Chapter 4: Li Yasheng

"Uncle, spare my life!"

The man was so frightened that he fell to the ground and started begging for mercy, huddling up to Li Mutian.

"Ah! Spare my life, Uncle, spare my life..."

Li Yasheng never thought that his simple plan to steal a melon for a snack would result in his most feared uncle standing right in front of him, paralyzing him with fear. To make matters worse, Li Mutian was holding a long knife, which made him even more terrified.

"Yasheng?" Li Mutian looked closely, furrowed his brows, and his face turned grim. He stroked his beard and stared at him intently.

Li Yasheng was Li Yasheng's older brother. Their father had been bedridden for years, and Li Yasheng spent his days loafing around and mooching off others.

The two young men also rushed over. Li Tongya raised his long staff and pressed it down on Li Yasheng's arm, making him cry. Li Changhu lifted his head and looked at him, feeling a pang of sympathy.

"Cousin?" Li Changhu exhaled and asked in confusion.

"Why are you here?" Li Tongya asked coldly, not reducing the pressure on his staff.

"I came to steal your melon!" Seeing Li Yasheng's stammering, Li Mutian answered coldly, sheathed his knife, and turned to leave.

"Cousin, I apologize."

Li Tongya also released the pressure on his staff, threw a glance, and followed his father back into the house. Only Li Changhu helped Li Yasheng up, wiped his face, comforted him a few times, and politely escorted him out of the courtyard.

——

Inside the house.

Li Chijing and Li Xiangping sat dumbfounded at the table, with the mirror hidden in Li Xiangping's chest. Li Xiangping didn't dare move, but fortunately, his father and second brother soon entered the hall.

"Where's Big Brother?"

He looked behind them and quickly asked.

"He's seeing a guest off."

Li Mutian shook his head.

"Yasheng often comes to mooch, but I fear that if tonight's incident leaks, it could bring disaster to the whole family."

Li Tongya found a small stool and sat down, then turned to look at Li Xiangping as he was about to speak.

"Creak."

The front door closed, and Big Brother Li Changhu, looking puzzled, sat down and addressed his father, Li Mutian.

"Father, why do this?"

He shook his head.

"Yasheng just stole a melon. Why not give him a favor and avoid offending him?"

"There's no 'your family' or 'my family,' only one Li family, with me as the head and you as the subordinate."

Li Mutian leaned against the window, cupped his ear, and gestured to the woman and the young child: "Go and squat by the front and back doors. If anyone comes, call out."

They nodded and left. Li Mutian turned to close the doors and windows, then patted Li Xiangping and said:

"Speak!"

Li Xiangping nodded vigorously and spoke softly:

"Today, I went to Meichiriver to catch fish and found something in the river."

He looked at his father, Li Mutian, and seeing him nod, pulled out the mirror from his chest.

Li Changhu looked at his brother, then at his father, took the greenish-gray mirror, and examined it closely but couldn't figure out what it was.

Li Mutian took the mirror from his eldest son, found a small hole in the roof, moved a stone stool, placed the mirror under it, and squinted at his two sons.

The moonlight rippled like water and gathered on the mirror's surface, forming a pale white, gem-like halo.

Li Changhu "whoosh" stood up from his chair, staring intently at the halo on the mirror. Li Tongya was also moved and stared at the mirror, lost in thought.

For a full cup of tea, the Li family members silently stared at the mirror, their expressions varied.

Li Xiangping, who had seen this scene twice, was still shocked and muttered:

"I've never seen such a beautiful sight..."

"Haha, not just you, I've never seen anything like it either."

Li Mutian chuckled, but there was no joy in his eyes, only a fierce look.

"This might be a celestial object."

Li Tongya spoke calmly, wiping his long knife. He seemed calm, but his trembling hands betrayed his inner turmoil.

"If it's a lost celestial object, they might use magic to find it tomorrow. What will we do then?"

Li Tongya stared at his father, not without worry, and said.

Li Xiangping nodded, lowering his head and speaking in a low voice:

"Whatever the celestial beings bestow, our family will benefit greatly."

"Bullshit."

Li Mutian waved his hand:

"I've heard that many celestial beings are bloodthirsty. Absolutely not! This mirror has been in the water for who knows how long. If they wanted it, they would have retrieved it long ago. I think the celestial being is probably already dead."

These heretical words made Li Changhu shudder, his brows furrowed in thought.

Li Tongya, however, seemed to understand, and spoke in a low, solemn voice:

"Was it seen by that little brat, Li Yasheng?"

"I showed this object to Father in front of the house, and at that time, Brother Yasheng should have been in the fields." Li Xiangping lowered his eyes.

"I'll kill him!"

Li Tongya's expression was fierce, and without hesitation, he put on his vine armor, picked up his knife, and headed out. Li Xiangping, seeing this expression on his brother's face for the first time, couldn't help but stare.

"Come back!" Li Mutian frowned and called out to Li Tongya, glancing at Li Xiangping, making him look nervous.

"Father!" Li Tongya finally became anxious and spoke firmly.

"Li Yasheng is unfeeling and ungrateful, boastful and disloyal. It's better to kill him before he leaks the news and brings disaster to our family."

"It seems Second Brother has learned a lot from the village teacher." Li Xiangping thought silently, feeling ashamed and lowering his head. His father had sent the three of them to study, and both his brothers had been favored by the teacher. Only he, being young and mischievous, couldn't understand the idioms his brother used.

"Then if your younger brother were to be disloyal and talk too much, would you kill him too?"

Li Mutian laughed and asked his second son.

"We don't have such a weakling in our family."

Li Tongya said coolly.

Li Mutian shook his head, straightened the wooden table, and with a leap, landed lightly on it, then pulled a wooden box from the beam.

Placing the wooden box on the table, he spoke seriously to his three sons:

"There are some things you should know. I left home at thirteen and followed the ancient Lido path to Anli County. General Yang received orders from the court to attack the Shanyue and was recruiting soldiers along the ancient Lido path. At that time, I had nowhere to go, so I joined the army."

"General Yang was strict but treated us like family. He taught us the Shanyue military tactics and encouraged us to practice martial arts. These tactics are widely known, easy to learn but hard to master. Ordinary people who practice them become agile but show no extraordinary abilities." Li Mutian sighed, seeing that they were listening intently, and continued:

"After I returned home, I studied and wrote down these tactics on these wooden slips, and I've had you practice them. So far, there hasn't been much progress, but that's one thing."

Li Mutian opened the wooden box, which contained a wooden slip, a talisman, and some miscellaneous items like silver and glass fragments.

(End of Chapter)