Chapter 24 Luring the Blacksmith
Wang Er led hundreds of men charging towards the county town.
The two elderly soldiers guarding the city gates were instantly paralyzed with fear.
Due to the Ming Dynasty's peculiar military farming system, Chengcheng County's garrison wasn't stationed within the county town itself. They were more than ten miles away in a guard station, busy with their farming duties rather than military drills.
The old gate guards knew reinforcements wouldn't arrive in time. Two old men against hundreds of rebels? Not even a hundredfold increase in courage would have been enough.
The two veterans unceremoniously slipped into a nearby ditch, shedding their uniforms with practiced speed, and emerged as two frail, decrepit old men.
The peasant rebel army instantly surged into the county town's streets.
The terrified residents scattered in disarray, retreating into the dubious safety of their homes.
Wang Er had no intention of bothering them; he led his rebels directly to the county yamen.
Only after they had swept past did San Shier emerge from a narrow alley. He glanced left and right down the deserted main street, then quickly sprinted towards the artisan quarter.
Wang Er had indeed rebelled!
He quickly shed his long gown and pulled on a coarse cloth tunic belonging to a household servant. He then thoroughly messed up his hair, transforming himself into a disheveled, dirty middle-aged beggar. Only then did he emerge from his house, darting through narrow alleys, before witnessing Wang Er leading hundreds of rebels surge down the main street ahead, their murderous intent palpable as they headed for the county yamen.
Once they were gone, San Shier took a few deep breaths, steeling his nerves. He slipped out of the alley and continued running towards the artisan quarter.
Before long, he arrived at Artisan Street.
It was a dark, narrow street, lined with dilapidated houses and choked by open sewers.
Everyone living here belonged to the artisan class: blacksmiths, carpenters, potters — all scratching out a meager living.
These people were all desperately poor.
After a deep breath, San Shier knocked on a blacksmith's door.
Outside, a peasant rebellion was raging. The blacksmith, huddled alone in his home, was trembling with fear. When he suddenly heard the knocking, his soul nearly fled his body; he dared not open the door.
It wasn't until he heard San Shier's soft, familiar call that he plucked up the courage to open the door. “Ah, Master San?” he stammered. “Why are you here? And dressed like that?”
San Shier quickly slipped inside and closed the door. “Hush!” he whispered. “The rebels are rioting outside; that’s why I’m in this disguise.”
The blacksmith merely sighed.
San Shier lowered his voice. “Don’t worry about the rebels for now. They won’t come for you. At most, they’ll slaughter the county magistrate, the county assistant, the registrar — all those officials — then kill the minor clerks and yamen runners. After that, they’ll go loot the granaries. They won’t get to our area for a while.”
“Then why are *you* here, Master San?” the blacksmith pressed.
San Shier spoke quickly. “Li Da, you are the finest blacksmith in Chengcheng County. Yet, none of the officials here have ever treated you as a human being. Only I truly recognize your skill. That, my friend, is what I call true discernment.”
Indeed, this blacksmith was Li Da, and he truly was Chengcheng County's finest. He had forged many high-quality weapons and armor for the county's three patrol inspectors and garrison soldiers.
(Note: A patrol inspector was a ninth-rank military official, commanding over a hundred soldiers.)
However, the imperial court held artisans in low regard. Regardless of one’s skill, you were still considered a craftsman, a class beneath commoners. The county magistrate wouldn't even spare artisans a glance, so what did your skill matter to him?
Only the *shiye* — the magistrate’s personal secretary and advisor — would truly know his capabilities.
In truth, San Shier was a decent man who often spoke up for the poor. Li Da had received his kindness on several occasions, which was the only reason he’d opened the door in such chaotic times.
“Indeed, only Master San truly recognizes my humble skills,” Li Da said, a little awkwardly.
“I know you are poor, Li Da, and have always yearned for prosperity,” San Shier said. “Now, I’m offering you an opportunity: come with me to be the personal blacksmith for a truly, incredibly wealthy lord. Will you come?”
Li Da looked utterly bewildered. “A very, very wealthy lord? A personal blacksmith?” he repeated. “But... I’m bound to the artisan registry. If I simply leave, wouldn’t that be disastrous?”
San Shier pointed outside. “Right now, rebels are rioting, killing people everywhere. If you take this chance to run, no government soldiers will come after you. Everyone will simply assume you were hacked to pieces by the rebels. From then on, you’ll be free from the artisan registry. Follow this new, great lord, work diligently for him, and if he’s pleased, he might even help you secure a new household registration, allowing you to return to commoner status.”
Li Da’s heart stirred at these words, a long-dormant hope flickering to life.
He wasn't sure which ancestor it was, but after a lost battle, they had been captured and forced into artisan service. Since then, every generation of his descendants had been bound to the artisan registry. Their lives were wretched, finding a wife was nearly impossible, and he, Li Da, was still unwed.
Now, hearing San Shier’s persuasive words about escaping to work for a great lord and potentially regaining commoner status, the temptation was overwhelming.
Their minds were simpler, unburdened by the cynical mistrust of later generations, and thus they were easily swayed. Especially since San Shier was considered a decent *shiye*, Li Da trusted him even more completely.
“Can you truly promise me a better life?” he whispered, his voice barely audible.
“Trust me,” San Shier said. “Come, let’s go quickly! While the rebels are causing chaos in the city, the yamen runners are at the county yamen, and the city guards are hiding, this is your only chance to escape your artisan status. Once these rebels settle down, you’ll never get out, and your descendants will forever remain artisans.”
The words were truly terrifying!
Li Da gritted his teeth, a flicker of fierce determination in his eyes. “Lead the way,” he declared. “Take me to this great lord.”
San Shier was overjoyed. *Excellent, the blacksmith has been successfully lured!* he thought. *With my silver tongue, I, San Shier, have shamelessly schemed and coaxed to finally secure a blacksmith for the Heavenly Lord. Hahaha, now my status as the Heavenly Lord’s devoted servant is firmly established!*
This was far better than being the magistrate’s lackey.
He patted Li Da’s shoulder, pulled him by the arm, and slipped out the door.
Battle cries still echoed through the county town. The chaos was concentrated mainly around the county yamen and the wealthy residential districts. From the sounds, it was clear the county yamen had already fallen, and the cries of battle had now spread to the courtyards of the rich, where their household guards were apparently still fighting the rebels.
Intermittently, the desperate cries of women pierced the din!
San Shier didn’t need to see to know that many women would be terribly defiled in this chaos. Especially the daughters of officials and their maids, all with delicate features and fair skin – falling into the hands of those rebels, their fate would surely be... unspeakable.
He couldn’t help but let out a long sigh. The government had been wrong to seize the grain, but what sin had these innocent women committed?
The officials were no good, but the rebels were no better.
“Truly, only I, San Shier, act with a clear conscience in this world. This is what they call being a beacon of purity in a corrupt world!”
He pulled Li Da’s arm. “Come, come, let’s hurry! Once the rebels finish slaughtering the wealthy households, the chaos will spread to this part of town.”
The two sprinted through the alleys. Ahead, the city gates stood wide open, completely unguarded.
The moment he stepped out of the city gates, Li Da's spirits soared. “Haha,” he thought, “I, an artisan, have finally escaped the government’s grasp!”
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