It wasn’t until the second month of everyone hunting together that Henry Stone, having saved up exactly thirty animal pelts, told everyone: the reason he wanted the pelts was because the laws of Great Xia stipulated that anyone who donated thirty pelts could be exempted from military service.

Of course, these pelts weren’t just any pelts—they had to be from fierce beasts, suitable for making leather armor.

Only then did all the hunters suddenly realize what was going on, and immediately understood Henry Stone’s intentions. The first thirty pelts Henry Stone collected were for his father. He didn’t wait until he had sixty before telling everyone, which made Uncle Bolton and the others very grateful.

In the eyes of the mountain folk, the seemingly “frail” Henry Stone had actually become the main force in the village’s hunting parties. With Uncle Bolton and the others feeling grateful and deliberately singing his praises, Henry Stone’s abilities grew even more legendary in the stories. The villagers also figured it out: Henry Stone’s father had started loafing around and going hunting with others years ago, yet their family’s crops always flourished. After looking into it, the only explanation was Henry Stone himself.

As a result, when families came to propose marriage, they not only had the matchmaker exaggerate their daughters’ virtues, but also quietly instructed the matchmaker to mention how much dowry they had prepared. This sparked a wave of competition, and in the end, the dowry soared all the way to three strings of cash, a threshold that excluded many villagers.

Mr. Bolton’s daughter was only six years old this year, but he already had someone approach Henry Stone’s mother, offering ten strings of cash and five mu of good farmland as dowry to marry into the Shi family.

Mr. Bolton could see Henry Stone’s value more clearly than anyone else in the village—it wasn’t just about being strong and able to work.

Mr. Bolton made his move with “deep pockets,” and all the other competitors withdrew.

Henry Stone’s mother started to play hard to get, and her anger faded. After all, they were all fellow villagers, and mountain folk didn’t hold grudges. She began to be selective, even consulting a fortune-teller to see which family’s daughter’s birth characters matched her son’s. She already had someone in mind, but then Mr. Bolton suddenly intervened, making things difficult for her.

While Henry Stone’s mother was troubled, Mr. Bolton was sitting in a recliner, legs crossed, holding his “expensive” Yixing teapot bought for half a string of cash, savoring the mellow new tea after the rain.

His wife stormed in from outside, fuming, and scolded him: “Are you out of your mind? The child is only six, and you want to give her away already? How could you be so heartless! Even if you do, why not find a better-off family? Our Zhang family is considered a prominent clan in the village, yet you’re so eager to marry into the Shi family and even offer such a big dowry. Tell me, is it because you fancy the Shi family’s girl and want to take a young wife yourself?”

A delicate hand with crimson-painted nails reached out and grabbed Mr. Bolton’s ear.

“Ouch!” Mr. Bolton cried out in pain. His wife had been arranged for him by his father when he was still alive. His late father had managed him all his life, and even on his deathbed, he wasn’t at ease, so he found him a formidable wife to keep him in line.

Still, his wife was a real beauty, with bright, watery eyes, a delicate nose and thin lips, two soft mounds on her chest, a slender waist that could be held in one hand, and long, shapely legs—truly a beauty in the making.

Mr. Bolton was endlessly delighted with her ample curves and didn’t mind her managing everything at home.

Unexpectedly, today Mr. Bolton suddenly exploded, shaking off his wife’s hand and pointing at her nose, scolding angrily: “Woman’s short-sightedness! What do you know? That child is no ordinary person. Today, for just ten strings of copper coins and five mu of good land, we can become in-laws with him. In a few years, if he soars to great heights, even if you were a local official, he might not even look at your daughter!”

Mr. Bolton was, after all, a half-baked scholar with little academic success, and his vision was only a bit broader than the villagers’, still revolving around the idea of “local officials.”

His wife was stunned by his outburst, looking at him in confusion. Mr. Bolton snorted, then explained his reasoning in detail. Finally, he rapped the table and said, word by word, “A talent in both civil and martial arts! Hmph, women are not fit to discuss such matters…” With that, he picked up his Yixing teapot and walked off, full of pride.

Though his wife was stingy, she was also a shrewd woman. After a moment’s confusion, she quickly understood. Suddenly, she called out, “Ying’er, Ying’er, come out quickly and let mother dress you up nicely…”

Chapter Three: Mr. Bolton Marries Off His Daughter (Part 2)

The curtain lifted, and out came a little girl as delicate as a carved jade doll, inheriting all her parents’ best features and looking especially adorable. As she came out, she called out in a childish voice, “Mother.”

This was Mr. Bolton’s only daughter, Emily Bolton.

At this moment, Emily Bolton, with Henry Stone’s mother’s approval, had become Henry Stone’s fiancée.

Henry Stone’s mother wasn’t after Mr. Bolton’s dowry. She chose Emily Bolton for two reasons. First, Mr. Bolton’s family was the wealthiest in the village, and she was renting their land, so it wouldn’t be right to offend them. Second, she had seen Emily Bolton herself—a beauty in the making even at such a young age, and a good match for her son Henry.