Chapter 63: There is Room For the Poor Daughter
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Chapter 63: Borrowing Authority
"Are you alright?"
Xiao Yeyang flung the prefect's son aside and walked toward Daohua.
The prefect's son staggered a few steps, almost falling. He opened his mouth to angrily berate the intruder, but upon seeing Xiao Yeyang’s attire and the imposing aura surrounding him, he wisely kept silent.
Xiao Yeyang pulled Daohua, who was sitting on the ground, to her feet. He frowned and scanned her up and down before remarking with a hint of disdain, "I must say, why is it that every time I see you, you look so disheveled?"
Daohua rolled her eyes. "You think I want this? It's just that I'm so outstanding, people get jealous wherever I go." Although her tone was sharp, her face couldn’t hide her delight.
Seeing that she was as feisty as ever, Xiao Yeyang’s eyes glinted with amusement. "You still have plenty of energy, so it seems you're fine." He noticed her hair was messy and reached out to fix it.
"What are you doing?" Daohua tilted her head to avoid him.
Xiao Yeyang didn’t mind. "Your hair is messy," he said, reaching out again.
At that moment, Yan Wenxiu quickly stepped forward, positioning himself between Daohua and Xiao Yeyang. "No need for your trouble, young master!" He turned to deftly fix Daohua’s hair himself.
Though his younger sister was dressed as a boy, she was still a girl. To have a man touch her head in public—how could she face others in the future?
Xiao Yeyang froze mid-action. Where did this guy come from? Was he competing with him?
By now, the group accompanying Xiao Yeyang had arrived.
"Young master, are you alright?"
Dong Yuanxuan approached Xiao Yeyang with a panicked expression, scanning him from head to toe. Only after confirming that Xiao Yeyang was unhurt did he breathe a sigh of relief.
Good heavens, if anything had happened to this little ancestor, his father would surely beat him to death.
Xiao Yeyang returned to his usual haughty demeanor and said indifferently, "What could possibly happen to me? Although… my hand does hurt a little."
Remembering that if he hadn’t arrived in time, that stick might have struck Daohua, Xiao Yeyang glared angrily at the trembling prefect magistrate’s son.
The prefect magistrate’s son had recognized Dong Yuanxuan the moment he appeared and was already cursing his luck internally.
While others might not know who Dong Yuanxuan was, he certainly did—the eldest son of the Provincial Administration Commissioner. If someone as esteemed as Dong Yuanxuan was behaving like a servant to this young man, then who was this youth?
Xiao Yeyang didn’t bother looking at the prefect magistrate’s son anymore. Just as he was about to instruct Dong Yuanxuan to detain him, he noticed Daohua sneaking glances at him with wide eyes, clearly scheming something. After a moment’s thought, he decided not to intervene just yet.
Once Yan Wenxiu finished fixing her hair, Daohua adjusted her wrinkled clothes and sidled over to Xiao Yeyang.
Dong Yuanxuan, noting her messy hair and untidy clothes, almost stopped her, but recalling Xiao Yeyang’s earlier concern for this "young boy," he held his tongue.
Seeing Daohua’s ever-changing expression, Xiao Yeyang found his earlier annoyance easing. She’s probably cooking up some scheme, he thought, and asked, feigning ignorance, "What do you want?"
Daohua sidled closer, checked her surroundings, and whispered in his ear, "Is your identity very powerful?"
Earlier, she’d been too caught up in her emotions to pay attention, but now, seeing the entourage surrounding him and his impeccable attire, she realized he was no ordinary person.
Xiao Yeyang wasn’t used to people getting so close. He felt slightly uncomfortable but didn’t dislike it. Maintaining his composure, he replied, "Not bad."
Daohua’s eyes lit up. "Then can I borrow your authority?"
"Cough, cough—"
Dong Yuanxuan, standing nearby, suddenly broke into a violent cough. Although Daohua had spoken softly, he’d heard every word clearly.
He looked at Daohua in disbelief.
Where did this audacious little one come from? Saying such things so bluntly!
Meanwhile, Yan Wenxiu, already disapproving of Daohua’s interaction with an outsider, seized the opportunity to pull her back, warning her with his gaze not to act out further.
Xiao Yeyang was displeased with Dong Yuanxuan’s interruption and even more so with Yan Wenxiu for pulling Daohua away. He glanced at her proudly and declared, "Of course!"
Hearing this, Daohua ignored her eldest brother’s warning, moved closer to Xiao Yeyang again, and pointed indignantly at the prefect magistrate’s son. "He stole my potted plants, smashed them, and even hit my three brothers."
She then turned and pulled Yan Wentao over. "You remember my third brother, right?"
Xiao Yeyang nodded toward Yan Wentao. "Of course, I remember."
Yan Wentao smiled nervously, unsure of how to interact with Xiao Yeyang, whose extraordinary status was evident.
Xiao Yeyang noticed the bruise at the corner of Yan Wentao’s eye and the shattered flowerpots on the ground. After a moment’s thought, he looked at Daohua and asked, "What do you want to do?"
Daohua rubbed her chin, her eyes darting mischievously. "I can do whatever I want?"
If it were anyone else, she might have let it go. But this prefect magistrate’s son had gone too far. If Xiao Yeyang hadn’t shown up, her family would’ve suffered a major loss.
"Then—"
Daohua had no time to speak before Advisor Xiao hurriedly arrived, panting heavily. He quickly stopped her: "Miss, Young Master, this is a trivial matter!" After speaking, he shook his head at Daohua.
Seeing this, Daohua frowned but chose not to say anything further.
Xiao Yeyang glanced at Advisor Xiao, displeased that he interrupted Daohua. "Who is he?"
Advisor Xiao seemed a bit nervous, so Daohua quickly reassured him with a look. "He’s my father’s advisor. Oh, by the way, I think I haven’t mentioned it to you—my father is the county magistrate of Lin Yi County, right?"
Xiao Yeyang shook his head. "You never said that."
"Well, now you know!" Daohua looked at Xiao Yeyang with pride, adding smugly, "I come from an official's family."
Hearing this, Dong Yuanxuan couldn’t help but twitch the corners of his mouth, while Xiao Yeyang’s expression also turned a bit complicated.
A county magistrate is just a seventh-rank official—not exactly high-ranking!
Daohua noticed the stationmaster, who appeared nervous among the crowd, and her face fell. She sighed at Xiao Yeyang, "You don’t know how miserable this trip has been for me! The people at the post station looked down on my father’s low rank and assigned us to a shabby courtyard. I couldn’t sleep well all night, and now I even smell musty. Can you smell it?"
As she spoke, Daohua raised her sleeve, intending to let Xiao Yeyang take a whiff.
Seeing this, Yan Wenxiu was so startled that he quickly pulled Daohua away, firmly preventing her from getting closer to Xiao Yeyang. In his heart, he resolved that upon their return, his mother must teach his younger sister proper etiquette.
Unaware of Yan Wenxiu’s thoughts, Daohua saw no issue. After all, she was only nine years old, and Xiao Yeyang was just a boy of twelve or thirteen. She didn’t think gender propriety applied to them.
"Big Brother, why are you pulling me? Can’t you see I’m trying to flaunt some authority?"
Her father’s low rank had indeed caused trouble this time. Although the conflict had been provoked by the prefect magistrate’s son, during the scuffle, they hadn’t held back in hitting him. Her third brother was strong—who knew if the prefect magistrate’s son was injured?
Now that Xiao Yeyang was here, she needed to resolve the matter quickly.
Xiao Yeyang found Yan Wenxiu’s repeated interventions to stop Daohua from approaching him quite irksome. If Yan Wenxiu weren’t her brother, he might have lost his temper.
At this moment, a delicate-looking young servant with a sharp voice ran over. Seeing Xiao Yeyang, he immediately called out, "Young Master, why have you stopped? People are still waiting!"
Xiao Yeyang’s expression froze, and his face darkened. "Let them wait!"
Sensing Xiao Yeyang’s displeasure, the servant glanced around and then scolded the surrounding people, "Did these folks upset you? Shall I have them thrown in jail?"
Hearing this, the prefect magistrate’s son collapsed to the ground in fear, cold sweat streaming down his face like rain.
Even Yan Wenxiu and the others felt uneasy.
Xiao Yeyang glared at the eunuch by his side. "Did I tell you to speak?"
The eunuch named Defu immediately bowed and smiled apologetically. "This servant overstepped. Young Master, let’s go. We’re almost there."
At this point, Daohua said no more. Judging from the eunuch’s appearance, Xiao Yeyang seemed to have pressing matters to attend to. She could only stare at him, silently pleading for him to resolve the issue with the prefect magistrate’s son before leaving.
Her pitiful gaze didn’t escape Xiao Yeyang’s notice. Recalling her earlier mention of being bullied, he frowned. After searching himself, he finally removed a jade pendant from his waist and tied it around Daohua’s.
Defu was startled and immediately tried to intervene. "Young Master, you can’t give that pendant away!" He rushed to Daohua, pleading with Xiao Yeyang.
"Young Master, if you must reward him, give him something else! This jade pendant cannot be given away. I have silver—will silver do?"
Xiao Yeyang, having already tied the pendant on Daohua, gave Defu a warning glare. "I can give my things to whomever I wish!" He then turned to Daohua. "If anyone bullies you again, just show them this pendant."
Daohua hesitated, holding the jade pendant with a conflicted expression.
Should she accept it? It seemed very valuable!
Noticing her hesitation, Xiao Yeyang smirked, assuming she was reluctant to return the pendant. His smile briefly appeared before he quickly suppressed it. "I have urgent business to attend to. I must leave now."
"But don’t get into fights so easily. You’re not that tall yet and will definitely be at a disadvantage. If someone truly dares to trouble you, use the pendant I gave you to hit them!"
Daohua shook her head, refusing. "This jade pendant seems very expensive. What if it breaks?"
Defu quickly nodded in agreement. "Exactly! You mustn’t use it to hit anyone!"
....
This novel is translated by the Eternal Novel Hits translators. Please read it at https://eternalnovelhits.blogspot.com
....
Seeing Daohua still clutching the pendant and debating whether to return it, Xiao Yeyang chuckled, knocked lightly on her head, and sighed. "I really want to take you home."
Daohua was horrified and immediately backed away a few steps. "No way!" She knew he wanted to make her a servant!
Please, she was the daughter of an official! She’d have to be crazy to become someone else’s servant.
Xiao Yeyang glanced at her once more, then turned to Yan Wentao. "Give my regards to the old madam. I can’t visit her in person."
Yan Wentao immediately nodded. "I will."
Without saying more, Xiao Yeyang turned and headed out of the post station.
Dong Yuanxuan and the others hurried to follow.
"Xiao Yeyang, what about Zhao Er Gou? Is he okay?" Daohua chased after him for a few steps.
Without turning back, Xiao Yeyang waved. "He’s fine!"
Daohua called out, "Will we meet again?"
Xiao Yeyang paused, then turned back to smile. "If fate allows it, we’ll meet again!"
(End of chapter)
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