She blinked. Blinked again, delivered a sharp pinch to a thigh, and tried hard not to groan.

Olive green that hadn’t been there before streaked through Ju’s black hair as she made her way to the property gate.

I shouldn’t be surprised. I really shouldn’t. In another world. Of course magic hair was a possibility. 

And that meant the blue she had seen in Ping’s hair hadn’t been her imagination.

Pulling away from the questions on how that was possible, Olivia focused on the figures outside the property and bit back a rant. No need to worry the kids sitting at the table right behind her.

But why are there five of them?

Four men were dressed simple, bodyguards, if Olivia guessed, and likely armed. The final was dressed nicer but still simple, and if that hat meant anything, some sort of scholar.

What does he need five bodyguards for? Olivia wondered. One or two would be expected, but five? I mean, sure, if you were expecting trouble, and Ju mentioned that hardly anyone besides the farmers who own the land around here rarely comes down this road.

Or the odd other-worlder who had no idea where she was. And there were the ghosts to factor in but during the daytime?

“Overkill, I’d say,” Olivia mumbled.

“Yīn Liáng,” Ju greeted the man, hands clasped forward even as her body’s posture screamed that she’d rather be anywhere but talking with the man.

So, Ju’s been dealing with this guy for a while, Olivia thought, leaning forward to catch the conversation. And not on the best of terms.

“Madam Heng,” the newly named Yīn Liáng didn’t return the gesture, and his voice barely concealed his sneer, “I come on behalf of Madam Bǎozhèng - ”

“I had told you before,” Ju’s voice was even, whether it was to hold back fear or anger, who knew, “I have no intention of paying the fees. Please go back and inform her of my decision.”

If Olivia ever worried about her eyes drying, the rapid blinking put that worry aside. That frigidness in Ju’s voice didn’t match the kind, if somewhat scared, woman who had allowed strangers to stay in her house for the night.

One daughter’s persuasion to help notwithstanding.

“The fees are in your name, Madam Heng,” Yīn Liáng continued, not bothered by the interruption. “You know what happens to those who don’t pay.”

Ju took a deep breath. “I don’t owe anything, especially to a mother who refuses to acknowledge her son’s will.”

“A will made without his parent’s blessing,” Yīn Liáng grinned, though it was far from friendly. “As well as his marriage to a woman whose lack of family is the only reason the generous Madam Bǎozhèng hasn’t insisted on annulling your marriage.”

“And if you refuse to pay the dues, well,” he gestured to the men flanking him. “I’m sure there’s something in your lodging that can be used to pay it.”

Okay, that’s it. “Try it, and you’ll have to deal with me.” Fulling pulling the cloth aside, Olivia stepped out into the sunlight, fighting the urge to blink at the harsh light. Should have grabbed my hat. Oh well.

“Wh-Who are you?” Yīn Liáng sputtered, black eyes wide. Huh, he had maroon highlights. Interesting.

“Ms. Ada?”

Ms. Ada? Who-oh, she means me. Excellent thinking, Ju.

Olivia smirked at the gathered men, stepping off the porch while slipping her hands into her pockets. “You know, I was planning on staying out of this since Ju seemed like she had it covered, but well,” she shrugged. “Considering you were planning on having your goons storm a house with two children inside, I figured I’d step in.”

Removing her hands, Olivia made a show of keeping her hand near her pistol. By the confused looks, no one other than her recognized the item, which was okay with her.

Always handy to keep a trump card.

Glancing over at the four men, not bothering to hide their shock, probably at the fact she was in strange clothing that had few layers, Olivia added, “So, what extortion ring are you trying to run here?”

“Extortion-! We are here on official business.”

“Uh-huh,” Olivia turned back to the spluttering man. “What official business needs you to bring four guys with you? That to me speaks of intimidation, if anything.”

“If Madam Heng would pay the fees-”

“Fees that she shouldn’t even be paying if I'm hearing right.” Olivia tried not to grin at the man’s furious expression. It was too funny; he looked like a cross between a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar and a kettle about to whistle on the stove. “Unless you have a contract that specifies the amount owed, then you and this Madam, what was it, Baochin-”

“Bǎozhèng.” The man hissed.

Olivia tried not to snort at the not-whistle.

“Right, that. Anyway, without a contract saying that Ju owes anything to anyone, you have no legal ground to stand on. Surely someone of your standing would know ”

“And no,” she added, narrowing her eyes, “a marriage license does not count. Unless there were pre-nuptials written out, I’m not sorry to say that you’re out of luck there.”

“What in the Sky Emperor’s name are pre-nuptial?” One of the goons, hair streaked with burnt orange, whispered to another, who shrugged.

“A written agreement that guarantees both parties rights and ownership of property,” Olivia recited quickly from memory. Who’d have thought helping Hannah with her marriage law tests would be helping now? “In the event of divorce, it makes it less of a hassle for both sides.”

“I…don’t have anything like that,” Ju admitted. “We didn’t think of doing anything like that.”

Olivia shrugged. “Not a lot of folks do.”

“Regardless,” Yīn Liáng snorted, “Madam Heng owes the Bǎozhèng Family, and she must pay it. The Madam’s patience can only go so far, after all.”

Turning back to Ju, he added with a smug grin, “but perhaps, if Madam Heng wouldn’t mind offering her services, I’m sure I could work out – ”

Yīn Liáng didn’t finish as Olivia took a step forward, and her fist lashed out, meeting his large nose, and sending the man stumbling back, grasping his nose with red leaking through his fingers. Olivia barely registered the other men’s dropped jaws.

What? Never seen a girl punch before? Upper body strength may not be a woman’s forte, but we can still do damage. Especially with nails.

Yīn Liáng wheezed through his mouth. “How dare you - !”

“How dare I? I’m not the one who just tried to extort favors from a woman who isn’t interested in exchange for getting rid of a debt that she doesn’t even owe!” Olivia began to pop her knuckles, one at a time, secretly enjoying the men’s paling faces.

All bluff and no brawn, this lot. A good thing if those knives on their belts were not supposed to be only for show.

I know some unarming moves, but that’s only one-on-one. Five against one? I’ll be in trouble.

“Just be grateful a broken nose is all you got for that statement,” she continued. “Keep going, and you’ll get a lot more.”

“How?” One of the goons asked softly.

Olivia flashed a grin his way, and by the group’s stiffing, that statement wasn’t supposed to be heard. “Well, I did work at my Great-Uncle Louie’s ranch for ten summers straight. Can’t be much different from dealing with steers, right?”

If those faces became any paler, they’d rival glass. One even looked ready to bolt.

Yīn Liáng glared, face red with either swelling from his broken nose or outright anger. “You – Do you think you can get away with this? I have ties with the most powerful family in Li-An Village. Are you trying to pick a fight with the Bǎozhèng Family?”

Olivia allowed teeth to enter her smile. “Oh, I’m not starting a fight. Mom always said I shouldn’t start fights. It’s not very ladylike, you know.”

“Dad, on the other hand,” Olivia let her grin gain teeth, “said that, even if I didn’t start it, I should always finish them.”

Olivia wasn’t sure what prompted Yīn Liáng, whether it was the threat of more physical damage or that Olivia herself wasn’t bothered by his threats. He only promptly turned, back to the village most likely, and tried very hard not to look like he was running away, shouting over his shoulder, “Mark my words, you’ll pay for this!” His goons, casting one more anxious look at Olivia, followed quickly behind him.

“That’s what they all say,” Olivia muttered, unimpressed with the threat. If you’re going to threaten someone, at least be a little original.

She kept an eye on the retreating forms well until they were past the point of any reason to turn back. “Well, that went about not even half as well as I had hoped. Sorry for nosing in like that, Ju – Ju?”

Ju was kotowing on the ground, voice muffled as she seemed to be…apologizing?

“Hey, Ju,” Olivia knelt, reaching out to the panicking woman. “Are you okay? I didn’t mean to make things worse for you. I’ll figure something out to get this mess to blow over, okay?”

“I’m sorry.” The woman was muttering over and over, body shaking in solid fear.

She’s really spooked. Olivia reached out and gave the woman a shake on the shoulder. “Ju, snap out of it!”

“Eek!” Ju shot up from her kowtow, eyes wide as if they were just now seeing Olivia.

“Are you okay?”

“Eh…er, yes?”

“You sure?” Olivia asked, an eyebrow raised. “Cause it looked to me like you were panicking. Considering how well you held yourself against that jerk, I’m slightly surprised.”

“Er, I’m fine, really, um…” Ju glanced around. “Did they leave?”

“…How long were you doing that?”

“I think after you punched Yīn Liáng. Did you really make him leave?”

Olivia snickered. “With his tail between his legs.”

“Tail?” Ju asked, bewildered.

“Sorry, a figure of speech. I mean that he left trying not to make it look like he was running away, but he clearly was.”

“And…he didn’t say anything?”

Olivia shrugged. “Besides the generic threat of revenge without going into specifics, not much.”

“Enough about that guy,” Olivia stood up and offered a hand to Ju, who accepted it after a moment’s hesitation. “You want to go inside and explain what I just nosed my way into?”

“Are you sure? It’s a complicated situation.”

“Complicated as in it’s very simple, but I don’t want to talk about it or that it is as complicated as you make it out to be?”

“I’m…not sure.”

“Right,” Olivia rubbed at her knuckles. Darn itch, why won’t you go away? “Well, how about you check on your kids while I ensure that Gipp didn’t stuff himself on their veggies. They need to eat those too.”

It wasn’t a loud laugh, more like a single chuckle, but Olivia would take it.