Chapter 54: Saving Someone

Previously, Pear Blossom had agreed with Murong Jiutian to arrive at the Dart Bureau every day at the fourth quarter of the hour of Chen (around 8:45 AM). Since it took about an hour to travel, she only needed to set out around the fourth quarter of the hour of Mao (around 5:45 AM).

For the countryside folk, waking up at Mao hour was routine. If any household stayed in bed until the sun was high, they would surely become the talk of the village. Diligent families even began their work at the crow of the rooster, truly working from dawn until dusk.

In the countryside, nights were quiet with little activity. Some families went to bed as soon as it got dark. Even in Daliushu Village, where people gathered in the drying yard to chat in the evenings, the conversations didn’t last long. By the end of Xu hour (around 9 PM), everyone would return home to sleep.

Without timekeeping tools or watchmen, Pear Blossom wasn’t worried about oversleeping because her system accurately and promptly notified her of the time.

She woke up in a great mood, her steps light and brisk as if she had wings on her feet.

The night before, after escorting Dong Yun and her daughter back home, she had been invited to share a late-night snack in their small courtyard. The two big chicken drumsticks she devoured left her utterly satisfied.

However, she didn’t dare to bring up the matter of holding hands. Close friends sometimes held hands, just like Qingkui and Zhang Daya, who often walked hand in hand.

Dong Yun was usually distant, so for her to treat Pear Blossom like a close friend was already deeply gratifying.

When Pear Blossom arrived at the Dart Bureau, Murong Jin was practicing stances on a wooden post. Spotting Pear Blossom, she gracefully leapt down with a quick flip.

Pear Blossom handed over a basket of eggs. “Here, these are the eggs we’ve saved recently. I’ll bring more once you finish them.”

Murong Jin quickly accepted them and carried them to the kitchen. “My mother’s been talking about wanting your eggs every day. If you hadn’t come soon, I’d have had to find you myself.”

Pear Blossom knew the eggs laid by her old hens were delicious, but such an intense love for eggs was rare.

The two soon headed to the training ground in the front courtyard. Murong Jin said, “I’ll start by teaching you some basic hand-to-hand combat skills over the next few days. This will build your foundation. Next time we spar, you’ll know how to respond.”

Pear Blossom nodded in agreement.

When Murong Jin asked about her longest time holding a horse stance, Pear Blossom honestly replied, “An hour at most, though I can only manage it occasionally.”

Murong Jin was shocked. “An hour? Are you sure you didn’t miscount?”

Having trained since childhood, Murong Jin could only maintain a horse stance for just over half an hour. The fact that Pear Blossom, with no martial arts training, could last an hour was astounding.

Pear Blossom shook her head. “My father timed me. It shouldn’t be wrong. If you don’t believe me, we can try it together.”

Murong Jin waved it off. “I just finished my morning stance practice, so I’ll skip it for now. Let’s do it together tomorrow.”

Pear Blossom didn’t insist, and the two went straight to the training ground.

Time flew by. The morning passed in a blur of punches, shouts, and the clanging of weapons. It wasn’t until someone from the back courtyard called them for lunch that they stopped.

Both Pear Blossom and Murong Jin were drenched in sweat and panting heavily. Seeing Pear Blossom’s slightly bruised face, Murong Jin couldn’t help but laugh.

“That’s it for today,” she said, casually tossing her stick onto the weapons rack. “Let’s eat before you head home.”

Pear Blossom wiped the sweat from her forehead and shook her head. “No, I’ll eat when I get home.”

Murong Jin seemed to see through her hesitation and smiled. “Don’t worry, it’s not a family meal this time. It’s a big pot meal with the other escorts and workers. It’s lively.”

Hearing this, Pear Blossom relaxed. After training all morning, she was starving. If she didn’t eat, her legs might give out on the way home.Apologetically, she said, “I came to be your sparring partner, but you’ve been teaching me the whole time. I feel like I’ve taken advantage of you.”

Murong Jin waved it off. “Teaching you helps me too. A strong opponent sparks my motivation. You’re naturally fit, hardworking, and much better than those so-called prodigies. Train well, and you’ll do great.”

Pear Blossom nodded before heading to eat. As she was leaving, Murong Jin asked, “Your house is far. Walking takes an hour, but riding a horse only half that. If you feel tired, you’re welcome to use one of the agency’s horses.”

Pear Blossom shook her head. “I’ll use the walk to build my stamina. Maybe in the future.”A horse cost 20 to 30 taels of silver—expensive but not beyond her reach. With her two-tael monthly salary, she could save up for one in a year. She didn’t want to take advantage of Murong Jin too much.

However, owning a horse required registration with the government, which might result in conscription. If she registered the horse under the Dart Bureau, it would avoid trouble.

After eating, she left the agency and headed into town to buy candied hawthorns for Fubao.

If Fubao had one, so must her younger siblings. Upon returning to Daliushu Village, she happened upon Erniu running around wildly. She gave him the candied hawthorns for her siblings and went to the west courtyard of the Zeng family’s home.

The courtyard was quiet. As she looked around, about to call out, she heard a startled cry from above. Looking up, she froze in fright.

Dong Yun was on a ladder, retrieving something from the eaves. The ladder had tipped, and she unable to hold on, was falling.

Pear Blossom couldn’t spare a thought for anything else. She quickly placed the candied hawthorn skewer to the side and dashed forward, catching the falling person firmly in her arms.

Dong Yun, who had toppled headfirst, was still in shock. The pain she had anticipated never arrived. When she opened her eyes, she found herself cradled by the girl who had just entered the courtyard. Feeling the soft embrace and strong arms supporting her, she was relieved but also a little embarrassed. After all, she had only held the girl’s hand last night, and now she was practically throwing herself into her arms.

“Sister Dong, are you alright?”

Dong Yun coughed lightly and struggled to stand. Pear Blossom quickly released her, but her fingers accidentally brushed against the soft curve. Seeing Dong Yun’s flushed ears and the stray strand of hair near her neck, Pear Blossom’s heart skipped a beat.

“I’m quite heavy; did I hurt you?” Dong Yun asked awkwardly.

Pear Blossom shook her head. “Not at all. You’re light, with such a slender waist and wrists. It’s just”

Realizing she might say something inappropriate, Pear Blossom stopped herself.

Dong Yun, however, could guess what this silly girl was about to say. Her face heated up. She knew her own figure well enough. In these times, women with fuller chests were often seen as improper. Even when she went out, she had to bind herself, though at home, she didn’t bother as much.

Being held like that earlier, with the girl’s hands firmly supporting her there, it was no wonder Pear Blossom had such thoughts.

Feigning nonchalance, Dong Yun tucked the stray hair behind her ear and said, “It’s lucky you came in time. Otherwise, I might have been bedridden for ten days or more after that fall.”

Pear Blossom quickly inspected the ladder and found one side riddled with insect holes. It crumbled into dust with a bit of pressure. One leg was shorter than the other, making it unstable and prone to tipping over.

“What were you trying to get? I’ll climb up and get it for you,” Pear Blossom offered, placing a small stone under the shorter leg of the ladder for balance.

“I had some dried bamboo shoots stored up there after sun-drying them,” Dong Yun explained, not refusing her help. She stood behind the ladder to steady it as Pear Blossom climbed up.

The items were quickly retrieved, but Pear Blossom, always resourceful, grabbed a hatchet from the kitchen. She cut off the corroded portion of the shorter leg, measured a bamboo piece to match the longer leg, and shaved down the excess bit by bit.

As Dong Yun soaked the bamboo shoots in water, she couldn’t help glancing back at Pear Blossom.

Perhaps because they saw each other daily, she hadn’t noticed any changes in her at first glance. She still seemed like the same silly girl. But upon closer inspection, Dong Yun realized how much she had grown. Her brows had softened, and she now carried the air of a young woman. Occasionally, when she looked up, there was a sparkle in her eyes like starlight.

She also recalled the fierce, commanding presence Pear Blossom had unintentionally displayed that day in the village chief’s courtyard while dealing with Xiang Dalang. If they didn’t see each other daily, Dong Yun might have thought this silly girl had been replaced by someone else.

Still, in front of her, Pear Blossom hadn’t changed—she was as silly as ever.

“All done. Next time, if you climb a ladder, make sure to brace it with a big stone or a chair to prevent slipping,” Pear Blossom carefully reminded her.

Touched by her thoughtfulness, Dong Yun softened her voice. “I know. I’ll be careful.”

Hearing her gentle tone, Pear Blossom felt a warmth spread through her chest. When she glanced at Dong Yun, her gaze inadvertently fell on her chest. The memory of that soft touch returned, and she quickly looked away, feeling a ticklish unease.

Her throat moved slightly as she swallowed. She turned to return the hatchet to its place, only then remembering she had come to fetch candied hawthorn for Fubao. Earlier, in her rush to catch Dong Yun, she had set it down on a gourd vine near the door. She hoped it hadn’t fallen to the ground.

She found it stuck to a green leaf but untouched by dust. After a quick cleaning, it was as good as new.

“Here, Fubao’s candied hawthorn,” she said, handing it over.

Dong Yun smiled and took it. “Wait, I’ll get you some money.”

But Pear Blossom waved her off. She had planned to buy rouge for Dong Yun earlier but hadn’t brought any silver with her. It didn’t matter; she could always get it another time since she frequented the city.

Seeing Dong Yun reach for money, she decided not to argue and simply turned to leave.

Dong Yun, exasperated, chased her to the door and laughed softly. “You little rascal”

Pear Blossom stopped in her tracks, turned, and said, “That’s not a suitable thing to call me.”

“Oh? Why not?” Dong Yun asked with a raised brow.

“I’m not that much younger than you. Only my mother gets to call me a rascal. It doesn’t suit you.”

Dong Yun bit her lip, knowing exactly what Pear Blossom was implying. “Haven’t you run around enough today? Go home and rest.”

Seeing the faint blush on her face, Pear Blossom suppressed her fluttering heart and turned toward home.

In the past, Pear Blossom’s thoughts about being close to Dong Yun were simple holding hands, hugging, or leaning against each other. But just now, her desire for intimacy had grown more concrete.

She wanted to touch her. Specifically, the fullness and softness of her chest.

Now she understood why the system’s lottery shop had items like breast-enhancing pills. Such a temptation was hard to resist.

Feeling a sudden heat in her nose, Pear Blossom wondered if she was about to get a nosebleed.

…

Majiazhuang, a hamlet halfway to Jinyang County, was about three villages away from Daliushu Village.

After leaving Jinyang City, Pear Blossom hurried non-stop toward her home.

It had been half a month since she reached the Longwei Dart Bureau. During this time, she traveled the same route daily, gradually building her endurance. What used to take her an hour on foot now only took 45 minutes.

When there were people on the road, she would slow down slightly, but when it was empty, she would speed up to cover more ground quickly.

As she approached Majiazhuang, she noticed two carriages ahead.

Carriages on the road were not unusual, but the drivers were large, intimidating men who seemed familiar. Their fierce appearance brought unease. When her system alerted her, she realized these men were the same traffickers who had tried to abduct her in the past.

Anger flared within Pear Blossom upon hearing this.

It was these men who had extorted thirty taels of silver from Sister Dong. Although she had repaid the thirty taels herself, the money was later taken by Mrs. Zeng. Thinking about it always left her simmering with resentment.

Now, seeing these men again, her rage deepened. She began contemplating how to reclaim the thirty taels from them. If possible, she also wanted to deal them a heavy blow.

“People like them, doing such heinous deeds, deserve no good end,” she muttered.

The system suddenly chimed in, “Host, there’s a young woman tied up inside the carriage. It looks like these men are up to no good again. From their conversation, they’re planning to take her to a mountain stronghold.”

Pear Blossom’s heart skipped a beat. She thought about how, without binding to the system, she might have faced the same fate.

What she hated most was the trafficking and mistreatment of women. Despite being born equal, some people were cruelly subjected to such control. It was utterly unfair.

She often wondered why the emperor didn’t issue a decree to outlaw human trafficking. Could it really be so difficult?

She had heard of a tribe in the northern grasslands led by a woman, where women’s status had risen significantly. If their country had a female emperor, perhaps such a decree would be issued, sparing countless women and children from suffering.

However, reality was harsh. Just a few months ago, she herself had been sold.

Her anger surged as she fixed her gaze on the carriages, trailing behind at a steady pace.

“Host, don’t tell me you plan to fight them head-on? They have two carriages and five men—you can’t take them all,” the system warned.

Gritting her teeth, Pear Blossom replied, “I can’t just stand by and let them abduct that girl. Once she’s in the bandits’ den, she’s done for.”

Although her intelligence and physique were now both at 22 points, she still struggled to come up with a good plan.

She continued to follow the carriages. After passing through Daliushu Village and four other villages, they entered a forested area where the carriages finally stopped. The men got out, needing to relieve themselves.

The men laughed and bantered crudely as they lined up to urinate. Meanwhile, Pear Blossom hid behind a large tree, waiting for the right moment to act.

Her first target was the horses.

Without horses, they would have to walk back on foot. Without the cover of the carriages, the woman they had abducted would be exposed, forcing the men to reconsider their actions.

From there, she could wear them down bit by bit.

“This girl is a real beauty,” one of the men said. “She must be from some wealthy family. Maybe even a noble household she looks like a celestial maiden.”

“Yeah, her skin is so fair it’s driving me crazy. If we didn’t have to save her for the chieftain, I’d be first in line,” another man said lecherously.

“Bah, you? First in line? Dream on.”

“What, you think you deserve it more than me? Who do you think you are?”

“I may be nothing, but no girl has ever escaped from my hands. You and Shorty couldn’t even keep hold of one last time, and the boss had to step in. If I’m unworthy, then you’re even less so!”

“You’re dead if you bring that up again! Keep it up, and I’ll kill you!”

While they bickered, one of the men who had returned to the carriages suddenly shouted, “Something’s wrong! The horses are dead!”

The group froze in shock, hastily pulling up their trousers and running back.

When they reached the carriages, they saw the two horses lying on the ground in pools of blood.

Alarmed, the men stood back-to-back in a defensive circle.

One of them called out, “Check if the goods are still there!”

Someone pulled back the curtain and confirmed, “The goods are still here!”

“What’s going on? Killing the horses but not taking the girl? What kind of tactic is this?”

“Be careful. Anyone who can silently kill two horses is no ordinary person.”

“What should we do now?”

“Two of you stay here to guard the goods. The rest of us will search the surrounding woods. Let’s find out who’s bold enough to mess with us!”

The one-eyed man led the way, with two others fanning out to search the forest.

What they didn’t realize was that the person they were looking for was already inside the carriage.

Pear Blossom was hiding behind the abducted woman, holding her breath. The dagger in her hand was stained with the horses’ blood.

She knew they wouldn’t spend long relieving themselves, so she needed to act quickly. Her plan was to scatter them and pick them off one by one.

As she anticipated, two men stayed behind to guard the carriage.

This way, her stress was significantly reduced.

The three men with the one-eyed man moved in a fan formation deeper into the forest, leaving one man guarding the carriage and another probing the surrounding area, which was dotted with waist-high haystacks.

Two horses lay silently dead in front of them, with the culprit nowhere to be found. It was impossible for the two men not to feel uneasy. They spoke to each other at a cautious distance, trying to maintain contact.

Pear Blossom gestured for the woman to stay silent, removing the cloth from her mouth before starting to cut the ropes.

Once the ropes were cut, Pear Blossom whispered, “Make some noise and lure them over.”

According to the system’s prompt, the other three men had already walked half a mile away and wouldn’t return quickly. They only needed to deal with the two men here.

The woman was beautiful and had a gentle demeanor. She was calmer than Pear Blossom had expected. Following Pear Blossom’s instructions, she bumped against the carriage body, letting out muffled cries.

Hearing the noise, the man outside strode over, lifted the curtain, and poked his head inside, grumbling impatiently, “You wretched woman, what kind of nonsense are you stirring up at a time like this—”

Before he could finish, Pear Blossom, who had been hiding nearby, drove a dagger straight through his neck. Blood sprayed everywhere, splattering across the interior.

The special training over the past half-month had indeed been effective, leaving Pear Blossom satisfied.

She dragged the burly man’s body into the carriage. “He’s not getting up. Don’t be afraid. The other one will come back soon. When he sees all this blood, he’ll be suspicious and won’t fall for the same trick. I can’t stay in the carriage. I’ll get on the roof. Just lure him inside.”

Although the woman’s body was trembling, she managed to suppress her panic and nodded repeatedly at Pear Blossom’s instructions.

Without further ado, Pear Blossom climbed out of the carriage, pulling the curtain down before stealthily crawling onto the roof.

Sure enough, the other man nearby didn’t hear his companion reply and sensed something was wrong. He hurried back with his knife.

The woman repeated her previous tactic. When the short man arrived, he was much more cautious. Unlike the first man, he didn’t immediately stick his head inside. Instead, he lifted the curtain carefully, weapon in hand.

Inside, he saw their so-called “cargo” sitting calmly in the carriage, a cold smile on her face. At her feet lay his comrade, blood gushing from a gaping wound in his throat.

The short man’s eyes widened in shock, about to scream. But in a flash, a shadow leapt from the roof. Caught off guard, the man’s throat was pierced from the side by a sharp dagger, and he collapsed in a pool of blood.

Pear Blossom wiped her dagger clean on the man’s clothes before tucking it back into her belt.

The woman in the carriage lifted the curtain to see the burly man lying motionless on the ground.

Her face was pale, but she exhaled in relief, amazed at Pear Blossom’s skill.

Pear Blossom gestured for her to come down. “Hurry, we need to leave now.”

The woman quickly climbed out of the carriage and followed behind Pear Blossom.

They had only walked a short distance when a shout rang out: “Something’s wrong, there’s been trouble!”

It was the one-eyed man’s voice.

Pear Blossom didn’t need to look back to know what was happening. She immediately crouched down and said, “Climb on. I’ll carry you.”

The woman hesitated briefly, but seeing there was no time to waste, Pear Blossom pulled her onto her back and started running.

With her strength, running ability, and the system’s unbeatable map guidance, there was no way those men could catch up to her!

Following the system’s directions, Pear Blossom carried the woman through the forest, weaving left and right. Before long, they were out of the woods.

The system informed her that the men had given up the chase after realizing they couldn’t catch her. Only then did Pear Blossom set the woman down.

“Are you alright?” she asked.

The woman shook her head. “I’m fine. Thank you for saving my life.”

“It was nothing,” Pear Blossom said. “Where’s your home? I’ll take you back.”

But the woman shook her head. “I can’t go back.”

That was all she said, refusing to share any further details.

Perhaps she really had no choice, much like Pear Blossom herself in the past. If not for her mother and younger siblings, she wouldn’t have wanted to return home either. Unable to get more information, Pear Blossom decided to do a good deed to the end. “If you’ve got nowhere to go, you can stay at my house for a couple of days until things settle down.”

“Wouldn’t that be too much trouble?” the woman asked hesitantly.

“It’s no trouble,” Pear Blossom assured her. “My family is just ordinary folks, and I have some say in the household.”

More than just some say, her parents now practically did whatever she told them. Having experienced similar hardships, her parents wouldn’t turn away someone in need.

The woman finally nodded. “Thank you so much.”

“Those men lost track of you around here, but they’ll likely gather reinforcements and come looking. They might even search the village. We can’t take the main road back. Instead, we’ll go through the dense forest, which leads to the back of my house. You can stay at my place for now, but try to keep a low profile.”

The woman nodded and asked, “My name is Xia Xunyan. May I know your name?”

“Pear Blossom,” she replied. “I live in Daliushu Village, just up ahead. My parents are still alive, and I have two younger brothers and a younger sister. They’re all very kind people.”

As they walked toward Daliushu Village, Pear Blossom described her family’s situation to Xia Xunyan.