Chapter 41 Kidnapping Iwakatsu and Running Away from Home: The Two-Way Filter Between the Tsugikuni Brothers...
"Iwakatsu! Yoriichi and I have come to see you!" I spoke first, immediately breaking the rather heavy atmosphere in the room.
The young samurai in the room suddenly looked up. When he looked over, Yoriichi had already obediently bowed to him and said with utmost humility, "Brother, it's been a long time. How have you been?"
I thought to myself that things would be better if Yoriichi didn't appear. Now that my younger brother, whom I've been jealous of for so long, has reappeared, I'm sure I'll start feeling jealous again.
Fourteen-year-old Jiguo Yansheng was no longer as emotionally expressive as he was in his childhood. Regardless of what he was thinking, he maintained the demeanor of an elder brother and nodded slightly, saying, "I'm fine, but Father isn't doing so well."
Yoriichi's calm, unwavering eyes swept over Lord Tsugikuni before turning to me. Although he didn't speak, I already understood his thoughts.
He probably wanted me to help heal his scumbag father, not out of filial piety or forgiveness, but simply out of pity. Even if the person lying here was a complete stranger, Yoriichi would have made the same choice.
At that moment, Iwakatsu looked at me, his brow furrowed, and said with great difficulty, "My father was assassinated the day before yesterday, and the doctor said he's unlikely to survive. If he unfortunately passes away, I must marry a wife to leave an heir for the country before joining the Demon Slayer Corps."
"Just leave your future wife alone. If we weren't friends, I would beat up a scumbag like you who's thinking of abandoning his wife and children before even getting married every time I see him."
I couldn't help but complain, and Yan Sheng looked at me, his brows furrowing even deeper, and said in an almost arrogant tone, "Can you beat me?"
"If I can't beat you, I can get Yoriichi to beat you!"
I blurted out what was on my mind, which immediately made Yan Sheng's face darken. Only then did I realize that I had inadvertently stepped on his landmine.
Just as he was thinking about how to make amends, Yoriichi humbly said, "I would never hit my elder brother!"
Iwakatsu's handsome face grew even more somber. Although this slightly repressed boy didn't say anything, I already understood why Iwakatsu was even angrier. Yoriichi's words meant that he could beat his older brother but wouldn't do it, which was bound to upset Iwakatsu's sensitive heart.
"Let me treat him. With me here, the head of the family won't die." I changed the subject, hoping that Yan Sheng could quickly forget these unpleasant things.
My words successfully diverted Iwakatsu's attention. He gave a soft hum and turned his gaze from Yoriichi back to Lord Tsugikuni.
Finally, I turned the page on that chapter, and I secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Having a sensitive and arrogant friend is such a headache; his personality is just like an Uchiha, so difficult to deal with. No wonder only the Hokage could handle the Uchiha clan throughout history. Maybe once I've dealt with Kokusatsu, I can even compete for Hokage when I get back.
After a moment of distraction, I used medical ninjutsu to heal the body of the lord of the Tsugikuni family. I felt extremely regretful that Dr. Yosano wasn't here, otherwise I could have dissected that scumbag father a few times and then used "Please Don't Die" to heal him. Why waste my chakra? This was the most unwilling and reluctant treatment I've ever given.
Not long after, I healed Lord Tsugikuni's fatal wound, but that only saved his life. As for the physical weakness caused by the massive blood loss, I didn't care. Let him recover slowly. Don't waste my chakra anymore. Every bit used is precious!
The lord of the Tsugikuni Kingdom, whose wounds had healed, quickly regained consciousness. His first act upon returning to awareness was to instruct his eldest son to marry next month and produce an heir for the kingdom as soon as possible. One can only feel sorry for Iwakatsu; he's only fourteen! Is he really going to shoulder the heavy responsibility of continuing the family line? It must be tough for him! I'm so worried he won't grow tall!
Having resolved his eldest son's marriage issue, the patriarch finally had time to pay attention to me and Yoriichi. He was quite warm towards me, but much colder towards Yoriichi, and his words were full of probing, as if he suspected that Yoriichi had returned at this time to vie for the position of patriarch.
Yoriichi's earnest and honest nature meant he would always answer whatever anyone asked, which made it impossible to probe him for anything. Eventually, the impatient lord of the Tsugikuni Kingdom told Yoriichi that his successor was Iwakatsu and that he should not have any unrealistic expectations.
That's...incredibly unpleasant to hear. How could someone as noble and upright as Yoriichi care about such things? What's wrong with the country? Four hundred years later, he's still reduced to chopping wood.
Sigh! I can heal the physical wounds, but I can't heal the mental ones, especially the delusions, which are an old ailment I got fourteen years ago. This person is beyond saving.
I had no liking for the heartless and ruthless heir apparent, and I thought that was all there was to him, but what he said next really opened my eyes.
It turns out that after warning Yoriichi, he found that his youngest son was indifferent to the position of head of the family, so he asked Yoriichi to stay and assist Iwakatsu. His matter-of-fact attitude was really annoying.
That wasn't all. He went on and on about how he discovered Yoriichi's talent and wanted to nurture him, saying that if Yoriichi hadn't suddenly run away from home, he might have become the young master of Tsugikuni. Even though he missed that opportunity, staying at the Tsugikuni residence and serving the family was still better than being outside…
I only knew that people's temperament would change drastically when they are unwell, but I didn't expect it to have the effect of impairing their intelligence. The heir to the family keeps saying whatever comes to mind. Didn't you see that Iwakatsu's expression darkened as the family heir? Or does he simply not care about his eldest son's thoughts?
It seems that the only thing the lord of Tsugikuni cares about is the country itself. Perhaps in his eyes, both his eldest and youngest sons are merely tools to continue the family's prosperity. That's why he ignored Yoriichi's existence after choosing Iwakatsu as his successor, and then wanted to change the successor despite his eldest son's situation after discovering Yoriichi's talent. What does he take people for? He's really terrible!
I wanted to yell at him several times, but I held back for the sake of Iwakatsu and Yoriichi, thinking to myself, "You're just asking for trouble. I'll make you cry tomorrow."
That night, I sneaked into the young master's room from the guest room. Yan Sheng, who was about to go to sleep, was stunned when he saw me and asked with a hint of nervousness, "What are you doing in my room so late?"
"I'm inviting you to run away from home!" I said bluntly. Yan Sheng was slightly taken aback and hesitated for a moment before saying, "Father's health is not yet fully recovered. How about waiting a few more days?"
"Your wedding is in a few days, are you planning to lose your virginity before you leave? That's so immoral!" I directly criticized him, causing Yan Sheng's handsome face, which resembled Yoriichi's, to blush, probably from anger.
Afraid of upsetting the easily angered Big Chicken, I immediately reassured him, "Don't worry, your father's injuries have completely healed. His weakness is purely due to excessive blood loss; he'll be fine after a few days of rest. Now is the perfect time to leave. Who knows what kind of trouble he'll cause once he recovers? What if he suddenly decides to want Yoriichi to be the head of the family? What will you do then?"
Hearing my words, Yan Sheng finally stopped hesitating and agreed to run away from home. He was also very decisive; he packed a few changes of clothes, took some money, and left Jiguo's mansion with me.
Outside the country gates, Yoriichi was already waiting. When he saw Iwakatsu emerge, his warm eyes began to light up slightly, and his usually calm voice revealed a hint of excitement and anticipation. "Brother, are you going to join the Demon Slayer Corps too?"
"Ah, I'm going to kill Muzan Kibutsuji!!" Iwakatsu said with unwavering determination, his brief words revealing his jealousy of his younger brother, the savior, and his strong resolve to surpass him.
Yoriichi immediately said with great respect, "Brother, you truly have the world in your heart. I will definitely assist you in killing Muzan Kibutsuji and saving this world!"
I:"…………"
What can I say? I always knew that Katsuyuki Iwakatsu had an unusually strong bias towards Yoriichi, but I never expected that Yoriichi would have such a strong bias towards his brother as well!
That makes sense. If the filter wasn't thick, how could she be so envious of Yan Sheng, who was always jealous of her?
Speaking of Yoriichi, he was really easy to trust people. In the original work, Kokushima abandoned his wife and children to join the Demon Slayer Corps because he wanted to avenge his subordinates. No normal person would believe such a ridiculous reason, but Yoriichi believed it and was convinced of it.
Now, Yan Sheng is using the great reason of killing the Demon King to save the world. Looking at Yoriichi's warm eyes filled with admiration as he gazes at his brother, it seems he has been fooled again. Candle!
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