Chapter 93 — Cabin Xie Jing could be checked “homework” three times a day at most
Those following far behind couldn’t see the old man and the young man, and were anxiously walking a few steps faster, looking around, when they suddenly bumped into the two of them.
The man felt guilty and instinctively turned to run away, but Xie Jing didn’t wait for him to make a move. He flicked the soft whip on his wrist and aimed it at the man’s eyes first!
The man was startled, never expecting that this seemingly kind-looking boy would be so ruthless. He took two steps back and used his hands to block, but the whip was just a feint, followed by several kicks aimed at his joints. If his bones weren’t so strong, his leg bones would probably be broken! Even so, he groaned and knelt down.
The moment Xie Jing made his move, a lean, short man suddenly sprang out from the side. He was dressed in the coarse cloth clothes commonly worn by country folk, and at first glance, he looked like a farmer, but his stance revealed him to be a trained fighter. Caught off guard, Xie Jing’s expression changed instantly. He lunged forward, pinning the kneeling man down, and reached behind his waist to pull out his weapon—
In a flash, the two of them subdued the follower on the ground.
Suddenly, a lean man appeared and pinned the man down. He had a sickle at his waist, and his coarse cloth clothes were still covered in dirt, but his hands were calloused. He pinned the man’s wrists down with his knees and held him down tightly. Xie Jing wrapped his whip around the man’s neck and pulled him up. He held a gun in his hand, and the dark muzzle was already pointed at the short man’s head.
The man wasn’t afraid even with a gun pointed at him; he looked up and whispered a secret code to Xie Jing.
Xie Jing said, “From the East Courtyard? You look unfamiliar; I’ve never seen you before.”
The short man had dark skin and a simple, honest face. He grinned and said, “Yes, it’s normal that you haven’t seen us before. I’m not usually in the courtyard. I only take orders from Lord Bai Jiu.”
Xie Jing: “Did the master send you to come along?”
“Yes, things got a bit unsettled with those Japanese last time, so Master told us to secretly follow Manager Xie, just in case.”
Xie Jing moved the gun away, and the man turned his head and whistled towards the corner. Only then did Xie Jing notice that there were two other people in the corner, dressed as vegetable vendors who had just entered the city. They were very inconspicuous. If Xie Jing hadn’t heard the whistle and quickly gotten up and left, he wouldn’t have noticed them at all.
The man said in a low voice, “If something happens here, someone should go and inform Lord Bai Jiu.”
Xie Jing nodded, and with a click, the gun in his hand landed on the head of the man pressed against the ground. With the muzzle pointed at him, he squinted and asked, “Who are you? Who sent you?”
The follower on the ground was already struggling to breathe from being entangled in the whip. His face was flushed red as he desperately thrashed about, gritting his teeth as he managed to squeeze out a few words.
Before Xie Jing could hear clearly, he suddenly heard the sound of glass shattering not far behind him. Looking up, he saw Granny Kou picking up stones from the roadside and smashing the window of a shop. The shop owner rushed out, and the old lady was anxiously talking to him. The shop owner shook his head repeatedly, refusing to take a step forward, and only sent his employee away, running south.
Xie Jing glanced at it and said in a low voice, “Go call the police. You go first.”
The man beside him responded and said, “Young master, it’s not convenient to shoot in the city, so let me do it.” He was a man of few words but heavy-handed, and the brass knuckles on his wrists were about to stab the other man in the back of the neck, which would have been fatal!
Xie Jing lowered the gun to stop him, and said in a deep voice, “Dislocate his arm, but leave him alive—”
The man was obedient; he dislocated the other woman’s arm, and seeing Granny Kou running over, he didn’t say anything. He covered his face with his straw hat, picked up the fish basket on the ground, and ran away immediately.
Xie Jing calmly put away his gun, tied up the man on the ground, who was in so much pain he was almost fainting, his arms limp and hanging down.
Grandma Kou picked up a stone from the roadside and ran over. Seeing the person about to smash it on the ground, Xie Jing stopped her, saying, “Grandma, it’s alright, it’s just a petty thief.”
Grandma Kou’s voice was still trembling with fright. She looked Xie Jing up and down, “I really can’t run anymore. The thought of you being caught scared me so much that I didn’t care about anything else…” The old lady wiped away her tears and touched Xie Jing’s arm to check if he was injured. “Jing’er, why is there blood on your arm? Are you hurt somewhere?”
Xie Jing comforted her in a low voice, “It’s alright, it’s not my blood.”
The person bound on the ground heard Grandma Kou’s voice and suddenly called out to her.
Grandma Kou was stunned for a moment and looked at the person, but Xie Jing protected her behind him. Xie Jing said, “Grandma, stay away.”
The man struggled to look at Granny Kou, his forehead covered in cold sweat. He spoke to her in a broken, regional accent: “Tuojiang… ten, eighteen carrying poles, to the Xie family in the city…”
Grandma Kou gripped Xie Jing’s arm tightly and exclaimed, “Oh dear!” The old lady stepped forward and spoke a few words to the other person, asking about his residence. The person spoke with an accent and couldn’t understand him at first. Xie Jing focused his attention and listened carefully for a while before realizing that the other person was speaking with a Sichuan accent.
Xie Jing once traveled south to the Yunnan-Guizhou area. Sichuan and Guizhou are adjacent, and their accents are similar, so he could vaguely understand some of it.
Grandma Kou had lived in the north for many years, but she could still understand the other party’s language. However, she still used Mandarin when replying. After asking only a few questions, she had almost confirmed that the person was sent by the Xie family of Sichuan.
Xie Jing stepped forward to untie him, then reached out and reattached his arm. The man groaned, and another layer of cold sweat appeared on his forehead. He stared at Xie Jing for a while, then tentatively asked, “Grandma, is this the child you were talking about?”
Grandma Kou said, “Yes, this is Miss’s child.”
Xie Jing put away the soft whip while looking at him. When their eyes met, he said in a low voice, “I’m sorry for what happened earlier. It was a misunderstanding. The world is not peaceful these days, so we must be careful.”
Before the man could speak, Grandma Kou complained from the side, “That’s right, you received the letter, didn’t you? It’s fine if you don’t reply, but why did you resort to violence as soon as you arrived? My Jing’er has never killed a chicken in his life, aren’t you afraid of scaring the child!”
The man: “…”
If it weren’t for the lingering ache in his arms and the throbbing sensation of the gun pressed against his head, he would have believed it. The young master before him was handsome; why were the most handsome people the most ruthless?
Xie Jing took the man back to the small restaurant.
Grandma Kou closed the door and sat down inside with Xie Jing to talk.
The man from Sichuan was named Hu Da. He was the person sent by the Xie family to find Granny Kou. Several letters from Granny Kou were mailed out. Although the Xie family in Sichuan did not receive all of them, they still received the letters. The current head of the Xie family was very cautious and did not reply. Instead, he sent a trusted confidant to investigate the authenticity of the letters.
Grandma Kou said, “Since you’ve come, you should have just said hello. Why are you sneaking around?”
Hu Da said, “Over the years, my family has received similar letters one after another. The Lord was worried that it might be a scam, but he was also not at ease, so he asked me to make the trip myself.”
Grandma Kou sighed and said, “That’s true. Now that the young master is the head of the family, he has his own difficulties. We haven’t been in contact for more than ten years. If a letter is suddenly sent to him, he will naturally investigate. It’s better to be careful.”
Hu Da said, “It really can’t be done by accident.” He looked up at Xie Jing, his gaze lingering on the handsome face that resembled the head of the family for a moment. He hesitated slightly, then frowned and said, “Because of Shanghai, there have been some changes.”
Grandma Kou wanted to ask more questions, but the other party refused to say anything more.
Xie Jing, who had been quiet all along, spoke first, his voice calm: “Grandma, since they are people sent by Sichuan, treat them well. Go ahead and tell them to prepare some wine and dishes for tonight.”
Grandma Kou agreed and left.
Xie Jing, still seated, toyed with a dagger in his hand. “How many days has Mr. Hu been in the North?”
Hu Da swallowed, glanced cautiously at Xie Jing who was wiping his dagger, and quickly composed himself, saying in a low voice, “Please do not call me ‘sir,’ just call me Hu Da. I’ve been here for two days, and I didn’t expect to run into Grandma and Young Master. You looked familiar, but I’d only seen through photos, so I wasn’t sure. I wanted to come along and take a closer look to confirm. Young Master has good eyesight; you recognized me immediately. Young Master looks a lot like the Lord when he was young, and he’s also very skilled in martial arts. If you return to Sichuan, you’ll definitely become Master’s right-hand man.”
Xie Jing circled the dagger once, then sheathed it and put it away.
This person’s words were half true and half false. If he was only here for two days, why did he follow Granny Kou around as soon as he saw her? If he really wanted her to go back, why did he try to trick her with words and bribes, as if he were on guard?
Xie Jing glanced at him, his eyes calm and unwavering: “Oh? Is the Xie family of Sichuan very powerful?”
Hu Da was taken aback. “Grandma didn’t tell you that?”
Xie Jing thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, “I only heard that they were a wealthy family, with a large courtyard and an orange grove.” His grandmother was only talking about things related to his mother, and Xie Jing only cared about these things.
Hu Da’s face showed a strange expression.
Xie Jing said, “What? Grandma is wrong. There’s no orange grove?”
Hu Da quickly shook his head: “Yes, yes, a large area on the mountain belongs to the Xie family.”
Xie Jing chatted with him for a few minutes, and seeing that the man was honest, he got up to leave. As he was leaving, he passed by Hu Da and suddenly bent down and said in a cold voice, “You are older than me, so I will call you Brother Hu. I have offended you a lot on the street today. But my grandmother has always stayed at home and has never gone out. She does not know how dangerous the world is now, nor does she know about my methods… Please keep this a secret for me, Brother Hu, and do not frighten the old woman.”
Hu Da felt a slight pressure on his shoulder and subconsciously nodded in agreement.
Xie Jing patted him on the shoulder and smiled, “Then thank you very much.”
Hu Da braced himself and asked, “May I ask where you work now, young master?”
Xie Jing said, “I’m just a bodyguard, a job that involves licking blood off the edge of a knife.”
Xie Jing had to go out on business, so he called a doctor for Hu Da. The doctor was a regular at the Bai residence and was used to treating injuries in the guards. He didn’t ask where the bruises and wounds on Hu Da’s body came from, and just prescribed some wound medicine for him.
Seeing the doctor’s skillful technique, Hu Da tentatively asked, “May I ask, what does Xie Jing… do?”
The doctor asked in surprise, “Of course he works as a guard. What, you’ve come to visit relatives and friends, yet you don’t even know what the host family does?”
Hu Da looked embarrassed and didn’t press the matter further.
Before Grandma Kou could prepare the food and drinks, Hu Da finished applying the medicine and took his leave in a hurry.
Xie Jing went to deal with the matters on the street. During the day, Grandma Kou was so anxious to save him that she smashed the shop window in an attempt to attract attention. Xie Jing wanted to go and pay for the broken glass for her, but when he arrived, he learned that the Bai family had already taken care of everything.
The shop owner patted his chest and said, “I was really scared this afternoon. Your old lady is amazing. She was able to lift such a heavy stone. I only have two glass doors, and she smashed them quite decisively.”
Xie Jing bowed in apology, but couldn’t help but chuckle.
Grandma was anxious to save him, but she wasn’t too reckless. She even knew to call for help. Xie Jing felt warm inside knowing that she was wholeheartedly protecting him.
*
Evening, East Courtyard.
As Xie Jing entered the courtyard, he ran into Steward Sun Fu. Sun Fu looked him up and down and asked, “Why are you in such a disheveled state? I heard you arrested someone. Have you sent him to the police station?”
Xie Jing shook his head and said, “It’s a misunderstanding. I’ll go change my clothes and tell Master later.”
As he was speaking, he heard someone inside calling for him; Lord Bai Jiu was looking for him.
Xie Jing didn’t even have time to change his clothes. Wearing this outfit, he lifted the bamboo curtain and went inside. Lord Bai Jiu saw him, frowned, and called him over, asking, “Are you injured?”
Xie Jing had a little blood on his sleeve. He lifted it up to show it to him and said in a low voice, “No, it’s someone else’s. Master sent people to protect me, and I wasn’t hurt at all.”
After examining it carefully, Lord Bai Jiu said, “The incident at Yu Port has caused quite a stir these past few days, attracting more Japanese people to the provincial capital. I was a little worried, which is why I had someone follow you.”
Xie Jing smiled and said, “I know, I must thank you again today, sir.”
Lord Bai Jiu tugged at his arm, trying to get him closer. Xie Jing rested his hand on his shoulder and whispered, “Master, I haven’t changed my clothes yet, and I’m dirty.”
Lord Bai Jiu ignored all of this, letting him sit astride his lap and holding him in his arms for a while before sighing and saying, “It’s good that you’re alright.”
Xie Jing pressed his cheek against his and gently rubbed it against him.
After a while, Lord Bai Jiu asked, “Who was that person?”
Xie Jing: “It seems to be a relative from my hometown, but I’m not sure.”
Lord Bai Jiu: “Why are you suspicious?”
“The other party received Grandma’s letter and sent someone over, but from what I can tell, they don’t seem like they’re here to visit relatives.” Xie Jing was no longer the cold, hard man he was at home when he was playing with daggers; he was more nonchalant. “He was also testing us, as if he was afraid of taking a fake one back. He was speaking in circles. Master, I never intended to recognize any relatives. If they don’t want me, I don’t want them either.”
Lord Bai Jiu laughed and said, “They don’t want you, but I do.”
He lowered his head and kissed Xie Jing, coaxing, “Perhaps there’s something you can’t say. If you want, I’ll send someone to investigate for you.”
Xie Jing nodded in agreement, then heard Lord Bai Jiu ask, “Did you learn your glass-breaking skills from home?”
Xie Jing didn’t understand. Lord Bai Jiu held his hand and slowly asked, “Back in Heihe, who smashed my upstairs window?”
Xie Jing blushed and muttered something under his breath after a long while.
Lord Bai Jiu leaned closer: “What were you muttering? I couldn’t hear you.”
Xie Jing buried his head in Lord Bai Jiu arms and mumbled, “Just once.”
He only smashed the glass once, but built many ice lanterns, lit them all, and listened to the sound of horses’ hooves while waiting for his master to return to the business.
The next day, Hu Da came to the small restaurant early in the morning, this time bringing a lot of gifts, which he respectfully knocked on the door and delivered.
Grandma Kou spent the entire night thinking about it, feeling uneasy no matter what. She thought that if the Xie family of Sichuan knew about the child, they would be overjoyed. Even if the young master didn’t come in person, they would send someone and a car to pick Xie Jing up. But Hu Da’s actions yesterday had chilled the old lady’s heart. She lost interest for a moment, accepted the gift, offered Hu Da a cup of tea, and sat there without saying much.
Hu Da was a little embarrassed and explained, “I was in a hurry to send a telegram to the head of the family yesterday. Please don’t be offended, Grandma. The head of the family instructed me to tell him as soon as I saw him.”
Grandma Kou said calmly, “Does the young master want to come over?”
Hu Da stammered, “Well, it’s hard to say.”
Grandma Kou said, “Then please send another telegram. We will be moving away in a few days and won’t be here anymore. Visiting relatives once every year or two will be enough. There’s no need to come every day.”
Hu Da was taken aback: “Where are you moving to?”
Grandma Kou said, “It’s hard to say. Maybe it’ll be Shanghai. We’ll do whatever Jing’er says. I’ve only raised one child. I’ll follow him wherever he goes.”
Grandma Kou was indifferent, but Hu Da broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly said goodbye and left.
Li Yuan was tidying up in the yard when Hu Da came out and almost bumped into him. Li Yuan brought in a quilt and asked curiously, “Grandma, what happened to that person? Why did he leave so soon after arriving?”
Grandma Kou sighed, “Who knows?”
After all, more than a decade has passed. She no longer recognizes the people around the young master, and probably few of the old folks remain. Even the young master’s attitude has changed a lot. He used to be closest to the young lady, but now he doesn’t even want his nephew anymore.
Grandma Kou was so upset that she didn’t eat lunch.
After tidying up the house for two days, Grandma Kou rented out her small restaurant to the two women who helped with cooking. The two women were hardworking and honest, and they paid two years’ rent upfront. They paid the money readily, and Grandma Kou was generous in return, giving them all the tables, chairs, pots, and pans in the house.
Xie Jing knew he would probably not return to the North again, but the small restaurant could not be sold yet.
He was a man close to Lord Bai Jiu, and his actions were likely to arouse suspicion. It was planned to have Li Yuan make the trip again next year. Besides, someone would have to help transport the golden nanmu wood in the woodshed of the east courtyard. Those were treasures that were hard to come by in Shanghai, and their prices were much higher than in the north. Selling them and keeping them would surely come in handy.
—
Soon, the day of departure arrived.
Manager Sun Fu brought a large number of suitcases and luggage and went to Shanghai ahead of time to prepare for his new residence.
The other two stewards from the East Courtyard took over the accompanying matters. They were very quiet and had been trained by Sun Fu. They were very capable in their work.
Lord Bai Jiu traveled light, accompanied by a large number of people. Old Master Bai was demoted in name but promoted in reality, and almost all of the Bai family’s new generation of power was taken away by him to be used by him to open a new factory in Shanghai.
The group first took a train and then transferred to a ship. After Lord Bai Jiu boarded the ship, he stayed in his room and did not come out.
Xie Jing wanted to go out, but each time he was stopped by Lord Bai Jiu, who would only say to him, “Wait a little longer.”
We waited until the ship’s horn sounded before it slowly started moving.
Lord Bai Jiu looked up at him and asked, “How is it?”
Xie Jing asked, puzzled, “What?”
Lord Bai Jiu said, “I’ve heard that people who get carsick are also very prone to seasickness. How are you feeling now? Is there anything that’s bothering you?”
Xie Jing blinked and said, “It seems alright.”
Lord Bai Jiu felt relieved and pulled him into his arms, rubbing his chin against the top of his head: “That’s good.”
Lord Bai Jiu was worried about Xie Jing, so he rarely let him go out except when the weather was nice.
The journey by boat took several days. After two days of sightseeing, Bai Mingyu grew tired of it. With nothing else to do in the cabin, he picked up a chessboard and went to play a few games with Huang Mingyou.
Huang Mingyou was just worried about not having a worthy opponent when he saw Bai Mingyu arrive. He immediately dropped the book in his hand and fought with him fiercely.
Xie Jing could faintly hear the sounds of an argument over the placement of chess pieces coming from next door.
The room is luxuriously furnished.
Xie Jing, holding a pen, was pressed down onto the desk.
Lord Bai Jiu held him down and looked him over from head to toe.
Xie Jing looked closely and remembered everything.
Lord Bai Jiu pinched his earlobe, gave it a light bite, and said with a smile, “If you’re lost, you’ll be easy to find. There’s still a mark here.”
Xie Jing had a tiny scar on his earlobe, and now that it was being bitten, the heat made his ear turn bright red. Before he could react, his ear was kissed, the tip of Lord Bai Jiu tongue probing inside. He couldn’t quite tell if it was shock or just the slight wet sound that made his body tremble. After a moment of stunned silence, his face turned bright red, and he still held onto his pen, biting his lip to try not to make a sound.
Lord Bai Jiu was too close; any reaction from him would be immediately noticeable.
Xie Jing was pressed down on the desk, and his profile showed that Lord Bai Jiu was supporting himself with one of his hands. He could hear the other master’s soft kisses falling on his ear, and just hearing the sound made his ear tips burn.
The pen in his hand had long since rolled onto the table, staining a piece of Xuan paper, and a small stain of ink was also on his palm. At first, he could still keep his eyes on the ink stain while lying on the table, but soon his vision became blurry and wet. His waist was originally just ticklish, but now, after being touched a few times, it went limp and collapsed.
Lord Bai Jiu lifted a corner of his clothes and ran his fingers down Jing’er’s lower back. Suddenly, he said, “Jing’er has a birthmark here.”
Xie Jing was in a daze, and it took him a while to react. “It seems like… I’ve had it since I was a child.”
Lord Bai Jiu rubbed the birthmark with his thumb for a moment, making the skin around the cinnabar birthmark red, and suddenly laughed: “When I gave you the injection earlier, I didn’t notice that it was quite pretty, like a fallen flower petal.”
Xie Jing grunted.
Outside the door, someone came to report: “Lord Bai Jiu, Steward Sun Fu’s men have cleaned up the warehouse and said they have delivered the last batch of goods heading south. They asked if you have any further instructions.”
Xie Jing called out softly, “Master.”
Lord Bai Jiu gently stroked his hair and said to the outsider in a slightly louder voice, “Tell him to transport that batch of Nanmu wood to Shanghai.”
He responded from outside and went to carry out the order.
Lord Bai Jiu leaned down and whispered hoarsely in Xie Jing’s ear, “Whatever Jing’er wants, I will give it to you. What I give you, you must also take it all.”
Xie Jing bit his thumb, feeling bullied so badly, he only managed a muffled “hmm” as if he had agreed.
Lord Bai Jiu reached out and stroked his soft, black hair: “Good boy.”
…
The two chess novices in the next room were evenly matched, and they played three long games in a row.
After Bai Mingyu finished packing up the chessboard, bid farewell to Mr. Huang, and left, a moment of quiet settled down.
On the other side.
Lord Bai Jiu straightened Xie Jing’s clothes, and seeing that the person in front of him had returned to being the well-behaved and handsome Manager Xie, he gently rubbed his lips with his thumb, feeling the soft touch, and said in a hoarse voice, “Do you have anything else to do today? If not, come again tonight, I want to check your homework.”
The tips of Xie Jing’s ears felt hot.
This sounded very familiar; in the past, he could be checked on his “homework” up to three times a day.
Xie Jing avoided the crowd and returned to his room. There were many people and eyes on the ship, and he had his own room, which was diagonally opposite Lord Bai Jiu.
Xie Jing went back and washed. When he stood in front of the mirror, he noticed that one of his earlobes was so red it looked like it was about to bleed. When he looked closer, he noticed a small, light-colored mark on it, which was left from when he had chickenpox in Heihe.
Xie Jing pinched the ear, trying to cool it down.
Thinking to himself, Lord Bai Jiu’s preferences haven’t changed at all; it seems he would spend half a day carefully studying any slight difference in him.
Xie Jing was unharmed on the boat.
They rarely leave the cabin.
He didn’t think he was seasick, but his weak legs were all caused by Lord Bai Jiu’s antics. Sometimes he could only find excuses to hide on the deck during the day, but he didn’t dare to get too close to the crowd. His face looked normal, but there were marks all over his collar, one on top of another, which he couldn’t bear to look at closely when he took a shower.
It wasn’t until they arrived in Shanghai that Lord Bai Jiu reluctantly nodded in approval of Xie Jing’s “lessons,” and no further tutoring was given.
Author’s Note: Mini-drama:
?
Regarding reporting news—
Hu Da sent a telegram: Boss, we’ve found the young master!
Hu Da sent a telegram: Boss, they moved! QAQ!
Uncle:……??
?
About Imprints —
Lord Bai Jiu: There’s a mark on Jing’er’s earlobe, and a flower petal on it—hmm?
Xie Jing blushed and covered his mouth with his hand: Master, don’t say it!
