Chapter 149 A Shy Yet Festive Girl
Xingguofang
Pei Bi was somewhat surprised to see Mei Xiaojing visit. His only interaction with the Mei family was the last time he exchanged silver. Why would Miss Mei personally come to visit him?
In the foundry, the sword slaves whispered among themselves about the beautiful girl who had come to the workshop. Despite her young age, she was being treated like an honored guest by the workshop owner and manager.
"I don't believe you." Feng Shisan gestured and beckoned to Xiao Ma with his finger. "What's a beautiful lady doing in our neighborhood? Xiao Ma, let's have a little sparring match."
Xiao Ma wiped the tip of his sword without looking up, his brow furrowed as if he were thinking about something. Feng Shisan approached, sword on his shoulder, and waved his hand in front of Xiao Ma's eyes. "I'm talking to you. You had a pretty good move last time. Come on, let's spar a bit. Xiao Ma? Xiao Ma?"
--"pony."
Startled by Pei Bi's approach, Xiao Ma looked up with a start, "Manager Pei?"
"Hey!" Feng Shisan pointed at Xiao Ma and said urgently, "Aren't you deaf?"
"Little Ma," Pei Bi said as he approached, "go to the main hall, someone wants to see you."
"See me?" Little Horse asked hesitantly. "Who?"
Pei Bi didn't seem to understand why the visitor specifically asked to see Xiao Ma. Perhaps he was getting old and his mind couldn't keep up. "Miss Mei has come to visit and specifically asked to see you."
Xiao Ma loosened his grip and dropped the sword. "Mei Xiaojing."
“It’s Miss Mei.” Pei Bi was annoyed by his lack of manners. “Aren’t you going yet? You’ll be waiting for a while.”
Xiao Ma took a few steps and then suddenly stopped, turning his head to look at Guan Ye. Guan Ye had obviously also heard what Pei Bi said, and made a face at Xiao Ma. Xiao Ma couldn't help but laugh, picked up his sword and ran towards the main hall.
“Mei Xiaojing?” Feng Shisan rubbed his nose and looked at Guan Ye, “Miss Mei? Who is she? And she was received in the main hall? Guan Ye, tell me about her.”
Guan Ye swung a sledgehammer as if to smash his head, "Have you heard of Gongcheng Money House?"
Feng Shisan shook his head honestly. He had only ever heard the saying "One general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand soldiers." He knew about success, but a money exchange... Feng Shisan's eyes widened like coins. "Did Xiao Ma find money?"
Guan Ye was furious and slammed the hammer heavily onto the newly forged iron blade. "You even said that Xiao Ma was greedy for money. What are you thinking about? Who said it has to be about picking up money? Miss Mei from Gongcheng Money Shop is Xiao Ma's friend, and also... my friend."
Feng Shisan's eyes lit up and then dimmed. Why could Xiao Ma and Guan Ye make friends in Rong, but he had no friends? This didn't make sense to him. Feng Shisan picked up his sword and was about to leave when Guan Ye grabbed him. "Where are you going?"
"I, Feng Shisan, also want to be friends with the Mei family," Feng Shisan roared. "If you can befriend Xiao Ma, so can I."
"You're not allowed to go." Guan Ye swung her sledgehammer and stepped in front of Feng Shisan. "I won't allow you to ruin Xiao Ma's plans."
Feng Shisan got excited and called Ajiu and the others over. "Look, look, Guan Ye is protecting Xiao Ma. Xiao Ma is my brother. His business is my business. I can ruin anyone but Xiao Ma. What business is it of yours, Guan Ye?" Feng Shisan shouted while giving Ji Fang a wink.
Ji Fang didn't want to say anything more, as both of them were not easy to deal with, but if he had to compare, Feng Shisan was more intimidating. Ji Fang coughed and said, "Yes, if Xiao Ma can befriend Miss Mei, we can too. Guan Ye, don't block their way, move aside."
Guan Ye was stubborn and refused to back down. Feng Shisan winked and grinned, staring at A Jiu and said, "I've always felt that something was off between you and Xiao Ma. Last time you two were dressed so smartly and went to the market together, I know, Guan Ye, you like Xiao Ma."
"Pah!" Guan Ye swung her hammer at him, "If you keep talking nonsense, I'll smash your head in."
"Hahahaha." Feng Shisan deftly deflected the iron hammer with his sword sheath and provocatively said to Guan Ye, "That's right, Xiao Ma is interested in you and is bothering you."
"Xiao Ma doesn't like me, he likes..." Guan Ye realized she'd been interrupted and reluctantly brought the sledgehammer down. "He likes..."
Feng Shisan rubbed his ears and laughed heartily, "Little Ma likes Miss Mei? Then we should definitely go and take a look. Ji Fang, let's go."
"Alright!" Ji Fang scratched his head with great joy. "Let's see if she's a fairy descended from the heavens."
Guan Ye walked back to the furnace in a huff, swinging the hammer and angrily striking the red-hot iron blade, each strike seemingly treating the blade as Feng Shisan's head. A Jiu approached her, smoothed the stray hairs on her cheeks damp with sweat, and said with a smile, "You never told me about Xiao Ma's matter."
"Do you want others to know about your affairs?" Guan Ye raised her head.
Ah Jiu laughed, "Ah? Xiao Ma and Miss Mei have reached that point?"
"Don't talk nonsense." Guan Ye wished she could cover his mouth. "Xiao Ma is a gentleman. A gentleman seeks out a beautiful lady, that's all."
Ah Jiu lowered her head and held her sword. "If I had known earlier, I would have reminded Xiao Ma not to be a gentleman. Life is short. Do what you want to do, so that you won't have lived in vain."
Guan Ye stopped what she was doing, then suddenly chuckled. A-Jiu looked down and asked, "What are you laughing at?"
"I'm laughing." Guan Ye laughed so hard she almost couldn't hold the hammer properly. "You think you can just do what you want? And you're talking about Xiao Ma?"
Ajiu's arrogant expression froze instantly. Their eyes met, and they both remembered the important thing they hadn't accomplished that night. Their beautiful faces flushed red and then turned pale, and they were speechless for a moment.
"Miss Mei Xiao..." The little horse was running too fast and suddenly stopped to grab the door frame. When it saw that it was indeed Mei Xiaojing sitting in the hall, its joy was impossible to hide.
"Xiao Ma!" Mei Xiaojing saw Xiao Ma's face clearly, stood up and then sat down again, "Xiao Ma, you're here."
Xiao Ma glanced at Pei Yuan's expression, responded softly, and stepped into the main hall. He clasped his hands in greeting to Mei Xiaojing and said, "I wonder what business Miss Mei has with me?"
Mei Xiaojing cleared her throat. "Well... last time you came to deposit silver, you said it was a deposit from the Salt and Iron Bureau. It's been quite a while now, and I heard that Xingguofang has delivered the goods on time and in full. I came to ask... ask..." Mei Xiaojing hesitated, looked at Xiao Ma with her big eyes for help, and squeezed her throat a few times.
"Oh." Xiao Ma swallowed. "You mean to ask..." Xiao Ma squeezed out the words as he thought, "...whether the remaining silver...has the Salt and Iron Bureau paid it off?"
“Yes.” Mei Xiaoqing grasped at this straw. “Yes, I just came to ask when you’re going to send the rest of the silver to Gongcheng Money Shop? It’s almost the end of the year, and it’s not a peaceful time. Although Xingguo Fang is a wealthy place…” Mei Xiaoqing deliberately looked around. “You’ve never seen how fierce thieves are. With your sword, you probably can’t withstand them. You should deposit it in my money shop as soon as possible.”
Pei Yuancang looked puzzled and stroked his beard, saying, "Miss Mei personally came to Xingguo Ward to find Xiao Ma just for this matter?"
Mei Xiaoqing was stunned, then blinked and said, "This is no small matter. Oh, I see." Mei Xiaoqing clapped her hands. "Is it because the Salt and Iron Bureau is refusing to pay? Then I've come to the right place. My cousin has some dealings with the Salt and Iron Bureau. How about I help you collect the debt from them?" As she spoke, she waved her hands repeatedly, "This service is a freebie, no charge."
Pei Yuan was increasingly confused. "This... the Salt and Iron Bureau settled its accounts a few days ago, so there's no need to trouble Young Master Mei with this matter. Mei Xiaojing said that it's almost the end of the year, and I was planning to keep this money..."
"It's settled?" Mei Xiaojing interrupted Pei Yuan. "That's perfect. Xiao Ma, take the money and go to my family's bank. I've even brought the carriage."
“Miss Mei…” Pei Yuan hurriedly explained, “What I mean is…”
Mei Xiaojing waved her hand and jumped up from the chair. "Someone, hurry up and help Master Pei carry the silver."
Several servants from the Mei family approached, scratching their heads. Pei Bi, who was following behind, was also puzzled. "Master, this... this... Miss Mei is too kind. Why are you being so polite?" The Mei family was prominent, and Pei Yuan did not want to refuse Miss Mei in public. He could only nod slightly to Pei Bi, indicating that he should do as he was told.
“Little Ma,” Mei Xiaojing pointed at him and said, “What are you still standing there for? Come with me to the money exchange.”
Little Horse pointed to himself, "What...am I going to do?"
Mei Xiaojing bit her lip. "Stupid... Of course it's... escorting! I've already said the end of the year is unsafe. What if the silver is robbed by bandits?"
Xiao Ma looked at Pei Yuan, who waved his hand helplessly, "Do as Miss Mei says."
In the courtyard, Feng Shisan and Ji Fang had been spying for quite some time. Feng Shisan could reach quite far, and if Ji Fang hadn't been holding him back, he would have already darted out like a leopard.
"Did you see that?" Ji Fang didn't dare to step forward, only daring to peek out from behind the stone lion. He could only see a girl in pink sitting on a nanmu chair, gesturing wildly as she spoke. She even stood up when she got excited. Had Xiao Ma offended her? Could it be that she came to cause trouble in the neighborhood? "Thirteenth Young Master, did you see that? What are they saying?"
"Stop yelling." Feng Shi covered Ji Fang's chattering mouth with his hand. "What a feisty girl, and quite pretty too."
"How beautiful?" Ji Fang, now brimming with enthusiasm, suddenly mustered the courage to emerge from behind the stone lion. Now, he was heading straight for Mei Xiaojing, who was walking out of the main hall. Suddenly, Feng Shisan shoved him. Ji Fang, already nervous, stumbled and bumped into Mei Xiaojing. He cursed inwardly, fearing his sword might injure someone, and quickly spread his arms, shouting, "Miss, be careful..."
Mei Xiaoqing couldn't dodge in time and watched as the swordsman in black robes pounced on her like a hawk hunting its prey. Xiao Ma reacted quickly, blocking Ji Fang with one hand while pulling Mei Xiaoqing behind him with the other. The whole sequence of movements was done in one go, neat and elegant. Mei Xiaoqing's eyes shone as she looked up at Xiao Ma, as if a god had descended from the sky.
Ji Fang quickly stopped, gripped his sword and planted it firmly on the ground to steady himself. He hung his head, feeling both ashamed and embarrassed. "I...I didn't mean to...Xiao Ma, Mei...Mei...please don't take offense."
"It's Mei Xiaojing." Mei Xiaojing stepped forward, saw the swordsman's embarrassed expression, and covered her mouth to laugh. "Xiao Ma, is he your friend? What's his name?"
"Ji Fang, my name is Ji Fang." Ji Fang introduced himself before Xiao Ma could, "I am also a swordsman from Xingguo Fang."
Mei Xiaojing stopped laughing, put her hands behind her back, and looked at the boy she was meeting for the first time. "I could tell a long time ago. You almost hurt me. I'm so grateful to Xiao Ma." As she spoke, she looked at Xiao Ma again, her eyes seemingly only on him.
Ji Fang straightened up, leaning on his sword, and suddenly met the burning passion in Mei Xiaoqing's eyes. Although the passion was not directed at him, it was still pleasant to see. "I... I really didn't mean to."
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