The man apologized: “This is my bodyguard, named Zhao Hai. My surname is Jing, given name Jing Yi.”
He scolded his guard: “Can’t you see this young lady saved me?”
Zhao Hai was nearly in tears: “Sir, what’s wrong? I just stepped away for a moment…”
“Bitten by that Nifeng Snake!”
Not only was Zhao Hai stunned, but Lu Meiyu was as well.
What snake?
Nifeng Snake?
“The legendary Nifeng Snake guarding the Chixiao Ming Leaves… it’s real!”
Zhao Hai kept signaling to his master not to speak too much in front of outsiders.
Lu Meiyu sneered: “Hey, your subordinate—are your eyes malfunctioning? I’m not interested in any snake or herbs. I just saved your life, sir. A life-saving favor should be repaid with silver.”
Zhao Hai’s face turned red: “Silver, I will definitely give it…”
He searched his belongings and handed Lu Meiyu a silver note.
Lu Meiyu glanced—it was a twenty-tael silver note.
Not bad!
If one tael is roughly a thousand coins, twenty taels is twenty thousand.
Jing Yi’s face also flushed: “I don’t have much silver on me this time. Next time, I’ll make it up—give you a hundred taels.”
Lu Meiyu didn’t hold back: “Alright, make sure you remember that.”
A hundred taels was a significant sum!
Though Lu Meiyu guessed that for this “master,” a hundred taels might be trivial, for her, it was a fortune.
Jing Yi seemed to read her mind, slightly embarrassed: “We serve in the army. Our rank is low, salary meager… But rest assured, this is Dale Village. You leave your name, and one day I will repay you.”
“Then how could you spend a tael so generously just to ask for directions?”
Lu Meiyu was curious. If he claimed to have little money, why so generous back then?
“At that moment, I was too anxious.”
He gave a brief explanation.
Lu Meiyu didn’t press further but advised: “I only cleaned your wound and applied some herbs. Some residual poison may remain. You should see a doctor in town to ensure safety. The snake’s name alone is frightening.”
“That snake is fierce, but it doesn’t release much venom lightly because it guards the herb. I wanted the herb to gain merit.”
Lu Meiyu’s expression revealed her understanding: “So a high-ranking official needed that herb, and that’s why you risked your lives to retrieve it.”
Indeed, that was the case, but the explanation sounded unpleasant.
Both men’s faces darkened.
“That snake is dangerous; I doubt you’re a match for it. Another bite could be fatal,” Lu Meiyu paused, “so then, who do I ask for a hundred taels?”
Thinking a moment, she added: “Is that snake afraid of strong, pungent smells?”
Jing Yi’s eyes lit up: “It seems it would be.”
“They say snakes react extremely quickly. Ordinary people cannot match them. Since you sought the herb, why not prepare thoroughly?”
Jing Yi carefully asked: “What do you mean by ‘thorough preparation’? Please advise.”
“For example, you should wear armor. Then the snake can’t bite you.”
Jing Yi smiled bitterly: “We aren’t at a level to wear armor yet. Besides, we disguised ourselves to avoid attention.”
Zhao Hai was frantic.
Why does master reveal everything?
Lu Meiyu, giving Zhao Hai a knowing glance, ignored it and continued: “Still, find a doctor to treat the snake venom. Even if you want the herb, there’s no rush. You might think of a good plan later.”
When Lu Meiyu asked about the snake’s fear of pungent smells, she had already thought of her wolf-defense spray.
But she wasn’t kind enough to hand over such a useful item for free.
Zhao Hai looked at his still-weak master: “Sir, let’s see a doctor first, come back in a day or two.”
Jing Yi also realized he had no strength to fight; with bare hands, they couldn’t handle the snake. He nodded in agreement.
Zhao Hai helped Jing Yi up, and the three walked to a wide area at the foot of the mountain. Jing Yi whistled, and the sound of galloping hooves followed.
The two horses had leisurely hidden and grazed!
Lu Meiyu admired the two steeds. It was a five-li walk back—she wanted to ride too!
As if reading her mind, Jing Yi asked: “Can you ride a horse?”
She had ridden horses before, but only tame ones at a riding ground. She could run, but those horses were gentle.
Without hesitation, she nodded.
She preferred this over walking.
Jing Yi patted the horse’s head: “Feixue, behave. This is my lifesaver, my benefactor.”
Feixue seemed to understand and nodded.
Lu Meiyu felt relieved.
Thus, the three rode—the two men shared one horse, and Lu Meiyu rode Feixue alone.
Feixue was obedient, steady along the path.
Soon, they entered the village under the astonished gazes of villagers.
Some women dared not speak to the two men and asked Lu Meiyu: “Qingsheng’s wife, what happened?”
Lu Meiyu answered plainly: “These are the two who asked me for directions yesterday. They were bitten by a snake on the mountain, and I’m bringing them back to see the village doctor.”
The woman exclaimed: “Oh! Hurry to see Doctor Sun. He has medicine. Anyone bitten by a snake usually goes to him.”
Jing Yi was surprised to notice Lu Meiyu was already married—she was “Qingsheng’s wife.”
He hadn’t realized her age before, now noticing her hair styled in a married woman’s bun.
He signaled to Zhao Hai, who understood: “Uh, Qingsheng’s sister-in-law, would going to your house be inconvenient?”
Lu Meiyu rolled her eyes internally.
Qingsheng’s wife! Sister-in-law! What a mouthful…
“No, we’ll go to Zhao Granny’s house next door. But if you stay in someone else’s house…”
Zhao Hai continued: “We’ll pay! We know the rules.”
Lu Meiyu laughed. Good, the boy understood.
Yes, that was the point.
The three, under villagers’ admiring and curious eyes, arrived at Zhao Granny’s house.
Entering the courtyard, Zhao Granny squinted to look.
“It’s Mei Yu girl! What happened?”
“Zhao Granny, these two guests were bitten by a snake on the mountain and want to see Doctor Sun. It’s inconvenient to travel far, so we’d like to stay at your house, if that’s okay.”
Lu Meiyu added: “They will pay.”
A woman in the crowd immediately shouted: “Two noble guests, come to my house! As long as you pay, I can even kill a chicken.”
Thus, she blatantly competed for business.