Chapter 2: Xu Daoyan

Cai Qiang, accompanied by three henchmen, strutted with arrogance and condescension. Daoyan’s eyes narrowed slightly, a look of disgust in them, and he said to Wu Xiaobai, "Ignore him, let’s go!"

The two immediately took another path, which infuriated Cai Qiang. "F*ck, these two bastards actually dare to defy me! No one will protect them here. Grab them and beat them up!"

Seeing Cai Qiang and his gang chasing after them, Daoyan quickly said, "Run, head for the village!"

Daoyan ran very fast, but Wu Xiaobai, who had a weaker constitution, quickly fell behind.

Daoyan turned back, seeing Wu Xiaobai about to be caught, and gritted his teeth, rushing back to him. "Xiaobai, run! I’ll hold them off!"

"You can’t handle them alone, don’t worry about me!"

"Relax, they won’t dare do anything to me." Daoyan shouted.

"Be careful." Wu Xiaobai was extremely scared; he didn’t want to be a burden to Daoyan.

"Stop right there." Daoyan stood alone in front of Cai Qiang and his four men.

"Wow, you’re pretty tough. What’s in your clothes? Hand it over." Cai Qiang pointed at the object in Daoyan’s arms.

"Why should I give it to you?" Daoyan had always been at odds with Cai Qiang.

"F*ck you, you’re asking for it. A1, A2, A3, beat him up!" Cai Qiang ordered, and the four men rushed forward, tackling Daoyan to the ground.

The roasted sweet potatoes rolled all over the ground. Cai Qiang, seeing the sweet potatoes, laughed. "I thought it was something special, but it’s just roasted sweet potatoes. Are they good? I’ll make you eat them..."

Cai Qiang lifted his foot and crushed the sweet potatoes. Seeing the sweet potatoes being trampled, Daoyan’s anger flared. These sweet potatoes, while insignificant to the son of the village chief, were precious to his family, essential for their survival.

"Daoyan, let me tell you, don’t think just because you have some strength, you can defy me. You’re a bastard, not even knowing your own surname. Your father probably abandoned you and your mother, not wanting to take care of you. You’re a fatherless bastard, you know? My father told me that your father is from another village, came here, and left after planting you!"

"I have a surname." Daoyan gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot with rage.

"Then what is it? Bastard!" Cai Qiang laughed.

"My surname is Xu, I’m Xu Daoyan." Xu Daoyan roared.

"Xu? Ha, my father told me that the Xu family is a large and prestigious family, the founders of the farming community. I don’t know where you heard this, but to claim you’re a Xu is just shameless!"

"AAAAAA..." Each "bastard" made Xu Daoyan’s anger explode, turning into strength. His body struggled wildly, and he bit the arm that was choking him.

"AHHH..." A blood-curdling scream echoed as A1, who was choking Xu Daoyan, almost had his arm bitten off.

Xu Daoyan broke free from the three henchmen and charged at Cai Qiang, tackling him to the ground and punching his face.

Cai Qiang grabbed Xu Daoyan’s arms and shouted, "Bastard, you dare to hit me?"

With that, a loud thud. Xu Daoyan used his head to smash into Cai Qiang’s face, roaring, "Who’s the bastard? You’re the bastard!"

Ignoring his own pain, Xu Daoyan’s attack left Cai Qiang’s face a bloody mess. "Even if you kill me, I’ll take you down with me. I’ll kill you..."

Seeing the blood and hearing Xu Daoyan’s words, A1, A2, and A3 were terrified, their bodies trembling. Even Cai Qiang, who was the son of the village chief, was scared. The intense killing intent in Xu Daoyan’s eyes made Cai Qiang wet his pants, crying, "Don’t kill me, don’t kill me!"

Xu Daoyan, in his frenzy, came to his senses, his forehead covered in blood. He was trembling, remembering the blood and gore, which was more terrifying than the usual bruises and swelling from past fights.

"Cai Qiang, if you ever call me a bastard again, I’ll kill you!" Xu Daoyan shouted.

"I won’t, I won’t!" Cai Qiang’s face turned green with fear, his body trembling. He thought Xu Daoyan must be insane.

"Give me the money!" Xu Daoyan suddenly remembered that the village chief had taken his family’s grain and decided to get some back from Cai Qiang.

Cai Qiang quickly pulled out a money bag. When Xu Daoyan opened it, his heart raced and his eyes twitched. Inside were ten pieces of silver, each weighing one tael, more money than he had ever seen in his life.

With the situation as it was, Xu Daoyan took the money and threatened, "Get lost. If you tell anyone about this, I’ll kill you all!"

"Yes, yes, yes." Cai Qiang nodded frantically, and A1, A2, and A3 didn’t dare speak, fleeing in a panic.

Xu Daoyan looked at the trampled sweet potatoes on the ground, feeling heartbroken. Fortunately, two were still wrapped in clothes and undamaged. He treated them like treasure, wiping the blood from his head. This blood was Cai Qiang’s, and if he didn’t clean it off before returning home, his mother would worry.

After dealing with everything, Xu Daoyan found the ten taels of silver still in his pocket. He immediately found a nearby crooked tree, buried the money, and ran home.

Although the incident was over, the memory still made him shudder. Xu Daoyan hurried home, and just as he was about to reach his house, a dark shadow lunged at him, making him break out in a cold sweat.

"Please, have mercy on this old beggar. I haven’t eaten for days..." A ragged old man, his face black and dirty, his hair and beard matted and tangled, pleaded with Xu Daoyan.

Initially startled, Xu Daoyan, seeing the old man’s pitiful state, felt a pang of sympathy and took out a large piece of fragrant roasted sweet potato. "Here, you can have this. I’ll take the last one home for my mother."

The old man’s eyes lit up, snatching the sweet potato and eating it, skin and all. Xu Daoyan shook his head and started to leave.

"Wait, young man..." The old man, his mouth full of sweet potato, spoke indistinctly.

"You don’t need to thank me. Helping the elderly is the right thing to do." Xu Daoyan waved and walked away without looking back.

"No, can you give me some water to drink..." The old man, having eaten too quickly, was choking, his face turning purple.

Xu Daoyan’s lips twitched, and he quickly said, "Come with me, don’t choke to death. I’ll have to pay for your life if you do."

The old man’s house was not far from Xu Daoyan’s. He ran to his small wooden house, filled a bucket with water, and gave a large ladle to the old man.

The old man drank the water in one gulp, burped, and was satisfied.

Xu Daoyan finally felt relieved, ignored the old man, and returned to his small wooden house, placing the other piece of roasted sweet potato on the table. "Mother, eat quickly."

"Roasted sweet potato, where did you get it?" Wu Shi asked.

"I dug it up near the forest." Xu Daoyan smiled.

"Give it to me, what about you?"

"Ha, I’ve already eaten. Mother, you eat slowly. I have plans to play with Xiaobai." Xu Daoyan patted his stomach, pretending to be full.

"Then don’t go too far!" Wu Shi’s voice called out as Xu Daoyan ran out.

When Xu Daoyan left, he saw the old man was gone. He didn’t mind; beggars move from place to place, and he hoped the old man would survive.

"My stomach is growling." He left the small wooden house, filled his water bottle, and ran toward the back mountain.

Near Xu Daoyan’s house, another small wooden house stood. A woman, another village legend, lived there.

This woman was also from another village. She came in shortly after Xu Daoyan’s father, but unlike him, she stayed.

She was mute, unable to speak, and very beautiful. She lived alone, and according to the older villagers, her appearance had not changed in over ten years, making her seem otherworldly.

Xu Daoyan usually called her Aunt Mute. As neighbors, and because she couldn’t speak, he would confide in her as a child, even things he didn’t tell Wu Shi.

Xu Daoyan walked out, and Aunt Mute glanced at him before going back inside.

On the way to the back mountain, Xu Daoyan met Wu Xiaobai, who had come out to check on him after bringing the sweet potatoes home.

"Daoyan, are you okay?" Wu Xiaobai looked shocked to see Xu Daoyan unharmed.

"Of course, I’m fine. What could happen to me?" Xu Daoyan shrugged, looking unconcerned.

"That’s good. I’m starving." Wu Xiaobai, worried about Xu Daoyan, had run out without eating.

"Let’s go to the back mountain." Xu Daoyan patted Wu Xiaobai’s shoulder, and they headed to the back mountain together.

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End of Chapter 2