"I'm serious," Deng Tianxin said, speaking each word slowly. Though his voice was childish, he sounded unusually earnest. "When I grow up, I'm going to marry you."
Bibi Dong felt certain she'd left home without checking the almanac that morning.
First, she'd run into a little bandit blocking the road and demanding money. Then, for no reason at all, he'd called her Mom. After that, she'd broken up with her boyfriend. And now the little bandit was actually proposing to her right to her face.
And he was only six.
"Do you even know what you're saying?" Bibi Dong's voice was calm in the way the sky was calm before a storm.
"Of course," Deng Tianxin said with a nod, his little face so earnest it was hard to believe he was joking. "Auntie, you're so pretty, and you're so good at fighting. Marrying you would be a great deal. Besides, you said it yourself—you're single now."
Bibi Dong closed her eyes.
She'd faced plenty of difficult opponents, but not one of them had ever made her feel such a strong urge to grab them by the neck and squeeze.
And the worst part was that her opponent was a child.
"Deng Tianxin." Bibi Dong opened her eyes and gave him a textbook-perfect, gentle smile. "If you dare say one more word, I'll hang you from a tree for the night."
Deng Tianxin immediately clapped both hands over his mouth, secretly thinking that this woman really couldn't take a joke.
At last, the world was quiet.
For the rest of the journey, Deng Tianxin didn't say a word. He just kept sneaking glances at Bibi Dong with his big, dark eyes, his expression practically screaming, I want to say something, but I'm afraid she'll hang me from a tree.
Bibi Dong noticed his glances but chose to ignore them.
They walked one behind the other for about half an hour. Gradually, the trees ahead thinned, revealing the outline of a small village.
Iron Ox Village wasn't large. It had only a few dozen households, with houses built from wood and mud scattered crookedly along both sides of a dirt road.
An old locust tree stood at the entrance to the village, where several elderly people sat basking in the sun.
"We're here, we're here!" The moment Deng Tianxin spotted the village, he forgot Bibi Dong's warning. He took off on his little legs, racing into the village and shouting, "Uncle Village Chief! Uncle Village Chief!"
Bibi Dong followed at a leisurely pace, her eyes sweeping over the dilapidated little village.
Her brows drew together slightly.
This place was terribly poor.
The dirt road at the village entrance was full of potholes, several houses even had broken door panels, and nearly half of the fields on the village outskirts lay abandoned and overgrown with weeds.
Though she'd grown up in Spirit Hall, surrounded by fine clothes and delicious food, she wasn't unfamiliar with poverty.
Still, she hadn't expected to see a village in such a wretched state.
A man who looked to be in his fifties came out of the village. He wore coarse clothes covered in patches, and his wrinkles were as deep as knife cuts. But when he saw Deng Tianxin, those wrinkles crinkled into a smile.
"Little Tianxin? What are you doing back?" The man crouched and caught Deng Tianxin as he ran up to him. Then he looked up and saw Bibi Dong following behind.
His smile froze for a moment.
Bibi Dong's bearing and attire stood out starkly against the little village. Anyone with eyes could tell she wasn't an ordinary person.
"And this young lady is..." The village chief stood up, looking awkward as he wiped his hands on his clothes.
"She's my—"
"I'm his creditor," Bibi Dong cut Deng Tianxin off, her expression blank.
Deng Tianxin's little face fell. He looked up at Bibi Dong with a wounded expression. "Auntie, how can you be like that?"
The village chief was taken aback. He looked from Bibi Dong to Deng Tianxin, his face troubled. "Did Little Tianxin get into trouble again? He's a mischievous child. If he's offended you, I'll apologize on his behalf..."
"No, no!" Deng Tianxin hurriedly waved his hands. "Uncle Village Chief, don't listen to her. She's not my creditor. She's my friend!"
Bibi Dong raised an eyebrow. "Friend?"
"Exactly!" Deng Tianxin puffed out his little chest and declared, "I helped her out, and now she's taking me to Spirit Hall to live there. So I came back to say goodbye!"
The village chief was stunned. He looked down at Deng Tianxin, his eyes full of disbelief. "You... helped her?"
"Mm-hmm." Deng Tianxin nodded hard. "I helped her see her ex-boyfriend for who he really was and get out of an unhealthy relationship. She feels a lot better now, don't you, Auntie?"
He turned toward Bibi Dong and flashed her a radiant smile.
The corner of Bibi Dong's mouth twitched.
Taken literally, there was nothing wrong with what the little rascal had said.
But somehow, it still felt off.
After hearing all that, the village chief looked even more confused. He glanced from Deng Tianxin to Bibi Dong and asked tentatively, "Miss, is what Little Tianxin says... true?"
Bibi Dong was silent for two seconds.
She could deny it. She could air all the rotten things the little rascal had done that day and ruin his reputation.
But when she looked at Deng Tianxin's upturned little face and those bright, sparkling eyes, the words she meant to say somehow changed.
"...More or less."
The village chief let out a long breath and smiled. "That's good, that's good. I was afraid he'd gotten into trouble again. The poor boy's had a hard life. He's been here for a year, and I've always worried about him. If someone can take him away, that couldn't be better."
Bibi Dong picked up on the information in the village chief's words. "You're not his father?"
"How could I be his father?" The village chief waved a hand and sighed. "The boy suddenly appeared at the village entrance a year ago. I don't know where he came from, but I felt sorry for him, so I took him in. When I asked where his parents were, he wouldn't say. If I pressed him, he'd cry, so I stopped asking."
Bibi Dong looked down at Deng Tianxin.
Deng Tianxin was crouched on the ground, drawing circles with a little stick and pretending he hadn't heard a thing.
"He's been living in the village for a year?" Bibi Dong asked.
"That's right." The village chief nodded, his eyes full of sympathy. "The village is poor, so we couldn't give him much. We just shared whatever food we had. He can be a handful, but he's never freeloaded. He often helps the villagers with their work, chopping wood and carrying water. He insists on doing it, and the adults can't stop him."
Bibi Dong remembered Deng Tianxin standing in the road with a wooden stick, robbing her earlier that day.
Apparently, the little rascal hadn't just started robbing people today. It was a family tradition.
"Uncle Village Chief!" Deng Tianxin suddenly sprang to his feet and pulled a small cloth pouch from his shirt, pressing it into the village chief's hand. "Here. Take this."
The village chief opened the pouch. Inside were more than ten Silver Soul Coins, glittering in the sunlight.
"Where... where did you get these?!" The village chief's voice shot up. "Did you steal them from someone?!"
Before you continue