Chapter 10: Awesome Old Dad

  Xu Taigong closed his eyes again: "You don't understand, think back to the year your father fought bloody battles, with over a dozen injuries all over his body, just to get a fifth-rank official hat. But now that he's retired and returned to his hometown, it's like people are walking away from him, even a thing like Liang Heng dares to bark loudly in front of me..." At this point, a violent coughing fit ensued.

  If Taigong had opened his eyes at this time, he would have clearly seen the terrifying expression on Xu Wei's face.

  "It's all over, it was your father who wronged you..." Xu Tai Gong opened his eyes, and a pair of dull eyes were already filled with tears.

  Xu Wei felt a pang of inexplicable sadness in his heart and said softly: "What's the big deal about just enlisting some rural soldiers?"

  "Fart! I'm saying that it's because I didn't discipline you well in these years, that's why you've become a lazy good-for-nothing! You're already approaching the age of twenty and have achieved nothing. When I was your age, I was already a commander!" Xu Taigong scolded loudly.

  Xu Wei got a nose full of dust, and not wanting to provoke him further, could only nod and say: "Alright alright alright, I'm a good-for-nothing rascal. You can rest easy now, I won't bother you again."

  "This stubborn old man is indeed moody." Xu Wei sighed inwardly and turned to leave.

  "Come back..." Just two steps away, Mr. Xu shouted.

  He stood in front of the bed again, and Xu Wei saw that Ta Gong was staring straight at him, his turbid eyes seeming to clear up.

  After gazing for a long time, Old Master Xu sighed and said: "Your mother was right, you look the most like me. Your current appearance is exactly the same as mine when I was young, dignified and majestic, extraordinary and heroic. Those young wives and daughters-in-law would all swoon at the sight of you." When he spoke these words, his eyes sparkled with a hint of nostalgia, as if he had returned to his youthful days of recklessness.

  "Was he praising me or himself?" This question had been circling in Xu Wei's mind.

  Just as he was getting anxious, Taigong said: "Your martial arts skills are indeed impressive, but fighting in a battle is not like showing off in the county town of Xiajin. People think you're my son and give you some face, so you feel like you're the best in the world and get arrogant. When facing a few people, you can use your fists and feet, which you don't lack. But when facing tens of thousands of people, you need to use your brain..."

  "What's in my head, isn't it tofu?" Xu Wei thought to himself.

  The two father and son had never communicated like this before, and they fell into an awkward silence. Xu Wei was now able to speak fluently, but facing a stubborn old man with unpredictable emotions, he really didn't know where to start. After a long time, suddenly heard Xu Tai Gong say: "Lao Jiu, open that cabinet!"

  Following the direction of his finger, a large black wooden cabinet was leaning against the wall corner, as if it had not moved for thousands of years. As soon as he opened the cabinet, a musty smell wafted out and almost made him faint. Upon closer inspection, what was inside were all tattered clothes? He picked up a straight robe, only to see several cuts, seemingly with faint bloodstains.

  In an instant, Xu Wei understood that this was the blood-stained clothes of his grandfather, a testament to his loyalty and sacrifice for the country. Every piece of clothing in this cabinet probably represented a battle, and his grandfather's life had been magnificent. He had no regrets towards heaven and earth!

  He looked at several blood-stained clothes in a row, and Xu Wei's heart felt stuffy for some reason. At this time, he heard Xu Taigong's weak voice coming from behind: "There is a suit of armor under the clothes, take it out."

  Push aside the pile of bloody clothes, and indeed there was a bundle underneath. Opening it up revealed a suit of armor stacked neatly together. Made from linked steel plates, it felt quite heavy in hand, likely made of iron. Clearly, this armor wasn't part of an ordinary soldier's equipment, as each plate had been polished to a high shine, reflecting a dark glow.

  Holding the armor, he came to Taigong's bed and the old man, disregarding Xu Wei's dissuasion, insisted on getting out of bed. He took the armor and actually wanted to put it on for him personally. Looking at the frail and aged Xu Taigong, with great effort, he helped himself put on the helmet and tied up his armor. Every movement seemed to exhaust his last bit of energy. Even when tying up his armor, he had to take a break, panting for a while before continuing. But the old man was so meticulous, every detail was taken care of very carefully, just like women doing needlework.

  With great difficulty, he helped his son put on the armor, and Xu Taigong could no longer hold on, sitting on the edge of the bed panting. After a slight relief, he looked at Xu Wei from head to toe, seeing his son's extraordinary appearance, a smile appeared on his face: "After all, it is my Xu Zhang's breed." After resting for a while and catching his breath, he continued, "This armor has a great origin, originally the war armor of General Jinglue. When our army captured Mizi, we had been attacking for a long time without success, General Jinglue summoned me to come forward, just one sentence 'Break the city, give me armor! Not broken, take your head!' Just like that, I led two hundred brothers, wearing heavy armor, killing open the city gate. After the war, when rewards were given, my two hundred brothers, only seven people remained..."

  Perhaps thinking of his fallen comrades, Xu Taigong's expression turned gloomy and he couldn't continue speaking.

  "One meritorious deed can lead to the withering of ten thousand bones; this principle has remained unchanged throughout history." Xu Wei said in a low voice.

  Xu Taigong heard this and let out a mournful laugh, shaking his head. After a while, he raised his head again to look at Xu Wei, but this time, his gaze stopped on his son's face.

  "Don't you think I'm more handsome than you were when you were young?" Xu Wei said with a deliberate tone, seeing that his eyes had turned red.

  As expected, Old Master Xu snorted and said: "I was more handsome than you when I was young, get out!" After that, he lay back on the bed and didn't say another word.

  Xu Wei walked to the door, suddenly remembering the heavy sigh outside his room last night. The word "dad" was about to burst out several times, but it seemed like something was stuck in his throat and he couldn't call out no matter what.

  As soon as she stepped out of the house, she saw that Xu Wangshi had already sent away the doctor and was standing under the eaves, secretly wiping away tears.

  When she saw her brother-in-law coming out, Xu Wangshi quickly wiped away her tears with her sleeve. Xu Wei asked her what the doctor said, but she couldn't say anything definite either. The former knew in his heart that the situation was probably not optimistic.

  Seeing his sister-in-law's sorrowful appearance, Xu Wei originally wanted to comfort her with a few words, but he didn't know where to start, so he could only say "As children, doing their best is all that matters, don't be too sad" and such. Xu Wangshi had been married into the Xu family for over ten years, and had raised her younger brother-in-law with her own hands; she had never heard him speak such kind words before, and at this moment, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.

  In the late afternoon, Xu Wei was sharpening his knife on a long stone in the courtyard. He had sharpened the rusty knife to be extremely sharp and shiny, and when he lightly ran his finger along the blade, it cut through his skin and drew blood. Just as he finished putting the handle back on the knife, Yang Yan and Ma Tai suddenly rushed in, one carrying a hatchet and the other an axe, both wearing leather armor. As soon as they entered, they exclaimed: "Ninth Brother, something's gone terribly wrong!"

  Xu Wei Zheng was furious about being bullied by Liang Heng for Taigong, and when he heard this, he shouted: "Black mouth, what's wrong with big things? The sky is falling?"

  Yang and Ma ran until they were out of breath, especially Ma Tai, who was overweight and had a face full of sweat. His clothes under his armor were all stuck to his body, and he panted: "It's really true."

  Yang Yan scolded: "That damn Liang Heng, our Xujiacun village had gathered over 300 strong and brave men, but he took away 200 of them, saying they were going to the county. And that's not all, the ones he took away were all robust men between 20 and 40 years old. The more than 100 people he left us with are either old and weak or just a bunch of young whippersnappers, damn it, this time we're done for."

  Xu Wei gritted his teeth and said angrily, "Don't worry, can a living person be killed by holding back urine? Anyway, there's still time, let's prepare well. If those thieves really come to Xujiacun, we'll use the tactic of 'empty fort strategy' to wait for their exhaustion."

  Ma Tie wiped the sweat and shook his head, saying: "Brother, I don't have that kind of skill anymore. My uncle brought the whole family to my house to take refuge. They said that a group of bandits had raided Wucheng County and were heading towards Xiajin, they'll probably arrive by nightfall. If we want to go to Xiajin County, Xujiayuan will be the first to bear the brunt. My mother is already packing things up, preparing to temporarily flee to Daming Prefecture."

  Xu Wang's wife rushed over at the sound, her face pale with fear, and trembled as she cried out: "What can we do? The old master is bedridden and cannot get up, where can we escape to?"

  Xu Wei fell silent for a moment, if it's true what Ma Tai said, the bandits will arrive at night, then Xu family village is in real danger. Damn it, Liang Heng must have known the news and hastily took away 200 men and horses. This son, knowing that Xu family village is in trouble, didn't report a word, next time I see him, one knife will finish him off!

  It's been half a day and no one has spoken, so Xu Wangshi carefully asked: "It's almost dark, Ninth Brother, what should we do?" The old man is elderly and bedridden, her husband is away on official business, and her younger brother-in-law is the pillar of the family.

  "Sister-in-law, don't worry, I'll take care of everything. You take care of the old folks at home, I'll be right back." Xu Wei said, carrying his knife and striding out, with Yang Ma following closely behind him.

  Just as he stepped out, he bumped into Zhang Qing, who was carrying a bow and quiver of arrows on his back. Before he could even open his mouth to speak, Xu Wei said: "You've arrived just in time, go immediately to inform the head of the local militia and that...that leader of the village soldiers, have them gather their men and bring their equipment."

  Zhang Qing was originally anxious, but seeing Xu Wei's calm demeanor, he felt slightly relieved and nodded: "Alright! I'll go right away!"

  Xu Wei slapped him heavily on the shoulder: "Brother, this time it's not a group fight in the county, it's a real deal!"

  Zhang Qing gritted his teeth: "I know!" After saying that, he turned around and left.

  Taking a deep breath, with his sword slung over his shoulder, Xu Wei asked in a low voice: "In which direction is Wucheng County? And where is Qian Niu Mountain?"

  Yang Yan thought for a moment and replied, "Wucheng County is located directly south of Xiajin, about 90 miles away. The Thousand Ox Mountain is between the two counties, estimated to be around 50 miles from Xiajin County."

  Fifty miles? Then it must arrive tonight without a doubt!

  "Brother Jiu, what are we going to do?" Yang Yan's voice revealed a hint of tension.

  Before a swindler sets up a scam, they will thoroughly investigate the surroundings and spread rumors to lure people in. What we need to do now is to survey the terrain and then spread rumors to lure the thieves in. As long as they take the bait... Xu Wei's face flashed with cruelty that was not suitable for his age. (Considering that Mo Ran updated so early, brothers, shouldn't you reward him with a few votes?)