Chapter 24

His gaze swept over Zhao Jiuye and A Sen.

A Sen was even more at a loss as to what to do!

Qi Ye stepped forward and instructed an elderly man with a goatee beard beside him to arrange for a carriage to receive the guests. Then he patted the shoulders of the two young men and said with a gratified expression, "It's been a few years since I've seen you—A Bao and A Ci have both grown up and learned to share the family's burdens."

The one dressed in dark blue hastily said, "We ran into them just now. They said they're relatives of Master Xie, and their home was struck by disaster, so they've come specifically to seek refuge."

Fu Tingjun, however, stared blankly at Zhao Jiuye.

The two young men bowed to Qi Ye from outside the wooden fence, and one of them explained the situation: "...Those refugees are vicious and brutal—even the Xie family suffered such an unprovoked calamity. Grandmother feared the refugees would storm our house, so she led us through the night to seek refuge with our great-uncle..."

Such an act of kindness had become a sharp blade hanging over the heads of the Xie family—under cover of darkness, a group of refugees charged into the Xie estate, killing anyone they saw, looting anything they could, and finally setting it ablaze... The towering flames lit up half the sky!

He hadn't expected this woman to be so stunningly beautiful. What a pity that in these chaotic times, she stood alone with no one to rely on. If she left this place, she would hardly escape the fate of drifting through the mortal world, crushed into dust!

"Very well!" Qi Ye laughed, his gaze once again falling on Fu Tingjun and the others. He mused, "And these few are.".."

Qi Ye studied the three of them without revealing his thoughts, speaking in a steady voice: "Master Xie and I are fellow villagers, and we've had some dealings in business. May I ask where you've come from?"

She had no kinship with the people of Lijiawa—on what grounds could she settle there?

Her uncle had died, burned to death by those very refugees who had received his kindness, without even leaving a complete corpse behind... And her aunt—every time she visited Fengyuan, her aunt would happily embrace her and issue a stream of orders to the kitchen to prepare this and that, as if she hadn't eaten a thing the whole journey... Her eldest cousin's wife was gentle and virtuous, and had raised her two sons well—they began their studies at three, and by five could recite the Elementary Learning fluently. Her uncle would always speak of them with pride, saying the Xie family's hopes rested on these two grandsons passing the imperial examinations and bringing glory to the family name... Her second cousin's wife was lively and outgoing, and had been the one she got along with best—whether it was wheat syrup made from harvested wheat or dried peaches made from ripe fruit, she never forgot to send some over for her to taste. What a pity she had been married into the Xie family for three years without conceiving a child, and her aunt had made a special pilgrimage to Mount Hua to pray for her—just recently, news of a pregnancy had come... All gone. In a single great fire, all of it was gone...

Fu Tingjun's eyes were bloodshot, her soft, rounded hands clenched into tight fists. She glared at the young man and pressed, "Then my uncle..."

She gnashed her teeth in fury, her heart aching beyond endurance. Leaning against the handcart, her tears fell like rain, yet no amount of grief could fill the hollow emptiness in her heart.

At this moment, she wished he could help her make a decision!

As they spoke, two sturdy men had already pushed the wooden fence open together.

Qi Ye felt a jolt in his heart.

"The entire Xie estate was burned to ashes," the young man said, tears spilling uncontrollably. He covered his face with his sleeve, as if unable to bear recalling the scene, "The Xie family had lived in Fengyuan for generations. From my great-grandfather's time, they had built bridges and paved roads, doing good deeds throughout the village—yet who could have imagined they'd come to such an end..."

Silence fell on both sides of the wooden fence, broken only by Fu Tingjun's sobs, growing louder and louder!

This year there was a great drought. Lintong, Weinan, Lantian, Huxian, Xianyang, Jingyang, and Gaoling around Xi'an Prefecture all suffered varying degrees of disaster, though compared to the counties under Qing'an Prefecture and Gongchang Prefecture, the damage was lighter. Moreover, Lintong had salt wells, and Weinan was the essential route from the northwest to the capital—both counties had a tradition of commerce. Though disaster struck this year, for the great households of these two counties, life continued as comfortably as ever.

He glanced at Fu Tingjun.

If she were plain-looking, it would be easier to manage—but with such a flower-like face, even if his heart were pure and he only wished to help out of compassion, he couldn't withstand the wild speculation of idle gossips... What a pity all his nephews of marriageable age were already wed. Otherwise, finding her a husband would have been a way to help her!

Or perhaps—should he distribute his own grain to relieve them?

The towering flames from two nights ago still seemed vividly etched in the memories of the two young men. One listened with moist eyes, while the other choked out the story from beginning to end, neither noticing anything unusual about Fu Tingjun.

Such matters were common among merchant families, and besides, when Master Xie had first made his fortune, his brother-in-law had not yet passed the imperial examinations. The Fu family had a reputation, but great clans like theirs were most particular about propriety—they would never take money from the clan's common coffers to help a branch relative... Qi Ye pondered this privately and found Zhao Jiuye's words somewhat credible. He looked again at Fu Tingjun, weeping with such heart-wrenching sorrow that it didn't seem feigned. In such hot weather, she still dressed with proper decorum, and the backs of her hands, revealed to view, were fine and smooth—not the hands of one accustomed to rough labor. This further convinced him.

But not everyone repays kindness with gratitude.

In those days, respectable families valued the principle of "farming and scholarship passed down through generations," and Fu Tingjun's maternal uncle was no exception. Having made money in business, he sought ways to purchase fields and build houses. So besides being the wealthiest man in Weinan, he was also the largest landowner in Fengyuan.

He consoled Fu Tingjun: "Miss, please restrain your grief and accept what has happened!"

Everyone was stunned, including Qi Ye himself.

As he rose, he inadvertently lifted his head, revealing a pale face and a pair of eyes swollen from crying, like plum blossoms fallen on snow—elegant, delicate, and pitifully endearing.

Especially those who had long been starving with green-eyed desperation, knowing only that food meant survival.

The one in dark blue also said: "I'll go too!"

Fu Tingjun suppressed her grief and performed a formal bow with her hands folded at her chest.

Seeing refugees fleeing over one after another, Fu Tingjun's uncle, besides donating grain and money to the county office along with several other wealthy families in Weinan, also set up a porridge station in his hometown of Fengyuan to shelter the displaced.

Qi Ye smiled and nodded, the satisfaction in his eyes growing even stronger.

A commotion came from within the wooden fence. Seven or eight young men surrounded a man of medium build, about thirty years old, dressed in a plain sapphire-blue cocoon silk robe, walking toward them.

The Huayin Fu family had some reputation in the surrounding area and even in Shaanxi. Whether Qi Ye's words were true or false, they certainly could not claim to be from Huayin. Otherwise, with a little inquiry, Qi Ye would expose their lie.

He secretly regretted it.

Before she could finish speaking, she was pulled behind by Zhao Jiuye: "This young master, what happened to Master Xie?"

The two youths blushed and bowed. The one in dark blue said: "I'll go with Manager Cheng too—to help show the way."

Zhao Jiuye's face grew even darker. He stood there with his hands on his hips, looking full of pent-up anger barely restrained.

The man addressed as "Qi Ye" walked to the wooden fence and looked closely, his face immediately lighting up with joy: "A Bao, A Ci, how is it you two?" Then, thinking of something, his expression darkened. "Where is Eleventh Sister? Which other family members escaped?" His gaze fell on Fu Tingjun, who was weeping loudly nearby, and he signaled the patrolling men to open the wooden fence.

An inexplicable melancholy surged in his chest, and the words "Miss, if you don't mind, why not settle in Lijiawa" slipped out before he could stop himself.

A Sen, red-eyed, ran over and tugged at Fu Tingjun's clothes: "Miss, miss, please don't cry..." He wanted to comfort her but didn't know what to say, looking helplessly toward Zhao Jiuye.

Because Zhao Jiuye had escorted her all the way, she had been able to avoid starvation and reach Weinan unharmed. Unconsciously, Zhao Jiuye had become the person she trusted and relied on most.

One, though thin, had a tall and sturdy frame—once well-fed, he would surely be a strong and capable laborer. The other, though young, had sharp, lively eyes, clearly quick-witted—the makings of a fine personal attendant. Moreover, these two had managed to escort the young miss safely from Pingliang, over six or seven hundred li away, despite their master's death—showing not only skill but also loyalty and righteousness. With such men, once helped through their present difficulties, they would surely become capable servants able to stand on their own.

Fu Tingjun wiped her tears with the back of her hand. Her sleeve fell away, revealing the pale, delicate back of her hand, as fine as polished jade.

Zhao Jiuye sighed inwardly and bowed to Qi Ye: "We come from Pingliang. This is our young miss. Our household suffered a disaster, and we came to seek refuge with Master Xie. On the way, we encountered bandits, and only I managed to escape with our young miss. What relation Master Xie is to our master, I do not know. But I once heard our mistress say that when Master Xie was starting his business, he had borrowed a sum of silver from our master to tide him over. Though he later repaid it, without our master's silver, Master Xie's business could never have grown as large as it is today!"

"What happened?" he barked loudly, his voice full of vigor, stern and carrying an air of authority.

But she could not find refuge with relatives, nor return to Huayin... She was a person without name or background, impossible to verify. Though the world was vast, where was her place to shelter?

Qi Ye's head throbbed painfully.

How could he have said something so frivolous?

It was just that this woman was a difficult matter!

Settling in Lijiawa?

The two youths were already shouting "Seventh Grand-uncle" loudly from across the wooden fence.

He had been sent by the elders of his family to oversee matters here. On an ordinary day, taking in a few people would have been nothing at all. But now the drought was severe—it was clear there would be no harvest this year, and who knew what next year would bring. Every household in Lijiawa had brought out all their stored grain, and he was distributing it evenly according to the number of mouths to feed. Eleventh Sister was a daughter of their own clan, so drawing a little from the communal granary to relieve her might stir some discontent, but blood ties were blood ties—he could always justify it. These three, however, had no connection whatsoever to Lijiawa. How was he supposed to explain them to the clan? And yet, the words had already left his mouth. If he failed to follow through, what kind of man would he be?

But how was Zhao Jiuye supposed to know what relatives the Xie family had?

The men patrolling before the wooden fence bowed in greeting, calling out "Qi Ye" with reverence, and cleared a path for him.

Thinking this over, Qi Ye felt a pang of regret—like a cow chewing on a peony. Outside, there were nothing but starving rabble, who had no idea of the quality of a proper lady from a great household!

These two were manageable.

For the sake of food alone, to take another's life just to survive... How could people be so selfish? So utterly shameless?