Chapter 38: We’ll Go Together, We’ll Go Together

"Ahem, who might you be..."

The person standing in the hall suddenly turned around at the sound of Yang Can's voice. Yang Can’s feeling of unease vanished in an instant.

Damn, it’s just Cheng Dakuan. What kind of pose are you striking standing there!

Yang Can walked into the hall, unimpressed. "Dakuan, you’ve recovered?"

The man known as Leopard Head struck his chest with his fist. "About seventy or eighty percent."

Yang Can looked him up and down. "Why are you dressed like this? You look like some wandering rogue from the underworld."

Leopard Head’s expression dimmed. "There is no place left for me in the guard unit. That Liu Yu..." He ground his teeth in frustration, then looked at Yang Can with gratitude. "Fortunately, my eyes weren't too clouded. From now on, I, Leopard Head, will follow you, Master Yang, through thick and thin."

Yang Can waved his hand. "Dakuan, I never considered you a mere common guard. You just ran into a streak of bad luck. It’s nothing, just a temporary hurdle. With your skills, you are bound to make a comeback one day."

Cheng Dakuan felt a warmth in his heart. Since he had been punished, he had truly come to understand the fickleness of human nature. Especially during the time he was sick and dying, those who had once fawned over him were the first to kick him while he was down. Those who had once called him "brother" were now avoiding him like the plague, and those who had once benefited from his guidance were too afraid of offending Liu Yu to even visit. These experiences had tempered his spirit, and his temper and disposition had changed greatly compared to before.

"Master Yang," Leopard Head said, moved, "only after this misfortune did I realize who the true gentlemen are."

"You flatter me. You haven't fully recovered yet; why rush over here? There was no need to be in such a hurry to thank me..."

Leopard Head replied, "I heard that you are going down the mountain to inspect the manors, Master Yang."

"That is correct."

Leopard Head puffed out his chest. "Take me with you, Master Yang. Though I am humble, my martial arts are still decent. I am willing to follow by your side as a guard."

Yang Can hadn't initially intended to bring Leopard Head along, as he wasn't sure if he had recovered enough. But hearing this, his eyes lit up. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him, and he couldn't help but ask, "By the way, are you originally from Feng'an Manor?"

"Yes," Leopard Head said. "My wife still lives in the village. We farm six mu of land, and she does needlework on the side."

Without a strong man in the household, a woman could usually only farm three mu of land. While rural women worked as hard as men, there was one core task most could not perform: plowing. Unless one owned an ox. As one of the few self-sufficient farmers in Feng'an Manor, Leopard Head had saved enough money from his service to buy an ox, allowing his family to cultivate six mu despite the lack of male labor.

Yang Can pondered for a moment and then said cheerfully, "Very well, I will take you down the mountain. If all goes well, it will be a credit to your name."

Leopard Head agreed happily. Yang Can added, "However, you cannot come with me openly."

Leopard Head was stunned. Yang Can lowered his voice and whispered a plan, and Leopard Head nodded repeatedly as he listened.

...

Yang Can needed a few people for his inspection trip. First, he needed a bookkeeper. He decided on Li Damu, who had been too busy to help him with the accounts until now.

Furthermore, he needed guards. Although Qingmei would be accompanying him—giving Su Chanzhi an excuse to send some highly skilled guards from the Su family—on the surface, Yang Can and Qingmei were bitter enemies. Thus, he still needed to bring a few guards from the Yu family. Since Li Youcai had already gone down the mountain, Yang Can could make these decisions himself without having to consult anyone else.

As Yang Can made his preparations, Leopard Head quietly disappeared. Before he left, his wife had already taken their children down the mountain, as there were elders back home who needed care.

The first person to come asking Yang Can about Cheng Dakuan’s disappearance was, ironically, Liu Yu, the very man who had hoped to see him ruined.

"The clan head doesn't care much for Leopard Head, so I sent him off to Chicken-Goose Mountain. Does Commander Liu have a problem with that?"

"Ah, no, no problem at all. Raising poultry is good; it cultivates one's character, ha-ha! Ahem, well, Master Yang, you go back to your work. I shall take my leave."

Seeing that Yang Can was uninterested, Liu Yu wisely shut his mouth. Once he turned away, he curled his lip in a sneer. *So, Yang Can looks down on me because I was too harsh on Leopard Head? Ha, and what if you do think highly of me? Can you help me climb the social ladder? Can you bring me wealth and a bright future? Pfft! You’re nothing!*

...

After dinner, Yang Can strolled over to Li Damu’s quarters. He could requisition the guards from Liu Yu directly, but a bookkeeper was management; he needed to give him a heads-up so he could prepare and hand over his duties.

Qiaoshe walked into Li Damu’s room, carrying a stack of ledgers that almost blocked her view. "Master Li, the young mistress requests that the bookkeeping office audit these accounts and produce a summary."

As she spoke, she used her sleeve to wipe sweat from her forehead. A few strands of dark hair clung to her damp skin, and her cheeks were flushed like red apples. After she had been punished by Su Chanzhi, she had been demoted to a message-running maid. In a great household, the distinction between the inner and outer quarters was strict. When messages needed to be passed between them, a runner was required. Among the inner servants, the messenger girl held the lowest status. For Su Chanzhi, this had been a counterstrike against the mistress for planting spies.

"Oh, it's Miss Qiaoshe!" Li Damu’s eyes brightened. She was quite pretty, having originally been the mistress’s gift to her son as a personal maid. He assumed she had already warmed the young master's bed. He did not know that Yu Chengye’s health had been completely ruined after being poisoned, a secret the young master would never admit to anyone, not even his own parents.

Li Damu had drunk a few cups of wine and was feeling tipsy. Looking at Qiaoshe’s fair, delicate face and the way the strands of hair clung to her damp, milky neck, he felt a surge of desire. To him, her petite frame was the type best enjoyed in the boudoir.

"What ledgers are these?" Master Li asked with a smile, walking over. "Oh, the 'Total Income and Expenditure Ledger,' 'Monthly Allowance Record,' 'Gift Exchange Register,' 'Inner Kitchen Daily Log,' 'Private Expenses Record'..."

As he looked them over, his mind began to spin. *The young mistress is checking these accounts to purge the old staff in the inner quarters, isn't she?* He had no interest in getting involved in such thankless work. He decided he would split these tasks among the other bookkeepers tomorrow and let everyone share the blame.

"Very well, very well. We will audit these as soon as possible." He put the ledgers down and walked closer to Qiaoshe. In this era, such proximity between a man and a woman was improper. Qiaoshe noticed something off and moved away quietly.

"Miss Qiaoshe," Li Damu asked with a smirk, "you were once by the young mistress's side and held some status. How did you end up as a messenger girl?"

Qiaoshe felt a pang of misery. "I was young and ignorant, and I offended the young mistress. I was such a fool, truly..." She choked up, and tears welled in her eyes. After being demoted, she had hoped the mistress would save her, but there had been no response. Compared to a daughter-in-law carrying the family heir, a maid was worthless. She had been abandoned.

"Heh, don't be so sad, Qiaoshe." Li Damu pulled a handkerchief from his sleeve and offered it to her. *If you're going to cry, it should be because I’ve made you cry,* he thought, his face wrinkling into a chrysanthemum-like grin. "I still have some influence in the main house. If I were to swallow my pride and put in a good word for you with the young mistress... well, but I have no reason to speak for you, being strangers and all."

As he spoke, he moved closer. Qiaoshe was wearing an apron, which was tied tightly, accentuating the elegant curve between her slender waist and hips. As a man who enjoyed painting, Li Damu was particularly sensitive to such lines. His hand began to slide stealthily toward those rounded curves...