Chapter 8 – Master Ma Wants to Propose Again!

When Fang Yu arrived in the city, she went straight to Bao’an Hall without another word. The physician and the apprentice there already recognized her by now.

Seeing her come in, they quickly waved her over, asking if she had something else to sell.

Fang Yu took out the small bundle of things she had wrapped up. Just as she was about to ask the shopkeeper to check if they counted as medicinal herbs, she heard the man cry out in surprise:
“Elder Xu, come look—could this be Polygonatum?”

“And this one—this looks like Salvia?”

Watching them gather together in excitement to study the plants, Fang Yu quietly took a step back. She knew very well that no matter how rare the plants were, since they were fresh and unprocessed, they wouldn’t fetch a high price.

Sure enough, the two roots of bupleurum and astragalus she had dug up, plus the ones the little squirrels had given her, only sold for one tael and eight hundred cash in total. She used part of the money to buy some pills to keep at home, and when she left the shop, she still had about half the silver left.

She went to the blacksmith’s shop to pick out some small tools, then bought a piece of oilcloth before preparing to head home.

Thinking about how the tax deadline in the village had suddenly been moved up the night before, she felt it necessary to warn Xu Jiang so he could be ready to leave at any time.

But before she reached Madam Qin’s cloth shop, she saw Xu Jiang and her father locked in a tug-of-war at the entrance.

“Father? What are you doing here?”

At the sound of her voice, Father Fang froze in place. In that instant of distraction, Xu Jiang snatched the item from his hands.

“Little Sister Fang, you should keep this jade pendant. I was just about to say—this keepsake your mother left you shouldn’t be pawned off so lightly. Whatever problems you face, we’ll find a way to solve them slowly. Once this is sold, it’ll never come back.”

“You were going to pawn the jade pendant?”

Fang Yu rubbed the carved patterns on the pendant, then turned to look at her father, who was still standing stiffly.

“What else could I do? The tax silver is so high. If we can’t pay, the two of us will be separated. I promised your mother I’d take care of you!” Father Fang’s eyes grew hot again as he spoke, clearly remembering Fang Yu’s late mother.

Hearing this explanation, Fang Yu’s irritation eased. She first whispered to Xu Jiang about the new tax demands and how the deadline had been moved forward. Only after explaining did she give her thanks.

“It’s alright. Good thing Uncle Fang thought to come to me early. If he’d gone anywhere else, it would have been too late by now. I understand what you’ve said. I’ll head back tonight…”

After bidding Xu Jiang farewell, Fang Yu thought they might as well stop by Bao’an Hall since they were already in town. It was then that Father Fang finally learned his daughter had been gathering herbs and selling them every day, and his heart was put somewhat at ease.

They also switched his prescription and picked up medicine before father and daughter made their way home.

But as they drew near, Fang Yu could already hear noisy commotion from their courtyard gate.

When she saw a crowd of people dressed in bright red wedding robes gathered outside, her face immediately darkened.

Father Fang, who had been walking behind, took one look at the scene and seemed to realize something. He quickened his pace toward the gate.

The matchmaker hadn’t expected this. Lord Ma had entrusted her with delivering a marriage proposal, only for the girl not to even be home.

But she didn’t dare offend Old Master Ma. Unable to simply return empty-handed, she had no choice but to wait at the girl’s doorstep.

When they first entered the village, the locals had been curious about whose wedding it might be. But as soon as they learned it was a proposal on behalf of Ma Fu of the city, the crowd quickly dispersed.

On the way over, people in town had already ridiculed her, saying things like—

“Master Ma is proposing again? Which unlucky little bitter melon is it this time?”

Or, “Oh~ the King of Hell Ma is about to claim another life, eh?”

The words still stung.

She herself felt bitter—if she had a choice, she wouldn’t do this either. But she was Master Ma’s appointed matchmaker. Unless she wanted to stop making a living in Qingzhou City, who would dare refuse him?

Since the girl’s family wasn’t home, she had no option but to wait awkwardly at the door.

Now, seeing an old man coming up smiling, she thought he must have been informed in advance. So she launched into all her flattery, praising Ma Fu to the skies.

But unexpectedly, the old man, who had been listening with a smile, immediately cut her off when he heard who the proposal was from:

“Stop, stop, stop… Who did you say this proposal was from? Not someone surnamed He?”

The matchmaker could finally sense something was wrong. She repeated Ma Fu’s name and background once more, about to add some flattery, when the old man before her suddenly pointed angrily toward the outside and barked:

“Get out!”

The poor matchmaker was left dumbfounded by the scolding. She tried to salvage the situation, but Fang Yu, who had followed in behind, wasted no time in driving her straight out the door.

Even if she didn’t know all the details, Fang Yu was certain that Ma Fu was no good person. As for who was pulling strings behind the scenes—she didn’t even need to think hard to guess.

But she wasn’t afraid. If the proposal had failed today, he would surely try something else in the coming days. They would just need to stay vigilant.

After ushering her fuming father back into his room, she went to the kitchen to brew medicine and watched him drink it down. She didn’t coddle his fragile pride, but instead began methodically sorting through what they could pack up and take away.

She already had a rough idea of which direction to head. After befriending the physicians at Bao’an Hall, she had deliberately asked about the surrounding terrain. They told her the southwest was the nearest route—and with its rugged, mountainous land and natural barriers, it was a rare and favorable place to seek refuge.

So she settled on that direction without hesitation.

That very day, Qingzhou City’s streets looked less crowded, with only the occasional caravan passing through. She overheard people speculating that perhaps conditions in the south had improved and the refugees no longer needed to flee.

But her own suspicion leaned in another direction: that the roads had been cut off. At such a time, if it wasn’t a natural disaster like a landslide, then it must have been man-made.

Which could only mean one thing—trouble had erupted somewhere nearby.

And indeed, Fang Yu’s guess was correct. In Yunyang Prefecture, next to Guang’an, drought had grown so severe that the people could no longer survive. When they petitioned the officials to reduce the taxes, several village heads leading the plea were thrown into prison and executed.

That act lit the spark of fury. The people rose up, stormed the yamen, killed the county magistrate and his men, and looted the granaries. Within three days, the uprising swept across three counties, and more and more desperate villagers joined. Yunyang Prefecture had fallen into chaos.

Sensing danger, Guang’an Prefecture immediately sealed its main roads and tightened inspections across its counties. By the time word reached Qingzhou, Ma Fu had just learned that his proposal party had been driven back.

He had been preparing to personally cause trouble for Fang Yu and her father when an urgent summons from the magistrate arrived, calling him to receive new orders.

For a man who had thrived in power this long, Ma Fu was no fool. He went at once.

Soon, he was assigned to guard the checkpoints at every county entrance, tasked with watching for suspicious travelers and monitoring public sentiment.

Yet while other officials were sent out, Ma Fu himself was kept inside the county yamen—ostensibly for his own “protection,” but in truth to keep him under watch.

Confined to the yamen day and night, he had no chance to trouble Fang Yu and her father.

And with unrest spreading, the magistrate finally grasped the truth that “the water that bears the boat may also overturn it.” Overwhelmed with his own crises, he quietly set tax collections aside for the time being.

For the Fang family, this brought two rare days of peace.

Father Fang, never one to make decisions, had watched his daughter handle recent matters so decisively. That day at Bao’an Hall, he’d also noticed her purse had silver in it. Convinced she had already gathered enough money for the taxes, his worries were eased.

When she said she wanted to go up the mountain again, he agreed without hesitation. The whole business of marriage proposals slipped entirely from his mind, and he obediently stayed home to rest.

On the surface, things seemed to be improving. But the uneasy feeling in Fang Yu’s heart only grew stronger.

She trusted her instincts deeply. After making sure her father was settled, she prepared to head into the back mountain—this time hoping to gather more to sell.

Before setting out, she packed the supplies she had bought into her basket.

But the moment she entered the forest, her sharp senses caught it: not far ahead, someone was lying in ambush by the roadside.

Dark images flashed through her mind. Her grip tightened around the knife in her hand, a chill flashing in her eyes before quickly vanishing.

Her expression remained calm and detached as if she had noticed nothing, and she continued up the path. Only the hand clasping the knife betrayed her, silently gathering strength for what was to come…