Chapter 018: Punishment

Du Fan had originally planned to go explore the underground caves right away, but he was indeed tired—having worked hard for half a month with little rest. Even though he was now a level 9 warrior, he couldn’t deny that he was used to a comfortable life. The strain of those half a month had become too much for him.

Although Elsik didn’t know where Du Fan had gone, his exhausted return clearly showed he was tired. “My lord, you should rest properly. A few more days won’t make a difference.”

“But those three people…”

“They went down there ready to die. Please don’t worry about them, my lord. If you keep stressing over it, it will be my fault. I shouldn’t bring up such matters when you’ve just returned!”

With things already said to this extent, Du Fan would be blaming Elsik if he continued. “Alright. But I’ll go check it out myself. Don’t try to stop me.”

Without caring about Elsik’s expression, Du Fan returned to the bedroom inside, closed the door, quickly washed up, and went to sleep.

It wasn’t until Du Fan said those words that Elsik remembered—he wasn’t just a lord but also the strongest person here. Facing a dangerous place like the underground caves, it was only natural for Du Fan to explore first. But Du Fan was their lord! How could they let him go down? Yet it was too late to say anything now.

From Du Fan’s words, it seemed he was determined to go. How would he explain this to Old Mark later? Old Mark would surely scold him mercilessly! He better think carefully about how to deal with Old Mark.

The group Du Fan brought with him was easy to take care of. Though they didn’t know Old Mark’s status here, it was clear he acted as the steward. Having just arrived, they naturally wouldn’t clash with the locals.

As for the most troublesome one, Lenna, Du Fan had already worn her out so much that she had no strength to cause trouble anymore.

Old Mark, upon seeing these people, marveled at Du Fan’s tactics—especially after seeing Lenna’s beauty, though the lovely lady could hardly walk…

Clearly, the old man had misunderstood something. He wondered how to arrange accommodation for her. Du Fan hadn’t asked him to send Lenna back to her room, but aside from the commoners’ quarters, there was no other place suitable for someone who clearly came from a wealthy family.

Should he send her straight to Du Fan’s room?

Old Mark really didn’t know how to arrange things, so he went to Du Fan. It happened that Du Fan was about to go to bed when Old Mark entered and asked how to accommodate Lena.
“Let her sleep wherever the others sleep,” Du Fan replied, saying nothing more.
Though puzzled, Old Mark said nothing and arranged for Lena to stay in a simply furnished cottage.
Lena waited for a long time before finally getting a place to rest. But when she saw where she was staying, she couldn’t stop screaming. No matter what the guards around her said, she refused to move in.
Pointing at the smaller room next to Du Fan’s, she declared arrogantly, “I can’t stay in the Duke’s room. I’ll stay in the other one—have those people move out!”
Lena’s words angered everyone there. That was Lilith’s residence, the sister of the former lord. Even Du Fan hadn’t asked Lilith to move out, and at that time, Du Fan’s own living conditions were worse than Lilith’s room! Why should this woman demand such things?
“I’ve already told Uncle Hua—I don’t want to be here. Look around! Just plain cottages, all made of simple stones, everything is dilapidated! Why should I live in such a place? There are good houses available—why must I, Lena Beba, live in a commoner’s house?”
Others might not know what the Beba family was, but Bati did. He hadn’t expected that the woman Du Fan had brought along was from a prominent family. But knowing this didn’t change the fact that Lena had to stay in the small cottage, as it was Du Fan’s decision.
Lena’s words provoked dissatisfaction among most people there. The place was still under construction, and things would get better. Besides, this was the capital of the Siluo Province, and it was Du Fan’s territory. If Du Fan complained like this, wasn’t that implying his territory was poor?
“Ahem!” A guard spoke up to remind her. Lena realized she had said too much and paused awkwardly before saying, “I don’t care! Anyway, you have to clear that room for me!”
Thinking that guests should be treated well, Lilith, who had originally planned to give up her room, now refused to do so after hearing Lena’s outburst. Instead, she asked, “Who is this person? If you think my city of Doha isn’t good, you’re free not to come. No one forced you here!”
“Do you think I wanted to come here? It was Uncle Hua who handed me over to your Duke to protect me!”

The duke protecting Lina? Although that’s true, it doesn’t mean the same thing at all. At most, Lina is just hiding under Du Fan’s protection. But coming from Lina’s mouth, it sounds as though it’s Du Fan who’s protecting her. Who does she think she is?

Lina’s words left the others unsure. If she were Du Fan’s woman, she naturally deserved to stay in Lilith’s room, but they really didn’t want Lilith to live with them, because Lilith was a noble! Lilith’s relatives died because of them, so they wanted to take good care of her.

Unfortunately, they failed to turn Lilith into a noble lady, which was their greatest regret. Thankfully, after Old Mark arrived, he taught Lilith many things. Although Old Mark didn’t know much about etiquette, he came from a prominent family and knew enough to teach Lilith, who knew nothing at all.

But they never forgot that Lilith was a noble. Old Mark also received instructions from Du Fan: once things stabilized here, a good teacher should be found elsewhere to teach her etiquette. However, Du Fan never mentioned restoring Lilith’s noble status. Yet Du Fan gave Lilith the best things!

Barty also disliked Lina. Or rather, he disliked arrogant people like her. Did she think her Beba family was something special? They were still under the duke’s protection!

But he also knew that the Beba family represented vitality and fresh blood for the current Siluo Province. He understood what it meant for Du Fan to be kind to the Beba family. But she was going too far!

“I thought you were some big shot! Turns out you’re just a merchant. I’m a noble lady after all—why should I let you stay in my room?”

Naive Lilith naturally didn’t understand the complex dynamics at play. All she knew was that the arrogant Lina wasn’t even a noble. Although she herself didn’t have any sense of nobility either, she disliked Lina’s attitude and wanted to mock her—after all, it was Lina who had mocked their hometown first!

Hearing this, Lina’s face turned pale. This was a sore point for their family. Although Lilith didn’t seem like a noble lady at all, the others all had expressions like, “Indeed, why should Lilith let her stay?” leaving Lina at a loss for words.

And now they realized that if she were Du Fan’s woman, she should have been sent to Du Fan’s room, not Lilith’s.

But although Lena couldn’t argue, she also refused to enter the room arranged for her by Old Mark. Naturally, Lilith wouldn’t budge either—after all, Lilith was in no fault; why should she give in? After watching for a while, the others went about their tasks, while Lilith proudly walked to her own room in front of Lena and got herself ready. Though her clothes weren’t fancy, they highlighted Lilith’s wild beauty even more. Now Lena finally understood why Du Fan had said, “It’s just so-so,” when he saw her original appearance! In terms of beauty, she was indeed on par with Lilith, but they shared one thing in common: wildness. However, if it came to sheer wildness, she couldn’t compare to Lilith, making her feel inferior. A sense of frustration arose in her. By the time Du Fan got up before dinner, Lena had already been standing outside for a long time. Old Mark explained the situation to Du Fan but didn’t mention how willful that young lady was. Anyway, Lena had gone too far, and given Du Fan’s personality, he would surely give her a good scolding. But he also knew that if the Beiba family could establish good relations with Du Fan, it would benefit the development of the Siluo Province in the future. When Du Fan heard from Old Mark that Lena refused to stay in the room he arranged and wanted Lilith’s room, he guessed what had happened. “Grandpa Mark, since you’ve arranged a place for her and she refuses to stay there, just leave her be.” Old Mark hesitated and said, “This… I’m afraid that’s not quite right.” Du Fan waved his hand. “You don’t know the whole story yet. I want to use them— the Beiba family also wants to ally with me! Besides, I owe them a favor. Walwei from the Beiba family has already agreed to invest in our Siluo Province as long as we eliminate those bandit groups. And tell me, which is more important— a business opportunity, a backing partner, or a willful little girl? Don’t worry about her. If she’s still energetic enough to cause trouble after returning, it seems she still isn’t satisfied!” Du Fan’s expression changed, shifting from serious to softer. “Grandpa Mark, let’s go have dinner. If she wants to stand outside, let her.”

With that, Du Fan walked out of the room. Seeing Du Fan leave, Lena, who was already feeling aggrieved, burst into tears the moment she saw him. Du Fan frowned—he disliked seeing women cry! If a woman he cared about cried, he felt pain; if a woman he hated cried, he felt annoyance!
Turning around, Du Fan saw Lilith, who had dressed up carefully. Though not in extravagant clothing, her simple yet elegant outfit combined wildness and grace perfectly, catching Du Fan’s attention—this was the difference between a swan and ducklings!
By the time Lena realized she shouldn’t show her ugly side to Du Fan, he had already taken Lilith’s hand and gone to the dining hall to have dinner. Aside from a frown, Du Fan didn’t even give Lena another expression.
Lena watched in shock as Du Fan and Lilith left. Lilith showed no triumph or intent to upset Lena. But her indifference and disdain toward Lena only further angered her!
Lena didn’t scream or throw a tantrum. She realized that her father wouldn’t estrange himself from Du Fan over her, and that Du Fan was acting this way precisely because he knew that! She, Lena, had been looked down upon!!