A Willing Mistake, My Lady – Chapter 12
by Little PandaReporting to the Yamen
You can’t escape the ways of the world wherever you go.
“You’re the new one? What was Old Fan thinking? Sending us some scrawny thing who can’t do a thing — is this some kind of joke with our lives?” A tall, portly bailiff spoke with an air of authority. This was the younger brother of the County Magistrate’s favorite concubine, currently the top dog at the yamen — when the Magistrate was number one, he was number two.
“This little brother is indeed too thin and weak. I apologize to everyone. The Advisor probably couldn’t find anyone else and had to make do with me. Please, big brother, bear with me.” Shen Hetang didn’t take his harsh words to heart at all, replying with perfect deference.
Li Baokui had intended to give the newcomer a hard time, but the man was like dough — he just folded and humbled himself immediately. Yet somehow, it felt like punching cotton.
“I heard you know a bit of martial arts?” The portly man asked.
“Just some flashy but useless moves.” She said calmly, thinking that as a newcomer, she should keep a low profile and play the sycophant — that was the way to survive.
“Then how about a sparring match?” The portly Li Baokui asked again, looking at her sideways.
“Hey! I say, Head Li, that’s just bullying the newcomer. This little brother has such delicate skin and flesh, more refined than any girl — how could he withstand your fists?” The others nearby couldn’t stand it and spoke up to smooth things over. But those adjectives stepped right on Shen Hetang’s sore spot. She dared not let her female identity be exposed. Deep down, she felt this was something very important, though she couldn’t quite say what she was afraid of.
“Since big brother wants to spar, this little brother will respectfully comply. Please, after you.” As she spoke, her gaze gradually hardened, and she gestured with an invitation.
Hearing this, Li Baokui got excited. Though he didn’t dare face a tiger directly, he couldn’t accept someone stepping over his head. Even a temporary challenge to his authority was unacceptable — especially from such a weakling.
After yielding twice and seeing Shen Hetang still not making a move, he finally couldn’t hold back and threw a punch straight at her chest. The onlookers all thought this was going to be a disaster — getting hit by a nearly two-hundred-jin1 lump — surely this frail scholar-type would be bruised for half a month.
Shen Hetang stood straight as a sapling, her breathing completely unruffled. She simply reminded herself not to use the original body’s strength. She didn’t know how skilled the original owner had been, but it was certainly several times her own. For this level of sparring, holding back was the right approach. If all of them came at her at once, she’d be worried — but just two or three? She could handle that.
Her ears actually sensed the punch wind before her eyes did. This surprised her — it was too sensitive. She easily leaned back and dodged the violent fist. Seeing he hadn’t landed a hit, Li Baokui grew more furious and swung directly at Shen Hetang’s head. Shen Hetang still dodged without counterattacking.
“Tomorrow when you’re outside the city, are you going to play hide-and-seek with the tiger like this too?” The Magistrate’s brother-in-law, still swinging his fists with brute force, was getting angry.
Shen Hetang, however, felt her stamina was fine. She’d been circling with this big lump for a while now, and her face wasn’t even red, her heart wasn’t racing — it took no effort at all.
Seeing he was truly getting worked up and worried he might hurt himself from rage, when the next fist came, she reached out and caught it directly. He thought HE was finally fighting back, but his fist was just held in HIS grip — and his entire arm couldn’t move at all. He stared in shock, secretly trying to pull free, but he couldn’t retrieve his fist or break free from HIS palm.
Just as he was fretting about losing face, Shen Hetang pulled his fist toward her and hip-tossed him to the ground. Then she stood up casually, dusting off her clothes and said, “Big brother’s skills are superior. This little brother is no match.”
“Hmph, good that you know.” Li Baokui secretly glanced at the others’ reactions. Their sparring had only lasted a moment — he’d called it quits before things went too far. Probably no one noticed that last bit. After collecting himself with some dignity, he still felt a bit wronged. This newcomer had some skills — the way he’d controlled his arm, he hadn’t even used much strength, yet he’d been pinned in place.
“Tomorrow for the tiger hunt, you’re taking the lead. That’s the whole reason you got this job in the first place. You understand?” Li Baokui still wasn’t entirely satisfied as he gave his orders. They all had families to feed — they couldn’t gamble with their lives. But this tiger hunt would ultimately fall on them bailiffs. There was no escaping it.
“I’ll still be counting on my brothers to back me up. This white tiger isn’t some house cat — it’ll take all of us working together to bring it down.” Hmph, expecting her to risk her life for one job? No way. Risking her life once was enough — there wouldn’t be a second time.
The next day, a fully equipped squad set out for the mountain forests outside the city. Everyone wore armor and carried swords. Shen Hetang touched the heavy leather vest on her body, studded with metal rivets — it felt like it would slow her down. It was too heavy. She worried that if a tiger chased her, she wouldn’t even be able to run…
The mountain forests outside the city were dense and treacherous. The fifteen-man squad lay in ambush near the city gate for two days without catching even a glimpse of the tiger. They had no choice but to venture deeper into the mountains. That afternoon, in the already gloomy forest, dark clouds suddenly gathered and a fierce wind began to blow.
“Head Li, the sky’s getting dark. Looks like rain.” Bailiff Wang Quan looked up, his teeth chattering slightly as he spoke.
“So what if it rains? We’ve been waiting two or three days already. Even if knives fall from the sky, we keep going. If I go back now, I won’t dare come out for another round.” The thirty-something, tall and thin bailiff Feng Wu spoke up. He was an old hand at the yamen, but he knew that at this critical juncture, the tiger had to be caught.
“Let’s check the western mountain.” Li Baokui ordered mechanically. Two or three days of sleeping rough had worn him down.
Seeing the bailiffs’ work ethic, Shen Hetang finally understood why the County Magistrate had needed to find a scapegoat. It wasn’t that they were lazy — they just had no spirit at all. They didn’t even need to wait for a tiger; after a few more days of climbing mountains, they’d collapse on their own. This was the result of nepotism. No matter how capable the subordinates were, the credit and benefits would never be theirs. Over time, everyone just went through the motions.
For some reason, seeing these dispirited soldiers, Shen Hetang felt a strange contempt and anger rise in her chest. This feeling wasn’t right — why was she getting angry? Though she’d grown up with elderly grandparents and later earned her tuition and living expenses through hard work and martial arts training, winning medals for income since age eight, her resilience had always been tempered with flexibility. She wasn’t the type to be angry at everything like some young hothead.
Then she suddenly remembered the silhouette from her dreams — standing in the wind and sand, rooted like a pine tree, unmoving no matter how the gale blew. Red robes, golden armor, black hair flying. Those eyes beneath the mask radiated cold intensity. Ah, no point thinking about it. She’d figure it out sooner or later. Right now, the tiger was the priority.
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