Perfect Match – CH 011

Chapter 11

A carriage left Xi’an Prefecture and headed north.

Although it was just past Mid-Autumn Festival and the weather was not completely cool, the people inside the carriage wrapped themselves in thick cloaks, yet still felt their shivering.

“How far have we gone? Why are we not at the family mansion yet?!” Yang Youling asked anxiously, huddled in her cloak.

Her head maid, Dongxun, rubbed her hands as she spoke.

“Do not worry, Miss. The Mansion is quite a distance away. We have to cross Baifeng Mountain first, then head north out of Xi’an Prefecture, before we can get there. The Baifeng Mountain area is quite unstable; it seems there are bandits around. We might have to take a detour, and it will take some time.”

Yang Youling became even more anxious upon hearing this. “My father and brothers are both in the army. What do I have to fear from bandits? Do not take detours; take the shortest route out of Xi’an Prefecture; the farther, the better!”

Dongxun had no choice but to agree, noticing that Yang Youling was starting to feel cold again.

Yang Youling felt a chill creeping over her, as if some ghostly coldness was emanating from her.

She cried out in fear, “Do not come looking for me! Do not come looking for me! I only arranged a marriage for you; I did not kill you! If you want to find someone, go find that Deng woman. It was because she refused to take the blame that I had to punish you…”

“Miss, Miss!” Dongxun called out to her quickly, seeing her rambling. “No one is bothering you. Miss, do not be afraid!”

After being comforted several times, Yang Youling finally came to her senses and realized what she had said.

She quickly shut her mouth.

She could not say that. Her mother had pinned the blame on Madam Deng, who came from the countryside. If someone overheard, her reputation would be ruined!

*

The Zhou Family Estate.

Deng Ruyun visited the Zhou family yesterday with wedding gifts. The Zhou family, who had a large stockpile of grain and were preparing for the wedding, were startled upon hearing the news and dared not be careless. They had summoned many people to patrol the estate yesterday, and the night passed peacefully. The Zhou family had invited a large number of relatives and friends to their full-moon celebration. With everyone present, who could bear the responsibility if something went wrong?

Madam Zhou immediately notified her cousin, who was the deputy inspector of the Tongguan County Patrol Office.

The Patrol Office was in charge of the county’s security, and at noon, he dispatched officers from his office to the estate.

With the increased manpower, the previously unfamiliar faces disappeared.

The eldest son of the Zhou family felt they were being overly cautious. “The celebratory banquet is almost here; we cannot just cancel it, can we?”

While his cousin, Deputy Inspector Sun, was more cautious than he was, he also felt that with the officers present, nothing serious should happen.

“Such a joyous occasion as the birth of twins, and with all the guests present, why do we not proceed with the celebration? I’ve sent someone to oversee things.”

But Madam Zhou felt uneasy. She asked Deng Ruyun, “What do you think, Madam?”

Deng Ruyun dared not relax her vigilance in the slightest. “I have a guess. If the bandits are bound to come, perhaps the celebratory banquet will be the day they arrive.”

Her words caused the two men to exchange a glance, both seeing a strong possibility in each other’s eyes.

Deputy Inspector Sun inquired, “Then, Madam, do you think it would be better to postpone the celebratory banquet?”

But upon hearing this, Deng Ruyun shook her head.

“There’s no harm in holding it. Even if we do not, they will still come on another day. It would be better to lure them in on the day of the banquet.”

She said it was just a humble suggestion: “I think if we first plant some people among the guests and then leave some outside, if bandits really come, they should be caught in a double attack and will not fare well.”

Madam Zhou broke out in a cold sweat upon hearing this.

Deputy Inspector Sun, being a military man, had his eyes light up.

“Madam, this is an excellent plan! Rather than having thieves lurking around for a thousand days, it’s better to open the doors wide and let them in, then wipe them all out in one fell swoop!”

If this succeeded, he would be promoted.

Deputy Inspector Sun immediately discussed the matter with Master Zhou, and his gaze towards the Teng family lady changed.

As expected of a general’s wife, she was fearless and composed when it came to leading troops and suppressing bandits.

Calm, composed, alert, intelligent, bold yet meticulous… If she had manpower, she probably would not even need the Imperial Patrol Office to send anyone to help.

Deputy Inspector Sun had never seen such a woman before and could not help but steal a few more glances.

However, this lady did not even have a general’s personal guard by her side; she had been sent to the estate all alone.

It was truly puzzling.

*

The bandits on Baifeng Mountain made some slight movements, and Teng Yue received the news.

“They temporarily dispatched over twenty men down the mountain? Are they going to rob and plunder again?”

The informant replied, “Yes, the men were given to the second-in-command outside. They were dispatched overnight, heading towards a small village in Tongguan County. Judging by the number of men, they are probably going to wipe out the entire village.”

Teng Yue had originally planned to capture these bandits all at once, but before he could do so, they were going to harm the local people.

“What village? Why did they target it?”

The subordinates said the commotion had come so quickly that they had not had time to find out more.

“I only heard it’s a small village, just a wealthy grain merchant and a few other wealthy families’ estates.”

Teng Yue paused inexplicably when he heard the word “estate.”

Two days ago, his wife had also left Xi’an Prefecture for an estate in the north.

For a moment, he wanted to ask which estate Madam Deng had gone to, but he did not remember that his family owned an estate in Tongguan County.

He did not recall anything, so he did not ask again.

What could have happened to her?

He did not mention her, putting her out of his mind, and only summoned his deputy, Tong Meng.

“In that case, take your men and capture these bandits. Do not let them harm the civilians.”

He then called over other subordinates, preparing to launch an attack that night at Baifeng Mountain as well. With two separate forces, they would wipe out the entire bandit group, and that would be the end of it.

*

This band of roving bandits was used to wandering around, and they rushed out of the mountains towards Tongguan County. Deputy General Tong did not dare delay and immediately led his men to the small village.

Fortunately, his troops were seasoned warriors, extremely fast. Upon arriving at the village, they found everything safe and sound.

However, before Deputy General Tong could even breathe a sigh of relief, his men nearly fell into an ambush within the village.

Fortunately, both sides remained calm, and a fight did not break out. He then discovered that this small residence had been pre-positioned with men; the officers from the Tongguan County Patrol Office were currently there.

Deputy General Tong immediately ordered someone to summon the Patrol Office commander.

Deputy Inspector Sun had not expected a garrison commander to arrive with his troops. Upon reaching Deputy General Tong and seeing that they were indeed garrison soldiers, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Deputy General Tong, of course, asked them if they had received advance warning of the bandits’ arrival and made preparations beforehand.

He inquired, but Deputy Inspector Sun replied that there was no other information: “Only the villagers are very vigilant. They sensed something was wrong and reported it to the patrol headquarters…”

He briefly recounted the events of the past two days: “…all thanks to that lady’s vigilant arrangements. She’s deployed men both inside and outside. I still held onto a sliver of hope, but it turns out bandits were indeed coming. That lady was right!”

Deputy General Tong’s eyes widened upon hearing this.

The village not only had vigilant arrangements, but they had also set up an ambush for bandits at the celebratory banquet.

Deputy General Tong could not help but say, “This lady is truly intelligent and brave. May I ask which general’s wife she is?”

Deputy Inspector Sun was about to answer when, just then, soldiers ran over.

“The bandits are attacking!”

*

Two quarters of an hour earlier, the second-in-command, hiding in a mountain hollow, had counted all his men, and his whole body felt relaxed and refreshed.

After being cooped up for so long, he was finally ready for a clean fight.

However, his elder brother had specifically instructed him that Teng Yue’s wife had to be captured alive. Killing was simple, just a single blow, but capturing her alive was troublesome, especially capturing a woman.

Thinking this through, he specifically chose three men, one of whom was a capable but somewhat bookish man. This man had previously been a wealthy family’s accountant, but had become an outlaw after being caught stealing money. He was not good at killing, but he was quick-witted.

The second-in-command called him over. “This time, you will be in charge of capturing that woman. You do not need to worry about anything else, but you must capture her alive and bring her back to the mountains so we can confront Teng Yue!”

The accountant, who had been worried about not having a chance to use his skills, now saw a task coming his way, and his shrewd little eyes narrowed.

“Second Master, rest assured, I will definitely capture this girl!”

*

The celebratory banquet was on this day, and Deng Ruyun had been staying at the Zhou family’s house with Linglang and Xiuniang since the previous night.

The banquet proceeded as planned, and the courtyard was quite lively. The children played and frolicked, as if nothing had happened.

Linglang was still recovering from her illness, and after playing for a while, she returned to Deng Ruyun’s arms. Before the banquet began, Deng Ruyun only gave her some water and fruit to tide her over.

Unexpectedly, shouts of killing suddenly rang out.

Even with prior preparation, panic gripped the courtyard. The patrol officers and Zhou family guards immediately directed everyone towards the pre-prepared passageway.

Madam Zhou’s eyes reddened with fear. “They really dare? They really dare to kill on the day of the celebratory feast!”

Not only that, these bandits knew the estate was patrolled and guarded, yet they still attacked.

Deng Ruyun was also deeply alarmed. But these were fugitives; how could ordinary people compare to their murderous intent? Fortunately, everything was prepared. The men stayed behind, while the women, children, and the elderly fled quickly out of the estate along the passageway.

Xiuniang and Linglang were terrified. Deng Ruyun, carrying the child and with Xiuniang in tow, joined the crowd as they fled.

But inexplicably, her eyelids kept twitching, twitching incessantly amidst the incessant shouts of killing.