Volume 1, Chapter 35: A Direct Inquiry Beneath the Tree, Rewarding the Beautiful Maid

The person who had come to pay his respects to Zhai Rang was none other than Li Mi.

Shan Xiongxin and Xu Shiji were the primary leaders of the stronghold, and Zhai Mohou was Zhai Rang’s nephew. To show his respect for them, Li Mi intended to accompany Zhai Rang to greet them, so he came to pay his respects to Zhai Rang first. After paying his respects, they all proceeded together to the stronghold gate to welcome the returning party.

Before long, Shan Xiongxin and the others arrived.

Zhai Rang and his group exchanged greetings with them at the gate. Zhai Rang said happily, "Xiongxin, Dalao, this time you went down the mountain and routed Luo Shixin, greatly boosting the prestige of our stronghold. I have already prepared a victory banquet for you in the Gathering Righteous Hall. Come into the stronghold with me now, and let us enjoy ourselves today."

Shan Xiongxin stroked his handsome beard, looking around with an air of self-importance, and laughed, "That little dog Luo is nothing; routing him is not worth mentioning. In this battle, we wounded two of the dog Luo’s major generals, Chen Daogong and Liang Husheng, killed and wounded dozens of his soldiers, and seized quite a bit of weaponry, including swords and spears. It is only a pity that we failed to capture or kill the dog Luo; he managed to escape in the end, so I could not present his head to you, Zhai Gong."

"Xiongxin, you are peerless in bravery; how could Luo Shixin be your match? Even though he escaped this time, you can kill him whenever you encounter him again."

Shan Xiongxin laughed heartily. He and Xu Shiji bowed to Li Mi and said, "We have troubled the Duke of Pushan to come out and welcome us; we are unworthy, truly unworthy."

Li Mi was thirty-four or thirty-five years old, in the prime of his life. Born into a noble family, his complexion was rather swarthy. Years of exile had left him lean, which only served to make his eyes appear larger. His forehead was slightly pointed, his eye sockets were somewhat square, and his pupils were clear and distinct. When he fixed his gaze on someone, his eyes were bright and clear, shining like the sun and moon.

Hearing Shan Xiongxin’s words, Li Mi bowed and said, "You and your brothers led elite soldiers to aid Weicheng and defeated Luo Shixin in a single stroke; this is truly a joyous occasion. As Zhai Gong said, it has greatly boosted the prestige of the stronghold. Since I am a guest residing here, how could I not follow Zhai Gong’s lead and respectfully welcome your triumphant return?"

"The Duke of Pushan is too polite!"

After exchanging a few words with Zhai Kuan, Jia Xiong, Wang Ruxin, and Huang Junhan, who had accompanied Zhai Rang, Shan Xiongxin, Xu Shiji, and Zhai Mohou entered the stronghold. They climbed to the top of the mountain, descended the northern slope, and arrived at the Gathering Righteous Hall.

Inside and outside the hall, the banquet was already prepared. It was decorated with lanterns and colorful banners, and red carpets were laid on the ground, creating a festive atmosphere. Servants of the stronghold knelt on both sides of the red carpet. As Shan Xiongxin and the others walked past, they bowed again and chanted three times: "Congratulations to Shan Gong and Dalao for your victory and for spreading our prestige in Weicheng!"

Shan Xiongxin was even more delighted, his laughter never ceasing.

Though it was only afternoon, the banquet began. They drank until late at night, and only then did the celebration conclude.

The next day, there was another banquet. The festivities continued for three full days.

Li Shandao, Gao Chounu, and Chen Jing'er, as heroes of the battle, along with Wei Yecha, Nie Heita, and others, participated in the three-day banquet. They were not qualified to sit at the main table and were seated elsewhere with other leaders who had distinguished themselves in the battle. Despite Li Shandao’s high tolerance for alcohol, he found himself overwhelmed by the end of the three days. However, he gained something: he had become acquainted with Li Mi and his subordinates, such as Fang Yanzao, and had become more familiar with Wei Yecha, Nie Heita, and the other leaders under Shan Xiongxin and Xu Shiji.

But there is no need to dwell on that.

Xu Shiji was truly diligent, rain or shine, and was already in the courtyard lifting stone locks to hone his strength.

While watching him train, Li Shandao felt the soreness in his body. Recalling the two fierce battles from a few days ago, he secretly resolved, "Damn it, starting tomorrow, I’m going to train my strength every morning too!" Glancing at Xu Shiji, he gritted his teeth and thought, "When it comes to the real deal, this Xu Dalao is truly cold-blooded and ruthless, showing no regard for personal ties. Next time we fight the government troops, he might just throw me into the most dangerous spots again! I certainly can't afford to stop clinging to his coattails, but looking at it now, I must 'harden my own iron.' I must not let myself be kicked to death by this 'leg' before I’ve even managed to benefit from his light!"

After finishing his routine, Xu Shiji put down the stone locks, wiped his hands, and put on his robe. Instead of entering the hall, he ordered Liu Hu'er to bring over two folding stools. He sat on one under the pear tree and gestured for Li Shandao to sit on the other.

Li Shandao adopted an even more respectful posture than before, standing in a horse stance with his buttocks barely touching the edge of the stool.

"Er'lang, are you blaming me?"

Li Shandao opened his eyes wide and asked in surprise, "Dalao, what do you mean by that?"

Xu Shiji looked at him, waving his crane-feather fan, and said, "When we fought Luo Shixin, you had only just finished a battle the day before. I didn't give you time to rest and ordered you to fight again the next day. Er'lang, are you not blaming me for this?"

"Dalao, what are you saying? You ordered me to fight again the next day—that was a sign you valued me; it was giving me a chance to earn merit. I am only grateful; how could I possibly blame you for it?"

Xu Shiji asked, "Are you truly not blaming me?"

Li Shandao replied firmly, "You gave me a chance to earn merit; I am only grateful and have absolutely no intention of blaming you!"

"If you don't blame me, that is for the best, but I still must explain. Er'lang, how could I not know that you had just fought and needed rest? The reason I ordered you to fight again was that, apart from you, there was no better bait to lure Luo Shixin. I did this for the sake of the overall situation. You were indeed wronged. When I see Zhai Gong today, I will certainly present all your merits to him."

Li Shandao said sincerely, "Yes. You don't need to explain, Dalao; I understand your predicament. Merit or no merit, it is not important. As I said before, I joined the stronghold for your reputation, Dalao. As long as I can follow you and achieve something, I am content."

"In this battle against Luo Shixin, even if it wasn't the greatest merit, you were in the top three. What rewards do you want? You can tell me first."

Li Shandao said in surprise, "Dalao, didn't I just say? Merit is not important, and rewards are not important!"

Xu Shiji stared at Li Shandao, whose expression remained unchanged, his sincerity evident.

"Very well! However, Er'lang, even if you don't care about merit and rewards, the art of war relies first on strict rewards and punishments. The rewards you deserve must be given. Once I report your merits to Zhai Gong today, he will surely reward you handsomely." Xu Shiji retracted his gaze, stroked his beard, and laughed.

Li Shandao responded, "Yes, yes. I dare not refuse what a superior bestows. If Zhai Gong grants me a reward, I will not refuse."

Xu Shiji smiled, pressed his knees, and stood up, saying, "After fighting for three or four days and drinking for three more without a moment's rest, you must be exhausted. Er'lang, go back. I’ll give you a break for the next two days; you should rest well and don't need to come for duty."

Li Shandao hurried to stand up and replied, "Yes."

"Go on. I will tidy up and go see Zhai Gong."

After watching Xu Shiji enter the room, Li Shandao stepped back a few paces before turning to leave the courtyard.

Just as he stepped out, he heard Liu Hu'er calling from behind: "Er'lang, wait a moment."

Li Shandao stopped and turned around to see Liu Hu'er coming out of the room with a young maid.

When they reached him, Li Shandao asked with a smile, "Brother Liu, what is it?"

Li Shandao was stunned and asked, "A reward for me?"

"Dalao knows you have no one to serve you in the valley, so he specifically chose this maid to reward you. Look up and let Er'lang see you."

The young maid raised her head to face Li Shandao, letting him look at her, while her gaze dropped, not daring to meet his eyes.

He saw that the maid was sixteen or seventeen years old, with willow-leaf eyebrows, apricot eyes, red lips, and a fair complexion. She was over five feet tall and had a pleasing, plump appearance.

Li Shandao recognized her; she was one of the maids who had come to the stronghold with Xu Lan. Among those maids, she was the best-looking, even more beautiful than the two maids Xu Shiji used. Li Shandao had a strong impression of her.

Withdrawing his gaze, Li Shandao said, "This... how can this be?"

"In that case, I can only thank Dalao for his great kindness."

Coming as one and returning as two—and the extra person being a beautiful, fragrant young woman—as Li Shandao led the maid back to the valley, the men who were eating, training, or chatting in the valley all stared in surprise.

Li Shandao suddenly remembered he didn't even know the maid's name, so he asked, "I haven't asked your name yet. What are you called?"

"In reply to the Young Master, my humble name is Guo'er."

Li Shandao nodded and said to Gao Chounu, "She is Mistress Xu’s maid. Dalao saw that I had no one to serve me in the valley and gave her to me. ...Guo'er, this is Chounu. You two should introduce yourselves."

Guo'er smoothed her clothes and offered a formal bow to Gao Chounu.

Gao Chounu grinned and chuckled.

"What are you laughing at?"

Gao Chounu scratched his head and said, "Her voice sounds so nice, like singing."

"You fool! Lead her to the hut first. There are still some fruits that Fusheng picked yesterday; take some for her to eat." Li Shandao said to Guo'er with a smile, "Your name is Guo'er. My place here is not like Dalao’s; I don’t have much to offer you, so just eat some of these fruits for now."

"In reply to the Young Master, the 'Guo' in my humble name is not the 'fruit' from fruit trees, but the 'guo' for wrapping things."

Hearing this, it seemed that Guo'er was actually literate.

Li Shandao laughed, "Good, the 'guo' for wrapping things. I understand. You may go now."

Gao Chounu led Guo'er away, and Wang Xuda, Chen Jing'er, Luo Zhong, and Qin Jingsi gathered around.

The eyes of Chen Jing'er, Luo Zhong, and Qin Jingsi couldn't help but linger on Guo'er’s charming figure, but Wang Xuda was a true hero who had no eyes for beauties. He leaned toward Li Shandao and impatiently asked the question he had been holding back all morning.