Chapter 19: Don’t Go, Come Back…
Chapter 19: Don’t Go, Come Back…
The two of them soon reached the north bank and slipped into the dense reeds, walking one after the other as if they were on some wilderness survival show.
“What exactly else has Brother Yang done?”
Chen Yujie finally couldn’t hold it in any longer. He turned around and asked curiously.
“Actually, it was nothing too serious!”
Yang Xin said lightly. “According to my cousin, if judged by the Great Ming Code, it would just mean receiving two hundred strokes of the heavy bamboo, being hanged once more, and also having my head chopped off twice.”
Ahead, Chen Yujie stumbled, nearly kneeling in the mud at his feet.
“You are that runaway slave?”
He turned back and asked with a face full of shock.
“First, let me state clearly, I have nothing to do with that man surnamed Fu. What exactly happened, I’m still confused to this day. In short, I don’t know what occurred before all this. I remember nothing of the past. What I remember is his household servant whipping me. My only response to anyone who dares whip me is to take the whip and whip them back. Everything else that followed stemmed from that one whipping. Whether his servants ganged up on me or called in soldiers to arrest me, it all started because of that whip.”
Yang Xin said.
“I have also heard of cases of memory loss, but this still does not prove Brother Yang is not a slave of the Fu family.”
Chen Yujie shook his head and said.
“What if I really am?”
Yang Xin asked.
Chen Yujie was clearly an honest and decent gentleman. Such people were rare in those times, as precious as phoenix feathers. Yang Xin didn’t want to deceive such a person. Besides, although his appearance had changed quite a bit, it was still the same body. The change in looks was limited. If he really entered an official office and people familiar with him were found, there was still a high chance he’d be recognized.
Moreover, he lacked a Travel Pass.
He had no legal identity document.
Just this one offense, if caught by the authorities, would mean at least eighty strokes.
“Then it really would be a crime punishable by beheading!”
Chen Yujie said.
“Is there no other way?”
Yang Xin also found this problem troublesome. Although he could get fake documents and continue living under a false identity, this matter was ultimately a hidden danger.
“It’s not that there’s no way. Liaodong is in need of men right now. With Brother Yang’s bravery, you could conceal your identity, join the army, and earn merit on the battlefield. Even if the truth comes out later, you would surely receive leniency. If you can achieve great merit, an Imperial Edict could pardon all previous crimes. If Brother Yang truly intends this, I can write a letter of recommendation. I have some dealings with the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief of Liaodong, Regional Military Commander Li. If Brother Yang goes there and gains military merit, he will naturally protect you. Furthermore, even if you don’t receive an Imperial Edict of pardon, the Li Family has long guarded Liaodong. As long as Brother Yang proves useful to the Li Family, I believe living freely for the rest of your life is achievable.”
Chen Yujie said.
“How come you have friends everywhere?”
Yang Xin asked suspiciously.
“First, I am also from an established family. My social connections are beyond those of ordinary people. Second, although I have wasted years on the imperial examinations with no success, I have extensive knowledge in various fields, such as agriculture, calendar systems, and even things like casting cannons and building fortresses. These happen to be things many must rely on. Therefore, although I am not an official, no matter where I go, I receive due respect.”
Chen Yujie said with a smile.
This was about social circles. Even without an official title, he was not comparable to commoners.
“I can only gratefully decline Brother Chen’s kind offer!”
Yang Xin said.
Li Ruzhen didn’t have a good ending either.
But that guy brought it upon himself. His elder brother Li Rubai may have lost battles, but at least he knew how to fight. Li Ruzhen served as an Imperial Guard beside the Wanli Emperor for forty years and had never fought a battle. Throwing this piece of trash to Liaodong showed the Wanli Emperor was indeed old and muddle-headed. Following Li Ruzhen was even worse than agreeing to serve under Xiong Tingbi back then. At least Xiong Tingbi’s ‘shelf life’ was longer! Li Ruzhen lost Tieling and was immediately dismissed from office—moreover, it was Xiong Tingbi who impeached him. Then, after the Tianqi Emperor ascended the throne, he was thrown into prison and sentenced to death. Later, it was the Chongzhen Emperor who released him. Wouldn’t following such a person be asking for trouble?
Chen Yujie let out a slightly regretful sigh.
Yang Xin didn’t mind too much. What he needed was just to get through these next few years. Wasn’t there still our ‘Grandpa’ in the future? Once Nine Thousand Years Old soared to power, getting him to have the Tianqi Emperor issue an Imperial Edict would be simple. Would the Fu family of Dongchang dare provoke Nine Thousand Years Old? That would be a joke. With Nine Thousand Years Old as a powerful backer, who would even care about Li Ruzhen or Xiong Tingbi? One ended up in prison, the other had his head paraded around the Nine Garrisons. What future was there in following them?
Nine Thousand Years Old was the one with a bright future.
As long as the Tianqi Emperor lived, he would probably remain bright.
If one wanted to latch onto a powerful patron in the Great Ming of that time, none was more suitable than Nine Thousand Years Old.
“But since Brother Chen is Xu Guangqi’s nephew, let me give you a gift!”
Yang Xin said.
“What kind of gift?”
Chen Yujie asked with interest.
Yang Xin reached down, scooped up a lump of mud, quickly kneaded it into a ball, carved two characters on it, broke off a reed stalk and stuck it in, then casually planted it in the ground at his feet. Then he scooped up another lump and kneaded it into a ball. He kept doing this—scooping, kneading, carving characters on each one, and planting them in the ground. Soon, seven mud balls were planted in the ground. Then he began drawing circles around them, one by one…
“This is the earth beneath our feet. The earth is a sphere. The Portuguese have already proven this by sailing around the world. Magellan’s fleet kept sailing west, and three years later they returned to their starting point.”
He pointed at one mud ball and said.
He crouched down, picked up this mud ball bearing the characters for ‘Earth,’ held it up before Chen Yujie for him to see, then, under the other’s bewildered gaze, planted it back in the ground.
“This is the sun!”
He pointed at the larger ball in the center and said.
He began to rotate the Earth and moved it along the drawn circle around the Sun.
“The Earth in my hand completes one rotation itself, and that is one day. The sun rising and setting is simply because we are moving along with the earth beneath our feet. Night happens because the place where we are has turned away from the sun, but at the same moment, it is daytime in the homeland of the Red-Haired Barbarians. And the Earth, following this path, completes one revolution around the sun, and that is one year. Please note the posture of the Earth’s rotation in my hand. This reed stalk below represents the Earth’s axis. This axis is not vertical. The Earth’s rotation is like this too; it rotates on a tilt.
Remember this point, because it represents the cycle of the seasons.”
Yang Xin said.
“Slow down!”
Chen Yujie finally snapped out of it and cried out somewhat frantically.
“I will not slow down!”
Yang Xin said with a laugh.
At this point, one revolution was completed. He planted the Earth back in its place, then pointed at the other five balls.
“Mercury is closest to the sun. Second is Venus. Third is Earth. Fourth is Mars. Fifth is Jupiter. Sixth is Saturn. All the celestial bodies are like Earth, revolving around the sun in circles like this, never stopping. At the same time, they themselves are also constantly rotating. The former is called revolution, the latter rotation. Revolution takes one year, rotation takes one day.”
He said.
Uranus and Neptune were omitted.
They couldn’t see them anyway; that required more advanced telescopes.
“What about the moon?”
Chen Yujie said, nearly frantic.
“The moon? Ah, I almost forgot the moon!”
Yang Xin hurriedly made another, the smallest one, and placed it beside the Earth.
“This is the moon. It’s like the other celestial bodies, except our Earth is like its sun. It only revolves around us. And the principle of the moon rising and setting is the same as the principle of day and night alternating!”
He said.
“Alright, that’s all for now. Don’t ask me how I know this. Just know this is the world we live in. Know the truth about the cycle of seasons, the alternation of day and night, the rising and setting of the sun and moon. I’ll tell you more when there’s a chance in the future. Brother Chen, let us part ways here and go our separate paths!”
As Yang Xin said this, he cupped his hands in a farewell gesture, turned, and prepared to leave.
“Don’t go!”
Chen Yujie anxiously grabbed him by the sleeve.
“Brother Chen, I’m running for my life. If caught, I’ll be beheaded!”
Yang Xin turned back and said sincerely.
“No, no, you can’t leave. You must not leave like this!”
Chen Yujie said, somewhat incoherently.
His eyes were wide, bloodshot, as if he were a completely different person—transformed from a gentle, refined, modest gentleman into a beast locking onto its prey. The hand gripping Yang Xin’s clothes showed protruding veins.
Clearly, for a science-loving youth like him, having the door to a new world suddenly opened, only for that person to let him take a peek and then shut it, such behavior was driving him mad with frustration. In this state, he absolutely could not let this guy go. It must be said Yang Xin was shameless. By then, someone like Chen Yujie must have already heard bits and pieces about Heliocentrism from those Missionaries. However, those Missionaries didn’t know too much either; after all, Copernicus was also a heretic in Europe. Yet now Yang Xin suddenly presented the currently known solar system, even a system beyond Copernicus, laying it all out, clearing away all the mist, as if suddenly reaching the edge of a climax…
And then he actually turned to leave!
It was no wonder someone like Chen Yujie, who was passionate about Science, was going crazy!
“Brother Chen, please let go. This isn’t good.”
Yang Xin sighed and said.
“No, you cannot go. You must explain everything clearly!”
Chen Yujie said, gripping his clothes like an abandoned, resentful woman.
“I must go!”
Yang Xin said.
“You can’t go. You must explain all this clearly. Come with me to the capital. My uncle will guarantee your safety. He is the Junior Advisor of the Left in the Office of the Heir Apparent. Both our Xu and Chen families lack no silver. We will protect you with influence and money. You must come with me to the capital!”
Chen Yujie said.
What the heck was a Junior Advisor of the Left?
Yang Xin thought to himself. He couldn’t take that risk. If Xu Guangqi were a vice-minister level or higher, it might work. But what use was some obscure official title like Junior Advisor of the Left? Even if they could spend money for him, they probably couldn’t resolve his list of crimes. It might even be less secure than directly following Xiong Tingbi.
“Brother Chen, why must you do this? We’ve become friends. How could I put you in a difficult position?”
Yang Xin, like a scoundrel abandoning a woman, pushed at Chen Yujie’s arm, trying to pull his hand off his clothes.
Just then, the sound of voices came, followed by a large group of soldiers pouring out from the reeds.
“They’re here!”
The leader shouted.
“Brother Chen, farewell until we meet again!”
Having said that, Yang Xin didn’t hesitate. He swung his knife, cutting through his own clothes in one stroke, then kicked down Chen Yujie who was still trying to grab him, and dashed into the reed thicket at top speed.
Almost simultaneously, the soldiers rushed forward and seized Chen Yujie.
“Don’t go! Come back! Don’t touch the things on the ground…”
The latter’s shouts rang out incessantly.