Chapter 6
The child soon realized he had annoyed the young master.
While he was staring blankly at a few characters, hesitating about whether to start practicing, the door was quietly locked from the outside.
It wasn’t until his stomach growled that he realized it was dinner time. When he pushed the door, he found he couldn’t get out.
The child started to feel a bit scared. The young master often frightened him, feeding him to the big wolf dog. This time, was he really locked in, waiting for the wolf dog to start eating him?
He pounded on the door and shouted, “Who’s outside? Let me out!!”
“I’m locked in, let me out!! Who’s there!!”
After shouting for a long time with no response, the child grew more and more scared and hungry, making him even more anxious.
He shouted until his voice was hoarse, and finally, footsteps were heard from outside.
From the sound, he knew it was Yue Siming.
“Master Yue, why did you lock me in? Let me out quickly.”
Yue Siming’s proud voice came from outside, “How’s the practice going?”
“Uh…”
“You didn’t practice?”
“Well, you didn’t say whether you would make me your little wife or not. If you’re not going to, then I practiced for nothing, right?”
The young master kicked the door hard, “Stay inside and starve!”
“Hey, don’t go! I’ll practice, I’ll practice!!”
“Really, really.” The child nodded vigorously, though he didn’t realize that the person outside couldn’t see him.
“Then copy my name ten times and show me.”
“Okay, right away.”
The child quickly ran back to the desk, picked up the pen, and copied the three characters as the young master had taught him. He was very serious, putting a lot of effort into each stroke.
By the time Yue Siming was getting impatient outside, finally, little Wang Erhu ran to the door with a few sheets of paper.
“Master Yue, I’m done writing.”
“Slide it through the door gap.”
The child slid the paper through the gap.
Outside, Yue Siming grabbed it and immediately started cursing, “Are you an idiot? What is this!! Even an earthworm writes better than this!”
The child felt very wronged, “It’s my first time writing.” Then he mumbled quietly, “Stop calling me a pig… I’m actually a little rabbit…”
Yue Siming tore the paper in half, “Rewrite it!”
The child felt like begging, “Master, let me eat first. I’m so hungry.”
“You didn’t write well, why should you get to eat?”
“If I don’t eat, I don’t have the strength to write. Master, please let me eat.”
After hesitating outside for a moment, Yue Siming said, “After eating, you need to copy it fifty times.”
“Ah?!”
“Then don’t eat, just copy now!”
“No, no, no, eat first, eat first.”
Young Master Yue, standing outside the door, tiptoed and unlocked it.
The child was free again, as if reborn, shaking off the earlier gloom.
“Oh, oh, oh, time to eat, time to eat!!!” He exclaimed, pulling the young master along, “Master, let’s eat!”
“Why are you acting like a starving ghost? The food won’t run away. Why are you so rushed?”
“I’m hungry.”
The child rushed into the dining hall like a whirlwind, devouring the food greedily.
Yue Siming had been eating with him lately, his appetite had increased significantly, and everyone attributed this to Little Wang Erhu, so they didn’t mind his greedy eating habits.
After eating his fill, the child rubbed his round belly, burping contentedly. His mind had completely forgotten the earlier punishment of copying characters, and seeing Yue Siming’s refined eating manners, he couldn’t help but become cheeky again.
“Master, look, it’s already dark. Can’t we practice tomorrow?”
The young master looked up, “No, fifty times.”
The child was unhappy. Normally, after dinner was the most relaxed time. At home, he would snack on seeds, chat, enjoy the cool air, swat mosquitoes, and then go to sleep. Here, he usually played for a while, chatted, had a late-night snack, and then went to sleep. Why did he have to practice writing the young master’s name today?
Although he thought this in his mind, he was a bit scared to say it aloud and only pouted to show his dissatisfaction.
The young master put down his chopsticks, “Let’s go, it’ll help with digestion.”
Reluctantly, the child sat back at the table, picked up the brush, and struggled to copy the characters.
Young Master Yue shook his head in frustration, almost wanting to smash the inkstone over him.
It seemed unreasonable to be so angry at someone writing their name poorly, but it was incredibly frustrating.
Seeing the jagged, uneven strokes, Yue Siming was twisted with irritation.
The child finished copying ten times, proudly presenting his work, and eagerly asked, “Master Yue, how’s this? I think I’ve got it right. Can you be my little wife now?”
The young master gave his head a hard knock, “Don’t you dare bring this up again. If I call you a pig, you’re a pig. You never learn!”
The child rubbed his head, “Think about it…” He still wanted to argue a bit. Although he didn’t understand the principle of ‘the early bird catches the worm,’ he knew he was close to Yue Siming. Yue Siming was so good-looking, and others who couldn’t find a wife would want to compete with him. He should act quickly.
Yue Siming’s face flushed again. He glared at him and said angrily, “If you can remember my name, I… I’ll think about it…”
The child’s eyes lit up, “Great! I’ll work extra hard, really!” He then focused on tracing the characters with serious dedication.
Yue Siming looked at his bright, clear eyes and didn’t want to tell him that marrying someone required a woman, not a man. Why wasn’t Wang Erhu a woman? If Wang Erhu came asking to marry him, he wouldn’t be so opposed…
Days passed by like a continuous stream.
Although the two kids often argued and sometimes even fought, they quickly made up and stuck together.
Since Wang Erhu arrived, Young Master Yue hadn’t had a single episode, and his health seemed to be improving. The adults just let them be.
So the two children lived their carefree, happy days with plenty to eat, drink, and play with.
Wang Erhu became increasingly audacious, sometimes privately calling Yue Xiaoshye “little wife.” Given that the child’s writing had improved, Yue Xiaoshye grew more and more reluctant to care.
Every day, they came up with new and fun things to do, laughing and playing, with more energy than adults and never feeling bored.
The innocent children thought their days would continue like this, forever and ever.
The first trouble came to Wang Erhu’s family.
One morning, Wang Erhu’s father hurriedly came to the residence to temporarily take the child back.
Yue Xiaoshye was unhappy, but after Yue Laoye whispered with Xiaoshye, Yue Xiaoshye knew that this was something that had to be done.
Yue Xiaoshye held the child’s hand and whispered, “You need to come back early.”
“Okay, I don’t know what’s happened. I’ll come back as soon as I finish.”
Xiaoshye knew what had happened and, feeling a bit uncomfortable, looked at Wang Erhu, “Xiao Hu, when you feel upset, think of me and the happy times we had.”
The child didn’t understand, only nodding. Then he said, “Young Master, I will practice writing well at home too, every day. When I’m done practicing, you have to promise me.”
Yue Xiaoshye pinched his face hard, “You idiot.”
“Will you? Okay, promise me.”
Yue Xiaoshye’s eyes flickered slightly, “If you practice well, I’ll… reluctantly agree.”
“Really! Young Master, you’re the best!” The child excitedly hugged Yue Xiaoshye, dancing with joy.
Yue Xiaoshye rarely refrained from scolding him. Instead, he comforted him by patting his head, feeling deeply reluctant.
He didn’t know why, but just the thought of parting made him so uneasy, as if he might never see him again. This feeling wasn’t unfamiliar. When his mother was ill, each visit to see her, seeing her growing weaker, the feeling became more intense, until her death.
He feared Xiao Hu would be like his mother, promising not to leave, to stay and accompany him, only to leave regardless.
After Xiao Hu was taken away, Yue Xiaoshye cried. He was deeply distressed, unable to stop the tears.
Although his father tried to comfort him, saying Xiao Hu would return in a few days, and he knew Xiao Hu would probably return in a few days, the intense unease made it hard for him to breathe, and he couldn’t help but be sad.
Xiao Hu was taken back and didn’t understand why. On the way, he kept asking his father what had happened and when he could return to Yue’s residence.
He missed Yue Xiaoshye so much, feeling that it was no fun without him.
His father didn’t dare to tell him on the way, fearing he would cry and make a fuss. It wasn’t until they got home that he told him that his grandfather in the countryside had fallen while working and passed away.
The old man, in his seventies, had such an accident, which wasn’t a strange occurrence. Adults had a certain level of psychological preparation.
But children were different. They had been close to their grandfather since childhood, visiting him frequently. To suddenly say he was gone was something they couldn’t accept.
The Wang family’s three children, the eldest being eleven and the youngest three, cried uncontrollably, and their cries were heart-wrenching to hear.
According to rural customs, family members had to keep vigil for seven days.
Wang Erhu was the closest to his grandfather. Perhaps the shock was too great, or the surrounding environment was too gloomy, but he fell ill with a fever after two days of vigil.
A neighbor said it was the grandfather missing the child and wanting to take him away.
This frightened his parents, who hurriedly sought experts, who examined and performed rituals, spending quite a bit of money.
With all the delays, it took over half a month before the child was well enough to get out of bed.
After a serious illness, the pain of losing a loved one finally eased a bit.
In the middle, the Yue residence had sent people several times to urge him, but the child wasn’t well and couldn’t go back.
Now that he’s better, he wants to return. Even when he was ill, he missed Yue Siming a lot and still remembered he promised Yue Siming to practice calligraphy and show him the results once he got better. But he never had the chance.
So, while his mother packed his things, he sat at the table and wrote calligraphy diligently, thinking at least he could write a piece to show the young master.
He had practiced so many times that he could remember it without tracing now. The thought that Yue Siming might praise him made him very excited.
After finishing, he carefully tucked the piece into his clothes. His mother had also packed his things, and they were waiting for his father to return and take him to the Yue residence.
But time passed, and no one came.
After a long wait, his father stumbled into the room, sweating and looking panicked. He collapsed onto the bed, breathless.
“Father? What’s wrong?” The child’s mother went over and poured him a glass of water, puzzled.
The father downed the water in one gulp, panting heavily to calm down, and said to the child, “Don’t go, don’t go, you absolutely can’t go. General Yue is in trouble.”
The child’s mind couldn’t keep up and stared blankly at his father.
“What happened?” the mother asked anxiously.
“Oh, this is bad. Everything was fine before, and we hadn’t heard anything. Suddenly today, it spread that General Yue is accused of treason. The evidence is said to be conclusive, and now the officials are raiding the house to arrest people. They say he’s going to be executed, and his entire family is to be wiped out!”
The child’s mind went blank. He didn’t understand much, just that General Yue was going to be executed.
Executed? Even a tall, strong, and majestic man like that could be executed?
He is the young master’s father. The young master doesn’t have a mother anymore, and now his father is going to be executed? What will happen to the young master?
The mother was so scared her voice changed, “What… what should we do… what should we do… Will we be executed too? Erhu has been staying in their residence for almost half a year!”
“How would I know! I’m scared too! When the child went there, the General’s residence said it shouldn’t be publicized, so besides our family, no one knows. Maybe the officials don’t know either, but I’m afraid the General’s residence might have revealed us.”
“What would the General’s residence say about us? They shouldn’t, right?”
“How would I know! Oh, this… this… being implicated means death!”
The child didn’t hear a word of the adults’ subsequent conversation. He only knew he had to go back immediately. He needed to find the young master.
While the adults were still debating, the child jumped up and rushed out the door, leaving his parents’ exclamations far behind.
Used to playing in the fields, he ran extremely fast, even more recklessly now, with the wind howling in his ears.
“Young master, young master, I’m coming back now. Please wait for me. I’m just a few days late. Don’t leave without me.”
He ran breathlessly toward the Yue residence, but as he got closer to the market, he couldn’t run any further.
The usually bustling street was now packed with people, completely congested.
The child’s keen eyes spotted the prison carts from afar. The towering man, General Yue, was especially conspicuous in the first cart. Although his demeanor was despondent, he still carried his imposing presence, standing upright and staring straight ahead.
The child’s heart sank.
General Yue was really going to be executed, and the carts were full of Yue residence people he recognized—stewards, guards, senior maidservants… What to do? What about the young master? Would he be executed too?
He looked at each cart. Some people were standing, others sitting, but he could only see bits of their hair or clothing. His heart pounded. Was the young master inside?
In the distance, he heard his father’s frantic curses, and he turned to see his father running toward him.
He darted into the crowd, his small frame weaving through the people.
Struggling through the throng, he squeezed forward with great effort. Everyone saw he was just a child and didn’t pay much attention.
As he pushed forward, the surrounding voices flooded his ears.
“Wasn’t General Yue a great hero? How could he be accused of treason?”
“Who knows? I heard he wasn’t forced to resign willingly, but was pressured. Maybe he made enemies with the court?”
“I heard General Yue was framed. He was such a good man, highly respected in this area. I don’t believe he really committed treason.”
“Shh, don’t say such things out loud. Keep it down.”
“General Yue is finished this time. Not only will his entire family be executed, but they’ll also punish his nine clans. Only those under eight and over eighty will be spared the death penalty, but they’ll be exiled to the borderlands.”
“That’s just a way to kill everyone. How can old people and children survive out there?”
“Exactly.”
“Look at that little child. Must be General Yue’s son. How pitiful.”
“Yes, General Yue had this son late in life. It’s such a shame.”
The child gritted his teeth and finally made his way to the front of the crowd. There, he saw a small, curled-up figure in the cart.
Tears instantly filled his eyes. He ran forward, shouting, “Young master! Young master!!!”
The noise of the crowd drowned out his weak voice.
He could only run desperately and call out.
Finally, he reached the cart where Yue Siming was. The young master’s small back trembled, and he slowly turned his head.
“Young master!! Young master!!! I’m back!!! Young master!!” The child’s face was covered in tears, chasing the cart and calling out.
Yue Siming’s face was as pale as paper. At first, he looked happy, then shocked. He glanced around in disbelief and then angrily said, “Are you an idiot? What are you doing running over here now? Get lost quickly!”
The child’s face was smeared with snot and tears. As if he hadn’t heard, he cried while running, “Where are they taking you? Why did your father commit treason? What is treason? Don’t leave! Don’t go! Where are they taking you?”
Yue Siming’s eyes were also red, and he continued to scold persistently, “My father didn’t commit treason, you fool! Get out of here quickly; this isn’t a place for you. Get lost already!”
The child cried out, “Young master!! Didn’t you say you’d wait for me? I was sick! I didn’t mean to stay away! My grandfather died!! My grandfather died! Where are you going?? Don’t leave!!”
Yue Siming fought back tears, “You idiot, who even knows you!! Hurry up and leave!”
“Young master!! How can you not recognize me? It’s Xiao Hu!! Young master!!! I can write your name now! Really!! I practiced hard!! Look, I’ll show you!!” The child’s small hands trembled as he pulled out the neatly folded square paper from his chest and unfolded it to show Yue Siming.
It was written with the characters “岳斯铭” (Yue Siming) in a crooked, uneven manner.
“Young master, look!! I can write it now! I can write it! Didn’t you say you’d be my little bride!!! Don’t go!! You have to be my little bride!! I can write your name now!! Don’t leave!!”
Yue Siming bit his lip, glanced at the paper, and quickly turned away, his whole body shaking uncontrollably, unable to bear looking back.
The child, undeterred, continued to chase the cart, crying out, “Young master!! Don’t leave!! Don’t leave!! Where are you going!! I’ll go with you! You promised you’d be my little bride!! I can write your name now!! You must keep your promise!!! Young master!!! Waaaahhh—”
The child suddenly tripped and fell, his face covered in dirt, his knees and elbows scraped and bleeding, no longer able to keep up with the cart.
He could only scream desperately at Yue Siming, his voice hoarse, “Young master, young master—Waaaahhhhhh—young master—”
The child lay on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.
Yue Siming suddenly turned his head, tears streaming down his face, his expression twisted in anguish, “Xiao Hu!! Don’t forget me!! I don’t know where I’m going, I’m so scared!! Don’t forget me, please don’t forget me!! When you grow up, come find me. If you find me, I’ll be your little bride!! Don’t forget me!!”
The child couldn’t make out what Yue Siming was saying, but seeing him turn around and cry so much made him feel as if his heart was being torn apart, just like when he first learned of his grandfather’s death. He cried and struggled to get up, determined to continue chasing.
The commotion finally caught the attention of the escorting soldiers. One of them came over and, seeing the dirt-covered child, shouted, “What’s going on here??”
The child seemed not to notice and tried to run forward. The soldier blocked him with a foot, “Where did this child come from? What’s the matter? Why are you shouting??”
Yue Siming, crying desperately, signaled for him to leave quickly.
The child refused, still crying out for the young master, and tried to push the soldier’s leg. When that didn’t work, he bit down.
The soldier cried out in surprise, kicked the child to the ground, and scolded, “Whose crazy child is this? Don’t you know it’s dangerous!!”
Yue Siming screamed, “Xiao Hu—” but his weak voice couldn’t reach over.
The child was suddenly lifted off the ground effortlessly. Behind him, a person with a pleasant fragrance and a soothing voice said, “Sir, I’m sorry. My father just passed away, and the child was very close to his grandfather. The shock was too much for him. He had a fever and his mind was confused. I’m really sorry.”
The child struggled desperately, not caring who the person behind him was. He only wanted to chase after the young master.
The soldier, stunned by the beauty of the person—who was a man—took the silver coin handed to him and, not wanting to argue with a child, left after a few lingering glances at the beautiful figure.
Yue Siming’s figure was nearly out of sight. He clung to the bars of the cart, staring at the person holding Xiao Hu, his eyes wide with rage. He screamed, “Yu Mingjing!! Don’t touch him!! I’ll kill you!! Yu Mingjing!! I’ll kill you—”
The child’s tears obscured his vision. He could see nothing, only instinctively trying to break free to pursue the young master.
A gentle voice whispered, “Such a foolish child.” Then everything went black, and he lost consciousness.
