Xiao Chengkun: Son, We May Be the City Lord, but We Can't Bully Men and Snatch Their Women

Meanwhile, the Chat Group had grown lively again.

[Will of Douluo Planet]: That's more like it! If you're going to steal Tang San's wife, you need that kind of guts! Charge, Avenger! ٩(๑＞◡＜๑)۶

[Titan Giant Ape]: ...I still feel like something's not right.

[Titan Giant Ape]: I came to ask the Avenger to save Sister Xiao Wu. How did this turn into knocking her out and taking her away?

[Titan Giant Ape]: I even handed over three drops of God Blood Bead as a greeting gift. Did I just sell myself and help count the money?

[Man Faced Demon Spider]: It's right! It's right! Steal the wife! Knock her out! Take her away! Er Ming did a great job!

[God of Destruction]: The method may have been a little crude, but the result is what matters most.

[God of Destruction]: Just explain everything once she wakes up. If she doesn't understand, then think of another way.

[Xiao Chenyu]: Exactly. There are no misunderstandings in this world that can't be resolved, only people whose skin isn't thick enough.

[Goddess of Life]: Chen Yu, remember to prepare a room just for Xiao Wu when you get back. Girls need their own space.

[Goddess of Life]: Also, don't plant her together with Ah Yin.

[Xiao Chenyu]: ...Godmother, come on. Do I look like the sort of person who'd plant someone in a flowerpot?

[Goddess of Life]: Haha, I was only joking~

[Man Faced Demon Spider]: Plant the rabbit! Plant the rabbit!

Xiao Chenyu's face darkened as he shut off the Chat Screen and focused on the journey.

The night wind whistled past his ears. The six-year-old Xiao Wu in his arms stirred.

She rubbed her head against his collar and murmured an indistinct line in her sleep.

It was a soft, nearly inaudible "Mom."

The sound was gentle, hazy with sleep, yet it left Xiao Chenyu silent for quite some time.

He looked down at the still-dirty girl in his arms.

Dead leaves clung to her hair, tear tracks and smudges marked her little face, but the corners of her mouth were faintly turned up,

probably because she'd seen the mother who had left her forever in her dream.

"Stealing Tang San's wife takes more brainpower than hunting a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast."

Xiao Chenyu muttered to himself in the night wind and sped up toward Nuoding City.

Three days later, just after nightfall.

Two lanterns still glowed outside the City Lord Mansion in Nuoding City.

Their dim yellow light swayed gently in the night breeze.

Xiao Chengkun sat in the main hall with one leg crossed over the other, drinking tea.

Ever since he had broken through to Soul Emperor, his energy and bearing had clearly changed.

His face was ruddy, and even his beard seemed a little thicker than before.

Liu Ruyan sat beside him, embroidering and murmuring, "I wonder why Yu'er went out this time without telling his mother."

As she spoke, the courtyard gate creaked open.

Xiao Chenyu walked in, travel-worn, carrying a filthy little girl in his arms.

The little girl's eyes were shut, her head tilted against his shoulder. One of her two braids had come undone, and dead leaves still clung to the ends of her hair.

The teacup in Xiao Chengkun's hand clattered onto the table, splashing tea down his sleeve.

Liu Ruyan nearly pricked her finger with her embroidery needle.

"Yu'er!"

Xiao Chengkun sprang to his feet and rushed over to his son in three quick strides.

Pointing at the little girl in his arms, he stammered, "W-what's going on? Where did you get this little girl?"

"Dad, I—"

"Tell me the truth!"

Before Xiao Chenyu could explain, Xiao Chengkun's expression had already turned stern.

In a tone of severity Xiao Chenyu had never heard from him before, he said, "I'm the City Lord of Nuoding City, and you're the City Lord's son. Our Xiao family may not be some great clan, but we absolutely can't use our power to bully people and snatch their daughters!"

"You're only eleven. How have you already learned to kidnap little girls?"

Xiao Chenyu's face went dark, and the corner of his mouth twitched. "Dad, what on earth are you talking about?"

"I'm talking sense!"

Xiao Chengkun planted his hands on his hips, striking a pose as if conducting official business.

"When I pursued your mother, I followed all the proper procedures. First I sent a matchmaker to propose, then I sent betrothal gifts. It took a whole two years from the time we met to the time we married."

"And you? You go out for one trip and come back carrying someone? What sort of conduct is that?"

"Dad!"

Xiao Chenyu hurriedly interrupted his long-winded lecture.

"I found this child on the road. She was unconscious by the roadside, and I felt sorry for her, so I brought her back."

"What on earth did you think I meant?"

Xiao Chengkun paused, then leaned in to take a closer look at Xiao Wu.

Her clothes were torn in several places, her face was smudged with dirt, and dead leaves clung to her messy hair. She really did look like she'd been through a misfortune.

Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief, patting his chest. "Whew, you should've said so earlier."

"Right, let's get the child settled first."

Liu Ruyan set down her embroidery hoop and reached out to touch Xiao Wu's forehead. Her brows furrowed slightly.

"She still feels a little feverish. She must be exhausted and frightened."

"This child must have suffered quite a bit along the way, hasn't she?"

"Look at her torn clothes, her dirty face, and the leaves stuck in her hair. It breaks your heart to see her like this."

"Yeah, a little."

Xiao Chenyu gave a vague reply.

He couldn't exactly say she hadn't suffered—I'd knocked her out.

Liu Ruyan called over two maids and told them to prepare the guest room.

She also had someone boil hot water, fetch clean clothes, and make ginger soup.

Everything was arranged in orderly fashion.

It was far more dependable than Xiao Chengkun's earlier interrogation about "snatching a girl."

The maids hurried about efficiently.

Xiao Wu was gently laid on the bed, her body curled up into a ball.

Even unconscious, she held herself in a way that showed how unsafe she felt.

Her little hand clutched the edge of the blanket, her brow faintly furrowed, as if she were having an unpleasant dream.

One of the maids wrung out a hot towel and was about to wipe her face.

Xiao Chenyu suddenly spoke. "By the way, remove all the dead leaves from her hair, then check whether she has any wounds."

"Also, she may make a fuss when she wakes up. Don't try to stop her by force. Just come get me."

The maid nodded in acknowledgment.

Xiao Chenyu glanced once more at the little girl curled up on the bed, then turned and walked out of the guest room.

He had just stepped outside

when he saw Xiao Chengkun standing in the corridor.

One hand stroked his beard, the other was clasped behind his back. His eyes were narrowed into slits, and a knowing smile hung on his lips.

"Dad, what are you smiling about?"

"Nothing, nothing."

Xiao Chengkun said it was nothing, but his eyes kept darting over to his son.

"I just think you usually treat everyone with the same indifference, but this time you're taking quite a lot of care."

"You even told the maids to be gentle. You were never this tender with the cat your mother raised."

"The girl's still young, but she's got lovely features. Give her a few years and she'll be a great beauty."

"Dad!"

Xiao Chenyu instantly understood what his father was thinking and hurriedly cut him off. "She's only six! Could you stop filling your head with all that nonsense?"

"So what if she's six?"

Xiao Chengkun said without a hint of shame, counting on his fingers. "You're only eleven yourself."

"When she's twelve, you'll be seventeen. When she's fifteen, you'll be twenty. That's just the right age gap!"

"I'm only four years older than your mother. That's a perfect match in both status and age."

"And look, she has no one to rely on. Isn't it just right for her to stay with our family?"