Chapter Sixty-Three: Strength Enough to Move Mountains, a Spirit That Surpasses the World

“This is the secret of light and shadow. The Mohist School has only scratched the surface of it. Let me share a simple fact with you all: if you ever go fishing by the river and see a fish pass by, you must aim your spear below the fish to strike it accurately. That is because the fish you see is not actually where you think it is—just as chopsticks in a bowl of water appear broken. This is the refraction of light.”

As soon as Mo Dun finished speaking, the crowd burst into a commotion.

“Ah! No wonder I never managed to spear a fish. I always thought they escaped ahead of time, but it turns out I was aiming in the wrong direction.”

“Yes, it’s true. An old fisherman once told me how to catch fish, but he only knew what to do, not why it worked.”

“The Mohist disciple truly has some remarkable insights.”

“If only I had known this sooner, I would have caught a lot more fish last time!”

…

Everyone in the audience began to discuss the matter, some regretful, some nodding in agreement.

Li Shimin looked curiously at the chopsticks in his bowl, which appeared broken, and picked them up and put them down again, fascinated.

“Such an obvious thing, and yet we never noticed it,” Li Shimin said with a smile.

“The mysteries of light and shadow are indeed marvelous,” Qin Qiong agreed.

They had all tried fishing before and knew the trick, but after Mo Dun’s explanation, everything suddenly became clear.

Mo Dun raised his hand, and the crowd gradually quieted down.

“There was once a man with great ambition and immeasurable strength, who wished to emulate the Hegemon King lifting the great cauldron, and he tried to raise a thousand-pound vessel. This man is Qin Huaiyu!”

With a wave of Mo Dun’s hand, a towering figure appeared in the projected image, his muscles so prominent that even through the play of light and shadow, his strength seemed almost tangible.

Everyone was filled with anticipation—was this truly the Hegemon King reborn, possessing such superhuman might?

As the curtain fell slowly from the image, a robust youth appeared behind it.

“Huh!”

A ripple of amusement ran through the crowd. From the projected image, they had expected a burly giant, but it turned out to be an ordinary young man. Though sturdy, no one believed he could lift the colossal cauldron—such feats were the stuff of legend.

“My son acts rashly and has made a fool of himself before Your Majesty,” said Qin Qiong, somewhat embarrassed.

As his father, he knew his son’s abilities well. Lifting a thousand-pound cauldron was simply impossible. Yet Qin Huaiyu had insisted he had done it.

“Don't be so quick to judge, Shubao. Let’s see how they resolve this,” Li Shimin said, gazing out the window with a slight smile. As a military man, he was well aware of the limits of human strength—even the strongest of his soldiers had never dared claim they could raise a thousand-pound cauldron.

With a flourish, another curtain dropped, revealing a massive three-legged cauldron before the crowd.

“This cauldron was specially commissioned by Mohist Village from the Masterwork Forge. I'm sure you all trust the reputation of Masterwork Forge. If you have any doubts, you may come later to verify its weight yourselves,” Mo Dun said, pointing at the cauldron.

“Masterwork Forge! That’s the largest smithy in Chang’an, and their reputation is impeccable.”

Someone in the crowd vouched for the forge’s history, knowing well that their honesty was beyond reproach—they would never lie for the Mohists.

“If it's from Masterwork Forge, it must weigh a thousand pounds.”

At Mo Dun’s invitation, a burly man stepped forward and tried to push the cauldron with all his might, but it didn’t budge an inch.

“It must weigh more than a thousand pounds!” the strongman declared. If it were only a thousand, he would have moved it.

“This three-legged cauldron weighs exactly one thousand five hundred pounds!” Mo Dun announced, astonishing everyone present.

“This is getting more and more interesting!” Cheng Yaojin remarked, watching with great interest.

Qin Qiong could only force a bitter smile, though seeing his son’s calm demeanor below, he felt a little more at ease, even as his heart pounded with anxiety.

“Of course, no one person could lift this cauldron—not even the Hegemon King himself. I'm sure you all doubt that a mere youth could raise it single-handedly,” Mo Dun voiced the crowd’s skepticism.

The audience nodded in agreement—even Li Shimin himself nodded. One thousand five hundred pounds was beyond the capacity of any human.

“You are right—the youth cannot lift the cauldron alone,” Mo Dun declared, stunning the audience. “However, with the help of a Mohist secret technique, even a youth can easily raise a massive cauldron.”

He gestured, and several Mohist apprentices rolled a huge frame to the cauldron’s side. At the base of the frame, a series of pulleys had been fastened. Mo Dun made no attempt to hide the device, instead openly displaying it for everyone.

After all, the Mohist texts had described such mechanisms for centuries, and this was the perfect moment to showcase their ingenuity. If the pulley system caught on, it would be a great advertisement for the Mohist School.

One end of the rope was fixed to the cauldron; the other end was grasped by Qin Huaiyu. Everyone held their breath, staring at the mismatch between the youth and the immense cauldron.

Qin Qiong’s palms were slick with sweat. He could hardly believe that a mere arrangement of wheels could enable his son to lift the great cauldron.

“With strength to move mountains and a spirit unmatched—when fate turns against me, even my steed will not run…” Mo Dun chanted with rhythmic emphasis as Qin Huaiyu tensed every muscle, his strength multiplied by the pulley system and transmitted to the cauldron.

“Ah!”

A chorus of astonishment rang out as, before everyone’s eyes, the massive cauldron slowly rose from the ground.

One foot.

Two feet.

Three feet.

At last, it rose a full seven feet, reaching the top of the frame!

Li Shimin stared in disbelief, his mouth agape. It had actually been lifted! Qin Qiong was even more astonished.

“Ten, nine, eight, seven…” Mo Dun began a countdown, as was common in later ages, and the atmosphere grew tense and electrifying.

“…Three, two, one!” As the crowd counted down in unison, Qin Huaiyu maintained his grip for ten whole counts, then released the handle. The great cauldron crashed to the ground.

Boom!

A tremendous crash resounded through the hall.

No one doubted the weight of the cauldron now, for under its weight, the earth itself sank more than a foot.

“Yes!” Qin Huaiyu punched the air in excitement.

The thunderous applause and heated atmosphere filled him with exhilaration, his blood racing with pride.

“Remember this youth, whose might rivals the Hegemon King! Qin Huaiyu!” Mo Dun proclaimed.

“Hegemon King reborn!”

“Hegemon King reborn!”

The crowd erupted in cheers, deeply moved by the sight of the cauldron’s fall and the deafening crash that shook them all.

“That rascal!” Qin Qiong watched his son on stage, knowing full well that the true achievement lay with the device, yet he couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride.

At that moment, in his son’s eyes, he saw the makings of a great general—a rare and unshakable confidence.