Chapter 21 The Masked Man Suffers a Great Distress
"You old man are lucky. Ah Yu has become Lin Xiao Niangzi's apprentice and will become a master chef in the future!" Aunt Li said with envy. It's just a pity that her son is too old and has long passed the age of becoming an apprentice.
She was genuinely happy for Wang Shan and his grandson. They had been neighbors for decades and knew each other well. The Wang family had had a tough time these past few years, but now that A-Yu could learn cooking from Lin Xiao Niangzi and find a good future, they had something to look forward to.
"I really have to thank Master Lin for being willing to teach Ayu." Wang Shan smiled broadly as he put down the steamed buns he had prepared for the day, his words full of gratitude.
Wang Xiaoyu started helping Lin Yao with her stall today. She took out a steamed bun from the basket and, imitating Lin Yao's technique, cut a small slit in the center of the bun.
Early this morning, Lin Cheng helped carry the items needed for setting up the stall to the dock, and then carried a basket on his back up the mountain. This was an arrangement he and Lin Yao had discussed in advance. With A Yu helping out, Lin Cheng would be responsible for carrying the items back and forth to the dock every day. In his spare time, he would go up the mountain to hunt and dig for medicinal herbs. In this way, the family would have an extra source of income and their lives would be more comfortable.
At the stall, Lin Yao was stir-frying fried rice, while Wang Xiaoyu was in charge of making roujiamo (Chinese hamburgers). Being new to the business, Wang Xiaoyu's skills were still a bit clumsy; she would put in either too much or too little meat when adding it to the buns. Lin Yao watched over her from the side, offering pointers from time to time.
Lin Song was also busy, carrying the small basket that Lin Cheng had specially made to hold copper coins, running around in the crowd like a little bee, having a great time.
After a busy morning, Wang Xiaoyu felt sore back and aching waist. The job seemed easy, but with customers coming and going, there was rarely a chance to rest, which really exhausted her.
"Ayu, you must be exhausted?" Lin Yao came over carrying three bowls of fried rice, each topped with a thick layer of braised pork offal, looking tempting and smelling delicious. "Quick, eat some while it's hot."
Wang Xiaoyu quickly took the bowl and eagerly shoveled a large mouthful of rice into her mouth. Ever since she started working today, she had been salivating over the aroma.
Without Lin Cheng as their helper, the three of them were so busy they were dizzy. As soon as they got their food, they devoured it in no time.
After the meal, Lin Yao and Wang Xiaoyu rested for a while before packing up their stall and waiting for Lin Cheng to come and pick them up at the dock.
But after waiting for an hour, as the sun rose higher in the sky, Lin Cheng was still nowhere to be seen. The two gazed at the distant mountain path, a growing unease creeping into their hearts.
Lin Yao felt increasingly uneasy as she waited, a growing worry that Lin Cheng might have encountered an accident on the mountain. She instructed Wang Xiaoyu and Lin Song to guard the stall at the dock, while she hurried towards the mountains.
It was midday, the hottest time of day, and a time when most people rested, so there were few pedestrians on the road. Lin Yao was anxious and her steps quickened.
Lin Yao walked faster and faster. As she passed a bamboo grove, a masked man wearing a black veil suddenly darted out. Without a word, the man shifted his stance and quickly closed in on Lin Yao, striking at her face with his bare hands.
Lin Yao was startled and instinctively dodged to the side. The fist, which whistled through the air, grazed her cheek, causing a few strands of hair at her temples to flutter.
"Who are you? Why are you attacking me!" Lin Yao shouted, reaching into the small cloth bag she carried with her. The bag contained her daily necessities of flour, as well as a small knife that her brother had specially brought back for her when he went to town to buy some a few days ago.
She wasn't one to suffer a second loss easily. The fact that Madam Hu dared to cause trouble last time meant that their business dealings could no longer be kept secret. The eldest branch of the Lin family had always coveted their livelihood and harbored ulterior motives; how could she be completely unprepared?
The masked man did not answer, but instead formed his hands into claws and lunged straight for Lin Yao's throat.
Lin Yao was terrified. At this critical moment, she had no time to think and instinctively crossed her arms. She felt a strong force coming from her, which made her arms go numb and she couldn't help but take a few steps back.
The masked man pressed closer and closer.
In a split second, Lin Yao seized the opportunity and flung the flour in her hand at the masked man with all her might. The snow-white flour instantly filled the air, forming a white mist that obscured the man's vision. Taking advantage of this opening, Lin Yao turned and sprinted in another direction. However, in just a moment, the flour dissipated in the wind, and the masked man quickly closed the distance between himself and Lin Yao.
The masked man grabbed Lin Yao's shoulder and threw her towards the edge of the bamboo grove. Lin Yao's body flew out uncontrollably and crashed heavily into a thick bamboo stalk. She felt a sharp pain in her back, as if her bones were about to shatter, and a mouthful of blood spilled from the corner of her mouth.
Before she could even react, the masked man strode up to her, looking down at her. "I won't kill you, I just want your two hands." The masked man raised his foot and stomped hard on Lin Yao's right hand. A piercing pain instantly spread throughout Lin Yao's body, and she couldn't help but let out a shrill scream.
"Ah—who told you to do this! I'll pay double! Please let me go!" Lin Yao gritted her teeth, large beads of sweat rolled down her forehead, and her eyes were bloodshot from the pain.
The masked man remained unmoved, his face expressionless, his eyes as cold as ice. He increased the pressure of his foot, and Lin Yao's right hand bones made a chilling cracking sound under the weight.
"Three times! I'll pay three times the price!" Lin Yao endured the pain and negotiated with the masked man.
Upon hearing this, the masked man hesitated for a moment, a flicker of doubt crossing his eyes. Seeing his hesitation, Lin Yao immediately pulled a small knife from her bag and stabbed it into the masked man's leg with all her might. The knife pierced the flesh, and the masked man let out a painful scream, his body swaying uncontrollably.
"You brat, how dare you hurt me!" the masked man roared, his face contorted with rage and ferocity. He raised his hand and slapped Lin Yao hard across the head. Lin Yao instinctively turned her head to the side, but she couldn't dodge it. The whistling hand landed on her cheek, sending a stinging pain through her face.
The masked man, however, aggravated his thigh wound, swayed, and fell to the ground. Lin Yao dared not delay, scrambling away from the place. Her heart pounded like a drum, her legs were weak, her disheveled hair flew wildly in the wind, and sweat and tears mingled on her face, blurring her vision.
Lin Yao's chest was throbbing with pain from the intense running, but the masked man's painful groans behind her made her instinct for survival keep her running forward without the slightest slackening.
Suddenly, three horses galloped out from the side path. The riders were dressed in tight-fitting clothes, and their faces were obscured by the backlight.
Lin Yao was startled and, without stopping, charged straight at one of the horses. Fortunately, the man reacted quickly, tightening the reins. The horse reared up, neighed, and stopped just a step away from Lin Yao.
Although Lin Yao didn't collide with the horse, she still fell flat on her face. However, she breathed a huge sigh of relief because she recognized the person on horseback as Xu Zhiheng.
"Whoa—" Xu Zhiheng dismounted and helped her up from the ground.
Seeing Lin Yao's disheveled appearance and the bruises on her face, Xu Zhiheng was quite surprised. What kind of person could a young woman selling pancakes have such a deep grudge against? "Young lady Lin, why are you in such a panic?"
"Murder...murder! Someone's trying to kill me! No...no, he's going to cripple my hand!" Xu Zhiheng's expression instantly turned serious. He patted Lin Yao's shoulder, trying to calm her down. "Don't be afraid, Miss Lin, please tell me slowly."
Lin Yao took several deep breaths, her chest heaving as she tried to calm her turbulent emotions and regain her composure. Her voice was still trembling. "I don't know who he is. I was looking for my brother when a masked man suddenly jumped out of the bamboo forest. He attacked me right away, saying that someone had paid him to cripple my hands."
Speaking of her elder brother, Lin Yao's heart tightened, and then there was Lin Cheng! She wondered what had become of Lin Cheng. "Please, Young Master Xu, help me find my brother. I can pay! My brother went into the mountains to gather herbs today. We agreed that he would come to the dock to pick me and my younger brother up at noon, but we've waited for so long and he hasn't come. I'm worried about him..."
Seeing Lin Yao's anxious and frightened appearance, Xu Zhiheng felt a pang of pity and comforted her, "Miss Lin, don't worry. I will definitely help you find your brother. Calm down and think carefully. Where does your brother usually go when he goes into the mountains to dig for medicinal herbs?"
Lin Yao tried to recall for a moment and said, "My brother usually goes to the forest to the east, where there are more medicinal herbs. But that forest is very large..."
“It’s alright, I’ll take you to town to see a doctor first, otherwise your hand might really be ruined,” Xu Zhiheng turned to his companions beside him, “Jinyu, Mantang, you two go into the forest to find the Lin family’s elder brother.”
Despite the bumpy ride on horseback, Lin Yao's mind gradually calmed down. She carefully considered every word and action of the masked man, trying to find some clues.
"Someone paid me to cripple my hands..." Lin Yao repeated this sentence to herself. She couldn't understand what she had done to offend someone that would bring such a cruel retribution. She was just an ordinary farm girl who had never made any deep grudges against anyone.
Apart from the Lin family's main branch.
However, without any evidence, she cannot simply claim that they did it based on hearsay.
Upon arriving at the clinic, Xu Zhiheng dismounted first, then helped Lin Yao down. "Young Lady Lin, let the doctor examine you carefully first," Xu Zhiheng said.
Lin Yao nodded. A faint medicinal fragrance filled the clinic, gradually calming her heart.
The doctor carefully examined Lin Yao's wound. "Miss, you need to take good care of this injury. You must not lift heavy objects in the coming days," the doctor said. "If this person had hit you any harder, your hand might have been ruined."
After the medicine was applied, the doctor prescribed several more doses. When it came time to pay the bill, Lin Yao couldn't help but sigh at how expensive medicine was in ancient times. It cost her a full tael of silver, which wiped out her earnings from the past few days.
Seeing the pained look on her face, Xu Zhiheng couldn't help but find it a little funny; she really was a money-grubber.
A note from the author:
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Hey, which handsome guy or beautiful girl is reading my story? You're so good-looking, could I add it to my favorites? [Exaggerated compliments]
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