Ch 31: The Cannon Fodder Won’t Play Along Anymore [QT]

Ah Yue stroked the soft little creature in his arms, and suddenly remembered—just not long ago, his older brother had given him a young colt.

He had loved it instantly, clutching the little horse and refusing to let go.

That colt had been just as soft and gentle as the squirrel in his arms now.

He couldn’t help recalling his brother’s expression back then, the hearty smile on his face: “Before long, Ah Yue will be able to ride the colt and run alongside brother. Ah Yue, are you happy?”

When Uncle Tingfeng had taken him wandering from place to place, he too would clutch him tightly in the middle of the night, repeating over and over: “Ah Yue, don’t only think of revenge. As long as you live well, that’s the greatest wish of the General and Madam.”

He lowered his head, and a tear slid silently into the squirrel’s soft fur.

When he looked up again, he forced his eyes into a smile at Mu Xing: “I understand. Thank you, Brother Xiaobao.”

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The Mu family soon noticed that Ah Yue had become much more cheerful.

He still trained diligently, but at home he now greeted people on his own, and would quietly help with chores.

Dazhuang Village was small. The fact that the Mu family had brought back a five-year-old boy spread quickly.

Zhang shi explained simply: Ah Yue’s parents had died of illness, and his paternal family hadn’t wanted to raise him. Seeing he was pitiful, she brought him home.

No one in the village doubted it. In these times, people placed great importance on blood ties. As long as they weren’t too poor to feed themselves, they were usually willing to take in relatives.

Only a handful of people were displeased with Ah Yue’s arrival.

For instance, Xu Dapang, who had been at odds with Mu Jiafeng since childhood.

Xu Dapang’s father was a peddler, clever and well-traveled, who had made good money. Their family was one of the better-off households in the village. If not for Xu Dapang’s utter lack of talent, his father would’ve sent him to study in town.

Xu Dapang had once been the leader of the village children, but Mu Jiafeng and Mu Jiajia refused to follow him. The two sides had clashed since they were young.

Later, when Mu Xing was born sickly and couldn’t leave the house for three years, Xu Dapang had even mocked the siblings, saying their family had birthed a short-lived weakling.

——That was, until Mu Xing grew older, his health improved, and he could go outside.

Even without schooling, people had a natural sense for beauty.

The little Mu treasure of the Mu family was more beautiful than flowers! That was the truest description the uneducated village children could come up with.

Xu Dapang and his gang stopped picking fights with the Mu siblings and instead wanted to bring the beautiful little brother along to play.

They were just kids, with no real malice, and Mu Xing didn’t dislike them.

But he wasn’t truly a small child, and couldn’t spend every day running barefoot with them, digging for crickets, worms, and mouse holes.

The others didn’t mind. Mu Xiaobao was too good-looking, fair-skinned, not the same shade as them at all. Quietness suited him.

That wasn’t “unsociable”—that was… what did his mother say? Gentle and refined. Yes, gentle and refined!

But now, the Mu family had picked up Ah Yue.

In order to make him happy and free from burdens, Mu Xing tried hard to take Ah Yue everywhere, encouraging him to play with children his own age, determined to bring him joy.

The group of kids, used to Mu Xiaobao’s quiet persona, suddenly saw him treating this outsider differently.

And an outsider, no less! How could that be tolerated?

Xu Dapang and a few of his hangers-on chose a time, lying in wait on the roadside when Ah Yue returned alone from Xie Wang’s place one day. They leapt out, ready to beat him up, show him the cruelty of the world, and announce who the real boss of the village was.

——Instead, they themselves tasted the cruelty of the world, beaten up thoroughly by Ah Yue.

By now, Ah Yue had been following Xie Wang for almost half a year. He wasn’t amazing yet, but knocking down a few ten-year-olds was more than easy.

He stared in puzzlement at the four wailing on the ground. He didn’t know them, and didn’t sense any killing intent from them either.

When he got home, he told Mu Xing what happened.

After a rough description, Mu Xing instantly knew who it was.

“They tried to beat you? Four against one?” Mu Xing jumped up.

So angry!

In his mind, since Ah Yue had been adopted into the Mu family,

Ah Yue shook his head. Just as he was about to say “I beat them up”, Mu Xing shot him a glare.

Ah Yue opened his mouth, then closed it again.

Hearing that Ah Yue wasn’t hurt, Zhang shi finally let out a sigh of relief—then rolled up her sleeves: “How unreasonable! That Xu Dapang is so big already, and he still dares bully our Ah Yue? Ah Yue, don’t be afraid. Auntie will go to the Xu household right now and ask that woman Li Cuihua how she’s raising her son!”

Fuming, Zhang shi stormed out to demand justice from Xu Dapang’s mother.

Ah Yue looked at her departing back, conflicted. “I just lied.”

That soft, round bun-like face wearing such a troubled, forlorn expression was so adorable it made one want to pinch it.

Mu Xing looked at the solemn little fellow and couldn’t help feeling amused. He wondered what kind of family had raised such an honest child.

He declared righteously: “How did you lie? Wasn’t it Xu Dapang who led people to block you? We only left out part of the truth.”

“And besides,” Mu Xing continued, “if you hadn’t been strong, wouldn’t you have been beaten for nothing by them today?”

“The only reason you’re unharmed is because you’re capable. That doesn’t mean they weren’t wrong.” He patted Ah Yue’s head. “So, them getting beaten by you was what they deserved—but it still wasn’t enough.”

After going on a bit, he realized he was talking too much. “Forget it, you wouldn’t understand. You just need to know this: when us kids are bullied, our mother will always stand up for us.”

Mother will always stand up for us.

Ah Yue repeated the words silently in his heart. His lashes trembled lightly, and at last he lifted his head and gave a firm “Mm.”

About half an hour later, Zhang shi returned.

“That brat from the Xu family still tried to deny it, even accused our Ah Yue of hitting him. What a joke!” Zhang shi huffed angrily. “Does he even think? Our Ah Yue is so little, and those four big kids ganged up on him. Even his own mother didn’t believe that nonsense.”

Indeed, Madam Li clearly knew her son was lying. She was furious at Xu Dapang for bullying a child so much younger, one who’d even lost his father, and after confirming the truth, she broke off a tree branch and gave him a beating right there.

Finishing her tale, Zhang shi looked at Ah Yue and smiled kindly: “Next time you run into them, don’t be afraid. They won’t dare bully you again. Otherwise, I’ll have his mother thrash him to death.”

Only then did Mu Xing widen his eyes with feigned innocence. “Mother, actually there’s something I forgot to tell you earlier.”

“What is it?” Zhang shi asked.

“Well, the truth is, Xu Dapang and his gang weren’t a match for Ah Yue. They tried to bully him but ended up getting soundly beaten instead.”

Ah Yue instantly tensed, tilting his head up to watch Zhang shi’s reaction.

She froze, instinctively looking at the child who barely reached her waist, and asked uncertainly, “Ah Yue really beat them up?”

Ah Yue nodded. “Master is very powerful.”

Zhang shi suddenly broke into laughter. She bent down and planted a firm kiss on his cheek. “Well done! You truly are one of our Mu family!”

She then perfectly demonstrated the Mu family’s double standards—her face turned immediately to disdain. “Those Xu boys are a disgrace. Four of them, so big already, and they can’t even beat a five-year-old? If I were his mother, I’d thrash him again. Shameful!”

When Zhang shi went into the kitchen to cook, Mu Xing looked at Ah Yue, who was still covering his cheek, and grinned. “See? I told you. You can tell the family anything. Mother will always speak up for us.”

Ah Yue really did like the Mu family.

They were cheerful, hardworking. Life here was poorer than what he’d once known, yet they were happy—and so was he.

He thought the Mus had no sore spots.

Until that day, when a few riders arrived at their door.

They were people from the Marquis of Cheng’en’s household.

Ah Yue followed behind Mu Xing, unafraid of being recognized. He had always lived at the border, never appeared in the capital.

The visitors had come to take Mu Xing back to the capital—

Because the young master Jiaming was ill.

This time, it was real.

Before, in order to drive Mu Xing away, Jiaming had taken some medicine and even sought out a so-called “master” to say that he and Mu Xing’s fates clashed.

As he wished, the Lu family believed that this outsider Mu Xing couldn’t compare to the child they had raised. The one to remain was Lu Jiaming.

Everything had been perfect.

But from that day on, Jiaming began to truly fall ill.

He stopped taking the medicine, focused on recuperating—but instead he started coughing, lost his appetite, and no matter how carefully he was tended, he failed to improve.

As he wasted away, the Lu family sought famous doctors, even imperial physicians, yet no cause could be found.

The old madam of the Marquis household grew desperate. Suddenly she remembered the words of that “master”: Mu Xing and Jiaming’s fates clashed.

In Dazhuang Village, the Marquis household had always kept eyes watching in secret.

They did not believe the Mu family was truly so honest. Trusted retainers had been ordered to watch, with instructions that if the Mu family ever traveled toward the capital, they were to seize them and bring them in.

What happened afterward would be handled by unspeakable means.

At present, the old madam herself didn’t even know exactly what she wanted from bringing Mu Xing over. In her eyes, he was nothing more than a possible “medicine” that might cure her grandson. Whether it worked or not didn’t matter—it was worth trying.

As for Mu Xing’s own wishes—who cared?

Those men hadn’t expected the Mu family to refuse.

They came under the pretense that the old madam missed Mu Xing, the child she had entrusted to relatives, and wanted to bring him to the capital to live a good life.

In their eyes, for a country boy to catch the eye of the Marquis’s old madam was an enormous honor.

But the Mu family refused without hesitation—and even shut the door in their faces.

Dazhuang Village wasn’t small, and with so many locals who had lived there for generations, quite a crowd came out with their families to watch the commotion.

“Boss, what do we do?” one of the mounted riders asked.

With so many witnesses, and acting under the Marquis of Cheng’en’s name, they couldn’t just openly snatch a child. If the Mu family submitted a complaint, the Marquis household wouldn’t suffer much, but small fry like them would be punished.

The leader gave the Mus a glance and muttered, “We’ll come back at night.”

In these mountains, if a child disappeared, it wasn’t anything strange. With no evidence, even if the Mu family suspected, no one would dare confront the Marquis household over mere suspicion.

“Bah!” After that group left, Zhang shi spat with disgust.

“What kind of Marquis household is this? Those masters must all be crazy in the head.” She frowned. “When they drove us away, they looked at us like filth. Now suddenly they say they want our Xiaobao.”

Even if she didn’t understand schemes and stratagems, she knew this wasn’t normal.

“There’s definitely some nasty trick behind it!” she declared.

That night.

Mu Xing opened his eyes in the dark. Beside him, Ah Yue also awoke.

Ah Yue crept closer and whispered, “Brother Xiaobao, someone came in.”

Mu Xing nodded lightly. “I know.”

The two brothers stayed still, pretending to sleep. Soon, someone climbed in through the window.

Guided by moonlight, the intruder easily picked Mu Xing out and slung him over his back.

At the village outskirts, in a patch of dense woods, several men gathered.

“So quick? Nicely done, Old Third.”

The one carrying Mu Xing—called Old Third—grinned. “Just a farm family. With my skills, how could they possibly notice?”

The leader looked at Mu Xing. “Give him some medicine. Don’t want him waking up and causing trouble on the road.”

“What kind of medicine are you trying to feed me?” came a crisp voice in the darkness.

The leader froze. Realizing the child was awake, he raised his hand like a knife, aiming to knock Mu Xing out.

But before his hand could fall, a soft little hand blocked it.

Mu Xing knew his master was powerful, and had often heard him say he had great talent.

But he had never faced a real opponent—so he had no idea of his true strength.

Until now, when he grabbed the leader’s wrist, channeled inner force, and gave a light squeeze—

Crack!

The sound of bones breaking rang out, followed by the man’s pained cry.

Had he… accidentally crushed the man’s bone?

Startled, Mu Xing leapt down from Old Third’s back, guilt written all over his face. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know I was that strong. I didn’t mean it.”

Leader: “……”
Others: “……”

They all stared at Mu Xing like he was some kind of monster.

Clenching his teeth through the pain, the leader barked, “This kid is strange. What are you waiting for? Take him down!”

The others snapped out of their daze and rushed at Mu Xing.

This was Mu Xing’s first real fight since learning martial arts from his master.

The night posed no obstacle to him. In his eyes, their bodies were full of flaws, their movements unbearably slow.

Suddenly, he felt disdain for the Marquis household.

This was supposed to be a noble family of the first rank? And their people were this weak?

He was wronging them, though.

Xie Wang, arrogant as he was, had never mentioned his own fearsome reputation in the martial world to his only disciple.

And Mu Xing truly had no idea how formidable he was.

For a household of civil officials and nobles, their guards weren’t even on par with third- or fourth-rate fighters in the jianghu. How could they match him?

Within moments, all of them were sprawled on the ground.

Mu Xing stood over them. “The Marquis household sent you to drag me back. What for?”

Of course, none of them answered.

Mu Xing thought for a moment. “Didn’t you say earlier you wanted to feed me some medicine?”

He rummaged around, pulled something out, and shoved it into their mouths. “Courtesy demands reciprocity.”

“What did you feed us?” the leader asked in terror.

Mu Xing said calmly, “Don’t worry. Just a little poison that’ll kill you if you swallow it.”

The leader went pale. “We didn’t want your life!”

Mu Xing dusted his hands. “Nor do I. Tell me the truth and I’ll give you the antidote.”

Seeing his unfathomable martial skill and his eerie, unpredictable manner, none of them dared provoke him further.

The leader grimaced. “We really don’t know much. The Marquis gave the order to bring you back. We’re just following orders.”

“Bring me back for what?”

“The old madam wants to see you,” the leader admitted.

From their expressions, Mu Xing judged they really didn’t know more. He felt wronged.

“It’s not even my fault. They’re the ones who came looking for trouble first.”

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