Chapter 6: Zheng State Soldiers

Time passed by quickly.

In the blink of an eye, half a month had gone by.

On the day after their wedding, Wei Tu and Xinghua resumed their duties, busying themselves inside and outside the Li residence with no sign of slackening.

They worked even harder than before.

These efforts did not go unnoticed by the Li family's First Madam. Every few days, Li Tongshi praised them once or twice, clearly very pleased with the marriage she had facilitated.

Compared to Wei Tu, Xing Hua had undergone significant changes. Previously, she would secretly indulge in meat while cooking, but after the marriage, she completely changed her habits.

When a pound of meat was cooked down to seven ounces, she would place those seven ounces directly on the inner courtyard's dining table, without a trace of sneaky eating.

Noticing that Li Tongshi's satisfaction with her had reached its peak in the past decade, Xinghua carefully asked for Li Tongshi's blessing one afternoon, revealing their plan to take a leave and visit their hometown.

“The book says, ‘No good deed is without a motive, if one offers excessive kindness, it is either deceitful or dishonest...’” Li Tongshi, while sewing shoe soles in the living room, with the sound of the hemp rope passing through the multiple layers of cloth, looked up at Xinghua and said with a smile.

Though the words were quite sharp, Li Tongshi’s gentle smile made Xinghua’s initial nervousness diminish significantly.

"I have seen the work you’ve been doing these days. Rest assured, before you return, I won’t find someone to replace you."

Li Tongshi made a promise.

"Thank you, Eldest Lady." Xing Hua expressed her gratitude.

"There's one more thing..."

Xing Hua hesitated for a moment, then, biting her lip, mentioned her plan to have Wei Tu rent the Li family's farmland as a tenant farmer.

After winter, the fields could be used to plant wheat, beans, and rapeseed.

Finding an unclaimed piece of land in the Li residence’s fields wouldn’t be easy by then.

“Wei Tu won’t delay feeding the horses…” Seeing that Li Tongshi hadn’t responded, Xinghua added, lowering her head.

She knew this request was somewhat excessive.

Even the most capable person couldn’t handle both farming and feeding horses simultaneously. If either was neglected, it would result in a loss for the Li residence.

Moreover, since the Li residence was located in the county seat, Wei Tu would have to rent land near the riverbanks, which was high-quality farmland. Even without meticulous care, it could yield a good harvest even in a drought.

“The matter of renting the fields can be discussed after you and Wei Tu return from your family visit…” Li Tongshi neither refused nor agreed.

"Yes, Madam."

Xinghua, feeling a bit dejected, left the inner courtyard with her head down.

In the evening.

After hearing Xing Hua’s report, Wei Tu comforted her, saying, "Since Eldest Lady didn’t refuse your request outright, it means she is inclined to agree. However, as the head of the household, she cannot grant both requests at once."

He left the rest unsaid.

Li Tongshi’s approach was reasonable. Spoiling servants too much would eventually lead to them overstepping their bounds.

The Li residence’s well-organized management and the respect and fear the servants had for Li Tongshi were testament to her skillful household management.

"Even if she doesn’t agree this time, there will be another chance. Keep asking, and Madam, being soft-hearted, will eventually agree..."

Wei Tu shared his thoughts.

Even if it didn’t work out now, in five years, once his cultivation reached a complete state and he entered the realm of feeling qi, the money from renting land would become trivial.

Currently, with the warm flow nourishing his limbs, he had about 180 pounds of strength with every swing of his arms.

Once his cultivation reached its peak, his physical condition would be even better.

With such physical conditioning, practicing martial arts and studying military strategies, he could either participate in martial examinations to gain the title of martial scholar or become a guardian martial artist, a guest of wealthy families.

In Zheng State, martial examinations prioritize martial skills first and strategies second. As long as one’s martial skills were proficient, even if their strategies were lacking, they could still achieve a martial title.

“Alright, I’ll ask Madam again after we return.” Hearing Wei Tu’s insightful analysis, Xinghua felt both astonished and delighted.

The next day, as dawn broke, Wei Tu and Xinghua packed their bags and left the county town while it was still dark, heading towards the countryside.

Wei Tu’s hometown was Wei Family Village in Changming Township, Qingmu County.

Traveling from the county town to Changming Township involved about twenty or so li (10 km) on the official road, followed by seven or eight li (4 km) on mountain trails.

Along the way, they encountered a mule cart on the official road. Wei Tu and Xinghua spent some silver to board it.

By the time they reached the end of the official road, it was around a quarter past noon, with about two hours remaining before evening.

Xinghua wanted to save money by avoiding an inn and planned to continue on the mountain road to Changming Township.

“It’s cold, and the tigers and wolves on the mountain are hungry and coming down. Traveling the mountain road at this time is too dangerous if you don’t make it home,” the cart driver, a kind-hearted man, interjected upon hearing their plans to visit their hometown.

“Besides the wild beasts, there are also mountain bandits. If only your husband were traveling, it wouldn’t be much of a problem, but with an extra woman, those people won’t show mercy.” After stopping at an inn, the mule driver spat a thick wad of phlegm on the ground and added another piece of advice.

Seeing that many people staying at the roadside inn were not particularly wealthy, Xinghua relented and took out some silver to rent a room.

That night, the couple fell asleep fully dressed.

Around the time of the third watch, due to his habit of tending to horses, Wei Tu woke up.

He heard a faint, chaotic sound of horse hooves outside.

Wei Tu approached the window and opened it slightly. By the bright moonlight, he saw the source of the noise from several hundred meters away.

It was a group of several dozen cavalrymen, wearing helmets and red leather armor. The leading rider carried a flag embroidered with the character “Zheng.”

“Zheng State soldiers?” Wei Tu was surprised.

Cavalrymen were rare as they were official troops, and he had rarely seen them even in Qingmu County. Their appearance outside the inn suggested there was something he didn't know.

While Wei Tu observed, the group of soldiers started fighting amongst themselves. The fighting noise continued for a while before gradually subsiding.

Soon, the cavalrymen left one by one, disappearing along the official road. On the ground, however, a few sword-wielding warriors with broad-bladed knives were seen.

“Are the soldiers hunting bandits?” Wei Tu wondered.

“Could it be that there’s a famine somewhere, leading to the rise of bandits?”

There were two types of bandits: those who were inherently evil and those who became bandits due to famine.

During the most turbulent time of the Red Dragon rebellion in the fifteenth year of Qing’an, blade-wielding bandits were rampant. In some severely affected areas, three out of ten households had men who were either bandits or bandit-like.

“Let’s hope this doesn’t affect the county town. In times of great disaster, when commoners turn into bandits, they start attacking cities and seizing villages. Then the wealthy families’ servants will be conscripted to fill the ranks…”

Wei Tu's expression turned grave.