Chapter 4

Xiaoqiu opened his eyes, his mind a blank, feeling abnormally drowsy. However, driven by habit, he still jumped to the ground, took a few dazed steps, and only remembered that this was not his home when he bumped into a stool. Today, he did not need to tend the horses, but instead had to go to a distant and unfamiliar place.

Old Lady Feng came out of the inner room, her back slightly hunched, and her walk a bit unsteady, but she was extremely calm. Not only did she quickly plan for the future, but she also prepared everything without making a sound: enough food for three days, scattered silver coins stored separately, a few changes of clothes, and so on, all packed into two large bundles. The address note was given to Fangfang to keep close, and she even provided a set of horse saddles.

Fangfang changed into Old Lady Feng’s old clothes, which were of appropriate length but a bit loose. She seemed not fully awake, her face blank, but when she hugged Old Lady Feng goodbye, she showed great reluctance, shedding many tears. She then climbed onto the horse and lowered her head, remaining silent.

Although grateful for Old Lady Feng’s care and guidance, Xiaoqiu was glad to leave. The old lady’s kind eyes always seemed to carry a questioning look, making Xiaoqiu hesitant to meet her gaze.

The chestnut horse, unaware of the future journey, naturally turned east toward the Wild Forest Town after leaving the courtyard, wanting to go to the familiar forest to graze. Xiaoqiu corrected its direction, and it did not object, walking silently on the main road.

They set off at dawn, and the sun soon became scorching. The chestnut horse walked under the shade of trees, always wanting to stop to graze. Xiaoqiu ran back and forth, urging it to continue, occasionally looking up to sneak a glance at Fangfang on the horse.

It was too quiet, and the monotonous sound of hooves made Xiaoqiu uneasy. "Old Lady Feng," he finally thought of a topic to talk about after an hour.

"Hmm." Fangfang still hung her head, looking gloomy.

"She’s really amazing, having acquaintances in Xijie City and a good heart. She prepared so much for us, even the horse saddle, as if she knew we... you would leave Wild Forest Town."

"She’s good," Fangfang said softly, her lips barely moving.

Xiaoqiu found it uninteresting and couldn’t understand why Fangfang, who seemed excited yesterday, was so listless this morning. He darted into the roadside forest, picking colorful wildflowers, and quickly made a wreath.

He did these things unconsciously, and only when he held the beautiful wreath did he feel that only Fangfang deserved to wear it. However, he couldn’t bring himself to say it or even hint at it. The little girl on the horse seemed too unfamiliar, and he hadn’t seen her true appearance clearly.

By noon, the wreath was still in Xiaoqiu’s hands.

The main road made a large turn not far ahead, turning from west to south. From there, the lush trees would gradually thin out, transitioning to tall patches of grass.

Xiaoqiu ran ahead, stopping a few dozen steps from the turn, drawn to a strange mark on the road.

It was a strip of loose soil across the road, like an ant’s tunnel, but the soil was too rough, more like a child’s work.

Fangfang rode up, pulled the reins, and asked, "What is that?"

It was her first question of the morning, but Xiaoqiu didn’t notice, his mind focused on the strip of soil. "It looks like a line someone drew, I wonder what it means..."

They soon found out what it meant. A long rope, made of tree bark, thick and long, sprang out of the loose soil, followed by shouts from both sides of the road, piercing the sky and startling dozens of birds.

The two and the horse were startled. Xiaoqiu instinctively jumped back a step, the chestnut horse reared up and neighed, and Fangfang fell off with a cry.

Things happened too quickly. Several figures rushed out from the grass on both sides. Xiaoqiu didn’t have time to help Fangfang, instead facing the fastest ambusher, shouting loudly to match the other’s momentum.

Xiaoqiu knocked down the first ambusher and was then surrounded and engaged in a melee. People were everywhere, and he didn’t need to look for targets; he could hit anyone with a random swing. There was no way to defend, as punches rained down.

"Stop, stop, stop fighting, everyone, stop!"

The melee stopped. Xiaoqiu was entangled with one person, his neck held by another, and two more were ready to join the fight.

A few steps away, Ershuan scanned the scene with authority, noticing that everyone was obedient except one person.

Touzi was young and small, smartly not rushing at Xiaoqiu but instead targeting the fallen Fangfang. They were still fighting, but Touzi hadn’t gained a clear advantage.

"I said stop," Ershuan raised his voice.

Touzi finally heard the leader’s command, obediently relaxing his body, and was pushed back by Fangfang’s hands, flailing his arms and falling backward, but he didn’t cry out in pain, instead laughing loudly.

"We’re not here to catch anyone," Ershuan said.

All the boys let go, including Xiaoqiu, who saw the Daliang and Erlang brothers and believed Ershuan’s words to some extent.

Ershuan kicked Touzi, stopping his inexplicable laughter, then walked to Xiaoqiu and said seriously, "Brother Xiaoqiu, you’re a good guy, let us help you."

Xiaoqiu was even more confused, asking warily, "You’re not here to take us back to the town?"

"Of course not, I guessed that old crazy woman was lying, so I stayed here to wait for you."

"Then why did you set this up?" Xiaoqiu pointed at the rope on the ground, which seemed more like an interception than help.

"To stop you from running away." Ershuan seemed to think it was simple enough not to need more explanation.

Daliang quickly spoke up, "It was my idea. I thought you’d see... Ershuan, and maybe run faster, but I didn’t tell them to jump out and fight." Daliang glared at Lengzi, who had failed to stop them.

There were eight boys blocking the road, including the Daliang and Erlang brothers. The other six were Ershuan’s gang. If Xiaoqiu had seen them, he would have jumped on the horse and fled with Fangfang. "Why do you want to help me?"

"Because you’re doing a good thing." Ershuan turned to Fangfang, his voice solemn, "Fangfang, I apologize on behalf of the Shen family and hope to make amends."

Ershuan’s sudden change surprised Xiaoqiu and Fangfang, who looked at each other, half-believing, half-doubting. Xiaoqiu finally saw Fangfang’s appearance clearly.

She was different from the little girl he remembered. After a few years, Fangfang had changed a lot, but one thing remained the same: her big eyes always carried a look of fear, as if she might be called to speak in front of a crowd of strangers at any moment.

She left the decision to Xiaoqiu.

"I don’t believe you," Xiaoqiu said, still finding it hard to accept Ershuan’s change, even with the Daliang and Erlang brothers present.

"I can make you believe me," Ershuan said confidently, pausing, "Where are you going?"

"It’s none of your business."

"Anyway, you’re going to take the main road. If I tell you, you’ll only get as far as Linhe Town. Beyond that, you’ll be caught. My father has already reported to Xiaoling Fort, and the Xuanfu Army has set up a dragnet. You won’t get anywhere."

Xiaoqiu was startled. He had seen the Xuanfu Army once at the age of seven and was deeply impressed by the black-armored soldiers, filled with awe. He never thought he would become their target, but he refused to admit defeat, "I have a way to avoid them."

"What if you can’t? Fangfang will still have to marry my brother. My father no longer likes her and is furious with you, saying he’ll beat you to death."

Xiaoqiu was discouraged. He knew almost nothing about the world beyond Wild Forest Town and had no way to avoid the Xuanfu Army. He glanced at Fangfang, who looked even more lost, then at Daliang, who nodded, clearly convinced by Ershuan.

"Alright, I believe you," Xiaoqiu said, finding it difficult but feeling relieved once the words were out. As a young boy, he found it easy to hate and forgive. "We’re going to Xijie City, where... where we have acquaintances."

"Xijie City!" The boys exclaimed in unison. Like Xiaoqiu, they had only a vague idea of the capital, thinking it was far away.

Ershuan was the only one who didn’t show surprise, "Xijie City is good. You can hide well there. My uncle’s family lives there, and I stayed with them for a few months."

The boys looked at Ershuan differently, his height making him seem even taller.

"Do you have a way to avoid the Xuanfu Army?" Xiaoqiu asked.

Ershuan nodded, "We can’t take the main road, we have to take the small paths."

Xiaoqiu had never even walked the main road, let alone the small paths, so he just nodded.

"I have a map at home," Ershuan’s statement solidified his leadership. Daliang and Erlang gasped, and even Xiaoqiu’s lips parted slightly; they had never even seen a map.

Ershuan squatted down, picked up a sharp stone, and drew a circle, followed by several horizontal and vertical lines, "Our Wild Forest Town is in the east, and Xijie City is in the southwest. The distance isn’t too far, but there’s a big mountain and a large forest in between. The main road is much longer. My plan is to take a shortcut, enter the forest, and follow the river southwest. I estimate it will take five to six days to get out, then we can turn onto the main road, and it will be just a few days to Xijie City."

Ershuan spoke so confidently, as if he had taken this shortcut before, so no one objected. On their first day away from home, they felt nothing but excitement.

"Alright," Xiaoqiu fully trusted Ershuan, "We’ll take the small paths, and you help us delay the Xuanfu Army."

Ershuan stood up, shaking his head, "We’ll all go to Xijie City, and I’ll lead the way."

Xiaoqiu still didn’t fully understand, "You... why are you helping us?"

Ershuan rubbed his head, "Just because I said ‘good,’ my father beat me yesterday, saying I was a traitor. I want to show him what real ‘treason’ looks like."

The matter was settled. The boys who had just fought with Xiaoqiu became his allies, each coming up to pat his shoulder.

Only one boy hesitated, "Is the forest safe? I heard that demons and monsters love to live in deep forests. A Taoist came to town the day before yesterday, and my father said he wasn’t there to catch children but to catch demons."

"What’s there to be afraid of?" Ershuan puffed out his chest, "We’ll go together and beat the demons until they beg for mercy."

Ershuan took large steps, leading the way into the unknown forest.

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