Chapter 14: Gu Yunting Keeps His Promise

After a long while, Gu Yunting finally stepped over to Gu Yi’s corpse and squatted down, carefully inspecting him from head to toe. He confirmed that the fatal wound was the hole in Gu Yi’s chest.

The wound had pierced straight through from the front to the back. Judging by the damage, it was just as Gu Er had reported—this girl was truly a hidden weapon expert.

In all his life, Gu Yunting had never seen a weapon with such power—capable of punching clean through a human body.

“Was she injured?” After all that silence, this was the only question he asked Gu Er and the three shadow guards.

The three of them were stunned on the spot.

She? Who??

“No, the girl wasn’t harmed at all!” Gu Er was the first to react and quickly answered.

His timely response pleased Gu Yunting. “Gu Er, from now on, you’ll be responsible for escorting—forget it.”

He had originally intended to assign Gu Er to protect her again, but recalling the message she asked him to pass on, he changed his mind.

Since she didn’t welcome it—and clearly had the ability to protect herself—he decided to wait for her in Jianzhou when she eventually came to collect the favor.

“Master, Gu Dong has sent a message!” At that moment, Gu Bei approached and bowed slightly to report.

Gu Yunting’s breath caught. Holding his breath, he rasped out a single word: “Speak.”

“The people that he planted have all been quietly replaced by our own, thanks to Young Lord He’s intervention. Every message he’s received so far was deliberately planted by us.”

“The General, the Heir, and the remaining 300 members of the Gu family army have all been disguised as merchants and moved south under Gu Dong’s arrangements. They’ll meet us in Jianzhou in three months’ time.”

Gu Bei’s report made Gu Yunting slowly release his tightly clenched fists. His sharp eyes gazed steadily at the boundless darkness ahead.

After a long pause, Gu Yunting spoke: “Starting tomorrow, we speed up the march.”

“Master, what about your health?” Gu Xi asked with concern.

“That’s right, Master. The Ghost Festival is in three days… your condition—” Gu Bei echoed his concern but hesitated, unable to finish the sentence.

“It’s nothing. When the time comes, we’ll carry out the plan as scheduled,” Gu Yunting said calmly, as though everything were within his grasp.

Although both Gu Bei and Gu Xi were deeply worried and pained, they followed orders without hesitation and replied in unison: “Yes!”

At that moment, Xiao Ling’er—dozing lightly—had no idea she had been portrayed as some legendary hidden weapon master in Gu Er’s report.

Nor did she know that Gu Yunting and his people had accelerated their journey, increasing the distance between them.

Right now, Xiao Ling’er was going through the food inventory in her system backpack:

Potatoes: 38

Tomatoes: 32

Cabbage: 26

Sweet potatoes: 3

Not exactly rich, but compared to gnawing on tree bark, it gave her a great sense of relief.

At least for now, she no longer had to worry about starving to death with her mother and younger brother.

As for Gu Yunting, just as she predicted, he didn’t send anyone after them again.

After all, she had killed one of his subordinates—unless he was a complete fool, he wouldn’t risk sending someone now to retaliate.

What he needed most right now was to safely escort his mother, younger sister, and other family members to their destination.

Besides, Xiao Ling’er had another identity—his lifesaver. And to someone who values their promises, that identity could prove extremely useful.

From the fact that he had willingly offered a silver note worth 20,000 taels and a token valued at 100 million just for a future favor, she could tell that he was someone who understood gratitude and kept his word.

Xiao Ling’er was gambling—gambling on Gu Yunting’s character, and on whether he would truly honor his promise.

So far, it seemed like she had bet correctly!

The next morning, Xiao Yuhao and Mu Xiya were awakened by a sweet, unfamiliar aroma wafting through the air.

As soon as they opened their eyes, they saw their daughter/older sister holding a food item neither of them had ever seen before.

Clearly, the mouthwatering scent was coming from it.

“Lingling, is that for eating? It smells so good!” Mu Xiya excitedly ran over and squatted in front of Xiao Ling’er, eyes locked on the mysterious food in her hand.

“Big Sis, this new food smells amazing. Is it expensive? We can still eat potatoes and cabbage—we don’t need to…” Xiao Yuhao, though clearly tempted by the red sweet potato, had gotten used to frugality. His first concern was the price.

“It’s not expensive. This food costs 2 wealth points per piece. It’s 1 point more than potatoes or tomatoes, but it’s much bigger, so it’s more cost-effective,” Xiao Ling’er interrupted before he could go on with his usual chatter.

After hearing that, Xiao Yuhao stopped talking. At 2 wealth points, it really wasn’t too costly. Considering the size, it was more economical than potatoes or cabbage.

“You two go wash up first, then we’ll eat,” Xiao Ling’er said as she took out the toiletries she had spent a fortune on last night in the system shop: one washbasin and foot basin each, three towels, three cups, three toothbrushes, and a tube of toothpaste.

Washbasins: 2 wealth points each

Towels: 2 wealth points each

Cups: 1 wealth point each

Toothbrushes: 1 wealth point each

Toothpaste: 5 wealth points per tube

In total, she had spent 21 wealth points. Her heart had ached for a long time last night—she had worked so hard to save up 39 points, and in just two days, she was left with only 8.

Mu Xiya and Xiao Yuhao had no idea about her internal pain. When they saw what she laid out in front of them, both were dumbfounded.

Especially Xiao Yuhao—he was sure that even the emperor in the palace had probably never seen such strange and luxurious items.

And now he not only got to see them, but also use them. Overcome with emotion, he trembled slightly and bowed three times toward the sky, sincerely thanking the Heavenly Gods for their blessings.

Mu Xiya followed his lead and bowed three times as well.

Xiao Ling’er didn’t stop them. She felt that this was good—having unwavering faith would help Yuhao feel more at ease using these things.

Under her gentle guidance, the mother and son soon completed their first-ever toothbrushing session.

“Big Sis! This really is from the gods—my breath smells so fresh now!” Xiao Yuhao exclaimed with joy after taking a deep breath.

Xiao Ling’er smiled and patted his head. “Trust your sister. Our life is only going to get better from here on out.”

“Mm!”

“Mm!”

Xiao Yuhao and Mu Xiya nodded firmly one after the other.

After washing up, the three of them sat down to breakfast. The moment Xiao Yuhao and Mu Xiya took their first bite of the sweet potato, their eyes lit up in surprise and delight.

“Big Sis! This fruit is sweet and refreshing—so delicious! Even better than potatoes!” Xiao Yuhao exclaimed.

“Mmm! So good!” Mu Xiya echoed joyfully in her own simple way.

“I’ve decided to name it ‘hongshu’—red sweet potato. That’s what we’ll call it from now on,” Xiao Ling’er announced proudly.

But when she turned to look at Xiao Yuhao for his response, she found him happily munching away… and suddenly, tears were falling down his cheeks.

Golden droplets of gratitude and joy.