Chapter 6 Bounty Order: You brat with thick eyebrows and big eyes!
When You Mingjiang returned to his residence, he first carefully tidied up the bamboo medicine basket, and then carefully reinforced the canopy of the mule cart.
Inside the carriage, Tie Pinggu lay unconscious.
You Mingjiang lightly patted the dust off his body, hitched up the mule cart, and prepared to leave this bustling city to seek refuge with the legendary Sun Moon Cult.
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The world of martial arts has never been peaceful.
You Mingjiang knew very well that the Qinglong Society was wealthy and powerful, with influence all over the country, from bustling cities in the south to remote villages, they had eyes and ears everywhere.
The Azure Dragon Society is extremely strict with its subordinates. The rule that "anyone who works for the Azure Dragon Society and fails will face certain death" is like a tight band around the head of every member.
The Green Dragon Society employs ruthless and diverse methods, including infiltration, spying, instigation, and assassination, all of which are carried out flawlessly and without any loopholes.
As a physician in the Azure Dragon Society, how could she easily escape the conflicts of the martial world?
The Azure Dragon Society was known for its ruthless ways of doing things, and what was particularly outrageous was that they forced all elites at the level of branch leader and above to have azure dragon tattoos, which she found extremely offensive.
Back then, You Mingjiang found it hard to swallow this insult and couldn't help but complain:
"Look at this, it's as if I was so happy to get that damn blue dragon tattoo. Before I got it, I was at least a sect leader, but now that I've got it, I've become a laughing stock in everyone's eyes. What's the difference between me and a pig waiting to be slaughtered? Little Zi, don't you think so?"
Yuan Zixia, who was listening in, just smiled and didn't say anything.
Not long after, You Mingjiang was unjustly exiled to the remote place of Yazhou by the Qinglong Society.
Therefore, when she received the request for assistance from the Qinglong Society's July 15th branch that year, she ignored it and remained in Yazhou.
Later, I heard that the branch was severely damaged and has not yet recovered.
She understood that, based on this alone, the Azure Dragon Society would definitely not let her go easily.
Over the years, You Mingjiang has been paying close attention to the open and covert struggles between the Sun Moon Sect and the Azure Dragon Society, secretly hoping that the Azure Dragon Society would not emerge victorious, as she did not want to be bound by that Azure Dragon tattoo any longer.
On the other hand, Kaifeng is very close to the territory of the Songshan School in Dengfeng.
Since you intend to join the Sun Moon Sect, it is not advisable to stay within the sphere of influence of the Five Mountains Sword Sect for too long, otherwise it will be difficult to explain if something happens in the future.
If this arouses Black Cliff's suspicion, she won't be able to explain herself even if she had a thousand mouths.
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You Mingjiang drove the mule cart, preparing to go to the blacksmith's shop to retrieve the several broadswords he had ordered a few days ago.
The broadsword consists of a blade and a wooden handle. She had the blade custom-made, and its shape resembles a widened sickle.
Because the control over weapons is extremely strict at present, and You Mingjiang has always presented herself as a gentle country doctor, she firmly believes that as long as she insists that these blades are sickle-shaped, the government will be unable to do anything to her.
At this moment, the moon was high in the sky, and the surrounding light was dim, making it the perfect time to quietly retrieve the blade from the blacksmith's shop.
As the mule cart slowly passed the notice board at the city gate, You Mingjiang's gaze swept over it casually, but he suddenly saw a familiar portrait and froze.
Isn't that handsome young man in the portrait the same person we met by the river just now?
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This notice with a portrait turned out to be a wanted poster:
"Lu Xiaojia, male, nicknamed Sika Deer, about eighteen years old, agile, with a sheathless sword at his waist, superb swordsmanship, cunning and deceitful, likes to eat peanuts, and is good at cheating on people."
This scoundrel swindled me out of 800,000 taels of silver and abducted my beloved woman, leaving me, Xue Dahan, penniless and in dire straits.
Lu Xiaojia has seriously violated the code of chivalry. We hope that local governments, heroes of the martial arts world, and righteous people will do their utmost to capture this villain. A generous reward will be given for any clues or capture of this villain.
A reward of one thousand taels of silver will be given to anyone who provides clues; a reward of five thousand taels of silver will be given to anyone who assists in the capture; and I will be eternally grateful and remember this great kindness by anyone who captures him alive.
This is a warrant for arrest!
Signed: Xuejiazhuang, Xue Dahan.
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Eight hundred thousand taels of silver...
You Mingjiang was dumbfounded. This amount of money was more than enough to cover the construction costs of building a flood control dam stretching for dozens of miles.
She couldn't help but look up at the handsome young man's name, "Lu Xiaojia..." She thought to herself, never expecting that this guy with thick eyebrows and big eyes would be a criminal who cheated people out of money and stole women.
Xue Dahan's line, "He's good at putting green hats on people," must have been written through gritted teeth.
The people around who were looking at the notice also asked, "What does Lu Xiaojia do?"
One of the bodyguards, who had come to join the fun, lowered his voice and said mysteriously, "He's an extremely expensive assassin. It's said that his reward for killing one person is at least tens of thousands of taels of silver. If you don't know him, you can ask around. The once domineering Chief Bodyguard Deng lost his life by his sword!"
"Killer, assassin..." You Mingjiang frowned, thinking to himself, "Could it be a newly recruited member of the Azure Dragon Society?"
She stared at Lu Xiaojia's wanted poster, pondering the relationship between the Azure Dragon Society and Lu Xiaojia, while the buzzing of the surrounding crowd still echoed in her ears.
Just then, a sudden commotion abruptly interrupted her thoughts.
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You Mingjiang frowned, looked up, and saw a surging crowd, as if something was happening.
That voice sounds so familiar...
A thought struck her, and she steered the mule cart toward the noisy area, wanting to find out what was going on.
"Fellow villagers, what are you looking at?" You Mingjiang asked as he drove his mule cart into the crowd.
"You don't know yet, do you, Dr. You?" You Mingjiang sat on the mule cart, slightly raising the corners of his mouth, and said with a smile, "If I knew, I wouldn't have asked."
The villagers hurriedly shared the news: "Yesterday's welcoming drum performance went wrong. Everything was fine, but suddenly the lantern pole fell down, almost injuring someone. Fortunately, only a few lanterns were broken. However, Hai Sidie, who was performing the rolling rings, made a big mistake. The newly appointed official who was watching from the city tower at that time had a long face."
You Mingjiang pressed further, "So what are we doing now?"
The villager curled his lip and said, "They're chasing people away."
You Mingjiang frowned and said, "It can't be that bad, can it? It's just a juggling performance, and besides, you can't blame them for the broken lanterns."
The villager sighed and continued, "Not only did she ruin the performance, but I heard that the Hai family's little girl also stole something!"
Stealing?
Why would Hai Hongzhu steal things?
Filled with doubt, You Mingjiang pushed through the crowd and squeezed in.
There was a clerk wearing a narrow-sleeved round-necked robe and black boots, followed by several soldiers holding sticks.
Hai Hongzhu was escorted out of the city gate, and then a soldier behind her pushed her to the ground.
Her little face was covered in dust, and the white gauze on her hands was rubbed black. She was still struggling.
The clerk arrogantly stepped on Hai Hongzhu's back and said viciously:
"Bah! You two ruined the master's mood on such an important occasion last night! And that's not all, just now a distinguished person reported the crime, and you still tried to steal expensive lip rouge! You two out-of-town thieves, all you know is how to do this kind of thing!"
Hai Hongzhu blushed and loudly protested, "I didn't steal it, I just glanced at it!"
The truth is, Hai Hongzhu was not lying. The story begins the night the welcoming drum performance ended…
That very night, after the welcoming drum performance ended, Hai Si Die suffered a heart attack and vomited blood, but he insisted that he was fine.
When the two returned to their residence outside the city, she found that Hai Si Die was pale and sickly, clutching his stomach in pain, tossing and turning all night, and occasionally vomiting dark red blood.
Unable to find You Mingjiang near the old Fengqiu Gate, Hai Hongzhu reluctantly bought some medicine and returned home. However, her father's condition did not improve after taking it. Desperate, she made a desperate decision to try her luck in the city, hoping to encounter You Mingjiang.
As I passed by the rouge shop, I happened to see the elegant and noble lady of the newly appointed official selecting lipstick.
The exquisitely crafted, retractable dental tube contained a solid lip balm, which shone brightly under the dim light.
Hai Hongzhu couldn't help but take another look.
For ordinary people, a few dozen coins for lip rouge was already a considerable expense, enough to buy several kilograms of vegetables. Lip rouge costing one or two hundred coins was even more expensive, and it was generally only purchased by brides for good luck when adding to their makeup. Lip rouge stored in tooth tubes was priced far beyond the purchasing power of ordinary people.
But Hai Hongzhu only glanced at it before hearing the lady scream "Thief!" The sound alerted the soldiers and officials, and she was arrested as a "potential thief."
The street performers wandered the country, working themselves to the bone every day, barely making ends meet. In the eyes of the wealthy and powerful, they were nothing more than objects of amusement, and were not taken seriously at all.
This woman was just like her hypocritical husband; she always looked down on the poor.
Sure enough, he insisted that Hai Hongzhu was planning to steal the rouge, and before returning to his residence, he specifically told the officials to punish her severely.
That rouge shop was famous for its lip balm, made from cochineal insects and infused with expensive rose water. It was packaged in a tubular ivory tube inlaid with jade, and only the wealthy and powerful could afford it.
The clerk snorted coldly, his face full of disdain, and said, "Hmph, you dare to look?"
He swung his hand sharply, slapping an official expulsion order stamped with the government seal across Hai Hongzhu's face. "Get out of my way! If I ever see you again, I'll have you handed over to the authorities for investigation and I won't let you off lightly!"
After saying that, he led his men away arrogantly.
The people at the city gate whispered among themselves and pointed at her.
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Hai Hongzhu looked at the plaque on the city gate, her heart filled with sorrow.
Tears welled up in her eyes, but she held them back with all her might, refusing to let them fall.
You Mingjiang strode forward, squeezed through the crowd, helped Hai Hongzhu up, and led her under the canopy to sit next to Tie Pinggu, who was still unconscious.
"It's alright now." You Mingjiang took out a clean old blanket and gently draped it over the little girl's shoulders.
As soon as Hai Hongzhu sat on the mule cart, the emotions she had been holding back instantly collapsed.
Her eyes reddened rapidly, and tears welled up in them.
Upon hearing You Mingjiang's words, "It's alright," glistening tears, like beads from a broken string, rolled down her cheeks.
At first, it was just soft sobbing, but gradually the crying grew louder and louder, until finally it broke into a loud wail.
She curled up in a ball, crying and muttering to herself, "What did I do wrong? I only glanced at that tube of lip rouge!"
The cries echoed in the silent night, making one's heart ache.
"Don't cry, you didn't do anything wrong..."
You Mingjiang lowered her voice, raised her hand to wipe away her tears, and then changed the dirty gauze on her hand.
"Little sister, that corrupt official won't be smug for long, I guarantee it!"
The mine she planted, once it explodes, will dispel a gloom over Kaifeng.
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After retrieving the custom-made blades from the blacksmith's shop, You Mingjiang drove his mule cart and sped towards Hai Hongzhu's residence.
Throughout the journey, both inside and outside the car were deathly silent, and no one broke the silence.
Before long, the three of them (Tie Pinggu was still unconscious) arrived at Hai Sidie's slightly dilapidated thatched hut.
Just as I reached the door, I saw Hai Si's father struggling to move out.
Suddenly, his legs gave way and he collapsed forward, spitting out a mouthful of blood onto the ground, a particularly glaring sight.
Hai Sidie lay motionless on the ground for a long time. His face was pale, sweat was rolling down his face, and his eyes were full of despair. He knew that the performance had gone wrong and the yamen would not let them off. Thinking that he had dragged his daughter down, he felt utterly pathetic!
"Father!" Hai Hongzhu cried and rushed over.
Hai Si Die's chest heaved violently, coughing incessantly. With his last bit of strength, he managed to say, "I'm fine," but was interrupted by an even more violent cough, causing him to curl up in pain.
"Dr. You, please save my father!" Hai Hongzhu looked at You Mingjiang with tearful eyes, her voice filled with desperate sobs.
You Mingjiang quickly opened the needle kit and spread it out flat on the grinding wheel next to her.
A dim oil lamp flickered on and off, and the silver needles gleamed coldly.
She steadily picked up a silver needle, first piercing the Baihui acupoint on Hai Si Die's head, then quickly and accurately piercing the Suliao acupoint at the tip of his nose, and finally gently pricking the Shixuan acupoint at the tip of his finger.
Afterwards, she skillfully massaged Hai Sidie's Tanzhong acupoint to relieve the upward flow of qi and blood.
While administering acupuncture, You Mingjiang observed the symptoms and judged from experience that Hai Si Die's gastrointestinal bleeding was caused by emotional agitation.
So she decisively took out four bottles of thrombin lyophilized powder, 500 units per bottle, and two omeprazole enteric-coated capsules, and carefully fed them to Hai Si Die.
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[Ding! Respected young hero, you have performed a chivalrous act in the thatched hut outside Kaifeng City, successfully rescuing a frail young man suffering from a sudden attack of anger. The reward has been sent to your bamboo medicine basket.]
The reward is as follows:
[1 bottle of 3% hydrogen peroxide disinfectant, 100ml each]
Mupirocin ointment 10g*1 tube
Vitamin E softgels 0.5g*200 capsules
This gift is specially issued as encouragement. We hope that young hero will remain humble and diligent, and continue his efforts.
At this moment, the system announcement was a confirmation of her abilities.
You Mingjiang breathed a sigh of relief.
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As Hai Si's condition improved, the father and daughter embraced and wept bitterly, their cries filled with unbearable sorrow.
Yu Mingjiang felt a pang of sadness. He placed a wild ginseng wrapped in red cloth on the millstone and sighed, "Take care, both of you."
She turned to leave, but Hai Si Die and Hai Hongzhu, supporting each other, staggered to the mule cart, bent their knees, and knelt down heavily.
"Dr. You, please take us with you! My son and I are desperate and have nowhere else to go."
Uncle Hai was in tears, pleading, "Please let us follow you, even if it means being your slave."
Hai Hongzhu also cried and pleaded, "Dr. You, please have mercy! I can boil water and cook rice, chop wood and fetch water, I can do any kind of rough work, and I can also read and write, and I can endure hardship. Please take us in, even if it means going through fire and water, we will do it willingly."
The father and daughter knew that You Mingjiang was also struggling financially, and with two more mouths to feed, these expenses would be a burden for her. They were truly desperate, which is why they shamelessly asked for help.
Looking at the pitiful father and daughter before her, she couldn't help but feel a pang of pity. She pursed her lips, gritted her teeth, and said:
"Fine, let's see this through. Since you want to come along, then come on."
After she finished speaking, she waved to the father and daughter.
And so, Yu Mingjiang's mule cart gained an old man and a young boy.
The ruts meandered along the dirt road, the mule cart rumbled along, raising clouds of yellow dust as it gradually disappeared into the night.
A note from the author:
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[Good Luck Lotus] Yuan Zixia: The youngest member of the Red Flag in the Green Dragon Society.
[Good Luck Lotus] This article contains OOC (Out of Character) settings regarding the Sun Moon Cult: [Glasses] "Demon Cult" is Rhetorical Demonization. [Fireworks] On one hand, with frequent natural and man-made disasters, the Sun Moon Cult occupied the strategic Blackwood Cliff, [Rice] and quickly absorbed a large number of displaced people, [Empty Bowl][Pants], its membership exceeding 100,000, forming a de facto separatist force in Pingding Prefecture, openly resisting government taxation [Gold Ingot], and impacting the imperial court's rule; [Fireworks] On the other hand, in order to maintain the operation of its massive organization, the Sun Moon Cult constantly squeezed the living space of the righteous sects [Gold Ingot][Rice], leading to fierce conflicts between the two sides; in addition to some internal reasons (spoilers involved, so I won't go into details)... All of the above led to the gradual demonization of the Sun Moon Cult [Please]
[Red Heart][Orange Heart] Little child, little child, don't be greedy, [Yellow Heart][Green Heart] After Laba Festival, it's almost New Year. [Panda Head] Laba porridge, may everything be perfect!
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