When Shen Yuan returned home, he found his wife pacing anxiously in the hall.
Upon hearing movement, Hu Yufen hurriedly walked out from inside, stumbling over the snow as she came forward: "Husband, what happened?"
In her impression, her husband was a calm person, but his hasty manner this morning made her realize that something important must have happened.
"It’s nothing." Shen Yuan quickly walked over to support her: "It’s cold outside, let’s go back inside first."
"A few days ago, I asked Master Huang for help to find a family in town that grows fruit trees and ordered a batch of fruit tree saplings, which we agreed to check today."
"I’ve been so busy these days that I almost forgot about it."
Shen Yuan hastily made up a reason to reassure his wife, glanced at the snow in the courtyard, and changed the subject: "The snow has stopped, we need to clear it away quickly."
With that, he found a shovel and went into the yard to busy himself with shoveling snow.
Hu Yufen sat in the hall, watching his busy figure, looking a bit worried.
The couple had been together for nearly ten years, and she was well aware of Shen Yuan’s character.
His words just now were merely to comfort her, not wanting her to worry.
Time passed quickly, and soon it was time for their eldest, Shen Wenxing, to have a holiday.
That day, Shen Yuan prepared the ox cart, ready to go to town to bring his eldest son back.
When he arrived at the Martial Arts Hall in Yunshui Town, he unexpectedly found a tall military warhorse tied to the stables at the entrance of the hall.
Shen Yuan entered the Martial Arts Hall and encountered Huang Qingzhou coming out.
"According to the time, my worthy brother should be here?"
"Brother..."
As Shen Yuan was bowing to greet, Huang Qingzhou directly pulled him to a nearby side room.
"Come in quickly, my worthy brother..."
Following Huang Qingzhou into the room, a wave of warmth hit him, and Shen Yuan suddenly noticed a figure sipping tea inside the room.
"Brother Yunxiao?"
That person was Huang Yunxiao.
Currently, Huang Yunxiao had a bandage on his shoulder and a scar on his face. Upon seeing Shen Yuan, he immediately stood up and cheerfully greeted him.
"My worthy brother, please have a seat."
Surprised, Shen Yuan sat on a stool nearby and said: "Brother Yunxiao, are you injured?"
Huang Yunxiao glanced at his left arm and waved with a smile: "A minor wound, an arrow from a damned dog of the Barbarian Race hit my shoulder from behind."
"My worthy brother, it was thanks to you spotting these beasts in advance."
After Huang Qingzhou poured Shen Yuan a cup of tea, Huang Yunxiao continued: "To be honest, this time, thanks to my foolish brother and Captain Zhang, we managed to successfully intercept and kill a Barbarian squad."
"Qingzhou."
Huang Qingzhou, upon hearing, hurriedly brought a tray covered with a red cloth to Shen Yuan.
"This is..."
Shen Yuan glanced at the tray, feeling puzzled.
Huang Yunxiao smiled faintly: "Open it and take a look, my worthy brother."
As the red cloth was lifted, the tray was neatly arranged with thirty shiny silver ingots, each inscribed with "Government-made Ten Taels".
"What does Brother Yunxiao mean by this?" Shen Yuan looked at Huang Yunxiao in astonishment.
Although he guessed that these three hundred taels of silver were likely a thank-you gift for himself, he didn’t directly accept them.
"The laws of Great Yu stipulate that those who report an enemy or thieves are rewarded generously."
"This time, you reported a hundred-man Barbarian squad’s secret infiltration, indirectly saving Yunshui Town’s common people. According to the rules, you should be rewarded one hundred taels of silver."
"And because of your advance warning, my brother and Captain Zhang achieved great merit. With this achievement, promotion and awards should come next."
"The remaining two hundred taels are from us two as a token of appreciation."
"Please accept it."
Upon hearing this, Shen Yuan was somewhat surprised in his heart.
He truly didn’t know there would be a reward for reporting the Barbarian infiltration; he hurried to tell Huang Yunxiao simply because he didn’t want Jinliu Village to be affected by the Barbarian squad’s invasion.
After all, everything he had was in Jinliu Village. If something happened, his life would be ruined.
The Mountain Patrol Captain Camp had dispatched all their forces and asked the Martial Arts Hall’s teachers for help. It seemed they had successfully dealt with the Barbarian squad.
No significant battle had occurred, and defeating a hundred enemies was indeed a great achievement for the Mountain Patrol Captain Camp.
Shen Yun glanced at the shiny silver ingots and then bowed to Huang Yunxiao: "May I ask Brother Yunxiao, were there heavy casualties in the Mountain Patrol Captain Camp during the campaign against the Barbarian infiltrators?"
Talking about this, Huang Yunxiao’s expression darkened.
"The Barbarians are fierce and naturally stronger than our Great Yu soldiers."
"Although the soldiers of the Mountain Patrol Captain Camp are elite, compared to the real Barbarian warriors, there is still a gap."
"In this operation, the Captain Camp lost more than fifty brothers."
Shen Yuan sighed inwardly upon hearing this.
"To be frank, Brother Yunxiao, my family is indeed struggling at the moment, but this silver..."
"I only need the hundred taels awarded by the government. Please, Brother Yunxiao, take back the remaining two hundred taels."
Huang Yunxiao took a quiet sip of tea and glanced at him with a smile: "Hehe... Do you think it’s too little, my worthy brother?"
Shen Yuan hurriedly bowed: "Absolutely not. I merely ran an errand; the real credit belongs to you and Captain Zhang, who risked your lives for it."
"The Mountain Patrol Captain Camp protects us common people, at the cost of over fifty soldiers."
"If you are unwilling to take it back, then give those two hundred taels to the families of the fallen soldiers."
Huang Yunxiao gently stirred the tea foam, then suddenly laughed.
"Haha..."
"My worthy brother is truly a man of principle."
"In that case, I will relay your goodwill to the brothers..."
"Brother, please wait." Shen Yuan quickly interrupted: "Few people should know it was me who reported the Barbarian squad’s infiltration, right?"
Huang Yunxiao nodded slightly.
This matter was known only to the two brothers thus far.
"Brother, I have a request." Shen Yuan bowed his hand: "Please do not tell anyone it was me who reported the Barbarian infiltration."
The fact that the Barbarian squad accurately knew that the Mountain Patrol Captain Camp wouldn’t plan patrol missions during the heavy snow meant that they had informants within Great Yu.
Having been unveiled this time, they suffered heavy losses. If they sought revenge, the consequences would be dire.
Huang Yunxiao, upon hearing this, pondered momentarily and then understood his concern.
"Rest assured, my worthy brother, besides the three of us, no one else will know."
"Thank you, brother."
Shen Yuan expressed his gratitude and then intended to fetch Shen Wenxing home.
"Wait, my worthy brother." Huang Yunxiao stood up and said: "You may not take the money, but I must repay the favor."
"From what Qingzhou said, your nephew is learning martial arts at the Martial Arts Hall."
"I will decide, and the fee for your nephew’s martial arts training will be waived."
Shen Wenxing’s martial arts training cost twenty taels of silver per year.
He would likely stay at the Martial Arts Hall for several more years; waiving the fee would save a significant amount of money.
Shen Yuan understood that Huang Yunxiao did not wish to owe him a favor, so he accepted without pretense.
"In that case, thank you, Brother Yunxiao."
After bowing in thanks, he took the hundred taels of patterned silver and left with a Martial Arts Hall disciple.
After he left, Huang Yunxiao glanced at his figure in the courtyard, revealing a slight smile on his face.
"Worldly-wise and composed, he is indeed an interesting person."
Huang Qingzhou spoke upon hearing: "Brother, shouldn’t we now reestablish our relationship with the Shen Family? After all, our families were once longstanding allies."
Huang Yunxiao shook his head.
"Let’s wait a little longer; we have already extended goodwill, and reestablishing ties can happen anytime."
"Crossing class boundaries is not easy, and the Huang Family now needs equally strong friends to advance further."
Just as he was raising the teacup before him, Huang Yunxiao suddenly asked a question.
"By the way, how talented is Shen Yuan’s son in the Martial Dao?"
In today’s Great Yu, while crossing class boundaries is difficult, there are shortcuts.