Searching the Rooms

Old Man Lu had said ordinary clothes, but in fact, before the second elder's son had been executed, he had been wearing nothing but a prison uniform.

But Old Man Lu had noticed the hostile look in the man's eyes and changed his wording, afraid of saying even a single wrong word.

The man in black stared fixedly at Old Man Lu. There was no telling what he was thinking, and he said nothing more.

But the sounds of chests being ransacked and cupboards overturned came from inside the rooms.

Lu Mingyue grew anxious. Those things were all tools she and her grandfather depended on to put food on the table. What if these people lost or broke them?

But Old Man Lu said nothing. He merely smiled ingratiatingly, his back bent the entire time.

Lu Mingyue valued her life quite a bit, so however anxious she felt, she forced herself to hold it in.

"Father..."

A full quarter of an hour passed before the young man who had received the order earlier hurried out, leaned close to the second elder, and whispered something.

"Check their bedrooms."

The second elder raised his chin. Having received his orders, the young man immediately led the others into Old Man Lu's and Lu Mingyue's bedrooms.

Lu Mingyue was so angry that her eyes reddened.

Although she had been abandoned as soon as she transmigrated here, after Old Man Lu had taken her in, he had stopped entering her room without good reason once she was old enough to understand things, much less ransacking it!

But apart from enduring it, Lu Mingyue could think of no other choice.

At that moment, she could only bitterly blame herself. Why had she still not become an immortal?

If I were an immortal cultivator...

"Woof!"

"You beast, courting death!"

Xiao Huang's bark suddenly came from beside her feet. A horse-faced man had already walked up to Lu Mingyue and raised his foot to send Xiao Huang flying for blocking his way.

No, to kick the dog to death, rather.

The Twin Blades Gang was a famous martial sect in Yangguan City. Every member practiced martial arts and was covered in muscle, plainly possessing considerable strength. One kick from this horse-faced man would certainly kill Xiao Huang!

"Don't touch my dog!"

Lu Mingyue finally panicked. Swinging her little hammer, she smashed it viciously toward the horse-faced man before her.

"Whoa!"

Though the horse-faced man was not afraid of a little girl like Lu Mingyue, he still pulled his foot back and dodged backward at the sight.

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

Seeing its owner show her might, Xiao Huang grew even bolder, and even its barking became much crisper.

It had absolutely no idea that it had nearly gone to meet its great-grandmother just now.

Lu Mingyue hurriedly scooped Xiao Huang up, holding the dog in one arm and raising her hammer with the other.

"Hey, you little brat, quite the temper you've got..."

The horse-faced man had recovered by then. Rolling up his sleeves, he started forward to teach Lu Mingyue a lesson.

"Second Master! My granddaughter doesn't know any better. She's still a child!"

Old Man Lu panicked. He looked toward the second elder, his face somewhat pale.

"Zheng Dong!"

The second elder glanced at Old Man Lu, then swept his gaze toward the horse-faced man, his voice growing several degrees colder:

"When did the Twin Blades Gang take in a piece of trash like you?"

Thud!

Hearing this, the horse-faced man immediately dropped to his knees, his burly frame shaking like chaff in a sieve.

"Go to the first elder and receive your punishment!"

The second elder spoke again. Terror appeared on the horse-faced man's face, but he still rose and walked out.

However, as he passed behind the second elder, the horse-faced man turned and swept a venomous glance over Lu Mingyue.

Now Lu Mingyue wanted to shake too.

"Old Lu, my son died under unclear circumstances, and the gang leader wants me to get to the bottom of it. Please bear with us. The silver I gave you earlier includes compensation."

The second elder reached out and patted Old Man Lu's shoulder, then glanced at his son. This time, the young man walked up to Lu Mingyue and smiled kindly at her. Lu Mingyue hurriedly stepped aside with Xiao Huang in her arms.

These people were determined to turn every inch of their rooms upside down. She had only lost control of her emotions earlier because she could not bear to see Xiao Huang kicked to death by that horse-faced man, and because these people had already been rummaging around for quite a while, damaging who knew how many things inside.

Now that the second elder had spoken, Lu Mingyue realized that her back was drenched in sweat. She hid off to one side and leaned against the wall, her calves trembling nonstop.

Human lives were worth nothing in ancient times.

Let alone in an ancient world where people cultivated immortality.

Although the second elder had reprimanded that horse-faced man and sent him away, the glance he had given her before leaving made Lu Mingyue terribly uneasy.

What if he came back under cover of darkness later and slaughtered her?

That would still be one of the better outcomes. What she feared was that he might be some kind of pervert who would capture her without killing her right away, torture her, or even...

"Father."

While Lu Mingyue was still imagining all the miserable ends she might meet, the young man had already led the others in a thorough search of the courtyard and shook his head at the second elder.

"Let's go."

The second elder looked at his son's remains, called everyone back to his side, and patted Old Man Lu's shoulder again.

"Old Lu, we gave you a fright today. Keep the silver without worry and have a few extra drinks. In a few days, everything will be fine."

"Yes..."

Old Man Lu bent his back even lower.

The second elder did not linger. Having found nothing, he left with his son's remains.

There was little in the courtyard, but the floors of the rooms were covered in wreckage.

"You girl... you nearly frightened this old man to death!"

Only after quite a while did Old Man Lu straighten his back. He turned and glared at Lu Mingyue, then sighed before going into the rooms to tidy up the things that had been thrown onto the floor.

"I told you to stay in your bed, but you wouldn't listen! See? I've made Grandpa angry!"

"Woof..."

Lu Mingyue came back to her senses too. She reached out and pinched Xiao Huang's nose, set the little thing on the ground, then ran to her grandfather on her short little legs and twisted her hands together as she admitted her mistake.

"Grandpa, I know I was wrong. Please don't be angry..."

"All right, there's so much to clean up. How would I have time to be angry with you?"

Old Man Lu waved his hand, cast Lu Mingyue a sidelong glance, and picked up a chest that had fallen to the floor.

"If you feel sorry for your grandpa's old back, hurry up and help clean up. This isn't the first time something like this has happened. When your grandpa was young, I saw it happen a few times too. All disasters falling on innocent heads!"

Only after seeing that her grandfather was not angry did Lu Mingyue relax and join him in tidying the rooms.

By the time the two of them had put the rooms back in order, the sun was nearly setting.

Destruction took only an instant, but restoration was no instant's work.

"Go make dinner. That second elder was right. This old man had a fright today and ought to have a few extra drinks, so I won't sleep restlessly tonight!"

Old Man Lu was thoroughly exhausted. With no one else around, he no longer called the second elder "Second Master."

"We'll stew cured pork ribs tonight and scramble a few eggs. The two of us will fill our bellies and get a good night's sleep. When we get up first thing tomorrow morning, it'll all be behind us!"