A Good Country Wife

"Don’t worry, I trust Chang Family Head’s character," Lin Yue was not without fear, but seeing that Chang Xiaoshan, although a mountain bandit, had a decent nature and owed her a debt of gratitude for saving Chang Xiaohu’s life, the likelihood of Chang Xiaoshan harming her was slim. Moreover, Chang Xiaoshan had brought over twenty men with him, all of whom seemed somewhat skilled in martial arts; if they had intended any harm, they likely would have acted earlier.

Chang Xiaoshan actually believed that Lin Yue trusted his character and thought this woman was very straightforward, unlike other women he had encountered, who were either too coarse or too delicate. He felt that she possessed a decisiveness similar to that of a man, and his impression of Lin Yue improved further.

Lin Yue followed Chang Xiaoshan all the way to a forest hundreds of meters away, where Chang Xiaoshan looked around to make sure they were out of sight from distant onlookers before taking out a piece of jade from his chest and handing it to Lin Yue, "Here, keep this safe. This is my token. Once you get to Longhu Mountain, as long as you have this, no one will dare to trouble you."

Lin Yue had not expected that Chang Xiaoshan had called her out for this reason, "This jade pendant looks quite valuable. Why don’t you just give me a different token? Holding onto this makes me feel pressured."

Chang Xiaoshan had indeed hesitated when he took out the jade pendant, but having heard Lin Yue’s response, he made up his mind, "If I give it to you, then take it. Stop hemming and hawing. Let’s hurry back, or people will get suspicious. I didn’t want anyone to know I gave this to you in the first place; I didn’t want to get you into trouble. After all, I am now a mountain bandit, a wanted man by the Court. It’s not good if people find out there’s a connection between us."

Lin Yue found this strange; she didn’t have any relationship with him, but given the current situation in Xin’an City, her family would be traveling to the Capital City even more frequently. At crucial times, the jade pendant could be very useful, so after some thought, Lin Yue decided to accept it.

"In that case, I thank you, Family Head Chang. But it’s not easy for you and your men to come down the mountain, and it wouldn’t be right to leave empty-handed. I’ll have someone unload a cart of dry goods, all homemade ingredients, as a small token of our appreciation for your brothers. However, let’s just say it’s a toll for passing through, shall we?"

"That’s a good idea. Sister, I will gladly accept your kind gesture." Chang Xiaoshan found Lin Yue not only straightforward but also a very smart woman. In this way, she had managed to get on the good side of the heroes of Longhu Mountain without breeding resentment or giving the Court any handle against her. Uninformed people would take it as a simple toll and think nothing of it—no suspicions about any relationship between Lin Yue and Longhu Mountain.

Having reached an agreement with Chang Xiaoshan, Lin Yue felt this trip to the Capital City was not in vain. Even before reaching the Capital City, she had already gained quite a lot, having found several treasures in Longmen Town and resolved the issue with Longhu Mountain. Henceforth, her family’s merchant caravan could travel to the Capital City without any concerns.

Zhao Erhu, seeing that Chang Xiaoshan indeed let his wife return, felt a sense of relief, holding his young wife’s hand tightly in his and unwilling to let go. He was somewhat curious about what Chang Xiaoshan had wanted with his wife, knowing that her earlier explanations were mere pretexts, and the matter was definitely not as simple as that.