Hush money?
He was tricked. Shouldn't he be angry? Shouldn't he resent her?
She manipulated his emotions in this carefully orchestrated drama, yet he secretly fell in love with her during it all. Now, he doesn't know what he's feeling; he's probably not feeling well.
The carriage stopped, and he got off with a resentful look on his face.
In front of his own gate stood his parents and an eunuch from the palace. The eunuch immediately greeted Peng Xuan'an with a fawning smile.
"This servant greets General Hongsheng. Today, this servant has come to congratulate General Hongsheng."
Peng Xuan'an wasn't in a good mood at all, and she just smiled and said, "Mmm."
His response was so perfunctory and indifferent that the father-in-law was at a loss for words. He awkwardly showed the plaque behind him. It read "Major General's Residence," the three golden characters gleaming brightly.
"?" He looked at the official in charge with a puzzled expression.
"This humble servant has come on His Majesty's orders to deliver this plaque." He began his introduction: "This plaque was personally inscribed by His Majesty..."
Peng Xuan'an bowed and thanked him, saying, "Thank you for coming all this way, Eunuch. Please also convey my greetings to His Majesty." He interrupted the eunuch and walked past him listlessly.
Seeing this, Peng's parents could only sigh and turn to greet their father-in-law. They knew that Xuan An had gone to the Pang residence today to ask for his beloved girl, but seeing him return alone, looking as listless as if he were dead, they roughly knew what had happened.
He was probably rejected by the girl he loved.
The next day, the sun shone brightly.
The sky was filled with white clouds, and a gentle breeze rustled through the green leaves.
Pang Linqiu was kicked out by her father early in the morning, who also made some harsh remarks.
"If you don't get Xuan'an's forgiveness, you can expect to come back and face the family rules!"
She was forced to go to him against her will, lamenting the cruel twist of fate, and soon arrived at the Major General's residence.
Her maid exchanged a few words with the servant at the door, who then turned to report.
Peng Xuan'an was still practicing martial arts in his own courtyard. He was dressed in a light blue outfit, looking very dashing. He held a long spear, cutting through the air with a whooshing sound, striking and retreating, and the fallen leaves in the courtyard fluttered with the movement of the spear.
"Young Master, Miss Pang the Fourth of the Pang family has a favor to ask."
The young man stopped practicing martial arts, turned to look at the servant who had reported, and asked in confusion, "Miss Pang Si?"
"Does the young master wish to see her?"
He smiled faintly, intrigued, and put the spear aside. He took a few breaths, and beads of sweat rolled down his face.
"I'll see you," he said, then sat down on the stone bench under the tree and poured the tea from the table into a cup.
A moment later, the sound of light footsteps approaching could be heard.
His gaze fell on the doorway, where it was gently pushed open, and Pang Linqiu peeked out. She accidentally met his eyes as he sat under a tree enjoying the shade, and gave an awkward smile.
"General... okay..." she said awkwardly.
"Miss Pang, what brings you to my humble abode today?" He suppressed his smile, his slender fingers twirling the teacup as his gaze fell upon the tea.
“…Hehe…” Her lips twitched, her smile stiff and fake. She slowly walked towards where he was, carrying a wooden box in her hand.
She thought to herself, "Do you think I wanted to come?"
She walked up to him, a faint smile on her beautiful oval face, and was about to say something.
"Miss Pang, do you still stand by your vow to follow me to the death?" He deliberately brought up the past, teasing her playfully.
Her lips twitched as she sat opposite him.
She really knew how to rub salt in the wound. Her voice was androgynous as she muttered a complaint, "...What happened before was Zhi Qiu's doing, it wasn't sworn in my name, General, don't talk nonsense!"
He chuckled softly, raising an eyebrow. "Isn't that all your fault?"
She paused in silence.
She didn't want to deal with that topic and changed the subject seriously, saying, "General, I've come today to apologize." She placed the wooden box on the table and pushed it toward him, saying, "This is a gift from my father to express his apology."
She bit her lip again, hesitant and reluctant, then took out a purse from her clothes and said in a softer voice, "General, I have a favor to ask of you, is that alright?"
"explain."
She observed his expression and pleaded, "There are five hundred silver notes in this bag...can I...use it as hush money?" She handed the purse to him.
One silver note could be exchanged for fifty taels of silver, so her five hundred notes were equivalent to twenty-five thousand taels of silver. She only received ten taels of silver in pocket money each month, and one tael could be exchanged for one thousand copper coins.
Curious, he opened the box and saw a stack of silver notes and some silver jewelry and other items inside. He disdainfully pushed it back.
He glanced at the purse in her hand, pushed it back, shook his head, and scoffed, "Miss Pang, you're not showing enough sincerity."
This amount of money is meaningless to him, whether he has it or not.
She froze, then burst into tears. "General, even a small fly is still a piece of meat. This is money I've saved for years. All for... today..."
“I don’t eat flies,” he replied bluntly.
"..." She still wanted to salvage the situation, saying, "General, if you don't accept it, my conscience will not be at peace."
He crossed his arms and teased, "When have you ever had a conscience?" He was naturally angry at being tricked; how could someone talk to him about conscience in front of him?
She bit her lower lip lightly, looked at the money that had been pushed back, and sighed softly, seemingly feeling somewhat sad and downcast.
Her sorrow wasn't that he wouldn't accept the money, but that she couldn't explain herself if he didn't, and she would be punished when she got back!
Peng Xuan'an noticed her expression and figured that, given her personality, she was probably trying to figure out how to persuade him to accept it. He waited curiously.
She glanced at him and thought to herself, "I was hoping that if I accepted him, we could remain old friends; if I didn't, we'd only become enemies. Sigh."
She suddenly stood up, her mind made up, and said decisively, "Since the general has said so, then I..." She closed the box, preparing to leave.
He looked at her with slight surprise. He never expected her to be so determined to leave, and quickly spoke up.
"I'm not completely against it. If Miss Pang can make me happy..." His gaze drifted to the box in her hand, "I might consider it."
So there's still a chance for her.
Her eyes lit up, as if she had seen a glimmer of hope. Seizing this opportunity to avoid punishment, she immediately sat back down properly, smiling at him in a soft voice.
"General, I knew it! You are a kind-hearted person. General, look at how handsome you are, and you are skilled in both literature and martial arts. You are a tall and dignified man..." He showered you with praise.
After her persuasive words, Peng Xuan'an's lips curled into an unreadable smile, never once falling into a straight line.
Pang Linqiu felt like she was about to float away, but there was nothing she could do. It was worth it to say these words against her conscience in order to avoid being punished!
She said, "General, do you know?"
"Know what?" He tilted his head slightly, curious.
"You are the dream man of countless young women! So many women want to marry you, or even be your concubine and they would be content! Look at you, General, how handsome, dashing, and charming you are..."
She's particularly good at saying nice things against her conscience.
He listened and smiled with satisfaction, his nose becoming quite proud.
He countered, "Since Miss Pang has said so, can you explain it to me?"
"Explain what?" she asked, looking at him blankly.
"Since he is the dream man of every household, why isn't he your dream man?" he pointed out the key point.
She smiled slightly and said, "My family is a mansion, not just a few households." She clapped her hands together, in a good mood.
He frowned slightly, not understanding her words. "What do you mean?"
"The literal meaning," she explained casually.
...
The atmosphere fell silent.
He was amused by her explanation, "Your tiny head is full of such strange ideas."
I don't know if it's a compliment or a sarcastic remark.
"Isn't the general just as small as a palm?"
After chatting for a while, Peng Xuan'an's mood improved considerably, especially when faced with her words and person. The troubles and worries that had caused him yesterday vanished instantly, and he glanced at her, who was trying to gain his forgiveness.
"Come here and massage my shoulders."
"???" She looked completely confused. "Huh?" She wondered if she was hallucinating.
She looked repulsed, as if she wanted to say no.
He spoke first, threatening, "This money seems to be—" He deliberately drew out the word, his gaze falling on the box she was holding.
She took a deep breath, her expression changed, and she stood up with a smile (a death smile) and walked behind him.
I put my hands on his shoulders, I really want to strangle you, you little bastard!
She really wanted to strangle the person in front of her. Why would they deliberately threaten her with not charging her money so she would serve her tea and water?!
He secretly reveled in the sensation of her shoulder massage, which seemed to want to kill him but couldn't. He knew she couldn't kill him with that kind of force; he was a trained fighter and could handle that.
She gritted her teeth in anger at how much he was enjoying it! Instead of strangling him, she decided to kick him to death instead.
The two chatted for a while longer.
He suddenly stood up, catching her off guard and causing her to stumble back a few steps. She was annoyed; he had gotten up without warning, just like before.
He turned around, his tall figure swaying back and forth. He looked her up and down, and she pouted unhappily, glaring at him with murderous intent.
Give me something you have.
She looked at him warily, covering her chest with her hands, and asked him suspiciously, "Why would I give it to you?"
"As a memento."
"I'm not dead, what's there to commemorate?"
He gave a speechless laugh. "So it must be dead? Who taught you that?"
"Then why should I give it to you?" she asked.
"Why not? Are you going to give me that much or not?"
"No!" she said firmly.
"Then I won't take this money," he said, hands on his hips, looking down at the person in front of him, threateningly.
Pang Linqiu really wanted to strangle the person in front of her. She was both angry and helpless, and suppressed her anger as she said irritably, "Then what do you want?!"
Seeing that she was helpless and angry, like a cat with its fur standing on end, he found it quite cute.
He noticed the emerald earring on her earlobe and reached out to touch it. Seeing this, she quickly stepped back.
"I want earrings."
She shook her head and refused, "This was a gift from my mother! No way!"
He had no choice but to pick something else, pointing to the purse at her waist. "Purse."
"My friend knitted this for me! No way!"
He refused to believe it; the necklace, the hairpin...
After being refused several times, she said, "General, why do you always choose the things that others give me?"
He didn't want to either. He didn't expect that the gifts from others would be so perfect. He became curious. Did she wear her family's valuables?
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