Argument

In the end, Shu Botong managed to escape unscathed. There was no need for him to look after the house. Rather, it was Yang Jia who took the initiative to look for Xiaoguo and volunteered to help her look after the house, after hearing about the matter from Mrs. Yang.

“I feel bad about having to trouble you again.”

“It’s fine. It’s not a tedious task and I could do with some exercise. It’s winter and I can’t stand being cooped up all day.”

“Then I’ll have to trouble you again.”

Xiaoguo smiled in embarrassment.

Yang Jia smiled and nodded. He was hoping to offer more help so that he would feel better about borrowing books from Zhuang Zhuang.

“Sister Xiaoguo, when are we setting off?”

Xiao Zhu and Yu Ling asked eagerly when they saw Xiaoguo enter the house.

The two of them had never been to the capital before. Just thinking about it made them feel excited.

With each girl grabbing onto both of her arms, Xiaoguo was led to sit down on a chair.

“We leave the day after tomorrow?”

At this hour, it was too late to set off today. She still had to pick up Zhuang Zhuang tomorrow and prepare the luggage. They wouldn’t be able to leave until the day after tomorrow.

“That’s great! Is it winter in the capital too?”

“Do we need to bring some nicer clothes? It’s the capital after all.”

“Do the people in the capital look like us?”

“Is the capital prosperous and bustling? Are there more people on the streets than in our county?”

“The capital…”

Xiaoguo covered her ears helplessly. She wanted to answer their questions, but the two of them wouldn’t give her a chance to speak!

“Stop, stop, stop…”

Xiaoguo covered the girls’ mouths with both hands. In that instant, she felt like the world had fallen silent.

“The capital is not in another country. It’s still part of Shao Kingdom, so they are having winter there too. Bring some warm clothes. We won’t be back until after the New Year”

“The capital is at the feet of the emperor. It is definitely more prosperous than other places. It is more densely populated, and the people there are better off too. They all have two eyes, a nose, a mouth, and ears…”

After answering their amusing questions, Xiaoguo heaved a sigh of relief.

Their questions were to be expected. Recalling the time when she first visited the capital, she was also very curious about the place. Xiao Zhu and Yu Ling were younger than she was, so they must have even more questions in their mind.

—-

The next morning, Xiao Zhu and Yu Ling took the initiative to stay at home to pack their luggages and prepare food for the animals.

Xiaoguo arrived in the county alone.

She first went to the noodle shop to inform Qin Anming. But to her surprise, he strongly disagreed with her. No matter how Xiaoguo persuaded him, he simply wouldn’t allow it.

“Brother… why?”

Xiaoguo was going crazy. Her brows were furrowed like a caterpillar.

“No means no. It’s too dangerous for a woman like you to visit the capital alone with three children!”

“I went there last time too.”

“That was different. The last time, you had the county chief and guards escorting you. How can it be the same?”

Xiaoguo leaned over the table and rubbed her head helplessly. “I asked the courier at the courier station to escort us to the capital. It’s very safe. Really.”

“Do you know the situation outside the county?” Qin Anming turned around and looked at her. He said in an unusually serious tone, “Just because Yonghai County is safe doesn’t mean that other places are safe too!”

“Do you know that there are countless bandits lying in wait out there? What if something happens to you?!”

“You’re a girl traveling with three children by yourself. How can you be so reckless? What if something happens along the way? The last time, when we had to move the graves to the capital, I only felt at ease because there were a bunch of people traveling together. But you’re actually thinking of going there on your own this time. Do you know…”

“I always thought that you had grown up, but you are still so naive…”

Qin Anming hardly speaks in such a serious manner, and he was being quite resolute this time. There was no room for negotiations at all.

Seeing his absolute attitude, Xiaoguo felt a little aggrieved. However, she refused to give up and continued to negotiate with him.

“Brother, it’s fine. I can go by the same route that the officials use. The courier said that there won’t be any danger.”

Before she could finish speaking, Qin Anming interrupted her and said, “No.”

“Brother!”

“No means no!”

“Brother!!”

Xiaoguo was feeling a little frustrated now. She couldn’t understand why she couldn’t go, as it wasn’t much of a big deal.

Qin Anming still looked unmoved. He turned his head away from her and continued with his work.

Xiaoguo was more puzzled than sad. She didn’t understand why the person who was always accommodating towards her was being so unreasonable today.

At this moment, Ruyi quickly came over to smooth things over. She pulled Xiaoguo back to her room.

“Come, have some water.”

Xiaoguo took the glass of water and took a long sip. She still looked very upset.

Ruyi looked at her for a long time before she burst out laughing.

“I’ve always regarded Sister Xiaoguo as an adult in my heart. But today, I realize that you look so much like a little girl when Brother Anming was reprimanding you. Hahaha.”

Xiaoguo couldn’t take it anymore and rolled her eyes at Ruyi. “Look at how fierce your Brother Anming is. There’s no room for me to retort.”

“I think you’ve talked back to him quite a bit.” Ruyi blurted out the truth.

A menacing gaze instantly swept across the room. She was so frightened that she immediately changed the subject and started badmouthing Qin Anming.

After Xiaoguo had calmed down, Ruyi started explaining to her from Qin Anming’s perspective, “Some time ago, a family of three came to Yonghai County in dire straits and they were begging for food at our noodle shop. Taking pity on them, Brother Anming bought three bowls of noodles for them out of his own pocket.”

“From our casual conversation, we found out that they had traveled from Pingdu Town to the capital to look for their relatives. However, they bumped into a bunch of bandits while taking the official route. Beside getting robbed and beaten up, the girl, who had just turned 15, almost got raped by the gang. Fortunately, a group of people passed by and saved them.”

“This is the reason why Brother Anming didn’t want you to visit the capital on your own. Although it’s not common to run into bandits, you can’t be too careful. He wouldn’t feel safe if you traveled without any escorts by your side. Brother Anming is afraid that something will happen to you. We are living in chaotic times now.”

“The last time when you went to the capital, although there were soldiers escorting you, Brother Anming was so worried for your safety that he couldn’t eat or sleep. Every day, he would go to the courier station or the county office in his free time, and find out news about you from those people who were returning from the capital.”

The more Ruyi spoke, the more upset Xiaoguo became. She realized that Qin Anming was only trying to protect her because he cared about her. She felt guilty for getting angry with him.

As Ruyi spoke, she suddenly paused and reached out to wipe the tears off Xiaoguo’s face in a panic. “Don’t cry. I shall stop talking.”

“It’s okay. It’s all my fault.”

Xiaoguo wiped her tears with her sleeve. “I’ll go look for my brother now. Thank you, Ruyi. If you hadn’t told me about it, I probably wouldn’t have known.”

Qin Anming definitely wouldn’t tell her the things that Ruyi had just told her. He could have just explained the reason earlier on, but he chose not to do that and almost caused a misunderstanding.

“Go ahead, go ahead.”

When Ruyi heard that she was going to look for Qin Anming, she nodded happily. The two of them were clearly very concerned about each other. They shouldn’t be fighting at all.

Xiaoguo wiped the tears off her face and opened the door to walk out. After taking two steps, she saw Qin Anming waiting in the distance.

When he heard the door open, he froze in that instant. After a long pause, he turned around and said hesitantly, “Xiaoguo…”

“Brother, I’m sorry!”

Qin Anming was stunned. Before he could apologize, Xiaoguo had beaten him to it.

“It’s all my fault for being so naive. Brother was right. There are dangers everywhere in this world. I’m just a helpless woman who was thinking of traveling alone with three kids. I was too impulsive and did not consider all the possible risks. Brother is doing this for my own good. I shouldn’t have lost my temper at you. Besides…”

Seeing that the other party was not saying a word, her tears started flowing like a tap that could not be turned off. The more she spoke, the more tears streamed down her face.