In Search of Love 8
Su Xiaopei shot Ran Feize a look as she reflected to herself- she must never emulate the attitude of scorning the possibility of affording a thousand steamed buns when she could only afford five mantou. She called out to him, “Warrior.” She planned to encourage him to not give up on that monetary reward.
Ran Feize saw her expression and knew what she wanted to say, so he patiently explained it to her.
Firstly, the governmental office could not confirm whether this rapist arrived at Shi’tou town or not and had only hypothesized that he would come here based on the projected path of his movements. It was only a possibility; there were chances that he may have headed elsewhere and the government didn’t have much confidence in it. It was why they posted this notice so that the residents would take notice of their surroundings and immediately report any suspicious people. If any valid clues were provided to allow the government to catch the criminal, only then could they get the five taels of silver.
Ordinarily, if it was merely providing information, then five silvers would not be a small reward. However, since the perpetrator’s whereabouts were unknown and the government office had absolutely no leads, then this notice would not have been posted in Shi’tou town alone but also in the surrounding towns. Under these circumstances, catching this criminal would be similar to trying to win first place in the civil servant exams; the chances were indeterminable.
Those five silvers were merely just for show in reality- seen yet unattainable. In contrast, it was more feasible to earn the bounty of criminals whom government officials found hard to catch despite knowing their whereabouts because they were highly skilled in martial arts.
Su Xiaopei frowned. “More feasible? If their locations are known, then there would be many who would want to catch them.”
“Many will try, but it’s uncertain how many will succeed.” That look of nonchalance was still on Ran Feize’s face and he appeared quite confident.
“Warrior has encountered this before?”
“Of course.”
“In which many attempted catching such criminals and Warrior was the one to succeed in the end?”
“Of course.”
“Are Warrior’s martial arts skills superb?”
“Exceptionally so.”
He was saying such arrogant words with that virtuous countenance- he was exuding the kind of attitude that asked for a beating.
Su Xiaopei didn’t take offense as her disposition was like that of drifting clouds. Given her current temperament, she simply couldn’t nitpick at others.
“Care to share about the kind of criminals Warrior has captured before?” It would allow her to gain some insight and increase her general knowledge of living in this world.
“Will you understand what I say?” That aura of arrogance which had been itching for a beating suddenly saturated the room.
“…….”
Su Xiaopei was speechless for a long time before finally saying, “I will ask Warrior for further clarification of anything I don’t understand.”
“That’s quite tiring. With so many matters piling, it’s impossible to explain things in minute detail.”
Su Xiaopei was not discouraged and continued, “Warrior can just speak of the one most exciting instance when you competed with others in catching a criminal.”
“Mm, well then that should be easy.” Ran Feize cleared his throat, then started. “This was at the Luotuo mountain range when I was going to catch that depraved monster Zhao Shengzhi. But it came to be that a group of people from Jianghu were also there and had planned to join in on the fun.”
“Mm, mm.” Su Xiaopei nodded her head in a very agreeable manner, “Then what did you do?”
“One ought to say, ‘how was it dealt with’.”
“Fine, fine, then how had you dealt with it?” Perhaps joined hands to form a powerful team and battled with the depraved monster, then devised a scheme right before the victory to snatch the big Boss* from right under their hands with the utmost show of heroism?
[TL/N: In keeping with how it was written.]
“I fed them a laxative, left them at the foot of the mountain, and then went on ahead alone to seize that scoundrel myself.”
“……..”
Su Xiaopei was momentarily stunned before she came around to confirm she hadn’t heard wrong. “Laxative?”
“Correct.” The dear Warrior’s countenance remained as per usual. “The medicine removed those people and all became quiet.”
“……..”
Su Xiaopei thought to herself that she must evaluate and analyse this benefactor’s personality prudently. For him to act so underhandedly with such calmness showed he really was no ordinary person.
She waited and waited. Seeing that Ran Feize didn’t plan to continue speaking, Su Xiaopei could only ask again. “What then?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing? Didn’t you go up the mountain alone to catch that scoundrel?”
“Correct. But there is nothing fancy about it. If you wanted to know about the most exciting part, then it is when I used laxatives to handle those bothersome people from Jianghu. That approach was quite simple and effective; I believe it was an extremely good move.”
Su Xiaopei was speechless. But fine, their idea of ‘important points’ were entirely different from each other.
She thought for a while, then still tried to persuade him, “Then let’s try our luck with those five silver taels for finding a person. What if it were possible? It’s always better to have money than to plead for shelter and be subjected to people’s gaze.”
Ran Feize didn’t reply but tossed over the baggage instead, “I had no money to purchase garments for Miss; I went and sought out Miss Tang to have her lend you two sets. Please get dressed in these for now, Miss, as they are still better than these unsuitable men’s attire. Once Miss has the monetary means in the future, do remember to repay Miss Tang.”
Those words he said sure made this debt owed quite clearcut. While it was reasonable, it just simply sounded too forward and rude.
Su Xiaopei opened up the cloth sack to take a look and found clothing and shoes, and even what seemed like a bodice undergarment, all of which were new, clean, and pristine. When she lifted her head, Ran Feize had already stepped out and even closed the door for her.
Su Xiaopei believed he was an upright gentleman. Although his use of laxatives damaged his image, he was consistently careful and mindful when it came to male-female interactions, and always made sure to keep a certain distance with her.
Su Xiaopei turned out the clothes from within the bag, determined how to wear them and proceeded to change into them. Her legs felt like agony whenever she so much as moved a fraction, which was quite troublesome. Because of her unfamiliarity with historical clothing, with the additional inconvenience of her legs, she ended up spending a long period of time before she finished.
The room was without a mirror and she had no intention of seeing how she currently looked; she had already resigned herself to despair on this matter. She neatly folded her Winnie the Pooh nightwear and placed them into the cloth sack before she finally called out, “Done.”
Ran Feize had been standing guard at the door and thus, opened it to enter when he heard her voice. He inspected the newly-attired Su Xiaopei only to shake his head and sigh. How is it that she still looks so out-of-place even after changing into proper women’s attire?
He took a look at her feet. She hadn’t changed into the shoes and those cloth socks were still on her feet. “Were the shoes tried on yet?”
“I am unable to bend down”, she confessed honestly.
Ran Feize looked at them again without a word. After a long pause, he finally said, “I can assist Miss in seeing to the injuries on the feet, only….”
“Only what?”
“One ought to say, ‘have you any concerns’.”
“Does Warrior have any concerns?”
Ran Feize rubbed at his chin, “The one who inquired of Miss about me today on the main street was a young woman whom I once saved. I am open and forthright, and am not bothered with trivial conventions when saving people. Yet that Miss firmly believed it was only right that I become more intimate with her. I do not fear swords but I dislike being entangled in trouble.”
Su Xiaopei understood. “Warrior may feel relieved to know I will never pester Warrior and demand Warrior to take responsibility.”
“Mm…..” Ran Feize still felt that things must be spelled out clearly. “I was compelled to save Miss, given no other alternative. May Miss not think ill of it.”
“Yes, yes, understood. It was out of Warrior’s kind heart and was thus forced to see things that shouldn’t be seen, and it definitely was not done intentionally. Warrior can rest assured that I definitely won’t come crying and begging for Warrior to take me as a wife.” Were these words clear enough?
“Even asking marriage with a smile is improper.” He had the audacity to fuss some more.
“Warrior can have a thousand assurances that I won’t ever let Warrior wed me even if I die.” This guarantee should be compelling enough, right?
It seemed like it was. Ran Feize nodded and finally came over to squat down and lifted Su Xiaopei’s feet.
Su Xiaopei’s face flushed red. She was aware of what state her feet were in after walking the whole day. Although she had hoped for assistance, with Ran Feize propping up her smelly feet, she still felt discomfited and embarrassed.
But a wave of pain soon came over her and she couldn’t help but cry out. The feeling of embarrassment was all but immediately abandoned.
Ran Feize halted what he was doing and turned to retrieve a pair of scissors. Su Xiaopei held back her tears as she watched him cut open the cloth socks. Her feet were covered in bloody blisters, caked mud, and other wounds, now all sticking to the cloth.
Ran Feize fetched water and helped her wash her wounded feet. It was so painful that she felt them cramping as she held onto her legs and bit her lips till she was able to swallow back her tears.
Ran Feize once again dug through his large sack and pulled out two bottles of medicine, one powdered and one creamed, mixed some together, and applied it onto Su Xiaopei. He then cut two lengths of cloth and wrapped up her feet. His movements were sure and smooth, showing that he had experience with bandaging wounds.
As Su Xiaopei looked on, she once again felt very fortunate to have met him when she found herself stranded and lost in a foreign land. If not for this, she really didn’t know what situation she would be in now.
Once Ran Feize finished wrapping her feet, he proceeded to probe her calves. Su Xiaopei cried out in response and fell over on the bed holding her legs.
Ran Feize sighed and once again took out a bottle of tincture. “Miss will need to put this on yourself. I will help Miss massage them to promote blood circulation in a moment, or else I’m afraid Miss will suffer for it in a few days. It would not be good if this becomes a rooted, chronic problem.
He set down the bottle and left, closing the door behind him.
Su Xiaopei once again, painstakingly removed the trousers, applied the tincture onto her legs and put the trousers back on. She did so hectically this time around as she was pained and panting at the same time. When she called back Ran Feize again, she was so embarrassed that she lost any wind to her temper.
But it seemed the ordeal had yet to come.
When Ran Feize began to help massage her legs, the pain was so immense that it was simply torturous beyond compare.
Su Xiaopei wailed loudly and collapsed on the bed while subconsciously trying to push away Ran Feize’s hands.
The tears couldn’t be held back anymore and flowed down freely. In Su Xiaopei’s memory, the last time she wept was when her father passed away.
She sobbed like this for a long time and Ran Feize finally stopped to ask her in a serious manner, “Miss, between suppressing a meridian point and biting a towel, which would you prefer?”
“Huh?” Su Xiaopei blinked through her tears, not knowing what he was saying.
“Miss’ crying is indecent. With the door being so flimsy and thin, I’m afraid it may arouse criticism.”
“Huh?” Su Xiaopei continued to be at a loss.
“Either suppressing a meridian point oir biting onto a towel, please choose one, Miss.” Ran Feize, being the righteous person, repeated himself with the same look of seriousness.
Su Xiaopei finally understood. This xxx crazy man! She had never, in her limited 26 years of her life, cried out of pleasure in bed!
“Bring on the towel then!” Oh, she gnashed and gnashed her teeth in vexation!
Her legs were in pain and her heart even more so; this was surely a world that brought people to despair!
She was unwilling to submit and fold over! Absolutely not!
