The Lost Kitten

Oscar was in a hurry to leave, but certainly not to find Zhu Zhuqing; visiting a young girl late at night was simply inappropriate no matter how one looked at it.

He was anxious to return to Shrek, as this departure had been a secret mission, and he worried that the teachers at the school might be fretting over his trip to the Star Dou Great Forest.

Now that he was back, he had to at least let his fiancée and his junior brother know.

However, it was already quite late, and the only room still lit by an oil lamp was the one where Ma Hongjun stayed.

"Knock, knock!"

Before long, footsteps sounded from inside, and Ma Hongjun pulled the door open.

He looked Oscar up and down, and only after confirming that his senior brother looked healthy and appeared to be in a good mood did he finally relax, asking:

"Senior brother, what have you been up to these past few days? Why didn't you call for me?"

Oscar rubbed his nose and said without blushing or skipping a beat:

"What could I be doing? I just suddenly felt like going out for a stroll. When I got back, I noticed Yiran's room was dark and there were no traces of her practicing spirit skills nearby. Where did she go?"

As he spoke, he walked into Ma Hongjun's room. He felt that something was off about the little fatty today, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Ma Hongjun followed behind him and said:

"Her grandfather and grandmother wrote to her, saying they decided to come to Shrek to teach, and they wanted to keep Yiran company, so she headed back yesterday.

She was worried sick while you were missing these past two days.

She even told me that if you came back, I had to write to her immediately. You'd better have a good explanation ready when she returns."

"Give me the address, I'll write to her later... When did you buy this? It looks quite nice."

Oscar sat on the edge of Ma Hongjun's bed, looking at the room's decor, when he suddenly noticed the fiery red plant on the windowsill and changed the subject.

"Just found it somewhere, it didn't cost much. I bought one for you too and put it on your windowsill. You don't even need to water it, just nourish it with your spirit power occasionally; it has some benefits for cultivation."

Oscar nodded. The little details in the fatty's daily life warmed his heart.

Thinking of his upcoming plan to explore the back garden of Haotian Douluo, he smiled slightly and said to Ma Hongjun:

"I didn't get anything good on this trip, but in a while, I'll give you a treasure."

Ma Hongjun chuckled, sat down next to Oscar, and said:

"Anything you call a treasure is bound to be good, so I'll be looking forward to it."

"Did the Dean and the others get worried about my sudden departure?"

"How could they? Ever since that incident, plus the fact that you have that Grace Hymn Emerald Sausage, the teachers are completely at ease with you now. Even Teacher Zhao said that your ability to save your own life is better than his."

Oscar lay back on the bed, feeling that he had indeed been overthinking things. The life-saving capability of the Grace Hymn Emerald Sausage was no joke; it was only natural that they weren't worried.

His thoughts shifted to his other junior brother, Dai Mubai, and he asked Ma Hongjun:

"Does Mubai still go to the Rose Hotel often?"

"Often? That's an understatement. He didn't come back tonight either, and I heard he's even got a schedule set for the next few days.

You really should keep him in check. His progress in both the meditation techniques and the Taiji Technique is very slow now. If he keeps this up, he's definitely going to fall behind."

Mentioning Dai Mubai made Ma Hongjun quite dissatisfied. When the senior brother was around, Dai Mubai would at least practice a little, but as soon as the senior brother left, he completely slacked off.

At this rate, forget about standing together and looking out for each other in the future; he'd be lucky if he could even see the backs of his and the senior brother's shadows!

At this, Oscar sighed. He had already brought this up to Dai Mubai countless times.

Dai Mubai was not a man of pure heart; if he wanted to make progress in his cultivation, he would certainly have to put in double the effort.

But this process of self-cultivation was simply not suited to Dai Mubai's impatient nature, and having already tasted the pleasures of the flesh, it was truly hard for him to abstain. In the end, Oscar couldn't even be bothered to persuade him anymore.

"At the end of the day, the master leads you through the door, but the cultivation depends on the individual. If he won't move when coaxed and retreats when pushed, what can I do?

Alright, let's not talk about him. Get some rest early. In a while, we'll have to go to the Soto Grand Spirit Fighting Arena for practical training, so take this time to relax."

After Oscar finished speaking, he straightened his clothes and prepared to leave, but his sleeve was tugged by Ma Hongjun.

"Senior brother, I'm almost twelve years old now. I should be able to know what you're doing, right?

I am your junior brother, and I don't want to be unable to help you at all."

Oscar turned back and saw those slightly reddened eyes.

He suddenly realized that this was a rare moment of genuine emotion from the little fatty.

But he was also helpless. There were too many things he had to do, and this path was too exhausting and dangerous. He didn't want this junior brother, who only had eyes for him, to be in danger.

"In a few years. When the time comes, senior brother will tell you everything. All you need to do now is enjoy your life happily."

Oscar ruffled Ma Hongjun's hair, only then realizing that this little guy had grown almost as tall as him without him noticing.

The night passed quickly. The next morning, Oscar was woken up by Ma Hongjun and dragged out for morning exercises.

"You've been a bit too diligent lately, haven't you?"

Oscar followed groggily behind Ma Hongjun, starting their daily morning run around Soto City.

"It's not like I'm trying to help you as soon as possible, senior brother... Eh? Look, is that the Dean?"

Following the direction of Ma Hongjun's finger, Oscar saw Flender walking out of the city gate, heading off to who knows where.

The two fellow disciples quickened their pace and ran over, calling out to stop Flender.

"Dean, where are you heading?"

Noticing the two diligent little fellows, Flender scratched the beard on his chin and laughed:

"I'm going to find Yu Xiaogang. He said he's coming to Shrek to teach for a while.

I've invited him many times in the past and he never came, so I can't let him slip away now that this rare opportunity has finally arrived."

Flender's tone was natural; he didn't mention a word about the trouble Yu Xiaogang had recently stirred up, nor did he bring up any of Yu Xiaogang's messy affairs.

Although he had occasionally mentioned Yu Xiaogang to Oscar two years ago, that was only for the sake of educating the child. Fundamentally, even if he held some dissatisfaction toward Yu Xiaogang, he still cared about Yu Xiaogang's reputation to some extent, no matter what.

After all, they had been together for so many years...

"I might not be back before the enrollment starts. If any new students arrive, just take them to train first. If anything comes up, go find Zhao Wuji; he will write a letter to notify me."

Oscar thought of Flender's shop and asked:

"Then what about your shop? Are you closing it?"

"I'd actually forgotten about that if you hadn't mentioned it. How about this: you and Ma Hongjun help me look after it for the time being. There isn't anything valuable inside anyway, so if you sell anything, just keep the earnings for yourselves."

Flender patted his head, gave the two disciples a few more details, and then dashed off toward the outskirts of the city.

Ma Hongjun was just about to drag Oscar to the shop to take a look, but he noticed his senior brother was staring blankly.

Following his senior brother's line of sight, he saw someone wearing the same clothes as Oscar walking in the distance, looking utterly dejected.

Moreover, the person looked so delicate that they didn't seem like a young man at all, but rather a young girl who was cross-dressing and not quite accustomed to the attire.