As they walked through the market, Tian Niu said to Qiu Hanlu, “Hanlu, it’s getting late. Should we head home?”
Qiu Hanlu nodded. “Mm, let’s go back. If we’re any later, the family will start to worry.” She hadn’t yet met her parents since arriving here, so she also wanted to go home and see them.
As the two walked back, Tian Niu began sharing some news from the county town. “That Ye Rong, the second young master of the Ye family we saw today, is one of the Four Young Masters of Jilong County. The others of equal renown are Xuan Ming, the master of Mechanism Arts, and Feng Long, the youngest manor lord in the Fenglan Kingdom. Young Master Feng Long’s martial skills are second only to Prince Ding’an’s.”
Hearing the name Prince Ding’an, Qiu Hanlu asked curiously, “And who is this Prince Ding’an?”
“Prince Ding’an is the first prince in this dynasty to receive a noble title. Even the emperor holds him in great esteem. If it weren’t for him, our Fenglan Kingdom wouldn’t enjoy the peace and stability it has now.” Speaking of Prince Ding’an, Tian Niu’s face was full of admiration.
“He sounds incredibly capable. He must be quite old by now, right?” Qiu Hanlu figured someone with such credentials would be at least in his thirties or forties.
Tian Niu’s enthusiasm sparked. “Who said he’s old? He’s in the prime of his youth, just recently come of age. Prince Ding’an began studying weapons and military strategy at seven, crafted a firearm barrel at thirteen that helped the Guardian General defeat the enemy against overwhelming odds, and at fifteen drew city defense maps that kept our nation safe from foreign invasion. He’s practically a godlike existence.”
“That impressive? He’s a true genius. No wonder he’s worthy of admiration.” Qiu Hanlu genuinely respected someone like that.
“Of course. Prince Ding’an is no ordinary man.”
“Have you ever seen him?”
“Very few people in this world have seen his true face, because he spends all his time in seclusion studying military strategy and has no time to come out.”
“He’s young, accomplished, and brilliantly talented.” Qiu Hanlu figured she’d never have the chance to meet him, so there was no need to ask more.
She then remembered the Four Young Masters of Jilong County mentioned earlier—there was still one missing. She asked Tian Niu, “You said there were four young masters, but you haven’t mentioned the last one. What’s his talent?”
Tian Niu sighed. “The fourth one is Xiao Linyuan. He’s just there to fill the numbers—no real talent. His father, Old Master Xiao, once saved the life of the Grand Emperor, and since Xiao Linyuan was born to Old Master Xiao in his old age, the emperor bestowed upon him a yellow mandarin jacket when he was just a month old, along with countless gold and silver treasures. In short, he has money and status.”
Qiu Hanlu couldn’t help but remark, “That man really knew how to pick his parents.”
“That’s true, but speaking of him, he’s also a pitiful soul. When Young Master Xiao was a child, he attended a relative’s wedding, and a fire broke out unexpectedly. He watched with his own eyes as the bride was burned to death. From then on, he developed an affliction—he can’t see anyone wearing wedding attire, or he’ll faint. When he was twelve, he happened upon a bride stepping out of her bridal sedan chair and was unconscious for several days. Later, Old Master Xiao sent him to Jinchan Temple, where he recuperated for over three years before returning. His health is terribly frail, and to this day, he hasn’t married.”
After finishing, Tian Niu added, “It’s a shame he’s so handsome, like someone out of a painting, and he has a kind heart too. It’s truly a pity.”
Listening to Tian Niu, a term came to Qiu Hanlu’s mind: survivor’s syndrome. This counted as a psychological condition. He was a pitiful person too. People could never have everything—wealth, power, good looks, and kindness, yet still suffer from inner demons.
However, Qiu Hanlu didn’t think it appropriate to explain this psychological issue to Tian Niu, so she didn’t continue on that topic. Instead, she asked curiously, “Are the four of them sworn brothers?”
“No, that title was given by the common folk.”
“That’s quite interesting. If I ever get the chance, I’d really like to meet these people.”
“For folks like us, we can only catch a glimpse of Second Young Master Ye and Young Master Xiao on the streets. The rest depends on fate.”
As the two chatted, they returned to the village. Qiu Hanlu found the news she’d heard quite enlightening, and after visiting the market, she had some ideas about making money.
Qiu Hanlu bid Tian Niu farewell and went home.
Just as she reached the front gate, she noticed a shadow moving by the door. Qiu Hanlu immediately went on high alert.
She picked up a stone from beside the wall and cautiously entered.
The moment she stepped inside, a girl who looked very much like Wang Gui rushed at her with a basin of water, splashing it toward Qiu Hanlu. “Qiu Hanlu, how dare you defy Grandmother! Watch me teach you a lesson.”
From the voice, Qiu Hanlu knew it was Qiu Xiaoxue, the eldest daughter of her third uncle. She was the one who had bullied the original owner the most. And this morning, it was she who had brought in that bowl of knockout drug. Qiu Hanlu hadn’t even gone to settle the score with her yet, and here she was, delivering herself right to her doorstep.
Quick as lightning, Qiu Hanlu raised her foot and kicked the basin out of Qiu Xiaoxue’s hands. The entire basin of water splashed all over Qiu Xiaoxue, who let out a miserable shriek.
Winter had already set in, and the weather was cold. As the north wind blew, the chill pierced straight through Qiu Xiaoxue’s body.
Qiu Hanlu looked at the shivering Qiu Xiaoxue. “I wasn’t planning to let you off either.”
Qiu Xiaoxue, furious and frantic, swung the empty basin at Qiu Hanlu. She had thought hiding by the door for a sneak attack would be foolproof, but instead, she’d ended up drenched like a drowned rat.
Qiu Hanlu still had the stone in her hand. Without hesitation, she dodged Qiu Xiaoxue’s basin, bent down, and smashed the stone directly into Qiu Xiaoxue’s shin.
Qiu Xiaoxue’s leg gave out in pain, and she collapsed to the ground, cursing furiously: “Qiu Hanlu, you bitch, I’ll kill you.”
Qiu Hanlu planted her hands on her hips and looked down at Qiu Xiaoxue on the ground: “You’d need the skill to kill me first. Want to get up and keep going?”
Just then, Qiu Xiaoxue’s mother, Zhang Fengying, came running out. She had known what her daughter was up to beforehand and hadn’t stopped her, instead watching the commotion from the doorway of the east wing.
Seeing her daughter at a disadvantage, Zhang hurried over and asked, “Xiaoxue, are you alright?”
Qiu Xiaoxue would rather die than see Qiu Hanlu comfortable. She said to Zhang, “Mother, help me kill Qiu Hanlu. We can’t let her bully us like this.”
Zhang, who was used to throwing her weight around, saw Qiu Hanlu standing there smugly with the stone and lost all reason. She grabbed the basin from Qiu Xiaoxue’s hands and chased after Qiu Hanlu.
Qiu Hanlu knew this was the perfect chance to ruin the reputation of that whole household. The worse their name became, the more leverage she’d have to bring up the Fen family matter.
She dropped the stone and ran straight out of the yard, heading toward the most crowded part of the village, keeping up her persona.
Seeing more and more people gathering around, Qiu Hanlu decided it was time to show her real skills.
She pretended to slip, falling in front of the crowd with a pitiful, wronged expression, and said to everyone: “Please help me. My third aunt is trying to beat me to death.”
She knew the whole village was aware of how her family had been mistreated, and people tended to sympathize with the weak while despising those who behaved badly. Now it all depended on the tide of public opinion—whether it could bring up the Fen family matter again.
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