Chapter 55: To Bend or Not to Bend
All the women of Gao Family Village were buzzing with excitement.
Ever since the Heavenly Lord had descended and blessed Gao Family Village, the men had found plenty of work, whether it was helping in the blacksmith's forge one day, building city gates the next, or constructing temples the day after that. Yet, the women felt a bit lost, with little to occupy them.
Now, with the sudden appearance of a massive pile of cotton, their excitement was beyond words.
“Finally, we can bring out our looms at home!”
“Sanwa's mother, you’re a master at tailoring; now you’ll have a chance to show your skills!”
“Yes, yes! If I can help the Heavenly Lord, perhaps I’ll receive some divine favors too!”
The women chattered excitedly, twittering like sparrows around the pile of cotton the size of half a house. The din was so overwhelming that even with his ears pricked, Li Daoxuan could barely make out what they were saying.
Thirty-Two roared, “Silence, all of you!”
The women instantly fell silent.
Thirty-Two could only stare.
Li Daoxuan snorted, then burst into laughter.
Thirty-Two took a deep breath and bellowed, “Anyone who speaks again will not receive any cotton!”
Silence! Instantly, the quiet was so profound that you could hear a pin drop.
Li Daoxuan laughed so hard he nearly rolled on the floor.
Indeed, only by appealing to self-interest can one truly control others; authority and prestige were all superficial. It was just like a company boss: the only way to control employees was by paying or docking their wages; no other method was truly effective.
Thirty-Two declared, “The Heavenly Lord wants you to turn this cotton into cloth, to assist the blacksmiths in making armor. I won't waste any more breath with unnecessary chatter. In short, whoever produces more, better-quality cloth, and helps the blacksmiths finish the armor quickly, that household will receive extra cotton, enough for them to make two pieces of clothing for their own family.”
Those words had the desired effect. The women were overjoyed and immediately rolled up their sleeves, eager to start.
Thirty-Two had them line up, each carrying a large bundle of cotton back, to be made into cloth and submitted as quickly as possible. As each woman came to collect her cotton, he wore a stern face and fiercely threatened each one: “Don't forget, the Heavenly Lord is watching you. If anyone secretly hoards the Heavenly Lord's cotton, making, say, two measures of cloth but only submitting one, divine punishment will surely strike them!”
He knew the habits of some village women; they liked to take small advantages. If he didn't scare them, these women really would pocket quite a bit.
A few women had indeed planned to secretly keep some cotton, but after Thirty-Two's grim-faced warning, they looked up at the sky, their courage faltered, and they thought to themselves: *Heavenly eyes are always watching. Serving the Heavenly Lord is entirely different from serving an ordinary master. I’d better be honest.*
One woman collected her cotton and stepped aside. The next stepped forward. Thirty-Two was about to hand her a bundle of cotton, but suddenly felt something was amiss. He looked closely, and standing before him was none other than Gao Yiye.
Thirty-Two was stunned!
Gao Yiye’s cheeks slightly flushed. “I... I can weave too.”
Thirty-Two let out a surprised sound. “Hmph! Miss Yiye, why are you joining in? You are the Heavenly Lord's Saintess. Why are you here weaving cloth? It would be utterly ‘disgraceful and ruinous to your reputation’!”
Gao Yiye replied, “Weaving cloth also helps ease the Heavenly Lord’s worries. I also want to do something for the Heavenly Lord! I will try my best to weave with elegant movements, so as not to diminish the Heavenly Lord’s prestige.”
Thirty-Two clutched his forehead. Dizzy, utterly dizzy...
Li Daoxuan saw this and couldn't stop laughing.
Thirty-Two sighed deeply, a man "drawing his sword, looking around, his heart filled with bewilderment."
Gao Yiye asked curiously, “Grand Strategist Thirty-Two, what do you mean by suddenly reciting a line of poetry?”
Thirty-Two waved a hand. “Nothing, I’m just indulging in some idle lament.”
Li Daoxuan, however, understood his lament. This vast Gao Family Village, which Li Daoxuan alone had worried over, feeling utterly exhausted, now had Thirty-Two doing his worrying for him. With no one else to share his burdens, and even Gao Yiye, the Saintess, acting so impulsively, it was no wonder he felt utterly bewildered and alone in his burden.
What Gao Family Village still lacked most desperately was talent!
But how could talent be so easily acquired? In the vast Liangshan Marsh of *Water Margin*, those who could read and write could be counted on one hand. Wu Yong, a mere impoverished scholar, could become a military strategist. Imagine how scarce talent was in these times.
Li Daoxuan thought to himself: *Talent, it seemed, would have to be cultivated personally.*
Just then, Mrs. San approached with her daughter and maid. She had been packing her belongings for the past two days, planning to return to the county town to "spread the Heavenly Lord Daoist Sect," and still had many preparations to make.
She quickly walked to Thirty-Two’s side and whispered, “You old dear, I’ll be going back to the county town in a couple of days, but our daughter can’t come with me. It’s not as safe there as it is here in Gao Family Village.”
Thirty-Two nodded. “Naturally.”
Mrs. San whispered, “You’re busy with important matters, and I won’t be in the county town. Who will teach our daughter to read and write, and instruct her in female virtues and needlework?”
This question stumped Thirty-Two.
That’s right!
After his wife leaves, what about their daughter’s education? Female virtues and needlework could perhaps be set aside for a while, but reading and writing absolutely couldn’t stop. Otherwise, if their daughter grew up illiterate, what then?
Thirty-Two clutched his head and squatted down, tormented by his worries.
Reminded by their conversation, Li Daoxuan suddenly had an idea. He said aloud, “Yiye, go speak a few words to Thirty-Two on my behalf.”
Gao Yiye heard the voice from above and quickly looked up, seeing the Heavenly Lord’s face vaguely appear within the clouds. She quickly bowed deeply, rushed to Thirty-Two and Mrs. San, and began to act as his mouthpiece.
Li Daoxuan: “Grand Strategist Thirty-Two, when your wife returns to the county town in a couple of days, you’ll escort her back, and you’ll be going to the county town yourself, won’t you?”
Thirty-Two hastily replied, “I do indeed plan to return for a visit, but only for a brief stay, a day or two at most, then I will immediately return to Gao Family Village to attend to your affairs.”
Li Daoxuan: “I want to ask you, is it possible to hire a scholar to teach here in Gao Family Village?”
Thirty-Two froze, stunned for a moment. He lowered his head and said, a hint of shame in his voice, “Reporting to the Heavenly Lord, scholars are all very proud. It would be quite difficult to persuade them to come teach in this remote mountain valley, more than thirty *li* from the county town.”
“Proud?” Li Daoxuan replied, “Just how proud are they? Try offering them more money.”
Thirty-Two sighed, “Scholars, you see... as you well know... they wouldn't ‘stoop for a mere pittance.’ Even if you offer a great deal of money, they might not agree.”
“Five measures of rice certainly won't do it,” Li Daoxuan said. “Show him this, and we’ll see if he ‘bends at the waist’.”
With that, Li Daoxuan pulled a pure .999 silver necklace from his drawer—a men's chain, incredibly thick.
Back in his rebellious teenage years, when he dabbled in alternative fashion, he had acquired a ridiculously tacky leather outfit, dyed his hair, and paired it with this massive silver chain, making himself look like a gangster.
After he outgrew that phase, it not only became useless but also a source of utter embarrassment.
He unclasped a small ring from the necklace, a tiny silver ring, about one centimeter in diameter, and placed it before Thirty-Two.
Thirty-Two felt his eyes dazzle. A massive silver ring, easily taller than a man’s head in diameter, appeared before him. It was of the finest silver, sparkling so brilliantly it could blind a dog.
Thirty-Two, Mrs. San, Gao Yiye, and everyone else who saw the silver ring, all had their mouths hung open wide enough to fit a kiwi fruit, and stayed that way for a long time.
Though they had already witnessed the Heavenly Lord producing many enormous food items, seeing this colossal piece of silver still astonished them anew. This was silver, after all! Not a single grain of rice or a chunk of pork, but *silver*!
Li Daoxuan: “Now, tell me, will he ‘bend at the waist’?”
Thirty-Two stammered, “He’d break his own back with a stick to get it!”
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