding his spear, feet slightly apart, one in front of the other, like a cheetah poised to pounce. Lu Zhishen quickly withdrew his staff, holding it horizontally in front of his chest. Yang Zhi's brows furrowed slightly, his spear flashing like a venomous snake, switching from defense to offense. Lu Zhishen crossed his hands, his crescent-shaped shovel striking the spear again. However, the weapons failed to meet; the spear blade moved like lightning, leaving a series of irregular afterimages. Lu Zhishen dodged left and right, using his crescent-shaped shovel to block and defend with difficulty. After more than thirty moves of attack and defense, Lu Zhishen finally found an opening, raising his shovel and launching a counterattack. Yang Zhi's fierce offensive paused, and the two used the opportunity to create distance. At this moment, Lu Zhishen was panting heavily, and Yang Zhi prepared to attack again. To prevent injury to the two, Instructor Zhang shouted, "Please, you two heroes, stop!" Both men needed Wang Hao's help and dared not disobey, so the duel was suspended. Wang Hao was very satisfied and said, "The monk is incredibly strong, and Yang Zhi is exceptionally swift; both are fierce warriors. When two tigers fight, one is bound to be injured. Let's stop here!" Heroes respect heroes, and the two had no prior grudges. Lu Zhishen put down his staff, walked to Yang Zhi, and said, "If you don't slow down after another hundred moves, I will surely lose." Yang Zhi replied, "The staff carries immense force; if I'm careless in one move, I will either die or be crippled." Having gained two heroes, Yang Zhi and Lu Zhishen, in a single day, Wang Hao was overjoyed and shouted, "Tell the kitchen to slaughter a chicken and a sheep! Tonight, we won't leave until we're drunk!"

The following evening, Wang Hao drove to Fanlou to visit Li Shishi. Upon seeing Wang Hao's return, Li Shishi asked, "How has things been at home, brother?" Wang Hao replied, "Everything is as before." Li Shishi then asked, "I heard you returned home to expand your winery; how is it progressing?" Wang Hao said, "Everything is going smoothly, but there's one thing I need your permission for, sister!" Li Shishi was curious and asked, "What is it that I need your permission for?" Wang Hao said, "There's a large pond at the site of the new winery. A hermit from Yuncheng County, after examining it, suggested that I plant osmanthus trees on the nearby hillside, build a statue of Chang'e beside the pond, and raise a few white rabbits at the foot of the hill." Li Shishi covered her face and laughed, saying, "Chang'e, osmanthus, jade rabbit—brother, are you building a moon palace?" Wang Hao, embarrassed, said, "I didn't want to take it seriously, but the Immortal Master said this matter concerns my fortune and cannot be taken lightly. I had no choice but to agree." Li Shishi nodded and said, "There's nothing I need to agree to in this matter." Wang Hao said, "Otherwise, everyone knows Chang'e is extremely beautiful, but who knows exactly where her beauty lies, what her appearance is, or what her figure is? If no one knows, how can I build this Chang'e statue?" Li Shishi had already guessed the gist and deliberately asked, "And then?" Wang Hao replied, "That's why I thought of you, sister. You are a fairy on earth, like Chang'e descended to earth. If I could carve a Chang'e statue in your likeness, everything would be much easier!"

Just then, a man suddenly pushed open the door and entered, accompanied by two fair-skinned, beardless men. The newcomer was none other than Emperor Huizong. Wang Hao and Li Shishi dared not be negligent and quickly bowed. Emperor Huizong ordered the eunuchs to close the door and said, "No need for formalities." He then found a wooden chair and sat down, looking at Li Shishi and having her sit beside him, saying, "Minister Wang, you just mentioned wanting to carve a statue of Chang'e?" Wang Hao replied, "The immortal master from Yuncheng County suggested it, and I dared not neglect it. Before leaving, the immortal master repeatedly instructed that the Chang'e statue must be made from a single piece of white marble. Although white marble is expensive, I am usually frugal and can afford it. However, I have absolutely no idea what Chang'e looks like." Emperor Huizong nodded and said, "So you thought of Shishi." Wang Hao replied, "This is a last resort for me; I hope Your Majesty will forgive any impropriety." Emperor Huizong smiled gently and said, "Minister, there's no need to be nervous! To carve a statue of an immortal in the likeness of a mortal—I'm afraid only you, Minister Wang, could come up with such an idea."

Wang Hao said, "It's all because Sister Shishi is so beautiful, as beautiful as a celestial being!" Emperor Huizong smiled unconsciously and said, "Shishi has become a fairy, and you are now her brother." Li Shishi said from the side, "Is Your Majesty also the fairy's beloved?" Emperor Huizong smiled and said, "In that case, in order to become the fairy's beloved, I must have Minister Wang carve this statue!" Li Shishi leaned closer to Emperor Huizong's ear and said, "How could a mere boy like you understand the ways of stonemasonry? Those stonemasons in the countryside are all illiterate; how could they possibly capture the fairy's charm?" Emperor Huizong nodded and asked, "What do you mean?" Li Shishi leaned even closer to Emperor Huizong's ear and said, " "It would be best if my brother personally supervised the construction." Emperor Huizong held Li Shishi's slender hand and said, "You are so thoughtful and considerate." He looked at Eunuch Chen and asked, "Is there any fine white marble left in the palace?" Eunuch Chen replied, "Two years ago, when we repaired the railings, there was a large piece left over." Emperor Huizong said, "That's excellent. Tomorrow, you will move that stone to the Imperial Garden for me and find a skilled stonemason. I will personally draw up the blueprints and supervise the carving of the statue." Emperor Huizong and Li Shishi were whispering sweet nothings to each other when Wang Hao said, "This humble subject has matters to attend to at home and must take his leave." Emperor Huizong nodded and said, "Granted!" After bidding farewell to Emperor Huizong, Wang Hao left Fanlou and returned to Erlibao under the cover of night.

The next day, Wang Hao sought out Yang Zhi and asked, "There were ten officials who were ordered to transport the precious stones and flowers, why were you the only one whose boat capsized in the Yellow River?" Yang Zhi replied, "To my shame, I was eager to make a name for myself and specifically chose the largest piece of precious stones and flowers. However, the stones and flowers were too heavy, making the wooden boat extremely difficult to maneuver. When we reached the Yellow River, a sudden wind arose, and we encountered an undercurrent, causing the boat to deviate from its intended course by three hundred feet and unfortunately run aground." Wang Hao asked, "Since the boat ran aground, shouldn't the precious stones and flowers have sunk?" Yang Zhi said, "When the boat first ran aground, the precious stones and flowers were indeed on board. However, the riverbed was soft and the mud and sand were loose. Three days later, the boat tilted, and three days after that, it capsized, and the precious stones and flowers sank to the bottom." Wang Hao then asked, "Do you still remember the place where the boat sank?" Yang Zhi replied, "After the boat capsized, I lived in seclusion at a nearby farm, so of course I remember."

Wang Hao asked, "Do you think it's possible to salvage the Flower and Stone Tribute from the water and transport it back to Tokyo?" Yang Zhi pondered for a moment and replied, "The water at the shipwreck site isn't too deep, but there are often strange winds on the surface and turbulent currents underwater. It should be possible, but it will be very difficult." Wang Hao continued, "How far is it from the shipwreck site to Tokyo?" Yang Zhi answered, "Over four hundred li. It takes three days to get there from Tokyo." Wang Hao nodded and said, "Let's set off for the shipwreck site the day after tomorrow."

Two days later, Wang Hao, Yang Zhi, Ma Decao, and Zhang Sangou set off by boat. Summer's frequent rains would inevitably increase the difficulty of salvaging the precious stones. Wang Hao dared not delay, eating and sleeping entirely on the boat. Three days later, the river ahead suddenly widened several times over. The boatman found a dock and moored the boat, then said, "Young master, don't be fooled by the vastness of the water. Only three hundred paces to the south is the actual river channel; the rest is all mudflats, unsuitable for large boats." Wang Hao asked, "If I want to go to the other side, how can I get there?" The boatman replied, "You can only go by small boat." Wang Hao paid the boatman one string of cash, saying, "This is a deposit; I'll pay you another string after the job is done. Please take good care of me these next few days." The boatman, even more attentive after receiving the money, said, "My father and I, my two sons, have been drifting on the Yellow River year-round. If you wish to go to the other side, I can find a small boat nearby." Wang Hao said, "That's excellent." The boatman called his eldest son and instructed him to go to a nearby village to hire a small boat. With nothing to do, Wang Hao strolled around the market near the dock with Yang Zhi and the others. After walking about half a mile, they came across a small market with only a dozen or so shops, and the other vendors were all peddlers carrying loads on shoulder poles. Wang Hao found the only inn in the market and asked, "Do you have any rooms available?" The innkeeper replied, "We have one superior room and plenty of large beds." Wang Hao said, "There aren't many people in the market, yet you have so many guests, and only one superior room left?" The innkeeper said, "It's not that we have too many guests, but that's all the inn we have." At this moment, Yang Zhi said, "We need to stay here for two or three days, and this is the only inn nearby. It's inconvenient for you to stay on the boat after your journey. Why don't you make do with this place?" Wang Hao said, "You can only sleep on the large beds?" Yang Zhi said, "We are unsophisticated people, we don't care about anything, we can sleep in any place, even a dilapidated temple!" Wang Hao looked at Ma Decao and Zhang Sangou, and the two nodded in agreement.

Wang Hao looked at the innkeeper and said, "I'll stay here." The innkeeper called out to the backyard, "One superior room, three large beds." He then asked, "Would you like some food, sir? Do you have freshly slaughtered oxen, lively, fat chickens, and freshly steamed buns?" Wang Hao replied, "Three catties of beef, two fat chickens, and six steamed buns." The innkeeper, having received the order, said, "Please wait a moment, sir, it will be ready in a short while!"