Tie Sanniang, Bi You'er

"Hmph."

The girl in green snorted, lifted the curtain of the luxurious carriage, and climbed inside.

Once seated, she said indignantly, "Miss, the people under you are getting more and more outrageous. They demand meals, take gifts, and extort bribes, then cram people into the caravan whether they know them or not."

A woman in a pale gold gown sat in the carriage's main seat.

Her hair was black as ink, her beauty as though carved from white jade. With skin like creamy silk and eyes like dots of lacquer, she was exquisite beyond compare, a living figure of jade.

With a faint smile, she looked at the personal maid who had grown up alongside her. "You'er, life on the frontier is hard. It isn't easy for them to be stationed here. As long as it's nothing serious, there's no need to make a fuss."

"But even if the conditions are harsh, our Iron Family pays them better, too."

The girl called You'er muttered under her breath.

The beautiful woman chuckled. "Then how about I give you more money and have you live in Jade Gate Town for good?"

You'er shook her head. "No way. All this wind and sand is bad for my skin. I wouldn't stay no matter how much you paid me."

"If even you won't, why should they?"

The beautiful woman looked through a gap in the curtain and sighed softly. "Not everything can be solved with money."

You'er seemed to sense that something was weighing on her mistress's mind. She asked quietly, "Miss, are you still worried about your marriage?"

"You really are a clever little thing."

"Hehe."

You'er grinned sheepishly. "I know you don't think much of those imperial princes, Miss, but I don't think you need to worry about this at all."

The beautiful woman looked puzzled. "Why?"

You'er answered as though it were obvious. "You're so close to Princess Mingyue, and His Majesty dotes on her so much. You could ask her to help you break off the engagement."

The beautiful woman paused, then reached out to stroke her adorable maid's head without saying more.

If only things could truly be resolved so easily.

"All right, You'er, go ask whether everything is ready outside. The caravan should be setting off soon."

Lowering her hand, the beautiful woman spoke softly.

"Yes, Miss."

Led by the guard squad leader, Li Dao soon arrived beside a wagon carrying goods.

"Once the caravan sets off, just follow this wagon."

The guard squad leader spoke.

"Understood."

Li Dao nodded.

"You there!"

Just then, a sweet, soft voice sounded beside them.

They turned to see a pretty, adorable young girl standing nearby.

The guard squad leader hurried to greet her. "Ah, Miss You'er. What can I do for you?"

Bi You'er glanced at Li Dao beside him and froze for a moment. Once she recovered, she shot him a glare before turning to ask, "Miss sent me to ask whether your section of the caravan is ready."

The guard squad leader answered at once, "Everything is ready. We can leave whenever you like. Please tell Miss not to worry."

"Good. If anything goes wrong, Miss will hold you responsible."

With that, Bi You'er continued toward the next section of the caravan.

As she passed Li Dao, however, her face inexplicably reddened. She gave a little snort and hurried past, leaving him looking puzzled.

For a moment, he had inexplicably sensed a trace of hostility from the girl, but it had quickly turned into embarrassed anger. Had he met her before?

Watching her retreating figure, Li Dao asked the guard squad leader beside him, "Brother, could you tell me which member of the Iron Family is leading this caravan?"

"You don't know?"

"I only just arrived in Jade Gate Town from beyond the frontier."

"That explains it."

The guard squad leader tipped his chin toward the luxurious carriage nearby. "See that fancy carriage?"

"I do."

"The Iron Family's third young lady is sitting inside-Tie Sanniang."

Tie Sanniang?

Surprise crossed Li Dao's face at the name.

Back in the Imperial Capital, that name had thundered in his ears.

True to her name, Tie Sanniang ranked third among the Iron Family's direct descendants, with two elder brothers ahead of her.

Tie Sanniang also had a title-the Iron Lady.

She was called that because her two elder brothers were notorious wastrels and good-for-nothing dandies. Their infamy surpassed even his own back then.

Though Tie Sanniang was a woman, she was exceptionally gifted and had displayed extraordinary intelligence from childhood.

At twelve, she had begun handling the Iron Family's business, displaying astonishing commercial talent and making its enterprises flourish.

That stark contrast had only made Tie Sanniang's reputation grow.

Yet that was not what she was most famous for.

Her beauty had once eclipsed even her business achievements. She and Princess Mingyue were known as the Imperial Capital's two peerless beauties.

He had never expected such a coincidence: this caravan was actually led by the Iron Lady.

Still, his surprise was brief. However capable Tie Sanniang was, she had nothing to do with him. Their paths had barely crossed before and were unlikely to cross much in the future.

If he had to name a connection between them, it would probably be Princess Mingyue.

One was Princess Mingyue's close friend; the other was the man who had taken her chastity.

Before long, word came from the front that the caravan was setting off.

As the carriages ahead slowly began moving, Li Dao plopped down on the freight wagon, serving as a temporary guard.

Jade Gate Town was a long way from the Imperial Capital, and the caravan was lengthy, so they traveled slowly, stopping along the way to rest.

Thus, seven days passed, and they had covered only half the journey.

"Stop and rest! Time to eat!"

At the sound of a gong, the wagons slowly halted, and Li Dao jumped down to stretch his limbs.

As a guard, he did not have to build fires and set up cooking stoves like some of the accompanying drivers.

A little while later, Li Dao saw a green-clad figure approaching from nearby.

"Hmph!"

As she passed him, that familiar little snort sounded again, leaving Li Dao baffled.

He had lost count of how many times this had happened. Every time the caravan stopped, the girl inspected it, and every time she passed him, she snorted.

With his powerful memory, he was certain he had never met her before. He had no idea how he had offended her.

Over the past few days, however, he had learned who she was.

Tie Sanniang's personal maid-Bi You'er.

A little later, Bi You'er passed him again and gave another soft snort.

This time, Li Dao could not help asking, "Miss, have I offended you somehow?"

He regretted it as soon as he asked. If a little girl wanted to snort, let her. It did not affect him, so why invite trouble? He promptly turned away, pretending he had said nothing.

"Were you speaking just now?"

He still failed to escape. Bi You'er soon came closer and questioned him in her sweet, soft voice.

"No."

Li Dao decisively shook his head.

"Yes, you were."

Bi You'er hopped in front of Li Dao and stared at him earnestly.

Seeing no way around it, Li Dao accepted the situation and raised his head. "May I ask what you have against me, Miss?"

Bi You'er froze. Once she recovered and recalled her earlier reactions, her adorable face reddened. Still blushing, she quickly nodded in earnest. "I do have something against you."

"You do?"

Li Dao looked puzzled. "I don't think I've ever met you before."

Bi You'er glanced around, then suddenly pointed in one direction with a soft, pale finger. "He helped you slip into our caravan through the back door."

Li Dao looked back and saw the guard squad leader who had helped him join the Iron Family's caravan. He immediately understood what she meant.

For a moment, he was speechless and a little helpless.

Such things seemed perfectly normal to him, but looking at the earnest girl before him, he felt otherwise. After all, if she really pursued the matter, he was in the wrong.

That made him regret stopping Bi You'er even more. Before he brought it up, he could simply have endured it until it passed.

Now that it was out in the open, he had to resolve it.

After all, this girl was the Iron Lady's personal maid. A few words from her could get him kicked out of the caravan.

What would he do then?

Hold a blade to Tie Sanniang's neck and force her to take him into the Imperial Capital?

Wouldn't that be walking straight into the net?

And so...

Li Dao spread his hands frankly. "Fine, I'm in the wrong. What do you think I should do, Miss You'er?"

"I..."

Now it was Bi You'er's turn to be at a loss.

Her original idea had been to throw these rule-breakers out of the caravan.

She glanced at the surrounding wilderness and felt that would be inappropriate. She was kindhearted. If she really abandoned someone here, what if they died?

But now that things had gone this far, she felt uncomfortable doing nothing.

Finally, Bi You'er thought of her mistress. Puffing out her cheeks, she looked at the rather handsome man before her and spat out two words in her sweet, soft voice.

"Bad man!"

After saying that, she did nothing else. She simply stood there, staring at him with wide eyes. She did not know why she was doing it, only that her mistress could sometimes frighten many people away merely by looking at them without speaking.

Li Dao, the target of her stare, felt nothing at all. If anything, he found it rather amusing.

Having roughly worked out the girl's temperament, he said, "How about this? As punishment for sneaking into the caravan, I'll compensate you."

Bi You'er withdrew her gaze and asked suspiciously, "How are you going to compensate us?"

"How about money?"

"That works. According to the Iron Family Escort Agency's rates, escorting one person starts at ten gold."

Ten gold?

That was a thousand taels.

Li Dao felt the little girl was trying to rob him.

On second thought, given the Iron Family Escort Agency's standing, ten gold did not seem all that much.

Looking at the girl, he thought for a moment, then asked, "What if I don't have enough money?"

Without giving her a chance to speak, Li Dao let out a long sigh. "Looks like you'll have no choice but to throw me out of the caravan."

"There isn't a village ahead or an inn behind us, and we're deep in the wilderness. Who knows whether a frail young man like me, too weak to withstand a gust of wind, might catch a wild beast's eye and get eaten?"

"If that really happened, I'd probably die horribly."

"First, the beast would rip open my belly and tear out my heart and lungs. In the end, all that would remain would be a pile of bones lying exposed in the wilderness. I..."

"Stop, stop, stop! Don't say any more!"

Bi You'er turned deathly pale, frightened by the images her mind had conjured.

She had only wanted to give him a verbal scolding. She had never intended anything like that.

As though afraid Li Dao might take things too hard, she hurriedly added, "I don't want your money anymore."

Seeing that he had frightened the girl, Li Dao grew interested and continued, "But if you don't take my money, I'll feel terribly guilty."

Seeing the young man take the matter so seriously, Bi You'er regretted opening her mouth.

After hesitating a moment, she thought of something and suddenly said, "Then repay your fare some other way."

"What way?"

Bi You'er looked at his attire and asked curiously, "Judging by your appearance, you must be a traveler who wanders far and wide."

"What are you getting at?"

Bi You'er's eyes suddenly lit up. "Since you travel far and wide, you must have been to lots of places and heard lots of stories."

Li Dao paused, thought it over, and said, "You could say that."

"Then are you good at telling stories?"

At this point, Li Dao more or less understood. Other requests might have been difficult, but storytelling...

So he said, "I'd say I'm fairly good at telling stories."

"Really? I'll have you know, I've heard plenty of stories myself."

Li Dao smiled faintly. "I guarantee no one has heard my stories before."

"All right, I'll trust you this once. If your stories are good, I won't charge you a fare. If they aren't, just see how I deal with you."

Seeing the people around them already eating, Li Dao rubbed his stomach. "Before I tell any stories, you have to let me fill my stomach first."

Bi You'er looked around, left him with a "Wait here," and ran off.

Before long, she returned, carrying a bowl generously filled with food.

She placed the bowl in Li Dao's hands and said, "Here. Once you're full, be good and tell me stories."

Li Dao looked at the food in his hands and asked in puzzlement, "Why is there so much?"

"Because I served it myself. Of course it's different from everyone else's."

"Thank you."

With that, Li Dao lowered his head and began eating.

Within a few minutes, he had finished the entire heaping bowl.

Watching Li Dao eat, Bi You'er thought, He even looks handsome when he's eating.

But she soon realized how utterly improper that thought was, and her pretty face flushed.

Besides, what did it matter how handsome he was? She was her young mistress's personal maid and would accompany her as part of her dowry someday. Whoever her mistress married, she would have to warm his bed as well. She had no choice at all.

She glanced at the man before her and silently prayed that her young mistress would find a handsome husband someday. She was not asking for much-someone about as good-looking as this man would do.

Soon, Li Dao finished his meal and set down his bowl.

Bi You'er sat primly at one side of the carriage and said softly, "Now that you've finished eating, can you tell me a story?"

"Of course."

Li Dao wiped his mouth and smiled faintly. "Then tell me, Miss You'er, what sort of story would you like to hear?"

"What sort of stories do you have?"

"Oh, plenty."

Li Dao began listing them. "Historical romance, immortal cultivation romance, romance based on history."

"Or Eastern mythology, Western magic, literary classics..."

"In short, pick any one of them. I can tell you whatever you like."

In his previous life, Li Dao had been a seasoned bookworm with nearly twenty years of reading under his belt, and he had dabbled in all kinds of novels. His enhanced physique had made those memories incredibly clear. If he really got going, he could tell stories for three days and nights without a break.

Beside him, Bi You'er listened to the string of story genres spilling from Li Dao's mouth. Her little crimson lips parted slightly in astonishment.

Only after a long while did she ask, "You have all those stories you mentioned?"

"All of them. Take your pick."

Bi You'er's delicate brows knitted as she wrestled with the choice. She wanted to hear them all, so in the end, she tossed the decision back to him.

"You know far too many. Just tell me whichever you like. I'll listen to whatever you tell me, but you'd better not trick me."

"All right, then. I'll tell you a story about a man of the wilds."

"A man of the wilds?"

"Pah, that came out wrong. It's a story about a human and a snake demon."

"Oh."