"Clap clap clap!" The chieftain's applause interrupted their staring contest. He said with great appreciation, "Not bad. I haven't seen many people who can easily defeat Iron Head. You are very strong."
Suiye: "Oh."
The bald man seized the opportunity to speak up, saying, "Brother, I told you Brother Gou Dan was a good guy. Look at him, look at that muscular physique, those hard fists. The best part is, he listens to his wife the most."
He observed this carefully along the way.
Dog Egg's brother is strong and can fight; a few punches and a wild boar is dead. But if he didn't have some weakness or flaw, Baldy wouldn't dare take him up the mountain, fearing he would be unruly and uncontrollable.
However, with Ye Wenxue around, the problem of disobedience is no longer a problem.
...Who would believe that this perfectly fine man, if his wife said east, he wouldn't dare say west, and if she said which wild boar to hunt, he wouldn't dare miss it at all.
Baldy had seen even more outrageous things: Ye Wenxue stepped on Gou Dan's head to pick wild fruit, and Gou Dan didn't even put up a fight.
Although Baldy looked down on such a cowardly man, if he could subdue Ye Wenxue, he could win over Gou Dan to work for him.
A skinny, frail woman who twists her ankle even when climbing a hill is incredibly easy to handle!
The chieftain had also thought of this.
Or rather, it was the words and actions of the chieftain that led the bald man to prioritize ease of control over physical strength when recruiting people.
After all, any brother with a higher status in the mountain stronghold who brought his family up the mountain would have one or two relatives detained in the stronghold chief's house as a form of blackmail.
The chieftain stood up, walked to Suiye's side, and patted him heavily on the shoulder: "Brother Gou Dan, right? Welcome to the stronghold. You'll be assigned a house on the eastern cliff. You'll have plenty of silver and food. There's just one thing you need to be careful about."
Sui Ye didn't even look at him, continuing to stare at Ye Wenxue, and gave a perfunctory "Hmm?"
The chieftain didn't care; the more Gou Dan valued his wife, the easier she was to control him.
To conquer cities and seize strongholds, one needs a steel blade with such ties.
"Once you're in the stronghold, you're one of our own brothers. You can't easily leave the mountain, and... you have to obey orders."
Suiye remained completely calm: "Oh."
He's never listened to his parents or grandparents, so why would he care about people from a small bandit stronghold?
After rescuing Sanyuan and Sujiu, he'll just pack up and head down the mountain. What chance do these people have of stopping him?
That's what he thought, but Suiye also knew that it wasn't time to expose himself yet, so he had to keep a low profile and not cause trouble for Ye Wenxue.
His eyes flickered slightly, and he stammered as he made his request: "Then, I need fifty taels of silver to make jewelry for my wife!"
He's not afraid of him making demands, but he's afraid of someone who has no desires or wants. He wouldn't dare hire someone like that.
The chieftain smiled and agreed, then had someone bring silver and several pieces of gold jewelry to Ye Wenxue's side. He then took Suiye to the main table and drank and ate heartily.
Sui Ye focused on eating, occasionally glancing up at Ye Wenxue, ignoring the bald man who kept giving him meaningful glances.
After the meal, Sui Ye immediately got up to help Ye Wenxue: "Wife, your sprained ankle is still not healed, let me carry you."
Ye Wenxue's feelings were somewhat complicated. Considering that the bandits were keeping an eye on them out of the corner of her eye, she snorted:
"Get out of my way! Don't think you're so great just because you got fifty taels of silver. I want more silver, a five-courtyard mansion, and endless gold and silver jewelry!"
Sui Ye nodded in response, and after greeting the chieftain with Ye Wenxue on his back, he followed the bald man to the small house on the eastern cliff.
Once outside the cabin, the surroundings immediately became quiet.
The bald man walked ahead, looking preoccupied.
Sui Ye carried Ye Wenxue through the mountain stronghold, sometimes bright and sometimes dark. Under the starry sky, amidst the bandits' dens covering the hillsides, he remained silent, his heart pounding wildly like a drum.
He had never felt anything like it before and was momentarily confused.
Ye Wenxue had never been in a relationship, but she knew that Suiye's state was a bit delicate.
She remained silent, her feelings somewhat complicated.
Is this person a masochist?
They were all forced to stay and do hard labor, and were bullied and beaten up from time to time. Suiye even...
Perhaps because Suiye's skills were recognized by the village chief, the house he was assigned was not far from the main house in the center, and he arrived there after a short walk.
The bald man stopped at the door, his face dark and unreadable. He was about to make a move when he was interrupted by his underling's urgent voice.
The bald man glared at Sui Ye resentfully, then turned away, realizing he couldn't do anything to him for the time being, and had no choice but to leave.
Suiye walked into the simple house and gently placed Ye Wenxue on the bed.
The two sat facing each other, neither of them uttering a sound, letting the ambiguous atmosphere linger.
Just then, there was a knock at the door, and Ye Wenxue gave Suiye a look, signaling him to open it.
"What's up?" Suiye opened the door, looking impatiently at the bandit who wasn't even as tall as his shoulder.
"Brother Gou Dan, the chieftain heard that your wife sprained her ankle and sent me to fetch her to see a doctor. What do you think..."
"The doctor just came to see me and said that I just need to rest and recover."
"How can that be the same? Brother Gou Dan, your status is different now. The chieftain specifically instructed that your sister-in-law's injury needs to be treated with medicine, the best medicine, the most expensive wound medicine!"
Suiye sensed something was wrong and said calmly, "I happen to have nothing to do, so I'll go too."
"Ah? But...but, it's so late at night, and doctors are afraid of strangers. If you go, I'm afraid your sister-in-law's injury will..."
Sui Ye frowned, about to continue his relentless nagging, when Ye Wenxue slapped him on the back:
"Alright, alright, we're all brothers, why make things difficult for them? I'll be right back."
Suiye hesitated: "I'll carry you there and stand guard at the door. I won't go in."
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