Fateful Entanglement, Part Two

Fateful Entanglement, Part Two

Seeing Li Chijing's still-youthful face filled with savage ferocity, Ye Chengfu in the crowd paused, raised his torch, and stroked his chin as he pondered. "This fourth son is likely no easy customer either. The leader, Lianglu, is dead; three vicious wolves remain. The eldest is cunning, the youngest fierce. Within ten years, Li Jing Village will surely become the Li Clan's one-man domain!"

After a few breaths of silence, someone answered in a low voice, "Changhu was killed by the refugees!"

Li Xiangping held back his tears as he knelt beside Li Changhu. Turning toward Tian Shoushui, he choked out:

"Uncle Tian, what happened?"

"Most likely the remnants of the Yuan Family."

Li Mutian forced out a few words through clenched teeth. Looking at Tian Shoushui, who hung his head in shame and silence, then glancing at the surrounding villagers, he called out, "Li Tongya!"

Hearing this, Li Tongya wiped away his tears, stepped forward, and cupped his hands toward the villagers as he called loudly:

"We have disturbed everyone tonight. Please disperse for now; there is no need to linger here."

Having spoken, he bent down to help Liu Linfeng up and whispered in his ear, "Uncle, please take men to control those refugees first, lest someone take advantage of the chaos to cause trouble. We will be there shortly."

"Alright, alright..."

Liu Linfeng had already been kneeling before Li Mutian, timid and uneasy as though sitting on a bed of thorns. At these words, he felt as though he had been granted a pardon, repeatedly agreeing before leaving with his men.

Tian Shoushui and Ren Ping'an carried Li Changhu into the Li Clan's Backyard and set him down. Then they heard a burst of weeping from the main courtyard. Ren Shi had fainted upon hearing the dreadful news; Tian Yun and Liu Shi held back their tears, one tending to her while the other hurried off to find a physician.

"Elder Brother..."

Tian Shoushui set Li Changhu down, tears in his eyes. Just as he was about to say something, Li Mutian waved a hand and spoke wearily:

"Ping'an, go see to Ren Shi. Shoushui, go watch the refugees with that Liu Linfeng first. Without a statement from my Li Clan, he will likely be too constrained to act."

"Yes."

Tian Shoushui froze for a moment, wiped away his tears, and withdrew in acknowledgment. Ren Ping'an also nodded blankly and went to look after Ren Ping'er.

With the outsiders gone from the Backyard, only the Li Clan brothers remained, weeping softly through their tears.

At last, Li Mutian could no longer restrain himself. Like a wounded lone wolf, he sat beside his eldest son and began to howl in grief.

"Changhu—"

The brothers all began to weep as well. Li Tongya and Li Xiangping remained somewhat restrained, but Li Chijing was still young and cried as though his heart would break.

In the dead of night, Li Jing Village was in utter chaos. Old Man Xu leaned alone on his hoe as he made his way to the Back Mountain. Following the winding trail, he saw a sprawling graveyard emerge amid the thick weeds.

Old Man Xu stopped and looked closely. Sure enough, a ragged young man clad in an animal-hide garment around his waist sat leisurely beside a small tombstone in the corner, legs spread as he muttered something.

His ears twitched, and the young man keenly raised his head. Seeing that the newcomer was merely a simple-looking old farmer who appeared too old to walk, he even clapped his hands and tilted his head with a smile. "Where did this old man come from?"

Old Man Xu ignored him. Deliberately moving at a snail's pace, he trembled his way forward, cast the young man a wary glance, then knelt by the grave. Hugging the tombstone, he began to weep and murmur in grief.

Listening closely, the young man vaguely caught words about avenging a great enmity and letting the master's family rest in peace. His heart stirred at once.

His family had been destroyed when he was young, and he had drifted through a life of hardship. For the first half of his life, he had worked as a tenant for others, clutching this dagger every night as he practiced tirelessly, hoping only that one day he might personally cut off Li Mutian's head and offer it to his parents.

Now that his great vengeance had been partly repaid, exhilaration filled his heart. He had countless words he wished to say, yet there was not a single person beside him with whom he could share his joy and satisfaction. Why not have a chat with this old man, then kill him before leaving? Would that not kill two birds with one stone?

With that thought, the young man smiled and said, "You came to the Yuan Family Tomb to weep and complain. Aren't you afraid the Li Clan will come after you?"

"This old man does not have many days left..."

Old Man Xu wiped his tears as he replied. He lowered his gaze toward the young man, then suddenly went pale with shock, threw himself to the ground, and cried:

"Young Master!"

"Hm?"

The young man was startled, thinking to himself, Could this old man have seen me at the village entrance? Better kill him and flee, lest trouble multiply.

Yet Old Man Xu covered his tears and continued, "Madam often carried Young Master to sit in the fields, so this old man recognizes you. To this day, I remember that you have three black moles on your foot. That can serve as proof."

Old Man Xu had lived more than seventy years and had grown shrewd as a fox. He forcibly reversed cause and effect, startling the killing intent from the young man's heart. After a moment of stunned silence, the young man hurriedly asked:

"Then do you remember what my mother looked like?"

"Of course I do."

Old Man Xu pulled a branch from a pile of straw, then loosened the soil with his hoe and began to draw with care.

The young man was overwhelmed with excitement, yet he kept lowering his head to gaze darkly at Old Man Xu, thoughts flashing endlessly through his mind. At times he felt he should kill him outright; at others, he felt he should bind him and question him further about his mother.

Before long, Old Man Xu finished the drawing and stood. Though he was only a farmer, he had often painted door gods and auspicious images for the villagers over the years. With time, he had acquired some skill with the brush; in only a few strokes, he captured the figure's spirit with lifelike vividness.

"Mother!"

The young man dropped to his knees and looked. Seeing those brows and eyes that had remained hazy in his dreams, he began to weep softly. Twenty-two years of grievance and repression surged into his heart, and tears poured forth like a spring.

Old Man Xu sighed mournfully at the side, endlessly praising the madam's kindness. The young man became even less able to hold back his tears.

"This old man still remembers what the master looked like. Let me draw him as well."

After hearing Old Man Xu's words, the young man already believed him eight parts out of ten. Wiping his tears, he gave permission without even raising his head.

Old Man Xu lifted his hoe to loosen the earth for the drawing, ferocity gleaming in his eyes. The hoe rose high, its bright silver blade flashing lightly beneath the moon. Then it came crashing down, straight for the young man's neck.

The young man had run with the refugees for an entire day, exhausted himself assassinating Li Changhu, and then shaken off Tian Shoushui in the Reed Marshes. He was already worn to collapse. Now, after such wild swings of joy and grief, his legs had long since gone weak; he had neither the mind nor the strength to evade it. Old Man Xu struck him squarely.

Old Man Xu had farmed all his life and remained strong and healthy. The blow landed with a dull thud, snapping sinews and shattering bones. The young man pitched straight to the ground, his head lolling to one side, eyes rolling white as his limbs convulsed and foam poured from his mouth.

Taking advantage of his fall, the old man brought down another stroke, striking the young man squarely on the head and utterly extinguishing his Aura.

Still not satisfied, Old Man Xu struck wildly another dozen times, sending blood and flesh flying, white and red spilling across the ground. When he turned the young man over and looked, there was no Aura left in him, though sorrow still lingered on the corpse's face.

Only then did Old Man Xu finally lose all strength and collapse onto the ground. He raised his withered hands to cover his face and wailed in agony:

"Fateful entanglement! Fateful entanglement..."