The Jianghu of Feng Qingcheng and Mo Xibei

Chapter 30

The footsteps weren't from one person; they were quite a distance away. However, judging from the depth of the sound, it didn't seem to be someone who practiced martial arts.

"Hey, someone's here, why aren't you up?" Mo Xibei's tone was rather harsh, a sign that she was about to get angry.

"You said you bumped into me so hard just now, and you reopened my wound. Now you think you can get up so easily?" Young Master Mu moved, and Mo Xibei just felt the weight on him lighten. The next moment, he pressed down on him again. With each rise and fall, Mo Xibei felt like he was being crushed by a heavy object, and his eyes were filled with stars.

"Dad, look, there are two demons fighting." Just then, as they were catching their breath, a very childish voice came over.

"Tiger, don't talk nonsense. It's broad daylight, where would you find a demon?" A man's voice came from behind. Judging from his accent, he was probably a local. As he spoke, he walked over. "Hide your face, so you don't scare people." Mo Xibei took a deep breath, and without thinking, shoved Young Master Mu aside. He quickly stood up from the grass. The man who walked over was startled because he hadn't expected someone to actually be in the grass.

"Who are you?" The man took two steps back, his fingers tightening unconsciously around the machete in his hand, looking warily at the handsome but disheveled young man before him. "Brother, please don't misunderstand, I'm just passing through. I went into the mountains a few days ago, got lost, and encountered some villains. I was being chased and ended up here. May I ask where this place is?" Mo Xibei tried to make his smile as friendly and harmless as possible, while forcefully pressing down the head of the young master Mu beside him, who had just raised his head, as if afraid that the monster's mask would scare away this mountain dweller who had finally appeared.

"This place is called Wild Wolf's Hollow. Wild wolves used to roam here often. But in recent years, hunters in the mountains have hunted them several times, so there are far fewer wolves. You're lucky you didn't encounter any." The man said, glancing behind Mo Xibei. Mo Xibei chuckled and reached for the button again, but pressed nothing. Hearing the sound behind him, he looked at the man opposite him, who suddenly stared in disbelief, thinking that the mask of Young Master Mu had frightened him. He quickly said, "My friend here is injured, he's just playing a little joke..." and hurriedly turned around to try and salvage the situation.

Young Master Mu had now positioned himself behind her, slightly bowing his head. He brushed aside the stray hairs from his forehead with one hand, revealing skin as smooth as jade beneath his fingers. Looking down, he moved his fingers away. His phoenix eyes, no longer concealed, now gleamed with a captivating, almost devilish charm as he looked up at Mo Xibei, who seemed somewhat stunned. A slightly mocking smile played on his thin lips beneath his high, straight nose. He lifted his sharply defined chin and said softly, "Judging from your reaction, this face seems to meet your requirements, doesn't it?"

Mo Xibei shook his head, quickly turned to look at the father and son who were somewhat dazed, and asked, "My friend's injuries are serious. Could you take us away from here first?"

"Oh!" The boy was the first to come to his senses and nodded quickly, saying, "Our home is at the foot of that mountain, not too far from here. You two older brothers can rest at my house for a while." After saying that, he tugged at his father's clothes. Although he tried to keep his voice down, he was still a simple and innocent mountain child. Without even trying to hide his feelings, he said, "Dad, that older brother in the back is so beautiful. Do you think he's like the woman dressed as a man in the opera?"

"Haha..." Mo Xibei couldn't hold back and burst into laughter, bending over backwards. After a while, he beckoned the little boy over, patted his head, and said, "Little friend, you're really smart. How old are you this year?"

“I’m not a little kid, I’m ten years old this year. Dad said that in two years he’ll get me a wife. I want to get a beautiful wife like my brother.” The little boy seemed dissatisfied with Mo Xibei’s patting of his head, took a step back, and pouted.

"It's rare to see someone so ambitious at such a young age." Mo Xibei laughed wildly, bending over with laughter, until an arm suddenly reached out from behind her, grabbed her waist, and pulled her up forcefully.

"Congratulations, this mask is truly magnificent." Mo Xibei praised as he pushed the large hand that was hanging on his waist. "When you no longer need it, give this mask to me. Such a beautiful face is definitely worth keeping."

"Hmph!" The only response she received was a cold snort. Then, Young Master Mu's large hand suddenly lifted up and landed on Mo Xibei's shoulder. Mo Xibei then heard a cold yet deliberately coquettish voice say, "Since my husband likes it so much, please help me up."

Fortunately, the father and son had already set off with their firewood and medicine baskets on their backs. Mo Xibei thought that otherwise, with Young Master Mu's demeanor and voice, he would have scared them away. He raised his foot, intending to stomp on him hard, but his neck was tightened. Young Master Mu still said in a very soft voice, "If you don't plan to carry me out, don't get any funny ideas."

The mountain road was rugged. Mo Xibei recalled a rhyme he had heard: "Looking at the mountain makes a horse run itself to death." The child said they would arrive in a while, but it took them two full hours. It wasn't until dusk that they could see a small mountain village with smoke rising from its chimneys in the distance. After walking a little further, they saw a group of children playing and laughing. When they saw the little boy Huzi, they warmly invited him to join them.

"I need to cook dinner when I get home. Let's play tonight." Tiger just shook his head.

Tiger's house was located at the east end of the village, a thatched hut. A peasant woman was chopping firewood at the door. When she saw her husband and son return, she quickly stood up to greet them. The man briefly explained what had happened, and the peasant woman warmly led them into the house.

“We’re a small family, and we don’t have any rooms. You two can sleep here. I’ll let my wife go back to her parents’ house for a few nights, and Hu Zi and I will sleep over there,” the man said, pointing to the only kang (a heated brick bed) in the room.

"How can this be so troublesome?" Mo Xibei felt overwhelmed and immediately wanted to object.

"We appreciate your kindness, sir, but that's all for now. Sorry for bothering you." Young Master Mu stopped Mo Xibei, and whispered to her, "My chest is burning. Could you please take a look at it for me later?"

Mo Xibei looked up and saw his unfocused eyes and pale lips. She knew his injury couldn't be delayed any longer. This man was ruthless, and his life or death was none of her concern, but... she couldn't just watch him bleed to death. Mo Xibei sighed, feeling grateful for her own goodness. She helped Young Master Mu lie down and then quickly went to fetch water. Seeing Young Master Mu's injury, the peasant woman also found a piece of coarse cloth woven at home. The material was rough, but it was clean.

After tending to Young Master Mu's wounds, Mo Xibei searched her own person. She hadn't planned to stay long in the Eastern Depot, so she carried limited silver. Besides, while temporarily staying at the Eastern Depot camp, she had given most of it to the little eunuch beside Huang Jin, leaving her penniless. She had taken off Young Master Mu's clothes twice already, and knew better than him what was underneath—he was also broke. After searching thoroughly, she only found the small golden unicorn hanging around his neck. The unicorn wasn't large and wasn't valuable, but its craftsmanship was exquisite. She had searched all over Jiangnan's gold shops to find the best craftsman, who had it specially made according to her favorite style. Actually, the golden unicorn was a pair. One large, one small; she hung the large one on her bed. She carried the small one with her, but now, even though she was reluctant, she had to take it out.

The peasant woman felt embarrassed to receive the golden unicorn, so she immediately went to her neighbor's house to borrow an old hen that was laying eggs and stewed a pot of soup. Young Master Mu's wounds had worsened due to his repeated efforts, and he developed a fever that evening. There was a lack of medical care and medicine on the mountain. Although the peasant woman's family had some dried herbs that they had collected themselves, they did not know their medicinal properties, so Mo Xibei did not dare to try them easily. In the end, he simply made ginger soup to induce sweating in Young Master Mu.

People in the mountains work at sunrise and rest at sunset. After dinner, they make ginger soup, and the man takes his wife to his in-laws' house not far away. When he returns, he only calls his son once. The two of them don't even wash their faces and feet. They take off their outer clothes and lie down on the kang (a heated brick bed). A moment later, they start snoring loudly.

Mo Xibei originally planned to sleep on the roof for the night, but the weather in the mountains is unpredictable. She had only been lying down for a short while when it started raining heavily outside, forcing her to come back inside. Once the tung oil lamp went out, there was nowhere else to sit except for a kang (a heated brick bed).

"You can sleep here for a while. I'll feel better tomorrow, and then we'll find a way out." Young Master Mu wasn't asleep. His long-standing habit made it difficult for him to fall asleep in any unfamiliar place. Seeing Mo Xibei standing on the ground, he moved closer to the father and son and pointed to the empty space on the other side.

"I'm most afraid of sleeping on a kang (heated brick bed), it's so uncomfortable." Mo Xibei shook his head and refused.

“I see you’re sleeping quite well on the ground,” Young Master Mu sneered. “I know what you’re thinking. I’ve already sealed their pressure points. They won’t wake up until dawn. As for me, hmph, you’ve seen my injuries. I’m barely alive. I have the desire but not the strength. Besides, looking at you, you wouldn’t even have the desire to steal.”

Mo Xibei rolled his eyes at Young Master Mu. Thinking about standing all night was really terrifying, and since the other party had already said so much, it would be pretentious to refuse again. So he reluctantly climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), without even taking off his boots, and lay down close to the wall on his side. The kang in this farmhouse was not spacious, but it could still sleep four or five people. Young Master Mu moved to the outside, keeping a distance of half a foot from Mo Xibei, and then remained silent.

The heavy rain didn't stop the next day. The man went out to inquire and found that the only way out of the village had been washed away by a flash flood the night before. Normally, such a ravine would not have been a problem for Mo Xibei and his companion, but now they could only stay at Hu Zi's house for the time being.

"Hey, get up and take your medicine." Mo Xibei said to Young Master Mu while holding the medicine bowl. After she finished using the medicine for external injuries, Tiger's mother found some of their usual external injury medicines, and they actually worked quite well.

"Don't I have a name? Why do you keep calling me that?" A few days later, the person who was temporarily called "Hey!" got angry.

"I can't keep calling you Young Master Mu, can I? I'm not your servant." Mo Xibei ignored the protest and pinched Young Master Mu's nose, about to force-feed him the medicine.

"I'll drink it myself." Young Master Mu quickly broke free from Mo Xibei's grasp and got up. Ever since the second day he stayed here, Mo Xibei had forced him to take medicine, and after coughing for half an hour, he dared not disobey Mo Xibei's words again, because he knew that the man in front of him was ruthless and would not be polite to him at all. "That saves trouble, drink it quickly, so I can teach Tiger to read later." Mo Xibei was happy to have some free time.

“From now on, call me by my name. My name is Fei Nan.” After drinking the medicine, Young Master Mu suddenly said.

"Mu Feinan?" Mo Xibei repeated, then suddenly asked, "I've always wanted to ask you, your surname is Mu. I vaguely remember that the Mu surname originated from the Xianbei people, and it was originally the surname Murong. Later, people split the two characters Murong, so some people have the surname Mu and some have the surname Rong. Lian Yun just happens to have the surname Murong. Could it be that you were originally one family five hundred years ago?"

Chapter 50 Wooden Knife (Part 1)

"How would I know about things that happened five hundred years ago? No wonder you're teaching those children to read. You must have too much free time." Mu Feinan snorted, turned over and lay down, closing his eyes. Surprisingly, he didn't ask to rinse his mouth or eat a wild fruit that Hu Zi had picked.

Mo Xibei found his reaction somewhat strange, but since it was none of her business, she didn't care. She knew that this young master Mu had a bad temper, and she was too lazy to pay attention to it. Outside, Hu Zi and several other children from the village were already waiting in the rain, each holding a sand tray, waiting to continue learning characters.

Teaching ancient children to read was a challenge for Mo Xibei. She had never formally attended an ancient school and didn't know how to introduce children to the world. She only remembered bits and pieces of the Three Character Classic and the Thousand Character Classic, and more poems. However, the children in the mountains didn't even know how to read, so explaining was pointless. Therefore, after teaching them the basic numbers one, two, three, and four, she could only start teaching them to write their own names.

"I think you shouldn't teach the child to read. It would only mislead him." On the fifth day, Mu Feinan's wounds had healed quite well, and the sky had cleared up. He rarely got out of bed and walked around. He saw Hu Zi squatting on the ground devoutly, repeatedly writing his name. He shook his head vigorously.

“I also feel that I’m not cut out to be a teacher, and I don’t even know what to teach them,” Mo Xibei nodded. “It’s not your fault, it’s just that you can stay here for a few days, teach them a few words, and then leave, giving these children hope for nothing,” Mu Feinan said.

"It's better to have hope than nothing. Are emperors and generals born with a special destiny? Who knows if a great figure might emerge from this mountain valley someday?" Mu Feinan's words reminded Mo Xibei. Originally, the school was just meant to pass the time in the mountains. However, since these children were so diligent and eager to learn, setting up a rural school here, even if it was a financial loss, should be a good idea.

“The outside world may not be better than this. We’re here, surrounded by these mountains and rivers. Life may be simple, but it’s peaceful. Why drag them into the mundane world?” Mu Feinan looked at Hu Zi, then at the small thatched hut where he had stayed for several days, a longing in his eyes. Mo Xibei realized he understood that expression instantly; it was a pure yearning for the tranquility before him.

“Everyone has their own destiny. You’re right. Don’t try to change other people’s destinies,” she nodded and said. “I just can’t believe you would have such a thought.”

"I'll take that as a compliment," Mu Feinan nodded. He turned and went back into the house to rest and recover from his wounds.

"Tiger, Tiger!" A moment later, a village boy named Adong ran over to call Tiger to play. But his expression was different from usual; he seemed unusually excited. He kept urging him to come over quickly so they could play cops and robbers together.

Mo Xibei didn't think much of it, but he was concerned about how the mountain road leading out of the village was doing. So he followed behind and left the village.