97: The Column at the Northern Fold

The *forty* came up to the small accumulating *northern fold's* small accumulating refugee column at the noon of the fifth day of the third moon of the twelfth year.

The column was — by the small specific accumulating reading at the lip of a low rise overlooking the fold's accumulating *small flat place* — at the small accumulating *real* shape of a refugee column at its accumulating *running out*. There were — by the small specific accumulating count at An Ashi's accumulating eye — perhaps a hundred and fourteen people, not the hundred and twenty the peddler had said. They were — by the small specific accumulating reading at perhaps a hundred paces — sitting at the small flat place in the small accumulating *clusters* of small accumulating households. Perhaps thirty households. Perhaps a hundred and fourteen people across them.

By the small specific accumulating reading at the dust of the past three weeks at the column's accumulating face — they had not, by the small specific accumulating reading at the past two days, eaten.

Heizi stopped the *forty* at the lip.

He said in the small low voice: *brothers. By the small specific accumulating reading at this noon — the column is at the small accumulating *real* edge. We will, by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving, come down at the small accumulating *peasant-to-peasant* shape. We will not, by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving, come at the small accumulating *Wagang-troops* shape. The column is — by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving — at the small accumulating *afraid* shape of any small accumulating armed group at this dusk. We will, by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving, lay the small accumulating *sabers* at the small accumulating *first-cluster* of the *forty's accumulating arrival* and come down at the *forty-but-without-blades* shape, with the small accumulating *food-bundles* at the *first carry* of every small accumulating man."

The *forty* nodded.

By the small specific accumulating arrangement, the *forty's* sabers were laid at the small accumulating *first-cluster* of the lip — perhaps four hundred paces from the column, in a small accumulating *guarded* position with five of the *forty's* accumulating *most-trusted veterans* watching the small accumulating saber-pile and the small accumulating *return-direction* against any accumulating Sui patrol's small specific accumulating arrival.

The remaining *thirty-five* of the *forty* came down at the small accumulating *peasant-to-peasant* shape, with the small specific accumulating *food-bundles* the boy An Ashi had laid at every man's accumulating bundle.

The food-bundles were — by the small specific accumulating reading at the past three days' careful preparation — perhaps the small accumulating two-month-supply of the cold-spring camp's accumulating winter-grain at the small accumulating reduced portion. Each small accumulating *forty-man's* small accumulating bundle was — by the small specific accumulating reading — perhaps the small accumulating *seven-day-portion* of food for one of the small accumulating refugees. The total was — by the small specific accumulating arithmetic at the boy's accumulating slate — perhaps a hundred and forty *seven-day-portions*.

Enough — by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving — for perhaps the small accumulating two-week-supply of the column's accumulating one hundred and fourteen.

Heizi led the *thirty-five* down.

He went at the small accumulating *peasant-to-peasant* shape — without the *横刀*, with only the small accumulating *food-bundle* at his back. He stopped at the small accumulating *outer-edge* of the column's accumulating *first-cluster* perhaps fifty paces from the nearest small accumulating *household-cluster*.

He bowed, very slightly, at the small accumulating *peasant-to-peasant* bow he had laid at the small accumulating *family at the flat stone* of the past tenth year.

He said in the small low voice: *uncles. Da-niangs. Lads.*

The small accumulating column looked up.

Perhaps thirty pairs of eyes — by the small specific accumulating reading at the dusk's accumulating watching — turned at his small accumulating arrival.

The small accumulating eyes were — by the small specific accumulating reading at this noon — the eyes of perhaps a hundred and fourteen people who had been at the small accumulating *running out* shape for three weeks, fleeing from the small accumulating *real* counter-rebellion of the past four months at the lower country, and who had — by the small specific accumulating reading at the past two days — at the small accumulating *real edge*.

Heizi continued.

He said in the small low voice: *uncles. Da-niangs. By the small specific accumulating reading I am giving — we have come up from the small accumulating *cold-spring camp* of the upper-hills lower contour, four days south. We are forty men. By the small specific accumulating reading I am giving — we have brought, at the small accumulating *food-bundle* of every man, the small accumulating two-week supply of food for the column. We are laying it, by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving, at the small accumulating *immediate-need* of the column. We will, by the small specific reading I am giving, then escort the column south to the small accumulating *Wagang's accumulating refugee-receiving* sub-camp at a small accumulating town called Liyang, eight days east of the cold-spring camp.*

He paused.

"By the small specific reading I am giving — the column will, at Liyang's accumulating sub-camp, be received at the small accumulating *real* refugee-protocol of the small accumulating Wagang. By the small specific reading I am giving — that is the small accumulating *decision* the lad has made. The column will, by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving, accept or refuse."

A man — perhaps fifty, with a small accumulating thin grey beard and the small accumulating accumulating eyes of a man who had — by the small specific accumulating reading at the past three weeks' walking — been at the small accumulating *leader's accumulating reading* of the column — stepped forward at the small accumulating *first-cluster*.

He said in a small thin voice: *brother. We have not, by the small specific reading at the past three weeks, been at any small accumulating *Wagang* sub-camp. We have, by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving, been fleeing the small accumulating Sui at the lower country. We do not, by the small specific accumulating reading at the past three weeks, know whether the small accumulating Wagang's accumulating *refugee-protocol* is — by the small specific reading I am giving — at the small accumulating *real* shape or at the small accumulating *appearance* shape.*

He paused.

"Brother. The column will, by the small specific reading I am giving, accept the food. The food is — by the small specific reading I am giving — at the small accumulating *immediate-need*. The escort south, brother — the escort south is, by the small specific reading I am giving, at the small accumulating *waiting* shape. The column will, by the small specific reading I am giving, eat tonight and at the small accumulating *next morning* decide."

Heizi nodded.

He said in the small low voice: *uncle. By the small specific reading I am giving — yes. The food first. The decision after. By the small specific reading I am giving — the lad has, by the small specific accumulating reading at the past two years, also been at the small accumulating peasant-to-peasant shape. The lad understands, by the small specific accumulating reading at the past two years' upper-hills lower contour visits, that the small accumulating Wagang's accumulating *refugee-protocol* is, by the small specific reading I am giving, *not* at the small accumulating *real* shape at every small accumulating sub-camp. By the small specific reading I am giving — the small accumulating Liyang sub-camp is, by the small specific accumulating peddler-saying I have at the past four months, at the small accumulating *real* refugee-receiving shape. The brother and the column will, by the small specific reading I am giving, see for themselves at Liyang."

The man with the thin grey beard nodded.

He said in the small thin voice: *thank you, brother.*

The food-bundles came down.

The *thirty-five* laid them at the small accumulating *first-cluster's* central flat stone, in the small accumulating *peasant-to-peasant* shape Heizi had laid. The boy An Ashi at the small accumulating *quartermaster's accumulating eye* divided the small accumulating bundles by household, by the small specific accumulating *one-mark-knowing* of the column's accumulating households the boy had — at the past quarter hour at the lip — already laid in his head.

By the dusk, the column had eaten.

The first meal was — by the small specific accumulating reading at the past three weeks' running out — small. Each household ate perhaps a small specific *first portion*: a small clay bowl of millet, a small piece of dried hare, a small folded twist of salt. The boy laid the small accumulating *follow-up arrangement* at the small accumulating evening's careful instruction: *uncles, da-niangs — eat at the small accumulating reduced portion at the next two days. By the small specific reading I am giving — the body that has been at the small accumulating running-out for three weeks will, at the small accumulating full portion, refuse the food. We will, by the small specific reading I am giving, lay the small accumulating reduced portion at the next two days, then increase to the small accumulating full portion by the third day. The food is yours. We will, by the small specific reading I am giving, lay the small accumulating *medical eye* of Ah Chou at the small accumulating sick of the column. Ah Chou is — by the small specific reading I am giving — at the small accumulating *seeing-without-being-seen* shape of an old monastery's accumulating reading.*

Ah Chou — at the small accumulating *medic's eye* shape — went among the small accumulating households at the dusk. He laid the small accumulating *huang lian* salve at perhaps eight small accumulating sick. He laid the small accumulating *peasant-to-peasant* listening at perhaps fifteen small accumulating heads of household.

By the small specific accumulating reading at the dusk of the fifth day, the column was — at the small accumulating *initial-reception* — held.

That night Heizi at his watch sat at the small banked fire of a small accumulating *forty-and-column* shared fire at the small accumulating *outer-edge* of the column's accumulating *first-cluster*.

He listened.

The shape of the silence on this watch was — by the small specific reading at this evening — the shape of a small specific *forty* whose accumulating *master's accumulating call* had been honored at the small specific accumulating *immediate-need* of a hundred and fourteen refugees at the small accumulating *real* edge.

He filed it.

In the small lighter catalog of moments, beside the small specific noon of the family at the flat stone, he set: *the small specific dusk of the fifth day of the third moon of the twelfth year, when the *forty* fed a hundred and fourteen refugees at the small accumulating *first-cluster* of the northern fold.*

The lighter catalog stood at perhaps seventy-four items.

The dark catalog stood at twenty named names plus the *unnamed thousand*.

He sat his watch through.

In the morning, the man with the thin grey beard — by the small specific accumulating reading at the small accumulating *evening's accumulating decision* in his accumulating head — came to Heizi's small accumulating fire.

He said in the small low voice: *brother. The column has, by the small specific reading at the small accumulating *evening's discussion*, decided. We will, by the small specific reading I am giving, accept the small accumulating *escort south*. We will, by the small specific reading I am giving, walk to Liyang. The column will, by the small specific reading I am giving, see Liyang's accumulating sub-camp.*

Heizi nodded.

He said: *uncle. Yes. By the small specific reading I am giving — the *forty* will, at the small specific accumulating *fifteen-day-walk* south, escort the column. The walk is, by the small specific reading at the past three years' careful walking, perhaps fifteen days at the small accumulating column's accumulating careful pace. The *forty* will lay the small accumulating *guard* at every small accumulating night's accumulating camp. The food the column has at this dawn will, by the small specific accumulating reading I am giving, last the small accumulating walk plus a small accumulating reserve at the arrival.*

The man with the thin grey beard nodded.

He said: *thank you, brother. By the small specific reading I am giving — the column will follow.*

That morning, the *forty* and the small accumulating *one-hundred-and-fourteen* moved south.