Perfect Match – CH 013

Chapter 13

The accountant, now a bandit, was still literate and educated. He knew he was not very useful in the stronghold, because he had stolen money while doing bookkeeping, and the leader did not trust him much.

This time, the second-in-command knew he was not good with weapons, so he simply assigned him a special task: to capture the wife of the military general.

Capturing a woman alive was not difficult, but he found this woman very wary. The second-in-command had no choice but to give him this frustrating task.

He was not in a hurry. Seeing the second-in-command leading his men into the village, he and two of his underlings hid outside, watching.

Who would have thought that this residence not only harbored an ambush but also soldiers dispatched from the garrison—soldiers of Teng Yue!

The accountant was shocked. He immediately sent one of his men to Baifeng Mountain to inform the chief, while he himself surveyed the blood-soaked residence, pondering his options.

The general’s wife must have fled with the women and children of the residence. The second-in-command was trapped and likely could not escape. If the second-in-command were captured, the stronghold would have suffered heavy losses, and the chief’s forces at Baifeng Mountain would eventually be wiped out. He could escape, but where would he go?

But if he could capture Teng Yue’s wife alive, not only would the chief have a hostage to fight against Teng Yue, but he himself would have performed a great service.

Not only would securing a foothold be easy, but even taking a seat among the brothers would not be difficult!

Willing to risk everything, even to the point of dethroning the emperor. He lingered cautiously outside the woods by the official road for quite some time before finally seizing his opportunity!

*

Teng Yue took the second-in-command to Baifeng Mountain.

He was not in a hurry. He first ordered his men to take the second-in-command’s belongings to the bandit stronghold on Baifeng Mountain. If the leader were sensible enough to surrender, it would be convenient for him.

The second-in-command was wounded, blood gushing from his leg. Teng Yue had his men stop halfway and give him some basic first aid.

But the bandit, knowing he was a burden to his leader, refused to be bandaged.

“If I die, I die. I will not be a burden to others. I will die a hero!”

Teng Yue glanced at him and ordered his men to hold him down. “Stop the bleeding first.”

The second-in-command, realizing he could not fight against the leader, roared in anger.

“You scoundrel, Teng Yue! I thought you were some upright and honorable general, but you’re nothing but a ruthless villain. You even used your own wife as bait, abandoning her to capture us all for your own gain!”

Teng Yue had not wanted to hear his tirade and wanted to have him gagged, but when he suddenly uttered this seemingly random question, he stopped in his tracks.

He turned around and asked,

“Was my wife in the residence?”

No one around him knew, and for a moment, no one answered. The man frowned, staring at the second-in-command.

The second-in-command initially thought Teng Yue was playing a trick on him, but now he realized.

“So you do not know? Interesting, very interesting indeed. You, as her husband, do not even know where your wife is.”

Teng Yue ignored his sarcasm and asked, “So you were all after her, were you not?”

The second-in-command, who had just been mocking Teng Yue, had secretly begun to feel a surge of hope. Teng Yue did not know his wife was at the estate, even though he had specifically arranged for the accountant to capture her alive before storming in. The accountant was a shrewd man; had Teng Yue’s wife already been taken?!

Thinking this to himself, he naturally did not answer Teng Yue’s question.

But Teng Yue immediately realized this.

He did not ask the second-in-command any more questions, immediately mounted his horse, and ordered his men.

“Hurry back to the estate!”

How could Madam Deng be at this estate?

And when he passed by that place earlier, no one told him.

Even she had not said a word…

*

The estate was almost completely cleared out.

When Deputy General Tong and Deputy Inspector Sun were inspecting the estate, they could not help but ask him this question.

“You said earlier that a lady noticed something amiss at the residence, which is why your patrol unit arranged for men beforehand; is that right?”

Inspector Sun Fu nodded in agreement. “It was General Teng’s wife who discovered it first.”

Having fought with Tong Meng, they had become acquainted, and he spoke frankly.

“I was puzzled when I first saw your general’s wife without any guards, having to rely on others for help when trouble arose. Now that you’ve brought troops, it makes sense. How could a general’s wife be reduced to such a state?”

He felt indignant on behalf of Madam Deng, but his words struck Tong Meng like a thorn.

They had indeed brought troops, but they were there to capture bandits, not for Madam Deng’s sake.

If Madam Deng had not asked him for food and water, he would not have known she was here after finishing the battle and leaving.

Just then, a soldier suddenly reported, “The general is back!”

Upon hearing this, Deputy Tong rushed to greet him, and upon arriving, could not help but ask…

“General, you’ve come to fetch your wife, have you not?”

Teng Yue paused.

“You knew she was there? Then why did you not say so earlier?”

Deputy General Tong dared not bear the accusation of withholding information and quickly recounted the entire incident to Teng Yue, including what Deputy Inspector Sun had told him, detailing everything.

“…I only found out recently. It was only when your wife came to find food and water for the villagers that I learned of it. I wanted to report to you, General, but she said that since you have important matters to attend to, it would be best not to delay.”

Best not to delay…

Teng Yue froze.

It turned out she had sensed something was wrong when she left Xi’an.

But he was the one who saw her off from Xi’an, and he was the one who encountered her carriage on the road, yet he never stopped to see her.

So even though she sensed danger, she had not mentioned it to him.

But she sent a full-moon gift to the Zhou family and asked Madam Zhou to send men to guard the estate.

Feeling this was inappropriate and fearing it might implicate the Zhou family, she had them report it to the local Patrol Office.

Since the Patrol Office was short-handed, she simply offered advice and strategies to help resist the bandits.

She was constantly trying to save herself.

Teng Yue was stunned, but a quick glance around revealed she was not there.

His eyelids twitched uneasily. He was about to ask, “Where is Madam now?” when he heard someone rushing towards him, shouting.

“Deputy General Tong? Deputy General Tong—”

The person called out to Tong Meng, but Teng Yue looked closely and saw it was Xiuniang beside her.

“Xiuniang? What happened?!”

Xiuniang had not expected Teng Yue to be there, but she could not care less at that moment.

Her hand trembled as she clutched the mud-covered rabbit lantern.

“General, Linglang is gone, and so is Madam! Only this lamp remains!”

Teng Yue’s face paled instantly.

But the second-in-command, who had been brought over bound and gagged, burst into laughter.

“Ha, even Madam and child are gone. Good! Heaven is truly helping Baifeng Mountain!”

The man’s face was extremely grim.

She had been captured by bandits, and she was with a child.

*

At Baifeng Mountain.

The bandit leader was a dark-skinned, fat man whose eyes squinted when he laughed. Of all the bandits in the stronghold, he was the most polite.

“General’s wife, please do not blame us for our rudeness. Someone wanted to take your life and even paid a large sum of money. We dared not act, but out of respect for General Teng, we invited you into the stronghold for tea.”

As he spoke, he took a bowl of tea from a concubine and personally brought it to Deng Ruyun.

Deng Ruyun did not take it, but the bandit leader was not angry; he simply placed it on the tea table beside her.

“Madam should know by now, your General Teng has captured my younger brother and is holding over a dozen of my brothers captive. I consider myself a righteous man; how can I abandon them?”

He glanced down at Linglang, who immediately snuggled into her aunt’s arms, and Deng Ruyun promptly pulled her into her embrace.

The bandit leader smiled, his gaze settling on Deng Ruyun’s face.

“General Teng captured my brothers, and I invited Madam to the mountain stronghold. Madam is also with her child; it’s not easy for her. Why do you not speak to General Teng and ask him to release my brother and the others? I will also send you and your niece out of the mountains. What do you say?”

He wanted to exchange her for Teng Yue’s captives.

As soon as the words left his mouth, the bandit leader smiled, but the men behind him glared at him, some even drawing their knives.

They wanted to use her and Linglang to exchange for the bandit leader’s younger brother and the dozen or so bandits Teng Yue was holding.

Deng Ruyun hugged Linglang tightly, her heart filled with sorrow.

She was just a woman from the countryside, a complete stranger to Teng Yue just two months ago.

Now, she had offended him and had been sent out of Xi’an to this residence.

What merit did she and Linglang, a child completely unrelated to Teng Yue, possess to exchange for so many bandits?

Not to mention, she was only there to shield him from the harassment of Princess Rongle, buying him a few years to eventually marry a noblewoman.

What right did she have to ask him to use so many bandits to exchange for her and Linglang?

Deng Ruyun sighed inwardly but dared not utter a sound; her heart was heavy, yet no tears flowed.

These were words she absolutely could not say. Looking at the bandits who were watching them intently and cradling her trembling niece in her arms, she nodded to the bandit leader instead.

Having said “yes,” she adopted the air of a general’s wife, straightening her back and speaking slowly.

“When my husband arrives, he will exchange those people for my niece and me to go down the mountain, without you even saying a word. But I’m tired, and the child is frightened; we need to rest quietly for a while. Surely the bandit leader will not refuse?”

The bandit leader’s hawk-like eyes were fixed on her, as if trying to discern the truth in her words.

Deng Ruyun forced herself to stand upright, allowing him to scrutinize her. After what seemed like an eternity, the bandit leader smiled.

“Very well, since Madam is so certain, I’m relieved. Men, escort Madam and child to their guest rooms to rest and serve them well!”