Chapter 29: Will I Become the Shame of Transmigrators?
Yuan Ye’s crudely made crossbow was quite powerful, killing anyone it shot at close range, and he was very satisfied. After returning, he tinkered in his room, further refining and perfecting it, striving for it to be as handy as possible. Just as he was engrossed in his work, A Man returned with A Qing.
The two of them knelt in a corner of the earthen seat, saying nothing, just watching him disassemble parts, tinker, twist, and reassemble them, all for no apparent reason.
Yuan Ye worked for a while, and seeing them sitting there unwilling to leave, he casually asked, “What is it? Haven’t you tried it already? Is there something else?”
A Man blinked, surprised, and asked, “Are you talking to me about something?”
Yuan Ye’s expression became even stranger, “Is there something I need to talk to you about?”
“Really nothing? Think again!”
“What do you want to say? I’m busy!” Yuan Ye lowered his head and continued to busy himself, appearing unwilling to talk to her further.
A Man looked at him, suddenly acting as if he had amnesia, and was momentarily astonished.
If she had won, she would be chasing Yuan Ye for those three guan coins right now, and he wouldn’t be able to renege even if she chased him to the ends of the earth; not a single coin short. But now Yuan Ye had won, and won fair and square, she couldn’t find any fault. Why was he acting like nothing had happened, not even mentioning the bet?
Even if he wasn’t going to actually chop off A Qing’s head, he should have at least taken the opportunity to ask for some favors!
She was surprised for a moment, but then, being clever, she finally understood. Yuan Ye was letting her off the hook!
A Qing’s gaze also lost its usual coolness. She looked up at Yuan Ye with some surprise.
A Man’s recklessness had made her very angry. After losing to Yuan Ye, she felt even more ashamed and humiliated, but she hadn’t intended to renege. Given her personality, her not firmly opposing A Man’s recklessness had already been a form of agreement. Her pride wouldn’t allow her to break her word.
Moreover, she had been gravely injured and near death back then. It was A Man who carried her out of the mountains and gave her food even when she herself was starving. She had survived by being a burden for half a year. Now that A Man had lost her, even if her head was to be chopped off, she wouldn’t have dodged.
She had prepared herself to endure humiliation and suffering, to silently bear it until the day she could be free. But now Yuan Ye didn’t even mention it, as if it could just pass like this…
Suddenly, she felt that being lost to Yuan Ye wasn’t as shameful or humiliating as she had thought.
She also vaguely understood, and A Man was even more convinced. She felt Yuan Ye was indeed quite capable, and his way of handling things was different from ordinary people, very magnanimous. She even felt a tiny bit of shame for judging a noble person with a petty mind.
Before, A Qing had been sulking, and A Man had tried to persuade her for a long time before A Qing agreed to endure it temporarily. She had even said things like, “Since you’re too embarrassed to run away, you should endure it even if Yuan Ye touches your butt. You’ve eaten so much of his rice anyway, being touched a couple of times isn’t that much of a loss.” This had almost made A Qing furious again.
She had no choice. Yuan Ye’s food was so good, and he treated her with respect, so she didn’t want to leave. Now that she had lost the bet, she couldn’t back out, so she could only try to persuade A Qing to accept her misfortune. But Yuan Ye didn’t even mention the bet, giving her a lot of face and intentionally letting her off the hook. She was truly somewhat convinced. At least, if she had won, she wouldn’t have been able to do this.
She glanced at Yuan Ye. She had originally wanted to bicker with him and bargain, but under her conviction, she sighed, “Alright, you’re amazing, you’re considerate. We’re not unreasonable people either! I won’t say any more nonsense. Losing is losing, and I’ll definitely give you what’s owed! She’s here, do as you please, whether you want to kill her or skin her!”
After speaking, she got up and left. For the first time in her life, she genuinely wanted to keep her word, facing Yuan Ye’s benevolence and magnanimity without losing face, acting decisively and thoroughly, ensuring he wouldn’t look down on her. However, she did have some sisterly affection for A Qing. She hesitated at the door, then added with concern, “That… I was just saying, don’t actually kill her or skin her. Don’t really chop off her head. Just make her do chores normally. And don’t scold her often. She actually gets sulky easily, her temper is like a mule’s. You should treat her well.”
Yuan Ye was stunned, completely unable to understand what was happening. “What’s going on with you two? I’ve given you an out, and you don’t even know how to take it?”
I’ll pretend I was busy and forgot, you two will go along with it, and later when the bet is brought up again, you’ll argue, ‘We came to pay the bet, didn’t you want it?’ and I’ll pretend to be angry, and then we’ll all laugh it off, and the matter will be over.
What are you two trying to do? Are you actually going to pay the bet?
What use would I have for that head? Would I stew it?
He was also convinced. A Man was very useful to him, an important source of information for understanding this strange era. Therefore, he had never thought of doing anything to her, forcing her to hand over A Qing’s head and making her utterly embarrassed and unable to back down, so as not to damage their relationship and make their daily interactions awkward.
If she hadn’t been constantly nagging and pestering him to the point he couldn’t stand it before, he wouldn’t have even made such a bet.
So now that he had won, he naturally wanted to gloss over this joke of a bet. After all, it was a bet involving heads, what else could it be but a joke? He hadn’t expected these two to play by their own rules; he wasn’t bringing it up, but they were!
Are your heads full of holes?
“Wait, come back!” He quickly extended his hand in a gesture of pleading, wanting to say a few more words to dismiss the matter. He didn’t want the head, but A Man was deaf to his pleas and slipped away extremely quickly. With a lift of the door curtain, she was gone.
For a moment, only he and A Qing remained in the room, facing each other in silence.
A casual joke had turned into this, far exceeding Yuan Ye’s expectations. He wasn’t familiar with A Qing, this “strange child.” After a long silence, he smiled at her, “Alright, alright, it was just a joke. There’s no need to take it so seriously, and you don’t need to dwell on it… Well, you should go play too. Just pretend nothing happened!”
He began to regret it. As an adult, he shouldn’t have bet his head with a child. He should have shot an arrow into the ground and lost three guan coins to her.
He had to learn his lesson. People in ancient times took betting their heads seriously; they would actually give their heads, which was truly life-threatening!
A Qing knelt there, looked up at him with a cool gaze, then lowered her head, remaining silent for a long time. Only her fists, resting on her knees, began to clench slowly again. Yuan Ye was benevolent enough that she didn’t feel much humiliation. But according to the bet, Yuan Ye not beheading her was already a sign of great kindness. She should temporarily obey his commands and follow his instructions. Obeying a stranger’s command made the shame in her heart suddenly intensify, making it difficult to speak.
She already disliked talking to strangers, and now it was even more difficult.
Yuan Ye waited for a long time, but she remained silent. He was internally complaining about her being such a “strange child” and didn’t know how to dismiss her. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened as he noticed her tightly clenched fists. His pupils involuntarily contracted, and his expression instantly became wary. He subconsciously tightened his grip on the ironwood bow in his hand. He had always been confused about what this strange child A Qing was thinking all day. If she felt humiliated now and suddenly drew a shuriken to stab him…
After all the calculations to barely establish a foothold, if he were to be stabbed to death because of a joke with that wild child A Man, wouldn’t that be the shame of a transmigator?
Fortunately, before he could finish his anxious thoughts, A Qing’s small fists slowly loosened again. She finally spoke for the first time, lowering her gaze and saying softly, “That wasn’t a joke. If Sister A Man had won, she would have stolen those three guan coins even if she had to. So, if we lost, we lost, and we should fulfill the bet. You don’t need to… consider us.”
I wasn’t considering you either, but it’s good that you’re willing to communicate! Yuan Ye secretly breathed a sigh of relief. While cautiously adjusting his sitting posture, he said in an exceptionally gentle tone, “That was between me and A Man, it has nothing to do with you. You should still… go play quickly!”
“It has something to do with me. Sister A Man’s affairs are my affairs.” A Qing remained unmoved, lowered her gaze, and said coldly again. Her small fists on her knees began to clench slowly again. Yuan Ye is benevolent and acts with great magnanimity. In that case, she must insist. Even if she had to endure shame, she couldn’t let someone like him have the opportunity to look down on her sister and think she was shameless.
Yuan Ye’s gaze sharpened again. He looked at her small fists and felt a little scared. He remembered what A Man had said earlier; her temper was like a donkey’s, and one should stroke it in the right direction. Moreover, thinking about it carefully, this wasn’t a big deal. Their commitment to integrity was better than the opposite; strictly speaking, it was a good thing.
As for this damn bet, he would find an opportunity next time… Well, he couldn’t be too deliberate. When A Man, who was incorrigible, tried to bet with him again, he would deliberately lose and then bet her back. The problem shouldn’t be too big.
He quickly calculated in his mind. Since things had come to this, there was no need to argue with a donkey. His personal safety was the priority. He immediately nodded repeatedly, his tone becoming even more gentle, “So that’s how it is. I completely understand your thoughts! You Kōka Group are indeed people of integrity, that’s very admirable! Then… let’s leave it at that for now. You just stay well like this, and don’t mention heads or anything like that. We’ll talk about future matters later, how about that?”
Let’s get her to leave first. This strange child is a bit scary!
“Yes!” A Qing had no objections. She wasn’t afraid of death, but she didn’t want to die either. After a moment of hesitation, she asked softly, “Is there anything you need me to do?”
Is there anything you need me to do…
There’s nothing you need to do. If I encounter something I don’t know, I can ask your sister. Whether you’re here or not, it’s all the same!
But Yuan Ye wasn’t crazy. He couldn’t say that. His mind raced for a moment, and he smiled gently, “I see you spend a lot of time practicing martial arts. Your martial arts should be very good. Then you… will be responsible for safety! Yes, you’ll be responsible for protecting everyone. What do you think?”
A Qing hesitated for a moment, feeling that she could handle it. Her martial arts were indeed very good. Most people couldn’t defeat A Man, but she could easily defeat three or four A Mans. She had some confidence in her combat ability.
She clasped her hands in front of her, bowed, and placed her forehead on them, saying softly, “Yes, I understand. Please leave it to me!”
“Excellent! Then it’s settled!” Yuan Ye also breathed a huge sigh of relief. He would never bet his head with anyone again. This was simply asking for trouble. In ancient times, one had to be cautious with their words and actions, or their lives could be in danger at any moment!
He felt that this matter should be over. He just needed to remember the lesson. He immediately grabbed a piece of paper and began writing something he didn’t even know the meaning of, indicating that he was very busy and had important military matters to handle, and she could leave.
Go wherever you want, play with the little monkey, or practice martial arts, it’s all up to you. He didn’t care, and he didn’t need her protection.
“Yes!” A Qing responded again, then retreated to a corner of the earthen seat, kneeling properly, her gaze lowered to the ground, motionless.
Yuan Ye was speechless again. What are you still sitting here for? I told you to go out! Are you really so stubborn, can’t you read the room at all? I’m not comfortable with you here, my back is starting to sweat!
He was convinced. He wanted to wave his sleeve and shout “Dismissed!”, but he was afraid that this stubborn girl would go to the door and kneel, catching a cold in the freezing weather. So he could only endure it silently, continuing to scribble and draw, pretending to be busy, and updating her tag in his mind from 【strange child】 to 【strange, very stubborn child】.
Just as he was feeling numb, the straw curtain at the door was lifted, and Yayoi knelt, revealing half of her small face, and reported softly, “Lord Saburo, a messenger from Aragiko Castle has come to visit. Do you have time now?”
“A messenger from Aragiko Castle?” This was serious business. Yuan Ye’s mind focused immediately, and he put A Qing out of his mind. He no longer felt uncomfortable and began to rapidly ponder who was looking for him, what they wanted, whether it was good or bad. He said politely, “Please invite him in!”
