The walk back to Willow Village was a quiet affair, punctuated only by the rhythmic tapping of the stranger's crutch against the hard-packed dirt road and the satisfied clucking of the chickens from the basket on Li Wei's back.
They had stopped briefly at a grain stall on the edge of town. Li Wei, feeling the weight of the fifty-four copper coins in his pocket, had splurged slightly. He bought twenty *jin* of coarse bran and rice husks—a heavy sack that strained his shoulders—and two large, meat-filled buns from a street vendor.
The stranger, who had introduced himself as **Qin Hu**, walked with a limp that spoke of old bones set wrong. He didn't ask for food, but his eyes tracked the steam rising from the buns in Li Wei's hand with a haunting intensity.
Li Wei stopped by a large banyan tree off the road. He sat the sack down and handed a bun to Li Hua, then held one out to Qin Hu.
Qin Hu stared at the bun as if it were a weapon. "I don't need charity."
"It's not charity," Li Wei said, taking a bite of his own bun. The meat was fatty and the dough was tough, but to his starved taste buds, it was ambrosia. "It's an employment benefit. You work for me, you eat. That's the rule."
Qin Hu hesitated for a long second, his jaw working under his beard. Finally, he snatched the bun with a calloused hand and took a ferocious bite, eating as if he expected it to be taken away.
"Slow down," Li Hua muttered, her mouth full. "You'll choke. There's water in the gourd."
Qin Hu paused, looking at the girl, then at the boy. He swallowed the lump of dough and meat whole. "Why?"
"Why what?" Li Wei asked.
"Why hire a cripple?" Qin Hu's voice was raspy, stripped of pride. "You saw me. I can't run. I can't carry heavy loads. I'm useless in the fields. Other bosses would chase me away."
Li Wei wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I don't need a field hand. I have brothers for that. I need a guard. I need someone who knows the smell of blood and won't panic when trouble comes. You have that look."
Qin Hu fell silent. He finished the bun in two more bites, licking the grease from his fingers.
"I was a Sergeant in the Northern Garrison," he said suddenly, his eyes fixed on the distant mountains. "Five years fighting the barbarians. A horse fell on me during a charge. The army gave me two strings of cash and sent me home. My village is gone. My family is gone. I've been sleeping in alleys for six months."
"Then you have experience managing men," Li Wei noted. "And you know discipline. That's worth more than two good legs."
Qin Hu looked at Li Wei sharply. The boy didn't look at him with pity. He looked at him like a resource. It was a look Qin Hu recognized. It was the look officers gave to soldiers before a battle.
"I'll work," Qin Hu said, gripping his crutch. "But I won't be treated like a beggar."
"Deal," Li Wei nodded. "Let's go home."
***
**The Courtyard Uproar**
Arriving at the Li family compound with a stranger was like dropping a stone into a still pond.
It was late afternoon. The women were preparing dinner, and the men were returning from the fields. When Li Wei walked in with a tall, scarred man limping behind him, the chatter in the courtyard died instantly.
Li Dazhong, who was washing his feet at the well, stood up abruptly.
"Wei'er, who is this?" His voice was guarded. Villagers were wary of outsiders, especially rough-looking men who looked like they had seen war.
"This is Qin Hu," Li Wei announced, setting the heavy sack of bran down with a grunt. "He's going to be working for us."
Mother Zhao Lan came out, wiping her hands on her apron. She looked at Qin Hu's tattered clothes and the dangerous aura he exuded, and she instinctively pulled Little Chen behind her.
"Working for us?" Li Dazhong frowned deeply. "We barely have enough food for ourselves. We can't afford to feed another mouth, especially a grown man!"
"He doesn't eat much," Li Wei lied smoothly. Qin Hu shot him a look but said nothing. "Father, I sold the eggs today. Fifty-four coins. I bought feed for the chickens for two weeks. And I bought Qin Hu's labor for cheap."
"Cheap?" Dazhong's voice rose. "You spent money we don't have on a stranger?"
"He saved Hua and me from thugs in town," Li Wei said, his voice cutting through the noise. He didn't shout, but his tone carried a new weight. "Two men tried to rob us. Qin Hu stepped in. Without him, we would have lost the money, or worse."
The courtyard went silent. The fear in Li Hua's eyes confirmed the story.
Dazhong looked at the man again. The injury, the scars, the straight spine despite the crutch. He saw a soldier.
"You… saved my children?" Dazhong asked, his tone softening from anger to grudging respect.
Qin Hu stood straight, giving a short, military nod. "It was nothing. Just clearing trash."
Dazhong sighed, rubbing his temples. He looked at the sack of bran, then at the man.
"We have a leaky tool shed near the back wall," Dazhong said finally. "It's dry, but cold. We can't promise meat every day. Just thin porridge and a roof."
Qin Hu bowed his head slightly. "That is more than enough. I am grateful."
"I'll get some blankets," Mother Zhao Lan said, her maternal instincts overriding her fear. "You look like you haven't slept in a real bed in months."
As the family dispersed to make room for the guest, Grandpa Li emerged from the main house. He walked slowly, leaning on his cane. He stopped in front of Qin Hu.
The old man looked at the soldier's injured leg, then up at his eyes.
"Northern Garrison?" Grandpa Li asked.
"Yes," Qin Hu replied.
"Good men died there," Grandpa Li said quietly. "You survived. That's a blessing. Welcome to Willow Village, Soldier."
Qin Hu's stoic mask cracked for a second, revealing a flicker of deep, profound gratitude.
***
**The Expansion Plan**
That night, after a dinner where Qin Hu was given a slightly larger portion of porridge (thanks to a surreptitious ladle from Mother), Li Wei sat with his father and grandfather in the main room.
The oil lamp flickered, casting long shadows.
"Wei'er," Dazhong said, sipping hot water. "You sold the eggs for a good price. But this plan of yours… it's risky. Relying on a stranger?"
"Qin Hu is a tool, Father," Li Wei said, using the business language he was comfortable with. "A tool to protect our assets. And we have more assets now."
He pulled out the remaining coins from his pocket. He had spent some on the grain and food, but he still had a decent amount left.
"I need to talk to the Village Chief tomorrow," Li Wei said.
"About what?"
"About the hill."
Li Wei pointed towards the window, in the direction of the sloping, barren hill that bordered the village's western side. It was rocky, overgrown with useless thorny bushes, and considered cursed land by the villagers because nothing grew there well.
"That land is wasteland," Dazhong scoffed. "The soil is too thin. It's full of rocks."
"I know," Li Wei nodded. "That's why no one wants it. That's why I want to lease it."
"For what?" Grandpa Li asked, leaning forward.
"For the ranch," Li Wei said. "The backyard is too small. If we want to grow, we need space. I want to lease the hill. I'll clear the rocks. I'll plant grass."
"Grass?" Dazhong looked at him like he was crazy. "You want to pay money for grass? Grass grows everywhere!"
"Not the kind I need," Li Wei said. He tapped his temple. "I learned a method. A special kind of grass that grows fast and is nutritious. If I have the hill, I can expand the chickens. I can keep them there during the day. And eventually… I can buy a goat. Or a calf."
The room was silent. A calf. In the eyes of a poor farmer, owning a cow was the ultimate dream. It meant wealth. It meant status.
"A calf costs five taels of silver," Dazhong whispered. "We are far from that."
"Then we start with the hill," Li Wei pressed. "I will go to the Chief tomorrow. I will ask for the rights to use the wasteland. It costs the village nothing, and I will pay a small annual fee in copper coins. It benefits everyone."
"It will be hard work," Grandpa Li murmured. "Clearing that hill… it breaks backs."
"I have two brothers," Li Wei smiled slightly. "And now, I have a soldier. We have hands."
***
**The Village Chief**
The next morning, Li Wei woke up to the sound of metal striking stone.
He walked to the backyard. Qin Hu was already up. He had found an old hoe and was breaking up the hard ground near the tool shed, leveling the floor to make it stable for a bed. His movements were practiced, efficient, and despite the leg, he moved with a fluidity that conserved energy.
"You don't have to do that," Li Wei said.
"Idle hands make idle minds," Qin Hu grunted, wiping sweat from his brow. "I work. I sleep better."
"Good," Li Wei nodded. "Because today, we have a lot of work. We're going to see the Chief."
Willow Village's Chief, Elder Liu, was a wizened man in his sixties who sat most of the day under the old locust tree in the center of the village, drinking tea and listening to gossip. He was the arbiter of minor disputes and the liaison for the county government.
Li Wei approached him respectfully, carrying a small pouch of the high-quality tea leaves he had bartered for in town.
"Elder Liu," Li Wei bowed, presenting the tea. "A small token for your health."
Elder Liu raised an eyebrow. He took the pouch, sniffed it, and smiled. "Li Wei? Third son of Dazhong? I heard you were raising chickens. And brought home a… fierce guest."
News traveled fast.
"Yes, Elder," Li Wei said. "The chickens are doing well. But I have a problem. My yard is too small."
He gestured to the western hill.
"I wish to lease the West Slope. The wasteland."
Elder Liu nearly choked on his tea. "The West Slope? Boy, that land is useless. It's full of thorns and vipers. Why would you want it?"
"I want to clear it," Li Wei explained. "I want to plant fodder for my livestock. It will help the village too—clearing the thorns means fewer snakes coming into the village. And I will pay the village five hundred copper coins a year for the lease."
Five hundred coins. It wasn't a fortune, but for the village public fund (which usually sat empty), it was a windfall. And for land that was currently generating zero income? It was free money.
"You have five hundred coins?" Liu asked, skeptical.
"I have the eggs," Li Wei said confidently. "And I will have more. I will pay the first half-year in advance. Three hundred coins."
He didn't actually have three hundred coins right now. He had about forty. But he knew the eggs were coming in consistently. He was betting on the next few weeks.
The Elder stroked his beard. He looked at the eager boy, then at the terrifying soldier standing silently behind Li Wei, arms crossed.
"If you clear it, it's yours to use for ten years," Elder Liu decided. He was pragmatic. If the boy failed, the village kept the money and got free land clearing. If he succeeded, the village got rent. "But don't come crying to me when your back breaks from moving those rocks."
"I won't, Elder," Li Wei bowed deeply. "Thank you."
***
**The First Strike**
By afternoon, Li Wei stood at the base of the West Slope.
It looked daunting. A jagged scar of yellow earth and gray rocks, covered in dense, thorny buckthorn bushes.
"We really doing this?" Li Jun asked, looking at the hill with despair. He had been roped into this, lured by the promise of a bonus from Li Wei's future earnings.
"We are," Li Wei said. He handed Jun a sickle. "Qin Hu, you take the left flank. Cut the thorns. Jun and I will start piling the rocks."
Qin Hu looked at the hill. He didn't complain. He adjusted his crutch under one arm, pulled a machete from his belt, and limped towards the thicket.
"A hill," Qin Hu muttered, slicing through a thick thorn branch with a vicious *snick*. "I've held hills against ten thousand men. I can hold this one against some weeds."
Li Wei picked up a heavy rock, feeling the strain in his lower back. He looked at the barren, rocky soil.
**[System Analysis: Soil Quality - Low (Rocky, Eroded).]**
**[Recommendation: Remove surface debris. Irrigation potential: Medium (underground spring detected 15 meters down).]**
**[Quest Unlocked: Reclaim the Wasteland.]**
**[Objective: Clear 1 Mu (approx. 667 sqm) of land and plant Ryegrass.]**
**[Reward: Knowledge Download - 'Introduction to Irrigation Canals'.]**
Li Wei grinned, heaving the rock into a pile.
*An underground spring.* If he could get water here, the grass would grow. If the grass grew, the cows would come.
"Let's work!" Li Wei shouted, swinging his pickaxe.
The sun beat down on them. Sweat soaked their tunics. Their hands blistered.
But as the sun began to set, casting long shadows, a small patch of the hill was visible. Just a small square of cleared earth.
But to Li Wei, it looked like the first page of a new book.
He looked over at Qin Hu. The soldier had cleared a path three times as wide as theirs, his machete flashing in the dying light. He was sweating, his injured leg trembling slightly, but his face was set in a mask of determination.
Li Wei walked over and handed him a waterskin.
"Good work, Boss," Qin Hu said, breathless. He wiped his face, and for the first time, there was no despair in his eyes. There was purpose.
"Good work, Qin Hu," Li Wei corrected, patting his shoulder. "This is just the beginning."
He looked up at the sky. The first stars were appearing.
*Empire Sky,* he thought. *One rock at a time.*