“Good thing no one saw…”

Hu Ma, feeling isolated and detached, glanced at the bustling entrance of the village and couldn't help but cough dryly before turning back.

Good thing no one saw him.

He hadn't paid attention for a while, but the little yellow-haired girl was quite popular in his village.

He had vaguely heard Zhou Datong mention a few times that after he had rescued her, she had temporarily settled down in the small tavern in town as a helper.

Frankly speaking, it was just a place to stay. Normally, the tavern didn't hire anyone; it was a husband-and-wife operation, and the two of them could handle everything. But because Xiang Yatou was diligent, obedient, and could read and do accounts, they had kept her.

Now everyone around was familiar with her and called her Xiang Yatou.

During this time, Li Wazi had been bitten by something while dealing with a demonic entity and had been lying in bed for a few days, and then, he lay for a few more days.

Anyway, he was comfortable lying down, but the workers in the village had nothing to eat, so they had the small tavern make meals for them every day. Xiang Yatou would push a small wooden cart to deliver the food, and after they had eaten, she would collect the dishes and take them back to wash.

Normally, wouldn't that be a waste of money?

Even if the small tavern didn't charge much, eating out every day was more expensive than cooking at home.

However, the workers had worked hard during the troubled times, so Hu Ma didn't say anything and just let them relax for a while.

But this also meant that every day at mealtime, the village was as lively as if it were the New Year.

"Xiang Yatou, has any thug been bullying you lately?"

"No!"

"These scoundrels are useless, they were beaten once and became obedient. I wanted to go over and help you…"

"Xiang Yatou, your cooking skills are getting better and better, even better than Wazi Ge…"

"Wazi Ge just throws everything into the pot and boils it, just like we feed pigs in our village…"

"Xiang Yatou, I heard you fainted before, are you okay now?"

"I didn't faint, I just took a nap…"

"..."

Ignoring the lively atmosphere outside, Hu Ma sat in the chair in the room, drinking tea. After a while, he heard a knock on the door.

Slightly surprised, he saw Xiang Yatou carrying a red lacquered food box, standing timidly outside the inner courtyard. Hu Ma usually focused on his work, so he would just have his meals on the table in the main room. Sometimes, when it was urgent, he would close the door and leave it in the courtyard.

Anyway, he wasn't afraid of eating cold food now.

He didn't expect Xiang Yatou to deliver it this time, and he happened to not be working, so they bumped into each other.

Nodding slightly, Xiang Yatou was immediately overjoyed and walked in with the food box, saying, "Will Young Master eat now?"

Hu Ma nodded and said, "You don't have to call me Young Master, just call me Brother or Shopkeeper."

"Ah?"

Xiang Yatou, while taking out the dishes, said with some difficulty in a low voice, "That won't do."

"I…"

"If I don't call you Young Master, I won't be able to stay in town. Everyone here is very good to me, but I know it's because…"

"...they respect Young Master."

"..."

Hu Ma listened and reacted for a moment before he understood.

This girl wasn't stupid. When she was first rescued, she seemed a bit slow to react because she was scared, and it seemed like those kidnappers had done something to her, so her mind wasn't so clear.

Now, although she was working in the town, she had settled down and recuperated for a while. Now, her previously thin and withered face had a little more collagen.

Faintly, she had the look of a beauty in the making.

And with a settled mind, her brain became more and more active. She actually knew how lucky she was.

Being able to settle down in this town was all because of Hu Ma.

And Hu Ma had rescued her without taking advantage of her. Girls matured early, and she actually understood how rare that was.

Hu Ma didn't say much about this. Anyway, it was just a form of address, so he let her do as she pleased.

He picked up his chopsticks and was about to eat when he saw Xiang Yatou tidying up the room and picking up his dirty clothes. But she still didn't leave, so he could tell she had something to say. He turned around and said, "I'm used to washing my own clothes, you don't have to do these things for me."

"If you have something to say, just say it."

"..."

Hearing this, Xiang Yatou nodded repeatedly and said hesitantly, "Young Master, I… I've remembered some things recently."

"My home is at Big Rock Cliff, Black Cave Ridge, Lingshou Prefecture, An Prefecture… I remember there were two big flowering trees in front of the door."

"..."

"Huh?"

Hearing this, Hu Ma looked up in surprise and smiled, "That's great."

"Now that you know where your home is, send a letter through someone from the mule and horse shop, and you can have your family come to pick you up."

"..."

Previously, Xiang Yatou's mind didn't seem very clear, and her memory of the past was vague. She only remembered that her home was at some Big Rock Cliff, but she didn't know which prefecture or state it was in.

Hu Ma had also asked Manager Xu to help ask around. He was well-known and had many friends, but after asking around, no one knew what this Big Rock Cliff was. After a while, the matter was left behind.

He even felt that finding her or not finding her didn't matter much.

She was just a girl he had picked up along the way, you could just keep her by your side. Now that you're a shopkeeper, it's not like you can't afford to raise her.

Unexpectedly, she slowly remembered the address.

Somewhat pleasantly surprised, he looked at her and said, "Think about other things too, like the names of your family members, how many people there are, and if you still remember them?"

Hearing this, Xiang Yatou was also a little troubled, and she raised her hand and knocked on her head, saying, "I don't remember that…"

"I remember that my adoptive mother drove nails into my head, and now whenever I think about family matters, I feel like this nail is making my head hurt. What I remember becomes blurred again…"

"But some time ago, I felt someone blow a breath here, and my head felt cool, and I started to remember things slowly…"

"..."

"Blew a breath?"

Hu Ma was slightly stunned. Was it when the blue-robed evil ghost was causing trouble?

The blue-robed evil ghost had stirred up chaos here, not only did the evil spirits rise up, but many people were also affected.

However, Xiang Yatou's words made him feel a little strange. Nails driven into her head?

He quickly said, "Come here, let me take a look."

"Okay."

Hearing this, Xiang Yatou came over and squatted in front of Hu Ma, offering her head.

But Hu Ma opened her hair and took a look, but found no nail holes or scars, which was a bit strange.

Xiang Yatou took half a step back and said with a red face, "I've touched it myself, I can remember that nails were driven into my head, and even feel the nails, but there are no wounds."

"Perhaps this is some kind of method used by kidnappers?"

Hu Ma thought silently, vaguely guessing something.

He had thought earlier that Xiang Yatou must have been subjected to some kind of magic by the kidnappers, which was why she couldn't remember her family matters. After all, judging by her age, she was at least thirteen or fourteen years old, there was no reason for her memory to be so muddled.

Probably after she was kidnapped, the kidnapper also knew some evil arts, because she was older, and they were afraid that she would remember her family matters, so they drove nails into her head.

However, the technique she was subjected to was unintentionally loosened by the breath blown by the blue-robed evil ghost, which was why she slowly remembered the specific situation of her family.

"No matter what, it's good to remember."

Hu Ma didn't know much about this, he just comforted her, saying, "Anyway, you've remembered the place. You can write a letter later, and I'll find a reliable person in the city to help you send it over. When your family comes to pick you up, you'll probably remember other things too."

"Young Master…"

Hearing Hu Ma's words, Xiang Yatou trembled a little, "Are you really willing to let me go back?"

Hu Ma looked at her with a smile and said, "What, do you want to stay in this town for the rest of your life?"

"I…"

As Xiang Yatou spoke, her eyes were already red, and she raised the back of her hand to wipe them, her voice trembling, "Young Master is such a good person…"

He couldn't be considered a good person himself, although his reputation in this area seemed to be quite good recently.

Hu Ma just smiled and looked at her, saying, "Don't cry. Helping you find your home is also a good deed." (阴德 literally means "hidden virtue" or "secret merit", often associated with accumulating good karma.)

"Since you've remembered it, write a letter, and I'll find some reliable people to send the letter back to your family. When your family members come to pick you up, everything will be fine."

"..."

Seeing that Hu Ma wasn't just talking about it but also asked her to write a letter, Xiang Yatou knew he was serious, and tears of gratitude streamed down her face. She suddenly knelt on the ground and was about to kowtow to Hu Ma, but Hu Ma grabbed her.

What's wrong with the people here, they kowtow at the slightest thing…

…It's not that he was being pedantic, but this world was weird, and there might be problems if he accepted people's kowtows.

After finally agreeing not to kowtow to him again, Xiang Yatou was still obviously very grateful, continuing to tidy up his clothes and the room with red eyes.

Hu Ma had already told her that she didn't need to, but she wouldn't listen. He could feel what she was thinking, so Hu Ma didn't say anything. Anyway, this was the time when he was about to stop and rest for a while. If it coincided with his cultivation time, he would chase her away.

While looking at the recent account books, he finished his meal without saying anything more to her.

After finishing his meal, just as he was about to clean up and take it out, he suddenly noticed that there was no movement behind him. He turned around and saw that Xiang Yatou was sitting in the room that Wu He's sister used to live in, leaning against the windowsill, with her eyes closed, and she had fallen asleep.

She was still holding one of his garments in her hand, with thread in her mouth, as if she wanted to mend his clothes, but as she mended, she had fallen asleep like this.

"How tired must she be…"

Hu Ma wanted to go over and wake her up, but he saw the calluses on her hands and stopped slightly.

This girl had also been working very hard recently. Listening to her previous account of her family's situation, it seemed that she came from a wealthy family that could afford to hire servants, and she probably didn't do these chores.

But after coming to this town, she didn't feel safe, so she had been diligently doing this and that, trying to please him. How could her body not be tired?

But wasn't this girl's heart a bit too big, to just fall asleep in front of a grown man like him?

Did she think he was still the same as before?

(End of Chapter)