Zhang Gu’s gaze remained fixed on the Xie family gate, watching the carriage enter, then watching that girl come out and leave.
The Xie family gate returned to quiet—not another person emerged.
Only then did Zhang Gu exhale: “He wasn’t sent to the authorities after all.”
His tone seemed both surprised and relieved.
Xin Ding found it somewhat amusing: “How could he be sent to the authorities?”
That was the National Uncle!
However, he didn’t feel any disappointed indignation either.
The National Uncle had been beaten so severely—that was already quite rare.
The excitement they’d watched was thoroughly satisfying.
“Chief, let’s go,” Xin Ding urged. Seeing Zhang Gu still looking at the Xie family residence gate, he finally found it strange. “Chief, do you know this family?”
Zhang Gu came back to himself and withdrew his gaze: “How would I know the National Uncle’s family?” He lightly kicked Xin Ding. “What are you like? Let’s go quickly.”
Xin Ding jumped up. Clearly it was the chief who wouldn’t leave, but adults were like this—never admitting they loved watching excitement. Let’s go, let’s go.
Xin Ding couldn’t wait to return to the military camp to show off to his companions about the excitement he’d seen today. From now on, he could also count as a city person who had seen the world.
Just as they returned to camp, four or five courier soldiers rushed over with urgent expressions: “You’re back!” “Finally back!”
So enthusiastic? Xin Ding was flattered. Usually these veteran soldiers were quite slippery and didn’t even take Chief Zhang seriously.
“Brothers, today I—” Xin Ding was happily about to share the fresh news when the group pushed him aside.
“Chief, people came asking about A’Jiu.”
“Those people are from the Xie family.”
“They asked very sharply. We, we didn’t dare hide anything.”
“About A’Fu, about Miss Chu—we also told them.”
Several people spoke in low, overlapping voices, their expressions uneasy as they looked at Zhang Gu: “Chief, did something happen to A’Jiu? Did we cause trouble for Miss Chu?”
Zhang Gu looked at them with a gratified expression: “Don’t worry. Something did happen to A’Jiu, but Miss Chu protected him. The two went to see his family together, and moreover, the family was very satisfied with Miss Chu and personally saw her off.”
The courier soldiers were overjoyed: “That’s truly wonderful!”
Squatting to the side, Xin Ding had a blank expression, then looked at Zhang Gu in shock. He really was a country bumpkin. Clearly they’d been together the whole time, seeing the same thing, but he completely couldn’t understand what the chief was saying.
……
……
Sharp pain woke Xie Yanlai from unconsciousness. His vision was filled with dim yellow light.
“How long did I sleep?”
The moment the maidservants supported him, he had passed out.
Now awake, after a slight start, he immediately tried to get up.
But the severe pain in his back made him grit his teeth and gasp, collapsing back onto the bed.
“Young Master!” “Don’t move!”
The maidservants urgently surrounded him to soothe him.
One maidservant wept: “Young Master, you’re too severely injured. Just now when the family physician came to clean your wounds, you didn’t wake at all.”
They had watched until they nearly fainted. Even the physician had at one point thought Xie Yanlai wouldn’t make it through, checking his pulse during the process.
They had constantly worried Xie Yanlai wouldn’t wake up. The physician also said that if he didn’t wake today, it would be over.
Now that he could wake, truly thanks to heaven, earth, and all the gods and Buddhas.
“Young Master, you must recuperate well.” A slightly older maidservant’s eyes were full of worry. “That physician is related to me—he quietly told me your last two lashes were extremely heavy. Your internal organs are very likely all injured.”
The surrounding maidservants shed tears.
Although they’d long known no one treated Xie Yanlai as family, he should at least be treated as a person.
This was beating him to death!
“What are you crying about?” Xie Yanlai lay on the bed laughing. “Stop crying. Then I’ll just be more careful and recuperate properly.”
The maidservants wept tears of joy. The young master never made things difficult for servants like them.
“Young Master,” a maidservant sighed. “If only you were this obedient with them, you wouldn’t—”
This “them” naturally referred to the young masters and masters in the family, even including the stewards in charge.
The young master had an extremely bad temper and attitude before these people, very unlikeable.
If he could be more likeable, he wouldn’t always be punished.
Looking at his wounds, scanning them over, the maidservants began silently crying again.
Xie Yanlai rested his head on his arm and sneered: “Being obedient is useless with them. You just do your jobs as maidservants properly. Don’t think or meddle in other matters.”
The maidservants responded affirmatively.