Chapter 59 Polite Formulae

Prompted by Tian Shu's question, Hong Xiaoduo finally noticed the whip in the chief guard's hand.

Were they—oh, a vague answer formed in Hong Xiaoduo's mind. Could it be because of the two men in black she had dealt with last night?

However, she felt not the slightest bit of panic or nervousness.

What was there to panic about? The whip was used on bad guys, not on their own people.

Besides, she hadn't used a sword. Using a whip on those men in black certainly wouldn't be as bloody as using a blade.

"Pardon me, we were just curious and wanted to take a look, plus it was left hanging outside the carriage." Yin Qingyun forced himself to take a step forward, handing the whip back to Hong Xiaoduo as he spoke.

Hong Xiaoduo didn't take it, but Tian Shu at her side snatched it right up. Once in hand, he carefully inspected it to make sure the whip was completely normal.

Yin Qingyun looked at his empty hand and then over at Tian Shu. Just a moment ago, he had said this was his whip!

Hong Xiaoduo wanted to laugh at Tian Shu's actions, and she wanted to laugh even more at the chief guard's expression. It was just an ordinary whip, after all. If it had been terribly expensive, the carriage rental shopkeeper wouldn't have given it away for free. "Our carriage and donkey are under his care, so this whip truly belongs to him."

"Does the young lady not have a whip of her own?" One of the guards had looked Hong Xiaoduo over when she first walked up, and hadn't noticed any whip on her person.

Hong Xiaoduo shook her head. "I don't own a horse, so what would I need a whip for? However, once we reach the town later, I do plan to buy one." Recalling the feeling and effectiveness of using the whip last night, she truly felt a whip suited her quite well.

When not in use, it could be coiled up and hung from the waist; it wasn't heavy, nor did it look unsightly.

Furthermore, this sort of thing could be used against petty thieves, scoundrels, and the kind of characters they encountered last night. It could be said to be a convenient and versatile weapon.

Just imagine encountering those petty street ruffians or foul-mouthed lechers—what should one do? Draw a sword to scare them? Or chop off the hand that stole something? As for the foul-mouthed lecher, should one cut out his tongue, or castrate him?

This wasn't a matter of whether it was bloody or cruel. Hong Xiaoduo didn't consider herself some kind of saintly, pure lotus, but she simply felt that things didn't need to be taken to that extreme.

Hearing her words, the guards felt an even deeper sense of shock in their hearts.

It wasn't even her dedicated personal whip; it was just a coincidence that she happened to be driving the carriage and the whip was right in her hand, yet the strike she delivered had been so precise and ruthless. Didn't that mean this young lady's martial arts had reached a pinnacle of perfection?

Good heavens, they had long known the meaning of the word "talent," but now they felt they finally grasped its true essence.

Nine out of ten of these guards had practiced martial arts since childhood, while the small remainder had started during their youth. Regardless of which category they fell into, they practiced through the bitter cold of deep winter and the scorching heat of midsummer, training whenever they were free from tasks.

Yet, compared to this young lady of tender years, they suddenly felt as though they couldn't even stand up straight. Cough, cough—as their lord had said, one shouldn't make such comparisons; there are mountains beyond mountains and heavens beyond the sky!

Then again, that wasn't entirely right. Master Yin had said the young lady might be using disguise techniques, seeing as she already had seven children.

No wonder they had mentioned earlier that because the children's hair had lice, she simply shaved all their heads. Clearly, she was the children's birth mother, so she naturally had the right to make such a decision.

However, to shave their heads just like that—did it mean this mother was a bit lazy?

Putting everything else aside, just look at her children: they all woke up early, and each of them was kept neat and tidy. As for the mother herself, he had heard that the children had almost finished breakfast before she even woke up!

Could this be what they called the unrestrained disposition of martial arts wanderers, paying no heed to minor details?

"Young lady, my lord asked me to inquire if you would mind having lunch together?" Hearing her reply, the group momentarily didn't know how to respond, so Yin Qingyun suddenly remembered this and asked.

Hong Xiaoduo smiled. "Why would I mind? We are already basking in your lord's light, which is why we didn't have to sleep out in the wilderness tonight. Having lunch together sounds wonderful; it's much livelier with more people."

Hearing her readily agree, the guards let out a sigh of relief while simultaneously feeling a wave of appreciation. Look at how forthright she was, agreeing without a shred of coyness or hesitation.

They hadn't even noticed that their inner perception of this young lady had entirely shifted, completely erasing the earlier notion that their lord was merely doing her a favor.

Even though during the interrogation, the man in black had tried to sow discord by claiming the young lady was deliberately pretending to approach their lord with ulterior motives, the guards still had some brains and weren't swayed from their own capacity for judgment.

Since the matter was settled, Yin Qingyun quickly found an excuse and left the stables first.

"Mom, why do they seem a bit strange?" After the people had walked away, Tian Shu looked down at the whip in his hand and asked in deep puzzlement.

The horsewhips at the guards' waists looked far superior in texture to the one in his hand, so why were they showing such intense interest in his donkey-driving whip?

"Perhaps they think your whip is rather handsome?" Hong Xiaoduo teased him with a smile.

Tian Shu knew she was teasing him and that she undoubtedly knew what was going on, but since she wasn't going to tell him, he decided not to ask.

Hong Xiaoduo stood aside, watching Tian Shu feed the donkey. The donkey took a few bites of its food, then raised its head and nudged against her hand. Hong Xiaoduo raised her hand to stroke its head and smooth its ears.

It was so intelligent and attuned to human nature that even if they had the means to upgrade to a horse-drawn carriage in the future, she would still keep it.

The donkey stretched its head toward Tian Shu as well, and Tian Shu imitated Hong Xiaoduo's actions, responding in kind to the animal.

"You should give it some serious thought and come up with a name for it." Hong Xiaoduo looked at Tian Shu and decided to leave the naming rights to him.

Hearing this, Tian Shu's eyes lit up. "I get to name it?"

"Yes, but you absolutely cannot call it Little Gray. Think about it carefully; if you're too perfunctory, it will be sad." Hong Xiaoduo didn't know why or when it had started, but she found she rather enjoyed teasing these children.

While the two of them were talking, Tian Xuan led the other children over, swarming around the donkey and chattering away.

"Hey, do donkeys eat beans too?" Yao Guang noticed soybeans mixed into the fodder and asked, reaching out curiously to pick up one of the beans nestled in the grass.

"Yao Guang, be careful!" Hong Xiaoduo blurted out a warning reflexively. She had once read a news story about a child reaching out to touch a cat or dog's food and being bitten because the animal mistook it for someone trying to steal its meal.

After all, some animals were prone to food aggression.

Of course, there were many reasons for this; some animals were often underfed, or their owners hadn't trained them with good habits, making it possible for them to lash out and injure someone over their food.

By the time Hong Xiaoduo cried out, Yao Guang's hand was already deep in the fodder. Far from snapping or biting to protect its food, the donkey simply raised its head, tilted it slightly away, and looked at her as if to say, *You want to eat? Go ahead, don't be shy.*

This scene filled Hong Xiaoduo—who had already reached out to yank the child back—with a profound sense of guilt, making her feel rather apologetic toward the donkey.

She had just praised it for being clever and decided to name it, only to turn around and distrust it the next second. That really wasn't very nice of her!

"Mom, these beans look raw." Yao Guang finished her inspection, looked up with a cheeky smile, and reported to her.

Hong Xiaoduo stepped forward, scooped the child up into her arms, stood back up, and tapped the tip of her little nose. "What's this? If they were cooked, were you planning to eat one?"

The one adult and seven children chattered and laughed as they left the stables. Bringing up the rear, Tian Shu walked with a quiet smile, watching the figure of Hong Xiaoduo holding the youngest girl ahead of him, and felt his heart settle just a little bit more.

"Mom, are we going to keep following them?" Yao Guang asked, suddenly remembering the question as she rested in her arms.

Hong Xiaoduo looked down with curiosity at the little face, which seemed to carry a hint of anticipation. "Do you like walking with them?"

Yao Guang nodded, then shook her head. "They play games with me and my brothers and sisters."

"You silly goose, they're just trying to pry information out of us," Tian Xuan chimed in from the side.

Hong Xiaoduo halted, turned to Tian Xuan, and asked, "What's this about..."