Chapter 50

“I never thought my mother was such a rich woman! No wonder that scumbag man abandoned her and went after a higher branch! The Senior Assistant Minister has really pocketed a lot of silver!”

Xia Qingqing sighed deeply while grinding herbs.

Xiao Suo, after tidying up the money box and the jewelry, joined her in cutting and grinding the herbs.

The next day, Xia Qingqing went to find a house again with the silver bills.

Meanwhile, Xia Tiance secretly sneaked back into the Xia Manor, wandered around a bit, found some valuable items, and took them out to pawn. He used the silver to find some people.

Through a friend’s introduction, he finally found the kind of people Xia Qingqing had described. He gave them an impassioned speech, rented a house, and all eight of them moved in together.

They waited until the next evening to meet Xia Qingqing.

In the dilapidated city god’s temple, a bonfire crackled, and everyone gathered around it, roasting sweet potatoes.

Xia Qingqing, disguised as a man, walked in. She even pasted on a small fake beard to appear more mature and composed.

“Little cousin, you’re here! Come in, everyone’s waiting for you!”

Xia Tiance almost didn’t recognize her when he saw her dressed as a man.

“Older cousin, these are just a bunch of rough fellows! They don’t look too impressive!”

As soon as Xia Qingqing arrived, she started criticizing.

This made the eight men so angry that they stood up and marched toward her, preparing to beat up this disrespectful brat.

Xia Tiance quickly stepped forward to stop them, “Brothers, he’s my little cousin, don’t mind him! Look at his small size, he barely reaches your shoulders!”

“Damn it! We’re here to make money, not to be insulted! Since he dares to speak like that, our fists won’t hold back!”

One of the burly men clenched his fists and angrily approached Xia Qingqing.

Xia Qingqing didn’t care at all. She quickly retreated out of the dilapidated temple and into the open ground.

She casually picked up a tree branch from the ground, taunting the men, “Come at me, all of you! If I don’t teach you a lesson tonight, my name’s not Xia!”

The eight men were enraged and swarmed forward.

Unfortunately, none of them were a match for Xia Qingqing, who easily used her stick to disable their pressure points. Some shook uncontrollably, some laughed foolishly, and others rolled on the ground in pain.

Xia Tiance stood there, stunned. His little cousin was truly a martial arts master! She had shown mercy on him back then!

“Ouch!”

“Spare us, hero!”

“We won’t dare show off in front of you again!”

The burly men, one by one, groaned in pain. They had underestimated her small size, not knowing she was so formidable!

Xia Qingqing walked over and released their pressure points, then sat on a stone, glancing at them all.

“From now on, you all belong to my Third Brother’s crew. I’m your strategist and I know some medicine. I’ll help you treat any injuries you get. Starting tomorrow, I’ll train you in the afternoons and evenings. If you can’t handle the hardship, feel free to leave now. Whoever holds out until the end will be a core member! And being a core member has its perks!”

The eight men were shocked, their mouths agape. This little person was no ordinary figure!

“Alright, we’ll train with you!”

The burly men temporarily yielded.

Xia Qingqing whispered in Xia Tiance’s ear, telling him to prepare the things she would need for training.

Xia Tiance nodded repeatedly, his mouth agape. He felt sorry for those men!

“Got it?” Xia Qingqing patted his shoulder.

“Got it! I’ll prepare everything!” Xia Tiance nodded quickly.

After leaving the temple, Xia Qingqing was walking home when someone on horseback chased after her.

She spread her arms and ran for her life.

“Stop!”

The person on horseback shouted urgently.

But Xia Qingqing was too focused on escaping to pay attention.

“Ah!”

The rider quickly spurred his horse to catch up with her.

Xia Qingqing ran into a narrow alley. The winding path slowed the horse down.

The person on the horse jumped off and continued chasing her on foot.

“Ha, ha, ha…”

Xia Qingqing was exhausted, but as she glanced behind her, she saw the person still coming after her, so she kept running.

She took out some sleeping powder from her sleeve, ready to use it as a last resort.

At this moment, the person behind her suddenly caught up.

“Sis, wait up!”

A familiar voice came from behind, and Xia Qingqing immediately skidded to a stop.

“Brother… What are you doing chasing me in the dark?”

“Well, you ran so fast, I had no choice!”

The Prince of Xian stopped and nearly collided with Xia Qingqing.

“My people found out you were at the dilapidated temple leading a bunch of men in a fight, and they said you defeated them all. I didn’t believe it at first, but after seeing how fast you run, I’m half convinced!”

The Prince of Xian fanned himself, speaking seriously instead of his usual silly tone.

Xia Qingqing eyed him suspiciously, “Your people? Aren’t you supposed to be playing with crickets?”

“Hahaha! That’s just to cover up! Who doesn’t have a hundred tricks in the palace? Otherwise, I’d have been dead by now!”

The Prince of Xian stood tall, his fox-like eyes glinting with cunning.

“Ah, so you’ve been pretending to be foolish all this time! You really fooled me! Does the old ancestor know about this?”

Xia Qingqing realized it and pointed at him.

“No, only Young Master Xie knows. Everyone else thinks I was scared silly by an assassin. To succeed, one must hide their true abilities!”

The Prince of Xian reached out and ruffled Xia Qingqing’s hair. “None like you, fiery and bold! But you’re smart and skilled in medicine—just what I need. Will you come with me to the Northern Wilderness?”

“Sure! As long as I can leave the Xia Manor, I’ll go anywhere!”

Xia Qingqing smiled brightly.

She had been so troubled about leaving the Xia Manor before, but now, the Prince of Xian had solved this problem for her!

“Good, a true hero among women! Tomorrow the Emperor will issue a decree for us to marry, and the day after, we’ll head to the Northern Wilderness!”

The Prince of Xian’s deep eyes locked onto Xia Qingqing, already knowing that if she wanted to escape, tonight would be her last chance.

“No problem. I’ll go home now and pack. I’ll go to the Northern Wilderness with you the day after tomorrow!”

Later, Xia Qingqing followed the Prince of Xian to the Northern Wilderness. She became a military doctor and helped him strategize, strengthening his power.

The Prince Jin and Prince Yan both seized the throne, killing Emperor Jing and imprisoning the Empress Dowager.

The Prince of Xian, with Xia Qingqing by his side, led an army to retake the capital, killing Prince Jin and Prince Yan.

The Prince of Xian ascended the throne as Emperor, and Xia Qingqing became a wise and virtuous Empress.

The story ends!