Chapter 13 - Different Strokes for Different Folks
Two days later, the escort convoy finally arrived in Meizhou.
At the city gates, the convoy actually caused quite some commotion. While the manager went to handle their paperwork with the city guard, a sharp-eyed soldier noticed the bloodstained cloth bag on Ye Beizhi's horse and ordered Ye Beizhi to open the bundle. Ye Beizhi complied, but the young soldier fell to the ground in shock upon seeing the contents. All the soldiers at the gate assembled as if they were facing a great enemy.
Fang Dingwu quickly dismounted and attempted to defuse the situation with a smile. He explained that the head in the bag belonged to a wanted criminal, and they had brought it here to claim the bounty. After a long back-and-forth, the city guards finally arrived to confirm the situation. Only then were they allowed into the city.
The members of the escort agency passed through a bustling street and reached a large vermillion gate.
Fang Dingwu sent a steward to announce their arrival and then whispered to Ye Beizhi, "The largest cloth merchant in Meizhou lives here. He's the one who commissioned this escort mission."
Ye Beizhi nodded.
As they spoke, a group of people emerged from inside the gate. Leading them was a pale, rotund man with shrewd eyes. He wore nine thick rings on his fingers and was dressed in a garish red robe. He had a big belly and a smiling face that would put any caricatured merchant to shame.
When the rotund man approached, Fang Dingwu cupped his fists and announced, "Merchant Zhou, we are honored to have been up to the task."
Merchant Zhou chortled and said, "Armed Escort Team Leader Fang, there’s no need to be so serious. I have complete trust in your Changfeng Escort Agency. Come, come, leave the escort mission matters to those outside. Let's go inside to talk." As he spoke, he pulled Fang Dingwu inside with him.
Fang Dingwu motioned for Ye Beizhi to follow them, so Ye Beizhi followed along.
The three of them walked to the inner hall. Before he dismissed them, Boss Zhou instructed the servants to come serve tea. With no eavesdroppers around, he eagerly looked at Fang Dingwu and asked, "Armed Escort Team Leader Fang, did you bring the item?"
Fang Dingwu nodded and signaled to Ye Beizhi, who was sitting next to him. Ever since they encountered the bandits at Tiger Mouth Mountain, Fang Dingwu had entrusted the Transcendence Stone to Ye Beizhi, knowing it was safer there than with himself.
Seeing Fang Dingwu's signal, Ye Beizhi took out the small cloth bundle containing the Transcendence Stone from within his clothes and prepared to toss it to Fang Dingwu.
Merchant Zhou's face turned paler as he exclaimed, "Oh, by my ancestors! This treasure cannot be tossed around!" He hurriedly rushed over to grab the Transcendence Stone in Ye Beizhi's hand.
Merchant Zhou carefully placed the cloth bundle on the table and opened it. Once he saw that the Transcendence Stone inside was safe, he finally relaxed.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he took out a bundle of banknotes from within his clothes and handed it to Fang Dingwu, and said, "Armed Escort Team Leader Fang, this is your hard-earned reward for this mission, a token of my appreciation."
Fang Dingwu nodded, accepted the payment, and put it into his clothes before saying, "In that case, I shall respectfully accept it." Then he stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "Merchant Zhou, I have other important matters to attend to, so I won't impose on you any longer."
Boss Zhou returned the gesture with a few polite words. Outside, the members of the escort agency left through the bright red gate, concluding their tumultuous travels.
Fang Dingwu led the group to find an inn in Meizhou City to rest, instructed everyone not to wander too far, and then said to Ye Beizhi, "Brother Ye, let's go and exchange for your reward money. That head in your bag is about to start stinking."
Ye Beizhi nodded, took the cloth bag containing the head, and headed out.
When the two of them came out of the government office, it was already noon. The three hundred taels of gold had been exchanged for a thick stack of banknotes, which were now safely stashed within Ye Beizhi's clothes.
Since the two had not yet eaten lunch, Fang Dingwu's growling stomach prompted him to plan their next move with Ye Beizhi.
"Brother Ye, I know of a restaurant in Meizhou called the Drunken Flower. Their Dongpo Pork is some of the best I’ve had while traveling the world. How about we indulge ourselves?"
"Okay." Ye Beizhi replied in his usual succinct manner.
As the two turned a corner, a tailor shop drew Ye Beizhi’s attention.
While Fang Dingwu was still diligently introducing the local customs of Meizhou to Ye Beizhi, Ye Beizhi had left his side and made a beeline straight into the tailor shop.
As soon as he entered, a middle-aged man who seemed to be the storekeeper greeted them. "Oh! This young gentleman, feel free to choose any piece of clothing you fancy!"
Ye Beizhi, brushed by the man, going straight to a counter at the back of the shop. He pointed at a wooden box and asked, "How much?"
The box was exquisitely crafted and made entirely out of sandalwood, inside which lay a pair of pure white leather gloves. With fine white fur running from the back of the hand to the wrist, the gloves would be quite comfortable to wear in the coming winter.
"Ah? As for these…" The storekeeper hesitated, conflicted. "You have a keen eye, young gentleman. These gloves were fashioned by the finest tailor in Meizhou, crafted from the fur of a snow fox. Not only are they extremely beautiful but they are also very warm when worn. However—"
"However, what?" Fang Dingwu, who had doubled back, asked on behalf of Ye Beizhi.
The storekeeper looked troubled and said, "However, Miss Ning Cai'er, a courtesan from the Brightmoon Pavilion, reserved these gloves yesterday. Actually, I was planning to deliver them this afternoon."
The shop manager looked at Ye Beizhi with a conflicted smile, only to see Ye Beizhi take out a thick stack of banknotes from within his clothes, slam them on the counter, and ask, "Is this enough?"
The storekeeper, seeing such a thick stack of banknotes, grew wide-eyed and avaricious. Reaching out for the pile of banknotes he fervently stammered, "Enough, enough, definitely enough."
"Enough to choke you to death!" Fang Dingwu cursed as he slapped the storekeeper’s hand away. "You actually wanted to take all of this money? Are these gloves made of gold? Even if they were, how could they be worth three hundred taels of gold?"
The storekeeper withdrew his hand with a sheepish laugh.
Ye Beizhi reconsidered before pulling out a single banknote worth one hundred taels of silver from the stack, and asked the storekeeper, "Is this enough?"
The storekeeper cautiously glanced at the big and burly Fang Dingwu. Only after seeing no reaction did he dare to reach out and accept the banknote, saying, "It's enough, it's enough. I can see that you, young gentleman, have an appreciation for craftsmanship, so I'll sell the gloves to you!"
Ye Beizhi nodded, then took the gloves out and tossed them onto the counter. He then picked up the sandalwood box and left.
Both Fang Dingwu and the storekeeper were stunned as they watched Ye Beizhi walk out the door. The storekeeper was baffled because he didn't understand what was happening, while Fang Dingwu was stunned because he understood all too well.
Even after all the twists and turns to complete their mission in Meizhou, Ye Beizhi was still only thinking about making up for Chi Nanwei’s food container! How silly was that?
The storekeeper met Fang Dingwu’s eyes, opening his mouth to speak.
Fang Dingwu glared at the storekeeper, grabbed the gloves from the counter, and followed Ye Beizhi.
Fang Dingwu caught up with Ye Beizhi and asked, "Brother Ye, are you still worried about that food box?"
Ye Beizhi glanced back at Fang Dingwu and nodded.
"Brother, I'm not trying to offend you, but you're not thinking clearly," Fang Dingwu said with a wry smile. "Think about it. Regardless of whether Sister Chi will be upset about the broken food box, wouldn't it be more sincere to give her the gloves along with the new box?" With that, he handed the pair of gloves to Ye Beizhi.
Ye Beizhi was silent for a moment, then lowered his head in acknowledgement. Taking the gloves from Fang Dingwu's hand, he solemnly set them back into the sandalwood box.
"Heh, now that's more like it." Fang Dingwu chuckled, placing one arm around Ye Beizhi's shoulder. "When it comes to charming girls, I've got plenty of experience. For example, that Brightmoon Pavilion the storekeeper mentioned earlier; I know plenty of girls there who are quite taken with me. So, how about it? Why don’t I bring you there and show you around?"
"Weren’t we going to eat?"
"Yes, yes, yes, eating there is a perfectly normal thing to do."
"…"
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