Jinxia was shocked, she was about lunge forward but Mrs. Shen was quick to stop her, she tightly gripped Jinxia’s clothes.
At this time, the monks, Shangguan Xi and Guang Zhan, who were chasing from behind quickly caught up and blocked the pirates’ exit.
Noticing that there’s no way out. The pirates violently lunge towards Shangguan Xi while slashing their swords, assuming she was the weakest of them all. A’Rui quickly blocked their attacks, but one of their swords slashed his veil, which immediately revealed his scarred face.
Upon seeing his face, regardless of the countless events she has encountered, this moment still stunned her. Her body and mind froze, to the point of not remembering they were in the middle of a battle, suddenly one of the pirates slashed her leg, she instantly fell down. A’Rui saw that she was injured, his body was rushed with frustrations and regrets. He knew that right now his kungfu is no match to nobody, he would be no match for these pirates. Yet, right at this moment, he used his weakling body to shield in front of her.
Seeing that both Shangguan Xi and Chun Yumin were injured, Jinxia desperately want to escape from Mrs. Shen, but because her leg is not fully healed, she didn’t have the strength to get away from her grip. Jinxia panicked, she turned and said: “Let me go!”
“No! I can’t let you die.”
Fortunately, A’Rui’s appearance startled everyone. The pirates immediately shivered as they looked at his dark face.
Guang Zhan subdued two pirates, then he rushed over to assist A’Rui. Thankfully, the rest of the monks also arrived, blocking every exit, forcing them to surrender.
Only at this time did Mrs. Shen let go of Jinxia, she immediately rushed over to the group.
“Sister Shangguan, how’s your wound?” She asked worriedly.
Xie Xiao finally arrived, he said in panic: “Sister!”
Guang Zhan quickly performs his acupuncture techniques to stop the bleeding. Shangguan Xi’s face was pale. Guang Zhan smiled and said: “It’s just an external wound. Fourth Brother, don’t need to be worried.”
Jinxia saw the wound, it was clearly deep, it’s not just a simple external wound. She was also unsure whether these swords are coated with poison or not.
“Aunt….Aunt. Can you take a look at Sister Shangguan?” She turned around to face Mrs. Shen.
At this time, Mrs. Shen did not refuse at all. She carried her medicine box over, squatted down and examined Shangguan Xi’s wound. Even though Shangguan Xi was their friend, but she’s still a woman, everyone quickly turned around to respect her privacy. Only Xie Xiao himself didn’t understand the situation, he continued to stare at Shangguan Xi worriedly, but he was suddenly pulled away by Guan Zhan. After realizing it, he was embarrassed.
A’Rui did not dare to approach them, he silently picked up his veil and put it back on. Then he watched them from a distance.
“Miss Yuan, come here!” Cen Shou shouted for Jinxia.
Jinxia rushed over, seeing that Cen Shou was checking on the maids, while Chun Yumin was still unconscious laying next to the bloody body.
“She’s not breathing anymore.” Cen Shou pressed his fingers against the maid’s neck, unable to find her pulse.
“What about her?
Jinxia nervously looked at Chun Yumin, who was covered in blood. It was not clear where the wound was, but she didn’t dare to touch her.
If something happened to Chun Yumin, how can he explain himself to his Young Master? Cen Shou’s eyebrows tightened, he tried to check Chun Yumin’s pulse, then immediately let out a sigh of relief: “Still alive.”
Jinxia also let out a long sigh. After a few days of being together, aside from Chun Yumin’s fragileness, her personality was good. After all, she’s still Lu Yi’s cousin, judging from her status, Jinxia still has to take care of her.
“Can you see where she was injured?”
Cen Shou was uncomfortable doing it himself, he got up and turned around.
Jinxia took over and examined Chun Yumin from head to toe. Suddenly she said: “There are no wounds on her body, and her clothes aren’t torn. The blood on her body should be her maid’s blood.”
“So why is she….”
Cen Shou turned around, only half said what he wanted, because, at this time, Jinxia and he immediately understood the situation.
Chun Yumin had the disease that she would faint at the sight of blood, plus, at that time, she was too shocked, it must have caused her to become unconscious.
Both of them let out a sigh of relief.
“If you press her philtrum point, she will wake up.” Cen Shou signalled Jinxia to do it.
*[Philtrum point = a vertical indentation in the middle area of the upper lip, TN]
Jinxia hesitated for a moment, then she looked at the dead body next to Chun Yumin. She sighed and said to Cen Shou: “If we wake her up now, she will see the body and faint again. It’s better to let her sleep for a while.”
“You…..”
Although Cen Shou felt it was inappropriate to do that, but he couldn’t help but agree with Jinxia.
At this time, all the civilians had scattered in all directions. The dock was once full of people, now completely empty. The Southern Shaolin Monks cleaned up the damages, buried the dead, even the dead pirates were buried properly. After everything was done, Guang Zhan and the monks recited prayers in front of the grave.
“We’re praying for the pirates too?” Jinxia asked cluelessly.
Xie Xiao shrugged his shoulders and said: “Elder Brother said everyone is a Buddha’s child….Forget it, I also don’t understand it either.”
Mrs. Shen neatly wrapped Shangguan Xi’s wound tightly, she ordered: “The wound is very deep, therefore, for the next few days, you have to rest. Mustn’t walk or else it won’t heal.”
Shangguan Xi furrowed her eyebrows and said: “But I….”
After praying, Guang Zhan walked over and said: “Shangguan Classmate, should we walk you back to the monastery, or do you want to go back to Yangzhou?”
“I’m the only one injured, how can I trouble my brothers and sisters.” Shangguan Xi said, “The pirates’ chaos isn’t over yet. I won’t go back to Yangzhou for now. I can just stay somewhere near here. After I recover, I will go look for you.”
Jinxia quickly came up with an idea: “Sister Shangguan, after crossing this river is Xinhe City, why don’t you come with us and your brothers can rest assured?”
Guang Zhan nodded his head: “That’s good. Xinhe City is General Qi’s territory. It’s a good place, you can treat your wounds there. In a few days, we will go look for you.”
Shangguan Xi thought about it. This was one of the ways at the moment, especially not to trouble the monastery’s masters. Shangguan Xi nodded her head.
After thinking about it, Xie Xiao said to Guang Zhan: “Elder Brother, I will go to Xinhe City with her. Someone has to be there for her.”
“Fourth Brother….”
Shangguan Xi didn’t think he would want to come along. However, Xie Xiao is all about justice and righteousness. He has been very energetic, joining his fellow brothers to fight the pirates.
“I have to watch out for you. If anything happens, my father would definitely break my leg.” Xie Xiao cut her off, “It’s been decided.”
Afraid of his father’s scolding, Shangguan Xi couldn’t help but smile a little, but her heart was filled with bitterness.
***
When Chun Yumin slowly regained her senses, she found herself sitting against a tree. Her clothes were somehow changed to a large robe. She lifted her head and looked around, the surroundings were very calm, no refugees and monks were insight. At this moment, she saw Jinxia and the others were loading supplies onto the boat.
Was it all a dream? She slowly stood up straight, trying hard to remember the event.
“Ms. Chun, you’re awake. We’re about to board the boat.” YangYue said softly.
“Brother Yang….” Chun Yumin looked left and right, scanning for her maids, “Where are they?”
YangYue sighed heavily: “That….Your maids have been killed by pirates. The old maid, we couldn’t find her, it seems that during the chaos, she must’ve disappeared.”
Chun Yumin was still confused by the situation: It means that what happened just now wasn’t a dream. The pirates that attacked them were real, and the sword slashed at them was real. Bi’Er, one of her maids was slashed, blood was squirting from her body, then she fainted on top of Bi’Er’s body, all of this was real.
“Bi’Er is dead….”
Seeing her staggered body, YangYue couldn’t help but reach out his hand to support her, then quickly pulled her up: “We’ve buried her well. It’s under a tree, we also gave a grave marking. If someone from her family wants to take her body home, they will be able to find her….Jinxia, come here quickly!” He called out for Jinxia.
Jinxia turned her head and saw that Chun Yumin had woken up, she slowly walked towards them: “Ms. Chun, you’re awake.”
There were tears in Chun Yumin’s eyes, and sadness in her voice: “Can you take me to where Bi’Er was buried?”
“Yes.”
Jinxia led her to the edge of the forest, not too far away from where they were. She stopped walking and pointed at the grave: “She’s buried here. There’s a mark on the tree. The Southern Shaolin Monks have also prayed for her to rest in peace.”
“Thank you for doing all this.”
Chun Yumin thanked Jinxia. Afterward, she knelt down in front of the grave, then respectfully bowed her head to the ground. Jinxia was stunned, even YangYue, who was watching from a distance, was stunned by Chun Yumin’s action. According to the rules, Chun Yumin was the master, Bi’Er was the maid. Regardless of how good their relationship was, the master only needed to provide the maid’s family with compensation, never having seen a master personally bow down in front of their maid’s grave before.
“She died protecting me from the pirates.”
During the most dangerous moment, Chun Yumin clearly remembered Bi’Er using her body to shield her.
Jinxia also prayed: “Didn’t think that a young maid like Bi’Er, would be so loyal. I really admire her.”
Chun Yumin stood up, once again looked around, looking for the old maid.
Although it’s not the right time, but Jinxia thinks she should inform Chun Yumin: “The old maid is gone. We’ve looked everywhere and still haven’t found her. If I remember correctly, your valuable goods were in her hand. Maybe during the most chaotic moment, she has ….”
The old maid may have taken the goods and fled. Chun Yumin fell silent for a moment, there was no change to her expression: “At least she’s fine. They were just small stuff.”
During this moment, not everyone can think like her. Before, Jinxia thought she thought Chun Yumin was a rich lady with a calm personality, but now she’s really looking at Chun Yumin with a different eye.
Sitting on the boat, watching it slowly sail away from the dock. The sky was beginning to darken.
“What are you thinking about?”
Cen Shou saw Jinxia sitting alone on the stern of the boat, with her blank expression and not caring about her clothes getting wet.
Jinxia sighed and said: “I just hope that Lu Daren and your brother don’t encounter a similar situation.”
“Don’t worry. Without you, they won’t encounter anything similar.” Cen Shou said sarcastically.
Jinxia glanced at him briefly in annoyance: “You’re so carefree, huh? How much did you lose today? How much money do you have left?”
Because of the big mess earlier, the silver bag that they put under the tree had disappeared, and the money Cen Shou made from selling the carriage was also lost. It seems that someone took the chance when they were occupied and stole it. There were too many refugees to narrow it down.
Cen Shou didn’t answer her questions, he switched to another topic: “Ms. Chun’s uncle is in Xinhe City. They are a big and respectable family, it’s impossible to ask them to take care of us….Wait until my Young Master brother to return, then everything will be fine.”
“What about food and rest?” Jinxia didn’t feel embarrassed when asking this, she continued to say: “We still have two injured people. People won’t be willing to let us stay for a long time.”
“If you want, you can go to the post station.”
“My uncle and aunt are not government officials. Sister Shangguan and Brother Xie Xiao are also not government officials, what post station would let them stay?” Jinxia worriedly asked.
Cen Shou snorted coldly: “JinYiWei is working, who dares to question?”
“You’re quite intimidating.” Jinxia chuckled, “LiuShanmen don’t dare to act unreasonably.”
***
The sun was slowly setting, over the surface of the river, waves were crashing against the edge of the boat.
After crossing the river, not far ahead was Xinhe City. When Jinxia and her group entered the city, they immediately escorted Chun Yumin to her uncle’s residence.
Cen Shou knew that Jinxia and YangYue didn’t have any money on them, at the same time, the funding he had was limited. Even though he didn’t feel comfortable saying this, but if they were to stay in an inn, it would cost too much and they couldn’t go to the post station due to A’Rui’s condition. Therefore, he hoped they could stay for free at Chun Yumin’s uncle’s residence while waiting for the Young Master and Cen Fu to come back.
At this time, the sky was already dark. After several turns, they finally arrived at Chun Yumin’s uncle’s residence. YangYue stepped forward to knock on the door. After waiting for a while, an old man came out to open the door.
“Uncle Xu.” Chun Yumin came forward and called out respectfully.
Jinxia peeked through the gap, saw that it was pitch black inside. It seems like there were no family members living here. Jinxia felt dispirited.
Uncle Xu raised the lantern and looked at Chun Yumin’s face for a while, then finally realized and said: “You….You’re the Second Miss, aren’t you?”
“That’s right. The elders told me to come for the ancestral prayer. Are my elder uncle and aunt at home?” Chun Yumin asked.
“Miss, you’ve come at the wrong time. It’s not the same as a few years ago. Pirates are everywhere. These few days, not sure where the news came from, but pirates were going to attack Xinhe City. Grandmaster thought this place was no longer safe, therefore they’ve moved to Changshan and will return home when it’s safe.
Her uncle has moved! Chun Yumin was shocked, not knowing what to do for a moment.
“Isn’t General Qi’s base nearby? Aren’t they defending the city? Why do you need to evacuate?” Jinxia asked in surprise.
“Since last year, when Wang Zhi was arrested. They haven’t done much. The pirates have made an extreme mess. People continuously lived in fear, afraid they might come back for another attack.”
Uncle Xu saw that Jinxia didn’t look like a maid, also YangYue and Cen Shou were dressed like soldiers. He proceed to look far ahead, noticing Xie Xiao supporting Shangguan Xi, next to them was A’Rui who was dressed in all black, then beside him were the beggar uncle and Mrs. Shen. He couldn’t help but question this group of people: “Second Miss, you didn’t bring any maids with you? Where’s the old maid? Who are these people?”
Chun Yumin could only tell him that on their way here, they’ve met pirates and her maids were killed and the old maid disappeared. Even though Jinxia and YangYue presented their status. Cen Shou was worried he didn’t believe them, so he slowly stepped forward and showed the JinYiWei’s badge, also specifically mentioning that the Old Madam ordered Lu Yi to escort Chun Yumin here.
Upon hearing that they were government officials, especially a JinYiWei, he immediately turned nice, he thought for a bit and said: “Since Grandmaster isn’t home. Second Miss, if you’re not comfortable living here, down the west path, there’s another residence. Otherwise, if you don’t mind, after a little cleaning up, you can stay here. It’s just that this place has been left empty for a while, so most of the furniture has become old, but I will get someone to fix that tomorrow.”
“No need, no need…” Cen Shou stopped him, “We’re not used to having people care for us, you don’t need to bother doing such a thing. We’re fine by ourselves.” Looking for other people means having to spend money, as of right now, their funds are limited, it’s better to save it.
Uncle Xu immediately said: “I’m sorry, I’m not very knowledgeable about the habits of government officials. I will go get the key of the other residence for you, please wait a moment.” Having said so, he quickly turned around and went inside the residence to find the key.
In front of the main door, Jinxia glanced at Cen Shou: “Can you wash clothes or cook?”
“…..What are you trying to say?”
“I will be honest. In the other residence, there are no servants. All things must be done by yourself, from little things like fetching water to making tea, up to big matters like washing clothes and cooking. Someone has to do it, can you do it?” Jinxia said, “My uncle and aunt are honourable guests, they will not work and the two injured people are not allowed to move. What’s left is only a few of us. Again, you’re the man, therefore, we must share the burden.”
“You LiuShanmen, why do you guys always care about trivial matters….”
Before Cen Shou could finish speaking, Chun Yumin said shyly: “Miss Yuan, what can I do?”
Jinxia was silent for a moment. Cen Shou immediately glared at her.
“Ms. Chun, don’t listen to her nonsense. It’s impossible to make you work.” Cen Shou said, signalling Jinxia to follow along, “Only knows how to say nonsense, quickly explain yourself to Ms. Chun.”
“I think the sewing work can be left to Ms. Chun. Your works are great, especially when I saw your embroidery, it was very beautiful.”
Knowing that she could make a small contribution, Chun Yumin immediately felt somewhat relieved, she smiled at Jinxia.
Cen Shou didn’t expect Jinxia to ask Chun Yumin to work. Even if the Young Master is fond of her, at the end, she’s still a small constable. It really irritated him.
“You only know how to order people around, what about you? What do you do?” Cen Shou asked her in annoyance.
Jinxia calmly said: “There’s no rush, wait until all of you have distributed the work, everything you can’t do, I will do.”
“You!” Cen Shou snorted.
YangYue couldn’t help but laugh.
Jinxia was shocked, she was about lunge forward but Mrs. Shen was quick to stop her, she tightly gripped Jinxia’s clothes.
At this time, the monks, Shangguan Xi and Guang Zhan, who were chasing from behind quickly caught up and blocked the pirates’ exit.
Noticing that there’s no way out. The pirates violently lunge towards Shangguan Xi while slashing their swords, assuming she was the weakest of them all. A’Rui quickly blocked their attacks, but one of their swords slashed his veil, which immediately revealed his scarred face.
Upon seeing his face, regardless of the countless events she has encountered, this moment still stunned her. Her body and mind froze, to the point of not remembering they were in the middle of a battle, suddenly one of the pirates slashed her leg, she instantly fell down. A’Rui saw that she was injured, his body was rushed with frustrations and regrets. He knew that right now his kungfu is no match to nobody, he would be no match for these pirates. Yet, right at this moment, he used his weakling body to shield in front of her.
Seeing that both Shangguan Xi and Chun Yumin were injured, Jinxia desperately want to escape from Mrs. Shen, but because her leg is not fully healed, she didn’t have the strength to get away from her grip. Jinxia panicked, she turned and said: “Let me go!”
“No! I can’t let you die.”
Fortunately, A’Rui’s appearance startled everyone. The pirates immediately shivered as they looked at his dark face.
Guang Zhan subdued two pirates, then he rushed over to assist A’Rui. Thankfully, the rest of the monks also arrived, blocking every exit, forcing them to surrender.
Only at this time did Mrs. Shen let go of Jinxia, she immediately rushed over to the group.
“Sister Shangguan, how’s your wound?” She asked worriedly.
Xie Xiao finally arrived, he said in panic: “Sister!”
Guang Zhan quickly performs his acupuncture techniques to stop the bleeding. Shangguan Xi’s face was pale. Guang Zhan smiled and said: “It’s just an external wound. Fourth Brother, don’t need to be worried.”
Jinxia saw the wound, it was clearly deep, it’s not just a simple external wound. She was also unsure whether these swords are coated with poison or not.
“Aunt….Aunt. Can you take a look at Sister Shangguan?” She turned around to face Mrs. Shen.
At this time, Mrs. Shen did not refuse at all. She carried her medicine box over, squatted down and examined Shangguan Xi’s wound. Even though Shangguan Xi was their friend, but she’s still a woman, everyone quickly turned around to respect her privacy. Only Xie Xiao himself didn’t understand the situation, he continued to stare at Shangguan Xi worriedly, but he was suddenly pulled away by Guan Zhan. After realizing it, he was embarrassed.
A’Rui did not dare to approach them, he silently picked up his veil and put it back on. Then he watched them from a distance.
“Miss Yuan, come here!” Cen Shou shouted for Jinxia.
Jinxia rushed over, seeing that Cen Shou was checking on the maids, while Chun Yumin was still unconscious laying next to the bloody body.
“She’s not breathing anymore.” Cen Shou pressed his fingers against the maid’s neck, unable to find her pulse.
“What about her?
Jinxia nervously looked at Chun Yumin, who was covered in blood. It was not clear where the wound was, but she didn’t dare to touch her.
If something happened to Chun Yumin, how can he explain himself to his Young Master? Cen Shou’s eyebrows tightened, he tried to check Chun Yumin’s pulse, then immediately let out a sigh of relief: “Still alive.”
Jinxia also let out a long sigh. After a few days of being together, aside from Chun Yumin’s fragileness, her personality was good. After all, she’s still Lu Yi’s cousin, judging from her status, Jinxia still has to take care of her.
“Can you see where she was injured?”
Cen Shou was uncomfortable doing it himself, he got up and turned around.
Jinxia took over and examined Chun Yumin from head to toe. Suddenly she said: “There are no wounds on her body, and her clothes aren’t torn. The blood on her body should be her maid’s blood.”
“So why is she….”
Cen Shou turned around, only half said what he wanted, because, at this time, Jinxia and he immediately understood the situation.
Chun Yumin had the disease that she would faint at the sight of blood, plus, at that time, she was too shocked, it must have caused her to become unconscious.
Both of them let out a sigh of relief.
“If you press her philtrum point, she will wake up.” Cen Shou signalled Jinxia to do it.
*[Philtrum point = a vertical indentation in the middle area of the upper lip, TN]
Jinxia hesitated for a moment, then she looked at the dead body next to Chun Yumin. She sighed and said to Cen Shou: “If we wake her up now, she will see the body and faint again. It’s better to let her sleep for a while.”
“You…..”
Although Cen Shou felt it was inappropriate to do that, but he couldn’t help but agree with Jinxia.
At this time, all the civilians had scattered in all directions. The dock was once full of people, now completely empty. The Southern Shaolin Monks cleaned up the damages, buried the dead, even the dead pirates were buried properly. After everything was done, Guang Zhan and the monks recited prayers in front of the grave.
“We’re praying for the pirates too?” Jinxia asked cluelessly.
Xie Xiao shrugged his shoulders and said: “Elder Brother said everyone is a Buddha’s child….Forget it, I also don’t understand it either.”
Mrs. Shen neatly wrapped Shangguan Xi’s wound tightly, she ordered: “The wound is very deep, therefore, for the next few days, you have to rest. Mustn’t walk or else it won’t heal.”
Shangguan Xi furrowed her eyebrows and said: “But I….”
After praying, Guang Zhan walked over and said: “Shangguan Classmate, should we walk you back to the monastery, or do you want to go back to Yangzhou?”
“I’m the only one injured, how can I trouble my brothers and sisters.” Shangguan Xi said, “The pirates’ chaos isn’t over yet. I won’t go back to Yangzhou for now. I can just stay somewhere near here. After I recover, I will go look for you.”
Jinxia quickly came up with an idea: “Sister Shangguan, after crossing this river is Xinhe City, why don’t you come with us and your brothers can rest assured?”
Guang Zhan nodded his head: “That’s good. Xinhe City is General Qi’s territory. It’s a good place, you can treat your wounds there. In a few days, we will go look for you.”
Shangguan Xi thought about it. This was one of the ways at the moment, especially not to trouble the monastery’s masters. Shangguan Xi nodded her head.
After thinking about it, Xie Xiao said to Guang Zhan: “Elder Brother, I will go to Xinhe City with her. Someone has to be there for her.”
“Fourth Brother….”
Shangguan Xi didn’t think he would want to come along. However, Xie Xiao is all about justice and righteousness. He has been very energetic, joining his fellow brothers to fight the pirates.
“I have to watch out for you. If anything happens, my father would definitely break my leg.” Xie Xiao cut her off, “It’s been decided.”
Afraid of his father’s scolding, Shangguan Xi couldn’t help but smile a little, but her heart was filled with bitterness.
***
When Chun Yumin slowly regained her senses, she found herself sitting against a tree. Her clothes were somehow changed to a large robe. She lifted her head and looked around, the surroundings were very calm, no refugees and monks were insight. At this moment, she saw Jinxia and the others were loading supplies onto the boat.
Was it all a dream? She slowly stood up straight, trying hard to remember the event.
“Ms. Chun, you’re awake. We’re about to board the boat.” YangYue said softly.
“Brother Yang….” Chun Yumin looked left and right, scanning for her maids, “Where are they?”
YangYue sighed heavily: “That….Your maids have been killed by pirates. The old maid, we couldn’t find her, it seems that during the chaos, she must’ve disappeared.”
Chun Yumin was still confused by the situation: It means that what happened just now wasn’t a dream. The pirates that attacked them were real, and the sword slashed at them was real. Bi’Er, one of her maids was slashed, blood was squirting from her body, then she fainted on top of Bi’Er’s body, all of this was real.
“Bi’Er is dead….”
Seeing her staggered body, YangYue couldn’t help but reach out his hand to support her, then quickly pulled her up: “We’ve buried her well. It’s under a tree, we also gave a grave marking. If someone from her family wants to take her body home, they will be able to find her….Jinxia, come here quickly!” He called out for Jinxia.
Jinxia turned her head and saw that Chun Yumin had woken up, she slowly walked towards them: “Ms. Chun, you’re awake.”
There were tears in Chun Yumin’s eyes, and sadness in her voice: “Can you take me to where Bi’Er was buried?”
“Yes.”
Jinxia led her to the edge of the forest, not too far away from where they were. She stopped walking and pointed at the grave: “She’s buried here. There’s a mark on the tree. The Southern Shaolin Monks have also prayed for her to rest in peace.”
“Thank you for doing all this.”
Chun Yumin thanked Jinxia. Afterward, she knelt down in front of the grave, then respectfully bowed her head to the ground. Jinxia was stunned, even YangYue, who was watching from a distance, was stunned by Chun Yumin’s action. According to the rules, Chun Yumin was the master, Bi’Er was the maid. Regardless of how good their relationship was, the master only needed to provide the maid’s family with compensation, never having seen a master personally bow down in front of their maid’s grave before.
“She died protecting me from the pirates.”
During the most dangerous moment, Chun Yumin clearly remembered Bi’Er using her body to shield her.
Jinxia also prayed: “Didn’t think that a young maid like Bi’Er, would be so loyal. I really admire her.”
Chun Yumin stood up, once again looked around, looking for the old maid.
Although it’s not the right time, but Jinxia thinks she should inform Chun Yumin: “The old maid is gone. We’ve looked everywhere and still haven’t found her. If I remember correctly, your valuable goods were in her hand. Maybe during the most chaotic moment, she has ….”
The old maid may have taken the goods and fled. Chun Yumin fell silent for a moment, there was no change to her expression: “At least she’s fine. They were just small stuff.”
During this moment, not everyone can think like her. Before, Jinxia thought she thought Chun Yumin was a rich lady with a calm personality, but now she’s really looking at Chun Yumin with a different eye.
Sitting on the boat, watching it slowly sail away from the dock. The sky was beginning to darken.
“What are you thinking about?”
Cen Shou saw Jinxia sitting alone on the stern of the boat, with her blank expression and not caring about her clothes getting wet.
Jinxia sighed and said: “I just hope that Lu Daren and your brother don’t encounter a similar situation.”
“Don’t worry. Without you, they won’t encounter anything similar.” Cen Shou said sarcastically.
Jinxia glanced at him briefly in annoyance: “You’re so carefree, huh? How much did you lose today? How much money do you have left?”
Because of the big mess earlier, the silver bag that they put under the tree had disappeared, and the money Cen Shou made from selling the carriage was also lost. It seems that someone took the chance when they were occupied and stole it. There were too many refugees to narrow it down.
Cen Shou didn’t answer her questions, he switched to another topic: “Ms. Chun’s uncle is in Xinhe City. They are a big and respectable family, it’s impossible to ask them to take care of us….Wait until my Young Master brother to return, then everything will be fine.”
“What about food and rest?” Jinxia didn’t feel embarrassed when asking this, she continued to say: “We still have two injured people. People won’t be willing to let us stay for a long time.”
“If you want, you can go to the post station.”
“My uncle and aunt are not government officials. Sister Shangguan and Brother Xie Xiao are also not government officials, what post station would let them stay?” Jinxia worriedly asked.
Cen Shou snorted coldly: “JinYiWei is working, who dares to question?”
“You’re quite intimidating.” Jinxia chuckled, “LiuShanmen don’t dare to act unreasonably.”
***
The sun was slowly setting, over the surface of the river, waves were crashing against the edge of the boat.
After crossing the river, not far ahead was Xinhe City. When Jinxia and her group entered the city, they immediately escorted Chun Yumin to her uncle’s residence.
Cen Shou knew that Jinxia and YangYue didn’t have any money on them, at the same time, the funding he had was limited. Even though he didn’t feel comfortable saying this, but if they were to stay in an inn, it would cost too much and they couldn’t go to the post station due to A’Rui’s condition. Therefore, he hoped they could stay for free at Chun Yumin’s uncle’s residence while waiting for the Young Master and Cen Fu to come back.
At this time, the sky was already dark. After several turns, they finally arrived at Chun Yumin’s uncle’s residence. YangYue stepped forward to knock on the door. After waiting for a while, an old man came out to open the door.
“Uncle Xu.” Chun Yumin came forward and called out respectfully.
Jinxia peeked through the gap, saw that it was pitch black inside. It seems like there were no family members living here. Jinxia felt dispirited.
Uncle Xu raised the lantern and looked at Chun Yumin’s face for a while, then finally realized and said: “You….You’re the Second Miss, aren’t you?”
“That’s right. The elders told me to come for the ancestral prayer. Are my elder uncle and aunt at home?” Chun Yumin asked.
“Miss, you’ve come at the wrong time. It’s not the same as a few years ago. Pirates are everywhere. These few days, not sure where the news came from, but pirates were going to attack Xinhe City. Grandmaster thought this place was no longer safe, therefore they’ve moved to Changshan and will return home when it’s safe.
Her uncle has moved! Chun Yumin was shocked, not knowing what to do for a moment.
“Isn’t General Qi’s base nearby? Aren’t they defending the city? Why do you need to evacuate?” Jinxia asked in surprise.
“Since last year, when Wang Zhi was arrested. They haven’t done much. The pirates have made an extreme mess. People continuously lived in fear, afraid they might come back for another attack.”
Uncle Xu saw that Jinxia didn’t look like a maid, also YangYue and Cen Shou were dressed like soldiers. He proceed to look far ahead, noticing Xie Xiao supporting Shangguan Xi, next to them was A’Rui who was dressed in all black, then beside him were the beggar uncle and Mrs. Shen. He couldn’t help but question this group of people: “Second Miss, you didn’t bring any maids with you? Where’s the old maid? Who are these people?”
Chun Yumin could only tell him that on their way here, they’ve met pirates and her maids were killed and the old maid disappeared. Even though Jinxia and YangYue presented their status. Cen Shou was worried he didn’t believe them, so he slowly stepped forward and showed the JinYiWei’s badge, also specifically mentioning that the Old Madam ordered Lu Yi to escort Chun Yumin here.
Upon hearing that they were government officials, especially a JinYiWei, he immediately turned nice, he thought for a bit and said: “Since Grandmaster isn’t home. Second Miss, if you’re not comfortable living here, down the west path, there’s another residence. Otherwise, if you don’t mind, after a little cleaning up, you can stay here. It’s just that this place has been left empty for a while, so most of the furniture has become old, but I will get someone to fix that tomorrow.”
“No need, no need…” Cen Shou stopped him, “We’re not used to having people care for us, you don’t need to bother doing such a thing. We’re fine by ourselves.” Looking for other people means having to spend money, as of right now, their funds are limited, it’s better to save it.
Uncle Xu immediately said: “I’m sorry, I’m not very knowledgeable about the habits of government officials. I will go get the key of the other residence for you, please wait a moment.” Having said so, he quickly turned around and went inside the residence to find the key.
In front of the main door, Jinxia glanced at Cen Shou: “Can you wash clothes or cook?”
“…..What are you trying to say?”
“I will be honest. In the other residence, there are no servants. All things must be done by yourself, from little things like fetching water to making tea, up to big matters like washing clothes and cooking. Someone has to do it, can you do it?” Jinxia said, “My uncle and aunt are honourable guests, they will not work and the two injured people are not allowed to move. What’s left is only a few of us. Again, you’re the man, therefore, we must share the burden.”
“You LiuShanmen, why do you guys always care about trivial matters….”
Before Cen Shou could finish speaking, Chun Yumin said shyly: “Miss Yuan, what can I do?”
Jinxia was silent for a moment. Cen Shou immediately glared at her.
“Ms. Chun, don’t listen to her nonsense. It’s impossible to make you work.” Cen Shou said, signalling Jinxia to follow along, “Only knows how to say nonsense, quickly explain yourself to Ms. Chun.”
“I think the sewing work can be left to Ms. Chun. Your works are great, especially when I saw your embroidery, it was very beautiful.”
Knowing that she could make a small contribution, Chun Yumin immediately felt somewhat relieved, she smiled at Jinxia.
Cen Shou didn’t expect Jinxia to ask Chun Yumin to work. Even if the Young Master is fond of her, at the end, she’s still a small constable. It really irritated him.
“You only know how to order people around, what about you? What do you do?” Cen Shou asked her in annoyance.
Jinxia calmly said: “There’s no rush, wait until all of you have distributed the work, everything you can’t do, I will do.”
“You!” Cen Shou snorted.
YangYue couldn’t help but laugh.
