Chapter 136: Ding Huaxiong and His Daughter

Night was falling, and shadows deepened all around.

The two of them, in a surprisingly good mood, tossed some firewood onto the campfire, set up a rack, and began roasting a large slab of fine beast meat. Meanwhile, Pei Yu and Yuan An were still bickering, unable to reach any sort of agreement.

With Yun He there to keep the peace, the two didn’t come to blows.

In the end, their squabble was put to rest only when Yun He interjected, “Third Brother has already promised Village Chief Yun to let her stay on the first floor of the tent.” That finally shut them up.

Yuan An’s mouth fell open, his chubby face full of shock.

Pei Yu, on the other hand, lifted his chin in triumph, looking as proud as a rooster with a bright red comb.

Hmph, he’d known all along that little brat Wu Xingyu wouldn’t be able to refuse the beautiful Village Chief Yun.

Who could possibly remain unmoved when faced with such beauty? He didn’t believe it for a second, nor did he buy that nonsense about face blindness. How could anyone possibly mistake the stunning Village Chief Yun for someone like Ah Hua, with her round, dark face and tiny eyes? You’d have to be blind!

Pei Yu, who had no idea how face blindness actually worked, simply refused to believe it was a real condition.

The campfire crackled and popped, and the aroma of roasted beast meat began to fill the air.

Once they learned that Yun Qimu was personally handling the roasting—and charging a processing fee—Pei Yu and the other two gave up any hope of getting a taste. Instead, they obediently started their own fire, divided up the tasks, and began roasting their own meat.

The fine beast meat was delicious, and even with their amateur skills, the three kitchen idiots managed to produce a decent meal.

They brushed on a layer of seasoning first, then another after the fat started to sizzle, and a final coat once the meat turned golden brown.

They followed Tang En’s three-step barbecue instructions to the letter, all three pairs of eyes wide and focused intently on the grill.

Their efforts paid off, and the results were surprisingly good—they’d successfully roasted the meat.

Though their meat looked a little inferior to the one Yun Qimu was roasting next door—slightly overcooked—it didn’t dampen their appetites in the slightest. Each of them cut off a rib and began gnawing away, juices running down their chins, thoroughly satisfied.

They didn’t even envy Wu Xingyu, who was also feasting next to them.

In the small grove at night, the five of them finished their barbecue, buried the bones, and happily pulled out a few apples for dessert.

Suddenly, a rustling sound came from deep within the woods. The five, who had been chatting leisurely, instantly tensed up.

Five pairs of eyes met, brows furrowed as they listened intently.

The noise grew louder, but there were no beastly roars—just the shouts and cries of people.

“Who’s there?” Pei Yu’s expression darkened. He stood up, flicked out two vines, and sent them snaking into the bushes behind him. With a yank, he dragged out two figures—one fat, one thin.

“Please, don’t kill us! We mean no harm!” the two pleaded, scrambling to their feet and clinging to each other, eyes wide with terror, trembling uncontrollably.

The fat one was a middle-aged man with a round face and big ears, panting heavily, his flab quivering with every breath.

He wore a tattered black suit, snagged and torn in several places by branches. Fortunately, he had another layer underneath, so none of his unsightly flesh was exposed.

The thin figure in his arms was a petite young woman, looking about eighteen or nineteen, with a delicate, pretty face—though it was dirty—her large, watery eyes staring at them in fear.

She shrank into the fat man’s embrace, whimpering softly, looking utterly pitiful.

Yun Qimu’s expression didn’t change, but she raised an eyebrow at the noble-style dress the girl wore. Though torn, it was enough to show she’d once been a noble lady.

This surprised Yun Qimu. Why were there so many noble ladies showing up on this exile star lately?

She didn’t count herself, but there was Delise before, and now this bedraggled noble girl.

Were the nobles outside forming teams to stir up trouble, only to get wiped out together?

But that didn’t make sense. If nobles were convicted, the women were usually sold off as slaves, not exiled to a place like this.

“Who are you?” Pei Yu, noticing the girl’s delicate appearance, let down his guard a little and asked in a not-unfriendly tone.

The girl shrank back, and the fat man nervously pulled her closer, his expression settling somewhat.

“My name is Ding Huaxiong, and this is my daughter, Ding Rou. We—we were being chased. They wanted to take my daughter.”

He swallowed hard, his eyes flickering over Pei Yu, Wu Xingyu, Yuan An, and Yun He, but conspicuously avoiding Yun Qimu, who was sitting on the other side of Wu Xingyu, half hidden from view.

Whether by accident or design, he never glanced in her direction.

His fat face twisted in hesitation, but finally, gritting his teeth, he fixed his gaze on Wu Xingyu, who was sitting by the fire, his face half in shadow.

With a tragic air, he called out, “Young man, my daughter may not be a peerless beauty, but she’s certainly a proper young lady. I’d like to marry her to you—what do you think? We’ve only just arrived here, and I doubt you’ll find a girl on this exile star who’s cleaner or prettier than my daughter.”

He made it sound as if Wu Xingyu was getting a bargain.

Yun Qimu covered her mouth, her eyes crinkling with laughter.

By the fire, Wu Xingyu’s face was cold and shadowed, his whole body radiating displeasure. He glared fiercely at the fat man and said icily, “No.”

Ding Huaxiong was dumbfounded, shocked that someone would turn down such an offer. His daughter was a fine girl!

If it weren’t for the fact that this young man seemed the strongest of the four—clearly the leader—he wouldn’t even consider marrying his daughter off to someone whose face he hadn’t even seen clearly.

As a doting father, he was unhappy, but given the circumstances, it was better than having his daughter dragged off by those bandits.

He swallowed his temper and tried again, speaking kindly, “Young man, maybe you didn’t get a good look at my daughter. Why don’t you take a closer look?”

He helped Ding Rou to her feet. “Come on, daughter, let’s go over and let him see you.”

Ding Rou’s face flushed red with embarrassment. She stomped her foot in annoyance. “Father, this is so improper! People will think I’m desperate to get married.”

Ding Huaxiong quickly lowered his voice, coaxing her, “I know my Rou’er is wonderful in every way. Back in the city, the line of noble suitors wanting to marry you stretched from our house to the city gates—even the Third Prince was one of your admirers. But things are different now. The people from Red Lotus Stronghold want to take you as their captive bride. We have no choice. If you’re married, they’ll have to think twice…”

At worst, once this crisis was over, they could always get a divorce. After all, this young man only had three companions and a woman with him—clearly not a major power. If Rou’er wanted to leave later, she could just find someone even stronger. Divorce would be easy!"