Chapter 481

Now Xie Jing dared not return to the manor even more, hiding at the polo Farm every day, playing polo on sunny days and mahjong on rainy days.

Yet those few close friends of his kept urging him to go home.

"I heard the Holy Aunt sent holiday gifts to your house again? Besides the fine timber for Brother Minze's wedding, there was also a cart of wine. What kind of wine do you think a martial arts master would use as a gift? I really want to have a taste."

"There was also a cart that was said to be a specialty from the Jiaozhou Fu area. It's so good to have a younger sister who was taken as an apprentice by a martial arts master! It's a pity I don't have a younger sister, only older sisters."

"I have a younger sister, five years old this year, but she wasn't chosen by the Holy Aunt!"

"..."

It was as if being young meant one would be taken as an apprentice by the Thousand-Faced Holy Aunt.

"When will Brother Minze return to the manor? Bring your younger brother along to broaden his horizons."

"Brother Minze is afraid he will hide at the Farm until the day of his grand wedding."

A group of youths in the midst of puberty laughed and joked in slightly hoarse, cracking voices.

"Don't talk nonsense!"

Even the thick-skinned Xie Jing had his earlobes turned red by the teasing of his close friends at this moment.

A carriage that was low-key yet did not hide its luxury slowly passed by the Farm.

"Young Lady, what are you looking at?"

"Nothing."

The curtain on the carriage window was gently lowered.

The sound of the carriage wheels rolling gradually faded into the distance.

This day, another matchmaker came to the door.

"Which family did you say?"

Third Madam Xie was so startled she almost couldn't stay seated.

"The Feng family, who just transferred to Jingcheng from the provinces not long ago."

The matchmaker detailed everything she knew.

The master of this Feng family was originally a provincial governor; after his three-year term expired, he returned to Jingcheng for his performance review and was promoted to viceroy according to custom, but he still had to go to the provinces to take up his post.

Before setting off, he wanted to find a husband for his daughter who had just reached the age of pinning, preferably settling the marriage before Master Feng left Jingcheng.

Third Madam Xie still felt surprised after hearing this.

According to the matchmaker's words, this legitimate daughter of the Feng family, let alone matching her son, would be more than enough to match the legitimate son of a first-rank official with real power in the imperial court.

"That is true, but the Young Lady of the Feng family once lived in Jiaozhou Fu for a period of time following Master Feng, and now that she has come to Jingcheng, she still misses life there. Upon learning that the Seventh Young Lady of your honorable manor lives in Jiaozhou Fu with her master, so..."

Third Madam Xie: "!!!"

Did she hear that right?

The Young Lady of the Feng family is looking for a husband, not looking at family background, but looking at whether there are relatives in Jiaozhou Fu?

But then again, her Yang Er would not live in Jiaozhou Fu for long.

Didn't you see that last year's Mid-Autumn Festival gifts were shipped from Linzhou Fu?

This year she ran to Jiaozhou Fu.

Next year, who knows if she will appear in another Fucheng.

She couldn't guarantee that.

"That doesn't matter, the Young Lady of the Feng family is clear about all this," the matchmaker said with a smile.

In fact, she wasn't very clear either why the Young Lady of the Feng family wouldn't look at anyone else, but only favored the eldest son of the third branch of the Xie manor.

"..."

Third Madam Xie had no choice but to say she would wait for the master to return, discuss it, and reply tomorrow.

"Alright, alright, this old woman will come again in two days."

After sending off Matchmaker Liu, before she could even drink a few sips of tea, the gatekeeper servant ran over to report that another matchmaker had come to the door.

"..."

Third Madam Xie was tired but happy.

By comparison, the second branch seemed much more desolate.

The second legitimate son of the second branch, Xie Huan, was also fifteen years old by nominal age this year, and it was time to discuss marriage.

However, he already had concubines, and because the Second Madam sent him tonics every few days, he over-supplemented and was very keen on bedroom affairs.

The maidservants who originally added fragrance to his study were all taken into his room one by one.

Although this matter was suppressed tightly by the second branch, any servant who dared to talk too much would be beaten to death with sticks.

But no matter how well it was hidden, his vitality could still be seen.

His complexion was sallow, his eye sockets were dark, and his footsteps were unsteady.

Looking at how Xie Huan was carried out horizontally every year during the imperial examinations, even if outsiders didn't know that Xie Huan had already taken several concubines without being married, and couldn't link it to excessive indulgence, it was still visible that his physical constitution was poor.

Any family that cherished their daughter, who would want a son-in-law with a poor constitution?

Never mind the daughter's lifelong happiness, it wouldn't sound good if it got out either.

Because of this, the number of people coming to act as matchmakers decreased.

The third branch had matchmakers coming to the door every day, as lively as a market, while her own second branch had so few visitors that birds could be caught in the courtyard; it was truly a case of the parched dying of thirst and the flooded dying of drowning, and the Second Madam was so anxious that blisters formed on the corners of her mouth.

If she took the initiative to find a matchmaker, she didn't see many willing to make the connection; they would agree well with their mouths, but in reality, there was only one word: delay.

Therefore, Xie Huan's marriage was truly a headache for the second branch.

How the second branch was doing was not within the scope of Xie Yang's concern.

At this time, she had already set off and left Jiaozhou Fu.

Pay-to-Win Palace Intrigue System (16)

However, she was not returning to Jingcheng, but rather following the border of the Great Ye Dynasty, first heading west and then north, taking a flying saucer tour of ancient times.

Whenever she discovered mountain bandits, horse thieves, or human traffickers, she would descend from the flying saucer and trot along the imperial road on her short little legs.

Dressed in brocade finery and exquisite embroidered shoes, with a jade pendant and a fragrant sachet tied to her waist, a thick gold-inlaid jade collar around her neck, and a pair of solid gold baby bracelets on her wrists, she looked exactly like a "little fat sheep."

She put on a performance as a mobile, fragrant piece of Fish bait, luring out one batch of evil gangs after another who harbored wicked intentions toward her.

Just like that, Xie Yang, who was four years old by nominal age at the New Year, walked and fished all the way... no, she punished the wicked, eliminated evil, performed good deeds, and accumulated merit all the way.

She did no shortage of good deeds and hoarded no shortage of supplies.

On one occasion, she followed her usual routine to deal with a group of mountain bandits who burned, killed, looted, and committed all kinds of atrocities; she dismantled their lair, rescued the innocent commoners who had been abducted by the bandits, and distributed the grain, meat, and vegetables the bandits had hoarded among them.

The Silver she searched from the bandits was also divided per capita.

At the time, she was puzzled, wondering how, with the bandits looking so plump and sturdy, they had so little Silver on them when searched.

It wasn't until she discovered a secret chamber at the end of the cave where the bandit leader lived that she forcefully broke it open and found several Treasure Chests filled with gold, silver, and jewels, and hidden in the interlayer of one Treasure Chest was a Martial Arts Secret Manual long lost to the pugilistic world—the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden Technique.

Judging by the secrecy and pristine condition of the Treasure Chest's interlayer, the bandit leader himself probably didn't even know about this Martial Arts Secret Manual.

It was Xie Yang's gain.

Those ill-gotten gains were exchanged by her along the way for Silver and rice, and based on the background information investigated by the Main System, she had it assist in leaving them at the doorsteps of various struggling families in the dead of night.

So much so that during that period, the common people began to worship a clay statue of an anonymous hero.

The impoverished scholars who received the aid took the anonymous hero as their role model, studying diligently and vowing to earn a scholarly rank so that they could benefit the people in the future just like the anonymous hero.

And Xie Yang, who did good deeds without leaving her name, was still treasure hunting in the deep mountains along the border of the Great Ye Dynasty.

Rare medicinal herbs, mountain delicacies and mushrooms, wild pheasants and hares...

Occasionally, if she was lucky, she would run into a black bear and a tiger fighting, and since both were injured, she benefited, harvesting bear skin, bear paws, tiger skin, and tiger bone... Of course, such opportunities to pick up scraps were few and far between; encountering one was already quite good.

Instead, she discovered several jade mines and Gold Ore deposits along the way that had not yet been excavated by the authorities.

One of the mineral veins was actually top-grade Hetian jade.

Who could possibly tear themselves away from that?