"Young master, perhaps choose another? I can give you a lower price," she said.
She had brought several people tonight; no matter what, she had to sell at least one.
Cao Mingxi had often heard his father speak of the hardships of the world and the common people, but having been pampered since childhood, he had never witnessed such a scene firsthand. He was momentarily stunned.
"Or, young master, perhaps do a good deed and buy his little ge'er as well," the human broker added, then quickly waved her hands. "No, I'll give him to you. This one's free. When he grows up, you can even sell him."
That little brat was always sickly, needing medicine every few days. He was unlucky and cost money to keep. She couldn't wait until he grew up, it was better to trick this young master into buying the worthless thing along with his father.
Mingxi helped the man up. "What is your name?"
The man replied, "Answering the young master, I am Fu Yu."
"I will buy you and your ge'er son. Are you willing to be my driver?" Mingxi asked again.
Tears glistened in Fu Yu's eyes. "Willing, willing!" He knelt down and kowtowed again.
"Thank you, young master. This great kindness, Fu Yu will never forget."
Mingxi: "Get up. Go fetch your ge'er son, pack your things, and come with me."
Fu Yu hurriedly stood up, wiping his tears. "Yes, I'll go right away."
Mingxi took out another silver ingot and handed it to the broker.
"I'm buying all the remaining people. Send them to Wanbao Pavilion tomorrow. Say a benefactor bought them to be servants there."
The broker and the shopkeeper exchanged a glance. This was a wealthy person, and one connected to Wanbao Pavilion at that.
"Yes, yes, yes! Young master is most generous. These people have encountered a benevolent deity," the broker flattered him. This was the first time in recent years that all the people she had brought were bought out. She remembered the last time such a large number of servants were bought was when the capital's Wanbao Pavilion first opened.
Who would have thought that some lowly servants would leap to become managers in the Pavilion? It had unsettled her for a long time.
Soon, Fu Yu returned, leading his little ge'er son, who was rubbing his eyes.
"Huai'er, kneel quickly and pay respects to our master."
The child said in a milky voice, "Huai'er pays respects to the master."
Mingxi helped the little ge'er up and said with a smile, "Good Huai'er. From now on, you'll follow this big brother."
The next day, before dawn, Fu Yu had already prepared everything for the journey. The carriage was fully equipped with quilts and bedding.
Mingxi and Huai'er sat inside the carriage while Fu Yu drove. They set out the moment the city gates opened.
"Master, which way should we go?" Fu Yu asked Mingxi inside the carriage.
"Have you heard of Yunxi Village?"
"I have. It's said to have peach blossoms covering the mountains, with green hills and clear waters—a very nice place."
A smile touched Mingxi's lips. "Then we go to Yunxi Village."
The Emperor had once praised Yunxi Village to him, saying he would definitely take them all there one day.
"Alright then, master, please sit steady. Huai'er, be good."
Having said that, he raised his whip and gave the horse a flick, heading in the direction of Yunxi Village.
[Yunxi Village]
Outside the house on West Mountain slope, a lounge chair was placed. The person on the chair had his eyes closed. Before him lay a section of a peach branch. The harsh winter was approaching, and the peach trees surrounding the yard were all bare, but this single section in front of him was in full bloom, its faint peach blossom fragrance filling the yard, lingering for a long time.
"Xiǎo Ling, Xiǎo Ling!" A voice called from outside the courtyard gate.
Ling Cang on the lounge chair slowly opened his eyes. "What is it?"
"You say it!"
"I don't dare, you say it!"
"Ahem, it's like this. I see you're all alone, young man. I am willing to give my daughter to you as your wife," the person said.
Upon hearing this, Divine Emperor Ling Cang got up and went to open the gate. The moment he stepped out, the section of peach branch instantly withered into a dry twig.
He was dressed in moon-white brocade robes today, his jet-black hair casually tied with a jade hairpin. Unlike the cold aloofness of that first day, he seemed somewhat softer today.
The young woman following her parents glanced at him, then blushed and lowered her head.
Ling Cang smiled faintly. "I have no plans to take a wife for the time being. Moreover, judging by the young lady's complexion, she should already have a sweetheart she favors."
The old man's dark face wore an indescribable, strained smile as he sighed.
"What kind of sweetheart? More like a deep, muddy trap. Young Ling, you probably don't know. Xiao Zhu has been noticed by the local tyrant in town. In a couple of days, he's coming to take her as his concubine."
The woman beside the old man knelt down, weeping.
"Those the tyrant marries are carried in alive, but carried out within a few days. Those carried out are either dead or mad. I don't want my daughter to end up like that! Young Ling, please save her!"
Having said that, she embraced her daughter.
Since Ling Cang rarely went out normally, no matter how curious everyone was, they didn't dare. But finally, someone had gone to see him today, so they all came to Ling Cang's courtyard gate at the foot of West Mountain, eager to see the spectacle.
"Why doesn't that tyrant just catch a venereal disease and die!"
"I heard several girls from the next village were forcibly married to him. They all ended up dead or mad."
"What a sin, what a sin!"
The Village Chief was also there, waiting to see if Ling Cang would agree.
Ling Cang smiled and shook his head. "I am not her destined one."
He then said to the woman kneeling on the ground, "Your destined one is in the east."
"But the tyrant..."
"He will not live past tomorrow!" Ling Cang stated.
Everyone was shocked. The Village Chief stepped forward first. "Young Ling, you mustn't speak nonsense! That tyrant is the county magistrate's son. Reckless talk can bring disaster upon the village!"
"Whether it's true or not will be clear tomorrow," Ling Cang said.
"Young master, you said my destined one is in the east. Could you be more specific?" the kneeling woman asked.
Ling Cang glanced at her. "You will meet him when you go to pray for blessings in five days."
The woman was astonished. How did he know? She had never told anyone about planning to go to the temple to pray. Could he truly be an immortal?
"Thank you for telling me, young master," the woman said, standing up and helping her parents return home.
The Village Chief addressed the crowd: "Do not spread what Young Ling said today. If anyone gossips carelessly, they need not stay in Yunxi Village anymore. Everyone, disperse."
He took a deep look at Ling Cang standing before his house.
"Young Ling, you should go back inside too."
Ling Cang nodded and closed the courtyard gate.
The next day, news indeed came from the county town. The tyrant had gotten drunk, fallen into the Ten-Mile River, and drowned.
"Young Ling is amazing! He actually predicted it!" the Village Chief's wife said while washing clothes.
The Village Chief took a drag from his old pipe. "He is no ordinary man."
"I wonder which family's young lady or ge'er could be a match for him. I don't even dare introduce our own daughter or ge'er to him. Did you see? The moment he came out yesterday, he was even more handsome than those young masters from the capital."
"In my opinion, only the Cao family's ge'er from the capital could be a match for him," the wife of the Village Chief's eldest son said.
"Have you seen him?"
"Of course I haven't. But my father was once fortunate enough to see him once. He said even as a child his beauty was stunning, undoubtedly the premier ge'er of the Qing Kingdom. He must be extremely good-looking."
The Village Chief tapped out his pipe and looked at them.
"Stop talking nonsense. The Cao family is not a subject for your discussion!"
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