Chapter 59: Pickled Cabbage and Pig Trotter Hotpot

Jiang璃 looked at the person before her, who appeared to be utterly obsessed with martial arts.

"Is that really necessary?"

Zheng Jiang immediately replied, "Very necessary! As a woman possessing boundless strength and exceptional skills, how could you let such talent go to waste?"

"Whether or not you join the escort agency is a matter for another day, but as fellow martial artists, sparring with each other can only help us improve."

His tone was passionate, but Jiang璃 remained indifferent.

"I imagine you've misunderstood, big brother. I merely have a bit of strength; I am not skilled in martial arts."

Seeing that Jiang璃 was unwilling to agree, he recalled her earlier inquiry about silver and dangled a tempting incentive.

"Madam, how old are the children at home? Do they need to attend school?"

"Although we escorts often travel away from home year-round, the agency takes good care of our wives and children, ensuring we have no worries behind us. When we undertake major escort missions, there are also dividends."

"With your abilities, madam, why confine yourself to the fields?"

Jiang璃 remained silent. When she walked, this man followed; when she stopped, he stopped as well.

If she refused to spar at the martial arts hall, was he going to follow her indefinitely?

"Spar with how many people? And how long will it take?"

"Half an hour will suffice."

After answering, Zheng Jiang smiled and asked, "Does this mean madam has agreed?"

Jiang璃 looked at him with a smile and said, "If I didn't agree, big brother, would you be escorting me out of the city gates?"

Zheng Jiang laughed awkwardly and said, "It's just that the brothers at the martial arts hall are mostly martial arts fanatics. Hearing about someone with genuine skill, they can't help wanting to bring them in."

"Working together is one thing, and we can spar at any time to sharpen our skills."

"Does your esteemed escort agency have female escorts?" Jiang璃 asked. Zheng Jiang replied, "We've been searching, but haven't found any. That's why, upon hearing about your prowess, madam, I staked out the market the entire day yesterday."

Jiang璃 only had a superficial understanding of this profession.

She did wish to travel widely, but sightseeing and escorting goods through danger were undoubtedly entirely different things.

Just as a vacation and a permanent business trip could never feel the same.

Besides, the outside world was in such turmoil right now; she was no deity. No matter how formidable she was, if she encountered a band of fierce bandits, two fists could still hardly match four hands.

Since Zheng Jiang was insistent on sparring, she would oblige him.

It would also give her a chance to open her eyes and see the caliber of these escorts who licked blood off their blades year-round, giving her a clearer assessment in her own mind.

Zheng Jiang led her to the martial arts hall, where the agency's escorts and the hall's disciples were all waiting.

Upon seeing Jiang璃, who carried a back-basket and looked slender and thin, their eyes filled entirely with disappointment.

They probably thought that such a frail woman could never send a person flying with a single punch, and they couldn't even bear to make a move against her.

Zheng Jiang brought Jiang璃 to meet the proprietor and the martial arts instructor.

Though they exchanged polite greetings, Jiang璃 did not miss the faint flicker of doubt in their eyes.

Unfazed, Jiang璃 set down her back-basket and asked Zheng Jiang, "Big Brother Zheng, will you go first?"

Zheng Jiang gave a hearty laugh. "No problem!"

The martial arts hall featured a sparring ring. The two of them stepped onto the stage one after the other, and everyone crowded around to watch.

Bare-handed, Zheng Jiang made the first move. Mindful of Jiang璃's formidable strength, he did not dare to underestimate her. However, when he threw a punch, Jiang璃 raised her arms to block; despite the immense force behind his strike, it failed to shake her even an infinitesimal amount. In the instant he felt a flash of bewilderment, Jiang璃 countered with a punch of her own, sending him stumbling back several paces until he barely regained his footing at the edge of the ring.

This was merely a spar, so Jiang璃 had not used her full strength—she certainly couldn't injure the man and send him off to a medical clinic.

Realizing he could not match Jiang璃 in sheer force, Zheng Jiang attempted to rely on speed to gain the upper hand. Yet, after exchanging five moves with her, he hadn't even managed to brush against the hem of her garment.

Could this be possible?

Being strong was one thing, but was she fast as well?

Seeing Zheng Jiang placed at a disadvantage, the onlookers instantly turned dead serious.

Zheng Jiang was a seasoned escort whose hand-to-hand combat skills had always been formidable, ranking among the very best in the hall; yet, he was actually losing the upper hand.

"Why is madam not using her full strength?" Zheng Jiang asked aloud.

Jiang璃 looked at him and said calmly, "I only use my full strength when taking someone's life. We are just sparring—a contest of skill stops at the touch!"

When she learned martial arts as a child, it was for fitness; later, it became a hobby; and finally, when the apocalypse of natural disasters arrived, she fought with everything she had simply to survive. Therefore, her combat style was completely different from Zheng Jiang and the others—moves that didn't kill were nothing more than flashy routines.

Her true style was a super-powerful, fatal strike delivered in an instant.

That was what she excelled at.

Jiang璃's words seemed to provoke the onlookers. Just as her voice faded, a young voice rang out: "Such arrogant words! I think you're just putting on a front. I'd like to see for myself what skills you really have!"

Before the echo had even died away, the very moment Jiang璃 turned her head, her figure vanished from the ring like a gust of wind. By the time everyone regained their senses, Jiang璃 had already clamped her hand around the speaker's throat. With just the slightest exertion of pressure on her part, the man's life would be extinguished.

At that exact second, everyone held their breath, frozen in place as though their own throats were being gripped.

Zheng Jiang leaped down from the ring and hurried over, saying, "Madam, my junior brother is reckless and impetuous, and his words have offended you. I beg madam not to hold it against him."

Jiang璃 curved her lips into a faint smile, loosened her grip, and looked at Zheng Jiang. "It's nothing. Since this brother wished to witness my abilities, I was merely obliging him."

"As for today's spar, should we continue?"

If someone had asked that while standing in the ring, the answer would naturally have been yes.

But after what had just transpired, what need was there to continue?

The proprietor suddenly beamed with smiles and invited Jiang璃 inside, saying, "Old me is left utterly speechless by madam's skills. Please, move to the inner room for some tea."

Jiang璃 originally had no desire to go, but considering she had just slapped the martial arts hall across the face, she had no choice but to accompany them.

When these people undertook escort missions, three-tenths depended on reputation, but another three-tenths depended on genuine strength. Trekking across mountains and rivers as they did, could they possibly rely on reputation alone in every remote corner of the world?

Ultimately, one needed strength to possess confidence, allowing one to advance or retreat with complete ease.

Inside the tea room of the martial arts hall, the escort agency's proprietor, the martial arts instructor, and Zheng Jiang all followed them in.

The proprietor proposed that she join the escort agency, but Jiang璃 shook her head and replied, "Thank you for your kind regard, proprietor, but I still have young children at home and cannot constantly travel away."

"Is there no one at home to look after them?"

Jiang璃 nodded with a smile. "Mm."

"If that is the case, our martial arts hall can take care of them on your behalf. Rest assured, we don't just look after one or two children; we have dedicated women to watch over them. What does madam think of that?"

Jiang璃 looked at the proprietor. In modern times, wasn't this essentially a workplace offering child-care services?

It was quite a decent employer.

However, Jiang璃 was someone attached to her home; she longed for a place of belonging.

Even that earthen house in Daqiu Village—where she ventured into the mountains and returned every day, walking out to town and back—was her sanctuary of peace.

If she brought both Xiaoman and A'ning here, she would have moved to town, but this place was not home.

Furthermore, she had long since grown weary of a life that licked blood off blades, and she held no great interest in escorting goods.

Yet, since the others were showing utmost sincerity, rejecting them without leaving any room for maneuver would seem rather cold and unfeeling.

Noticing Jiang璃's brows smoothing out and then furrowing again, the proprietor guessed she must be deeply torn.

His own heart swayed according to her expressions, until he finally couldn't help asking directly, "If madam has any thoughts on the matter, please feel free to speak your mind."

Jiang璃 smiled. "Since you ask, proprietor, I will be frank. As for year-round escort work, I do not care for a life of perpetual travel away from home."

Hearing this, the proprietor knitted his brows and remained silent for a long moment before asking, "Should there occasionally be a major escort mission, would madam be willing to accompany the team?"

"Madam's earnings would be calculated based on the escort fees and distributed as a dividend. Once the mission is completed, madam may return home."

The proprietor made yet another concession. Jiang璃 took a deep breath. "I don't know very much about the rules of escort work."

"Madam merely needs to guard the cargo. Should any unexpected danger arise, madam only needs to do her utmost to protect the cargo and her companions; the rest of the matters will be handled by those traveling with you."

Since things had been laid out this clearly, Jiang璃 could certainly consider taking it on as a part-time job.

She asked one final question: "Most of the time, how long does a single escort journey take?"

"Sometimes a little over a month, sometimes more than two months. It specifically depends on where the cargo is being transported to."

Jiang璃 nodded. Unable to fully read her thoughts, the proprietor asked with a smile, "Does this mean madam agrees?"

"Occasionally, I can."

"However, I would hope that when my services are truly needed, it is for a major escort mission. Otherwise, if it clashes with the busy farming season, I'd go out for two months only to find out when I return that the crops couldn't even be planted."

The three people present couldn't help laughing at her words.

Farming for an entire year might not even earn ten taels of silver.

When their escort agency's dividends were good, averaging out, each person made seven or eight taels a month.

Still, everyone had things they cherished dearly, so it couldn't be generalized. The proprietor said, "That goes without saying. Where does madam make her home? May we leave down an address?"

Jiang璃 had no wish to leave her address for now, as she might frequently visit town in the future. She simply replied, "If you need to find me, send someone to Guankou Town and look for a butcher surnamed Sun, and just say you are looking for Madam Jiang."

Since they were strangers and Jiang璃 needed to keep her guard up, this was understandable. Once the proprietor agreed, Jiang璃 took her leave.

After seeing Jiang璃 off, the proprietor and the martial arts instructor both let out sighs.

Zheng Jiang frowned slightly as he heard the instructor say, "This person definitely used to lead a life of licking blood off blades, though her exact background is unknown."

The proprietor remarked, "In these troubled times, you find all sorts of people. My intuition tells me this person can be trusted."

The instructor laughed. "She's a fierce one, and you're trusting her based on intuition?"

Zheng Jiang looked at the two of them and smiled. "Why are you two still fretting now that she's agreed? From what I can tell, she has no real desire to be an escort; she probably just felt a bit guilty about having to strike junior brother earlier, which is why she came inside with you. She doesn't strike me as the type to steal from her own employers."

"If she had any intentions of theft, would she even be worried about missing out on farming?"

Hearing this, both the proprietor and the instructor burst into laughter. That was true; words spoken without hesitation were genuine.

Jiang璃 was indeed concerned that if they came looking for her to undertake an escort mission, it would happen right during the busy farming season.

These people could never truly understand her perspective. Having money to buy grain and vegetables versus harvesting them from the earth with your own hands and eating them fresh were two entirely different experiences.

She simply preferred the latter.

Because she needed to return home to cook the evening meal, Jiang璃 quickened her pace along the way back.

Today the village was livelier than usual, seeing as it was a festival.

Every household would whip up a little something to eat—even if it wasn't lavish, they would slice off a tiny bit of meat to stew with dried vegetables.

In previous years, when autumn harvest arrived around this holiday, people would always steam a whole bamboo basket full of white mantou.

This year, the crops were still unharvested in the fields; the yield wasn't as good as past years, but compared to the initial fears of a total crop failure, it was much better, and some families steeled their hearts to make a little anyway.

Children being children, when good food was being prepared at home, they would be overjoyed even before tasting a single bite.

Infected by this festive atmosphere, Xiaoman and A'ning, along with Jiang Huahua, squatted at the entrance of the village waiting for Jiang璃.

Seeing Jiang璃 return, the two children and the beast all dashed toward her.

She had only been away from home for a single day, but anyone who didn't know better would have thought she had been gone for ten days or half a month.