On the outside, she and Aman were both dressed up like little boys. Short hair, straight bangs, dirty little faces, and a messy tuft tied on top of their heads. They wore ragged coarse cotton clothes full of patches, barefoot with straw sandals. But their faces shared no resemblance, likely not real sisters—Aman's face was round with big eyes and bean-like eyebrows, while Aqing had a delicate oval face, slender eyebrows and narrow eyes, and lacked Aman's lively energy. Instead, an aura of aloofness kept others at bay.
Simply put, she seemed like she'd been taken out of the freezer after three days.
Yuanye glanced at her briefly and gave her a polite smile, not dismissing her due to her young age, but rather nodding courteously: "Hello, I look forward to your guidance."
Earlier, when Aqing coldly stared at him, he instantly felt as if he might be killed, the hairs on his back stood on end, making him exceptionally courteous.
Of course, it might just have been a misconception.
Aqing lifted her head, gave him a cold glance, then lowered her eyelids, remaining silent—a behavior strikingly rude.
Aman, used to it, casually explained to Yuanye: "Don't mind her; she's just like that, not fond of speaking; it takes three sticks to coax a fart out of her."
Yuanye glanced at Aqing, waved his hand, and smiled: "No problem." Then, knowing the sisters had things to say, he sensibly went to kindle a fire in the earthen space, preparing to boil an egg for Aman to soothe her eyes.
It was truly pitiful; in just a short while, Aman's eye had swollen into a narrow slit, shining with an oily gloss amidst the bruised skin, appearing quite miserable.
Aqing waited for him to leave before approaching, calmly looking down at Aman and asked, "Sister, what's going on here? Weren't you caught after failing to steal something?"
Before righteously stealing from the thieves, Aman had left her a secret signal, saying she'd go to Hibi Village to make some extra money and told her not to wander aimlessly but wait at the Castle Town of Nagano until she returned, then they'd head west together.
Aqing obediently waited after seeing the signal, but as dawn broke today without Aman showing up, she suspected Aman had fallen into her old habit—after stealing money, she'd gamble to win back losses.
To prevent a repeat of last time's tragedy, she hurried to the casino to find her, but after searching all day to no avail, she began to fear Aman was in trouble—ideally, with Aman's skills and experience, stealing a bit of money under planning shouldn't fail or result in capture.
So, she hurriedly came to Hibi Village, even tied up a night watchman to inquire about the situation, and found out her suspicions were right—her sister and two river bandits indeed failed in theft and were captured.
The river bandits were sent to Hosokawa Castle, their fate uncertain, while her sister was held in the village by a visiting Samurai.
Originally, she'd mentally prepared for her sister to be violated, sparking a killing intent to first ambush Yuanye, rescue her sister or find out her whereabouts, then kill Yuanye in front of her sister, using blood to wash away her sister's humiliation. But she never anticipated finding her sister sprawled out near the earthen hearth, just as she reached it, she was stumped.
Now Aman wore a strange outfit (her clothes were dirty and needed changing, but Yayoi only had one outfit, not available for changing, so Yuanye cut a piece of cotton cloth, made three holes, and put it on her as a temporary fix), covered with a strange mat, sleeping by the earthen hearth. Honestly, it was a bit bizarre, she couldn't understand at all.
"Bullshit, who said I was caught? How could I be caught? No one in this world could catch me!" Hearing Aqing say that made Aman feel embarrassed; Aqing's words were an insult to her professionalism, a permanent stain she couldn't admit.
She hurriedly told about the "six coins" incident to prove she had a pure heart, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda, she was a 24K gold-plated, diamond-encrusted saint.
The reason she was here now wasn't due to inadequate skills or being beaten injured without capability to leave, but purely due to her goodwill, being forcibly kept by Yuanye out of gratitude—originally, after saving someone, she planned to brush off and leave, concealing her achievements and fame, but Yuanye was so moved, he clung to her leg crying pleadingly begging her to stay for hospitality, she couldn't help but reluctantly enjoy the bounty fowl and rice, and temporarily sleep at the edge of the hearth.
Aqing listened quietly, probably not believing a word, but she didn't argue with Aman, only softly said after Aman explained, "Oh, so that's what happened. Alright, sister, should we leave now then?"
"Leave right now?" Aman hesitated, covering her bruised eye, uncertain in tone, "Do we need to?"
Aqing frowned slightly, looking down at her with confusion, not quite understanding why she wanted to linger at a stranger's home, especially near a Samurai.
Aman turned to look at Yuanye, seeing him kindling a fire and not noticing them, she lowered her voice to speak to her: "He bought a lot of rice; we can eat for a few days before leaving. My old man won't be back for a while. Waiting here is the same as waiting anywhere, at most I'll go to Nagano and leave him a message."
"But the things Grandpa instructed..."
Aman interrupted her before she finished, "Don't worry about gathering news; I'll talk to the old man later. At worst, we can match farts; it's not sure who will outdo whom!"