After feeling smug for a while, Chu Xiangxiang finally realized what was going on and glared at Xu Changnian. She was dressed entirely like a young master—how had he figured it out?
Ahem—
Xu Changnian lightly cleared his throat, but his gaze instinctively swept across the front of Chu Xiangxiang’s body.
Girl, even though you’re wrapped up, you still can’t see your toes when you look down… If I couldn’t tell, I might as well be blind!
“Ugh! Pervert!”
Following Xu Changnian’s line of sight, Chu Xiangxiang looked down and immediately blushed. She quickly crossed her arms in front of her chest and shot Xu Changnian a shy yet scolding glare, though she didn’t seem truly angry.
“That’s my jade hairpin! Give it back!”
Liu Ermazi had finally climbed back to his feet.
Seeing Xu Changnian joking and laughing while handing over the hairpin, his eyes turned red with rage.
The hairpin was just gone like that? Unacceptable!
He immediately picked up a rock from the ground and charged at Chu Xiangxiang, looking like he was ready to fight to the death.
“Hmph!”
That disgusting look on Liu Ermazi’s face made Chu Xiangxiang nauseous, especially when she saw the brick in his hand.
Wanna start something, huh?
Chu Xiangxiang gave a slight flick of her finger. Her towering 1.8-meter bodyguard instantly understood.
Boom!
First, he kicked the rock out of Liu Ermazi’s hand, then delivered a solid punch—blood spattered on the spot.
Only after seeing this bodyguard in action did the crowd realize how kind Xu Changnian’s earlier kick had been. That was basically a gentle massage by comparison.
Ah—
In just the blink of an eye, Liu Ermazi was swollen and bruised, covered in punch marks from head to toe.
It was clear this bodyguard was a professional—his hits hurt like hell, but they didn’t break bones or cause internal injuries. Very controlled.
After several rounds, Liu Ermazi couldn’t even stand. Under everyone’s gaze, he crawled away in shame.
“It’s not my hairpin… I don’t want it anymore… Help…” He dragged a bloody trail across the ground, barely able to form complete sentences. “You’re Xu Changnian, right? I’ll remember you.”
“You helped me get my hairpin back. Technically, I should treat you to a good meal, but there aren’t any decent restaurants in this town. These sweet cakes, candied dates, and dried meats—take them as a token of my gratitude. If you ever come to the county, I’ll treat you to a proper feast. Here, take this waist token. Remember to find me!”
Chu Xiangxiang clearly had a good impression of Xu Changnian—especially when compared to Liu Ermazi. The difference was like night and day.
In the end, she gave all the goods she’d bought to Xu Changnian: mostly pastries, dried meats, and preserved fruits. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
To her, they were nothing special. Still feeling it wasn’t enough, she invited Xu Changnian to visit her in the county and handed him a waist token with the character “楚” engraved on the front.
“When I get the chance, I’ll definitely visit and trouble you, Miss Chu.” Xu Changnian replied respectfully.
He’d achieved his goal—not only did he get a pile of tasty food, but he also forged a key connection.
And watching Liu Ermazi get a brutal beating? That was the cherry on top.
“Miss, it’s getting late. We still have over 5 kilometers to go before getting back.”
Seeing that Chu Xiangxiang still wanted to keep chatting, her scholarly bodyguard quickly spoke up.
This Xu fellow was too smooth with his words. If this went on, their miss really might get lured away.
Chu Xiangxiang left reluctantly.
“When you pass by Wohu Ridge, be careful. There’s a tiger roaming around there.”
Remembering she was returning to the county, Xu Changnian quickly warned her. He didn’t want anything bad happening to her—after all, he’d just built a valuable connection.
“I got it… Remember to visit me in the county! I’ll treat you to something delicious!” Chu Xiangxiang’s voice rang from afar, clearly not taking the warning seriously.
But her bodyguards exchanged nervous glances.
There really was a tiger on Wohu Ridge—but the county office had suppressed the news to prevent panic!
How did Xu Changnian know?
At that moment, Xu Changnian’s attention shifted to the system update in his mind.
[Host returned the jade hairpin and befriended a noble. Experience +25 points.]
[Current experience: 60/100.]
Nice—
One intel mission and he’d earned 25 experience points. He was already more than halfway to leveling up!
…
“You’ve been staring after her long enough. You just happened to pick up her hairpin? You lucky brat.” Yun Niang tossed a sack of grain in front of Xu Changnian and snapped at him.
She and Shen Yourong had worked hard selling goods to exchange for food, while Xu Changnian just strolled around and ended up with a load of preserved fruits and snacks.
People really do get pissed off by comparisons.
“Don’t be mad, Sister-in-law. Brother-in-law found the hairpin and returned it honestly—that’s a good thing.” Shen Yourong quickly tried to ease the mood and, from behind Yun Niang, even gave Xu Changnian a thumbs-up.
Though there was some disappointment in her eyes—this trip had been pointless for her. There hadn’t been any demand for her calligraphy or paintings in town.
Yun Niang nodded. Xu Changnian had picked up the hairpin, didn’t pocket it, and returned it. That wasn’t easy.
It was so out of character she could hardly believe it.
Especially his ridiculous luck—how did the hairpin end up with him?
“What’s there to be angry about? She gave me a bunch of good food. Enough to last us a while.” Xu Changnian said proudly.
“This much pastry and dried meat? Easily worth 2 taels of silver. Let’s trade some of it for more grain.”
“Who did you run into to get such generous gifts…?”
Yun Niang flipped through the goods and was stunned. Anyone who could spend 2 taels on snacks definitely wasn’t ordinary.
Even the richest man in Zhoujia Town wouldn’t spend like this—it had to be someone from the county.
“Trade nothing. I’m sick of millet porridge every day—my mouth’s gone tasteless. Let’s keep this for ourselves! Trust me!” Xu Changnian raised his voice and didn’t wait for Yun Niang’s reply. He hoisted the grain sack and headed toward Qingshan Village.
Every day eating millet porridge—bland to the point of death. Time for a sugar boost.
“Tch~ Look at you, showing off.”
Yun Niang didn’t say much. After all, Xu Changnian had brought the goods. There was something complicated in her eyes.
Anyway, they’d gotten plenty of grain this time—enough to last a while. Let him be.
This guy…
Really had changed.
“Let’s go, Sister-in-law. Xiaoyue’s been whining about wanting sweets. This batch should last her a good while.”
“You just spoil her too much.”
After leaving Zhoujia Town, Xu Changnian suddenly stopped and looked around.
There was still a thorn stuck in his heart—it made him uneasy.
That Liu Ermazi… though he’d been beaten up and crawled away in shame, that was just payback.
But the problem wasn’t solved. Why did he show up so suddenly—and just in time to snatch the hairpin?
Was it revenge for the beating at his doorstep last time? Had he been tailing him?
If so, that’d be easy to fix—just find a quiet place… dig a hole, maybe.
But if it was something else?
Then he had to be extra cautious. The Xu family had just started turning things around. Life was finally improving—they couldn’t afford any accidents.