Chapter 266: Show of Power
Author: White Pear Flower
Raws: https://book.qidian.com/info/2386994/
Translated by Gumihou
Proofread by Pill Bug
This time, although Jin Fengju had taken most of the guards to chase after the pirates, he still left three or five guards in the mansion. The safety of his wife and children always came first. That way, he could properly focus on killing enemies on the front line, right? Moreover, Jiang Wanying was in the mansion, which added to the instability. It wouldn’t do to leave no one behind to keep watch.
The guards that Jin Fengju brought were all experienced and loyal, having followed him through thick and thin. As soon as they heard that something happened in the inner court, they immediately rushed there with their servants. When they saw Fu Qiuning and the children safe and sound, the guards felt relieved. If anything had happened to the Marquis’s wife and young masters, they would rather die than face the Marquis with such news.
When those two or three guards arrived, Bai-Zhang’shi naturally backed off. However, the cat was relentless. It had bitten half of the pirate’s face off and was now chewing on a piece of flesh. The pirate had fainted in pain without the guards needing to intervene.
“Tie up this pirate and lock him in the woodshed. Liang, you personally guard him, don’t let him escape. Wait for Master to come back and deal with him. As for this…” one of the guards, who finally turned up, looked at Fu Qiuning for direction.
Fu Qiuning waved a hand at him, “You decide.” [1]
“Madam, his eyeballs were gouged out, and now half of his face has been bitten off. His throat also has deep scratches. He won’t survive. Since we have the other person, there is no need to keep this one,” said the guard carefully.
“If that is the case, kill him and leave his body in the street for three days. Let the people see the fate of pirates. It will give them peace of mind. After all, this pirate is just a human, not a god. If even a cat can defeat him, what about humans? Spread the word among the people that my cat killed him. Let those common folk lose their fear of pirates. If any escapees come to the city in the future, they won’t have an easy time of it. When brave hearts meet in narrow paths, the courageous prevail. Besides martial arts, confidence and willpower are often the keys to victory,” [1] Jiang Wanying’s voice floated over them.
[1] Everyone turned to see Jiang Wanying walking leisurely towards them, looking very calm and collected. Fang Xin straightened up. Instead of answering Jiang Wanying, he turned to look at Fu Qiuning for direction.
[1] “Do as Second Madam Wan suggested,” said Fu Qiuning, since she had no context on what to do under these circumstances as a modern person.
Fang Xin had initially underestimated Madam Ning, thinking that she might cringe against such a suggestion. Hearing her words now, he realized his mistake and bowed to her. Jiang Wanying smirked at his obvious snub.
Bai-Zhang’shi was originally the daughter of a bodyguard. Although she didn’t focus on practising her martial arts from a young age, she had learned some self-defence techniques from her father and brothers. Later, when she was betrothed to the Bai family, her ordinary fiancé suddenly became a successful scholar. When everyone thought the marriage would fall through, the Bai family still welcomed her according to the agreement.
Although her husband had no wealth, they lived happily together. She took pride in her husband and refused to continue practising martial arts, fearing ridicule. Now, after a few years without using her skills, she had just fought a battle and although she hadn’t been overpowered, she felt a little tired after the unexpected exercise.
Hearing Fu Qingning’s words, she smiled and said, “Both Madams are right. These pirates have killed countless people. They deserve to die without a proper burial-“
[2] The chat was interrupted by a cry. A manly cry. Fu Qiuning frowned. These so-called guards were unexpectedly excitable. Aside from wanting opinions from women on how to deal with terrorists, they disappeared when were they when they were needed most. What a bunch of useless people.
“What a bunch of useless people,” Jiang Wanying muttered under her breath.
Fu Qiuning coughed. Unexpectedly, their thoughts aligned at that moment. Footsteps were hurrying over, so Fu Qiuning reluctantly stopped and waited as the ever-excitable Fang Xin rushed over to bow and say, “Madam, there was another pirate just a few steps away, but he’s already dead. I took a quick look, and it seems his throat was bitten off…”
[2] “In short, the cat is a more useful guard than you three?” she said with an arched eyebrow.
[2] “This…” the guard blushed, not daring to look her in the eye.
“That’s right!” A young voice piped up. Who else could it be but Jin Zhenyi? “We were in the courtyard admiring the moon with our sisters when three people suddenly broke in. They probably didn’t expect anyone to be in the backyard, so after a moment of hesitation, one of them came at us with a knife. But then that big cat, I don’t know where it came from, jumped onto him. The man dropped his knife and tried to grab the cat, but after a few moments, he fell to the ground motionless.”
“Admiring the moon?” Fu Qiuning stared at Jin Zhenyi, immediately suspicious.
“Hehehe…”
Fang Xin shivered as he listened. [2] To think that he was saved by a cat! What would have happened to the Madam and the children if the cat had not been there? The guards only managed to arrive after all the pirates had been taken down…
“Madam, although this lowly guard had witnessed the cat scratching and biting people earlier with that unfortunate pirate, this lowly guard never expected the cat to be so fierce. It actually bit through a pirate’s throat without any defence. Is this still a cat? It is more like a little leopard!”
[2] First, let’s flatter the Madam’s cat.
Bai Zhangshi said, “Madam, when we came over earlier, we saw two pirates standing not far away, too scared to approach. It was probably because of the first pirate being bitten to death that they became fearful. Otherwise, not to mention these guards, even when we came, the young masters and miss would have suffered.”
Fu Qingning nodded, “You’re right.”
As she spoke, she looked down at the cat. It was sitting by the bloodied corpse and washing its bloody paws. As if sensing Fu Qiuning’s attention, it limped over and leapt into her arms.
“Poor dear,” Fu Qiuning crooned. “My hero, I shall lavish you with the best attention. Come, we must treat the great hero’s leg.”
[3] “Madam, is this the cat that protected those kittens? My, how remarkable! Rather than an intelligent beast, this cat is more like an enlightened creature, a divine being!” exclaimed Bai-Zhang’shi.
Fu Qingning lovingly stroked the cat’s soft fur, “I believe you are right. Not even domesticated cats are so loving, let alone wild beasts. It must be a divine protector sent from heaven.”
She privately smirked, thinking: Now, let’s have this rumour spread and see if that person still dares to dismiss my precious hero.
“Madam,” one of the servants spoke up. “Allow this servant to look after this cat. My father was a hunter and we encounter civets quite often. Even so, not a single one of them is as ferocious as this one.” [4]
“Ferocious? This fellow?” Fu Qiuing frowned. She tightened her arms around Mister Cat, saying, “When you say that you encounter civets quite often, does it mean you capture them as a game or do they aid you in hunting?”
“This…”
Before the servant could say anything, the cat snarled and Fu Qiuning could feel its body tensing up. “Enough. Leave us. I shall tend to the hero myself.” Then she added, “So, you believe that it is an ocelot?”
The servant smiled, “It’s undoubtedly a civet. Madam may know one thing about it, but not everything. Although mountain civets usually prey on wild chickens and rabbits, if they become aggressive, even antelopes and deer will run away when they see them. Especially if the mountain civet is provoked, for example…” He stopped here and couldn’t continue speaking. He originally wanted to say that mountain civets were very ferocious during their mating season, but if he dared to say such things in front of the lady, it would be seeking death. So he hurriedly shut his mouth and didn’t dare to continue.
Fu Qiuning stared doubtfully at this servant. For some reason, she felt that this fellow was too untrustworthy…
Out loud, she said, “These two pirates are too unfortunate. Earlier, it found that two of the kittens it had been looking after died. It must have adopted the children as its kittens and saw the pirates as threats.”
Bai Zhangshi laughed, “I see. So, it is destiny at work. If not for those two dead kittens, this cat would not have achieved such a feat. The timing of the whole thing is really fortunate.”
“If you could call the death of two kittens fortunate,” Fu Qiuning muttered, causing Bai-Zhang’shi to look awkward.
Beside them, Jiang Wanying kept looking ahead, apparently not at all interested in participating in the conversation. She had no evidence that the kittens’ death had anything to do with Jiang Wanying, let alone the entry of three pirates into the marquis courtyard when all the servants and guards had somehow mysteriously disappeared… [5]
Oh no, perhaps she should have taken over the housekeeping job from Jiang Wanying? Still, even if Jiang Wanying had housekeeping privilege, how could she help the pirates get through the walls, let alone into the courtyard?
Then again, how were the pirates able to enter the courtyard and locate the children’s section so accurately? Even if she was a spy, surely that was only limited to passing information?
If this was the Capital, the Crown Prince may have done something, but here?
She had Jian Feng dismiss the pointless guards and officials who had turned up to ‘help’. Naturally, while news of a cat killing two out of three pirates continued to circulate, Fu Qiuning instructed Jian Feng to hand out a gold coin to every single person who had shown up. They had gotten lucky tonight, however, she could not depend on Mister Cat every time. Therefore, although she would enjoy rubbing the fact that these guards were useless into their stupid faces, it’s still best to maintain a good relationship.
The guards came out laughing, happy with the reward and vowing to do better than the cat in protecting their mistress.
“Only three pirates, and the cat killed two of them. Good job, brothers. This reward is likely encouragement from the Marquis’ wife to do better. Let us have a drink together once this whole affair has blown over. We don’t know how many pirates are in the city, so we must be careful these days. Be sure to patrol the courtyard well and be on high alert, alright?”
As for the officials, their monthly salary was only one coin. Therefore, this unexpected bonus was a happy occasion for them. Naturally, having a cat that could kill those Eastern Barbarians also boosted their confidence.
Once the officials had dispersed, the guards closed the door and returned to their post. This time, they make sure to inspect every corner. Fortunately, nothing major happened throughout the night.
[Gumihou: What a useless lot of people]
[1] For some reason, they wanted Fu Qiuning to act very Jiang Wanyingly, so… Let’s have Jiang Wanying on stage! Dun dun duuu~
[2] Point out the lack of professionalism on the guards’ side
[3] Adjust praise to something that was not something that had been repeated many times by now.
[4] Poke holes in dumb reason
[5] Give a more realistic reason to suspect Jiang Wanying
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