Water Margin: From a White-Robed Scholar to Donning the Yellow Robe

Chapter 135 The Story of Qiao'er

Wang Lun entered Qiao'er's room with light steps.

After walking only a few steps inside the house, by the faint moonlight, I saw that Qiao'er had already sat up, holding a dagger in her hand.

Upon discovering that the visitor was Wang Lun, Qiao'er was taken aback. She quickly slid the dagger into her sleeve, stepped forward, and bowed, saying, "I didn't know the chieftain had arrived."

Wang Lun sat down at the table, and the two met eyes, remaining silent for a moment.

Qiao'er poured Wang Lun a glass of water, then naturally stepped forward to massage his shoulders, saying, "Why has the chieftain come so late at night?"

She suddenly realized that she was Wang Lun's maid, and although she had long been prepared to serve Wang Lun in bed, could it be tonight?

For no apparent reason, she felt a little flustered.

"Qiao'er, how long have you been following me?"

Hearing Wang Lun finally speak, Qiao'er thought for a moment and said, "It's been almost a year."

Wang Lun sighed and said, "A year has gone by so quickly."

"Who says otherwise? A year ago, it was the chieftain and the princess who saved me. My serving the chieftain is my way of repaying their kindness." As Qiao'er spoke, her hands did not loosen their grip at all, and the pressure she applied to Wang Lun's shoulders was just right.

Wang Lun suddenly realized that Qiao'er had always applied just the right amount of pressure when massaging his shoulders and back, and she could massage for a long time without her hands getting tired, and the pressure on her hands was always even.

If she were an ordinary farm woman, how could she know how to control the force when massaging shoulders and back?

If she were an ordinary woman, how could she massage her shoulders for so long without her hands feeling sore and weak?

Wang Lun sighed inwardly, realizing he had been careless after all.

"Have I neglected your food, clothing, and daily necessities this year?"

"No, the chieftain treats me extremely well. Compared to my previous life, it's really... I'm very grateful."

Wang Lun nodded slowly: "You came to serve me on Yu Pan's orders, so you are, in principle, one of Yu Pan's people. I will certainly not mistreat you."

"Yes, Princess Yupan is a very good person, and she and the chief are a perfect match. I really look forward to seeing the chief and the princess get married soon."

Wang Lun smiled slightly and said, "Yes."

He slowly picked up the water glass and said, "Take out the dagger from your sleeve. Standing behind me with a dagger in your pocket always makes me feel a little uneasy."

Qiao'er paused, then slowly took out a dagger from her sleeve and placed it on the table, saying, "Chieftain, please forgive me. I carry a dagger with me for self-defense and have no other intentions."

Wang Lun glanced at the dagger casually and said, "Alright, keep pressing."

Qiao'er then continued to massage Wang Lun's shoulders as instructed.

"Qiao'er, are you hiding something from me?" Wang Lun's face was gloomy, but Qiao'er was behind him and did not see him.

Qiao'er's hand froze, and she said in a trembling voice, "Chief, I haven't been hiding anything from you."

Wang Lun smiled and said, "Think about it, I've already asked you this, do you think you can still hide it? Qiao'er, tell me your story."

A profound silence descended upon the darkness, with only Qiao'er's hand mechanically resting on Wang Lun's shoulder.

After a long while, Qiao'er finally spoke, her voice somewhat hoarse.

"I am not lying. I am from Jeju. When I was twelve years old, there was a flood in Jeju. My family was swept away by the water. I was lucky and got stuck on a piece of wood in the flood. It just so happened that I floated with the water and did not sink."

"I was swept away from Jeju Island by the flood and finally landed in an unfamiliar place. The flood that year was too great, and too many people, like me, were homeless and became refugees. I begged my way to Mokju."

Wang Lun's heart sank. It seemed that Zhu Gui's intelligence was correct; Qiao'er was indeed related to Fang La.

The place names Muzhou and Qingxi County immediately reminded Wang Lun of Fang La.

"I am of course twelve years old, and my body is developing well... As a refugee, I naturally attracted the attention of others... Everything is just like when the chieftain saw me in Jeju, except that the person who saved me back then was called... Fang La."

Wang Lun nodded slowly: "So you'll stay by his side?"

"Yes. Fang La was the leader of Manichaeism. We... within our sect all call ourselves the Holy Sect, so we all call him the Holy Lord."

Qiao'er's voice was soft, but she spoke very clearly, which made Wang Lun somewhat dazed. He naturally knew about Fang La's affairs. On the surface, he was the head of the landlord's servants, but in reality, he had become the leader of the Manichaeism and recruited a large number of followers.

Based on the course of history, it has only been two years since his uprising, and his power must have already reached a certain scale.

"The Holy Lord took me in as his goddaughter and taught me martial arts. In those years, I also experienced the joy of family life. I am very grateful to the Holy Lord."

Wang Lun sighed, "If we were in different places, I would also be very grateful to him."

Given the grace of being saved and the grace of being reborn, it would be strange if Qiao'er didn't wholeheartedly devote herself to Fang La.

"Chieftain...you don't blame me?" Qiao'er asked, somewhat frightened.

Wang Lun smiled and said, "Why would I blame you? He saved your life, taught you martial arts, and even adopted you as his goddaughter. He treated you very well. You are not a cold-blooded person. It is only right that you do things for him."

Qiao'er was taken aback, somewhat moved, and with tears welling in her eyes, she said, "Thank you, Chief."

She thanked Wang Lun for his understanding of her.

"And then?"

"Later, the Holy Lord wanted me to infiltrate the court, preferably into the residences of imperial relatives or prime ministers, to... deliver messages for him."

Wang Lun smiled, not expecting Fang La to be so ambitious, actually wanting to use Qiao'er to plant spies in the imperial family or the prime minister's residence. He had to admit, this was a brilliant move.

"He received news that Princess Jiade was not in Tokyo, but had traveled around and then headed to Shandong. Since I was originally from Jeju, he ordered me to go north and return to Jeju."

Wang Lun's expression darkened slightly. He hadn't expected Fang La to have his eye on Zhao Yupan. So it was because of his appearance that Fang La's plans had changed. Otherwise, Qiao'er would now be Zhao Yupan's maid, monitoring the royal family's every move.

"I waited in Jeju for a long time and finally found that Princess Jiade had arrived. I then devised a plan to make Du, the head of the local militia, want to take advantage of me. I also deliberately caused chaos where the princess was passing by. But I never expected that the chieftain would be there too. It was the chieftain who saved me first."

Wang Lun gave a wry smile. It was truly a twist of fate; by sheer accident, the thief had been allowed to enter.

"Later, the chieftain and the princess displayed their divine power in Jeju. The chieftain... sought justice for the people and punished corrupt officials, which was very gratifying. I admired him greatly. But the Holy Lord has given an order, and I have no choice but to obey. After you left Jeju, I followed behind the princess, hoping to find another opportunity to get close to her."

Qiao'er sighed softly and said, "I never expected that the princess would return after leaving because she was in love with the chief. She met me and ordered me to go to Liangshan to serve the chief."

"After much deliberation, I realized that I had developed a deep respect for the chieftain, and since this was the princess's order, I believed that if I did well, I would naturally be able to get closer to her in the future. Furthermore, I had written to the Holy Lord at the time, informing him of what had happened. After considering the matter, the Holy Lord ordered me to stay by the chieftain's side."

Wang Lun nodded. He believed that what Qiao'er said was true. The story didn't seem fabricated; it was reasonable and somewhat similar to his own speculation. He guessed that Qiao'er came specifically for Liangshan, but he never expected that her true purpose was Zhao Yupan.

"So, how many Liangshan secrets did you leak to Fang La?"