The sound of the night watchman's clapper came as the sky was still dark, with only sparse lights visible in Hangzhou. Searching: \(?Complete? Book? Divine? Station) to read premium literature for free.

In the small courtyard behind the Wen Lie Academy, a warm yellow light was already shining from the room. Ning Yi hummed a song in the kitchen, using chopsticks to mix flour in a bowl. On the chopping board beside him, half of the dishes he had taken as leftovers from the banquet of officials the previous night were being chopped up to make meat sauce, ready to be used for making pancakes.

Although Ning Yi had offended many people recently, nothing particularly unusual had happened around him at the banquet last night. Besides the renewed encounters with Long Boyuan, Lou Shuwan, and others, he naturally saw some familiar or memorable faces. Afterwards, it was a simple and lively banquet. Although he also saw the appearance of Fang La and others, it didn't hold much significance for Ning Yi. After the banquet, Ning Yi packed up some of the dishes to bring back, and that was it.

It was now nearly dawn of the second day. Ning Yi had woken up early. The clinic slightly to his side seemed to have recently received a patient and was already bustling. Ning Yi had Xiaochan go over to help, while he himself prepared breakfast in the kitchen. To match the beef he had brought back from the banquet last night and had now chopped up, he specifically cracked two eggs into the flour.

The current Hangzhou was basically an environment with severe class disparities. It was not uncommon for people without status or background to starve to death, while those with backers often had the capital to become nouveau riche. Ning Yi was currently one of the few existing between the two extremes. He wouldn't starve to death, and most of the time he could eat well. Even if he couldn't compare with others in terms of a few resources, Liu Dabiao's side wasn't treating him badly. Corruption or using his power for personal gain seemed unnecessary, but he didn't have much surplus food on weekdays, belonging to a pattern of living quite well every day, but one day at a time.

*******************

Passing by the courtyard gate, a girl wearing a bamboo hat, like a phantom, heard strange songs like "Candlelight illuminates dinner, but cannot illuminate an answer, love is not a warm treat..." coming from inside, followed by the aroma of pancakes.

This was the small courtyard where Ning Liheng lived. She had glanced at it a few times from the road outside, but had never come inside. This was, of course, because there was no need. The girl was currently the owner of this entire street. As a superior, she could have concern for her subordinates, but there was no need to think about being neighborly, especially... when she was a leader with a robust name like Liu Dabiao, it was often necessary to maintain a distance from people.

Martial artists wake up early. The banquet last night didn't involve her too much, nor did it consume too much energy. This morning, when she got up and was preparing to cultivate her Qi and practice her sword, she heard that the young son of Manager Chen from the stronghold had suddenly become ill and was rushed to the doctor. Seeing that it was still dark, she walked around to take a look.

The courtyards on this street were originally separated, but after the earthquake, the Badao Camp occupied this area, and many walls were simply broken through. Now the courtyards were connected, with large and small courtyards housing three or five households. It was lively, but it was also because the Badao Camp didn't rush to loot after entering the city, resulting in insufficient housing.

The girl didn't carry a sword. She woke up this morning wearing an indigo dress and a gauze hat, coming quietly like a ghost, without disturbing anyone along the way. Of course, even if the few martial arts masters in the stronghold saw her, they probably wouldn't say anything. She quietly took a few glances at the back of the clinic. It seemed quite tense inside, with family members anxious, and the child crying and shouting in pain. The old doctor, whom she should call grandfather, was busy treating the patient, using acupuncture and applying medicine. It seemed that the girl who followed Ning Liheng was also helping, but she also knew that this girl was now Ning Liheng's concubine. Helping in the clinic, she had a good rapport with people.

The treatment in the clinic probably wouldn't end for a while. She had no intention of going over to comfort or cause trouble. Turning back, she passed the entrance to the small courtyard over there. The kitchen was lit, and Ning Liheng's strange singing voice came over. Now that Xiaochan was helping in the clinic, it was obviously just him inside. The Badao Stronghold wasn't a scholarly family. In the past, they roamed the martial world. Now they were killing officials and rebelling. In the wilderness, men who could cook were everywhere, but she hadn't seen many scholars with women doing this.

And the lyrics, although strange, were interesting. At this time, he sang, "Sunshine flows over the body, waiting for all karma to be forgiven..." She seemed to be able to easily understand these lyrics.

Listening for a few sentences, the singing inside stopped, and then the figure of the scholar appeared under the eaves over there, holding something golden in his hand and biting it, looking over this way. She had intended to leave, but since she had been seen, she wouldn't leave.

The scholar saw her, seemed slightly stunned, then smiled with a hint of teasing but quite naturally: "Lord, good morning."

For many days, when the two were together, Ning Yi seemed to derive some enjoyment from saying the word "Lord," although it didn't contain malice, but it wasn't necessarily out of respect. However, she didn't care about his little self-entertainment. At this time, she slightly raised her chin, nodded, and said gently: "Good morning to you too."

"Have you eaten?" Ning Yi raised the pancake in his hand. "Such a fine day, why not try the skills of your subordinate?"

A moment later, the two sat under the eaves eating the pancake. The golden-fried pancake was wrapped with beef, raw cucumber, and other things, somewhat similar to the meat rolls in KFC in later generations. Liu Xigua slightly lifted her veil and took a few bites, looking at Ning Yi: "I heard that a gentleman keeps away from the kitchen."

"Confucius did say that." Ning Yi nodded, then looked towards the clinic over there, "Lord...could it be you're here to see the sick child?"

Liu Xigua ate her food, noncommittal: "Seeing the child in so much pain, it should be appendicitis. If he's unlucky, he might not survive."

"Lord is benevolent and kind-hearted, admirable. But appendicitis...that's appendicitis, right? It would be good to cut off a section of the intestine."

Liu Xigua looked at him from behind the veil, for a long while, and then answered in a perfunctory manner: "How to cut it?"

"Make a cut, find the diseased appendix...that is, a section of the intestine roughly here, cut it off, and then sew it back together...uh, something like that. I don't know the specifics, but to study this, you might consider dissecting some normal people's corpses and comparing them with the intestines of people with appendicitis."

"What Liheng says is thought-provoking." The girl turned her head to focus on eating.

"It's not a bad way to study things, cut open, compare, sew back together, but disinfection must be good, and then...anyway, I'm not a doctor, it's something they need to study."

There were no stars, no moon, and the sky wasn't very bright. The two sitting under the eaves talking were obviously not serious. If it were normal times, the girl would mostly think for a while about the things Ning Yi said, but at this time, she was obviously a little indifferent. Ning Yi probably didn't care whether the other party believed it or not—probably because he was sure the other party wouldn't believe it—irresponsibly talking for a while, and then laughed: "How did they report me?"

"They said you believed in some unorthodox things, and stitched up the wound on your hand, almost dying." Speaking of this, Liu Xigua seemed to laugh, but that feeling was fleeting.

Ning Yi shrugged and defended: "Scientific research, there will always be mistakes, failure is the mother of success."

The sky wasn't yet bright, it wasn't the time to discuss serious matters. Liu Xigua had already confirmed that Ning Liheng was basically an uninteresting person, and everything else could probably be understood from this starting point. He didn't care at all about things like a gentleman keeping away from the kitchen, and as for those out-of-the-ordinary ideas and practices, they were probably out of indifference to many things. And Liu Xigua now only wanted his planning ability, and she was equally indifferent to other aspects. The two had basically established a way of getting along in this mode. Words could be said randomly, as long as both parties were clear-headed, and things weren't done randomly.

To some extent, in Liu Xigua's understanding, being a superior was basically a matter of unscrupulousness and lack of principles. But even so, she would still appreciate people and things with principles and persistence. Initially, she wanted to subdue Ning Liheng. In her expectations, she wanted to do it as a huge challenge, and she made various predictions about the other party. So she was preparing everything when she followed Fang Qifo to attack Jiaxing, such as having people go to Huzhou to inquire about Su Tan'er, doing a thorough layout. It would be very good to be a teacher, friend, or enemy in the end. Who knew the other party would be so straightforward.

After probably understanding the other party's style of doing things, everything became uninteresting. She admired the other party's ability to act, but found it difficult to appreciate. I won't kill you, you'll help me do things, I'll treat you well, and then it's probably this kind of mechanical way of getting along. Perhaps it was because of this that she didn't mind eating a pancake in the other party's courtyard at this time, saying a few words casually, because both sides had the ability to distinguish, and neither side would take it to heart.

In the midst of desultory talk, the sound of small-scale fighting seemed to come from the night sky. Liu Xigua stopped slightly, listening carefully. Ning Yi also listened for a while: "That street on the east side, there's another fight, it seems quite frequent recently." As he spoke, Liu Xigua had already stood up, thought for a while, and reached out her hand: "Give me another one." Ning Yi gave her a pancake, and she walked towards the gate leading to the street, turned back and asked: "Do you want to come and see?"

Ning Yi was stunned: "Okay, I love watching people fight."

The sky was already showing a faint glimmer of dawn, the cocks crowed. In the hazy dawn light, the two walked towards the street where the brawl was taking place, eating beef rolls. Hangzhou was not peaceful at this time. When they reached the street corner, they already saw the swaying torches and figures in blood, some yelling "Kill him..." rushing into a nearby alley.

The few streets on the east side belonging to the Badao Camp were close to the suburbs and were relatively dilapidated. After the city was broken, many poor people gathered here. The Badao Camp's encroachment on the territory didn't expand significantly around it, probably because Liu Xigua saw that there were many people and old houses here, giving them a way out. It was chaotic when the city was broken. It was said that Liu Xigua was still handing out steamed buns in the vicinity for fun. Later, this place was a mixed bag, with many messy things happening, people dying of illness and starvation, but these kinds of things were common in the suburbs of Hangzhou today. Ning Yi occasionally talked about it with Xiaochan, but only told her to stay away from here. During this time, Ning Yi had seen several fights here, seemingly some gangsters and gangs who were originally in Hangzhou, started re-exerting their power in these places and establishing their own forces after understanding the laissez-faire attitude of Fang La's army.

Ning Yi didn't mind watching some gossip and lively scenes, but he was a little surprised that Liu Dabiao was also interested in this. As the sky gradually brightened, the street was filled with groans. The girl finished the pancake and murmured, "We'll have to send some medicine over later."

"You're so kind..."

Ning Yi just said it perfunctorily. The girl's kindness often came very strangely, handing out steamed buns when the city was broken, sending medicine at this time, perhaps it was just a whim. However, this time's speech was a little beyond his expectations.

"I made them fight." The morning breeze stirred the veil. Under the veil, the girl's delicate lips seemed to outline slightly, as if she was talking about a rather proud masterpiece.

"Hmm?"

"I made them fight." Liu Dabiao smiled triumphantly, "When the city was broken, they came over here, and I came to hand out steamed buns. I didn't hand out many, but some people fought. I didn't care."

"I heard that a child's steamed bun was snatched in front of you, and you didn't care."

"Yeah, I did good deeds, I'm a good person, anyway, someone will eat my steamed bun, who eats it, what does it matter? It's about sincerity." She said, "They don't know me, they just think I'm a rich lady with a little background. One time I came over, and they robbed my bag too. So later I drove a carriage over and handed them out in the carriage."

Ning Yi had heard about these things the girl said several times in the Badao Camp. There were many people on this street, and the girl handed out steamed buns or something like that, but she couldn't take care of everyone. She didn't hand out many things, just one bag, and she left with peace of mind after handing them out, so everyone basically thought she was only seeking her own peace of mind.

"I didn't hand out many things, I just handed them out to a few people, so everyone had a lot. Some people suddenly got ten steamed buns, they couldn't finish them, they wanted to hide them, and they were discovered, and someone came to snatch them. Later, I also handed out some bacon or something, anyway, it was very delicious. There's a boss Jin here, a boss Tian here, and... anyway, there are several leaders, they all have some people under them, they can't bully us here, so they can only bully the people on the street. Every time things are snatched back and forth by them. Later, when I went to hand out things, no one dared to take them." Liu Dabiao laughed with the back of her hand against her lips, "But I'm not a bad person, they don't dare to take them, I still have to hand them out, some people are so hungry that they have to take risks. I heard that a child was beaten into a cripple for snatching some things for his mother to eat. Hehe..."

The sun gradually rose. The girl wore an indigo floral dress, a cloak, and when she wasn't carrying that giant sword with arrogance, she looked soft and pure, but at this time, there was a touch of evil charm in that laughter. Ning Yi frowned and suddenly thought of a possibility: "You don't want to..."

The girl put down her hand, the laughter stopped, the person behind the veil seemed a little quiet, and after a long while, she spoke: "Every time I hand out a little more, but it's definitely not enough, and I don't hand out to those who look strong, every time I give it to whoever I see needs it. Ten steamed buns, twenty steamed buns, a pound of bacon... These people are used to living in the city, they don't dare to do anything. Give them a steamed bun, and they eat it right away. They can't finish ten steamed buns, they don't want to eat a pound of bacon, and every time they are snatched, and those who are bullied are always bullied. Some people starve to death, some people die of illness, some people are beaten severely, and keep hurting to death, it's really pitiful. Finally, a few days ago, a fifteen-year-old boy was robbed of his steamed bun and beaten up. He snatched a knife and stabbed three people who came to snatch things to death, and then he was arrested. I asked someone to bail him out and let him join my Badao Camp's personal guard... Then these days, many of them have started fighting."

Far away, it seemed that the Black Feather Guard's law enforcement team was coming over. The girl laughed again: "It is equality in law, without high or low. But in this world, if you don't even dare to move your hands, even if I give them things, they won't be theirs. Then I can only teach them to take them with their own hands. If they can't hold things steadily even if they are given to them, and I have to watch them finish eating, I'm not their mother, why should I? This place was snatched by us with blood, and they lost this place because of this. If they don't understand this, they can only die."

She raised her chin slightly: "I also hope that one day, there can be a place where they can get something and it will become their own, but before that, we have to defeat those who shouldn't have so many things. In this world, too many people have gotten things that don't belong to them..."

"This is what I want to do in the future. I am very powerful." She turned her head and looked at him seriously, "So, Liheng, can you please don't call me Lord like that in the future, that's no different from a princess. You can call me Liu Dabiao, or you can call me Dabiao, we are doing things together, it is a brotherhood... Of course, if you really don't want to, it doesn't matter, you can continue to call me Lord, or you can call me Liu Qianqian, I also have a nickname called Liu Xigua, if you really want to call it, I don't mind, as long as you don't become my enemy, I can tolerate anything, because you are a truly capable person."

After she finished speaking, she turned around and waved her hand: "I'm going back first."

Ning Yi was stunned for a long while: "Haha, okay, Dabiao."

Liu Dabiao, who had taken a few steps, turned back, reached out her hand and pointed at him: "Don't call it too loud on the street, too casually, I am your boss after all, I need some face..." As she turned around, her skirt fluttered, her voice was clear, but it also carried a tomboyish feeling. Then, she seemed to see a door not far away about to open, and suddenly jumped up, climbed over the nearby wall, looked at Ning Yi, jumped down and disappeared.

Ning Yi found it interesting. This Liu Dabiao was sometimes strange, sometimes domineering, sometimes silly, sometimes quiet, sometimes cheerful and pure. If you really want to say it, if she has this attitude towards the high-level executives of the Badao Camp, she is indeed a woman with leadership charisma...

Just as he was thinking about this, a carriage stopped at the entrance of the small courtyard where he lived, and someone got off the carriage and knocked on the courtyard door. From afar, it was Lou Shuwan... (To be continued.) Vote for recommendations, monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation.)

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