Chapter 1189 – Striking Xu Pei, First Kill of the Lords (Fifty-Nine)
“These detestable thieves—”
Xu Pei’s family members were sent back to their residence by the soldiers dispatched by Qin Gong. Upon entering the gate, they immediately saw the desolate and empty courtyard.
In a bid to save their lives, everyone could only grab what precious small items they could, leaving the larger possessions back at the old mansion for the servants to guard, hoping to move them later if given the chance.
Little did they expect their escape would fail, returning home only to find that thieves had raided the place, injuring several servants in the process.
A few of the concubines tearfully realized that the large items they hadn’t had time to take were all looted by the thieves.
One concubine’s beloved display cabinet had vanished completely, along with everything adorning it.
Upon inquiring of the servants who had remained at the old mansion, they were told that the thieves had just left not long ago, rushing in to plunder.
Fortunately, these bandits had poor taste, only stealing gold and silver valuables while leaving the more precious items, like rare antiques, untouched.
In comparison to the latter, the gold and silver common goods they took were but the tip of the iceberg.
Mrs. Xu Pei wore a face of anger but was also relieved that the looting bandits lacked keen vision and didn’t recognize true treasures.
“It’s been a day of fright; everyone go back to your quarters and rest. We’ll plan the next steps tomorrow.”
Mrs. Xu Pei casually dismissed the weeping concubines, feeling a mix of impatience and a faint sense of satisfaction.
These concubines were beautiful but lacking depth, their private stores filled with trivial gold and silver, fabrics, and cosmetics, making them the hardest-hit during the bandit raid. They suffered the most, yet crying in front of her would do no good—she had no kindness to spare for compensation.
Xu Yansiao watched the spectacle with cold eyes, showing no sign of emotion.
When the main wife dismissed them, she followed the other women in bowing and then returned to her own courtyard.
“Go check the private store and see what’s missing—”
Xu Yansiao casually fabricated an excuse to send away her first-class maidservant.
She wanted to be alone in peace.
The maidservant grumbled, “Those greedy bandits wouldn’t leave us anything. Even checking would be futile; it must all have been taken.”
Her feet seemed to be stuck in the ground, utterly unwilling to move.
Xu Yansiao suppressed her anger.
“I told you to go; just do it without looking for excuses.”
The maidservant, reliant on being the main wife’s servant, had never taken Xu Yansiao’s words to heart. Even orders would elicit complaints from her.
The maidservant shrank her neck, appearing timid, but as soon as she turned, a look of disdain flicked across her face, her nose huffing slightly.
“Just an orphan without parents, and she’s still poorer than a maidservant. What can she check the store for?”
Grumbling under her breath, the maidservant had no choice but to fetch the key and unlock the private store.
Although Mrs. Xu Pei paid little attention to Xu Yansiao, she had prepared many good items for her to avoid external criticism.
However, while the items were valuable, they were all the rarely used marked goods—too bulky and impractical, only gathering dust in the private store.
The few items that could be exchanged for silver had mostly been secretly appropriated by the servants for their own gain.
Xu Yansiao’s life in the Xu residence was quite unhappy.
“Eh?”
The maidservant gasped in surprise at the contents of the private store.
While everyone else’s private stores had been stripped bare by the thieves, Xu Yansiao’s was perfectly orderly, with not a single footprint of dust on the ground.
Xu Yansiao knew the truth and mused, “Perhaps it’s because the courtyard is too inconspicuous, and the bandits didn’t have time to search it. Go fetch the Buddhist scriptures and prepare pen and ink; I’m going to recite and copy for my mother. Don’t mention this private store thing outside, or it’ll draw unnecessary gossip.”
With the entire household being raided, it would be hard not to invite envy that her own place was unharmed.
Yet, unbeknownst to her, the maidservant turned around and reported her words to the main wife.
The main wife sneered coldly, deriding, “A wolf that won’t be fed.”
What was there to hide? Did she really think these elders would covet her silver?
The next day, the Xu residence welcomed a special visitor.
Qin Gong had a youthful face, but with his tall and robust build clad in armor, no one dared consider him a mere child. “Mrs. Xu and Lord Xin Zhao have been separated for quite some time; why not write a family letter to report safety, so that Lord Xin Zhao doesn’t worry about the wellbeing of his family at the front?”
The main wife’s expression darkened, her gaze at Qin Gong sharp like knives.
To her, this was not a request to write a family letter to reassure Xu Pei but rather a threat using family as leverage to coerce him into submission.
She wouldn’t fall for such tricks.
The main wife sharply retorted, “Who would have thought that the illustrious Lord Lan Ting would resort to such despicable means. Is this truly the conduct of a man?”
Using family to threaten others—was he even a man?
Bah! Was he even a capable person?
Qin Gong smiled, “Madam has truly misunderstood my lord; this action is devoid of any malice.”
Devoid of malice?
Not a soul would believe that!
The main wife refused to write a family letter; who knew what tricks the enemy would pull with that letter?
Seeing her resistance, Qin Gong did not press further.
Yet, inwardly he lamented that this person lacked the foresight compared to the main wife.
The main wife Qin Gong referred to was not Xu Pei’s wife but Xu Yansiao’s biological mother, Xu Fei’s wife.
Had she faced this scene, she would undoubtedly have written the letter, detailing the family’s circumstances to soothe her husband fighting abroad.
With a family letter, it would prove the family was safe.
Should her husband find himself in a desperate situation, he would surely worry about his family, rather than throwing himself into reckless battles.
Without that letter, there was a chance her husband’s stubborn temper would lead him to fight the enemy to the death, ultimately losing his life.
Qin Gong was too lazy to enlighten her, fearing good intentions would be met with ungratefulness.
He shifted the topic back to Xu Yansiao, feigning ignorance as he asked, “I’ve heard that the daughter of the former Lord Wen Gong is currently residing in your home?”
The main wife nodded.
Qin Gong replied, “Yesterday, I heard from the soldiers below that a group of bandits about a thousand strong took advantage of our army’s entry into Zhejun, plundering everywhere, even Lord Xin Zhao’s residence suffered losses. Today I brought some rations, hoping Madam won’t mind.”
The main wife immediately caught the underlying intent, feeling discomfort within.
Qin Gong first mentioned Xu Yansiao, then worried that their house might run low on supplies and brought some rations—what does that imply?
While the house had been raided by bandits, they weren’t so impoverished that they couldn’t make ends meet. Was he worried she would let a solitary girl starve?
Feeling displeased, the main wife’s demeanor grew even colder.
Qin Gong seemed oblivious to this, requesting to see Xu Yansiao.
The main wife was even angrier.
Was he trying to see if she was mistreating the orphan?
Due to the lack of severe gender segregation, and being an old subordinate of Xu Fei, Qin Gong’s concern for Xu Yansiao, being still young, drew no unwelcome remarks. Upon seeing Qin Gong, Xu Yansiao’s cheeks flushed, “Why are you here too?”
“I will be departing soon to lead the southern campaign. While my momentum is still high, I aim to seize the remaining territories of Zhejun.” Qin Gong sat upright, speaking formally, “I’ll be gone for at least half a month, so I wanted to inform you in case you worried.”
“Who’s worried?” Xu Yansiao’s face betrayed a mix of embarrassment and irritation. Realizing she had spoken too harshly, her ears turned red as she added, “Just remember to come back.”
Qin Gong nodded, stayed for a moment, then rose to bid farewell.
