Chapter 7: Offering a Way Out

Hong Xiaoduo shook her head, signaling she was not curious. Why would she be? Whatever their motives were, they would reveal them eventually.

"Let me state this first: I will not pay for that man's front teeth. His mouth was asking for it, so he deserved it." Thinking that this man, Fan Wu, seemed decent enough, Hong Xiaoduo added with a casual joke. She didn't mention that she didn't have the silver to pay; if she had, the man might have pushed his luck and demanded she compensate him with her game instead. Would she give it or not?

Upon hearing this, Fan Wu chuckled. "That won't be necessary; it was indeed his own fault. However, now that things have reached this point, don't you think you bear some responsibility, young lady?"

"Me?" Hong Xiaoduo laughed at his words. "What responsibility do I have? We were resting here, roasting some wild game to stave off hunger. We didn't block the path or hinder your travel. He came over demanding to buy our food, and I said no because we needed it to eat ourselves. Is that wrong?"

*Well, you aren't wrong, but you are certainly infuriating,* Fan Wu thought to himself. She looked like such an innocent young woman, yet she had a bit of a devious streak! He smiled but chose not to argue.

"By order of my master, I am here to apologize on his behalf. He failed to discipline his subordinate properly, and for offending you, I hope you can be magnanimous." With this, Fan Wu straightened up on his horse and performed a formal salute toward Hong Xiaoduo.

Hong Xiaoduo understood the principle of leaving a way out for others so you might meet again on good terms. So far, neither she nor the children had suffered any real loss, and she had already given the man a small lesson. Besides, their master had intervened at the critical moment to discipline him as well, so there was no need to be unforgiving.

Since they had offered a way down, she might as well take it. Hong Xiaoduo mimicked the salute and said, "Fair enough." As she did, she remembered there was a specific etiquette for the salute—something about which hand went inside and which outside? She fumbled, switching her hands, unsure of the correct way, and decided to let it go since now was not the time to overthink it.

Fan Wu hadn't understood her hesitation at first. He thought for a moment and wanted to laugh, but deemed it inappropriate and held it back. "My master would like to ask if you are willing to sell us some of your extra wild game."

Listen to that—such a polite tone that it was hard to refuse. Hong Xiaoduo found this man quite likable; he knew how to speak, and everything about him seemed agreeable. "Actually, you could hunt for yourselves. There’s plenty of game in this forest; why spend silver on it?" she suggested kindly.

"Well, we are in a hurry," Fan Wu quickly replied.

Hong Xiaoduo shook her head, teasing, "In a hurry? I really couldn't tell." If they were truly in such a rush, would that guard have spent so long bickering with her? No, that man was just a fool. The real question was, what was their master thinking to tolerate such a delay?

"Ahem, I won't hide it from you—we aren't very skilled at hunting, so..." Fan Wu usually didn't interact much with others; his master had many eloquent people around him, so he was never needed. Today, he didn't know what had come over him; his tongue seemed to have been unlocked. He found himself enjoying the conversation, feeling quite pleasant.

"Don't be humble. Look, it's not that I don't want to sell to you, but as you can see, there are so many mouths to feed. I don't have a single copper coin in my purse, and I’m truly worried about where our next meal will come from. It’s fine here where we can try our luck in the forest, but further ahead, where there's no forest and no game, what are we to do?" Hong Xiaoduo began to play the victim, her words flowing smoothly without a hint of embarrassment. After all, it was the truth; she really had no money!

"We have traveled this road before, and there are forests further ahead. Why not sell these to us? You name a price. There is a village about ten miles away where you can use the silver to buy dry rations," Fan Wu said, not wanting to chat anymore as his party was indeed in a rush.

"Is that so? Very well." Hong Xiaoduo beckoned the older boy over, tilted her head, and lowered her voice. "Do you know how wild game is priced? What should I ask for?"

The boy shook his head. The "wicked man" who used to hunt always kept the game for his own wine; he had never sold any.

He didn't know? Hong Xiaoduo looked at the other six children, who also shook their heads. If the oldest didn't know, there was no point in asking the others. It wouldn't be appropriate to ask the buyer directly, would it?

She looked back at the string of uncleaned game. Ten taels of silver? She didn't know the price of goods in this ancient era. What could ten taels do? The seven children were all in rags; they needed new clothes. She didn't know when they would have money again, so she needed to budget for their meals. If they encountered an inn on the road, even the cheapest room would cost money.

Fan Wu watched Hong Xiaoduo counting on her fingers and muttering to herself, waiting patiently without urging her.

"Fifty taels," Hong Xiaoduo said, looking up.

"What?" came a collective gasp of surprise from those around her.

Was it too low? Hong Xiaoduo looked at the children and immediately changed her mind. "One hundred taels. Not a penny less. That's my final price—no haggling. Take it or leave it."

She really dared to ask for that much! Fan Wu couldn't determine if this young woman was truly ignorant of the market or just playing dumb. "Please wait a moment, young lady. I must consult my master." His master was not short of silver, but he wasn't a fool to be fleeced. Fan Wu didn't dare make the decision himself and rode off.

In the lull, Hong Xiaoduo turned to the children and whispered, "How about that? That's a good price, right?"

Why were the children looking at her like that? One hundred taels wasn't that much, was it? The game wasn't anything valuable. If she had the time, she could hunt much more before the sun set today.

The older boy struggled to close his gaping mouth and caught his breath. "Mother... that's plenty, more than enough. All of this stuff together wouldn't even sell for one tael in the city."

If it were worth that much, the hunters wouldn't be living such hard lives, nor would they be wearing patched clothes. Had this "mother" really never stepped foot outside her own gate?

Hong Xiaoduo was stunned. Was there such a huge difference? Had she been too greedy?

"It's fine, it's fine. Look at them, they aren't short of money. Besides, they were the ones who approached us; we didn't force them to buy. If they think it's too expensive, they can just walk away," Hong Xiaoduo said, unsure if she was making excuses for herself or trying to convince herself she wasn't a swindler.

"Mother, that man is back," a little girl tugged at Hong Xiaoduo's sleeve, whispering with excitement.

As Fan Wu rode up, he sensed the strange atmosphere among the group of eight. He didn't dwell on it, dismounting and handing a heavy pouch to Hong Xiaoduo before going to retrieve the string of game.

Hong Xiaoduo opened the pouch to see the silver ingots she had only ever seen on television, then pulled the drawstring tight and knotted it.

"Not counting it?" Fan Wu asked with a smile as he mounted his horse, the game in hand.

"No need. You don't look like the type of person who would use underhanded tricks to cheat the vulnerable." With one hundred taels in hand, she could easily afford to be gracious.

Fan Wu, who had never been complimented like this before, felt quite pleased and couldn't help but straighten his back. He wanted to say, "May we meet again in the world of martial arts," but thought that might be too bold for a young woman.

"I bid you farewell," he said simply, then signaled to the guard, Fu Gang, and the carriage to continue their journey.

As the carriage passed by, it moved at a moderate pace. The door was shut, and the curtains were drawn tight. Yet, Hong Xiaoduo could feel that the person inside was watching her—or rather, observing her. She didn't turn away or hide her face, but instead looked toward the carriage with a calm, half-smile.

Since the man had intervened to stop his subordinate and had provided her with her first bit of income, letting him look was fine; she wouldn't lose anything by it.

The carriage curtains were custom-made by an old embroidery master; one could not see in from the outside, but those inside could see out clearly.

"Did you discern the background of that young lady?" after the carriage had traveled two miles, the person inside, having inspected the game piled at his feet, asked the guard outside...