Chapter 4

Xiao Bao hovered near the doorway with his hands clasped behind his back, unable to hide the anxiousness on his face.

Zhao Cai let out a yawn and slid down to the floor with his back against the wall, propping his body against Jin Bao. “Young Master, what are you pacing about for?”

“I… I’m just anxious… This physician has already been inside for so long, do you think something has happened to my wife?”

“I can guarantee that she is fine. Look, she almost strangled you to death just now, she has so much strength. And she even kicked us out, she is completely brimming with energy.”

“But… But she’s still a weak young maiden and she bled so much, this young master’s heart feels distressed~~~”

Zhao Cai rolled his eyes and thought in his heart, you know that she’s a ‘weak young maiden’ but you still tried to take advantage of her. If she was hale and healthy, she would be able to single-handedly overturn the entire Jin Qian sect.

“Young Master, from what I see, both of your eight characters haven’t been matched yet,[1] what do you have to worry about.” And she doesn’t even want to see you one bit.

Xiao Bao sighed resentfully and pointed at him while scolding, “You this bastard, you’re so short-sighted. Now I’m treating her so well, isn’t it so that she would be moved by me, bit by bit? She’s so fierce and guarded because she must have been harmed by villains and gone through a lot. She’s so beautiful, her nature can’t be bad. I want to slowly~~ slowly~~ melt the ice around her heart~~ then I will embrace her~~ hehe~~ and then~~~ hehe……”

Zhao Cai and Jin Bao calmly watched as their young master indulged in his dirty fantasies, they were already immune to it.

The tightly shut door suddenly opened with a kacha sound and a figure stumbled out.

Seeing that someone was coming out, Xiao Bao immediately went up and grabbed his shoulders, “Physician, how was it? How is my wife, physician?”

“Ah, ah?” The physician stared at him, dumbstruck.

“Physician, what’s wrong?” When he went in he was very self-assured, yet when he left he seemed out of sorts, could it be……

“Physician did something happen to my wife?! Say something, physician!!!”

The elderly wizened physician evidently couldn’t bear his heavy weight, just a single shake and he was already dizzy. He stuttered, “Inside… inside that… mai…maiden is fine… just needs a couple days rest… and all will be well.”

Xiao Bao heaved a sigh of relief and instructed Jin Bao to thank the physician properly. That physician received his silver and left the inn hastily.

Xiao Bao tidied up his sleeves, adjusted the ribbon in his hair and smoothed out the creases in his robes, then plastered on a smile that he thought was kind and warm, pushed open the door and entered.

“My wife~~ are you feeling better now~~ uwaaa!!!” Xiao Bao hurriedly covered his head and crouched down onto the ground, as the steaming hot pot of medicine smashed into smithereens against the wall behind him. He glanced back and wondered, is his head as hard as that wall……

“What did you call me?” The half-clothed person on the bed asked frostily, with each word encased in ice.

“No no~~ fairy goddess sister~~ uwaaa!!!” Xiao Bao rolled onto the ground and the flying bowl of medicine barely missed him, but he was doused with the yellow liquid.

Zhao Cai and Jin Bao rushed in and asked anxiously, “Young Master, are you alright?”

“I’m fine, I’m fine…… You guys… you guys go out first.” Xiao Bao wiped the sweat off his brow.

The two people exchanged a glance in worry, but seeing that their young master was unhurt, they left.

Xiao Bao climbed up from the ground shakily, retreated a few steps, and stood in a corner a safe distance away, looking like a daughter-in-law that had been wronged. “I wonder… what this young maiden is called……”

The person on the bed stared at him viciously, seeming as though she was trying to suppress her anger.

Xiao Bao trembled, and prepared to deal with the things that might fly over at any moment, thinking, did he say something wrong again?

That person replied icily, “You’re not worthy of knowing.”

“But…… If maiden doesn’t say it, then humble me[2] wouldn’t know how to address you. How about I call you~~”

“Zheng Huai En.” The beauty fumed.

“So it’s Maiden Zheng, please excuse my lack of manners.” Xiao Bao copied the Jianghu experts and cupped his hands together.[3]

Huai En looked at him in detest, and asked, “Where is this place.”

“Oh, this is Wei Tang town. When I saw that you were injured, I found a nearby inn for you to nurse your wounds.”

“Wei Tang…… that’s half a day’s journey from Suzhou……”

When Xiao Bao heard this, he was ecstatic, “Does Maiden Zheng want to go to Suzhou? My house is in Suzhou.”

Huai En gave him a cold glance.

“Ah, I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Jin Xiao Bao, the young sect master of the Jin Qian sect in Jiangnan. I wonder if young maiden has ever heard of it?” Xiao Bao introduced himself proudly, while thinking in his heart that which maiden has ever not been moved when they knew about his prominent background.

Huai En lifted his gaze violently, “You’re the young master of Jin Qian sect?”

Xiao Bao got a fright from his sharp gaze and hurriedly replied, “Y-Yes…… But maiden shouldn’t hold any misgivings. Even though I’m not born from an ordinary household, but I’m courteous and gentlemanly, especially toward dazzling beauties like Maiden Zheng, I’ve always been very kind and thoughtful. Why don’t Maiden Zheng……”

Huai En didn’t pay attention to a single word of his shameless boasting and only focused on thinking about his own matters.

He actually ran into the young master of the Jin family……

“Hey.” Huai En interrupted his narcissistic speech to himself.

“Ah? Zheng…… What orders does Maiden Zheng have?”

“I’ll head to Suzhou with you, go prepare the horses now.”

“Now? That’s not a good idea, Maiden Zheng’s wounds have not yet healed. Even though it’s only half a day’s journey, but the road is uneven. If your injuries become more severe, I’ll be even more distressed than Maiden Zheng.”

“Go prepare the horses.” The person on the bed glared at him.

“Aiya~~ Maiden Zheng, don’t be stubborn. A girl like you getting hurt so seriously, don’t you know your husband… no… me… I am very reluctant. Besides, with Maiden Zheng’s snow white skin, it would be a pity if even the tiniest scar is left behind. Let’s stay here for a few more days, when your injuries have healed, we’ll leave immediately, okay?”

Xiao Bao had unknowingly inched closer to the edge of the bed, until at the end, he was only two inches away from Huai En as he stared at him, entranced.

The look in Huai En’s eyes grew colder as he listened to his nagging. With a stretch of his arm, he grabbed Jin Xiao Bao’s front robes and tugged violently. With a peng sound, Xiao Bao was prostrated in front of the bed, his entire knees numb from the fall.

He didn’t even have the time to cry out in pain when he was silenced out of fright by Huai En’s icy glare.

“I said, Prepare. The. Horses!” Saying that, he threw Xiao Bao out of the room.

Xiao Bao massaged his knees gently, then rubbed the back of his waist while complaining in his heart, why is this beauty’s temper so bad, it was truly difficult to serve.

“Still not moving!!!” Huai En roared loudly.

“Yes yes yes, I’m going now.” Xiao Bao quickly scrambled out.

“Maiden Zheng~~ As the saying goes, just as there is paradise in heaven, on earth there are Suzhou and Hangzhou.[4] Now that it is May, the flowers are in full bloom, the hills are green and the waters are clear, the scenery in Suzhou is infinitely beautiful. Why don’t you and I bring along some good wine and light dishes and look for a quiet area? To drink a few cups and talk about paintings and poetry and savour the finer moments in life……”

“Maiden Zheng~~ This is the coloured snow tea that I got someone to send over from the Western regions, it is made from the spores of a thousand year old Ling Zhi[5] mixed with water from the heavenly springs. It has a miraculous healing effect on scars and is a good beauty product. Also, the taste is very refreshing, and it leaves a lingering fragrance in your mouth, you must try it~~~”

“Maiden Zheng~~ This is the signature dessert of the most famous and exquisite shop in Suzhou, the snowflake pastry. It’s light and crisp, sweet but not overwhelming; only a hundred pieces are made each day, you’ll have to line up early in the morning in order to buy it. Ha, but of course, on the account of this young master, naturally you can eat however much you want. Maiden Zheng, you’ll definitely like it, here, have a taste.”

“Maiden Zheng~~ look over here~~ The pearls embedded in this pearl hairpin came from the Southern Sea. Its colour is better than the ones given to the emperor as tribute. Look, the pearls are perfectly round. They’re white and flawless like a piece of jade, just like Maiden Zheng’s fragrant skin, one can’t bear to part with it~~~~~”

“Maiden Zheng~~~”

“Get lost!!!!!!”

“Ah!! Uwaaa!! Yes yes yes!! I’ll get lost now.”

As expected, Jin Xiao Bao was tossed from the room where he scurried out in a hurry. Zhao Cai and Jin Bao who were both watching shook their heads, all the while silently scolding he deserves it in their hearts.

Xiao Bao wiped off his sweat and straightened his back, then tidied up his clothes and cleared his throat, and looked at Zhao Cai and Jin Bao awkwardly.

It goes without saying that his warmth was met with a cold shoulder throughout the entire journey. Upon arriving in Suzhou the day before, he didn’t even return home but first got the beauty settled in, then he got people to send all sorts of rare items over to please the beauty. But what a pity the beauty didn’t take a liking to anything, and her attitude toward him was as bad as ever, or perhaps even worse than before. He has already showered her with care and tried very hard to please her, and he believes he has been very attentive, understanding, thoughtful and humorous. What exactly had gone wrong?

He shook his head helplessly, feeling a little aggrieved in his heart. In the past, even if the maidens held no interest in him, they would at least remain courteous toward him. But this beauty didn’t even give him a way out, whenever she saw him she would be annoyed; he really couldn’t understand why.

But the more difficult it is to deal with this beauty, the more he doesn’t want to give up. Just a slanted glance contains a thousand different amorous feelings; how can there be such an extraordinary beauty in this world?

“Young Master?”

“Don’t disturb him, the Young Master is heartbroken.”

Zhao Cai pouted and finally suppressed a smile, “Young Master, the Master and Lady urged you to return to the residence.”

“Oh, yes, I have already been back for three days and haven’t even gone home once. Alright, summon a few more martial arts experts to protect the young mistress, there are enemies seeking to kill her.”

“Yes, I have already arranged for it.”

Translator’s Notes:

[1] 八字还没一撇呢 (Ba Zi Hai Mei Yi Pie): used to describe marriage. In ancient China, a man and a woman whose date of birth and eight characters (basically, their horoscope) were matched could get married. The first stroke of the character “八” (eight) is a“丿”(pié) . It is a metaphor of no sign of anything happening yet.

[2] 在下 (Zai Xia) = ‘I’, but in a way that makes it seem as if you are of a lower status

[3] Cupping their hands together: a way that martial artists of the Jianghu greet each other (hehe basically Xiao Bao wants to impress Huai En because he is skilled in martial arts)

[4] A Chinese saying that compares the (scenic) beauty of the Jiangnan region to the heavens. Also, in ancient China, the Jiangnan region (comprising of Suzhou and Hangzhou) are filled with beauties.

[5] A type of rare mushroom.