What Are You Laughing At?

Outside the window, firelight blazed and a commotion raged.

Gao Yunyi sat cross-legged on the bed without getting up. His eyes showed nothing but annoyance at having his cultivation disturbed.

The scene outside resembled government soldiers coming to the countryside to requisition grain.

But why had they chosen to come in the dead of night, and in such a brutal, violent manner?

On his journey, Gao Yunyi had clearly sensed that the common people of the Liang Kingdom did not live well. They were poor and had a hard life.

Under normal circumstances, he never took the initiative to intervene, choosing instead to watch coldly and regard it with indifference.

He was no savior, and he hated playing the hero.

He disliked owing others, and he disliked others owing him.

He had always lived by this principle:

Let go of the urge to help others and respect their fate.

Please don't use morality to blackmail me, because I have no morals.

Of course, all of this was on the premise that there was no mission.

If there was a mission...

Sorry,

then they weren't just other people, but his customers.

The customer was god, got it?

The soldiers and the village head outside didn't seem to have reached an agreement.

A scream rang out, and an enormous uproar erupted outside.

"Y-you... how can you hit people..."

It was the village head's terrified voice.

"You old bastard, you dare cry poverty and argue with me? Do you really think my saber eats vegetables?"

The rough, arrogant voice rang out again.

"Search! Strip every household bare! Don't leave a single grain behind!"

As the order rang out, countless footsteps sounded, spreading in every direction.

"My lord, no! You can't do this! If you take all the grain, none of us will survive!"

The village head pleaded hysterically. Not only did he receive no sympathy, he instead provoked the other man into a rage.

"Get lost, old bastard! If you dare make another sound, I'll hack you to death!"

In the main room,

the old woman and the little boy had long since woken.

Hearing that his grandfather was in danger, the little boy wanted to rush outside, but the old woman held him fast, unable to move an inch.

"Grandma, let me go! I have to go save Grandpa!"

The little boy struggled madly. He didn't know what he could do if he went out, but he knew that if he didn't, something would happen to his grandfather.

His teacher at school had only taught him that filial piety came first among all virtues, but hadn't yet had time to teach him that a gentleman did not stand beneath a crumbling wall.

"You can't go out... my grandson... you can't go out..."

The old woman's face was filled with fear, and her eyes brimmed with tears. Though her whole body trembled with fear, she used all her strength to hold her grandson tightly in her arms.

But what the old woman didn't know was that, although she had stopped her grandson from going into danger, danger was already closing in on them rapidly.

Bang—

The front door was kicked open with a crash.

A soldier wearing cloth-covered armor and a blade at his waist walked in.

The wolfish, tiger-like soldier first looked around the main room. When he saw that there was only an old woman and a little boy inside, disappointment immediately appeared on his face.

The front door had been kicked open, and a soldier brimming with killing intent had come in. The old woman collapsed to the ground in fright, trembling like a sieve from head to foot.

But the little boy was utterly fearless. Opening his bright, wide eyes, he spoke in righteous indignation:

"The sage said: To lead an untrained people into battle is to throw them away. You—mmph..."

But before he could finish, the old woman clapped a hand over his mouth.

After hearing the little boy's words, a question mark seemed to appear over the soldier's head. He had never studied and couldn't understand them at all.

But he paid it no mind. After all, the other party was just a child of five or six.

"Where have you hidden your grain?"

The old woman immediately pointed toward the kitchen and answered, "In... in the rice jar."

Hearing this, the soldier headed straight for the kitchen.

After a series of clattering noises, the soldier came out a while later carrying a small bag of grain.

"This is all the grain? What about your money? Where have you hidden it?"

The soldier's face darkened as he shouted sternly.

The old woman sobbed as she answered:

"N-no... none left... the money all went to my grandson's schooling."

"What's the use of studying? Men should join the army."

The soldier cast a disdainful glance at the little boy in the old woman's arms, then prepared to leave with the bag of grain.

But just as he reached the door, he caught sight of a tightly shut room to one side out of the corner of his eye.

"Who lives in that room?"

The old woman replied timidly, "N-no one..."

"No one? That can't be right. Where's this kid's mother?"

As the saying went, after three years in the army, even a sow looked like Diao Chan.

He hadn't touched a woman in many years, and judging by the boy's looks, his mother couldn't be far behind.

At once, a lecherous gleam appeared in the soldier's eyes.

"My daughter-in-law and son are in the county town. They aren't home."

The old woman explained, but the soldier clearly didn't believe her.

He casually tossed the grain bag onto the ground and walked toward the room, swallowing his saliva.

"You can't go in there! Our honored guest is staying inside."

The little boy pulled free of his grandmother's hand and spoke up bravely and loudly.

"An honored guest? Didn't you just say there was no one inside? Heh heh heh... I'd like to see what kind of honored guest this is."

The boy would have been better off keeping quiet. As soon as he spoke, the soldier became even more curious about the room.

He even had a faint hunch that the person inside must be as beautiful as a flower.

Unable to wait, he reached out and pushed the door open,

and the soldier's eyes immediately met those of the person inside.

His hunch had been right. The person inside was not only more than as beautiful as a flower, but beautiful enough to topple a kingdom.

The only pity was that the person was a man.

The soldier froze.

First he was surprised by the person's gender, then stunned by his looks.

But there was no disappointment or unwillingness on the soldier's face. Instead, an eager excitement appeared in his eyes.

This man was even prettier than a woman.

What did it matter whether he was a woman or not?

It even seemed more exciting!

At the thought, the soldier turned and shut the door, rubbing his palms together excitedly like a fly.

After all, he had only heard of such things and had never done them himself.

Never had he imagined that his wish would actually come true today.

"Heh heh heh..."

It was his first time, and he was a little nervous.

He actually abandoned his usual coarseness and became refined.

But like a monkey wearing a crown, he only looked more vulgar and lecherous.

"Heh heh heh... don't be afraid, I'm not a bad person... heh heh heh..."

The soldier laughed as he removed his armor.

Gao Yunyi laughed too.

He hadn't expected that, though he hadn't gone looking for trouble, trouble would come knocking on its own.

Why were there so many people in this world who liked courting death?

Or did he look easy to bully?

"What are you laughing at?"

Seeing the smile on Gao Yunyi's lips, the soldier suddenly stopped taking off his armor.

Should the other party be smiling at a time like this?

Shouldn't he be terrified, afraid, begging for mercy, or trying to escape?

Though he was uneducated, he wasn't a fool.

His mind, clouded by lust, seemed to regain some reason, and he abruptly realized that whether it was the other man's looks, bearing, or clothing, none of them belonged in a remote, impoverished village like this.

But unfortunately,

it was too late.