A Devil’s Proposal

LUO FAN

After taking a deep breath, I pulled the rope attached to a heavy pail at the bottom of the well. Filled with water, it weighed even more that I had to pause halfway through to take another deep breath before pulling again.

Jinjing had gone to the market to buy food, so while waiting, I had decided to fetch water and wash the dishes. She did not want me to do any chores just yet in fear that I might aggravate my injury, but I did not want to be a freeloader, so I had to make myself useful in any way I could.

Finally, the pail was out of the well and I reached over to grab it. I poured the water into another pail and when I straightened up, I found myself gasping.

I could not believe how my strength had diminished. Even a woman or a child could overpower me in a duel with very little effort.

It had been months already. I should have at least partially recovered by now, but I was getting weaker with each passing day instead.

The giggles of three women standing nearby caught my attention. They were whispering to each other, but with my enhanced hearing, I could clearly hear every word they said.

“I feel sorry for this man,” one of them said. “He’s too beautiful to end up as Jinjing’s plaything.”

“I heard Jinjing found him beaten on the road and took him in, so this man serves her in bed to return the favor.”

“Oh, lucky her.”

“What do you mean lucky? A man and a woman living under the same roof while unmarried? They should be ashamed of themselves.”

I wanted to cut in and set things clear, but I had no energy to bother with them. I’d rather take the water back home before Jinjing returned.

I lifted the pail and left.

Along the way, I pondered about the things that the women had mentioned. I might have tainted Jinjing’s reputation even more for staying with her.

When I made it back in the house, Jinjing was already there and was cooking something. The moment she saw me carrying a bucket of water, she rushed to me and took the bucket from me.

“I told you not to carry heavy loads yet,” she scolded me as she carried the bucket of water to the kitchen. “You still have not fully recovered. If you vomit blood again, I’ll have to call the physician to check on you and we don’t have the money to pay.”

I felt guilty. Every time money was mentioned, I was helpless. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to be of some use to you.”

“Don’t worry about that, I’ll make certain to make good use of you when you’re healthy. For now, the least you can do is not to overwork yourself to minimize expenses, or I’ll make you work harder the moment you recover.”

I smiled. I knew she was just humoring me.

“Sit down and rest,” she said. “I’ll cook something delicious for you.”

I sat by the table. I had only carried a bucket of water and already my chest had tightened. I had to put in extra effort just to breath.

Half an hour later, she set the table. The smell of fish and vegetables delighted my senses.

From where I came from, fish was a luxury. Kan Empire was surrounded by mountains, tall rocky mountains where trees wouldn’t grow and blocked the empire’s access to the western sea. The southern part was nothing but desert. The northern part was eternally frozen with snow. Almost half of the empire was uninhabited and even unexplored.

The remaining half, however, the central and eastern parts, had an abundance of fertile land, and that was why the empire had managed to flourish despite its hostile surroundings. But water had always been a problem in summer. Without rain for even just two months, rivers, lakes and fishponds dried up, so naturally, the fishes could not cope with the changing of the seasons that made their habitat unstable. Even if a few could survive, they would be all sent to the palace or to the residences of selected high-ranking officials and nobles.

It was a crime for a commoner to eat fish during summer, punishable by ten lashes or ten days of hard labor. Ridiculous as it may sound, it was a fact.

Xianru Empire, however, was different. Surrounded by bodies of water and a rainy season that could last for six months, fishes thrived all over the place, and that was why they were abundant and cheap. It’s definitely a food for commoners.

While we were eating, I noticed Jinjing’s strange silence. I had been with her for a while already, so I knew there was something she wanted to tell me, but she was holding back for some reason.

“Is there something you want to discuss with me?” I asked.

She took a deep breath and laid a coin on the table before me. “Here,” she said.

I reached out to fondle the coin. It felt like silver. “Where did you get this?”

“Remember that scary man that blocked our way and called me a whore the other night?” she asked.

Who could forget? Even though I had met that man just once and only for a brief moment, he had certainly engraved himself in my memory with the amount of insults that he had thrown at us. But more than that, he was the only one in this empire who knew my real identity. “Why would he give you this?”

She sighed and was silent for a moment. “He… he wanted me to convince you to join him for dinner tonight.”

My finger stiffened over the coin. I suddenly had a bad feeling about this. “And you agreed?”

“I did not want to. I was afraid he had nothing but bad intentions toward you, but he promised me that he has none of that. He only wants to talk to you. To assure me, he even prearranged the dinner at the restaurant. In front of many people, I don’t think he will dare harm you.”

I shook my head and pushed the coin towards her. “Jinjing, give that back to him.”

“Fan…” She reached out and lightly touched my hand. “It’s not that I’m selling you out. The mister gave me this not as a payment for you, but for me, for my effort to try and convince you. I accepted it because right now we’re in a dire situation… I had borrowed money from a friend to buy your medicines and… she needs the money back. I have nothing to pay her with.”

I closed my eyes and sighed. This was my fault. Because of me, she had incurred debt. I shouldn’t let her carry the burden alone. “He will only talk to me, right?” I asked. “Nothing more?”

“He had given me his word. Don’t worry, I will accompany you.”

I sighed again. “Fine.”