own bed will have all of their blossoms torn down. And whoever reports someone else for stealing blossoms will be awarded one or two medium-sized blossoms.”
The professors and scholars all gazed up at the Child standing solemnly on the stool. As the sun shone down on him, his face glowed bright red. It seemed as though the light emitted a crackling sound as it radiated outward. “Back in the county seat, I reported grain production of fifteen thousand jin per mu ,” the Child said. “Our ninety-ninth’s rate of production is not only by far the highest in the region, it is even the highest in the entire county. We are in first place. There had been someone who reported grain production of ten thousand jin per mu , and he was first, but after he left we took his place.”
The Child proudly lifted his arm into the air. “Everyone sees that our district has a large red blossom made from red slick paper issued by the county chief.” He made a fist and said, “These small blossoms are also made from slick paper, and even if you wanted to make some for yourselves, you wouldn’t be able to obtain the same shiny paper.”
“The final thing,” the Child said, gazing down at everyone in attendance, “is that we can’t lie idle all winter. Instead, we must watch the soil, look for fertilizer, and work on irrigation. If water can’t reach the fields, we will need to carry it ourselves. When the wheat is ripe, and the grains are thicker than a man’s finger, our per- mu production will definitely exceed fifteen thousand jin .”
The Child shouted, “Are you firmly resolved to produce fifteen thousand jin per mu ?”
The Child’s question echoed throughout the entire region, through the mountains and rivers.
The crowd stared up at him in surprise.
“Are you or are you not resolved to accomplish this?” the Child asked again in a loud voice.
A silence permeated the courtyard.
The Child shook his fist and shouted once more, “Are you resolved, or not?”
Everyone turned away from the Child, and instead looked at one another. It seemed as though they hadn’t understood what the Child had said, and were waiting for someone to explain it to them. The sun’s warm yellow light shrouded their faces, each becoming startlingly yellow, sparkling in the sunlight. Sparrows flew over the walls of the district’s courtyards. Everything was surprisingly quiet. The sky was extremely still, and the courtyard was as silent as a dark lake, capable of drowning someone. The Child couldn’t bear this silence any longer, so he jumped down from the stool and went into his room to retrieve the key to the cabinet. He took out that cardboard box and grabbed a handful of small red blossoms, then held one up and said,
“Tell me, are you resolved to produce fifteen thousand jin per mu ?”
When no one answered, the Child held up another blossom. When still no one answered, he added two more. After the Child had eight blossoms in the air, he stopped and his face turned frosty. He shouted,
“I’ll give these eight blossoms to whoever answers first!”
One person suddenly stood up and said, “We can—we can definitely produce fifteen thousand jin !”
That was the young Technician who kept trying to catch adulterous couples. He was awarded the eight red blossoms.
The Child grabbed five more red blossoms and asked, “Has anyone else made up their mind?”
“I will!” This was another young person. He shouted and raised his hand, then went to solemnly accept his five blossoms.
The Child asked again. A group of people waved their hands in response, “We can! We can definitely produce fifteen thousand jin of grain per mu !” They each accepted two or three blossoms awarded to them. The Child asked yet again, and another group of people responded. Their cheers resonated not only throughout the courtyard, but also across the fields, and even down to the river dozens of li away. The big river. The mother river.
Those who
The professors and scholars all gazed up at the Child standing solemnly on the stool. As the sun shone down on him, his face glowed bright red. It seemed as though the light emitted a crackling sound as it radiated outward. “Back in the county seat, I reported grain production of fifteen thousand jin per mu ,” the Child said. “Our ninety-ninth’s rate of production is not only by far the highest in the region, it is even the highest in the entire county. We are in first place. There had been someone who reported grain production of ten thousand jin per mu , and he was first, but after he left we took his place.”
The Child proudly lifted his arm into the air. “Everyone sees that our district has a large red blossom made from red slick paper issued by the county chief.” He made a fist and said, “These small blossoms are also made from slick paper, and even if you wanted to make some for yourselves, you wouldn’t be able to obtain the same shiny paper.”
“The final thing,” the Child said, gazing down at everyone in attendance, “is that we can’t lie idle all winter. Instead, we must watch the soil, look for fertilizer, and work on irrigation. If water can’t reach the fields, we will need to carry it ourselves. When the wheat is ripe, and the grains are thicker than a man’s finger, our per- mu production will definitely exceed fifteen thousand jin .”
The Child shouted, “Are you firmly resolved to produce fifteen thousand jin per mu ?”
The Child’s question echoed throughout the entire region, through the mountains and rivers.
The crowd stared up at him in surprise.
“Are you or are you not resolved to accomplish this?” the Child asked again in a loud voice.
A silence permeated the courtyard.
The Child shook his fist and shouted once more, “Are you resolved, or not?”
Everyone turned away from the Child, and instead looked at one another. It seemed as though they hadn’t understood what the Child had said, and were waiting for someone to explain it to them. The sun’s warm yellow light shrouded their faces, each becoming startlingly yellow, sparkling in the sunlight. Sparrows flew over the walls of the district’s courtyards. Everything was surprisingly quiet. The sky was extremely still, and the courtyard was as silent as a dark lake, capable of drowning someone. The Child couldn’t bear this silence any longer, so he jumped down from the stool and went into his room to retrieve the key to the cabinet. He took out that cardboard box and grabbed a handful of small red blossoms, then held one up and said,
“Tell me, are you resolved to produce fifteen thousand jin per mu ?”
When no one answered, the Child held up another blossom. When still no one answered, he added two more. After the Child had eight blossoms in the air, he stopped and his face turned frosty. He shouted,
“I’ll give these eight blossoms to whoever answers first!”
One person suddenly stood up and said, “We can—we can definitely produce fifteen thousand jin !”
That was the young Technician who kept trying to catch adulterous couples. He was awarded the eight red blossoms.
The Child grabbed five more red blossoms and asked, “Has anyone else made up their mind?”
“I will!” This was another young person. He shouted and raised his hand, then went to solemnly accept his five blossoms.
The Child asked again. A group of people waved their hands in response, “We can! We can definitely produce fifteen thousand jin of grain per mu !” They each accepted two or three blossoms awarded to them. The Child asked yet again, and another group of people responded. Their cheers resonated not only throughout the courtyard, but also across the fields, and even down to the river dozens of li away. The big river. The mother river.
Those who
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