I Don't Agree to the Terms

"Xia Zhang, carrying that bow around all day, don't you find it tiring?" On the way back home, a villager teased Xia Zhang.

Initially curious about the bronze bow on Xia Zhang's back, people got used to seeing it with him all the time. They would occasionally joke about it since Xia Zhang carried two bows and two quivers whenever he went hunting, making him quite conspicuous.

Xia Zhang responded with a simple smile, "Not tired, not tired."

With his physique, carrying that bronze bow was nothing. He wouldn't feel much even with eight or ten of them on his back.

Seeing this, the villager also laughed and then said, "Here, drink a cup of this freshly brewed tea to relieve some fatigue."

Saying that, he offered a big bowl of tea to Xia Zhang.

Xia Zhang didn't hesitate and took it, then drank it all in one gulp. He was already well acquainted with the man, one a hunter who ventured into the mountains, the other a tea stall owner at the village entrance.

Every time he returned, the stall owner would chat with him and even offer him a bowl of tea. The tea wasn't valuable, but it was given in generous amounts.

After drinking, Xia Zhang reached into his backpack to pull out a piece of meat as a return gift, but the owner refused.

The tea was so little in value that it would be embarrassing to accept Xia Zhang's game in return. After some insistence, the meat ended up back in Xia Zhang's basket.

"These days, the sun seems increasingly harsh," the owner wiped the sweat from his forehead. Even shaded under his tea canopy, he could feel sweat streaming down continuously.

Xia Zhang didn't reply but looked up at the glaring sun. Inside the sun's halo, it seemed like nine strange things had grown and were occasionally moving.

This phenomenon seemed to be visible only to him; nobody else could see it, even when he pointed it out.

"Maybe it's because summer is coming," Xia Zhang mused, touching the bronze bow slung across his torso and then added.

"Who knows? I heard that the Twelve Departments are recalibrating the celestial timings, no telling when they will get it right," the owner didn't dwell on why it was so hot. For him, the hotter it is, the better for business.

"I'm not sure, I don't usually pay attention to these things," Xia Zhang said flatly.

His life was simple—hunting wild animals and trading their meat for various necessities. His days were uneventful, and he never thought about changing anything. His only goal was to do as the mysterious middle-aged man once told him to do: shoot down the sun when it became "Abnormal."

After resting for a while, Xia Zhang straightened up and left.

He needed to sell the meat quickly while it was still fresh.

With the temperatures rising, the shelf-life of many things was drastically shorter. As for turning it into jerky or salted meat, Xia Zhang never considered it; it was too troublesome and required additional resources which he felt was not worth it.

The market was bustling, and the game meat he traded was quickly sold out, exchanging it for ample rice, flour, oil, and fresh vegetables and fruits.

As a seasoned hunter, he had a significant reputation in this market for quality and fair prices.

No one troubled him; firstly, he was strong and a local, and secondly, the amount he sold daily wasn't enough to affect larger businesses or other meat vendors.

"Have you heard? The Twelve Departments' celestial calendar has been set, and it's quite absurd."

"I've heard already, they're saying it's deep winter now? With this heat, it's even hotter than summer. If it gets any hotter, the land will dry up."

"Might it be wrong?"

"More than wrong, it's completely mistaken."

As Xia Zhang passed by, he heard this and involuntarily furrowed his brows, muttering softly, "Deep winter?"

He hadn't experienced a full cycle of seasons. Due to the Cataclysm, the climate had been chaotic for twenty years, alternating between harsh cold and warm spring unpredictably. Only in recent years had it somewhat stabilized. The celestial calendar set by the Twelve Departments was part of a plan to balance the cycle of seasons.

But now, it seemed the sun was disrupting that plan.

After packing up and heading back, and after some more efforts, Xia Zhang estimated the time and decided to go to sleep.

He went to sleep very late today; perhaps because of this, he felt dizzy when a glaring light woke him.

"How... the sun hasn't set yet?" Xia Zhang suddenly realized something, disbelief in his expression.

Pushing open the door, he saw Gou'er foolishly standing at the doorway, not sure if he too had stayed up latenight, still holding the night watch drums. He seemed to notice Xia Zhang and awkwardly smiled.

Gou'er's real name wasn't this, but everyone called him by his nickname since they were used to it. He was Xia Zhang's neighbor who helped with the night watch in the village. It was generally safe since patrols were done in groups.

His father was said to have died when the Cataclysm struck, so he was raised by his mother and managed to make a living in the night watch squad.

"Brother Xia... That's not right, it should still be night... Why does it feel like midday..." Gou'er inelegantly chuckled.

Xia Zhang also noticed something amiss, seeing Gou'er's clothes soaked in sweat. In just that moment, the sensation of scorching heat erupted.