Chapter 16

Duan Rong and Kong Bin, each carrying a bundle on their backs, followed behind Zhao Mu, walking with light and brisk steps.

At the mere thought of the spectacular expression on Sun Laotou's face when he heard about his promotion to Apprentice, Duan Rong felt a secret thrill in his heart; the pent-up frustration of the past few days was finally released.

This Sun Laotou was just like those perverted frontline managers from Duan Rong's past life, knowing only how to exploit Miscellaneous Disciples like them while slacking off and playing tricks himself.

The Yuanshun Escort Agency is divided into the Front Courtyard, Middle Courtyard, and Back Courtyard.

The woodshed where Duan Rong and the others practiced martial arts and the horse stable where he worked were both in the Front Courtyard, and ordinary Miscellaneous Disciples were not qualified to enter the Middle or Back Courtyards.

Zhao Mu led Duan Rong and Kong Bin to a moon gate that connected the Front Courtyard to the Middle Courtyard.

As soon as Zhao Mu approached, a Guard holding a saber in front of the moon gate smiled and said, "Little Muzi, where are you heading?"

"Brother Liu, is it your shift today! You see, these two lads are the newly promoted Apprentices, and I'm taking them to get familiar with the place."

Zhao Mu greeted the Guard with a smile, chatted for a few moments, and then led Duan Rong and Kong Bin into the Middle Courtyard.

This was the first time Duan Rong and Kong Bin had entered the Middle Courtyard, and they couldn't help but look around in wonder.

Inside the Middle Courtyard, the houses were orderly and shaded by bamboo forests, clearly completely different from the clutter of the Front Courtyard.

Zhao Mu took Duan Rong and Kong Bin to the management office of the Middle Courtyard to collect their Escort Waist Tokens and dormitory keys.

With the Escort Waist Tokens, they would be able to enter and leave the Middle Courtyard freely from now on.

The keys had the dormitory numbers on them, marked as Bing Room 7 and Ding Room 3 respectively.

Zhao Mu very patiently led them to their respective dormitories and instructed them to leave their bundles inside first.

After being promoted to Apprentice, one gets a single dormitory room; although it was simple and cold, it was still much better than the communal sleeping quarters.

The two of them were not in the same courtyard, but the Bing Courtyard and Ding Courtyard were adjacent.

In the dormitory courtyard, one entered through a door to find a row of low houses standing side by side. The two identified their own rooms and placed their bundles inside.

After Zhao Mu helped them identify their dormitories, he walked toward Xiao Zongting's place. On the way, Zhao Mu pointed to a screen wall and said that if they turned there, they would reach the Middle Courtyard's canteen, where the food was much better than in the Front Courtyard.

To the east of the canteen was the Middle Courtyard's Martial Arts Arena, where the two of them could go to practice martial arts in their spare time.

Zhao Mu didn't actually need to explain things so carefully, but he was in a good mood today; Xiao Zongting had taught well, lifting the heavy stone that had been weighing on his heart.

Therefore, the more he looked at Duan Rong, the more pleasing he found him, and he couldn't help but say a bit more to leave a good impression.

Zhao Mu brought Duan Rong and Kong Bin to Xiao Zongting's courtyard; this was a well-situated residence within the Middle Courtyard, a two-section courtyard that was simple yet refined.

Just as Zhao Mu led the two into the courtyard, he saw a thirteen or fourteen-year-old girl in red clothes; her body hadn't fully matured yet, and she was gripping the crossbar of a wooden bucket with both hands, carrying a bucket of water.

The bucket was almost as wide as her waist, swaying left and right in front of her, splashing water out from time to time...

As soon as Zhao Mu saw the girl in red, he called out, "Xiao Qi, tell Xiao Lao that I've brought the people."

The girl just turned her face slightly, then carried the water bucket into the Back Courtyard.

Duan Rong felt puzzled, not knowing if the girl had acknowledged the request, but seeing Zhao Mu leisurely admiring the scenery, Duan Rong felt his worry was somewhat redundant.

Sure enough, not long after, the girl in red walked out, rolled her eyes at Zhao Mu, and said, "Go in, Xiao Lao is drinking tea in the back study."

"Ah, many thanks, Xiao Qi." Zhao Mu replied happily; Duan Rong hadn't seen him this enthusiastic the whole way here.

Zhu Xiaoqi was amused by Zhao Mu's comical appearance and smiled, glared at him, wiped her wet little hands on the apron in front of her, and then turned to go tidy up the dried long beans drying on the stone steps of the Front Courtyard.

Only then did Duan Rong see Zhu Xiaoqi's appearance clearly: she was not tall, rather thin and small, with a pointed chin, a slightly sallow complexion, and a patch of freckles under a pair of dark eyes, but those little lips were moist and tender, like a freshly peeled lychee.

"Did you see that girl just now? She's young, yet she does all the work inside and outside this courtyard by herself. A girl like that, with calluses worn into both her hands... sigh... one should marry someone like that..."

Zhao Mu muttered along the way, looking quite excited.

Duan Rong gave a dry laugh, seeing that this Zhao Mu was interested in the girl called Xiao Qi.

Zhao Mu led Duan Rong and Kong Bin to the Back Courtyard, to the entrance of the study.

Zhao Mu stood at the door and called out, "Xiao Lao, their dormitories have been arranged, I've brought them to you."

Xiao Zongting took a sip of tea, spat out some tea leaves, lifted his eyelids, and said, "Come in."

Zhao Mu was just about to lead Duan Rong and Kong Bin across the threshold.

Xiao Zongting glanced at them and said, "I told them to come in, you can get lost!"

Zhao Mu, not angry but pleased, cupped his hands and said, "Xiao Lao, then I'll take my leave first."

Xiao Zongting put down his teacup and didn't answer.

Zhao Mu pushed Duan Rong's shoulder, pointed to the empty space diagonally opposite Xiao Zongting, and then took off running toward the Front Courtyard.

Duan Rong turned his head to look at Zhao Mu's departing back, a smile flashing across his eyes.

He concluded that this kid Zhao Mu must be running to the Front Courtyard to find that girl named Xiao Qi.

Duan Rong stepped over the threshold and stood obediently opposite Xiao Zongting, with Kong Bin following closely behind, standing side by side.

Xiao Zongting's gaze swept over Duan Rong and Kong Bin, and both of them felt a chill in their hearts.

Xiao Zongting stood up and walked toward the door with a limp.

Duan Rong watched Xiao Zongting's back, feeling puzzled; he didn't know why, but he had always been a bit intimidated by this thin, crippled old man.

Facing this old man was like having the tip of a spear pressed against the center of his brow, and he couldn't help but start to feel terrified.

Xiao Zongting walked to the door, pressed his hand on the door frame, leaned half his body out, and shouted, "Baijiao, bring two contracts over!"

After shouting, Xiao Zongting limped back to the tea table and continued to sip his tea leisurely.

Before long, a purple figure stepped into the room.

It was a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl dressed in purple clothes, with a graceful figure and a gentle demeanor, but her fair, delicate face was shrouded in an inseparable sorrow.

Xiao Baijiao extended her arms, which were like white lotus roots, placed the two contracts on the desk, and turned to leave, drifting away with a faint scent.

Duan Rong and Kong Bin were both stunned on the spot.

Kong Bin could be excused, but Duan Rong had lived two lives, and in his previous life, he had even been the owner of a 200GB hard drive; yet at this moment, he was also stunned.

Duan Rong turned his head to look at the empty doorway, while Kong Bin was still standing there like a stone statue in a daze.

"Truly both pure and alluring!"

Duan Rong sighed and looked with some envy at the thin old man in front of him.

He had already learned from Zhao Mu that Xiao Zongting's wife had passed away, but he had two daughters.

The eldest daughter, Xiao Yu, was a famous swordswoman in Xiangu County and had recently followed an Escort Team to deliver goods to Ruyang Prefecture.

The second daughter, Xiao Baijiao, had been sickly since childhood, unable to practice martial arts, and was kept in the inner chambers, rarely venturing out.

Just from Xiao Baijiao's appearance and bearing, one could imagine the grace of Lady Xiao in her youth.

"This old man truly has good fortune!"

Xiao Zongting looked at Duan Rong and Kong Bin, pointed to the writing brush and a box of ink paste on the small table, and said coldly, "The two of you sign the contract, and remember to press your thumbprints!"

(End of chapter)