night party
I've called him Uncle Huai since I was a child, but I really don't know what to call him now.
Mu Qing still called him Uncle Huai in her heart. She remembered that Uncle Huai had entered the stronghold two years earlier than Monkey. He was brought back by her father and his men after robbing a wealthy merchant. It was said that he was the son of a farmhand who had been mortgaged as a slave. When he learned that there were heroes of the greenwood punishing the unscrupulous merchant, he was willing to join the stronghold.
The villagers admired him for his refined manners, literacy, and ability to do accounting. As soon as he entered the village, they treated him as a brother.
Mu Qing saw that he was more refined and handsome than others, and always clung to him like a burden, with a nanny and a man guarding him behind him, following him wherever he went, making it impossible for him to do anything.
At first, he was secretly distressed and helpless, but as time went on, he gradually got used to it.
Two years later, the monkey entered the village, and he regained his freedom. He had a chance to take action, but his desire for revenge seemed to be corrupted. He was no longer so sure and began to wonder if he had chosen the wrong target. How could his enemy be such a heroic and valiant man?
He investigated and investigated again, and several years passed in the blink of an eye.
One day, while wandering in the woods, hesitating whether to make a move, he heard someone approaching from not far away, so he hid.
It was Mu Qing and Monkey who came to practice climbing and stealth techniques in the forest. He hid and didn't move, intending to wait for the two to finish learning and leave, but he sensed something was wrong from the sound of their voices.
"Monkey, I've already learned that."
"Young Miss, this is a little different from before, come here."
"Is that so? That feels strange."
That's right.
He peered over and saw the monkey calling her "Miss" while groping her.
In such a situation, anyone would inevitably become suspicious. But considering that the two were not much different in age, and that she allowed the monkey to be close to her, could it be that it was a mutual consent?
Because she was the daughter of his enemy, he intentionally distanced himself from her for several years. If he were to consider the degree of their relationship, she might trust the monkey more. So, he had no choice but to turn back to his sister and ask her to inquire, understand, guide, and persuade her to expose the monkey's despicable nature.
Little did she know that she would be so sad after exposing the monkey's true nature. She was always seen with a gloomy expression, unlike when she was innocent and naive and often had a bright, innocent smile.
He couldn't help but comfort her, saying a few words to change her mood, but he wouldn't say anything more.
Just like when she was a child, she soon opened her heart to him, as if they had never been apart. She followed him around, calling him Uncle Huai, Uncle Huai... as if she had never grown into a young woman and had no connection with him whatsoever.
The days passed in a blur. When Mu Qing returned to the mountain stronghold with the vermilion box, he guessed what was inside without much thought, and as expected, he fainted upon seeing her.
When she woke up and told him she was going to take revenge, he was caught off guard and felt a sharp pain in his heart.
How can I make her realize the futility of revenge?
He cited his own experience as an example, saying that he was deeply tormented by hatred and suffered day and night for many years.
She was frightened and went down the mountain alone.
From then on, she would only meet him briefly from afar before running away.
Under the moonlight, he took a step forward, and she took a step back, her expression tense: "Did you call me here for something?"
Mu Qing felt uneasy. The thought of her past resentment and desire for revenge, and her malice to commit violence, made her scalp tingle.
It seemed as if some uncontrollable force was trying to transform her into a strange and terrifying person.
When Uncle Huai spoke of his grievances with her father, she believed every word he said was true, which made her even more afraid, and she dared not challenge his self-control in the slightest.
Now that there are no counterfeit versions, he no longer needs to pretend to be Zhang Huai.
Zhang Conghuai stopped in his tracks. Seeing the fear in her eyes, he couldn't say the many things he wanted to say. He could only ask, "Why did you come here?"
Mu Qing blinked, thinking that when he gestured to meet her, the "here" he mentioned probably wasn't the right place at the moment. Was he upset that she had appeared in front of him?
She immediately replied, "I just happened to meet another young lady and was invited here."
"A chance encounter?"
Zhang Conghuai repeated these words, as if they were worth pondering.
Looking at his cold and stern face, Mu Qing pondered for a moment, worried that he might suspect that she was intentionally trying to ruin his plans.
"Yes! It was all a coincidence. I didn't actually intend to come at all." Mu Qing quickly explained, "Although I once said that I wanted to marry Uncle Huai, it was just to annoy Monkey. I said it on purpose to let him hear it. I never had that intention, and I certainly didn't want to ruin your marriage."
Seeing his gaze turn cold, and remembering how he would always rebuke her for saying those things in the past, she still clung to him ungratefully, thinking that Uncle Huai was just cold on the outside but soft on the inside and would always tolerate her no matter what. Then, thinking of the hatred hidden in his heart, Mu Qing's lips trembled.
"Really! I am very grateful to Uncle Huai. No matter what you think, I am always grateful for the care I have received from you. I hope you have a smooth and happy life ahead."
Zhang Conghuai was silent for a moment, then said, "After you go back, don't associate with Miss Zhen anymore, and don't come here again."
Mu Qing felt as if she had been granted a pardon. "Okay, I understand."
She turned and left, walking under the shade of a tree. Looking back at Uncle Huai's departing figure, she couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
But at that moment, someone suddenly attacked from behind, covering her mouth and nose with one hand. Before she could react, her wrist was grabbed and she was forced to the ground.
The grass on the ground was damp with rain, the coolness seeping through her clothes. She struggled violently, and then she heard the person say in her ear, "It's me, don't move!"
Mu Qing froze for a moment, and in the dim light, she looked at the person pressing down on her. Who else could it be but Zhong Linlan?
He looked up, peering over the grass and trees, in the direction Zhang Conghuai had walked away, and said, "Can you speak properly?"
Mu Qing nodded vigorously, and as soon as she got a breath, she took two deep breaths. "The ground is very wet, can you let me go?"
Zhong Linlan pulled her onto her lap, not letting go but instead holding her tightly around the waist, her teeth clenched: "Is Zhang Conghuai also from your village?"
Mu Qing couldn't break free, and angrily hit him a few times, saying, "There are plenty of people in the village, I can't tell you about them all."
Touching her back, which was damp and cold, he softened his tone: "Now tell me about this person."
Mu Qing pushed his hand away, "Why are you asking him?"
"He used to be a bandit, but his resume is clean and complete. With such skills, he must not be an ordinary person in your village?"
"He's not a bandit; he just infiltrated the stronghold to act as an inside agent."
"Oh? An inside man? Then why are you still calling me Uncle Huai? I had no idea you were so magnanimous."
Recalling her submissive demeanor in front of that man, Zhong Linlan paused, "Or are you generous to everyone but harsh and temperamental towards me?"
Hearing his sarcastic tone, Mu Qing retorted angrily, "So what? You still like it, don't you?"
Intending to humiliate him, he instead heard him laugh as if he had been praised, saying, "I've been outdone by you."
As he spoke, he hugged her tightly, sighed, and buried his head in the side of her neck, sending a shiver down her spine. She reached out to push him away.
"Can you please stop being so shameless?"
Zhong Linlan loosened her grip slightly and said, "Thinking about what you did to me, you assumed you liked me being shameless."
Here we go again, Mu Qing thought, and began to feel a headache coming on.
She tried to change the subject: "Why are you here?"
Zhong Linlan said, "I came here to investigate a case, but I didn't expect to have such an unexpected gain."
He came to investigate another case and saw Zhang Conghuai climb over the wall, so he followed him. He never expected to see Mu Qing here.
Mu Qing had no intention of saying more to him. "My clothes are wet. If I don't go back to change, I'll catch a cold."
It's obvious he's manipulating her; if he likes her, he should let her go immediately.
After waiting for a while, he still didn't let go. I heard him say with some resentment, "How could you catch a cold so easily?"
She couldn't help but scold, "Don't you feel anything? It's so damp here, don't you feel uncomfortable?"
He sat on the wet grass, holding her, who was soaked with rain, their bodies almost touching.
Just as Mu Qing was about to curse him for being vulgar, she heard a faint hiss. Looking in the direction of the sound, she saw a white snake slithering in the grass behind Zhong Linlan.
At this moment, Zhong Linlan let go, but Mu Qing didn't want to get up, saying, "Don't move, there's a snake."
Hearing her say that, Zhong Linlan didn't move. After a while, she asked, "Are you still there?"
Looking at the shimmering white and mottled snake scales under the moonlight, Mu Qing was certain that the snake was poisonous. He had heard that the more beautiful the snake, the more venomous it was.
Therefore, after being bitten by this snake, one should not suffer for long before passing away.
With a sudden thought, she quietly picked up a pebble from the ground and raised her hand to tease the snake.
When the snake saw the moving object, it flicked its tongue and slowly swam over.
Seeing it swim close, Mu Qing threw a stone and suddenly pushed Zhong Linlan towards it, trying to run away.
Unexpectedly, Zhong Linlan quickly rolled to the side, pulling her to the ground.
A dizzying sensation spun around her, and by the time Mu Qing came to her senses, Zhong Linlan had already pressed down on her waist and abdomen, making her lie on the ground.
He looked down at her with a deep gaze, and to her astonishment, he raised his dark blue sleeve, which was wrapped in coils of a flower snake.
He held its three-inch-long body tightly between his fingers, its fangs wide open, its bright red tongue spitting out like poisonous flames.
Mu Qing turned her face away; she couldn't deny that she had just pushed him hard.
"I want you dead. Do whatever you want."
Seeing her reckless attitude, Zhong Linlan twisted and strangled the snake in her hand, threw it far away, and said coldly, "Aren't you going to ask me when I stopped being afraid of snakes?"
He was originally afraid of snakes.
She had sent him to collect herbs, but he encountered a snake and never went back. He preferred to work odd jobs and copy books at night to earn money to buy medicine from pharmacies.
Later, he collapsed from exhaustion. After eating the porridge she cooked, he learned that it was snake soup and was so frightened that he vomited on the spot.
"When did you stop being afraid?" Mu Qing asked softly.
"After you disappeared, I tried everything I knew how to do."
Zhong Linlan straightened her face and their eyes met.
“I think it’s no wonder you’d be scared and run away after encountering something so serious. I have to be braver and more thoughtful than you, so I can protect you when needed. That’s why I’ve associated with thugs like Zheng Dacang and spent so much time learning martial arts from a master. I often think about what kind of danger I’ll face when I see you again…”
Mu Qing couldn't bear to listen anymore, so she closed her eyes and said, "Then your hard work wasn't in vain."
"Why do you want me to die?" he demanded.
Mu Qing looked straight at him and said, "I like who I am now, and I like my life now."
She would do anything to preserve the present.
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