Traveling through the late Ming Dynasty to promote Chinese civilization

Chapter 65 Ling Xi'er

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Just when Liu Ye thought he would be released, his master's words extinguished his illusions.

“I won’t torture him or make him suffer along the way. I can release his pressure points and let him walk on his own.”

Ling Xi'er looked at her master in surprise: "Master?"

"Don't let his words sway you. Our affairs are more important than our own lives, have you forgotten that?"

Ling Xi'er lowered her head and looked at the ground: "Xi'er hasn't forgotten..."

Liu Ye's heart sank again. These two men seemed to be carrying some kind of mission. Compared to thugs who simply robbed and plundered, these people were far more unpredictable and terrifying. He tentatively asked, "May I ask, what use is capturing me? What will it take for you to release me?"

The master looked down at him and said, "Of course it will be useful. We are about to do something big, but we need a lot of money. We originally planned to rob a few wealthy families in Dengzhou City, but the government is on guard against the rebels and it is difficult to enter the city. You just happened to run into us, so the problem of money will fall on your shoulders."

So it was all about money. Liu Ye relaxed a little. Having a purpose was better than having no purpose at all; this way, he could exploit their weaknesses and figure out a way to escape. He laughed and said, "Look at all I have. How much silver can I carry? My purse is probably cleaner than my face."

The master snorted: "Of course, a son of a wealthy family like you wouldn't carry silver around on your own. But that doesn't mean you don't have attendants. Even if you don't have attendants, your family will. As long as you're in our hands, we're not afraid that your family won't give you silver."

The plot unexpectedly turned into a kidnapping! Liu Ye was both amused and exasperated: "How did you know I had money?"

"You gave a boatman fifty taels of silver in one go. I've never seen such generosity in Shandong."

So that's how it is. Liu Ye wished he could chop off his own hand. As the saying goes, one should not flaunt one's wealth. In a moment of carelessness, he took out a fifty-tael silver ingot to hit someone, which put him in danger.

After thinking for a moment, he decided to remind the other party: "Master, I am not from Shandong, but from Qiongzhou Prefecture in Guangdong. If you want your family to send money to redeem me, I'm afraid it's beyond your reach."

"I don't care about that. If I don't see the money by then, I'm afraid I'll have a hard time fulfilling my promise to my apprentice."

Liu Ye shuddered. He didn't want to be kidnapped and killed. What a gruesome death it would be for a time traveler to be kidnapped and murdered by ancient people! He would never die in peace! He said urgently, "You've taken me so far, how did my brothers know I was kidnapped?"

"Don't worry, your subordinate is not only a skilled archer but also a meticulous strategist. He will definitely catch up. I won't let him catch up, but I will find a way to let him know your situation."

"How could he know my situation if he couldn't catch us? And how would he know to go home and get the money to ransom me?"

"You don't need to worry about that, I have my own way of handling it."

With things having come to this, Liu Ye had no choice but to take it one step at a time and pray that Lin San would catch up. The worst outcome would be to pay a ransom. He didn't have much else, but he did have some money. As long as he had the fast ship, the Far Voyage, it wouldn't take long to get the money from Lingao.

That evening, Master left Ling Xi'er to guard Liu Ye and went out alone. Before leaving, he asked, "Xi'er, this man doesn't know martial arts and is no match for you. Moreover, his acupoints haven't been released, so you should be fine guarding him. However, he's very glib. Should we seal his mute acupoint?"

Liu Ye was anxious. This master liked to use acupressure so often, and he didn't know if there were any side effects. It was one thing to be unable to move after sealing other acupoints, but sealing the mute acupoint was no fun at all. If one couldn't move or speak either, it would be suffocating.

He hurriedly said, "Master, since I can't move and pose no threat, please don't seal my speech acupoints. After you leave, I can keep this Miss Xi'er company and chat with her to relieve her boredom."

Xi'er blinked a few times, clearly not objecting to the suggestion. She didn't dislike the man, and having someone to talk to while her master was gone sounded nice.

The master said coldly, "It is precisely because you are good with sweet words that I fear you will bewitch my disciple, which is why I must seal your acupoints..."

Liu Ye was furious. This woman was truly despicable. The two had never met before and had no grudges against each other. It was one thing for her to kidnap him for no reason, since he had shown off his wealth. But to use acupressure on one pressure point after another was going too far. Being unable to move or speak like a mummy sounded terrible.

However, since I am at the mercy of others, I cannot reason with women, especially those who know martial arts. I can only outsmart them through indirect means.

His eyes darted around, and he came up with a plan: "Master, I can't move anymore. If I can't speak either, what if I suddenly need to relieve myself and can't tell Miss Xi'er? The stench would be terrible. I can tolerate being a stinky man, but I can't bear to offend the delicate Miss Xi'er!"

Master had considered all sorts of reasons Liu Ye might give, but she didn't intend to listen to them. Her only goal was to seal his speech acupoints, and this was the one reason she was speechless about. Women of all ages love cleanliness, and she and Xian'er were no exception.

Ling Xi'er immediately became anxious upon hearing this: "Master, we can't let him poop on himself... just thinking about it makes me feel disgusted."

The master pondered for a moment and said, "This... I'll be right back, it'll take at most the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. Just bear with it..."

"No, everyone has to go to the bathroom sometimes, and I can't guarantee I can hold it in," Liu Ye replied seriously.

"Never mind, never mind." The master didn't know how to refute, so he waved his sleeves and left, never mentioning the matter of sealing the acupoints for speech again.

Watching his master's figure disappear through the door, Liu Ye made a judgment: although the master and disciple knew martial arts, especially the master who was very skilled, they lacked experience in dealing with people and were easily deceived; in other words, they had no experience in the ways of the world. He could fool them a bit, and perhaps he could escape. The best way to break through was through this girl, Xi'er, who seemed to have a good impression of him.

He was about to turn around and use his silver tongue to talk to Xi'er when he was startled to see a face so close to his, with a faint smile on its face.

"Damn it, Miss Xi'er, why are you standing so close? You scared me."

Ling Xi'er squatted down beside him with a smile and said, "Get closer, I want to see what kind of tricks you're up to."

The other person's style had changed drastically, and Liu Ye was a little unaccustomed to it. He was suspicious and uncertain, but he replied, "Miss Xi'er is joking. You're not a worm in my stomach. What I'm thinking, you can't see it, can you?"

"Pah, who wants to be a worm in your stomach? That sounds disgusting." Xi'er fiddled with a strand of hair at her temple. "You can tell a lot about a person's thoughts from their facial expressions. If they're not very shrewd, you can see right through them. But if they're as cunning as you, you'll have to put in some effort. Also, only someone as close as Master can call me Xi'er. My name is Ling Xi'er, you can call me Miss Ling."