“Brother Bai, are those people upstairs fighting like martial artists?” Cao Xiaohan expressed a strong desire to go and take a look.
Bai Yiyan glanced at him without saying a word, continuing to sip his tea at his leisure while watching the cute expression of someone who wanted to go but didn’t dare.
“Brother Bai, let’s go check it out,” Cao Xiaohan pleaded with an eager face.
Just then, a group of servants dressed in grey attire ran into the Tianxiang Restaurant and headed straight for the second floor. The fighting noises upstairs stopped, and the group of servants came down from upstairs supporting two arrogant young masters.
“You surnamed Zou, you better watch out for yourself. We will settle our score another day,” the gaunt-faced young master, dressed in a dark cyan silk gown, shouted defiantly back at the green-robed young master who was being supported down behind him.
“Come on then! Do you really think this young master is afraid of you?” the green-robed young master roared back, refusing to show any weakness.
“Young Master, let us hurry and leave. Old Master is waiting for us at home,” the green-robed young master’s servant persuaded cautiously while propping up his heavily intoxicated young master.
“Second Young Master, the Old Madam is waiting for you to return and report,” the other man’s servant kept trying to persuade him as well.
“Will the two young masters please stay your steps? Our small shop runs on humble capital. May I ask the two of you to settle your wine tab and pay for the tables, chairs, and plates you broke?” The innkeeper stepped forward, bowed, and politely asked the two drunkards for payment.
“Scram, scram, scram! Do you really think this young master would short you on that pittance of money? A-Liu, pay up!” The green-robed young master waved them away impatiently.
“Wait, I will pay for my own. Chen San, give him the money,” the cyan-robed young master reluctantly instructed his personal valet to settle the bill.
The valets whose names were called stayed behind to settle the accounts with energy and poise, while the rest hurried away, supporting their respective young masters, terrified that their unmanageable young masters would stir up more trouble.
“Ah, how can it just be two spoiled young masters causing a drunken scene?” Seeing them leave, Cao Xiaohan lost all of his previous excitement. He had thought he would get to see a grand, country-shaking hero or a free-spirited, dashing romantic swordsman, but in the end, it turned out to be just two local bullies.
“What? Disappointed?”
“Yeah, I thought they were Jianghu swordsmen,” Cao Xiaohan replied directly before he could catch himself.
“Oh, you are interested in Jianghu swordsmen?”
“Right! Traveling the world with a sword, fighting injustice to help the weak, and living freely—how dashing is that? It is just so cool.” Cao Xiaohan wore a look of yearning.
“Oh, so it turns out you like days soaked in blood, restless sleep, and stealing other people’s money? I really could not tell,” Bai Yiyan said, looking him up and down as if meeting him for the first time.
“Ah, why do you say that?”
“The Jianghu has always been filled with storms of blood. Most of those who go around brandishing swords all day do so purely for superficial righteousness, completely disregarding human life. Fighting injustice is nothing more than people chasing after empty fame, doing it intentionally to win public praise, or else they are just reckless hotheads who act without thinking about the consequences.” Bai Yiyan stopped midway through his sentence, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.
After listening, Cao Xiaohan felt that what Bai Yiyan said made a lot of sense, but he did not fully understand it. Seeing that Bai Yiyan had stopped talking, he eagerly wanted to know the meaning of the second half of what he had just said. “Brother Bai, what is that about having restless sleep and stealing people’s money?”
“Fighting injustice inevitably means offending powerful people. Over time, would you not constantly have to worry about the people you have offended coming to your doorstep for revenge? As for stealing people’s money—if you are going to play the hero all day, how do you make a living, and where does the money come from? If you do not have money, will you not have to resort to stealing from others?” Bai Yiyan was immensely satisfied to see the little blockhead completely bewildered by his bluffing; whenever the boy expressed such admiration for those so-called heroes, it just rubbed him the wrong way.
“I get it now. Brother Bai, you must be a hero too, right? No wonder you went to steal other people’s things—it turns out you were just out of money,” Cao Xiaohan said with a sudden look of realization, which immediately turned into an expression of guilt. “Brother Bai, I am sorry. I did not know you had no money, and I have spent so much of yours these past few days. From now on, I will go do some carpentry work for people, so please do not go stealing money anymore.”
“Cough, cough…” Bai Yiyan choked on his tea. “What kind of messed-up logic is that? Where did I ever steal anyone’s money?”
“Brother Bai, you do not have to comfort me. I know you are a good person; the things you stole must belong to bad people anyway,” Cao Xiaohan insisted with a look that clearly said you do not have to lie to me, I have already figured it out.
“I am not short on silver,” Bai Yiyan reiterated.
“Then were you not wanted for stealing?” Cao Xiaohan certainly had not forgotten that the wanted poster for him explicitly stated he had stolen imperial tribute items and escaped from prison.
“I did not steal anything. Those people got it wrong,” Bai Yiyan said, pressing a hand to his forehead. He had originally just wanted to tease this silly little rabbit, but it turned out he had lifted a rock only to drop it on his own feet.
“Oh, is that so?” Cao Xiaohan still looked thoroughly unconvinced.
Bai Yiyan was left speechless. It seemed that after they finished eating, he really had to take this silly rabbit to a certain place, otherwise, in the rabbit’s heart, he truly would remain nothing more than a petty thief.
After finishing lunch, Bai Yiyan brought Cao Xiaohan to the Renhe Hall of the Prefecture Office. Upon entering the pharmacy, Bai Yiyan produced a jade token and handed it to the manager, who immediately welcomed the two of them into an inner room.
“This lowly one respectfully greets the Young Valley Master! May I ask what brings the Young Valley Master here today?” Once inside the private room, the manager immediately paid his respects to Bai Yiyan. Cao Xiaohan stood by in utter astonishment—Brother Bai really was not broke after all.
“It is nothing much, just dropping by to take a look. Arrange some accommodations for us; we will be staying here for a few days,” Bai Yiyan said, sitting upright with a solemn expression and the imposing aura of someone in a position of authority.
“Understood, Young Valley Master. This subordinate will see to it right away.” The manager bowed respectfully and backed out of the room, thinking to himself that for the Young Valley Master to possess such an imposing aura at such a young age meant he certainly would not fall short compared to the current Valley Master in the future.
Once the manager had withdrawn, Bai Yiyan smiled and said to Cao Xiaohan, “Well? Do you believe me now?”
“Brother Bai, such a huge pharmacy is yours?” Cao Xiaohan looked around curiously from left to right.
“Indeed. And this is just one of them; there are over a hundred such pharmacies across the entire Mu Dynasty.” What Bai Yiyan did not mention was that his family owned more than just pharmacies—they also had silk shops, rice shops, tea houses, and more. In a couple of years, his carefree days would come to an end, and he would have to start taking over the family business.
That night, the two of them were assigned to the same room. The manager had mistakenly assumed Cao Xiaohan was the Young Valley Master’s personal valet and thus had not arranged a separate guest room, an oversight that Bai Yiyan intentionally let slide.
By this time, Bai Yiyan had already removed the human-skin mask from his face. Holding the ledger books submitted by the various managers of Anping Prefecture in his hands, he figured that since his identity had already been exposed, he might as well take the opportunity to check the accounts.
Cao Xiaohan sat on the small couch by the door, watching Bai Yiyan diligently review the ledgers. The man’s jet-black hair was now secured with a jade hairpin, and his facial features were as well-defined as if carved from stone. His chiseled, angular face was exceptionally handsome. His deep, dark eyes radiated a charming luster, currently carrying an extra touch of seriousness while lacking a hint of his usual seductive charm. His thick eyebrows, high-bridge nose, and lips of moderate thickness—were those what people called lips perfect for kissing?
Cao Xiaohan could not help but recall the hazy memories of that night: this man pressing his lips against his own, his large hand holding the back of his head as his tongue aggressively forced its way into his mouth to wrap around and entangle his own little tongue. Stop, stop, cut it out! What on earth am I thinking about? Cao Xiaohan suddenly checked himself and wailed inwardly.