"Ma Xiaomai!"

"arrive!"

"I'm ordering you now, get up! Stand up straight! Hold your chest out!" Ma Fuquan's face turned pale and he walked back and forth in anger, because kneeling was synonymous with cowardice in his mind.

"A man's knees are made of gold, so why should he kneel down at every turn?"

Ma Xiaomai was still kneeling, but upon hearing this, he straightened his back and shouted, "I kneel to heaven above and to my parents below, why can't I kneel!"

His voice was louder than Ma Fuquan's. Ma Xiaodou was so scared that she didn't dare to cry. She just stared at the two of them, not daring to move.

Ma Fuquan was a man who had spent half his life in the military. He pointed at Ma Xiaomai. He didn't expect that he had never been stumped by a troublesome soldier before, but today he was speechless because of the criticism from his own adopted son.

Remembering what Jian Ning said, that Ma Xiaomai was his son, not his soldier, he finally forced himself to calm down.

"Well, since you know how to kneel down to your parents, it means you still have them in your heart. If I let you leave your parents, leave this home, and live alone in the mountains, with no one to see except you, and only tigers and other wild animals, would you be willing?"

“Just answer yes or no.”

"No!"

"Why? Tell me why you don't want to? Don't you like tigers?"

"I don't want to do it!"

Ma Fuquan nodded. "Okay, I'll tell you why you don't want to. Because you're a human being, and as a human being you have to live with other humans, with your own kind. Answer, yes or no?"

"yes!"

After he finished speaking, Ma Xiaomai was stunned.

"Dad, you mean that the young one should live with its own kind, right?"

"Tigers aren't social animals, but their home is in the mountains. Dad brought them back because their parents died and they were still a cub, unable to survive independently. Now they've grown up, and it's time to return to the mountains. The mountains are their home, and that's where they belong!"

"But it hasn't really grown up yet. It can't hunt for food on its own. If you let it go now, it will starve to death!"

"What did I tell you at the beginning? Didn't I tell you to hurry up and teach it to hunt, and then release it back into the forest once it learned? Didn't I tell you that?"

Ma Xiaomai's shoulders slumped, his head hung, and he remained silent.

Ma Fuquan was secretly happy, knowing that this kid's mindset had loosened, so he said, there are no bad soldiers, only instructors who don't know how to lead.

Strike while the opportunity presents itself.

"Your mother still has a month until she gives birth. During this time, let's teach it to hunt. Once it has mastered the hunting skills, I'll release it back into the forest with you. Is that okay?"

"What if it never learns?"

"As long as the master teaches well, there's nothing he can't learn. Let Guoguo teach him from tomorrow. If he can't learn, it means he's a sick tiger. What's the point of keeping a sick tiger?"

"My master's family can raise Guoguo, Qiuge, Maoqiu and others, so why can't we raise Qianjin?"

"How can Qianjin compare to them? They are all intelligent animals. Intelligent animals understand human nature and are willing to live with humans. If they didn't want to, your master would have let them go long ago. If you really like Qianjin, you should let it go back to where it wants to be. That's how you treat it well, not how you possess it. Do you understand?"

"Then if Qianjin is willing to come with us, can Dad keep it?"

"Okay, I promise you, if I release it back into the forest and it comes back on its own, I'll let you keep it. Now, can you come with me to your master to get some medicine?"

The next day, after school, Ma Xiaomai brought Guoguo home. Initially, Guoguo was very resistant to teaching Ma Qianjin how to hunt. Even Jian Ning's use of spiritual spring water failed to convince him. Later, Ding Youtian persuaded him, and he reluctantly began to teach Ma Qianjin.

It had to be said that Guoguo was a good teacher. Although he had agreed reluctantly, he was unwavering in teaching Qianjin. After just a few days, Jian Ning noticed that Qianjin's gait was exactly like Guoguo's, and the way she looked at people had changed. She used to have a silly, ingratiating smile, but now she had become calm and wise. She didn't know how the cat and the tiger could communicate.

In short, it is quite magical.

Ma Fuquan was very happy to see the changes in Qianjin when he came back. What made him most proud was that he had done ideological work on Ma Xiaomai. In fact, ideological work was not difficult. If he had known that he was so capable, he would have taken on the roles of team leader and instructor.

He was addicted to ideological work. The next morning, he returned to the county town. On the way, he saw Ding Sheng walking ahead with a schoolbag on his back. He immediately stopped Ding Sheng and said, "What's wrong with you? I heard from Xiaomai that your mother hasn't paid your tuition for the next school year. What are you still doing in town? If you really want to study, listen to Uncle Ma and go to the clan school with Xiaomai and the others. Don't argue with your mother."

Ding Sheng was stopped by him unexpectedly. He lowered his head and listened to him before looking up and glancing at him.

My goodness, when the kid took a look at him, Ma Fuquan felt like he was licked by the core of a poisonous snake. Just as he was wondering why the boy had such a sinister look at such a young age, Ding Sheng walked around him without saying a word.

Just when Ma Fuquan thought he was good enough, he was thwarted by him.

Ding Sheng arrived at the school but didn't go in. He just stood outside. A moment later, Dajun came over from the right, carrying his schoolbag. He and Ding Sheng hadn't spoken since his mother and brother left. It wasn't that he ignored Ding Sheng, but that Ding Sheng ignored him.

Da Jun once hated Ding Pingshun, and because of Ding Pingshun, he also hated Ding Sheng. Just yesterday, he heard from his father that Ding Sheng's mother was unwilling to support him to continue studying in the town.

When his father told him about this, he spat and cursed, "You deserved it!"

Da Jun entered the school, stopped, and turned to look at Ding Sheng.

After thinking about it, he walked towards Ding Sheng and said, "Let's go back. Doesn't your village have a clan school? Brother Mai and Xiao Douzi both go to the clan school. It doesn't matter where they go. Let's go back!"

He had good intentions, thinking that his mother and brother were gone, and Ding Sheng's father and brother were also gone. The two of them should not hate each other, but should stick together for warmth. The problems between the two families were not caused by them in the first place.

"Why don't you go to the clan school? Your father collects dolls in our village, and the two daughters-in-law of the clan leader also make dolls. If your father begs the clan leader, he will definitely agree to let you go to our village clan school. It doesn't cost a penny. It's such a cheap opportunity, why doesn't your father let you go?"

"My home is in town. Why should I go to your village to go to school?"

"Humph, it's not my business to meddle in yours, it's you who meddle in my business first. What does it have to do with you whether I go to the clan school or not?"

"I don't mean any harm, I just don't want to see you wasting your time. Forget it, just pretend I didn't say anything."

Da Jun was secretly annoyed with himself for being nosy and causing trouble for nothing, so he turned around and left.