Chapter 3: Gold is Born in Beautiful Waters, Jade Comes from Kunlun

Now, in the second year of Xi Ning (1069 AD), for He Fang, who had always barely passed history, this was a very unfamiliar era. However, relying on the memories of the original body, which included the Song Dynasty's Taizu, Taizong, Zhenzong, and the recently deceased Renzong and Yingzong Emperors, as well as familiar names like Wang Anshi, Sima Guang, Su Shi, and Liu Yong, along with the more familiar names of the Liao, Western Xia, and Dali states, He Fang confirmed the era he was in.

The Renzong Emperor, who had sat on the dragon throne in the Daqing Hall for forty-two years, passed away six years ago. Despite his long reign, he left no male heirs, only a multitude of princesses. As a distant cousin of the Renzong Emperor, the Yingzong Emperor ascended the throne as an adopted prince. However, the Yingzong Emperor, who was weak and often ill, did not rule for long. After just over four years, he followed his nominal father to the afterlife, leaving the vast empire to his eldest son, Zhao Xu, who was not yet twenty.

When the emperor ascended the throne, the era name changed. The Song Dynasty's era name changed from Zhiping to Xi Ning, and this year was the second year of Xi Ning. This new emperor, He Fang suddenly realized, must be the Song Shenzong Emperor, who was closely associated with Wang Anshi's reforms.

Right! Shenzong is a temple name, and a living emperor cannot be called by it. If he rashly referred to the current emperor as Shenzong, it would likely not end well. He Fang sighed inwardly; this was another piece of common knowledge left by the memories in his head.

Regardless of how to address the current emperor, He Fang was certain that Zhao Xu, dissatisfied with the accumulated problems of the past few decades in the Song Dynasty, intended to learn from Shang Yang's reforms to enrich the country and strengthen the military.

Even without his own shallow knowledge of history, just looking at this mighty empire with a million troops, which had to pay annual tribute to the Liao and Western Xia states to buy peace, would make any Song person with a sense of shame feel indignant. The great nation, known as China, was being bullied by the barbarians, and the humiliation was unbearable. Even He Fang, influenced by the residual memories, felt a deep resentment. If ordinary people felt this way, how much more so the emperor of the Song Dynasty, Zhao Xu, who was in his early twenties, an age of bold action and disregard for convention.

The reason He Fang was now lying on the bed, unable to move, ultimately stemmed from the Song Dynasty's weak military, which had been repeatedly bullied by the Western Xia.

The original owner of the body He Fang now occupied was named Han Gang, with the courtesy name Yuku. His name and courtesy name were given by his teacher in childhood, using the phrase "Gold is born in beautiful waters, jade comes from Kunlun" from the "Thousand Character Classic."

Thinking about this, He Fang couldn't help but smile bitterly. He was definitely in the Song Dynasty. Otherwise, his head wouldn't be filled with ancient texts and poems he had never read, nor would he know such allusions. These were all things Han Gang had memorized over the years since his early education.

The Han family was not wealthy, but in Xiaolongwan Village, which was as poor as most villages in Shaanxi, they were considered a well-off family. They owned about a hundred acres of land and one ox. They were not landlords; they worked the land themselves, hiring temporary workers only during the busy farming season. Their main business was growing vegetables. They planted vegetables like spring leeks and autumn cabbages in the fertile fields by the riverbank, selling them to the nearby Qinzhou city, which was just across the river, to maintain a comfortable life for over twenty years.

Han Gang was the third son of the family. Along with his two older brothers, he was fortunate to survive to adulthood. In the Song Dynasty, where the infant mortality rate was over fifty percent and even the imperial family was not immune to the loss of heirs, this was a small miracle.

Han Gang's eldest brother inherited the family business, his second brother joined the military, and he himself, being intelligent from a young age, was supported by his family to study. He started his education at eight and by twelve, he had read the Five Classics and other important texts, becoming a well-known scholar in the surrounding area. In the fourth year of Zhiping (1067 AD), when Han Gang turned sixteen, he bid farewell to his parents and, like other scholars, began traveling to study.

The Northern Song Dynasty had enjoyed a century of peace, and the literary atmosphere was thriving. Early scholars like Sun Fu and Hu Yuan, and more recent ones like Ouyang Xiu, Zhou Dunyi, and the current Wang Anshi, Sima Guang, Shao Yong, Cheng Hao, and Cheng Yi, were a continuous stream of famous and lesser-known scholars and Confucian masters.

In Guanzhong, there was also a renowned scholar and founder of a school of thought, Zhang Zai. Zhang Zai had many disciples in the Guanzhong region, and the school he founded was known as Guanxue. Han Gang had studied under him for two years, diligently and hard.

The state where the Han family lived, Qinzhou in Shaanxi, was not peaceful. Located on the northwestern border of the Song Dynasty, it faced the Western Xia, and thus experienced constant warfare. In the 21st century, He Fang had seen much of Shaanxi's culture and customs, but he had never experienced war. In the Northern Song Dynasty, however, Shaanxi was constantly at war with the Western Xia.

In Han Gang's memories, over twenty years ago, Li Yuanhao inherited his father's position and led the various Tangut tribes in the northwest. Li Yuanhao was cruel and promiscuous, even taking his daughter-in-law, and ultimately died at the hands of his own son. However, he was a remarkable person. He abandoned the surname granted by the Song Dynasty, claiming a Xianbei ancestor, and changed his surname to Weiming. He led the already semi-independent Tangut tribes of Yinxia, conquered the Hetao Plain, and declared himself emperor, establishing the Western Xia state. In just a few years, the Song army suffered three major defeats, losing tens of thousands of troops, and was forced to recognize the existence of the Western Xia state.

Since then, the border between the Song and Western Xia had never been quiet. The people of Guanzhong were either conscripted as laborers or directly enlisted in the military. Han Gang's father and eldest brother had both served as laborers, transporting grain to the front lines or building fortifications on the border. His second brother, after turning sixteen, joined the military. He fought in several battles, was injured multiple times, and eventually became a low-ranking officer named Zuo Shizhang.

The Han family had three sons, one farming, one in the military, and one studying, each with their own success, making them an enviable family in the village. But this year, everything changed.

In early April, the Western Xia army invaded again, attacking Qinzhou with over ten thousand troops. Han Gang's second brother went to war again, and his eldest brother, who was farming at home, was temporarily conscripted. However, neither of them returned. Han Gang, who had been studying under Zhang Zai for two years, was summoned back home by an urgent letter just after the Dragon Boat Festival.

He still remembered how Han Gang rushed home from his studies, falling ill on the way due to the rain and wind. He arrived home with a severe illness and never recovered. It was still mid-May when the weather was hot. Now, He Fang was covered with two thick quilts and still felt cold, not only because of his weak body but also because the weather had indeed turned cooler. Calculating the time, it was probably already late August or early September.

Lying in bed for three or four months due to pneumonia, He Fang deeply felt the advantages of the society a thousand years later. In the era he was in, human life was as light as a feather. Whether it was war or disease, a healthy young man could easily lose his life, and it was not something to be laughed off.

The illness also turned the Han family from a well-off household into a poor one. The two-story house was likely sold; otherwise, the room He Fang was in would not have been different from what Han Gang remembered. The hundred acres of land were also sold, and the remaining three acres of vegetable garden were still being coveted. He Fang overheard a conversation between the land buyer, Li Laizi, and his parents but did not know the final outcome, whether the remaining three acres of land were also sold.

Thinking about this, a burning flame of anger rose in He Fang's heart. Because of his presence, the family was taken advantage of, and both He Fang and Han Gang felt deep resentment.