Chapter 752: Undercover Mission (Part 2)

He often went to the sewing factory entrance to secretly watch her, and from time to time had someone deliver things to her.

Old Hu also took a roundabout route, becoming good friends with the gatekeeper auntie's husband; through that friend's pillow talk, winding this way and that, he obtained a great deal of information about this young girl.

He decisively began saving money, no longer spending freely, and the first big thing he did was buy the residence he had been renting.

For one, he had grown attached to this place, had very good relations with the neighbors, and did not want to move.

Secondly, this courtyard was actually quite nice — the area was large enough, spanning several sections, and it was especially quiet. Although it looked dilapidated now, with just a little renovation it could become a lasting ancestral property to pass down to descendants.

He had also seen clearly that with the town's development, having one's own courtyard within the city would become something to be very proud of and envied.

The landlord was a local. Recently, whatever business he had gotten into, he seemed to have struck it rich and was building another large residence on West Shuncheng Street by the lake. Upon hearing the house-buying request conveyed by Old Hu, and with Headman Zhou's persuasion, he agreed without a second word and sold the residence to Old Hu.

Actually, when Old Hu had requested to rent the place, the landlord had long since taken notice of him. After all, under the baojia system of Xuanfu Garrison, if a tenant committed crimes, the landlord also bore responsibility.

However, after Old Hu was assessed as a swordsman and obtained proper work as an armed escort, the landlord felt at ease. Especially upon hearing that Old Hu was a mid-level swordsman, he was even more inclined to befriend such a figure — after all, more friends mean more paths, right?

Given his current wealth, a small courtyard was nothing in his eyes, so the two exchanged a few words, handed over the money on one side and the title deed on the other. With Headman Zhou as witness and after signing the government office contract, the transaction was complete — clean and efficient, one could say.

Having a house, and having it renovated, Old Hu gained confidence and paid even closer attention to that young girl's movements.

In July, Old Hu discovered with fury that a shifty-eyed fellow had also taken notice of this young girl and was constantly fawning over her at the factory entrance.

This was intolerable! In a great rage, Old Hu went up and unleashed a storm of fists and kicks, beating this fellow — who was actually quite handsome but in Old Hu's eyes looked shifty and rat-like — until his head was covered with lumps, and the matter blew up.

As it turned out, that fellow was a minor supervisor of the local well-digging team. Suffering such a beating, how could he let it go? He immediately gathered a gang of well-digging team members to come demand justice.

How could the brothers from the escort bureau just watch Old Hu take a loss? They also pulled out several dozen men. The two sides faced off, and the scene grew very large at the time.

Afterward, both sides were suppressed by the constabulary, each hauled in and fined a sum of money. Old Hu was in the wrong for hitting someone, and under the constabulary's mediation, he finally compensated that fellow a sum for medical expenses, and the matter passed just like that.

Old Hu no longer hesitated. He hired a matchmaker to go seek the young girl's hand in marriage. To increase the chances of success, through Headman Zhou's introduction, he also hired a military matchmaker renowned throughout Xuanfu Garrison.

Now, when enlisting in the Border Pacification Army, wives were generally assigned as part of the package. The Logistics Department had specially hired military matchmakers, and in their registers were recorded large numbers of good women of proper appearance and virtue, skilled in managing a household, specifically to arrange matches for the officers and soldiers.

Of course, in their spare time the military matchmakers also took on some civilian business. As expected, when they stepped in, it made an extraordinary difference. Very soon Old Hu received the victorious good news: it was settled.

Old Hu's anxious heart finally settled.

Actually, his qualifications were plain to see: he had a large courtyard, a well-paying good job, and was tall and robustly built. Few women, when proposed to, would not be moved.

Even if his face was a bit that way, it did not matter. In ancient times, what mattered was talent in the man and beauty in the woman. The woman needed good character and appearance; the man only needed ability. So Old Hu's success, though unexpected, was also within reason.

What he did not know, in fact, was that while he was paying attention to that young girl, was she not also secretly noticing him? After all, women are always sensitive.

The young girl had an elder sister with whom she depended on each other for survival. Unlike her own shy and timid nature, this elder sister was quite fiery. Back then, brandishing a kitchen cleaver, she had brought her younger sister a thousand li into Xuan Garrison, and worried about this and that for her — a classic case of an elder sister being like a mother.

She worked together with her younger sister at the sewing factory and was herself married to the accountant of an iron nail factory. Hearing what her younger sister secretly confided, she immediately launched an investigation.

Through the gatekeeper auntie's pillow talk, winding this way and that, she likewise learned a great deal about Old Hu from the auntie's husband. In her heart, the elder sister was quite satisfied.

When she also heard that Old Hu had specially bought the residence, she nodded even more. And after that stormy incident, the elder sister felt all the more that this kind of man was reliable, and that if her younger sister married him, she would have someone to depend on for life.

Therefore, when the military matchmaker arrived with betrothal gifts, she smoothly agreed. With the elder sister making the decision and the young girl willing, the matter was settled.

The day Old Hu married was quite lively. Colleagues from the escort bureau all came, and managers of various levels came to offer congratulations. With the neighbors gathered as well, the wine and feasting extended all the way into the street, creating quite a clamor for a time.

During the wedding night, looking at his wife's face, Old Hu, for some unknown reason, wept, and wept very bitterly.

Watching her husband weep in sorrow, the newlywed wife could only look at him at a loss.

Fortunately, though Old Hu wept, he did not delay the important business, and the night's activities shall not be recounted.

Married life was quite good. His wife was a traditionally virtuous person, following her husband whether he be a rooster or a dog. When Old Hu told her to resign, she resigned, only doing some weaving and embroidery at home.

Of course, having a family meant he was no longer just one person. Old Hu had to work hard for the family's livelihood. His colleagues were shocked to discover that Old Hu had changed; he rarely went out carousing with them anymore. Without the person who picked up the bill after feasts, the colleagues always felt something was missing.

Gradually, Old Hu grew accustomed to married life again, and even more accustomed to life in Xuanfu Garrison.

Only after marrying could he truly feel how hard-won the stable life in this place was.

Here there were no roving bandits, no soldier-bandits, no thugs. At the very least, when he went out, he did not need to worry about his family coming to harm, nor worry that upon returning, his home would be burned to white ash and his family violated and murdered — was that not so?

Old Hu began diligently escorting goods, striving to earn more money. Just as he was fighting for his future livelihood, something happened in September.

The Intelligence Division came knocking.

It turned out that Headman Zhou's other identity was as a member of the Intelligence Division. He had taken a liking to Old Hu, believing this man was also cut out for intelligence work, and reported upward. Thus Old Hu entered the Intelligence Division's line of sight.

Of course, the Border Pacification Army's rule was that those entrusted with important tasks must have a family, so at first they only kept an eye on him. Once Old Hu finally married, they came to his door.

When the visitor revealed his identity, Old Hu nearly trembled. The Xuanfu Garrison Intelligence Division had always been mysterious; in his understanding, it was equivalent to the Great Ming's Eastern Depot, Western Depot, and Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Could Old Hu refuse the Intelligence Division's request to recruit him? Thus he became a peripheral member of the intelligence department.

Afterward, Old Hu felt dazed for a long while, never imagining that his identity had changed again — he had now become a spy.

But for the time being, the Intelligence Division did not assign him any important tasks, only having him collect some information during his escort trips. So without realizing it, Old Hu grew accustomed to yet another identity.

……

Past events surged into his heart like the tide, and it was the clucking of the old hen in his hand that brought Old Hu back to his senses. He realized that without knowing when, he had already reached the door of his home.

Old Hu coughed once, pushed the door open and entered. The courtyard was empty. He called out loudly, "Huiniang, Huiniang."

Only after calling a few times did he hear a joyful voice from the side room say, "My husband has returned?"

Then he saw a young woman with a slightly bulging belly come out to greet him — shy, delicate, and timid in manner. Seeing his figure, her face lit up with joy.

Old Hu, however, glanced over there and frowned slightly. "Weaving again? How many times have I told you, now that you're with child you must not overwork yourself. Why won't you listen?"

This young woman was precisely his wife, Sun Huiniang. She bit her lower lip and said softly, "It's only been a few months, it's no trouble."

Old Hu said, "What do you mean no trouble? This is a very serious matter."

He pondered briefly. "Your belly is getting bigger and bigger. It seems we must hire a serving woman."

Sun Huiniang said quietly, "Hiring a serving woman is very expensive, it costs silver. My sister can also come sometimes to look after me."

Old Hu declared grandly, "What is a little silver? Your man can afford it. Besides, your sister has her own affairs; how can we trouble her with everything?"

Sun Huiniang fell silent. She always listened to her husband — whatever her husband said, she followed — only she begrudged the silver.

Having endured hardship since childhood, she valued silver very highly, holding tight to every penny and every cent.

Of course, her husband caring for her like this also made her heart glad.

Old Hu handed over the old hen and the food box in his hands and said smugly, "For you."

Sun Huiniang let out a delighted “Ah!” and said, “Later I’ll stew some chicken soup for you, my lord.”

Then she added meaningfully, “Eating at a food shop isn’t cheap, is it?”

Old Hu said in a low voice, “A colleague treated me — didn’t cost me a copper.”

Sun Huiniang said happily, “Really?”

Old Hu said, “Of course. They just throw silver around. Look, they didn’t even touch these dishes, so I brought them back.”

Sun Huiniang took them with relief, planning to heat them up and eat together with her husband.

But Old Hu remembered something he hadn’t answered, smacked his head, and said, “What old hen for me? I bought this for you.”

…

The aroma of the food and chicken soup was very rich. Old Hu ate a little at random and left the rest for his wife.

He watched cheerfully, feeling that all his hard work had been rewarded.

Then Sun Huiniang heated water for him to bathe and also brewed him tea. The two sat at the table. As Old Hu drank his tea, he boasted to his wife about his escort adventures. Sun Huiniang kept gasping in amazement, her eyes gazing at him with even greater admiration.

Seeing his wife’s expression, Old Hu bragged even more wildly, but watching her admiring look and her lovely face, he suddenly…

He simply held her in his arms, felt her belly, and sighed with regret.

Sun Huiniang blushed deeply and said in a low voice, “Does my lord want it very much?”

She stole a glance at his face. With her pregnancy, she could not serve him, and she also worried that her husband might go to a brothel to find a woman. Although she had heard that the brothels had monthly inspections, she always felt they were unclean, and the thought made her uncomfortable inside.

Old Hu muttered, “It’s been a while since I’ve done it. I do want it. Forget it, I’ll take care of it myself.”

Sun Huiniang said softly, “Let this slave help my lord.”

She went to the kitchen, fetched a bottle of vegetable oil, and poured some onto her hand. Old Hu lay comfortably on the bed, eyes closed, letting his wife do as she pleased, groaning with pleasure without stop.

At last, Old Hu finished. He panted, lying motionless on the bed.

Seeing her husband lying comfortably with his eyes closed, Sun Huiniang looked at the leftover oil in her hand and poured it back into the oil bottle.

…

Early the next morning, Old Hu was sprawled out, sleeping soundly, when suddenly he heard someone knocking at the door outside. He muttered, turned over, and went back to sleep.

Then, in a haze, he heard his wife talking with someone: “Oh, it’s Community Head Zhou, and Brother Kong, Brother Huang.”

Old Hu’s expression changed, all sleepiness gone. Then he heard Community Head Zhou’s loud laugh: “Good morning, sister-in-law. Is Brother Hu in?”

He heard his wife Sun Huiniang say, “He is. Community Head Zhou, please wait a moment. This slave will go wake my lord.”

Old Hu silently got up and went out. In the courtyard he saw Community Head Zhou, Kong San, and Huang Weijie, all three smiling at him.

“Hu Tiande, the higher-ups have a mission for you!”

The group went to the back courtyard. Kong San, his face expressionless, spoke to Old Hu.

He still had that peculiarly featured face and was still dressed like a short-term laborer going out to do hard work. Beside him stood Huang Weijie, smiling, fair-skinned, tall and sturdy, dressed somewhat like a wealthy merchant. The two of them had also changed roles — transferred from the rescue team to another section of the Intelligence Department.

Old Hu sensed something ominous and asked cautiously, “What mission?”

Kong San said coldly, “The roving bandits are growing more rampant by the day. The Intelligence Department has decided to dispatch a large number of agents to infiltrate the bandit camps! Your mission is to go to Henan, infiltrate the core Five Battalions of Li Chuang’s bandits, and ideally gain control of a body of men and horses under your command.”

“What?”

Old Hu turned pale with shock and cried out in alarm. (To be continued…)

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