Chapter 12: The Master Has Changed His Ways (Please bookmark and follow)

"I must be overthinking it."

Li Yaozu rubbed his brow and sat down on the stool beside the dining table.

He believed he was just scaring himself.

From the day Wei Tu was sold into the Li household until now, the Li family had never done anything to wrong him. It was impossible for Wei Tu to risk everything over such a trivial matter.

—The matter of forcing Xinghua to submit hadn't even happened yet; he had only mentioned in passing on the way to the prefectural city that he wanted Wei Tu to serve as Li Xingye’s attendant.

No matter how much he tried to connect the dots, he couldn't see it leading in that direction.

"It must just be a coincidence."

Li Yaozu repeated the word "must" in his heart, trying to comfort himself.

But his heart wouldn't settle. He thought of the way Wei Tu had stood straight and looked him directly in the eye when he left. That kind of gaze was not one a servant should have, nor was it the behavior of a man who felt gratitude.

"I'm going out for a bit." Li Yaozu decided to go for a walk to clear his mind.

After greeting Madam Li, he lifted the hem of his long robe and stepped out of the hall.

Following the corridor, passing through the courtyard and the moon gate, Li Yaozu arrived at the outer residence. He stopped under the eaves and glanced at the stables.

The half-grown black horse was snorting, eating the last inch of fodder left in the trough.

Near the stone wall, there was a pile of chopped hay, enough for about ten days.

Li Yaozu walked closer to the stables and stood on tiptoe to check the cleanliness. Seeing that it was tidy and free of the horse's night droppings, the heart that had been hanging in his chest finally settled, and a look of admiration appeared in his eyes.

"I was overthinking it. Brother Wei is a good lad," Li Yaozu mused.

Returning to the inner residence, he passed the kitchen and smelled the aroma of meat and vegetables wafting from the open window. It was as if another burden had been lifted from his shoulders; he carried his right hand behind his back and walked with a lighter step.

"Bring me paper and a brush," Li Yaozu said to the maid beside Madam Li as he sat back down on the stool.

"Master, paper and brush... what are you planning to write?" Madam Li asked, puzzled. Li Yaozu was no poet who wrote on a whim, especially during mealtime; he rarely picked up a brush.

"I have a long-time friend in Sanyuan Township who earned his status through the military examinations. Since Brother Wei wants to take the military exams, we might as well see the good deed through to the end and help him out," Li Yaozu explained.

"Master, have you caught some sort of hysteria? Are you losing your mind?" Madam Li asked in surprise. Earlier, when discussing the redemption fee in the inner hall, it was she who had done a favor by reducing the price by a few taels.

—If the redemption fee were set too high, other wealthy wives would gossip that the Li family was low-class and blinded by money.

By then, Chunlan had already brought the paper, ink, brush, and inkstone from the inner hall and began grinding the ink for Li Yaozu.

"Hysteria?" Li Yaozu’s hand paused, his face darkening with slight displeasure. He frowned and scolded, "A woman’s vision is short-sighted."

Without further regard for Madam Li, he followed the blue vertical lines on the letter paper and began to write.

After finishing, he took out his personal seal and stamped the letter with a red mark.

"If my intuition is true, this letter will forge a bond of kindness. If my intuition is false and he is truly deep-minded, this can also resolve a potential disaster."

Li Yaozu examined the letter, stroked his goatee, and his eyes flashed with sharp light.

The grace of patronage is as heavy as Mount Tai. If Wei Tu were to return kindness with enmity, he wouldn't even have the chance to become a wandering swordsman.

Swordsmen, above all, value loyalty.

"Go, deliver this to Brother Wei." Li Yaozu put the letter into an envelope and handed it to the maid.

...

Soon, Wei Tu, who was packing his luggage in the main room, received another letter from Master Li Yaozu.

This envelope, like the previous one containing his deed of manumission and certificate, was not sealed, so Wei Tu could easily see the contents inside.

"Shan Ji, a *juren* from Sanyuan Township? He wants me to go there as a long-term laborer and, while I'm at it, learn some martial arts from Master Shan to prepare for next year's military examinations?"

After reading the letter, Wei Tu’s reaction was much like Madam Li’s; he felt as if the sun had risen in the west.

Had Li Yaozu changed his nature?

This letter might look like just a letter, but it was a request to a military *juren*—the favor involved was not small at all.

Favors require reciprocity.

There is no such thing as taking without giving back.

"Sanyuan Township isn't far from the county seat, just a day's journey."

"Now that I've redeemed my freedom, Li Yaozu wouldn't intentionally set me up in this matter. This is likely true."

Wei Tu hesitated for a moment before finally making up his mind. He decided to follow the letter's instructions, go to Shan Ji’s home in Sanyuan Township to work as a laborer, and take the opportunity to ask the senior martial scholar for advice on the exams.

It was only midsummer; there was still more than half a year until the military examinations in February next year.

By deviating from his original plan and redeeming his freedom early, the remaining half-year meant he might not earn a single copper, leaving him to eat through his savings.

In the county seat, during the slack farming season, there was no shortage of men from the countryside looking for work.

Even if one didn't ask for wages and only wanted room and board, such work was hard to find.

That was why Xinghua had reacted so strongly when she heard Wei Tu wanted to redeem his freedom.

Compared to the redemption itself, the real difficulty was that servants often had no way to survive after being freed.

"Thank you, Bodhisattva, for your protection. Thank you, Bodhisattva..."

That evening, after seeing Li Yaozu’s handwritten letter, Xinghua smiled, knelt in the corner, and kowtowed three times toward the direction of the City God Temple.

For the first half of the day, she had been on pins and needles, fearing that Wei Tu would be beaten by an enraged Li Yaozu and thrown out of the Li residence.

Or that Wei Tu would rebel against the Li family, causing the yamen runners to search the city all night for a runaway slave.

However.

The Bodhisattva had protected them.

After today, not only had her husband Wei Tu successfully redeemed his deed, but he had also received a "letter of recommendation" from Master Li Yaozu. How could she not be happy?

"I'll pack your clothes and food right now. After you finish your business at the county office tomorrow, leave early for Sanyuan Township..." After thanking the gods, Xinghua didn't rest, instead starting to pack for Wei Tu’s journey.

"In less than half a month, it will be the wheat harvest. Without me in the county seat..." Wei Tu sighed.

If he went to work as a laborer at Master Shan’s, he would certainly be busy during the harvest and wouldn't have time to return to the county seat to cut the wheat.

And Xinghua, a woman, had to be busy with the Li residence's meals during the day; even if she had time at night, leaving the city was too dangerous.

"Why are you so muddled about what's important? Even if the three *mu* of grain rot in the fields, it’s not as important as your future." Xinghua tightened her face, looking displeased, much like a nagging wife.

"Even if I can't cut the wheat, I can hire other tenant farmers to do it. It’ll just cost a little more money."

Xinghua added.

This sentence completely dispelled Wei Tu’s worries. He nodded and agreed to the decision to leave for Sanyuan Township tomorrow.