5: A delicate flower
“I thought Miss Ruan’s story was made up, but she really does have a fiancé from Chang’an!”
“Could her husband have switched to taking the military examinations instead?”
“Miss Ruan is so petite and delicate. Can her little frame handle that military officer?”
“Don’t talk nonsense—his arm is still injured!”
“What does one arm matter? With Miss Ruan’s tiny waist, that officer could control her with just one hand. As long as she cooperates, it’ll be lovely~”
Returning to the cottage from the stream, Ruan An’s mind was filled with the whispered gossip of the Xinghua Village women. Her face flushed hot with embarrassment.
But she couldn’t clearly remember what exactly had happened between her and Huo Pingxiao. All she recalled was that after waking up, the man had been unconscious.
As night fell, Ruan An spent some time copying medical notes in her room, then fell into deep thought.
That morning, she had asked Ah Shun to go to town and gather information. He learned that an imperial inspector would soon visit Jiazhou, leaving the county magistrate terrified that his administrative failings might be uncovered and cost him his official position.
His eldest son, Tang Yi, and Advisor Liu were also recovering from their injuries at home, making no moves.
The candle flame flickered as a cool breeze blew in, scattering the loose medical notes on the black lacquered low table. Fearing she might catch a chill, Ruan An rose to close the casement window.
“Creak—”
As she shut the window and turned around, she saw Huo Pingxiao sitting on the worn-out folding stool opposite the low table. She hadn’t heard him enter.
The man sat tall and straight, even in coarse hemp clothes and humble surroundings, his bearing still noble and imposing. He picked up a pale yellow sheet of paper from the blue stone floor with his long hand, his sharp black brows slightly furrowed as he examined the handwriting.
A pang of indescribable self-consciousness struck Ruan An.
Her handwriting was truly poor—quite messy and disorderly.
After all, only those from established medical families with deep scholarly roots would first send their descendants to academies to study the Confucian classics, where learned masters would teach them proper calligraphy.
The renowned physician Sun’s handwriting had been even messier than hers, more like scribbled talismans than characters…
“Let’s talk.”
Huo Pingxiao spoke as he handed the prescription back to her.
Ruan An quickly took it. Her slender, delicate hand accidentally brushed against the tiger’s base of Huo Pingxiao’s right hand—a small patch of skin. The man’s body temperature was much higher than hers, and his clearly defined fingers stiffened for an instant.
Ruan An didn’t notice his reaction; she only remembered that earlier by the stream, Huo Pingxiao had said he wanted to speak with her privately after nightfall.
“What does the Marquis wish to discuss?”
Just as she spoke, two of the Northern Bureau attendants began carrying a massive red sandalwood chest into her room.
Huo Pingxiao turned his head at the sound. His expression was somewhat casual as he lazily commanded, “Open it.”
The attendants respectfully complied and opened the huge red chest. When Ruan An saw what was inside, her clear almond eyes widened considerably.
One of the attendants explained to her, “This thousand taels of silver is the Marquis’s payment for Miss Ruan’s medical services.”
A thousand taels!
Staring at the chest filled to the brim with silver, the young woman’s pale pink lips parted slightly. For a moment, Ruan An wondered if she was dreaming.
Who wouldn’t be tempted by such wealth?
And she genuinely needed the money—not only to support herself but also Sun Ye and the two young apprentices. She had only a few taels of silver left. If she couldn’t sell her prepared medicines for a good price by the Dragon Boat Festival, even maintaining a basic livelihood would be difficult.
Ruan An rarely charged common villagers for her treatments. Though she had received gifts of gold and silver from high-ranking officials and wealthy merchants during her travels through various inspectorates, most of that had been lost during the war in Lingnan. After returning, she had spent what little remained on repairing the cottage.
But with a thousand taels of silver, she could even open a medical clinic in Chang’an.
After learning Huo Pingxiao was a marquis, she had only planned to ask for ten taels as payment. Why was he giving her so much?
Seeing the young woman’s astonished expression, Huo Pingxiao lowered his dark lashes, shadows falling beneath his eyes. The gesture masked the depth of emotion in his sharp gaze, making his intentions unreadable.
Ruan An studied his subtle expression, sensing he had something else in mind.
The administrative seat of Jiannan Circuit was not Jiazhou. Huo Pingxiao had not appeared there without reason. He was about to step down as military governor of Jiannan and return to the capital to report his duties.
Yet the banditry in Jiazhou remained unresolved, and the government forces had been unable to locate the bandit leader Qi Yixiong’s hideout deep in the mountains.
Though the man seemed arrogant and unrestrained on the surface, his true nature was calculating and inscrutable. Ruan An could not fathom his intentions at all.
Just as she was about to ask, a timid voice came from outside the cottage—
“Don’t stop me. I am the village chief’s daughter. I’ve come to see Miss Ruan.”
Xiao Tao’s arrival finally clarified the recent string of puzzling events for Ruan An.
Earlier, when Ruan An had gone down the mountain, she had caught the attention of the wastrel Tang Yi. Had she not happened to save Huo Pingxiao, she would have been violated in the mountains.
But she never imagined her friend Xiao Tao had encountered a similar fate.
Deep in the Mei Mountains, several dozen li from Xinghua Village, lay another village called Jujube Tree Village, where there was a village bully named Ma Biao.
Ma Biao lived up to his name—his build was robust and imposing, as massive as a bear.
One day, Xiao Tao had gone up the mountain with her brother to gather firewood when Ma Biao caught sight of her. The rough, uncouth man later came to Xinghua Village to propose marriage, wanting to take Xiao Tao as his wife.
The village chief had already arranged a match for Xiao Tao. As her father, he naturally did not want his daughter to marry a coarse bully like Ma Biao. After the Northern Bureau attendants had located Huo Pingxiao, they had gathered all the recent intelligence on the Mei Mountains.
No doubt these attendants had already coordinated with the village chief beforehand, and as for the rumor that Huo Pingxiao was her fiancé from Chang’an…
The more Ruan An thought about it, the more she felt the news had been deliberately spread by him!
After hearing about Ruan An’s recent ordeal, Xiao Tao sighed, “What a streak of bad luck. It seems both of us have offended the God of Misfortune. I remember the governor of Jiazhou, Chen…”
Before she could finish, Xiao Tao suddenly noticed that at the mention of “Governor of Jiazhou,” Huo Pingxiao had glanced in their direction.
Though his gaze was detached, it felt sharp and piercing, sending a shiver down her spine.
Xiao Tao trembled and swallowed the rest of her words.
Ruan An comforted her friend, gently saying, “Go back without worry. I will have… him help you deal with Ma Biao.”
After Xiao Tao left, Huo Pingxiao rose from the folding stool and walked over to Ruan An.
The man’s features were cold and sharp, gradually fading into the dimming candlelight. His tall shadow on the ground nearly enveloped the fragile, petite young woman. His voice was low and crisp as he asked, “Miss Ruan, have you made up your mind?”
“I can resolve both the household registration for your two apprentices and your friend’s trouble.”
“And I will also give you a thousand taels as payment.”
Ruan An tilted her innocent face upward, meeting his deep, dark eyes, and finally pieced together the man’s plan—
Huo Pingxiao wanted to take advantage of this situation to pose as her husband, establishing a new identity in Xinghua Village.
The next morning, Ma Biao was tending cattle in the mountains when a lackey approached and whispered in his ear, “Brother Biao, the fiancé of that physician surnamed Ruan from Xinghua Village has returned. They say he participated in the military examinations. The villagers have now made him their protector. I heard he’s taken issue with you wanting to marry the village chief’s daughter. Do you want to go meet him?”
Ma Biao had a rough, weather-beaten face and dark skin. Hearing this, he narrowed his eyes.
“What young punk dares to meddle in my marriage? Send someone to Xinghua Village and tell that fellow: if he has the guts, come to the mountainside this afternoon for a real fight. If he loses, tell that old village chief to send his daughter to our village.”
Word quickly reached Xinghua Village.
After noon, Ruan An, Sun Ye, Ah Shun, Yang Wei (disguised as a villager), and others rode in an ox cart with Huo Pingxiao to the spot Ma Biao had chosen.
The sun blazed overhead. Huo Pingxiao, who had taken the name Xiao Ping, faced off against Ma Biao from opposite sides.
The moment Ruan An saw Ma Biao’s size, her heart sank.
She had heard of Ma Biao’s fearsome reputation. His flesh was said to be like armor, nearly impervious to blades. His hulking frame, as massive as a bear, could crush two ordinary men if he simply fell on them.
Ma Biao’s physique stood in stark contrast to Huo Pingxiao’s.
Ruan An suddenly realized that Huo Pingxiao’s build was truly lean and powerful, possessing a kind of aesthetic that seemed sculpted by a master craftsman.
The proportions of his head, broad shoulders, narrow waist, and long legs were harmoniously balanced. Every sinew and tendon exuded strength, poised with the explosive tension of readiness for combat.
But he was about to fight a man like Ma Biao in single combat!
Her heart still raced with anxiety.
On the other side, Ma Biao got a clear look at Huo Pingxiao. Seeing that his opponent was handsome and fair-faced, he immediately dismissed him as a threat.
His voice boomed as he jeered at his gang of lackeys: “So this is the new protector of Xinghua Village? Just a pretty boy?”
One of his men gestured toward Ruan An and said quietly, “Brother Biao, that’s his wife over there. I hear she’s a village physician.”
Pretty boy’s wife?
Ma Biao squinted at Ruan An. Though he found her far more beautiful than Xiao Tao, she wasn’t to his taste.
This girl was too soft. A few rough moves would probably crush her flat. Her waist looked like it would snap with a single squeeze, and her arms and legs would likely break with just a grip.
Well, a pretty boy deserved a wife like this.
Ma Biao laughed heartily a few times, pointing at Ruan An. “Take a good look.” Then he pointed at Huo Pingxiao. “That’s this brat’s woman. Once I’ve beaten him to the ground, if any of you fancy her, just carry her back to our village.”
No sooner had his crude words fallen than Huo Pingxiao clenched his fists, the veins on the backs of his hands bulging. The broad muscles of his shoulders and back rippled with tension—completely different from his earlier fight with Advisor Liu and his men.
This time, Ruan An could clearly sense that the man was enraged by Ma Biao. She quickly whispered, “Be careful of your arm… it’s not fully healed yet…”
“Don’t worry. I’ll teach him a lesson myself.”
The man’s voice was cold and sharp. Ruan An caught a glint of savage brutality in the corners of his eyes—dark, fierce, and ruthless. Her heart trembled with fear.
This time, Huo Pingxiao was serious.
In Lingnan, she had never witnessed his gaze in battle. Now seeing it, she found it even more ferocious than a wolf hunting its prey.
With a loud crack, before Ma Biao could brace himself, Huo Pingxiao’s wooden staff crashed against his broad back. A terrifying sound of shattering wood followed—snap!—the staff broke clean in two.
Though Huo Pingxiao’s frame was less massive than Ma Biao’s, his momentum was as wild as a gale, overwhelming and dominant, as ferocious and fearsome as a tiger or wolf descending on its prey.
Ma Biao stumbled forward, his pupils contracting sharply.
Clearly enraged by Huo Pingxiao’s opening move, he spat out, “You little punk! You’ve got some skills. Just you wait!”
No sooner had Ma Biao’s angry words left his mouth than a sudden gust of wind surged around him.
Looking up, Ma Biao found Huo Pingxiao had vanished. Bewildered, he didn’t realize the man had already vaulted into the air behind him.
Bang!
A violent kick to the back of Ma Biao’s skull sent a buzzing through his head. Waves of searing pain followed, and a flash of malice crossed his eyes.
As Ma Biao spun around, the fierce battle began in earnest—
Huo Pingxiao’s techniques seemed wild and brutal on the surface, yet they were measured and layered, escalating step by step, fiercer than the blazing sun.
To the onlookers, it was like hearing a stirring, battle-charged melody from ancient times. The surrounding weeds rustled restlessly. It was as if one could hear horses neighing, sense panic in the wind, see smoke rising from war beacons, and imagine vast armies marching in formation.
Ruan An had heard storytellers say that ancient martial artists could kill with the sound of a zither. Huo Pingxiao’s presence in battle was enough to strike terror into men’s hearts, even cause death from shock.
In less than twenty exchanges, Ma Biao suffered a crushing defeat, crashing to the ground with a heavy thud.
The gang from Jujube Tree Village behind him turned pale with horror.
Meanwhile, the Xinghua Village villagers cheered Huo Pingxiao’s alias: “Xiao Ping! Xiao Ping!! Xiao Ping!!!”
After the fight, Ruan An gazed at the man’s tall, commanding figure, her heart stirring with a familiar sensation she had felt in Lingnan.
She couldn’t tell if it was exhilaration or something else. Her thoughts were tangled, her pulse racing like drumbeats, pounding without pause.
Ma Biao was not killed, only knocked unconscious.
Huo Pingxiao planted his foot on Ma Biao’s head, his dark lashes veiling his contempt. His voice was deep, heavy with menace: “You know, I didn’t really want to beat you like this.”
Halfway through his words, Ma Biao let out a low groan, and Huo Pingxiao’s gaze toward him grew even more fierce and disdainful—
“But the woman you insulted is my wife.”
Two days later.
Huo Pingxiao was accustomed to battlefield combat and had endured countless sword, spear, and arrow wounds. His arm was healing remarkably quickly, impressing Ruan An, who was trained in medicine. He had also been faithfully taking the herbal formulas she prepared each day.
Today, she planned to go down the mountain with him to see Madam Zhu, her senior’s second wife, to sever ties with her once and for all.
Sun Ye was the only son of the renowned physician Sun and his first wife. After physician Sun’s death, Madam Zhu had sold off all his valuable medicinal herbs and used what little money he left to buy a house in Qingquan Town.
After returning from the southern border, Ruan An had also heard about Madam Zhu’s illicit relationship with Advisor Liu. This recent incident was undoubtedly tied to her as well.
On this trip down the mountain, they were accompanied by Yang Wei and other Northern Bureau experts.
Unexpectedly, as soon as they stepped out of the cottage, Ruan An saw Ma Biao, his face bruised and swollen, kneeling outside the courtyard along with three other young men she did not recognize.
Ruan An was utterly confused, but judging by their posture, they had not come to fight—rather, they seemed to be offering their allegiance.
Upon seeing Huo Pingxiao, Ma Biao immediately kowtowed with a loud thud, calling out, “Greetings, Brother Xiao!”
Huo Pingxiao stood with his hands clasped in front of him, his dark, ink-black eyes narrowing slightly. He said nothing.
Yang Wei, standing behind him, cupped a fist over his mouth to stifle a laugh.
Yang Wei had heard tales of Huo Pingxiao’s youth. From an early age, he had been arrogant and unruly. After Prime Minister Huo Lang lost his wife, he had been preoccupied with state affairs and had sent his eldest son to study at the three most prestigious academies in the Great Li, hoping to refine his temperament.
Though Huo Pingxiao consistently ranked first in the academy examinations, he always seemed to carry a deep-seated ferocity, as if only fighting could quell his restless anger and gloom.
Wherever he went, groups of peers would flock to him, throwing the academy into chaos and leaving the masters unable to maintain order.
All the academy heads, mindful of Huo Lang’s influence, dared not discipline the prime minister’s son. By the time Huo Lang sent him to a fourth academy, his notorious reputation had spread to every academy in the kingdom—none would accept him.
The academies across various inspectorates had connections with the central education officials. Ultimately, the head of that fourth academy reported the matter to the emperor through those channels.
The emperor personally intervened, tactfully suggesting to Huo Lang that his son take up martial training instead.
Behind Ma Biao knelt other able-bodied men from various villages in the Mei Mountains.
Ma Biao was deeply impressed by Huo Pingxiao’s martial prowess. Though of humble birth, he had once considered joining the army to earn a rank, but his elderly mother at home would have no one to care for him if he fell in battle.
The local military commanders in Jiazhou were incompetent, practically drawing salaries without doing their duties—otherwise, the banditry would never have reached such proportions.
Ma Biao had heard that the Marquis of Dingbei, who had come from the Jiannan administrative seat to suppress the bandits, had also fallen off a cliff by accident. His body had been devoured by hyenas, leaving nothing but a bloody skeleton.
If even the great warrior of Li had perished in this campaign, the bandit leader Qi Yixiong’s arrogance would only grow.
Ma Biao felt that Huo Pingxiao would undoubtedly become an extraordinary figure. He deeply admired him and was willing to follow such a man.
The other young men behind him also kowtowed several times, sincerely expressing their submission.
Huo Pingxiao, looking somewhat languid and indifferent, tilted his head slightly, gesturing for Ma Biao to look beside him—at the young woman standing a head shorter.
There stood Ruan An, her features gentle and lovely, her skin soft and luminous like jade. Amid the chill spring breeze, she resembled a delicate flower trembling in bloom.
Ma Biao froze. Remembering his crude remarks about Ruan An two days prior, he mentally cursed himself eight hundred times.
Huo Pingxiao clearly cherished his wife. Ma Biao had insulted the treasure of his heart, no wonder the man had been so furious!
Ma Biao hurriedly kowtowed to Ruan An several more times, speaking rapidly: “Sister-in-law, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have said those things the other day. Please forgive me!”
“I beg you, Brother and Sister-in-law, to pardon my actions that day. I am willing to pledge myself to Brother Xiao, to serve him with all my heart!”
Ruan An was taken aback, unsure what to say to Ma Biao. She simply extended her slender hand, gesturing for the men to rise.
Just then, the man’s deep voice drifted past her ear with the gentle breeze, his tone lazy and indifferent—
“We’ll talk when I get back. I need to take my wife down the mountain to buy some rouge first.”
**