Chapter 8

Chapter 8

He savored the name in his mind.

To be precise, this man's given name was Pei Shao, and his courtesy name was Yin Zhi. Those close to him often used his courtesy name. The fact that she addressed him as Pei Yinzhi without hesitation suggested a deep familiarity.

But...

Graceful and brilliant? Talented and extraordinary?

Which of these words could possibly apply to that scoundrel, Pei Yinzhi?

He observed Li Zhu silently.

"Oh? What is your relationship with him?"

He actually knew Yin Zhi!

Tears instantly welled in Li Zhu's eyes.

From last night until now, Li Zhu had narrowly escaped death multiple times. Encountering someone who knew Pei Yinzhi at this moment was like clutching a lifeline.

Even though she knew that, at this point, Pei Yinzhi did not yet know her.

But even as strangers, Li Zhu believed that Pei Yinzhi would not abandon a woman who had fallen into the hands of bandits—he would surely save her.

Tears streamed down her face as Li Zhu wiped them away and began, "He and I..."

Yet, on second thought.

Pei Yinzhi might save her, but this formidable bandit chieftain before her might not.

If she honestly admitted that she merely knew Pei Yinzhi, with no other connection—and that Pei Yinzhi didn't even recognize her—would he be willing to send someone to escort her?

"I am his fiancée."

Within a breath, Li Zhu concocted an identity.

The man raised a hand to half-cover his face, his thumb resting against his nose, letting out a short, mocking chuckle.

Li Zhu finally understood why this person felt so familiar.

Though the mask obscured most of his face, revealing only his thin lips and jaw, Li Zhu still recognized a familiar silhouette.

His smile bore a resemblance to Yin Zhi's.

The difference was, Pei Yinzhi's smile was warm, gentle, and full of affection.

This man's smile was easygoing, tinged with mockery, and even a subtle hint of mischief.

Could he be a relative of Pei Yinzhi?

Li Zhu's heart skipped a beat as she realized she hadn't considered this possibility.

She only knew that Pei Yinzhi was the son of the second branch of the Pei family, with an older female cousin from the main branch. Beyond that, she had never heard him mention any other siblings.

...Perhaps it was because this person had become a bandit, so he avoided speaking of him?

That possibility couldn't be ruled out.

Li Zhu felt a pang of unease.

But the lie was already out, and there was no retracting it now. She could only brace herself and meet his inscrutable smile.

"You don't believe me?"

He turned slightly, closed the chest of gold and silver, and sat leisurely on its lid, raising his gaze.

"Of course I believe you," he said, his lips curving. "It's just... I wonder, with such wealth at your disposal, how could you take a liking to a humble family like the Yiling Pei Clan? And even more so... that utterly unremarkable Pei Yinzhi?"

Utterly unremarkable?

She might not be deaf, but he was certainly blind!

"That's none of your concern. All you need to know is that I am his fiancée, his destined match!"

Her words rang with conviction.

The gray-robed man nearby, who knew the truth, listened in trepidation, unable to resist stealing a glance at the young chieftain's expression.

Within Red Leaf Village, only he and Dan Zhu knew of the chieftain's connection to the Yiling Pei Clan.

This young woman who claimed to be Pei Yinzhi's fiancée had truly terrible luck—to run into none other than the chieftain, who had been at odds with Pei Yinzhi since childhood. Now...

"That good-for-nothing scoundrel is no destined match."

The sudden shift in his tone caught Li Zhu off guard.

Then, she watched as the man sitting on the chest stood up and moved toward her.

This was the first time they stood face to face.

Li Zhu suddenly noticed that not only did the lower half of his face resemble Pei Yinzhi's, but his height was also strikingly similar.

He stood just a step away from her, advancing slowly and deliberately until his shadow completely enveloped her.

The warmth radiating from his body, along with an elusive yet ever-present sense of predation.

This feeling was all too familiar to Li Zhu.

As he drew closer, her body trembled slightly—not from fear, but from a burgeoning premonition ignited by his presence.

"You..."

Li Zhu's lips parted slightly as she stared, mesmerized, at the young bandit chieftain slowly removing his mask.

It was as if a hand had brushed away the fog.

Behind it were the man's faintly raised brows, deep and tranquil dark eyes, and a smile playing at the corners of his lips.

A familiar, dazzling charm—

Now clearly unveiled before Li Zhu.

Dangling the strap of the furious ape mask, he said leisurely, "I'm much better-looking than him, little lady. Marrying him... why not marry me instead?"

The world went quiet in that instant.

Li Zhu's pale lips parted, but no words came out.

Meanwhile, the bandits by the shallows, after a brief moment of quiet, erupted into a rowdy, teasing uproar.

"Take her away, take her away!"

"Our Chieftain is rolling in it—he won't let the young lady suffer!"

"Hey, and that's not all! The Chieftain has the looks of a divine immortal and a stallion's… endowments! Once you're with our Chieftain, I guarantee you'll never look at another man again!"

"No time like the present! Today's the day—let's get them to the bridal chamber!"

The bandits, bustling and rowdy like startled birds, grew increasingly agitated, fidgeting like monkeys.

The gray-robed scholar's eyes widened.

But soon, as if he understood something, he gave a slightly exasperated look at the Chieftain.

"……"

Li Zhu paid no attention to the commotion of stares around her.

She closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again:

"First, tell me your name."

The young woman's composure was unexpected to him.

He studied her for a moment, a teasing smirk playing on his lips. "So you're really willing to marry me?"

"Your. Name."

Li Zhu said, each word deliberate and clear.

The look in his eyes as he watched her turned somewhat peculiar.

Because her demeanor was unusual—tense, as if ready to strike, as though one wrong answer from him would bring about terrifying consequences.

But she was just a frail young woman—what could she possibly do to him?

Meeting her gaze, he replied carelessly, "Pei Zhaoye. 'Zhao' as in 'taking everything as it comes,' 'Ye' as in 'wild and untamed.' My family was too poor to afford books, and even when we weren't poor, I never liked reading. No talent, no virtue—turned bandit. On the road, they call me 'Shan Zhongxiao.' I'm the head honcho here at Yushan Red Leaf Village—"

The world spun around Li Zhu.

She thought, absurdly:

Those people in her past life who looked down on Pei Yinzhi's humble roots—they should hear this introduction today. Then they'd realize his status could actually plummet further!

By comparison, the Yiling Pei family had at least seen glory in their ancestry.

Oh, wait.

He wasn't called Pei Yinzhi anymore.

"Pei Zhaoye."

Li Zhu whispered the name softly, looking at him, then at the bandits around them who resembled wild monkeys.

She nodded. "Pei Zhaoye. So this is your name."

Pei Zhaoye watched her dazed, far-off look.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"I…"

"Hey!"

Dan Zhu, coming from the woods, yelled, "She's about to faint!"

No sooner had the words left her mouth than the grime-covered young woman pitched forward into the man's arms.

-

The noise faded with the river's flow, and Li Zhu's consciousness sank into chaos.

Blood loss and shock had left her mind unstable—one moment she felt she was still running for her life in the red-leaf forest, the next it was as if she had returned to her past life.

Winter, in the courtyard of the princess's estate, the sound of heavy snow.

"Princess, this move is too mechanical."

A slender hand snapped off a branch of palace-pink plum blossoms and met the edge of her sword; snow fell like salt grains.

"If you ever encounter a real attacker, Princess, don't think about how to block his move. Think about how to stop him from following up—like this—"

The plum branch brushed along the blade, wrapping around Li Zhu's wrist, then pressed pointedly.

"Snap his wrist, so he has no chance to strike again. Only then can you protect yourself, understand? When the martial instructor arrives later, remember to practice this once more."

Li Zhu stared at him.

"Aren't you going to court?"

"Leaving shortly."

"Oh, then I'll go with you. Didn't you say the border is short of commanders? How about me?"

"You're joking."

"Jests? I'm not joking. If we have to do it again tonight, and I have to practice this again in the morning—you've made me so tough, you might as well drag me to the front—"

Li Zhu, frustrated, butted her head against him.

He feigned losing his balance, and the two of them tumbled into the snowy courtyard. Passing servants covered their mouths, hiding laughs.

"Princess, see reason—how could I bear to send you to the battlefield? With the guts you've got in bed, wouldn't you surrender as soon as you hit the battlefield?"

Li Zhu hurriedly covered his mouth, her ears flushed red, seething.

"Then why did you hire a combat teacher for me? Why make me drill at crack of dawn!"

"Ah, Your Highness…"

He was pinned down by Li Zhu in the snowdrift, yet bent his long legs slightly, subtly trapping her.

Snow fell on his eyelashes, his dark eyes fixed on her.

"If all things in this world could go as I wish, I would never let the princess suffer any discomfort. Unfortunately, I am isolated and powerless, just an ordinary man powerless in many matters; there are always gaps."

"When that time comes, I hope the princess can keep my wife safe for me."

What did she say back then?

Amid the hazy fragments, a woman's carefree laughter rang out.

—My Yin Zhi is a peerless hero. As long as you are here, no one can harm me.

-

"Alright, you can relax! Her dirty clothes are changed, her body is wiped clean, and I applied medicine to her wounds myself—no sign of infection. They'll heal within seven days."

Dan Zhu, who had just come out from the inner room, grabbed a water jug and drank deeply.

She had just sat down but couldn't resist saying excitedly, "But this young lady is so fair-skinned! Smooth to the touch, without a single scar on her body, truly like a divine consort crafted from gold and jade. When she wakes up, I must ask what balms she usually uses."

The gray-robed scholar flushed bright red and hurriedly said, "Alright, alright, no need to say more about that."

"Gu Bingan, acting all proper again, aren't you? So you're the only one who understands propriety? If you're so proper, why are you blushing when I praise her fair, smooth skin? What are you thinking in that head of yours?"

"I… Chieftain, listen to her! Isn't she twisting my words?"

Gu Bingan glared indignantly at the figure under the Nine-Branch Lamp.

That person was reading a letter under the lamp, one found among the boxes from the canal boat.

He was focused until Gu Bingan interrupted, then slowly looked up.

"You are quite pretentious."

Then he glanced at Dan Zhu.

"How smooth?"

Dan Zhu: "Hehe, smoother than that mutton-fat jade we snatched from the wealthy merchant in Shuozhou last year!"

Gu Bingan was furious.

"However, I suppose you'd actually be more interested in this."

Pei Zhaoye tossed the bamboo slip in his hand into Gu Bingan's arms. At first confused, Gu Bingan took a closer look and trembled with shock.

"...A recommendation letter from the current Senior Tutor Zheng to the Confucian Master Xie Ji?"

The man rested his chin on his hand: "Look more carefully at the content."

"...Pei Yinzhi!?"

Gu Bingan's voice rose sharply.

"No, how does he deserve this? This is Xie Ji! The Xie family is a renowned scholarly family, with hundreds of disciples. The ritual codes of Great Yong were established by his grandfather. That sickly Pei Yinzhi, with his conduct—how could he possibly handle being Xie Ji's disciple?"

Any scholar would understand the weight of this recommendation letter.

The refined scholar's eyes turned red; he wished he could scratch off the three characters "Pei Yinzhi" from the slip and replace them with his own name.

He closed his eyes and pushed it despairingly toward Dan Zhu:

"Get it out of here, I don't want to see it."

Dan Zhu laughed: "What, jealous that he has a good fiancée?"

"I can't stand people with such luck."

Dan Zhu doubled over laughing.

While the two bantered, Pei Zhaoye silently rose and headed toward the inner room.

Deep asleep, Li Zhu had no idea that the husband who treated her tenderly and affectionately in her dreams was now standing by her bedside, scrutinizing her.

She really was Pei Yinzhi's fiancée.

If not his fiancée, who would obtain such an influential recommendation letter for him? Who would travel thousands of miles carrying boxes of precious medicinal herbs to find him?

But why was there no word from the Pei family?

Gu Bingan was right.

That scoundrel Pei Yinzhi truly had incredible luck.

Even after having one of his legs broken, the Pei family still managed to swindle a beauty who comes with vast wealth to him, gifting him precious medicines and paving his way to success.

Pei Zhaoye crouched beside her bed.

The warm, orange candlelight enveloped the young woman on the bed.

He had always liked glittering gold treasures, but now he had to admit that this sleeping face, still streaked with tears, seemed even more exquisite and noble than any gold, silver, or jade he had ever plundered.

His hand resting on the edge of the bed tapped idly.

If he let her go, she would likely step right into the Pei family's snake pit, be devoured completely, and become an accomplice without even realizing it.

Cupping his chin, he pondered quietly how to deal with her.

His marriage proposal during the day was just a joke, but he hadn't expected it to scare her into fainting.

Does she hate bandits that much?

He wasn't that frightening, was he?

Unwilling to marry him, yet wanting to run to the Pei family to support that dog Pei Yinzhi in studying with a famed master and becoming a high official—

That won't do.

Perhaps he should break her leg as well.

Just as this thought emerged, a hand slipped out from under the brocade quilt and grasped his.

Li Zhu had taken a pain-dulling brew and was drowsy, completely unaware of where she was. But the moment she held this hand, even without opening her eyes, she knew who it was.

This was her husband.

She grabbed that large-knuckled hand and pulled it toward her without explanation, rubbing her tear-streaked face haphazardly against the back of his hand.

The candlelight deep in his eyes flickered like a dancing flame.

Li Zhu mused drowsily:

So scary.

When she wakes up, she must tell Yin Zhi—

she had such a terrifying nightmare!