Chapter 575 - 379: So Faint_2

"Really?" Duan Rong looked at the two plates of snacks with interest. They looked decent at first glance.

Xiao Yu, who had long been a female warrior, was raised by Xiao Zongting almost like a son since he had no sons of his own. He never knew Xiao Yu could make snacks.

Zhu Xiaoqi said, "The snacks made by Miss are all here. This represents her heartfelt intentions, so make sure you finish them all."

After saying this, Zhu Xiaoqi covered her mouth with a smile, gave a quick bow, and left.

Duan Rong’s expression shifted slightly. The odd look Zhu Xiaoqi gave him before leaving now seemed a bit peculiar.

However, Duan Rong was indeed a bit hungry. He sat at the table, picked up a piece of osmanthus cake, and took a gentle bite.

As the pastry entered his mouth, Duan Rong’s expression changed subtly.

"This is... utterly disgusting!"

He forced himself to swallow the piece, holding the half-eaten cake in his hand. After hesitating for a while, unable to continue eating, he placed it back on the plate.

He now understood the meaning behind Zhu Xiaoqi’s peculiar glance as she left. She surely knew they were terrible but still gave them to him, asking him to eat them all.

That girl, was she deliberately messing with me?!

Duan Rong found a piece of rice paper and wrapped up the two plates of snacks. Anyway, he was hungry, so he decided to go out for a meal and get rid of the snacks along the way.

If Xiao Yu or Zhu Xiaoqi asked him later, he would simply say he had eaten everything.

Though the case had been resolved, Xianggu County’s newly appointed County Magistrate Guo Xiangbao was still extremely busy, rushing around frantically.

Just two days after Jiang Zhe and Wang Shuliang left, soldiers dispatched by the plains discovered a large number of dry corpses near a pond by the pavilion in Wei Yutian’s old residence.

The soldiers reported this matter to the plains and Guo Xiangbao, and the two ordered an excavation of the pond bed’s silt.

This thorough inspection unearthed hundreds of dry corpses and bones.

After the forensic doctor of the County Government Office examined them, all the dry corpses and bones turned out to be female.

Concerning this matter, Guo Xiangbao wrote a petition, sending one copy to the Inspectorate and another to the sect.

A few days later, the plains and their thousand Iron Cavalry also withdrew from Xianggu County.

Since then, Xianggu County’s market gradually began to regain its vitality...

Although on the surface, it seemed like Xianggu County had returned to its former calm, County Magistrate Guo Xiangbao was still at a loss.

Although the case had been quelled, it left a deep wound in Xianggu County.

Currently, he’s holding onto the assets of various major business establishments, pondering how to handle them.

Over the past three years, Sun Qian schemed cleverly, suppressing and leveraging various means, acquiring the assets of major businesses, either through cheap sales or cunning confiscation from the original owners.

Some attempted to confront Sun Qian directly, but within a few days, they’d mysteriously be exterminated overnight.

Sun Qian attributed it to Jianghu vendettas and closed the case without leaving any clues.

After that case, the original owners of the major businesses either went into hiding or moved away, never to surface again.

But recently, they’ve re-emerged, attempting to contact the new County Magistrate Guo Xiangbao through various connections.

They want to annul the transactions with Sun Qian’s people and reclaim the assets sold cheaply back then. After all, those people were all followers of the Filthy Blood Sect, and the agreements made in front of Sun Qian at the County Government Office were clearly coerced!

These days, Guo Xiangbao has been pondering this issue.

Even if he were to confiscate all these assets, it would technically be within the legal bounds.

However, doing so would not contribute to the long-term peace and stability of Xianggu County, and more importantly, it wouldn’t benefit him personally.

Guo Xiangbao has leaned towards returning the assets to their original powerful owners, but if they want them back, they’d better give him some benefit.

Guo Xiangbao rubbed his hands, downing a large gulp of strong tea. "You’re good, I’m good, everyone’s good! If you get your things back and don’t show some appreciation, aren’t you treating me, Guo, as a fool?"

Guo Xiangbao put down the teacup, contemplating how to exact some benefits from the major forces.

Half a month later, the mourning for Xiao Yu and Zhu Xiaoqi had ended.

On this day, Xiao Yu and Duan Rong were strolling in the garden of the West Gate Mansion.

The garden paths were not swept by servants, covered with fallen leaves, crunching under their feet as they walked.

"Xiao Yu!" Duan Rong suddenly called out to her.

Xiao Yu let out a hum from her throat and continued walking.

Duan Rong said, "I promised you that I would propose to Elder Xiao upon my return. But I didn’t expect Elder Xiao to suffer such an accident. Now, like me, you have become someone without family ties."

Xiao Yu stood there, looking at Duan Rong, her eyes flickering with some kind of emotion.

Duan Rong looked at Xiao Yu and said, "Since Elder Xiao is no longer with us, I shall propose to heaven and earth! With the sky above and the earth below! Xiao Yu, are you willing to marry me?"

As Duan Rong spoke, he knelt on one knee, taking out an exquisitely patterned golden bracelet and offering it to Xiao Yu.

Duan Rong employed the Western-style proposal method from his past life. His original self knew very little about the marriage customs of this world. So Duan Rong expressed his heart directly, believing that true feelings could transcend boundaries and that Xiao Yu would understand his sincerity.

When Duan Rong uttered those words, Xiao Yu’s whole body went cold, but when Duan Rong knelt and handed her the bracelet shining with brilliance, her tears flowed uncontrollably.

At that moment, her heart had already melted!

Through tear-filled eyes, she looked at Duan Rong’s slightly upturned face, a face that seemed to have transcended countless years to appear before her.

Xiao Yu, somewhat flustered, pulled Duan Rong up, saying, "Get up quickly! Don’t let others see!"

Xiao Yu had seen how other girls got married, and Duan Rong’s method was unheard of to her. Although deeply moved, she felt that having Duan Rong kneel before her seemed improper in terms of decorum!

Duan Rong was pulled up by Xiao Yu and said, "You haven’t said whether you agree or not."

Xiao Yu made a slight sound of agreement, like a mosquito’s buzz, and then lowered her head.

Duan Rong was overjoyed, thinking that in two lifetimes, he was finally going to have a wife!

Duan Rong gently placed the flower-patterned golden bracelet on Xiao Yu’s hand, and Xiao Yu stood there, letting him handle it.

Looking at Duan Rong’s gentle and earnest demeanor, Xiao Yu felt quite happy in her heart.

Even though she had lost her father and sister, being able to marry Duan Rong meant she was not entirely alone in this world.

Since they had privately pledged themselves to each other for life, the next step was to prepare for the wedding.

Although Duan Rong knew little about the marriage customs of this world, Xiao Yu knew them very well.

First, they needed to find a fortune-teller to examine their palm lines and birth dates to select an auspicious date for them.

Once the date was chosen, the wedding preparations and notifying relatives and friends could begin.

Upon hearing this, Duan Rong immediately began looking for a fortune-teller. However, he had very few connections in this area.

Duan Rong went to seek help from Yang Zhen.

Yang Zhen, being a constable, happened to oversee an area where there was a fortune-teller. That afternoon, Yang Zhen brought the fortune-teller to the West Gate Mansion to find Duan Rong.

The fortune-teller examined Duan Rong and Xiao Yu’s birth dates and, with a calendar in hand, marked three dates, saying that all three were auspicious days.

Duan Rong was in such a good mood that he rewarded the fortune-teller with a silver note.

The fortune-teller, receiving the silver note, expressed gratitude repeatedly and left joyfully.

Duan Rong and Xiao Yu then discussed the specific date in their room.

Duan Rong leaned towards the middle date of the three, the nineteenth of the following month.

"I was thinking we should have the wedding within the three-month home visit period. Once these three months are over, the sect might assign us tasks at any time."

Xiao Yu’s voice was infinitely gentle. "Yes, you arrange it."

Now that the date was set, the next step was to prepare for the wedding. Duan Rong thought they should first purchase a residence.

After the major upheaval in Xianggu County, there were quite a few vacant mansions, making it a good opportunity to acquire one.

That day, just as Duan Rong was preparing to visit an estate agent, a clerk from the County Government Office unexpectedly came to find him.

During a case, this clerk had sought him out several times before, so they were not meeting for the first time.

"Inspector Duan, my master has urgent business. Please come to the County Government Office for a meeting," the clerk said, bowing deeply with a smile.

Duan Rong’s heart stirred. The case had been concluded, so he wondered why Guo Xiangbao was looking for him.

"Let’s go!" Duan Rong said, striding out and indeed seeing two fast horses already tethered nearby.

The first time this clerk had come to see Duan Rong, he had brought a soft sedan chair, but Duan Rong hadn’t used it at all. Understanding Duan Rong’s preferences, the clerk now always brought fast horses to lead the way when visiting him.