Yu Li opened the door and was pleasantly surprised to see the tall and burly Tu Laoda with his full beard standing outside.
“Uncle Tu, you’re back! When did you return?”
Tu Laoda was about to speak but immediately felt something was off after hearing her question. “I came back yesterday. You… don’t remember?”
Yu Li looked at him in confusion but quickly thought of something and said, “Could it be I saw you last night? I was drunk, so I don’t remember.”
She spoke with a clear and confident tone.
Tu Laoda was taken aback.
Although he’d heard of people forgetting what they did while drunk, he hadn’t expected her to forget so thoroughly.
Yu Li hadn’t realized she’d met him last night. Knowing that he must know what she did, she said, “Uncle Tu, come in and let’s talk.”
Tu Laoda had business with her, so he stepped inside.
As he entered, he asked, “By the way, you’re not feeling unwell, are you?”
Thinking about how she had gotten drunk and accomplished such a bold feat last night, he was a little worried about her physical condition.
If it were an ordinary person, they’d likely be suffering today. But then again, she didn’t seem like an ordinary person…
“No, I feel great,” Yu Li replied.
Tu Laoda glanced at her and noticed she seemed full of energy. It seemed that what she had done last night hadn’t affected her at all.
When they entered the Fu family home, Zhou Shi and Fu Wenxiao both emerged from their rooms.
Zhou Shi, upon hearing the knock, had come out instinctively to see who it was, wary that it might be another uninvited guest.
When she saw it was Tu Laoda, she relaxed.
Tu Laoda first addressed Zhou Shi, “Auntie, sorry to disturb you. I’m here to talk to Li Niang about something.”
Zhou Shi quickly replied, “Then you should go inside and sit.”
Understanding proper boundaries, she instructed Yu Li to take good care of the guest and returned to her room, leaving them to their discussion.
Tu Laoda turned his attention to Fu Wenxiao, who was walking out of the east wing.
The evening light was fading, and the darkness deepened. Although Tu couldn’t clearly see his face, he could still discern the man’s upright posture. His bearing was extraordinary, unlike someone who would have been raised in a rural family.
This must be the Fu family’s son, Yu Li’s husband.
It was Tu Laoda’s first time meeting Fu Wenxiao, and he couldn’t help being a bit surprised, even somewhat suspicious of his identity.
He had heard that the Fu family used to be traveling merchants who fell on hard times and moved here. However, Tu doubted that such a noble temperament could come from a mere merchant’s son.
When Yu Li saw Fu Wenxiao emerge from the room, she thought nothing of it and casually introduced them as she led Tu Laoda to the main hall to sit. “Brother Xiao, this is Uncle Tu.”
Fu Wenxiao walked slowly, each step steady and deliberate.
He also made his way into the main hall.
A small oil lamp was lit in the hall, and Yu Li poured a cup of water for Tu Laoda, inviting him to sit down.
Tu Laoda thanked her and couldn’t help but let his gaze fall on Fu Wenxiao. By the dim light in the room, he could now see his face more clearly.
A pale complexion, a frail body, and a constant sickly appearance—he was evidently someone who had been ill for a long time. Tu Laoda couldn’t help wondering about his condition and whether he could ever recover.
He felt a bit sorry for Yu Li.
If the Yu family hadn’t been tempted by the twenty taels of betrothal money, they wouldn’t have married her off to a sickly man in hopes of warding off bad luck.
“Uncle Tu, when exactly did you see me last night?” Yu Li asked directly, getting straight to the point.
Hearing this, Fu Wenxiao immediately realized that Tu Laoda had encountered Yu Li while she was drunk the previous night. He quickly deduced that Tu Laoda might have been at the scene of the bandit extermination.
Perhaps the military had coincidentally launched an operation against the bandits at the same time.
Tu Laoda noticed that Yu Li didn’t avoid the topic in front of Fu Wenxiao, which told him that this man must be aware of Yu Li’s unusual abilities.
Yu Li trusted him.
Without hiding anything, Tu Laoda recounted what she had done the night before.
When he finished speaking, the room fell into silence.
Tu Laoda looked at the couple sitting across from him, his gaze lingering on Fu Wenxiao for a while. He noticed that Fu Wenxiao remained composed throughout. His expression had been calm from start to finish, showing no change at all.
It seemed that he wasn’t surprised by Yu Li’s feat of single-handedly wiping out the entire bandit stronghold. Clearly, he was well aware of her capabilities.
As for Yu Li, her reaction was just as calm.
Now that she had learned what she had done while drunk, she found it aligned with her guesses. What surprised her, however, was that Tu Laoda and Xuan Huaiqing were also there. Their plan had also been to take advantage of the Mid-Autumn Festival night, when the bandits would be less vigilant, to eliminate them.
Yu Li asked, “Uncle Tu, who exactly is Xuan Huaiqing?”
When she had saved Xuan Huaiqing on a whim, she hadn’t paid him any mind and quickly forgotten about him. Later, because of Xuan Huaiqing, Tu Laoda had shown her a lot of care. She had assumed that Xuan Huaiqing was just a friend of Tu Laoda’s and hadn’t thought much more of it.
Now, knowing that they had worked together to take down the bandits, she realized that Xuan Huaiqing’s identity must be unusual.
Tu Laoda said, “He is the young master of the General’s Manor, the grandson of Old General Xuan.” As he said this, he looked somewhat apologetic. “We didn’t mean to hide it from you, but Young Master Xuan’s identity is sensitive, and many people want to take his life, so…”
Yu Li naturally didn’t mind. No matter what Xuan Huaiqing’s identity was, it had nothing to do with her.
She had only met Xuan Huaiqing once or twice; he wasn’t anyone special to her. It didn’t matter if he kept his identity a secret.
She thought about it plainly, but Tu Laoda was pleased by her attitude.
Fu Wenxiao glanced at Yu Li and instantly understood her thoughts. The corners of his lips lifted slightly, and his eyes gleamed with amusement.
After expressing his apology for concealing Xuan Huaiqing’s identity, Tu Laoda pulled two banknotes from his coat and handed them to Yu Li.
Yu Li took a look and found they were each for 100 taels, leaving her puzzled.
“This is the reward silver from the government,” Tu Laoda explained. “When bandits are eliminated, the government usually issues a reward. Young Master Xuan asked me to collect it for you and deliver it here.”
Yu Li was pleasantly surprised. “That much?”
Eliminating one group of bandits could earn a 200-tael reward?
She hadn’t expected this world to offer rewards for eradicating bandits, and suddenly she felt eager to do more.
Tu Laoda chuckled. “The bandits on Qingya Mountain often roamed nearby, causing harm to many common folk. The government has been troubled by them for a long time. Eliminating them this time brought a larger reward.”
Another reason was that Xuan Huaiqing had personally led the operation. Magistrate Zhang naturally wanted to appear generous, offering more than usual to please the young general.
The Xuan family may have disliked Xuan Huaiqing, their sole heir, going to the battlefield, but given the family’s legacy, he couldn’t avoid it.
Moreover, Xuan Huaiqing held a military officer rank officially conferred by the court, a position higher than Magistrate Zhang’s. As the grandson of Old General Xuan, Magistrate Zhang wouldn’t dare show him any disrespect.
Thus, the reward was issued promptly, with no delays.
Yu Li was unaware of these intricacies. She was simply delighted by the 200-tael reward for eliminating bandits.
She asked earnestly, “Uncle Tu, are there any other bandits that need to be dealt with? I can help, as long as I get a share of the reward.”
Upon hearing this, not only did Fu Wenxiao chuckle, but even Tu Laoda was momentarily stunned.
Thinking about what had happened during the bandit elimination last night, Tu Laoda felt a slight shiver run down his spine.
But seeing her face full of anticipation, he found it hard to refuse and hesitantly said, “Li Niang, there’s no rush for now. If another situation arises in the future, we’ll let you know…”
“Then it’s settled!” Yu Li said happily, her face lighting up. “You must let me know!”
Tu Laoda: “…”
Fu Wenxiao almost couldn’t hold back the smile tugging at his lips.
He hadn’t expected that seeing the reward silver would ignite her enthusiasm for eliminating bandits. But watching her cheerful demeanor, her eyes sparkling, he couldn’t bear to dampen her spirits.
This was how she should be—free from the constraints of worldly rules, simply living happily.
He believed that with her character, even if she didn’t follow the rules set by others, she would never do anything against her conscience. She acted with integrity and had a clear sense of right and wrong.
After coming to this world, Yu Li had embraced it fully and taken on the responsibility of protecting the people around her.
Tu Laoda continued to explain the aftermath of the bandit elimination.
“…We didn’t reveal your identity, only saying that a righteous individual assisted us,” Tu Laoda said, looking at Yu Li with a serious expression. “Although bandits have their own territories and often fight each other over land, they can also unite against a common enemy. If other bandits were to learn your identity, it’s hard to guarantee they wouldn’t target you to intimidate the government—or worse, target your family…”
Besides Qingya Mountain, there were many other places where bandits roamed. This was an unfortunate reality, as there would always be people who, for various reasons, turned to a life of banditry.
Once someone became a bandit, principles and morality ceased to matter.
They were ruthless killers, and sometimes, in retaliation or to intimidate the government, they would specifically murder civilians after a crackdown.
Yu Li understood this. She wasn’t foolish and had already considered this possibility, which was why she hadn’t planned to claim the reward directly from the government.
She said, “Uncle Tu, it’s fine as long as I’ve received the reward money.”
Tu Laoda: “…”
Fu Wenxiao couldn’t help but chuckle softly again.
Seeing that his business here was finished, Tu Laoda didn’t linger. After explaining the situation and handing over the reward money, he prepared to leave.
Before leaving, he said, “Oh, by the way, Young Master Xuan came here to eliminate the bandits partly to look for you. He’ll be staying in the county town for a few days and mentioned that he plans to visit you at the meat shop tomorrow.”
Yu Li responded with an “Oh” and said, “Alright, I’ll wait for him there.”
She and Fu Wenxiao stood to see him off.
Fu Wenxiao walked slowly and stopped in front of the main hall, not going all the way to the door. Instead, he watched as Yu Li accompanied Tu Laoda to the entrance.
As Tu Laoda stepped out of the Fu family home, he couldn’t help but glance back.
The night had fully descended, and the moon had risen in the east, its light casting a gentle glow over the eaves.
Standing beneath the eaves, bathed in moonlight, Fu Wenxiao’s elegant and noble demeanor was impossible to ignore. Tu Laoda couldn’t shake the feeling that this man was far from ordinary.
“I’ll be off now,” Tu Laoda said, waving his hand to indicate that Yu Li didn’t need to see him further.
Yu Li replied, “Uncle Tu, take care on the road.”
Tu Laoda smiled but refrained from asking about Fu Wenxiao. He turned and left without another word.
After closing the door, Yu Li and Fu Wenxiao returned to their room.
Yu Li picked up the two banknotes and examined them under the lamp, marveling, “So this is what banknotes look like.”
After thoroughly inspecting the banknotes, she carefully placed them into the money box where she kept her silver, then began counting her money.
Fu Wenxiao couldn’t suppress a smile; it seemed she truly loved money.
When she finished counting, he asked, “Li Niang, do you plan to continue eliminating bandits in the future?”
“Of course!” Yu Li replied without hesitation. “There’s reward money involved—why wouldn’t I?”
Eliminating threats to human survival while earning money in the process—such a great deal was worth doing.
With people like Xuan Huaiqing involved, she didn’t have to worry about the rewards not being delivered.
Hearing her response, Fu Wenxiao thought to himself that perhaps he couldn’t just stay idle any longer. He might need to reach out to his former subordinates—if this was what she truly wanted to pursue…