Chapter 6

Guan Zhuofan's saber and luggage were taken to the west wing by the old butler, Tubo. Since he hadn't eaten, his beautiful and virtuous sister-in-law, accompanied by a maid, set a meal for him on the dining table in the main hall and sat beside him as he ate. It was well past noon, so the food was cold. He looked at it: a bowl of thin porridge, three steamed buns, and a few side dishes, but there wasn't a single bit of meat.

He was already very hungry, so he ate everything on the table with the porridge, patted his stomach, and felt about seven-tenths full.

His sister-in-law noticed he was still unsatisfied, blushed, and said, "Zhuofan, are you still hungry? I'll have Xiaofu go to the butcher's and buy a big piece of meat. I'll cook it for you tonight. You warriors need to eat well to have strength."

Guan Zhuofan could see the family's financial difficulties and hastily said, "I'm full, I'm full." He stared at her, thinking to himself: My elder brother was such an unlucky man, he couldn't even keep such a beautiful and virtuous wife, and he died first, what a pity.

His sister-in-law seemed used to his expression and didn't mind, but her face showed worry. She asked softly, "Zhuofan, they say the battle at Bali Bridge was lost, and over ten thousand banner soldiers died. Is that true?"

"They did lose, but not that many people died," Guan Zhuofan understood why his sister-in-law and Tubo were so excited to see him—because they were relieved he had survived. "Over three thousand died, mostly Mongolian soldiers under Prince Senggelinqin. The Beijing and Green Standard armies together lost about a thousand men." He suddenly remembered something and tentatively said, "By the way, Ma Eqi died in battle."

"Ah!" His sister-in-law gasped, covering her mouth. "How could this happen... His child is only three years old. What will the orphan and widow do? Sigh, it's hard." Her eyes slowly reddened. Guan Zhuofan, seeing her reaction, knew that Ma Eqi was not only his good friend but that their families were also acquainted. He thought he should find time to visit and help if he could.

Just as he was thinking this, a little maid suddenly jumped into the hall. She was about the age of a child with two small braids, looking delicate and adorable. Seeing Guan Zhuofan, she ran to him with a smile.

Of course, this must be his elder brother's and sister-in-law's child. Although his sister-in-law looked only in her early twenties, women married and had children early in those times, so having a four- or five-year-old daughter wasn't unusual. He sighed inwardly, thinking: It really doesn't leave any room for me. Just as he was about to speak, he heard the little girl call out clearly, "Third Brother," and she jumped into his arms.

Third Brother? It turned out she wasn't his sister-in-law's daughter but his own sister? Guan Zhuofan was a bit confused, thinking to himself that his late father had really left him with such a young sister.

His sister-in-law then said, "Xiaoyun! Go play outside, your sister has something important to talk to Third Brother."

How is she a sister now? Guan Zhuofan was completely confused and thought for a while before suddenly realizing: this little girl wasn't his sister but his sister-in-law's sister.

Once he understood this, he felt a sense of relief.

***

***

In his room in the west wing, Guan Zhuofan used the well water Tubo brought to wash himself thoroughly, changed into a clean robe, and lay on the kang, breathing a sigh of relief.

He had a general understanding of the family situation: a beautiful sister-in-law, a young sister, an old butler named Tubo, a maid named Xiaofu, and himself, making a total of five people. Since he was back, he naturally became the pillar of the family, and his first goal was to support these five people.

Although his sister-in-law didn't complain, the family's situation was poor, evident from the cold meal. They only bought meat because he was back, and if they weren't in dire straits, they wouldn't have done so. As for the house, it was either left by his father or his elder brother, and he would gradually learn more about their past.

With a goal in mind, how to achieve it? He had no idea, so he changed his approach and recalled how others had become wealthy after traveling through time.

Some people brought treasures like mirrors, crystals, glass balls, and artificial pearls, which could be exchanged for mountains of gold and silver. But he had nothing, not even a hair, so that path was closed.

Some people brought amazing skills, like engineering or science, and started mining, smelting steel, making machine guns, cannons, tanks, and warships, almost building spaceships. But he was a humanities man, helpless when his computer broke and took a long time to change a light bulb. That path was also closed.

Some people brought martial skills, like special forces, assassins, or martial arts heroes, who could dominate any era, taking heads in the midst of a million soldiers, and becoming famous. But he, though skilled with a saber and horse, was far from being a legendary expert. So that path was also closed.

Or he could... latch onto a powerful figure from history, show loyalty, and become a minor follower, living a carefree life. This seemed feasible, but in times of war, finding a stable patron wasn't easy. Even if he found one, would he be able to hold on, and would he be safe from unexpected events? After all, the powerful figures were in history, but he wasn't, and there was no guarantee for his future or life. So, latching onto a patron was risky and needed caution.

Fortunately, he had a skill that could definitely help him earn a living in this era. But he hadn't decided whether to use it or when. However, he wasn't in a hurry because, as a banner man, he received a monthly stipend. His sister-in-law, being a widow, also received a monthly pension. Together, they could probably support the five of them.

But then he thought, isn't this just living off the stipend and waiting to die?

Since he couldn't decide, he decided not to think about it for now. He still had a silver ingot from Alhatu in his bag, which he would give to his sister-in-law to use for a while. He checked the almanac and saw it was the eighth day of the eighth month, and the Anglo-French forces would enter the city in twenty days. He could take his time to think. Feeling tired, he fell asleep.

He didn't sleep long and vaguely heard an argument in the courtyard. He jumped off the kang, opened the door slightly, and looked out.

A middle-aged man, looking like a shop owner, was speaking loudly. He was broad and fat, with a strong voice.

"Mrs. Guan, it's not that I don't trust you, but it's almost the Mid-Autumn Festival, and you owe six installments of rice money. You should pay it back, right? We're a small business, and debts must be repaid during the three major festivals, no matter where you are."

"Yes, yes, we owe you, Mr. Yang. I was saying we could pay half now, and the other half in half a month, when the September stipend comes in," his sister-in-law was pleading humbly.

Mr. Yang's face turned sour, and he said loudly, "Mrs. Guan, I let you off because you're a widow, but you're acting pitiful." He pointed at Xiaofu, who was standing beside him, holding a piece of meat, "What's the price of meat? What's the price of rice? You have no money to pay your debts, but you have money to eat meat?"

Mrs. Guan, whose maiden name was Bai, blushed and was speechless. After a while, she raised her head and said, "Fine, we eat meat once every two months, and you caught us. Give us one more day, and I'll sell... sell..."

"Sell what?" Mr. Yang said sarcastically, "What do you have left to sell? Unless you sell yourself to..."

Before he could finish, his expression changed. The man who had been so arrogant suddenly became nervous, his body shrinking. Mrs. Bai, who was on the verge of tears, saw this and followed his gaze. She saw a young martial official in a new rhinoceros robe, a red-tasseled coolie hat with a plain gold top, and fast boots, walking over. Without a word, he slapped Mr. Yang across the face.

"Zhuofan, what are you doing..." Mrs. Bai, seeing Guan Zhuofan in his official uniform, was both surprised and delighted, but also afraid he might hurt Mr. Yang, so she pulled him back.

Mr. Yang, thinking a widow was easy to bully and that collecting debts during the Mid-Autumn Festival was justified, had said harsh words to force her to pay. He never expected a seventh-rank martial official to appear. His words were too harsh, and he was in the wrong, so he was slapped to the ground. Struggling to get up, he bowed and covered his face, not daring to speak.

"Don't look down on people!" Guan Zhuofan, his face red, pointed at Mr. Yang, "It's better to leave some room for yourself. It's just money, right? Tubo, give it to him!" He handed the silver to Tubo.

Tubo felt the weight and saw that it was a full twenty-tael ingot. He straightened up and confidently held the silver, approaching Mr. Yang. "Mr. Yang, look, this silver isn't fake, right? We owe you 940 cash coins, which is 6.2 taels in silver. Here's twenty taels, please give us the change."

Mr. Yang didn't dare to take it—hundreds of cash coins, but a large ingot, how could he give change? He didn't dare look at Guan Zhuofan, stammered for a while, and finally said with a bitter face, "This is just a small amount, we can settle it at the end of the year... Mrs. Guan, I was blinded by greed, you are generous, I'm sure you won't hold it against me. Third Young Master is back, this is truly a great joy, a great joy..."

While saying "great joy," he pulled his assistant and bowed out.

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