Chapter 21 Encountering a Thug
The next morning, after having breakfast, Aman went out on the street again.
Aside from her usual grocery shopping, her main task today was to buy some vegetable seeds.
Aman was new to the area and knew very little about the nearby grocery stores, unsure which had fair prices and good seeds. He couldn't help with steamed buns either, so Aman could only ask Zhao Hu for help when buying tofu.
Zhao Hu was very kind-hearted. When he learned that she wanted to grow her own vegetables, he not only recommended a trustworthy grocery store to her, but also told her that the vegetable seeds were easy to grow and easy to survive.
"Hey, do you want some scallion seedlings? My mom has grown quite a few, and now is the perfect time to transplant them. If you want them, I can bring them to you tomorrow," Zhao Hu said.
"Oh, that's great! How much is it?" Aman was open to all orders, and aside from everything else, the scallion tofu was really delicious.
"Hey, don't talk about selling or not, they're all grown by ourselves. Just come and support my business often."
Zhao Hu firmly refused to accept the money, which made Aman a little embarrassed. "Then just bring a little less. I don't know if I can support myself."
Aman left with the tofu, and Zhao Hu stared longingly at her retreating figure.
Aunt Hua, who was selling potatoes nearby, couldn't help but laugh when she saw his infatuated look. "What's wrong? You've taken a fancy to a girl?"
Zhao Hu's thoughts were exposed, and a blush rose on his tanned face. He offered a blatant denial, "Nothing of the sort. Don't talk nonsense. Nothing like that."
"Not yet, he's practically glued to her." Aunt Hua teased, then nodded. "But that girl is indeed a good one, pretty and hardworking. I just don't know if she's engaged yet. When she comes again tomorrow, I'll ask around for you."
"Auntie—" Zhao Hu lowered his head somewhat embarrassedly, which could be considered as tacitly agreeing with her words.
Aunt Hua glanced at Aman's slender figure and was quite satisfied.
She had watched Zhao Hu grow up since he was a child. He was hardworking, had a good temper, and was also a master at making tofu. The girl would never go hungry if she stayed with him.
Aunt Hua was happy to do this good deed, but Aman, the person involved, was completely unaware of their intentions.
The general store recommended by Zhao Hu was located in a corner alley. It was a small place, but fortunately it had a complete range of products. It even had several kinds of vegetable seeds that Aman wanted, and some of them were ones that Aman had never heard of before, saying that they came from foreign lands.
Since it was Aman's first time growing vegetables, he didn't dare to try it easily and only bought some common seeds.
The total cost was twenty coins, which stung a little for Aman, but it also filled him with anticipation. Carrying the seeds out of the general store, Aman could already envision the future when he could eat his fill of fresh, green vegetables.
Not paying attention to his footing, Aman knocked over a protruding rock and stumbled into someone else.
"Ouch!" The man was already sulking because he hadn't received his protection money, and when someone bumped into him, he almost suffocated. He immediately cursed, "Who is it? Can't you see anything?!"
The man spat, but when he saw that the person who bumped into him was a beautiful woman, his anger immediately turned into a smile. "Oh, so you're a beauty. No wonder you're so soft and fluffy, like cotton."
As he spoke, he rubbed his arm meaningfully.
The man used vulgar language and his eyes were lewdly staring at Aman, which made Aman very uncomfortable.
The apology stuck in his lips was swallowed back down. Aman turned to leave, but the man reached out and blocked his way.
"Little beauty, where are you in such a hurry to go? It's not right to just hit someone and leave like that."
The alley was not very wide to begin with, and with the long-limbed man blocking the way, Aman had nowhere to go. When she tried to turn back, three or four more men rushed up from the opposite side, their brows furrowed and their eyes glaring. They were clearly in cahoots with the man in front of her.
Aman had never seen anything like this before and felt a little flustered, but he didn't dare show it on his face. He pretended to be calm and said, "I didn't mean to, I just slipped. Please, brother, let me pass!"
As she spoke, Aman tried to crawl under the man's arm, but the man swiftly blocked her way. Aman's chest bumped into the man's thick arm, and Aman instinctively reached out to cover herself, but the man's expression became even more lewd.
He stuck out his tongue and licked his lips, grinning as he said, "I'm not that petty. How about this, come over there and have a couple of drinks with me, and I'll let you off the hook, okay?"
Aman looked in the direction he was pointing and saw a small, dilapidated tavern, a melting pot of all sorts of people.
"I don't drink alcohol."
"Those who haven't tried it all say they can't drink. Practice makes perfect." As he spoke, the man reached out to pull Aman, but was suddenly stopped by a pair of hands that appeared out of nowhere.
"Brother Li, what are you doing?" The newcomer pushed his hand away, shielded Aman behind him, and smiled obsequiously.
After recognizing the newcomer, the man's drooping triangular eyes were filled with disdain. "Zhao Hu, what, are you trying to be a hero and save the damsel in distress?"
"How could I dare? I'm just worried that you'll get into trouble, Brother Li."
"Trouble? What trouble?" Seeing his sincere expression, Brother Li couldn't help but believe him a little.
Taking the opportunity, Zhao Hu said, "Brother Li, you don't know, you can't touch this woman."
As he spoke, he took two steps forward and whispered to him.
"Really?" Li Ge looked at Aman with some skepticism.
If she really was from the Marquis of Cheng'an's mansion, why didn't she say so when she stopped her earlier?
"Of course it's true. I often deliver tofu to the Marquis of Cheng'an's residence and have seen her several times. Today, her master wanted to cook something special, so he specially sent her out to buy it." Zhao Hu lied without batting an eye.
Li Ge remained skeptical, but dared not make any further moves, so he asked Aman, "Are you really from the Cheng'an Marquis's residence?"
Aman didn't know what had happened, but seeing Zhao Hu winking at him repeatedly, he nodded subconsciously.
"In that room?" Zhao Hu asked.
"It's from the eldest young master's room, he just arrived not long ago." Aman subconsciously went along with what he said.
Seeing that Aman answered fluently, Li Ge began to believe her identity. Zhao Hu, seeing that he was softening, took out a piece of silver from his satchel. "It's all this girl's fault for being blind and frightening you. Here's a small token of my respect. Please take it and have some tea. You're a magnanimous person, so please don't take it to heart."
Although the money wasn't much, every little bit helps. Even if the beauty was gone, the money couldn't just disappear.
After taking the money, Li Ge glanced at A Man, gave a cold snort, and then led his men to the tavern for a drink.
Zhao Hu breathed a slight sigh of relief after they had walked away. He turned back to look at Aman and asked gently, "Are you alright?"
Aman shook his head. "Thank you for getting me out of that predicament. I'll return the silver ingot you gave me."
As he was speaking, Aman reached into his purse, but Zhao Hu grabbed him and stopped him.
"No need, it's not much money, and besides, it's protection money I paid."
"Protection fees?" Aman frowned. Selling tofu was just a small business, how could there be protection fees?
"Those guys are notorious thugs in this area. They spend their days stealing chickens and dogs, robbing and burglarizing. Every small vendor in this area has been bullied by them. It's something that can be resolved by paying some money. Nobody wants to make a big fuss about it."
"Doesn't the government care?" Aman asked.
“We can manage it, but who would dare to report it? With his charges, he'd only be locked up for a few days at most. Once he's out, the person who reported him will be in trouble.”
Thinking about how many passersby avoided him, Aman seemed to understand their helplessness.
He nodded and thanked her again: "But I still want to thank you for getting me out of that predicament today."
"It was nothing, don't worry about it. By the way, where do you live? How about I take you home?"
Aman was still a little shaken by what had just happened, but she felt it was too intimate to ask a man she had only met a few times to take her home, so she subconsciously refused, "No need, I live nearby, not far away."
"Mainly, I'm afraid that Brother Li will realize what's happening and cause you trouble again," Zhao Hu said.
He knew, of course, that Li Ge was probably living a life of debauchery in the tavern with his money, but he just wanted to take the opportunity to send A Man home.
Sure enough, Aman hesitated for a moment and then said, "Then I'll trouble you."
Having succeeded in his scheme, Zhao Hu tried hard to suppress his laughter as he walked side by side with Aman. As they passed his stall, he greeted Aunt Hua, "Auntie, could you watch the stall for me for a bit? I'll be right back."
"Okay, sure." Aunt Hua gave him a knowing look and readily agreed.
She had just seen a lot of people standing at that intersection and thought something good had happened inside. But when she got there, she found that Ding Li was bullying a girl, and the girl was the one Zhao Hu liked.
This was a perfect opportunity for a hero to save the damsel in distress, so she immediately informed Zhao Hu. Who knew that this guy would be so helpful, quickly escalating the situation to the point of offering to take her home.
On the way, the two remained silent, and the atmosphere was a little awkward. Zhao Hu took the opportunity to speak and introduced himself, "By the way, I still don't know your name. My name is Zhao Hu. Judging from your age, I should be older than you. If you don't mind, you can just call me Brother Hu."
"My name is Aman." Aman was still a little reserved and didn't know what to say, so she started talking about the Cheng'an Marquis's Mansion.
"By the way, the Cheng'an Marquis's Mansion you mentioned earlier, is it very powerful in Yongzhou? I think that guy cowered as soon as he heard the name."
"Sigh, things were alright in the previous few years, but ever since that old Marquis died, the Marquis's mansion has started to decline. But Ding Li, that kind of thug, has always been a bully who preys on the weak and fears the strong. You're quite clever, though, for mentioning the eldest son of the Marquis's mansion."
"Is the eldest son of the Marquis's mansion some kind of powerful figure?" Aman asked.
"He's not that impressive, and I heard he's disabled and won't live past twenty-five. But despite that, the First Madam dotes on him like the apple of her eye, searching everywhere for famous doctors to treat him, hoping he can live a few more years. Even Yama, the King of Hell, would probably give him some respect. Since you say you're one of his men, Ding Li naturally wouldn't dare to act rashly."
Zhao Hu spoke eloquently, telling Aman everything he had heard, like spilling beans. Aman listened as if it were a storybook, finding it all novel.
Because she simply couldn't compare the pampered and spoiled Young Master Fu that Zhao Hu described with the one in Wutong Garden who ate leftovers and lived a cold and lonely life.
Who exactly spread these rumors?
After much thought, Aman couldn't think of anyone else who would betray their conscience and spread such words, except for the beneficiary who could gain a good reputation.
Zhao Hu escorted the person to the door and then went back.
After Aman entered the house through the back door, the steamed bun was not in the backyard.
The vegetable garden has only been tilled halfway. The shovel at home has been sitting for a long time and is in disrepair. The handle has long since rotted and broke before it could be used much. Mantou is currently repairing it.
Aman put the vegetables and seeds he bought back into the kitchen. When he returned to the front yard, he saw Mantou working hard in the yard, sharpening a new shovel handle, his body covered in sawdust.
Under the eaves, Fu Yunxiu was reading a book. Sunlight streamed through the treetops, casting dappled patterns on his moon-white brocade robe.
Everything seemed abrupt yet perfectly harmonious.
Hearing her footsteps, the two men turned to look at her, their faces beaming with smiles. "You're back!"
Suddenly, the fear and frustration in Aman's heart that she had almost been bullied were resolved.
At least in this little courtyard, there are still people waiting for her to come home.
Aman stepped through the moon gate, a smile on her face, and called out in a clear voice, "Yes, I'm back."
As for what happened today, Aman doesn't plan to talk about it.
On the one hand, she herself had not been bullied, and on the other hand, she was aware of the young master's situation, and speaking out might only add to his troubles.
She couldn't bear to spoil the warm moment.
However, her deliberate concealment did not escape Fu Yunxiu's discerning eyes. From the moment Aman came over, he could see her disappointment and grievance.
what happens?
A note from the author:
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