A Cannon Fodder Who Became The Future Queen - Chapter 9

When the three of them apologized, Ji Ping’an looked over at Shen Zhiyu in the courtyard. Seeing that she had heard, she didn’t make the people on the ground repeat themselves.

After the apologies were done, Ji Ping’an took a few steps closer to them, and they instinctively tried to back away.

“Don’t move.”

Once she saw them standing up straight, Ji Ping’an first patted down the pockets of Hao Da and Wang Er. The total silver they had between them was less than fifty coppers. She figured they’d planned on her footing the bill for their drinking session this time, too. Gong Rong, on the other hand, had a bit of broken silver, less than an ounce.

She confiscated it all, then dangled the silver in front of the three of them. “Consider this your repayment for the drinks.”

If Gong Rong hadn’t brought it up, Ji Ping’an wouldn’t have even thought to ask for the money back. She considered it for a moment, then decided there was nothing else to do. “Now get lost, and remember, don’t ever come back here again!”

Hearing this, the three of them looked like they’d been pardoned. They scrambled and ran towards the village entrance, disappearing from sight in no time.

Ji Ping’an was about to head home when she turned around and saw that her front door was surrounded by people, both inside and out. Their voices had been loud just now, and at this time of day, everyone was making breakfast, so any commotion would be noticed. Naturally, they had all come to watch the show.

Now that the excitement was over, they prepared to leave, hurrying to say, “You’d better get back to it, Miss Ji. We’ve got breakfast cooking at home, so we’ll be heading back!”

While they were in front of Ji Ping’an, they had held their tongues, but once they were a few dozen yards away, they gathered together. One person, hands tucked into her sleeves, couldn’t help but say, “The way Miss Ji kicked them, it looked like it really hurt!”

The person next to her laughed, unsurprised. “She’s always been a troublemaker. She loves a fight. Otherwise, why would Sui Sui be covered in so many scars?”

“You’ve got a point, but this time she was fighting Hao Da and Wang Er! That was so satisfying to watch!” The speaker’s niece had married into a neighboring village and had been bullied by Hao Da and Wang Er more than once, so she had a long-standing dislike for that gang.

“What do you call that? ‘Turning… turning on your own?’ I think that’s right. Isn’t that how they do it in the storybooks from the county town?”

“And I think the moves Ji Da used just now were even better than what they describe in the books!”

This made everyone laugh, but no one argued. After all, they had all been there when Ji Ping’an fought. The way she used both hands to flip people over was truly a sight to behold!

“Hey, when did you start sneaking off to the county to read storybooks behind our backs?”

“From what I saw, she was fighting because of the kunze in her courtyard. Do you know which village that kunze is from?”

“All I heard was that Ji Da found her a sometime ago. Maybe she’s a refugee from the north or the west. If having a kunze at home can make her settle down, that’s a good thing.”

They didn’t see any fundamental difference in Ji Ping’an. After all, she had always been impulsive and quick to fight, completely unreasonable when she got into a brawl. What’s more, no qian yuan would stand for their own kunze being insulted.

It was then that someone had a sudden thought. “You guys, do you think maybe Ji Ping’an went hunting on the mountain yesterday for the sake of her kunze?”

“You might be right about that!”

What had seemed confusing about yesterday’s events now made perfect sense. Some people even started pondering their own children, who were nearing marriageable age, and decided they needed to go see the village matchmaker. It seemed that getting married was what it took for a child to finally grow up. Look, even a scoundrel like Ji Ping’an could learn to be a better person because of her own kunze.

*****

After she couldn’t see the three troublesome anymore, Ji Ping’an closed the wicker gate and went back into the courtyard. Shen Zhiyu finally let go of the hand that was covering Sui Sui’s eyes.

She walked up to the two of them, first looking down at the little girl. “Sui Sui, you weren’t scared just now, were you?”

Sui Sui shook her head. As long as big sister wasn’t going back out with them, she was happy.

“That’s good. Remember, Sui Sui, if you ever see them again, come back home and find big sister and Ah Jiu.”

Ji Ping’an smiled, smoothing down the child’s frazzled hair as if she were petting a cat. “I made you some wild herb cakes. Go eat them in the kitchen.”

Once Sui Sui was in the kitchen, she finally spoke to Shen Zhiyu, taking the initiative to explain. “I didn’t know they would show up today. It’s all from my past.”

Although Shen Zhiyu had her own opinions about qianyuan and still held a skeptical view of her change, she believed this one statement. Especially since she had just been defending her. She gave a small nod and asked, “Are you truly cutting ties with them?”

“Birds of a feather flock together” was a phrase for a reason. Ji Ping’an had just beaten these three, so her other so-called friends would likely hear the news and cut off contact on their own. It wouldn’t be easy to restore those relationships later.

“I was going to cut them off anyway,” Ji Ping’an said, with no trace of regret in her voice. “Casually lying about me owing them money, and then bothering you… Leaving people like that around is just trouble. It’s good that they’ve paid back the money now. I won’t have to deal with them anymore.”

After hearing her out, Shen Zhiyu wanted to say that it had nothing to do with her—she didn’t care what kind of people a qian yuan chose to associate with, good or bad. But before she could speak, she felt something being pressed into her palm. She looked down and saw it was the broken silver Ji Ping’an had just taken from Gong Rong.

Shen Zhiyu’s brows twitched slightly as she looked at her. “You…”

Ji Ping’an opened her own palm, pointing to the copper coins she had gotten from Hao Da and Wang Er. “This is the money they owed me for drinks. The rest is what Gong Rong owes you as a debt.”

That kind of talk wasn’t enough; an apology alone wouldn’t cut it. It was better to compensate with silver.

Shen Zhiyu lowered her eyes to the money in her hand, surprised to hear such words from a qian yuan. She had heard Gong Rong’s greasy words and seen his covetous gaze, but in that moment, she had felt only a serene calmness, as if she were looking at rotten fish and shrimp in a dried-up pond. She had memorized his face, calculating what kind of price she would make him pay in the future.

The only thing she hadn’t anticipated was that Ji Ping’an would fight him, and now, she was claiming that the silver in her hand was an apology.

[Target’s favorability +10]

A mechanical voice rang out, and it took a moment for Ji Ping’an’s brain to process what she’d heard, confirming she hadn’t misheard. It wasn’t minus 10; it was plus 10. This was the first time she had ever increased her favorability!

Ji Ping’an felt even more excited than she did when she drew a golden character in a gacha game. She looked at Shen Zhiyu with a fervent intensity. That was ten more chances to draw!

Shen Zhiyu, sensitive to the strange change in the person before her, narrowed her eyes and instinctively took a step back.

Ji Ping’an cleared her throat. “Did you eat enough breakfast? Want to go back in and have a little more?”

They had left the kitchen as soon as they heard Gong Rong’s voice, dropping their breakfast to do so. After their “friendly” debate, Ji Ping’an felt a little hungry again.

Shen Zhiyu nodded. She had only eaten one wild herb cake and was still only a third full. But just as she lifted her foot, she saw Ji Ping’an wince, hissing in pain.

“What’s wrong?” Shen Zhiyu looked her up and down.

Ji Ping’an wanted to cry. “I used too much strength fighting just now. My arms and legs are cramping up.”

She hadn’t held back when she was teaching them a lesson, landing every kick with full force. As she swung her arms, all she could think about was making them fall hard. She hadn’t pulled a single punch. But the original owner, who loved to drink and rarely did farm work, couldn’t handle that kind of intense physical exertion. Now that she was relaxed, the slightest movement brought a full-body, cramping agony.

Shen Zhiyu: “…”

Sensing her silence, Ji Ping’an defended herself. “This was just an accident.” In the future, if she trained properly, she wouldn’t cramp up after a fight.

Shen Zhiyu just hummed in acknowledgment, feeling no sympathy. She only thought that an accident like this could happen more often, making things easier for her in the future. There was no need to voice this thought. She simply asked, “Can you move now?”

“I can move, but it hurts.”

A tiny part of Shen Zhiyu’s mind let out a sigh of regret. Pity she can still move at all.

Ji Ping’an, unaware of what was going on in Shen Zhiyu’s head, looked at her for help, her voice as gentle as she could make it. “Could you… give me a hand?”

The words had barely left her mouth when she saw Shen Zhiyu turn and walk away without a second thought. Without. A. Second. Thought. Ji Ping’an: “…?!”

She had almost forgotten. Even with the +10 favorability, the total was still -50. There was a chasm between them.

When she finally managed to hobble into the kitchen on her cramping legs, Sui Sui and Shen Zhiyu were already there, eating their cakes by the stove.

Ji Ping’an found a spot next to Shen Zhiyu and sat down, whispering, “How heartless.”

Shen Zhiyu took a bite of her cake, chewed, and swallowed slowly before replying, “If I’m so heartless, why did you manage to get in here?” Her tone was calm, but the undercurrent of retribution was so strong it was impossible to ignore.

Yet, for some reason, the target of her accusation, Ji Ping’an, felt a flicker of happiness. After all, when she first met Shen Zhiyu, her eyes had been cold, and she had been so wary she wouldn’t even speak to her. Now, she had said a few more words.

Pondering it for a few minutes, Ji Ping’an suddenly realized her feeling was similar to the satisfaction of serving a cat. When she first brought a cat home, it would want to be as far from her as possible. But after a few days of feeding it, it might get a little closer. The moment she crossed its safety zone, it would hiss. In those moments, Ji Ping’an only had one thought: hissing cats are also cute.

After breakfast, the three of them took their turn washing the dishes. When they were done, Ji Ping’an was about to leave the kitchen, but when she turned around, she saw Shen Zhiyu still standing by the stove with no intention of leaving.

“You’re still hungry?”

Shen Zhiyu instinctively shook her head. “No, I want…”

“You want what?” Ji Ping’an asked, intrigued. Other than her request to leave and the time she asked for the ointment, this was the first time Shen Zhiyu had made a request, and she was determined to fulfill it.

Shen Zhiyu had seen Ji Ping’an bathing that morning and felt a similar need to wash. But as she was about to speak, a wave of concern washed over her: what if the qian yuan took advantage of her while she was vulnerable?

Ji Ping’an waited a moment, and when Shen Zhiyu didn’t speak, she asked again, “What do you want to do? If I can do it, I’ll definitely help you.”

Shen Zhiyu lowered her eyes, thinking for a moment, before finally saying, “I want to boil some hot water to wash.” She wasn’t as weak as before, so even if the qian yuan was stronger, she would still have a chance to escape. Besides, she could also use this as an opportunity to test her. If she couldn’t keep up the facade now, she wouldn’t have to waste time with her suspicions.