Chapter Eight: The Chieftain

The dong was the most fundamental unit of Li society. There were major dongs and minor dongs; a major dong could encompass several minor dongs, and a minor dong typically consisted of several villages.

Each dong had its own boundaries, and crossing them without reason would lead to disputes, or even deadly clashes and brawls.

Each dong had its own rules, which all clansmen within were obliged to obey, or face harsh punishment.

Every dong had a chief, called the Dong Lord or Dong Head. The Dong Lord was the absolute ruler of his dong. There was a Li proverb: “Where there is a great pond, there must be a great fish,” and this “great fish” referred to the Dong Lord.

The Dong Lord ruled over everything within the dong, maintaining order and resolving internal disputes. Generally, the Dong Lord was lenient toward his own clansmen but ruthless toward outsiders.

In order to control the Li people, the imperial court courted the Dong Lords, granting them official titles and ranks, seeking to maintain dominion over the Li by controlling their chiefs.

Wang Kunrui was the Dong Lord of Maodao Dong, appointed by imperial decree as the village warden. The fishing village where Fu Gui, Li Sanjian, and others lived fell under his jurisdiction. Fu Gui and the others might ignore imperial edicts or mandates from the authorities, but they dared not disregard Wang Kunrui’s commands.

Therefore, when Wang Kunrui arrived, everyone in the fishing village came out to greet him.

“Greetings to the Chief,” Fu Gui and the others called as they came to the entrance.

With a hearty laugh, Wang Kunrui entered the bamboo lodge and said, “I hear Old Fu, you had quite a haul this time. Why didn’t you invite me for a bowl of rice wine?”

Wang Kunrui appeared to be in his early thirties, with a powerfully built frame, thick brows, large eyes, and a beard under his chin as bristly as a patch of steel needles.

“Chief, you must be joking,” Fu Gui replied hastily. “You are like a deity in the heavens—how could we dare to trouble you? But we have prepared a humble offering for you, and it will be sent over shortly.”

“Old Fu, where is Third Brother?” Just then, Wang Wen, who had come with her father, peeked out from behind Wang Kunrui and asked.

Ever since Wang Wen had met Li Sanjian a few days earlier, she had come looking for him almost every day, pestering him to paint and tell stories. His tales were wonderfully novel—unlike any she’d heard before—so the little girl found herself thinking about him constantly, and the two grew more familiar with each passing day. This time, Wang Wen had insisted on coming along when Wang Kunrui visited the fishing village.

Li Sanjian had noticed Wang Wen long before, but his heart was heavy today, and even when she ran over, he did not acknowledge her, leaving the little girl puzzled and hurt.

Fu Gui and the others risked their lives diving for pearls, only to have their gains extorted by merchants and officials, with most of what remained handed over to the Dong Lord. This filled Li Sanjian with righteous fury.

He understood that the world was rife with injustice, and there was nothing he could do to change it. Yet, he could not let go of his indignation; his love for the people of the house extended to their wrongs, and so, naturally, his resentment spread to Wang Kunrui, and even to Wang Wen.

“Third Brother… why are you ignoring me?” Wang Wen asked, wounded.

Her little heart was full of confusion. Just days before, Li Sanjian had laughed and joked with her—why was he so cold today?

“Hmph, Third Brother is my brother, not yours,” Li Ling’er, standing nearby, snorted.

“I… I…” Wang Wen was too aggrieved to speak.

Wang Kunrui noticed Li Sanjian’s odd demeanor and walked up to ask, “So you are the Li Sanjian who bested the merchants? Why do you seem dissatisfied with me?”

“Chief,” Fu Gui quickly interjected, “Sanjian is still a child, not yet sensible. Please don’t take offense.”

Wang Kunrui nodded, “He does seem clever enough. Not bad. Wen’er talks about you constantly. But your health is too frail.”

As if I’m being chosen for a son-in-law—who cares whether I’m healthy or not? Li Sanjian thought in irritation, though outwardly he betrayed no sign of his dislike, replying lightly, “Chief, you overpraise me. I am ashamed.”

“So bookish—not like our clan at all,” Wang Kunrui remarked, shaking his head.

I’m not Li to begin with, Li Sanjian mused. His father was Han, and though his mother was Li, he followed his father’s line and thus was a Han by birth.

“Chief, may I ask the reason for your visit? Is there anything you wish to instruct us?” Fu Gui inquired. For someone of Wang Kunrui’s status to visit such a humble place was unusual, so Fu Gui could not help but ask.

Wang Kunrui shook his head, “No instructions—you’ve all done well enough. Today, I came for him.”

He pointed at Li Sanjian.

“Sanjian? Chief, do you mean…?” Fu Gui asked in surprise.

“Yes, him,” Wang Kunrui confirmed. “Today, I came for him. My village lacks a clerk, and he will fill the post. Pack up and come with me.”

“Chief, Sanjian is still young—isn’t this inappropriate?” Fu Gui said anxiously.

If Li Sanjian went with Wang Kunrui, his status would rise greatly—but from then on, he would be Wang Kunrui’s servant, driven like a beast of burden, his life and death in Wang Kunrui’s hands.

“Please, Chief, have mercy on Sanjian. He is all I have left,” pleaded Fu Erniang, disregarding her lowly status.

Wang Kunrui glanced at her—she was comely and fresh-faced, though a bit older. If not for her age, he might have taken her as a concubine and adopted Li Sanjian as his foster son.

“What do you think you’re doing? Is life in my village so unbearable? Let me tell you, in my village there is wine and meat every day—a good life. Would he suffer? Today I don’t care if you agree or not—he’s coming,” Wang Kunrui declared arrogantly.

As Dong Lord, Wang Kunrui had business dealings with Han merchants like Chen Yide. He had heard how Li Sanjian’s accounting forced Chen Yide and his cohort to raise their purchase prices, and was intrigued, eager to bring Li Sanjian in to help him amass wealth.

Wang Kunrui’s words enraged the brothers Fu Ding and Fu Lin, who gripped their pearl-diving knives and glared at him with hostility.

No matter Wang Kunrui’s power, if he tried to take Li Sanjian by force, Fu Ding and Fu Lin would fight him, even at a disadvantage.

Wang Kunrui’s overbearing attitude had already provoked Li Sanjian; his frail chest heaved as he suddenly pointed at the sky and asked, “Why is this so?”

“The heavens—what do you mean?” Wang Kunrui asked, puzzled.

Li Sanjian smiled, his white teeth flashing. “Yes, the sky. Now, tell me, where are we?”

“Qiongtai, Danzhou—enough with the nonsense. Are you coming or not? If you refuse, you break the dong’s law. Do you know how severe my family discipline is?” Wang Kunrui grew impatient.

Li Sanjian laughed. “You want to judge me guilty? It’s not so easy. Yes, this is Qiongtai, Danzhou—territory of the Great Song, not your private domain. ‘All under heaven belongs to the king; all within the seas are his subjects.’ You and I are both subjects of Song, and both bound by its law. Is your family discipline above the law of Song? What crime have I committed? If you want me to go with you, at least give me a reason. Otherwise, I will not go.”

Li Sanjian knew enough of the law to defend himself, even if he didn’t know the Song Code by its proper title. If only that old man were still here, Wang Kunrui wouldn’t dare act so brazenly. The old man’s identity must have been extraordinary, Li Sanjian thought.

“Yes, what law has Sanjian broken that you can take him away?” the villagers cried angrily.

“If you can’t say, no one will let you take him today,” Fu Ding and Fu Lin declared.

“What are you trying to do—rebel?” Wang Kunrui shouted, his voice booming over the villagers.

“You’re right, boy,” Wang Kunrui said, growing more impressed with Li Sanjian’s eloquence. “But this is my land, and even if the emperor’s edict came, if I’m displeased, I can ignore it. I’m kindly offering you the post of clerk, and you refuse. Don’t blame me—men, take him away!”

At his command, his guards moved in to seize Li Sanjian. Fu Ding and Fu Lin stepped up with their men to block them; tension filled the air, but outnumbered, Fu Ding and Fu Lin were at a clear disadvantage.

“Wait!” Li Sanjian shouted, seeing things were dire.

“What, changed your mind? Too late,” Wang Kunrui sneered.

At this point, Li Sanjian had no choice but to yield; otherwise, his whole family might end up in Wang Kunrui’s dungeons.

“I… I can’t read Han characters,” Li Sanjian stammered, embarrassed.

There was a moment of stunned silence, then laughter broke out among the crowd.

“What? You can’t read?” Wang Kunrui was dumbfounded. After all that effort, it was for nothing—a clerk who couldn’t read, how ridiculous! And most of his dealings were with Han merchants; how could someone who was illiterate manage the accounts?

“Father, Third Brother really can’t read—he only knows how to paint,” Wang Wen whispered.

“Pah! Why didn’t you say so earlier?” Wang Kunrui glared at Li Sanjian. “I’ll spare you this time for Wen’er’s sake. But if you cross me again, you’ll wish you were dead.”

With that, Wang Kunrui stormed off with his men. Before she left, Wang Wen looked back at Li Sanjian, her pretty eyes full of apology.

...

“Sanjian, you and your mother should run. Tomorrow, I’ll send a boat to take you away,” Fu Gui said.

“Why should I run? Grandfather, don’t worry—I’ll find a way,” Li Sanjian replied.

He understood what Fu Gui meant: offending the Dong Lord made life dangerously uncertain on this island.