Chapter 8: Did Shang Xinglan learn swordsmanship like this when he was a child? ...
(eight)
His face flushed crimson, and even his ears were burning hot.
Chu Li wasn't unfamiliar with being beaten; the worst fight she had ever been in left her covered in bruises. But she had never been beaten in such a humiliating way.
He's clearly taking advantage of her!
His body remained motionless. It was summer, and his clothes were thin, making the sensation on his buttocks particularly clear. Chu Li stared fiercely at the back of Wuming's head. If he were hit hard from this angle, Wuming would definitely not be able to react.
When the little boy saw Chu Li being beaten, he held back his tears. He glared angrily at Wuming and rushed up to punch him, yelling, "Don't you dare hit your mother!"
No one is allowed to bully Mother, not even a demon.
Wuming raised an eyebrow, grabbed the thin wrist, and pulled the little boy in front of him. "From today onwards, I am your master. Daring to hit your master is an act of insubordination and should be punished."
He turned around and slapped Chu Li again, this time with considerable force and a crisp sound.
"Ugh..." Chu Li felt the force with annoyance, shame almost overshadowing the pain, but she couldn't speak, so she could only stare at him with her eyes.
The little boy became even angrier, "You're wrong! If you're angry, you can hit me, but you can't hit your mother!"
Upon hearing his words, Chu Li's anger vanished, and she was moved to tears.
Even when facing a demon so much older than him, the little boy would still stand up for her. How could she give birth to such a good child?
Wuming stared at him silently for a moment, then suddenly said in a low voice, "What's the use of saying all this? You can neither protect your mother nor protect yourself."
The little boy's expression froze slightly as he watched the other person lean down and grab his wrist. He tried to break free but couldn't.
“You have no strength at all.” Wuming casually kneaded his little hand. “All you can do is hide behind your mother and cry. You can’t do anything. You’re really useless.”
Chu Li felt like strangling him when she heard that.
Who's unambitious? Her child is the most ambitious. Yinyin has been a genius since childhood. She can remember everything she reads and compose poems on the spot. Her Yinyin is the most promising child in the world!
The little boy's eyes were red-rimmed as he looked up at Chu Li.
In his world, his mother was the most powerful person. As long as his mother was there, any problem could be solved.
But what if a problem arises that even your mother can't solve?
Wuming released his wrist and chuckled softly, "Now, do you know what to do?"
This child is very smart; his only flaw is that he is overly protected by Chu Li.
Sure enough, the little cub took a deep breath, picked up the heavy longsword from the ground, and raised it with difficulty, pointing it at the nameless one.
He wants to learn.
He will learn until he can one day trample this villain underfoot and make him apologize to his mother!
Throughout the entire morning, Chu Li lost count of how many blows she had taken.
She gradually went from anger and shame to numbness. As soon as she saw the little boy's movements were even slightly off, she knew that a slap would fall on her the next moment.
That bastard, in her opinion, wasn't being strict with the little brat at all; he was just addicted to beating her.
It wasn't until lunchtime that Wuming finally broke her immobilization spell.
My whole body feels stiff and sore, especially in a certain area, which may be red and swollen.
"Ah Chu, I'm doing this for Yin Yin's own good." Wuming leaned closer and said gently, seemingly concerned, "Does it hurt? Let me rub it for you?"
Chu Li glared at him through gritted teeth, shook off his hand, picked up the exhausted little cub, and ran quickly into the house.
That despicable demon.
Chu Li tenderly bandaged the wound on the little cub's hand; the broken sword had worn down his delicate little hand.
The little one looked as if he had just been pulled out of the water, drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked through, and so exhausted that he didn't even have the strength to speak.
Wuming gave him no time to rest, constantly teaching him those sword moves, teaching him one move at a time. His silly Yinyin was also honest and didn't even utter a single word of begging for mercy or backing down, obediently following Wuming's instructions.
"Don't be afraid, Yinyin. Mother will think of a way and will definitely not let you suffer anymore." Chu Li carefully wiped the sweat from the little boy's forehead.
Hearing her words, the little boy slowly looked up at her and grasped Chu Li's hand, "No."
Chu Li was stunned for a moment, then heard him whisper, "I want to learn, so I can avenge my mother in the future."
His tone was soft, yet extremely firm.
Suddenly, she seemed to see another person through Yinyin's face.
Yinyin looks very much like Chu Li. The only similarity between them on her small face is her eyes.
The occasional calm and resolute expression she showed was something she had never seen before.
Chu Li dazedly touched his head and gently kissed the little boy's forehead.
"good."
After lunch, the little boy ran to the yard with the heavy longsword in his arms.
Once this child sets his mind on something, he absolutely has to do it. He insists on memorizing a text in one go and writing it perfectly, even though Chu Li has never demanded that of him.
She leaned against the door, watching the little boy being knocked down by the nameless man with one hand. He wiped his face, got up again, covered in dirt, and charged forward once more with the long sword in hand.
Did Shang Xinglan learn swordsmanship like this when she was a child?
The thought suddenly popped into Chu Li's mind, startling her.
He can learn swordsmanship however he wants; what business is it of hers?
She tried her best to stop thinking about it, but her heart was still stirred.
Chu Li had seen him practice swordsmanship.
Every time she and Shang Xinglan had an argument, he would suppress his anger, pick up his sword, and go out.
Sometimes Chu Li would peek through the window and see him practicing his sword.
The moon floated among the clouds, and the sword light flowed in the night. A figure in a snow-white brocade robe, carrying a cold and sullen anger, easily cut down the fallen leaves drifting down from the bamboo forest.
The swordplay was beautiful, and the person was beautiful too, like an immortal descended from heaven in a storybook.
The thought that this person belonged to her quickly calmed Chu Li down.
At that time, she thought that she wanted Shang Xinglan to belong to her alone forever.
If he dares to fall in love with someone else, she will kill them both, burying one in the North and the other in the South, so that they will never meet again in this life or the next.
If he wants a divorce, no way. He married her, after all.
Now, Shang Xinglan's small grave mound stands on the edge of the cliff, forever belonging to her.
Chu Li silently lowered her gaze, took out some old clothes from the house, and washed them while the weather was fine.
She was about to leave with a basket full of clothes when a figure stopped her.
"Young lady, let me take it." Gu Ye smiled and took the basket from her arms. "My master ordered that you can't do any more work."
Chu Li looked up at his fake smile. She was going to wash clothes by the river, and they were probably afraid she would run away halfway, so they offered to help her with the work.
In that case, she has a lot of work to do at home.
Chu Li would direct him to repair the roof and plow the ground, and Gu Ye would follow her around busily, not complaining of being tired at all.
She sat back down in the small house to drink tea, and Yan Xinbai actually got up to pour her some tea as well.
The way he's acting makes it seem like he's really treating her like a second master.
It must be to lull her into a false sense of security, to gradually immerse her in this comfortable and peaceful environment, and to make her forget their identities as demons.
Gu Ye and Yan Xinbai are kind to her only because of Wuming's orders. If Wuming ever loses interest in her, they will kill her without hesitation.
Chu Li grew increasingly worried, fearing that she would gradually get used to life with these three devils around.
That's how she always is; before she gains anything, she thinks about when she might lose it.
They had to find another way to escape as soon as possible; they couldn't afford to wait even a day longer.
If it doesn't rain tonight, she'll jump out the window with the baby and escape.
There is a narrow mountain path that hunters often take, little known to others, that leads straight down the mountain. They escape through it in the dead of night, and even if Wuming chases after them, he will only assume that they left through the main road.
Thinking of this, Chu Lifu looked at the little cub being scolded by Wuming in the courtyard and worriedly thought, "I hope Yinyin will still have the strength to get up tonight."
As dusk settled, the sun transformed into a crimson-gold orb, drooping towards the western hills, and the darkness quickly swallowed up the last rays of the sunset.
The little boy was already exhausted and collapsed on his small bed. Hearing Chu Li's escape plan, he thought Chu Li was worried that he would die of exhaustion and that's why she wanted to run away. He shakily clung to her and got up. "Mother, I can do it. I successfully cultivated my Qi today. That demon said I have a lot of talent and that I might be able to defeat him in the future..."
Chu Li cupped his little face and said earnestly, "Silly Yinyin, how could he possibly teach you to be better than him? He's just pretending to gain our trust. Now that they're off guard, it's the perfect time to escape, understand?"
The little boy looked at her blankly and nodded.
Mother is right. Why would a devil be kind to someone who has no family or ties with him? Fortunately, Mother is clever and saw through their scheme.
As night deepened, the two of them packed their belongings. Chu Li put all the gold, silver, and valuables into a storage ring, so that even if they left Xiaofushan, they would have enough money to buy a new house.
She had it all planned out: they would find a city under the protection of a sect to settle down in, so they would never have to fear being found by the demon again.
Chu Li jumped out of the window with the cub, and the two of them sneaked out of the small courtyard.
Inside the room, the three people who were still playing cards heard the noise at the same time.
"There's a presence; they seem to be trying to run away."
Yan Xinbai spoke first, but before he could investigate further, Gu Ye laughed and said, "What are you afraid of? The master has set up an array nearby. Even if you try to escape, you'll only be going in circles."
Upon hearing this, Yan Xinbai frowned and pondered for a moment before turning his gaze to Wuming. "Master, should we pursue them?"
The nameless man lazily counted the cards, his voice extremely indifferent, "No need."
Achu still didn't believe him. Letting her run around is good; staying cooped up at home all day will make her sick. Consider it exercise.
On the other side.
Chu Li never expected her escape plan to go so smoothly. Excitedly, she pulled the little one along and ran wildly down the mountain path.
The mountain breeze, the damp mud, the free air—everything felt so long ago.
She no longer has to live in fear, and she no longer has to be mindful of others' opinions!
The little one was just as excited as she was, running until he was out of breath, his calves aching terribly but he gritted his teeth and persevered.
They were running desperately along the mountain path when suddenly, Chu Li lost her footing and fell downwards with the cub. She instinctively pulled the cub into her arms, and as the world spun around her, everything went black before her eyes, and she completely lost consciousness.
When she opened her eyes again, it was pitch black all around, and the cub was trembling and crying in front of her.
Chu Li looked around, and her heart sank to the bottom.
—They're doomed, they've fallen into a hunting pit.
A note from the author:
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