Chapter Five: I Can Fix It

“Of course.” Xiong Dali looked at He Chong’an’s physique and said, “Young Master, if you’re heading to the battlefield, you need to train that body.”

After applying the medicine, Xiong Dali helped He Chong’an change his clothes.

Indeed, clothes make the man, and a saddle makes the horse.

He Chong’an wore a cotton-padded jacket underneath and a brocade robe over it. His hair was tied in a topknot, covered by a small golden crown fixed with a jade hairpin. Over all this was a bright red hooded cotton cloak that enveloped him entirely. In his hand, he held a copper hand warmer.

Anyone who saw him would ask, “Which noble family’s young master is this?”

He Chong’an felt a warm glow throughout his body.

The heavy snow in Beijing was no different from that by the Yongding River.

Yet He Chong’an’s feelings were different.

By the Yongding River, he only worried if the snow would swallow him whole.

But now, he found himself appreciating the snowy landscape.

Once ready, He Chong’an said to Xiong Dali, “Take me around the manor.”

“Certainly,” Xiong Dali replied.

He Chong’an strolled through the He family estate.

Many people avoided him, casting furtive glances and whispering among themselves.

Some spoke loud enough for He Chong’an to hear.

“That’s the marquis’s illegitimate son born outside wedlock.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. Illegitimate son? Do you want a beating?”

“I heard Madam He was quite formidable in her youth.”

“Madam He is known as a fierce woman from Hedong. How did he get in here?”

“Who knows?”

“Shh, don’t say such things inside the estate.”

Xiong Shili looked a bit embarrassed.

He Chong’an paid no mind and soon arrived at the moon gate in the rear courtyard.

But Xiong Shili stopped him, saying, “You can’t go further. That’s the back courtyard.”

“You’ve never been inside?”

“I have,” Xiong Shili said. “If there’s any rough work like moving things or repairing the house in the back courtyard, they come to the front courtyard to find people. But without Madam He’s permission, no male from the front courtyard may set foot in the back courtyard. It’s a strict separation between men and women.”

He Chong’an nodded, thinking to himself, “Meeting Madam He won’t be easy.”

Xiong Dali then led He Chong’an back to the front courtyard and briefly explained the layout of the Wuning Marquis’s residence: the front courtyard, back courtyard, and the old house. After the He family’s surrender and arrival in the capital, they were placed in the old house. Only after earning merit were they granted the marquis’s estate. The front and back courtyards formed a neat rectangle, with the old house jutting out on one side.

As He Chong’an approached the front courtyard, he saw a crowd gathered from a distance. Before he could get closer, a booming voice scolded loudly, “You don’t know how to do this or that! What will you do when you go to the battlefield?”

He pushed forward to the crowd’s edge and saw at the center a Western-style clock.

It was finely carved with dragons and phoenixes, exquisite in detail, but its hands and pendulum had stopped moving.

A craftsman said, “Seventh Master, you’re wrong. On the battlefield, with all kinds of weapons—blades, guns, cannons—we know how to fix them all. But this Western clock won’t be on the battlefield. It’s normal that we can’t repair it.”

Several craftsmen chimed in agreement.

“The marquis has long wanted to bring this device to the battlefield. Will you still be unable to fix it then?”

At this, the craftsmen fell silent, though some muttered softly, “We’ve never seen one before.”

Xiong Dali told He Chong’an this was the residence of He Ziqi, the marquis’s steward from a collateral branch of the He family. He Ziqi had once participated in battles but was later injured and convalesced at home. When the marquis went south with many soldiers, He Ziqi had to stay behind to manage affairs at the estate.

He Chong’an’s mind stirred. He thought, “This is an opportunity.”

Only by demonstrating his skills and gaining He Ziqi’s favor could he connect to Madam He.

He had never repaired such an antique clock, but he was confident that decades of study hadn’t been in vain.

“I can fix it.”

He Ziqi looked over and saw an unfamiliar youth. “Who are you?”

“I’m He Chong’an.”

“Ah, it’s you.”

The name sparked murmurs from the crowd.

Countless craftsmen regarded He Chong’an with strange eyes. Though silent, their gazes spoke volumes.

He Ziqi said, “So it’s you. You can fix it?”

“I learned a bit back in Guangzhou.”

He Ziqi pulled He Chong’an before the Western clock. “You fix it.”

“Seventh Master, isn’t that risky? This clock is very valuable.”

He Ziqi laughed heartily, “You can’t fix it yourselves, and now you won’t let others try? Go ahead.”

With He Ziqi’s words, no one dared object.

He Ziqi fetched tools and had Xiong Shili assist. They removed the heavy wooden panel behind the clock to inspect its complex mechanism.

But it did not trouble He Ziqi.

Though he had never repaired such an antique clock, he understood its structure well. Carefully, he disassembled each part, testing their functions.

Everything seemed fine.

He cleaned the parts of grease and dust with a handkerchief, oiled them, then wound the spring by turning the key at the back.

Then, “tick, tick, tick”—the pendulum began to swing steadily.

“Good. What was wrong with this clock?”

“Nothing wrong,” He Chong’an said. “It’s just that after so long without cleaning, dust clogged it. Clean it and oil it, and it works.”

In his view, mechanical devices of this era were crude and simple, with few problems. Many antique clocks ran for decades or even a century.

Hearing this, He Ziqi looked at the other craftsmen.

He didn’t know how to repair it himself, but he understood cleaning.

He scolded, “This is your skill? You can’t even fix a minor problem. What good are you?”

The craftsmen felt wronged but didn’t know how to respond.

He Chong’an’s ability came from his knowledge of physics and chemistry and a grasp of mechanical principles. A glance allowed him to guess each part’s purpose, understand what was important and delicate, and what was unimportant and could be handled roughly.

The craftsmen, however, saw the mechanism as inscrutable, like a book written in an alien language, and dared not dismantle it carelessly. Besides, it was valuable.

Faced with He Ziqi’s harsh words, they kept silent and bowed their heads.

Yet their eyes held a mixture of confusion, shock, and admiration toward He Chong’an.

A true expert reveals their skill at once.

But only another expert can truly recognize it.

“Everyone, leave. This is no place for you,” He Ziqi said, patting He Chong’an’s shoulder. “Good lad, where did you learn this?”