Chapter 173: How About I Treat You as a Man?

“Forget it? Forget what?” The effeminate young master flung off the restraining hand with a sweep of her sleeve, then held out her own. “Give me the gold drafts!”

Lady Pei frowned. What kind of joke was this? No matter how wealthy someone was, money was not meant to be thrown around like that. Her expression finally darkened, carrying a note of warning. “Young Master, stop making trouble.”

“You...” The young woman wanted to flare up but could not. She spun around and thrust out a hand toward the two middle-aged men. “Give me your gold drafts!”

One remained silent. The other replied calmly, “Young Master, we do not have that much money on us.”

“You...” The young woman bared a row of fine white teeth. Then she turned and met Niu Youdao’s half-smiling gaze.

To her, that look was full of mockery, as though saying: If you have no money, why talk so big?

Then she looked again at the way he had acted. He wanted nothing from them and had casually thrown down a pile of gold drafts merely to buy himself some peace and quiet.

The difference was obvious.

Thinking back on her own words, the young woman flushed crimson. It felt as though she had humiliated herself. Shame and fury surged together, yet there was nothing she could do about the three people accompanying her.

She suddenly shouted at Niu Youdao, “I did not bring that much ready money with me. Can I owe it to you first? I will definitely repay you another day!”

Even she lacked confidence as she said it. They were complete strangers. He did not even know who she was. Asking to owe a debt of one million gold coins under those circumstances was absurd.

But she had already spoken so grandly and could not take the words back. She was hoping he would refuse, giving her a step down.

Instead, Niu Youdao nodded. “Bring brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. Have him write an IOU.”

Lei Zongkang immediately went to ask the station master for writing materials.

Lady Pei stared at Niu Youdao and said heavily, “Friend, our young master is young and does not understand the world...”

She paused.

The man opposite seemed to be about the same age as her own young master. Using youth as an excuse did not sound especially convincing.

Still, she continued, “If there has been any offense, I ask your pardon. When you can spare someone, spare them. Do not take things too far.”

She knew her young mistress well. The girl could not endure provocation like this and really might write the IOU. Owing one million gold coins over a bite of food was ridiculous. And when they returned home, the three escorts would have no way to explain why they had failed so badly at looking after her.

Besides, the man across from them did not look like someone worried they might renege on the debt.

The young woman shouted at Lady Pei instead, “Who does not understand the world?”

Niu Youdao said, “I already told you, we are not hired hands. From the beginning, your young master was the one pressing us. Everyone here knows who is right and who is wrong. From the sound of what you are saying, this has somehow become me deliberately looking for trouble?”

He spread one hand. “Fine. Whatever you like. Tell me how you want to settle this. Draw the line yourselves, and I will take whatever comes.”

Lady Pei pressed one hand down on the young woman’s shoulder and circulated her cultivation, suppressing her so she could not move and could only glare. It kept her from causing any more trouble.

Then Lady Pei asked Niu Youdao, “We have no grudge or enmity between us. Shall we stop here?”

Lei Zongkang returned with brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, but Niu Youdao waved him off, signaling that they were no longer needed.

Lei Zongkang was speechless and could only take them back.

Niu Youdao said, “This elder sister still speaks with reason, and I am not an unreasonable man. Fine. The matter ends here.”

Then he smiled. “I will say the same thing I said before: we travel the road and make friends along the way. My treat.”

He lifted his chin toward the pile of gold drafts on the table. “Do not let these vulgar things offend the eye. Put them away.”

Then he turned his head. “Since this young master thinks we are dirty, make another pot. Send it over politely.”

“Yes!”

Black Peony stepped forward and gathered the pile of gold drafts. Lei Zongkang and Wu Sanliang turned and headed back to the kitchen.

Seeing that the matter was over, Lady Pei gave the still-struggling young woman a hard look, clearly warning her to behave. Only then did she release the restraint and cup her hands toward Niu Youdao.

“Then I thank you in advance.”

Who would have expected the young woman to stamp her foot and fling down one furious sentence?

“If you want to eat it, eat it yourselves! I am not touching that lousy stuff!”

She swept her sleeves and stormed away, looking as though she had suffered some enormous grievance.

Lady Pei was speechless.

You were the one who wanted it. Now that they agreed to make it for you, you refuse to eat?

What are you even doing?

She gave Niu Youdao an apologetic, bitter smile. With the troublemaker gone, conversation became much easier.

“There is no need to trouble yourselves making another whole pot. Yours looks as though it was only just served. If you do not mind, how about we sit together?”

“Good.”

Niu Youdao nodded, then glanced aside. “Clear the table.”

Black Peony and Duan Hu immediately removed their own bowls and chopsticks, tidied the table slightly, then stood behind Niu Youdao on either side and freed the seats.

Niu Youdao extended a hand in invitation.

“Red-braised pork. Try some.”

Lady Pei gestured for the two middle-aged men to bring their own bowls and chopsticks over. The three took seats around the table without ceremony. They had already tested the meat for poison, so each reached out with chopsticks and took a piece.

“It truly is a rare delicacy,” one middle-aged man praised.

The other nodded approvingly.

Niu Youdao ate along with them.

After trying several bites, Lady Pei asked, “May I ask Young Master’s honored name and where you come from?”

The reason she had taken the initiative to share a table was obvious enough. She wanted to sound out his background.

Niu Youdao replied, “Li Si. A rootless duckweed drifting wherever the current takes me. I am merely an independent cultivator wandering from place to place.”

“An independent cultivator?”

Lady Pei glanced at the people standing behind him, then remembered the amount of money he had casually thrown onto the table.

She smiled. “Young Master Li does not look like an ordinary independent cultivator.”

Niu Youdao teased, “The young master from your family does not look much like a man either.”

Lady Pei sighed. “Our young mistress was spoiled by the family and does not understand much of the world. They sent her out to broaden her horizons, and the three of us are accompanying her. She likes to make trouble and does not know better. I hope Young Master will not take it to heart.”

Niu Youdao said, “It is precisely because I saw that she was a woman. Otherwise, today might not have ended so pleasantly.”

The meaning was clear: he had simply chosen not to argue with a woman.

Lady Pei smiled. “May I ask what realm Young Master has reached?”

Niu Youdao chuckled. “Nothing worth mentioning. Foundation Establishment Realm, that is all. And the three of you?”

The three exchanged glances.

Foundation Establishment at such a young age?

Their sense that he was no simple person only deepened.

Lady Pei said, “When we were Young Master’s age, we were still struggling in the Qi Refinement Realm. After all these years, we have finally managed to reach the Golden Core Realm.”

All three were Golden Core Realm cultivators?

Black Peony and the others were inwardly shocked.

They had no idea what background that cross-dressed woman possessed, but she had three Golden Core Realm cultivators accompanying her merely while she traveled for amusement.

Only now did they realize that Master Dao had practically been playing with fire.

If things had truly turned ugly just now, a single person from the other side might have been enough to deal with all of them.

Niu Youdao remained perfectly calm. He smiled and said, “All three are experts. It seems I truly failed to appreciate the immensity of Heaven and Earth in front of you.”

Lady Pei replied, “We have simply lived many more years than Young Master. Given time, it should be no difficult matter for your cultivation to surpass ours.”

“I hope so.”

Not long afterward, Lei Zongkang brought out another basin of meat.

For the three eating it for the first time, the flavor was still novel enough that they did not tire of it.

The two sides continued chatting.

Lady Pei introduced herself as Lady Pei. The two middle-aged men were Liu Fenghai and Chai Fei. As for the effeminate young master, they revealed only that her surname was Hao and said nothing more.

It was their first meeting. Niu Youdao was not so tactless as to dig endlessly into someone else’s background, and the other side likewise did not press him too deeply.

The encounter had begun unpleasantly, but after sitting together to eat and drink, everyone was in a good mood by the time the meal ended.

They exchanged farewells and returned to their respective quarters.

Black Peony and the others watched Lady Pei and her companions leave, then looked again at Niu Youdao as he strolled away as though nothing had happened.

Thinking back to the way he had thrown money onto the table, they found the meaning behind the whole exchange difficult to ignore.

For the first time, they truly understood just how large the difference between one person and another could be...

The rooms at this relay station were unlike those they had seen before.

The greatest difference was the beds. Every room had a heated kang platform with fire burning beneath it, so sleeping on top would certainly be warm.

The better rooms even had bathing pools with heating beneath them to keep the water warm.

Outside was a world of ice and snow. Soaking in hot water indoors was a pleasure of its own.

As always, beside Niu Youdao sat a pot of wine and a sword.

Black Peony knocked and entered.

Niu Youdao was already soaking in the pool. By now he no longer cared much and could not even be bothered covering himself. After so much time on the road, he had grown accustomed to this woman coming and going.

What he had not grown accustomed to was the sudden rustle of clothing nearby.

He turned his head.

Black Peony was undressing beside the pool.

One garment after another slipped to the floor. Even her dudou and other underclothes came off in front of him until she stood completely naked.

Niu Youdao immediately grew wary.

“What are you doing?”

Black Peony pulled the hairpin from her hair and shook her head, letting a waterfall of black hair tumble over her shoulders.

Graceful and alluring, she lifted one foot into the pool and climbed in directly across from him.

Her wheat-colored skin sank into the warm water.

She closed her eyes and breathed out comfortably, then opened them again as though nothing were unusual.

“This whole pool for one person is such a waste. I may as well let you feast your eyes while I am here. Consider yourself lucky. And do not overthink it.”

Her bent legs slowly stretched out until they mingled with Niu Youdao’s beneath the water.

“I am overthinking it?”

Niu Youdao slowly raised his wine cup toward his lips. His gaze rested teasingly on the curves disappearing beneath the water.

“You are blatantly seducing me.”

Then he smiled. “How about I treat you as a man?”

Black Peony rolled her eyes. “I knew long ago there was something wrong with you.”

Niu Youdao chuckled, drained the cup in one swallow, and idly turned it between his fingers.

His gaze lingered on Black Peony’s graceful body and slowly grew distant.

“What are you thinking about?”

“Things from a very, very long time ago...”

“Did you and Tang Yi ever have that sort of relationship between man and woman?”

“You are a woman. Why are you always asking about this? No.”

“No? You never consummated the marriage?”

“We were only going through the motions for other people to see.”

“Then have you ever had that sort of relationship with any other woman?”

“Hard to say.”

“What do you mean, hard to say? Either you have or you have not.”

“Then I suppose I have. With many women. Some were darker than you. Some had golden hair and blue eyes. All kinds. So many I could not even count them myself.”

“Tch. So many you could not count?”

Black Peony sneered. “Go on, keep bragging. At your age, where would you find so many women that you lost count? If there were none, there were none. No one is laughing at you.”

She snorted again. “Golden hair and blue eyes, too? What, were you sleeping with demons in your dreams?”

“I tell you and you refuse to believe me.”

Niu Youdao glanced at her. “But you know, if you keep doing this, I will never be able to explain myself afterward.”

“Why bother explaining? Master Dao, you do not strike me as someone who cares what other people think.”

“I do not care. But nothing will ever come of you and me. If you ruin your own reputation like this, do you not intend to marry in the future?”

“I am not marrying!”

Black Peony’s reply came without hesitation.

“I was hurt badly once already. If I suffer another grievance like that, it will hurt too much. Once you have that official status tying you down, even when you are wronged, you still have to swallow it.”

“I have gone through too many hardships all these years. I do not want to suffer over this sort of thing anymore.”

“There are many things in life I cannot decide for myself. But whether I marry... after walking all this way through suffering, why should the one thing I can decide not be something I choose proudly?”

“If I meet someone I like, then I like him. If I do not like someone, I turn my head and ignore him.”

“How good is that?”

Niu Youdao considered it.

“That actually makes some sense.”

And so the two remained soaking in the warm water, chatting idly one sentence at a time...

[End of Chapter 173]