Chapter 7

Soon after, the two villagers finished twisting the straw rope, tied the tiger's front and back paws to a wooden pole, and hoisted it upside down. Carrying the pole between them, they descended the mountain, helping Yun Pianpian carry the tiger all the way back home.
The villagers of Jiangjia Village heard the news and rushed over.
Everyone gathered around to look at the tiger, showering Xiao Changyuan with praise and hailing him as a towering hero.
Jiang Cuicui's pretty face flushed slightly, and her gaze toward Xiao Changyuan grew even more admiring.
“Brother Shitou, you're amazing!”
Xiao Changyuan remained expressionless, exuding an air of aloofness that kept others at a distance.
Yun Pianpian beamed as she accepted the villagers' compliments.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Yun Pianpian had never told anyone about Xiao Changyuan's amnesia. Since she didn't mention it, Xiao Changyuan naturally didn't either, so Grandpa Jiang and Jiang Cuicui were unaware of his memory loss.
Everyone only knew that their village chief had taken in a tiger-slaying hero and nothing more.
The villagers lingered in the courtyard for quite some time before dispersing, and Doctor Zhou also left.
Yun Pianpian had reaped a bountiful harvest from this trip up the mountain.
The only regret was that the two plump wild rabbits had escaped when she wasn't paying attention.
Xie Yu soon arrived with an ox cart, and together with Mu Bai, they lifted the tiger onto the cart. They covered the tiger's body with a tarpaulin. Xie Yu, his eyes curved into a smile, asked Yun Pianpian, “Sister Pianpian, how much do you think this tiger can sell for?”
Yun Pianpian wasn't familiar with ancient market prices, so she hesitated to set a price and tossed the question back to Xie Yu.
“What do you think it can sell for?”
Xie Yu grinned. “If someone else were selling it, this tiger might fetch at most three hundred taels of silver, but I'm different. With my eloquence, I can sell it for at least six hundred taels, double the usual price.”
Yun Pianpian was inwardly astonished. Though she didn't know the exact value of ancient currency, she understood that six hundred taels was a substantial sum.
She immediately regarded Xie Yu with newfound respect.
“Really?”
Xie Yu blinked his charming peach, blossom eyes. “If I can't sell it for six hundred taels, I'll give you my brother.”
Yun Pianpian: “...” Is he really your biological brother?
“Then we'll leave the tiger to you.”
Upon hearing this, Xiao Changyuan's handsome face darkened completely, his brows furrowing tightly.
Did his wife think he was dead?
Xie Yu smiled at her. “I'll leave my brother here with you for now. It's currently the third quarter of the hour of the Snake (around 9:45 AM). The county town is about fifty li from here. The round trip might take me three hours, plus time for the transaction. I'll definitely be back before the hour of the Rooster . Don't worry.”
Yun Pianpian nodded at him. “Then go early and return soon. Be careful on the road and stay safe.”
It wouldn't matter if you didn't come back.
Our home could really use a handsome and obedient brother like yours.
Xie Yu smiled. “Understood.”
He exchanged a glance with Mu Bai, then drove the ox cart away from Jiangjia Village.
After Xie Yu left, Yun Pianpian turned to Mu Bai. “Your brother is so young. Is it really safe for him to travel alone?”
Mu Bai withdrew his gaze from Xie Yu's retreating figure and said softly, “My brother is very clever.”
Yun Pianpian thought to herself, ‘Well, trust is essential when employing someone. Let fate take its course.’
After the two rescued villagers returned home, to repay Xiao Changyuan for saving their lives, they sent Yun Pianpian many good things: a basket of eggs, two jin of pork, two jin of pork ribs, two jin of mutton, a basket of corn, a basket of vegetables, twenty jin of rice, several jars of their homemade pickles, fermented vegetables, and sauerkraut, along with some meatballs, all filled with their sincere gratitude.
“Thank you so much!”
Yun Pianpian felt the joy of a bountiful harvest.
Country life was truly wonderful; it was like winning at life without even trying.
But soon, Yun Pianpian’s joy faded because she realized that cooking here was incredibly troublesome.
In the modern era, there was gas or natural gas, but here, they had to rely on burning firewood.
Yun Pianpian spent half an hour in the kitchen trying to light the fire but couldn’t get it going.
She ended up choking on the smoke, her eyes tearing up and tears streaming down her face.
Eventually, Mu Bai couldn’t stand watching any longer and stepped into the kitchen to help Yun Pianpian light the fire, rescuing her from her tearful state.
Yun Pianpian cast a grateful look at Mu Bai.
“Brother Mu, you’re so kind.”
While trying to light the fire earlier, Yun Pianpian had asked for his surname.
It turned out that A Bai and A Yu, the biological brothers, were surnamed Mu.
Her current body was only around sixteen or seventeen years old. Mu Bai was eighteen, so it was only natural for her to call him Brother Mu.
Mu Bai said, “It was just a small effort.”
Yun Pianpian felt that Mu Bai’s way of speaking was quite similar to Xiao Changyuan’s, but he was much gentler than Xiao Changyuan.
Xiao Changyuan’s coldness was innate. Even when he wasn’t speaking, his expression kept others at a distance, his gaze icy.
Mu Bai, however, was different, he was simply a man of few words.
In stark contrast to Xiao Changyuan, Yun Pianpian found Mu Bai very easy to get along with. Especially after Mu Bai not only helped her light the fire but also stayed in the kitchen to wash vegetables, trim them, cut the meat, prepare the ingredients, and control the stove’s heat…
The way Yun Pianpian looked at Mu Bai was practically the way one would look at an older brother.
“Brother Mu, you even know how to cook?”
Mu Bai paused his chopping and said softly, “I have to take care of A Yu, so naturally, I had to learn these things.”
He was originally a shadow guard.
These hands were meant for holding blades and killing.
But to care for Xie Yu, these hands had become hands for lighting fires and cooking.
“What a good older brother,” Yun Pianpian said, her eyes curving into a smile. “Being your younger brother must be so blissful. I wish I…”
“What are you all doing?”
A cold, chilling voice suddenly sounded from outside the door.
Yun Pianpian looked up and saw Xiao Changyuan standing at the doorway, his handsome face icy.
His thin lips were pressed tightly together, his eyes dark and brooding, his expression so stormy it could hail.
He seemed to be in a very bad mood.
Yun Pianpian thought the tyrant had come to hurry her along because he was hungry.
She quickly heated the oil, tossed all the chopped vegetables into the wok, and pretended to be extremely busy. While bustling about, she looked up at Xiao Changyuan and said, “We're cooking. Just wait a little longer, I'll have it ready soon.”
A drop of scalding hot oil suddenly splashed from the wok onto the back of Yun Pianpian's hand.
The pain made her hiss and furrow her brows.
“Ouch, that's hot.”
Yun Pianpian shook her hand repeatedly, her delicate face scrunching up in discomfort.
Seeing this, Xiao Changyuan immediately frowned, strode over to her in three quick steps, and pulled her away from the stove.
“How could you be so careless?”
His tone carried a faint hint of reproach.
Yun Pianpian was instantly displeased. She was injured, and he was still blaming her.
How unreasonable.
She looked up at Xiao Changyuan with dissatisfaction, her voice full of resentment and annoyance. “It's because I was talking to you that I got distracted while cooking. Hurry up and get out. I'll have this dish ready in no time.”
Xiao Changyuan ignored her displeasure.
He turned his head and frowned at Mu Bai, who was standing nearby.
His cold, handsome face immediately froze over like an icy tundra.
“Why is he here?”
“Brother Mu came to help me.”
Yun Pianpian pushed against Xiao Changyuan's chest, her voice dripping with annoyance.
“Stop standing here and getting in the way. My wok is about to burn.”
“Brother Mu?”
Xiao Changyuan narrowed his cold, phoenix, like eyes, his handsome face darkening instantly.
He turned back, his dark eyes sharp and mocking as he looked at Yun Pianpian, his voice icy.
“I wasn't aware you'd taken to calling someone 'brother'?”
“I just did. Aren't you annoying? My wok is about to burn.”
Yun Pianpian, concerned about the food in the wok, quickly pushed aside the cold and dangerous tyrant.
“Get out of the way. If you're not going to help, at least don't cause trouble. You're so irritating.”
Nothing mattered more than the food in her wok. Even if the heavens themselves descended, they would have to make way for her cooking.
Mu Bai, hearing Yun Pianpian's audacious words, was so shocked he nearly dropped the knife he was using to chop vegetables.
Did this woman even know who Xiao Changyuan was?
How dare she speak to him like that!
Did she have a death wish?!
Mu Bai felt a chill run through his body, his face tense.
He thought Xiao Changyuan might unleash a massacre at any moment, and the scene would surely be gruesome.
But to his surprise, he heard Xiao Changyuan speak in a tone that was almost gentle.
“Wife, step outside. Leave this to me.”
Mu Bai looked up in astonishment.
He saw Xiao Changyuan standing beside Yun Pianpian, his face cold and stern.
Though Xiao Changyuan's expression was displeased, there was no murderous intent in his eyes as he looked at Yun Pianpian.
This woman had been so disrespectful, yet Xiao Changyuan didn't want to kill her?
Mu Bai's gaze grew distant, his pupils filled with shock.
He even began to suspect that the cold and dangerous man before him was not Xiao Changyuan himself, but someone who merely resembled him. After all, the real Xiao Changyuan would never tolerate such audacity from a woman.
Yun Pianpian, upon hearing Xiao Changyuan’s words, wore a doubtful expression.
“Do you know how to cook?”
Xiao Changyuan’s handsome face remained stern.
“Yes.”
Even if he didn’t, he had to say he did.
There was no way he would let his wife be alone with this strange man.
Yun Pianpian, happy to take it easy, handed him the spatula with a mix of skepticism and curiosity.
“Alright then, you give it a try.”
Xiao Changyuan took the spatula from her without a change in expression and began stirring the ingredients in the wok with practiced ease. Seeing his tall, elegant figure handling the cooking calmly and confidently, Yun Pianpian finally believed him, it seemed this guy really could cook.
A tyrant who could cook, now that was something rare.
Yun Pianpian was utterly amazed, but she soon realized:
Xiao Changyuan was merely mimicking her actions, copying her movements with the spatula in the wok.
He had no idea when to add the seasonings.
Fortunately, Yun Pianpian was a skilled cook, and her ability to guide others in cooking was even more impressive.
Under her direction, Xiao Changyuan quickly prepared the meal.
Corn, braised pork ribs, stir, fried meat with chili peppers, braised eggplant with green beans, an egg drop soup, and two plates of pickled vegetables gifted by the villagers.
Yun Pianpian had steamed enough rice for the three of them. The bowls, chopsticks, and seasonings were all borrowed from Jiang Cuicui’s family. After setting the table, she brought out the steaming dishes, and the three of them gathered around, enjoying a harmonious lunch.
But in reality, the only one truly enjoying the harmony was Yun Pianpian.
Xiao Changyuan’s expression was cold and stern, while Mu Bai sat as if on pins and needles.
Yun Pianpian, however, ate with great satisfaction.
After lunch, everyone brought their bowls and chopsticks to the kitchen. Just as Yun Pianpian was about to wash the dishes, Mu Bai offered, “Let me help you wash them.”
Unable to refuse his kindness, Yun Pianpian smiled and said, “Thank you, Brother Mu.”
Standing behind them, Xiao Changyuan immediately turned icy upon hearing this. His entire body seemed to freeze over.
If someone were to poke his cheek, a few icicles might even fall off.
“Wife.”
Hearing Xiao Changyuan’s voice suddenly from behind, Yun Pianpian turned around.
“Husband, what’s wrong?”