Xiao Chengkun: My Son, We Are the City Lord, but We Dare Not Bully Men and Women

Meanwhile, the Chat Group grew lively once again.

[Will of Douluo Planet]: That's the spirit! If you're going to steal Tang San's wife, you've got to have that kind of guts! Go for it, Avenger! ٩(๑＞◡＜๑)۶

[Titan Giant Ape]: ...I keep feeling like something isn't right.

[Titan Giant Ape]: I clearly came to ask the Avenger to save Sister Xiao Wu, so how did it turn into knocking her out and kidnapping her?

[Titan Giant Ape]: I even paid three God Blood Beads as a greeting gift. Did I just sell myself and then help count the money?

[Human-Faced Demon Spider]: It's right! It's right! Steal the wife! Knock her out! Take her away! Er Ming has performed a great service!

[God of Destruction]: Although the methods are a bit crude, the result is what matters most.

[God of Destruction]: Just explain it properly when she wakes up. If she doesn't listen, then we'll think of another way.

[Xiao Chenyu]: Indeed. There are no misunderstandings in this world that cannot be resolved, only faces that aren't thick enough.

[Goddess of Life]: Chenyu, remember to prepare a separate room for Xiao Wu when you get back. Young girls need their own space.

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

[Xiao Chenyu]: ...Godmother, the way you put that—do I look like the kind of person who would plant someone in a flowerpot?

[Goddess of Life]: Haha, I'm just joking~

[Human-Faced Demon Spider]: Plant the rabbit! Plant the rabbit!

Xiao Chenyu closed the Chat Screen with a face full of black lines and focused on the journey.

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

She rubbed her head against his collar and murmured a vague, incoherent dream-talk.

It was a "Mama" so soft it was almost inaudible.

The voice was delicate, filled with the confusion of being half-asleep, yet it made Xiao Chenyu fall silent for a long while.

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

Dead leaves were stuck in her hair, and her small face was streaked with tear stains and dirt, yet the corners of her mouth were slightly curled up.

She was likely seeing the mother who had left her forever in her dreams.

"Stealing Tang San's wife is more mentally exhausting than hunting a ten-thousand-year soul beast."

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

Three days later, just after nightfall.

Two lanterns were still lit at the entrance of the City Lord Mansion in Nuoding City.

The dim, yellow light swayed gently in the night breeze.

Xiao Chengkun was sitting in the main hall, legs crossed, sipping tea.

Ever since he broke through to become a Soul Emperor, his energy and spirit were noticeably different.

He was glowing with health, and his beard was even thicker than before.

Liu Ruyan sat beside him doing embroidery, muttering, "I don't even know why Yu'er didn't tell his mother before heading out this time."

Just as she spoke, the courtyard gate creaked open.

Xiao Chenyu walked in, dusty and tired, carrying a filthy little girl horizontally in his arms.

The little girl's eyes were tightly shut, her head lolling on his shoulder. One of her two small braids had come undone, and dead leaves were still stuck to the tips of her hair.

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

Liu Ruyan's embroidery needle nearly pricked her finger.

"Yu'er!"

Xiao Chengkun stood up with a start and rushed to his son in two strides.

He pointed at the little girl in his arms, his voice cracking, "Wh-wh-what is the meaning of this? Where did you kidnap a little girl from?"

"Dad, I—"

"You better give me an honest explanation!"

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

He spoke in a tone of severity Xiao Chenyu had never seen before: "I am the City Lord of Nuoding, and you are the son of the City Lord. Even if our Xiao family isn't some grand, powerful clan, we absolutely cannot bully others or forcibly abduct innocent girls!"

"You're only eleven years old; how did you learn to kidnap little girls?"

Xiao Chenyu had a face full of black lines and his mouth twitched. "Dad, what kind of nonsense are you talking about?"

"I am speaking the truth!"

Xiao Chengkun put his hands on his hips, striking a pose of official business.

"When I was courting your mother back in the day, I followed the rules properly. I hired a matchmaker to propose, then sent betrothal gifts. It took two whole years from the time we met until we were married."

"And you? You go out for a trip and bring someone back immediately? What kind of behavior is this!"

"Father!"

Xiao Chenyu hurriedly interrupted his long-winded speech.

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

"Where has your mind wandered off to?"

Xiao Chengkun paused for a moment, leaning in to take a closer look at Xiao Wu.

Her clothes were torn in several places, there were smudges of dirt on her face, and her hair was a tangled mess stuck with dead leaves; she certainly looked like someone who had suffered a misfortune.

Only then did he heave a sigh of relief, reaching out to pat his chest: "Phew, you should have said so earlier."

"Alright, get the child settled first."

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

"She still has a bit of a fever; it's likely from the shock and exhaustion."

"This child must have suffered quite a bit along the way, right?"

"Look at these torn clothes, this dirty face, and the leaves stuck in her hair—it's truly heartbreaking."

"A little, yes."

Xiao Chenyu responded vaguely.

He certainly couldn't say that she hadn't suffered, but rather that he had knocked her unconscious.

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

She also had people boil hot water, fetch clean clothes, and prepare ginger soup.

The entire arrangement was methodical.

It was far more reliable than Xiao Chengkun's earlier interrogation about "abducting a young woman."

The maids busied themselves efficiently.

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

Even in her unconscious state, she maintained a posture that lacked a sense of security.

Her small hands gripped the corner of the quilt, and her brows were slightly furrowed, as if she were having a bad dream.

A maid wrung out a hot towel and was about to wipe her face.

Xiao Chenyu suddenly spoke up: "Right, pick all those dead leaves out of her hair, and check if she has any wounds."

"Also, she might make a scene when she wakes up. Don't try to force her to stay; just call me."

The maid nodded in agreement.

Xiao Chenyu took one last look at the little girl curled up on the bed before turning to walk out of the guest room.

Just as he stepped out the door.

He saw Xiao Chengkun standing in the corridor.

With one hand stroking his beard and the other behind his back, his eyes were narrowed into slits, and a meaningful smile hung on his lips.

"Father, what are you smiling at?"

"Nothing, nothing at all."

Although Xiao Chengkun said it was nothing, his eyes kept darting toward him.

"I just think that while you're usually indifferent to everyone, you're quite attentive this time."

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

"Although this girl is still young, her features are quite good. In a few years, she'll surely be a great beauty."

"Father!"

Xiao Chenyu instantly understood what his father was thinking and hurriedly interrupted: "She's only six! Can you stop filling your head with such nonsense?"

"What's wrong with six?"

Xiao Chengkun was righteous and indignant, counting on his fingers: "You're only eleven this year."

"When she's twelve, you'll be seventeen; when she's fifteen, you'll be twenty. The age gap is just right!"

"I'm only four years older than your mother; this is what you call a perfect match in age."

"Besides, look, she has no one to rely on. Isn't it just perfect for her to stay with us?"