Chapter 10, "Fish-Eyed," refers to Huan Xun, the commander of your Northern Army...
Amidst gasps of surprise, Yu Nie suddenly felt a tightening around her waist as an arm caught her steadily, spun her around in the air, and the two landed safely.
Despite this shock, the veil on her head did not fall as she had imagined.
After her initial shock, she looked at the man's profile with gratitude. She noticed his high nose and deep-set eyes, as well as the nine-ridged turban on his head, and realized that he was a fellow traveler.
Yu Nie quickly tidied his appearance, clasped his hands in a gesture of thanks, and said, "Thank you for saving me, fellow Daoist. May I ask your name and which school you belong to?"
The man, holding a long sword, cupped his hands and said, "Fellow Daoist, you're too kind. It was just a small favor. I am merely a wandering wanderer, without any sect affiliation."
Hearing that the other person was unaffiliated with any sect or school, Yu Nie didn't find it strange. Some monks prefer to be unrestrained and practice their faith independently.
As he spoke, the man walked over to the horse that had been frightened and gently stroked its mane to soothe it.
The little red horse snorted, shook its head, and pawed the ground restlessly with its hooves.
"Fellow Daoist, be careful. My little horse is stubborn and doesn't like strangers touching it," she said worriedly.
“Fellow Daoist, there’s no need to worry. I’m quite skilled at taming horses.” He wasn’t exaggerating. Yu Nie saw that, with his continued reassurance, the horse gradually calmed down and finally lowered its head obediently.
Once the horse had completely calmed down, he took the reins and handed them to her.
Seeing that she and the horse were both unharmed, he seemed to be in a hurry to get on his way, saying, "Since you are alright, I have other important matters to attend to, so I will not linger here any longer. Farewell."
"Hey fellow Daoist..." She hurriedly reached out to stop him, wanting to at least offer him some tea.
Before she could finish speaking, a burst of mocking laughter rang out.
She looked up and followed the sound, and saw several young men dressed in red and green brocade robes, with slicked-back hair and powdered faces, laughing and joking at her on the second floor of the tavern across the street.
One of the young men, with his pointed snout and monkey-like face, was so ugly that just one glance at him made one feel uncomfortable. He was holding a slingshot that was more than an inch long. He looked arrogant and didn't flinch when she noticed him: "Isn't this the young Taoist priest Yu Nie from Lingbao Temple? It's been a long time. You've become even more slender."
To be praised by someone you despise is truly one of life's greatest misfortunes.
This misfortune has reached the point where one wants to question the heavens, asking what heinous crime one has committed.
Upon seeing an acquaintance, Yu Nie suddenly realized that she might not have properly paid her respects to the various patriarchs in the Sanqing Hall before leaving home today.
She stared at the man, inwardly cursing him. "So, it was this cockroach who slew people in the shadows." She was determined to teach this blind idiot a lesson.
"Oh dear!" she exclaimed, her eyes crinkling with surprise. "I thought it was some ignorant child, but when I turned around, I realized it was the young master of Magistrate He's family. It's been so many years, but Young Master He is still exactly the same as when he was a child. He's even more endearing to me now."
He Chenlao was so angry that his face turned red. Since he was thirteen years old, he was not even as tall as the stone lions at the entrance of the county government. At 1.6 meters tall, he was a head and a half shorter than his peers.
Men in Beiye considered tall stature to be beautiful, and He Chenlao's appearance certainly did not fall into this category.
Therefore, even though He Chenlao has already come of age, he still cannot find a woman of equal social standing to marry. He has many concubines, but the position of principal wife remains vacant to this day.
He Chenlao was a man who often considered it a disgrace to be shorter than others.
Although he was indeed shorter than others, this was not something to be said in Huaiyuan County. Not to mention He Chenlao himself, Magistrate He, who held absolute power in Huaiyuan, would be very unhappy, as he only had this one son, and he was very valuable.
Someone who had been bullied by He Chenlao complained that he was short, and as a result, half a month later, the county government dragged him to jail for a year on trumped-up charges.
This is what ordinary people are like—lowly in status and with a life as fragile as duckweed. If people from wealthy and powerful families say a few words, the county magistrate might be angry for a few days at most, but he can't stop those people from gossiping behind his back, and they might even refuse to marry his daughters.
Although Huaiyuan is located on the frontier, it is a place where hidden talents abound. Although the county magistrate holds power in this area, every powerful family that has established itself in Huaiyuan has connections that reach the highest levels of society.
In other words, everyone has someone behind them.
Hearing her mocking tone, another window on the second floor of the tavern, which wasn't fully closed, was suddenly pushed open.
Behind the window, a nonchalant yet dashing face was revealed.
Yu Nie was greatly surprised: "My lord?!"
Zi Jing toyed with the dagger in his hand, leaning against the window frame: "Little Taoist priest, what a coincidence."
The person who should have been in the temple unexpectedly appeared here. Besides being surprised, Yu Nie suddenly had a flash of inspiration and thought of a way to teach He Chenlao a lesson.
She lifted her veil and smiled at him with great interest: "If you don't mind, Captain, would you like to have a drink with me?"
He had finished discussing everything, and now he was alone in the private room.
Feeling bored drinking alone, he decided to find some amusement and agreed, saying, "It would be my pleasure."
He Chenlao didn't know who she was talking to. When he heard the word "sir," he mocked her, saying that she didn't know any officials. Huaiyuan was all owned by the He family.
With his consent, Yu Nie was about to invite the Taoist priest who had saved her to go up together.
She excitedly glanced to the side, only to find that the man had already turned around, drawn his sword, and pulled the bamboo hat from his waist over his head. In an instant, his figure disappeared into the bustling street.
She called out several times, but the man did not turn around.
Having no chance to repay the kindness, Yu Nie felt guilty and blamed himself for neglecting his benefactor for a moment.
But she couldn't care less about that right now; she had to teach that bastard He Chenlao a lesson.
She glanced at him, handed the horse to a nearby stall owner, paid him some copper coins to look after it, and then went to the second floor of the tavern.
Sai Changlou is the largest tavern in Huaiyuan, unlike other taverns.
Other taverns focus on drinking, with food as a secondary option, offering only simple dishes like braised meat, congee, and pickled vegetables. But Sai Changlou offers a complete range of creatures—those that fly in the sky, swim in the water, run on the ground, and grow in the fields—a truly diverse and abundant selection.
Stepping into the restaurant, Yu Nie walked through the crowd and went straight to the second floor.
As she approached the second floor, she took out a small packet of powder wrapped in oil paper from the small pouch at her waist and held it in her hand.
As she passed a private room, she listened carefully to the sounds inside to confirm where He Chenlao was.
As she passed the third private room, she caught a glimpse of He Chenlao and his cronies through the half-open door.
The group was still insulting her. They said she was ungrateful and dared to mock the magistrate's son, and that they should have blinded her six years ago.
Listening to their conversation, Yu Nie silently took out another packet of powder from his waist pouch, combined the two packets, and blew hard into the half-open door crack, managing to blow all the powder inside.
After doing all this, she felt much better, as if all the pent-up frustration in her chest had dissipated and she felt completely refreshed. Just as she was about to get up and leave, she suddenly saw Zi Jing looking at her bustling about in front of the private room next to He Chenlao's group. Zi Jing was calm and collected, and said slowly, "Are you poisoning her?"
"Shh—" She quickly made a shushing gesture, crouched low, and darted to him in small, quick steps. Without a word, she grabbed his wrist and dragged him into the house. After closing the door, she poured herself a cup of tea, tilted her head back, and gulped it down before letting out a long sigh of relief.
Zi Jing glanced at the wrist she had grabbed, his brows furrowing slightly. By the time she turned around, the displeasure had vanished.
He sat back down in the chair covered with brocade, poured himself a cup of wine, and casually asked, "The abbot said that the young Taoist priest went to the Rong family, so why is he here again?"
Yu Nie sat down and said, "Come and show my junior sister a birthday gift."
"Is it a birthday celebration for Daoist Langxi?"
She nodded: "It'll be here in a month."
Zi Jing's eyes remained unmoved, and his face still held a teasing smile: "It's been such a long month since it's Daoist Langxi's birthday, yet the little Daoist is in such a hurry."
"Of course you have to be in a hurry." She put the teacup on the table, spilling a few drops of tea, and spread her arms out, gesturing an exaggerated length: "My lord, you don't know how long the line is to buy Xiangyun Pavilion's Moon Embroidery. If you go late, you won't even be able to get a scrap of cloth."
"I want to buy a piece of cloth to make a cloak as a birthday gift for my junior sister. I absolutely have to buy breakfast, because it will take a long time to make this cloak," she said excitedly.
The cries of vendors echoed from below the window.
Zi Jing observed the actions of those around him with a scrutinizing gaze, then closed his eyes briefly: "While Moonlight Brocade isn't as expensive as Cloud Silk Brocade or Fish Eye Brocade, it's still not cheap." He raised his eyelids: "Young Taoist priest, you're actually willing to spend so much silver?"
"So all I can do is make a cloak." She looked incredulous, then rested her chin on her hands and sighed, "If I had enough silver, I would have made a whole outfit for my junior sister."
A moment after she finished speaking, a waiter's drawn-out call came from outside the private room: "Young Master He, gentlemen, please take your time! You must come to our shop again next time!"
The waiter was met with a series of hurried footsteps, tinged with displeasure: "Which room did that brat run off to? She got lucky this time. If my father hadn't told me not to cause trouble here with those Xuan Ce soldiers, I would have turned this second floor upside down."
The others chimed in with comments like "Yes, yes, yes," and "We should have gone out and taught that little brat a lesson."
Yu Nie tiptoed to the door, peeked through the crack, and saw He Chenlao and his group sauntering downstairs. She snorted dismissively, turned around, and sat back down at the table.
Seeing her displeasure, Zi Jing asked, "Does the young Taoist priest have a grudge against those rich young men?"
Having been caught doing something wrong, Yu Nie knew she couldn't deny it, so she could only go along with it and say, "They were the ones who were messing with me. They used slingshots to shoot at my horse, almost causing me to fall off. So I was just giving them a little lesson."
“But I hear that you two must have had a grudge for a long time.” Zijing picked up a fish eye with his chopsticks and stared at the round fish eye for a long time.
He guessed correctly. Six years ago, she accompanied her martial arts uncle, Cui Miaochang, to the county magistrate's house to perform a religious ceremony. During a break, she unexpectedly witnessed He Chenlao catching a puppy, putting it in the pond, and letting it drown repeatedly, which made him laugh heartily.
She couldn't bear to watch, and when reasoning with him didn't work, she pushed He Chenlao aside and rescued the puppy.
He Chenlao, who was used to being pampered, was furious. He grabbed a handful of lime powder from the pond, which was meant to remove the fishy smell of the water, and threw it into her eyes, almost causing her to go blind.
If it weren't for her martial uncle, she would definitely be blind.
She didn't hide anything from him and told him the whole story. Although officials in Huaiyuan protect each other, she could tell from He Chenlao's words that his father and the boy sitting with her were not on the same side.
Otherwise, why would He Chenlao bother avoiding him?
But she still had reservations. She scratched her head, chuckled dryly, and looked at him: "That...that captain...won't tell the He family what I just did, will he?"
After hearing the story, Zijing threw away the fish eye with a look of disgust: "I won't meddle in things that have nothing to do with me."
"That's good." She felt instantly relieved.
People are easily excited when they are happy, and when they are excited, they are prone to saying things they shouldn't say. Yu Nie said happily, "I knew the captain was a good person. You are much better than the other person I know with the surname 'Huan'."
Zi Jing raised an eyebrow: "Really? Which one is surnamed 'Huan'?"
Yu Nie replied, "It is Huan Xun, the commander of your Dingbei army."
A note from the author:
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The deadline for submitting the results is approaching, so I'll keep the word count low and update tomorrow night at midnight.
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