Chapter 19: The First Name

Out of curiosity, Shi Qi asked around and discovered that it wasn’t just Li Si’s big black horse that had its hooves trimmed—every household in Li Family Village that kept livestock had already had their animals’ hooves tended to. These men dealt with animals all year round, so when hooved beasts stood side by side, it was easy to see the difference between those with freshly trimmed hooves and those without—just in appearance alone. There were plenty of people from Li Family Village heading to the county to earn a living, and they naturally noticed this as well.

After a round of inquiries, everyone realized their own animals’ hooves had grown too long, and decided to come and see for themselves. These men had arrived earlier, and they were from neighboring villages; with friends in the village, they had gathered even more news.

“The young fellow trimming the hooves is the son of Li San,” said a burly man named Ding San.

“Li San?” Shi Qi was taken aback; he knew Li San. After all, Li San’s family kept cattle, and occasionally went to the county for work. But he spent most of his time fishing.

However…

“Wasn’t it said not long ago that Li San drowned?” he asked, surprised.

“Yes, Li San drowned. And Li San’s wife, a little over ten days ago, ran into a wild beast at home—a tiger, they say. She was eaten. It was gruesome, they say—only her head and half a hand and foot were left…”

“What? A tiger?” Shi Qi was startled, his eyes wide. His mind flashed to reports he’d heard in the county. He quickly turned to one of the men: “Liang Wu, that monster near your Liang Family Village…it was a tiger demon, wasn’t it?”

Liang Wu, a burly fellow, nodded, brow furrowed. “Yes, it caused quite a stir. You all know Master Liang—he has good ties with the county, so officials came, even constables from the police bureau. They said, judging by the tracks at Master Liang’s place, it was a tiger demon…”

“And the one in Li Family Village…”

“That’s unclear. But I’d guess it was just a regular tiger, not a demon. After all, Li San’s son was there when it happened, and his big blue ox was killed by the tiger. But they managed to drive it off. If it had been a tiger demon, Li San’s son…wouldn’t have survived.”

A nearby man analyzed.

Shi Qi listened, stunned, then nodded instinctively. It was true: he knew well how frightening demons were—ordinary fighters were no match for them. If Li San’s big blue ox managed to drive off the beast, then it couldn’t have been a demon. What tiger demon would be chased off by a mere ox?

Most of them had seen Li San’s big blue ox before. Though robust, it was gentle. Shi Qi asked a few more questions, like where the tiger had gone.

“Li Jiu went to West Mountain the next day—said it had already escaped. No one knows where it is now, maybe deep in the mountains.”

“Li Jiu? The one from the Luo family in the county?” Shi Qi was startled.

The others nodded.

Shi Qi’s heart chilled. Li Jiu from Li Family Village was someone of status—even in the county, he carried weight.

“Li San’s son lost his father, then his mother—a pitiful child. Now he lives with Li Jiu. I heard Li San’s big blue ox is taken care of by him, and he’s got a remarkable talent for taming animals. He was the first to suggest trimming hooves.”

“After Li San’s wife died, the villagers helped with the funeral, and the boy, grateful, helped trim the hooves of all the livestock in Li Family Village. The difference in the animals is remarkable, so the boy decided to make a living from it.”

“Ah, such a good child, but his fate is bitter…”

As the men discussed, Shi Qi gradually understood the whole story.

While they chatted idly, another ox cart rolled out from the village, and everyone looked over.

“Wang Er? Is yours done?”

They recognized him—a man who worked at the dock all year round.

“All done!” replied Wang Er, smiling broadly.

“How’s the result?” The others looked on curiously.

“Excellent!” Wang Er exclaimed in awe. “You wouldn’t believe it—Li Family Village wasn’t lying. That Mu-ge’s skill with animals opened my eyes! My beast is as temperamental as they come; it kicks at strangers who get close. But today, Mu-ge just patted its head…strangely enough, told it to lie down, and it did; told it to get up, and it got up!”

Hearing this, the men were astonished. Of course, they’d heard tales of Mu-ge’s talent from Li Family Villagers—tales told with the usual exaggeration, making it sound miraculous. But since they’d never seen it, they were skeptical.

But now…

It didn’t seem exaggerated after all.

“And after the hooves were trimmed, I learned the real reason my beast kicked—it was because its hooves hurt, making it irritable. I hadn’t realized it before, but today I saw—a big stone had pierced the flesh. No wonder it was so bad-tempered…”

Wang Er looked at one leg of the ox.

The others looked and saw the hooves were neatly and beautifully trimmed, and the right hind leg was wrapped in something, with a wooden board fitted to the hoof, making a ‘clack-clack’ sound as it walked.

“What’s that wooden block?” Shi Qi and the others were intrigued, never having seen such a thing.

“I’ve heard about it—if the hoof is injured, you have to raise it up to prevent further damage. Only once it’s healed can the animal walk on it. That’s what the Li Family Villagers told me,” said Ding San.

“Indeed, Mu-ge told me the same thing,” Wang Er nodded with a smile.

“Mu-ge?” They’d heard Wang Er mention Mu-ge several times now, and curiosity grew.

“That’s Li San’s son, Li Mu. The villagers call him Mu-ge,” Wang Er explained, then sighed. “I’ve dealt with animals half my life, but I still don’t know them as well as this boy…it’s embarrassing, really…”

He sighed, but then his face twisted in pain. “This hoof trimming is fine, but it’s a bit expensive.”

“How expensive?” Shi Qi and the others tensed—they were here for hoof trimming too, but if the price was steep, they’d have to think twice.

“A regular hoof trim is one coin, but if the hoof needs treating, it’s five coins,” Wang Er said helplessly. “I only needed a regular trim, but since the hoof was injured, it cost five coins.”

Hearing this, the men looked at each other.

Shi Qi thought aloud, “It’s costly…but if the results are as good as they say, it’s worth it. As for treating injured hooves—five coins is cheap, really. If you went to the county’s animal doctor, you’d spend three or five taels of silver, at least.”

The others came to their senses.

“That’s true…so in that case, it’s not bad at all.”

“Animals are valuable—if it keeps them healthy, this money is worth it.”

They chatted among themselves. All relied on their beasts for their livelihoods; as long as the animals were healthy, they could afford the cost.

“Alright, I’ve got to go. You all better hurry, there aren’t many people inside now,” Wang Er said, then drove his ox cart away.

The others started heading into Li Family Village, curiosity in their eyes, eager to see for themselves how the hoof trimming was done.