Chapter 66: Wang Ge, the Rake-Hand

“It’s cold outside, let’s go back inside,” Grandmother Jia scolded Huotou and led Wang Ge into the main room. She wrapped Wang Ge tightly in two layers of quilts, removed her sweat-soaked socks, and tucked Wang Ge’s cold feet into her own clothes. Huotou stood behind his elder sister, holding the quilt snugly around her.

“Grandmother…” Wang Ge couldn’t bear to let the old woman warm her feet and just as she tried to pull away, Grandmother slapped her thigh.

“Hurry up and tell us, how did the exam go?”

At the doorway, all eyes—tall and short—were fixed on Wang Ge.

She leaned forward, took her father’s hand, and let him sit beside her. Then she said, “Grandmother, Father, I passed…”

Wang Erlang coughed loudly.

Wang Weng glared at Erlang, meaning: Why say more? Huobao said it was top-grade craftsman, so it must be top-grade craftsman.

Wang Ge saw that her grandfather’s expression was no better than her second uncle’s, so she decided not to mention the top grade. “I passed the craftsman exam.” She drew her feet back slightly, afraid they might chill Grandmother’s belly.

But Grandmother Jia pressed her granddaughter’s feet firmly into place, smiling so widely her eyes disappeared. “I knew it, I knew it—Huobao would certainly succeed!”

Little Jia pushed Wang Shu forward. “Now that the fields are quiet, Ge, you’ll need to properly teach your younger sister from tomorrow. Who knows, maybe in a couple of years, our family will have another craftsman—right?”

Wang Shu’s cheeks reddened with embarrassment. Mother hadn’t even understood what being a craftsman meant and was already eager to push her forward, so impatient—her elder sister had only just come in.

“Absolutely,” Wang Ge agreed, then shifted the topic, “Where is Third Uncle?”

Wang Peng, who had been waiting for a while, brought his youngest sister over. “My father went to Sha Village again. Sister, do you think I’ve grown taller?”

Wang Ge rubbed his little head and praised, “Not only taller, but stronger as well. Ai has grown too.”

Wang Ai shyly bit her finger.

Wang Weng spoke up, “You all heard, right? Ge is now a craftsman. This is a good thing. If anyone in the village asks, answer honestly. But if no one asks, don’t mention it yourselves! All right, everyone but the eldest branch, go back to your own rooms. Shu, go make some ginger soup. Erlang, warm yourself in the kitchen.”

At last, the main room quieted.

Wang Ge glanced at the window lattice, which was freshly plastered with clay. Beneath it stood a new long table, holding scrolls, brushes, ink, and an oil lamp—clearly prepared for Huotou. By the eastern wall, many bundles of ramie cloth were stacked, along with finished and half-finished coarse jackets. What were they for?

Grandmother Jia saw her granddaughter surveying the room and sighed, asking gently, “Feels different, doesn’t it?”

“Yes. Before coming back, I kept thinking of how the room used to look. Grandfather, Grandmother, Father—and the journey back with Second Uncle—I missed you all so much.” As she spoke, she reversed her hand, holding her little brother’s tightly. The bond between siblings, heart to heart.

Wang Weng said, “People only realize how much they miss home once they’ve left.”

“That’s true,” Wang Ge lowered her head. “I didn’t think I’d been gone long, but the closer I got to the village, the more it hurt. Only then did I realize I hadn’t dared to miss home at first…”

Wang Xing sobbed; Wang Ge pulled him close, wiped his tears and her own, and continued, “It wasn’t until I met Second Uncle at the reed pavilion and saw Grandfather at the village entrance that I finally felt at ease. Also, Grandfather is right not to let me mention passing as top-grade craftsman to the villagers. As for the top-grade craftsman… well, to be honest…”

She told them in detail how she passed the exam, endured bullying from the patrolling officer, received help from Magistrate Huan, was admired when she was named top-grade craftsman, and then how no craftsman’s shop would hire her.

The family followed her tale, sometimes tense, sometimes cursing the villain, sometimes grateful to Magistrate Huan.

When she finished, Grandfather said, “You took the craftsman exam so you can eventually take the master craftsman’s exam—not to spend your whole life working in a craftsman’s shop. What’s there to be ashamed of? Even if making money is hard, it’s better than failing the exam. Don’t worry, no matter how cold it gets, your uncle and I will go into the wild hills to cut bamboo for you. It won’t hinder your training.”

Grandmother chimed in, “That’s right. If anyone dares to mock you for being top-grade craftsman, I’ll be the first not to forgive them!”

Grandmother Jia knew that if anyone in the family dared to ridicule her granddaughter, it would be Erlang’s new wife. Then she gave Wang Ge a brief account of recent events at home.

There was no work in the fields, yet they were far from idle. As winter began, Wang Erlang went daily to the wild hills to cut firewood and bamboo, and gather wild radish. The Jia landlord’s household collected coarse jackets, supplying cloth while the villagers did the sewing; each set could be exchanged for a measure of last year’s grain.

“Your third uncle, he’s hopeless! And that child Zhu—how infuriating!” Grandmother Jia grew angry when speaking of the third branch. “He used to cry every day for his mother. Your grandfather pitied him and had his father send him to Sha Village, even bringing two large bags of grain, fearing the Yao family wouldn’t agree. He could have settled there, but no, ever since he claimed he caught a chill and your third uncle went once, Zhu keeps sending word every few days, always saying he’s cold. The house is so busy, yet your third uncle keeps running back and forth to Sha Village, and every trip costs another fare! I said, just bring him back—don’t keep making endless trips. Hmph, your grandfather won’t let him return, and Zhu cries and refuses to come home. What a bother! Hmph!”

Grandmother Jia cast a dissatisfied glance at Wang Weng.

Wang Ge understood now—Grandmother knew nothing of Wang Zhu’s misdeeds. Her feet were warm by now; she took the coarse jacket her grandmother had sewn—all lined, no locked edges, clearly winter clothing. The landlord feared villagers would steal stuffing, so only supplied fabric.

Wang Ge recalled the strict standards when making square-toed shoes in the craftsman’s shop, even the stitch distance had to be exact, so she asked, “Grandmother, when the landlord gave the village these sewing tasks, did they provide a pattern?”

“Yes, these are it. Even the sleeve length has to be cut exactly to pattern,” Grandmother Jia picked up the jacket and pants, measuring them, boasting, “Let our family’s craftsman see, are they identical?”

“The stitch length is different.”

Grandmother Jia thought back, uncertain. “The tenant did mention that the stitches should match the pattern.”

Wang Weng clicked his tongue. “Why didn’t you listen?”

“I… who ever heard of being so particular about sewing?” Grandmother Jia grew more uneasy. “Surely it’s not just us! Would the landlord let us work for nothing and not pay grain?”

Wang Weng replied, “He won’t give nothing, but he set the rules. If he gives half as much, what can we say? Good thing Ge is back—quick, unravel and redo them.”

Wang Ge gathered the pile of clothes. “Grandmother, leave it to me. I’ll unravel them all tomorrow.”

After the three of the eldest branch left, Wang Weng took a small bamboo tube from his cloth pouch. “Here, Huobao bought this ‘No-Turtle Fat’ ointment at the county pharmacy for you to use on your hands—supposedly cures chapped skin.”

Grandmother Jia pulled out the wooden stopper; inside was soft, translucent white ointment, faintly scented, lightly medicinal, not unpleasant at all.

“How much did this cost? No wonder she was late—went to sell things again for money? Why didn’t she say anything?”

“She was afraid you’d scold her! She worked day and night at the craftsman’s shop for two days, earned thirty coins. Passing as top-grade craftsman, the government awarded a hundred coins. She made some items herself, earning another twenty coins. She knows your hands crack badly every winter… Ah! It’s bought now, just don’t…”

Wang Weng turned to the window lattice. His wife’s hands suffered terribly every winter, sometimes cracking and bleeding. The family was starting to save money, but who could spare enough for comfort? They hadn’t known about such medicine before, and even now, only Huobao was willing to spend so much for filial piety.

Filial piety had to be given secretly, to avoid a scolding. One hundred fifty coins, just for this small box of ointment.

Grandmother Jia covered her face, sobbed hard, then beat her husband’s back a few times, easing her heartache. “This child is so generous! Don’t let her keep even a single coin from now on!”

Wild radish: Ancient name for radish, known as “Lu Fu” before the Sui Dynasty.

Early Winter: The tenth month in ancient times was called “Meng Dong.” From this month, rural families began storing winter firewood, plastering window cracks, making straw shoes, brewing winter wine, and more.

No-Turtle Medicine: As recorded in “Zhuangzi: Free and Easy Wandering,” “A man from Song knew how to make a medicine so the hands would not crack,” proving that frostbite remedies existed since then.

(End of chapter)