Liu Duo understood his intentions and let go of her anger. She placed an arm across his shoulder and smiled, "Let's go, Liuzi."

Ye Liu liked her this way. She'd only be mad for a while, and then she would stop after a little bit of coaxing and teasing, unlike some women, who couldn't be helped regardless.

The chief's house was the grandest of them all, with typical blue brick and white tiles, sturdy and reliable. It was very unlike the other residences, which were essentially straw houses, walled with mud. Even the better ones were only able to afford a few more tiles than the others. Otherwise, the roof could be easily blown away by large gusts of wind during heavy rainstorms.

Ye Liu stepped forward and knocked on the yard entrance, "Is the chief home?"

A woman soon appeared to open the door. She wasn't too old, and she appeared to be the chief's daughter-in-law. She was small in size and seemed vulnerable and easy to get along with. "My father-in-law isn't at home," she said.

She sounded delicate, but not very girlish. In fact, she was quite easy on the ears.

And so, Ye Liu nodded, "Then we shall not disturb."

He turned away, held Liu Duo's hand, and was about to leave when the woman said, "He should be at Cousin Du's house."

Cousin Du? Liu Duo mumbled, "It couldn't be Burly Du, could it?"

She couldn't be blamed for thinking like that. Burly Du's name rang loud when she thought of Du. She had not met anyone else by that surname.

"Oh, thanks for telling us," Ye Liu smiled back and left with Liu Duo.

They headed in the direction of Burly Du's house.

"Liuzi, did the chief's daughter-in-law really mean Burly Du?" She looked up at Ye Liu. She remembered he had said before that Burly Du's house was quite close to the chief's house!

"Yes, indeed," Ye Liu said in defeat. Why did they have to go there? He didn't want to see him, but now they were forced to!

It didn't take long before they arrived at Burly Du's house. Compared to the chief's house, it wasn't as grand, but it was still in great condition and was at least much better than their own house.

Ye Liu didn't want to knock, but they had to talk to the chief, so he did it anyway.

He knocked a few times before the wooden door opened. Burly Du was head over heels upon seeing his handsome visitor, "Liu Er, you came!"

He was so over the moon that he had forgotten Liu Duo's warning.

She coughed and stepped in front of Ye Liu to announce her presence. She smiled at Burly Du, "Hi there, I'm here too. Have you forgotten what I said, hmm?"

One second, she was giggling and the next, her smile had receded. Burly Du gulped. She could switch her emotions really quickly!

"Burly Du, we are here to speak with the village chief. After that, we'll be on our way. Can we come in?" She ignored his daze and put on her friendly smile again.

"Yes, we'll leave when we are done," Ye Liu repeated.

He didn't like Burly Du addressing him that way either!

Burly Du reacted when he heard Ye Liu speak. He smiled, "Sure. Come in!"

Liu Duo made a mental complaint, Geez, he'd obey Liuzi's every word, huh? Whatever I say is totally disregarded! Gosh, it's a superficial world, no matter where you go!

But she had to admit, her appearance was nowhere near Ye Liu's good looks. She twitched her lips as she followed alongside Ye Liu.

Ye Liu seemed to know what she was thinking, as he patted her on the head and whispered softly, "Little Duo is the best-looking one in my heart. Even I couldn't compare to you!"

Wow! He, who was narcissistic beyond words about his own appearance, had actually said this to her. The corners of her mouth curled upwards in glee, and her dimples were mesmerizing.