Huiniang

The next day, a light rain fell in late spring.

Mist swirled over the bluestone street, and fine strands of rain wove a hazy curtain beneath the eaves.

Carrying two salted fish, Chen Qing followed the wet stone path to the Yang Family home in Baihua Lane.

Knock, knock!

"Who is it?" A shrill woman's voice came from within.

The wooden door creaked open, revealing a dark, gaunt face.

"What are you doing here, kid?!"

Chen Jinhua narrowed her eyes at Chen Qing, her brows knotted tight.

Whenever Chen Qing's family came before, nothing good ever came of it. Most of the time, they had come to borrow money.

Chen Qing said, "Eldest Aunt, my mother made two salted fish."

At the words "salted fish," the taut skin of Chen Jinhua's face finally loosened somewhat. She stepped aside and left a narrow gap. "Come in."

Inside, Yang Tiezhu was bent over as he fed firewood into the stove. Seeing Chen Qing enter, he hurriedly wiped down a wooden bench with his sleeve. "A Qing's here? Sit down for a while."

Unlike Chen Jinhua's sharp, cutting manner, Yang Tiezhu was an honest man and easy to speak with.

"Here, have some water." Yang Tiezhu lifted a chipped clay pot from beside the stove.

Chen Qing had just taken the pot when he noticed the bruise on Yang Tiezhu's face. "Uncle-in-law, your face..."

Yang Tiezhu averted his eyes evasively and answered vaguely, "...I accidentally fell some time ago. It's nothing."

Those marks were clearly left by fists and kicks. Chen Qing's heart stirred. Could Eldest Aunt have done it?

Yang Tiezhu did not wish to say more, and Chen Qing naturally found it improper to press him. He quickly changed the subject. "Is Sister Huiniang not home?"

Chen Jinhua snorted. "That girl went to the cloth workshop early this morning. She's busy all day long, her feet never touching the ground, yet her wages—"

She abruptly stopped, her eyes sweeping over Chen Qing. "Why are you asking?"

"Don't think I don't know. Last time, I caught her giving you her wages."

Chen Jinhua sneered. "That little wench, always turning her elbow outward."

She put particular emphasis on the words "outward."

Footsteps sounded outside the window, followed by the thud of a wooden basin hitting the ground.

Chen Qing turned and saw Yang Huiniang standing in the courtyard, bending to gather the scattered clothes.

She was thinner than the last time he had seen her. Her wrists were so slender that her knuckles showed through, and droplets still fell from her hair tips. She had clearly just returned from washing clothes.

"Mother, I'm back."

Yang Huiniang looked up and saw Chen Qing. Her eyes brightened, then dimmed again at once.

She hurried into the room and stood between Chen Qing and Chen Jinhua. "Aunt Wang said she wanted to borrow our rice sieve—"

Chen Jinhua seized Yang Huiniang's arm. "What are you hiding for? He came here especially to see you!"

She cast Chen Qing a sidelong glance. "A Qing, isn't that right?"

Chen Qing said, "Eldest Aunt, I was only—"

"Only what?" Eldest Aunt's voice suddenly rose. "Don't think I don't know what you're after!"

She grabbed the salted fish from the table. "How many taels of silver can two stinking fish make up for?"

"Mother!" Yang Huiniang suddenly cut in, her voice trembling. "That was my dowry. I can give it to whoever I want."

Smack!

Eldest Aunt viciously flung the fish onto the ground, where it became covered in dust.

"You wretched girl!" Her brows drew together. "Have you forgotten who raised you to this age?"

Yang Huiniang crouched to pick it up, but Chen Qing pressed a hand onto her shoulder.

He slowly bent down and picked up the fish one by one, gently brushing away the dirt.

"Eldest Aunt." He straightened, his voice calm. "These were salted with the fattest carp from Qinghe Estuary. My mother said this was your favorite."

At that, Chen Jinhua's expression froze.

Chen Qing wrapped the fish up again and gently set it on the stove before finally leaving.

"A Qing."

Yang Huiniang hurried after him.

Yang Tiezhu said softly, "A Qing's a good kid. Though he doesn't have much skill, he's obedient and filial..."

"Do you think I've got money on the brain?"

Chen Jinhua's eyes suddenly reddened, her voice rough as if sandpaper had scraped across it. "Do you think I'm greedy for those few taels of silver?"

She grabbed the coarse cloth clothes Huiniang had hung on the line. The fabric had been washed pale.

"Ah!"

Yang Tiezhu's stooped back seemed to bend even further. Silently, he picked up the fire tongs that had fallen to the ground. The dying embers in the stove cast mottled shadows over his face.

Outside the lane.

Yang Huiniang grabbed Chen Qing's arm. Her fingertips were slightly cold, but her voice was urgent. "A Qing, those things my mother said were just nonsense spoken in anger. Don't take them to heart..."

Chen Qing turned his face slightly, tugging his lips into a faint smile. "Don't worry. I didn't take it to heart."

Chen Jinhua clearly believed that he had swindled Yang Huiniang out of her silver.

Yang Huiniang looked up at him, her brows still furrowed. "Really?"

"Really."

He nodded, his tone calm.

Only then did she let out a breath, the corners of her eyes curving. "That's good."

Chen Qing's gaze lowered to her clasped hands. Her knuckles were red and swollen, the cracked lines like a dried riverbed, some still seeping threads of blood.

His brows furrowed. "Are your hands any better?"

Yang Huiniang instinctively drew her hands back into her sleeves and smiled. "They're much better. Once spring comes and it warms up, they'll naturally heal."

"I have some silver here." Chen Qing took several pieces of broken silver from his chest and stuffed them into her palm without giving her room to refuse.

"A Qing!" She hastily tried to push it back. "You'll have many places to spend money in the future. How can I take yours?"

But Chen Qing held down her wrist, his strength leaving no room for refusal. "I said I'd repay you, principal and interest."

Her nose stung faintly. Clutching the silver tight, she said in a low voice, "...The interest isn't that high. I'll keep it for you first, then give it back when you need money to get married."

Chen Qing fell silent for a moment, then suddenly chuckled. "All right."

"A Qing, there's still work at home. I need to go back and get busy."

Yang Huiniang said softly, "It gets a little cold at night. Remember to wear more."

With that, she quickly headed back home.

Chen Qing took a deep breath and headed toward Green River Pier.

The moment he stepped into the River Bureau Backyard, bursts of cheering drifted over from the Training Ground.

Following the sound, he saw more than ten Patrol Guards gathered in a semicircle. Two figures darted and shifted at the center, their fists and legs stirring up clouds of dust.

Cheng Ming stood with his arms folded, watching with great interest.

"Boss!"

Chen Qing walked over. "What's going on?"

"Those two are sparring. I'm just watching the show."

Cheng Ming smiled. "The one on the left is Wang Cheng of the First Squad. He studied Learning Martial Arts at a martial academy before, and cultivates the Twelve-Form Seven-Star Leg. The one on the right is Zhu Ming, who cultivates the Sea-Breaking Fist. It's a Family Inheritance martial art. He was once a guard for the Li Family, but offended the master and came to the River Bureau to make a living."

Chen Qing focused intently on the fight. The two men's moves were exceedingly fierce, and their clashing fists and legs rang out with dull impacts.

This differed from the restrained sparring among Zhou Academy disciples. Every move these two made carried the ruthlessness of real combat. They had clearly faced the real thing before.

A muffled boom suddenly erupted from the field. Zhu Ming used Raging Waves Crash the Shore to seize an opening in Wang Cheng's defense and force him back several steps.

The surrounding Patrol Guards immediately burst into cheers.

Cheng Ming nodded slightly. "As expected of a guard who came out of the Li residence. His Sea-Breaking Fist already has some real fire to it."

At the edge of the field, younger Patrol Guards whispered among themselves. "I heard the Li residence's Monthly Salary is more than five times that of ordinary guards."

"You need real skill for that. Last year, when the Li Family recruited guards, they only chose two out of more than thirty people."