Just as he was about to be caught, Lin Jingshen twisted his body mid-air, scraped his sole against Zhao Tieshan’s arm, and used the momentum to flip away—stumbling a few steps before regaining his balance.
“Interesting.” Zhao Tieshan pulled back his attack, standing with his hands behind his back. “Your lightness skill is indeed impressive, and your reaction time is fast. But your lower body is weak, and your fist techniques… mediocre.”
Lin Jingshen panted and clasped his hands: “The Chief Escort’s skill is formidable—I’m deeply impressed.”
“Impressed?” Zhao Tieshan snorted. “What good is being impressed? Let me ask you—if a bandit attacked a shipment right now and you couldn’t defeat him, what would you do?”
Lin Jingshen was taken aback.
“Run?” Zhao Tieshan answered for him. “An escort can’t run from his duty. Fight head-on? That’s a dead end. So, what would you do?”
Lin Jingshen’s mind raced.
He remembered Zhao Di’er saying her father liked clever people…
“If it were me,” he said slowly, “I’d first feign weakness to lure the enemy in, then look for an opportunity to destroy their supplies or horses, throwing them into disarray. If outnumbered, I’d split and divide them, use the terrain to stall, and buy time for reinforcements.”
Zhao Tieshan raised an eyebrow: “What if there are no reinforcements?”
“Then…” Lin Jingshen gritted his teeth, “capture the chief first. Even if I can’t match them in martial arts, I can strike where they’re forced to defend, create chaos, and use the confusion to escape with the goods.”
Zhao Tieshan stared at him for a long moment, then burst into laughter: “Good! You think fast—better than those brutes who only know how to fight head-on!”
Lin Jingshen let out a breath of relief.
But before he could fully relax, Zhao Tieshan added: “Still, all talk and no action is worthless. Come on—one more round. This time, you can use any means necessary. If you can so much as touch the hem of my robe, you win.”
Lin Jingshen: “…”
Any means?
He glanced toward Lin Shuying under the corridor.
His sister, teacup in hand, gave him a subtle wink and discreetly pointed at the training ground floor.
Lin Jingshen followed her gaze.
The training ground was covered with fine sand, flat and clean.
But near where he had stumbled earlier, a few… watermelon seeds had appeared.
Black watermelon seeds, mixed in with the sand—hard to notice unless you were looking closely.
Lin Jingshen’s heart stirred.
“What’s the matter? Scared?” Zhao Tieshan prompted.
“Not at all!” Lin Jingshen took a deep breath and assumed a fighting stance.
This time, he took the initiative.
Once again, he relied on his lightness skill to maneuver, but now he deliberately steered his steps toward where those watermelon seeds lay.
Zhao Tieshan, suspecting nothing, pressed forward relentlessly.
Another round of attacks and defenses.
Lin Jingshen feigned a weakness, and Zhao Tieshan took the bait, striking with his palm.
Lin Jingshen sidestepped, simultaneously flicking his toe.
A spray of fine sand, mixed with a few dozen watermelon seeds, scattered precisely beneath Zhao Tieshan’s feet.
Just as Zhao Tieshan moved to pursue, his foot suddenly slipped!
His expression shifted—he quickly braced his hips to steady himself.
But the watermelon seeds were round and slick, rolling on the sand like marbles. His shift only made him slide more, and he began to topple backward!
In that split second, Lin Jingshen lunged forward—not to attack, but to catch him.
Zhao Tieshan reacted instantly, twisting his waist mid-fall to right himself, planting his feet firmly.
But Lin Jingshen’s hand was already supporting his arm.
The two held there for a moment.
The training ground was dead silent.
Zhao Tieshan looked down at the watermelon seeds rolling beneath his feet, then up at Lin Jingshen’s hand on his arm, his expression shifting through several colors.
Lin Jingshen quickly let go, stepped back, and bowed: “Junior was presumptuous.”
Zhao Tieshan didn’t speak. He bent down, picked up a watermelon seed, rolled it between his fingers, examined it—and then laughed.
Not a cold laugh, but a genuine one—his beard trembling with mirth.
“You little rascal!” He slapped Lin Jingshen on the shoulder, nearly knocking him off balance. “Can’t beat me fair and square, so you trip me up? And then you have the nerve to catch me? Sly! Truly sly!”
Lin Jingshen’s heart was in his throat: “Chief Escort, I—”
“What about you!” Zhao Tieshan waved his hand. “I’ll count this round as your win! I’ve been roaming the jianghu for thirty years, and this is the first time I’ve been outsmarted by watermelon seeds! Fresh! Truly fresh!”
He turned to look at Lin Shuying under the corridor: “Lin girl, this was your idea, wasn’t it?”
Lin Shuying looked innocent: “What do you mean, Chief Escort? Maybe a servant dropped some watermelon seeds while eating.”
“Keep pretending!” Zhao Tieshan laughed without anger. “You siblings—one grows melons like magic, the other fights dirty—a real family!”
He walked over to Zhao Di’er and looked at his daughter: “You’ve taken a liking to this sly one?”
Zhao Di’er’s face flushed, but she straightened her back: “Father, aside from his martial arts being a little weak… he’s alright.”
“Alright?” Zhao Tieshan snorted. “More than just alright. His lightness skills are sharp, his mind is quick, he knows when to adapt, and he doesn’t get discouraged when losing—that’s what a true jianghu man looks like. Those hotheads who only know how to fight head-on die the fastest.”
He paused, then added: “But his background… I hear your Lin family is in trade?”
Lin Jingshen quickly said: “Yes. My family is in business; my father is—”
“So what if they’re merchants?” Zhao Tieshan cut him off. “I’m an escort—also a tradesman. We don’t steal or rob; we earn our keep with our skills—nothing to be ashamed of!”
He paced a few steps with his hands behind his back, then suddenly stopped and turned: “I approve of the match.”
Lin Jingshen and Zhao Di’er both froze.
“But!” Zhao Tieshan raised one finger. “There’s a condition.”
“Name it,” Lin Jingshen said quickly.
“The first child you have—whether boy or girl—must take the surname Zhao.” Zhao Tieshan looked him in the eye. “The Zhao Family Escort Agency has come down to my generation with only Di’er as my heir. I can’t let it die with me. The child will carry the Zhao name and inherit the escort agency. Agree, and the match is settled. If not…” He turned to Zhao Di’er, “Daughter, come back to Jiangnan with me.”
Zhao Di’er bit her lip and looked at Lin Jingshen.
Lin Jingshen didn’t hesitate: “I agree.”
This time, it was Zhao Tieshan who was taken aback: “You won’t… think it over?”
“No need.” Lin Jingshen said seriously. “Whatever surname the child takes, they’re still my child. That Miss Zhao is willing to marry me is already my good fortune. As for inheriting the escort agency—if the child is interested, that’s wonderful. If not, we can always find a son-in-law later. In any case, I won’t let the Zhao Family Escort Agency’s legacy end.”
Zhao Tieshan stared at him for a long time, then gave his shoulder a heavy slap: “Good! You’re a good man! Straightforward!”
He turned and shouted to the four escorts: “Bring the wine inside! Tonight, I’m going to drink my fill with my future son-in-law!”
That night, Little Lin Manor was ablaze with lights.
Two tables were set in the main hall. Zhao Tieshan took the head seat, with Lin Jingshen beside him.
The four escorts sat with Wei Fuyu and Zhao Di’er at one table; Lin Shuying, A Li, and A-Gua took another.
The two jars of “Daughter’s Red” wine Zhao Tieshan had brought were opened, filling the air with fragrance.
“This wine,” Zhao Tieshan filled a bowl for Lin Jingshen, “was buried the year Di’er was born. I thought then—on the day my daughter marries, we’ll dig it up and drink it. Never expected…” He looked at his daughter, then at Lin Jingshen, “it’d go to this sly one.”
Lin Jingshen raised his bowl and said solemnly: “Chief Escort, rest assured—I will treat Di’er well.”
“Call me Father!” Zhao Tieshan glared.
Lin Jingshen readily complied: “Father.”
“Good!” Zhao Tieshan beamed, clinking his bowl against his. “Bottoms up!”
After the first bowl of wine, the atmosphere grew even livelier.
Zhao Tieshan had a wealth of jianghu stories to tell—tales of adventure and danger during his escort runs—and Wei Fuyu listened with rapt attention, firing off questions.
Lin Jingshen kept pouring wine and serving dishes, his manner both respectful and composed.
Lin Shuying quietly slipped out to the corridor.
The moonlight was beautiful; the melon fields in the yard glowed a dark green under the silver light.
A-Gua followed her out and whispered: “Miss, those watermelon seeds… that was brilliant.”
Lin Shuying smiled: “Second Brother’s lightness skills are excellent, but his lower body isn’t as solid as Chief Escort Zhao’s. He couldn’t win in a direct contest—he had to use ingenuity. Watermelon seeds are slippery and hard to guard against on sandy ground. Even someone as skilled as Chief Escort Zhao can fall for a clever trick.”
“But how did you know Chief Escort Zhao wouldn’t be angry?”
“Because he’s a wise man.” Lin Shuying looked toward the lights inside the hall. “A wise man knows the jianghu isn’t an arena, and victory isn’t measured by fists alone. Second Brother won with wit and pulled back at the right moment to catch him—showing both intelligence and discretion. A veteran like Chief Escort Zhao would naturally appreciate that.”
A-Gua nodded, half-understanding.
From inside came Zhao Tieshan’s hearty laughter: “…That time we were escorting goods through Black Wind Ridge and ran into a band of outlaws—their leader wielded a pair of battle axes, huge things, as big as cartwheels! I just reasoned with him…”
Lin Shuying listened, a smile playing on her lips.
Good.
Half of her second brother’s marriage was settled.
As for the child taking the Zhao surname…
She remembered all those novels and TV dramas she’d watched in her past life, where families tore themselves apart over which surname a child would take.
But here, Lin Jingshen had agreed so readily, and Zhao Tieshan didn’t truly care about the name—he just wanted a promise of continuity.
Maybe that was the jianghu way: unburdened and free.
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