Chapter 2: The Sudden Horse

  Xiao Qiu's home is located in the back street of Ye Lin Town, with a horse stable occupying more than half of it, and three small rooms where Lao Qiu, Xiao Qiu, and Er Qiu live together.

  Lao Qiu was over forty years old, with a sturdy but slightly hunched back, and was busy cutting grass alone. When he heard his eldest son return, he didn't even lift his head.

  At the age of six, Er Qiu stood in the middle of the courtyard, holding a piece of hard bread in his right hand, sucking two lines of snot, and smiling: "Brother."

  Xiao Qiu ignored her brother and led a dozen horses into the stable. After that, she helped her father cut grass.

  Xiao Qiu handed over the grass, Lao Qiu wielded a sickle, and the two of them worked together in perfect harmony. In no time at all, a bundle of green grass had been transformed into fine fragments, mixed with beans to make fodder for the horses at night.

  Originally, the father and son didn't need to talk, silence was the norm in this house, but Lao Qiu suddenly stopped, and said to Xiao Qiu who brought the second bundle of grass: "Let me tell you, tomorrow Shen Lao Ye's family is getting married, you'd better behave yourself."

  "How could I be dishonest?" Xia Qiu asked with a guilty conscience.

  Xiao Qiu is diligent and smart, but in his father's eyes, he has one shortcoming - being too stubborn. He often needs to be disciplined. "Shen Dage's son married the daughter of Mr. Qin, the two families are equally matched, if you dare to tell others that Fangfang is your wife again, watch me break your leg."

  "Brother is going to get a beating, brother is going to get a beating."

  Xiao Qiu tossed the grass in her arms onto the ground, "Did Er Shuang talk nonsense to you? I..."

  Lao Qiu pointed to the sickle, and Xiao Qiu picked up the grass again. The father-son duo worked together in harmony, quickly finishing another bundle. Cutting grass was a task that required quick hands and eyes, and no one spoke during this time.

  Lao Qiu's mind turned slowly, and he finally remembered what to say. "Er Shuang is a good kid, every time he sees me, he's always polite and courteous, I really don't understand why you're always at odds with him."

  "It was him who provoked me." Xia Qiu said indignantly.

  "Dummy, let me tell you, we used to fight a lot when we were kids, but who knows, maybe when we grow up, we'll become the best of friends. I think Xiao Er actually wants to be friends with you."

  Xiao Qiu thought this was the most absurd statement under heaven and couldn't think of a suitable retort, so she simply stood up and walked towards the gate.

  "It's getting dark, where are you going again?" Lao Qiu shouted, truly feeling that he was not up to the task of disciplining his eldest son.

  Xiao Qiu stood still in front of her brother, Er Qiu bit into a hard pancake with her mouth open, looking up at her brother with a smile on her face.

  "Did you hear that? Father said, we fought a lot when we were young, but now we're good friends." Xia Qiu slapped her younger brother on the forehead and ran off.

  The hard pancake flew away, and Second Autumn fell to the ground wailing loudly. Old Autumn got up, cursing and chasing after him, but it had been several years since he could no longer catch up with Little Autumn's two legs. By the time he ran to the gate, Little Autumn was already gone without a trace.

  "Alas, this careless little brat." Old Qiu shook his head and went back to grab the little boy, found the hard pancake, blew off the dust on it, and stuffed it into Er Qiu's mouth.

  Xiao Qiu ran back to the bridge when the sky had just turned dark. He was holding in a belly full of anger, and just slapping his brother wasn't enough to vent it all out - he still wanted to find someone to fight with. But there was no one on the bridge, and Er Shuang's gang was probably at home eating dinner, pretending to be good kids in front of their parents. The weirdo was also nowhere to be found.

  Xiao Qiu sat on the shore, watching the last ray of sunset disappear. His stomach growled with hunger, but he didn't want to go home at all. He would rather starve outside than be scolded by his father.

  The sun had completely set, and the night was as gentle as a dream. Xiao Qiu didn't find the darkness scary, but instead felt contentedly at ease, even the resentment in his heart gradually disappearing. He picked up a flat round stone, got into position, and skipped it across the water's surface.

  That was a perfect throw, if there were other kids around, they would definitely cheer loudly.

  At first, Xiao Qiu was still counting how many times he had drifted, but soon he lost count. The pebbles jumped and skipped across the river surface, falling into the grass on the opposite bank.

  There seemed to be some movement in the thicket, and Xiao Qiu suddenly stood up, feeling an urgent need to check it out. This idea was so pressing that he directly jumped into the waist-deep river water and walked towards the opposite bank.

  He had just taken three steps when something strange happened. In that ordinary patch of grass, a bird suddenly flew out, or maybe it wasn't a bird. Xia Qiu only saw a green light and didn't even see its shape before it disappeared.

  Xiao Qiu felt an inexplicable sense of panic, he was known for his bravery among his peers, but this wave of fear rose from the bottom of his heart, not giving him any time to prepare.

  Xiao Qiu rolled and crawled onto the shore.

  Nothing is catching up.

  "Away from the evil spirits." Xia Qiu recalled the stranger's reminder, shook his head and sneered at his own panic. Indeed, there were many strange things in this world, but Ye Lin Town was safe. According to legend, the greatest danger that had ever occurred here was when a pack of hungry wolves wandered into town from afar one winter, decades ago.

  "Madman." Xia Qiu muttered to himself, turning around to gaze at the opposite bank. The waist-high grass swayed gently in the night wind, nothing out of the ordinary. He rubbed his eyes, unable to confirm if the green light had really taken off earlier.

  The night grew darker, and the residents of Yelin Town went to bed early. Occasionally, a few barks could be heard, everything was peaceful, even the stray cats didn't come out to cause trouble. The only person in the whole town who might have been harboring evil intentions was probably Xiao Qiu.

  The companions who agreed to meet on the bridge didn't show up at all.

  In addition to his disappointment, Xia Qiu also felt a little indignant. At his age, he had very high standards for loyalty among friends and felt that he had been betrayed.

  He walked towards the town alone, deciding to act by himself.

  "Little Autumn?" A tentative voice came from under the eaves.

  Xiao Qiu hadn't walked far in the town when she stopped in her tracks, and suddenly her mind cleared up. "How are you here? Didn't we agree to meet on the bridge? Where are the others?"

  Dali walked out, and Xiaochun whispered to him, "Don't go to Fangfang's house, the two of them are waiting for you there."

  "How is this possible?" Xia Qiu asked in surprise.

  "I don't know, maybe the news leaked out or maybe Er Biao guessed it, anyway I heard he's leading people to guard near Mr. Qin's house and will strike you dead as soon as they see you."

  The wind suddenly rose, and Xiao Qiu raised her hand to hold down the grass hat on her head. "Then let's have a fight, I'm not afraid of him."

  Daliang blocked the way, "No, Ershuang has adults helping over there, we can't beat them. Besides... besides, this won't save Fangfang either."

  The last sentence made Xia Qiu lose heart, he took off his straw hat and said, "What can be done?"

  "There's no way." He helplessly spread his hands, "Anyway, you didn't really promise anything before. What was said in the past were just jokes, nobody would take it seriously. You don't owe her anything, so let it pass like this. In a few days we'll find an opportunity to beat up Er Shuang, he's always spouting nonsense..."

  "Uh-huh, I see." Xia Qiu said reluctantly, things weren't that simple, but he didn't know how to explain it to his good friend.

  Daliang let out a sigh of relief, "I'd better hurry back home. Do you remember that weirdo from the bridge during the day? My dad said he's not crazy, but a Taoist priest who specializes in taking away kids. He'll take whoever he likes and won't even tell their families, and they might not come back for ten or eight years, some never return at all. I don't want to go with him. You should hurry back home too."

  "Fangfang would rather follow the Taoist priest." said Xia Qiu.

  Daliang was stunned for a moment, "This is also a way, but I don't know if the Taoist priest can appreciate her. I have to go..." Daliang ran home along the street, occasionally turning his head to look around, as if the strange Taoist priest was hiding in the shadows.

  Xiao Qiu didn't go home immediately, but instead ran to the school, Da Liang was right, a group of people were patrolling nearby, Er Shuang and his gang were also there, as well as seven or eight adults, listening to their conversation, they weren't guarding Xiao Qiu, but rather driving away bad luck according to custom.

  Xiao Qiu returned home, finished the leftover rice in the pot, lay down on the bed, thinking she wouldn't be able to sleep, but soon fell into a deep sleep.

  The next day, when Xia Qiu went into the forest to graze the horses, he was in a bad mood. The other shepherd boys all felt sorry for him and found many fresh wild fruits for him. No one mentioned Fang Fang.

  Xiao Qiu didn't mention it either.

  After herding was over, Xiao Qiu picked a flexible willow branch as a whip and drove the horse group to meet with his companions, returning to the town together.

  Today, no one was occupying the bridge. Erliang couldn't control his mouth and said, "Right, today is Shen's wedding day, so Erliang didn't come out."

  The custom in Yelan Town is that the bride must enter the husband's family gate at dusk, and it won't be long before the auspicious time.

  After crossing the bridge, the shepherd boys returned to their respective homes. Dalang said goodbye and said: "Xiao Qiuge, tomorrow we'll find an opportunity to teach Erchui a lesson, let him not dare to laugh at you again."

  "Hmm." Xia Qiu responded dully and chased after the horse herd in front of her.

  When they arrived at the entrance of the town, Xia Qiu heard the sound of musical instruments coming from afar, it seemed that the new daughter-in-law of the Shen family was about to enter.

  The horse team had automatically turned into the back alley. Xia Qiu rushed to the front, blocking them, and walked into the front street. He thought that he could at least take a look from afar.

  The Shen family was the richest in town. Half of the people were invited to sit as guests, while the other half stood on the street, gazing enviously.

  Mr. Zhang, in his sixties, shook his head and sighed: "This lineup is a waste, poor Fangfang... she's still so young..." He turned around to see Xia Qiu and the horses, holding his cane horizontally, pointing at Xia Qiu and saying: "You little monkey, what are you doing here?"

  "Take a look."

  "Take another look, Fangfang is also Shen's daughter-in-law, can't she go back with you?"

  The neighbors all laughed and shifted their gaze from the Shen family's main gate in the distance to the horse herder.

  Liu Er is a street urchin, not invited by the Shen family, very dissatisfied, said: "Xiao Qiu, why didn't you let your father help you with the betrothal gift at first? Now it's good, Fang Fang has become Shen Da's, you don't go make a scene?"

  Grandpa Zhang hit Liu Er with his cane, "You stinky little brat, Xiao Qiu is still a child, what nonsense are you talking about."

  Xiao Qiu silently jumped onto the crimson horse and made up his mind.

  "Hey, neighbors!" Xia Qiu shouted at the top of his lungs. His voice was still a bit childish and couldn't carry very far, but it managed to cover up the sound of the Shen family's musical instruments. The people nearby all heard him and simultaneously looked up, staring at him in surprise. "Make way for me!"

  In the herd of horses, there was a lead horse. Xia Qiu raised her whip and struck it heavily on the horse's buttocks.

  The lead horse raised its front hooves, whinnying loudly in surprise and discontent. When the second whip came down, it was startled, its four legs flying as it galloped forward desperately. The other horses followed suit, except for the sorrel horse which remained under Xia Qiu's control.

  It wasn't until then that the neighbors understood what Xiao Qiu meant. Zhang Ye lost his cane, Liu Er covered his head and scurried away, Li San Aunt picked up her child, and Zhao Si Uncle sat on the ground with a thud... The front street of Yelin Town was in chaos.

  Xiao Qiu rode on the back of a sorrel horse, following behind a frightened herd of horses, under the incredibly surprised gaze of the residents of Yelin Town, and ran to the entrance of the Shen family's mansion.

  The crowd that had gathered at the gate made way for a large empty space, and Fat Liu's wife sat down on the ground, the fresh flowers on her head trembling slightly. The musicians still maintained their posture of playing musical instruments, but not a sound came out.

  Everyone was staring at Xiao Qiu on the back of the sorrel horse, unsure whether this was a prank or a new trick from the Shen family.

  Xiao Qiu even saw her father in the crowd of onlookers, and Lao Qiu was shocked into a daze. He couldn't believe that his eldest son would actually do such a thing, rendering all his previous warnings useless.

  Xiao Qiu saw the flower sedan, and also saw a small figure in front of it. He leaned forward on his horse's back, stretched out his right hand, and said in a hollow voice: "Get up, follow me."

  I applied for a book number yesterday and unexpectedly released a chapter. I apologize to readers who asked me about the release time, it wasn't intentional, but an accident. The official release time will still start from today, with one chapter each at 8-9 am and 6-7 pm every day. Welcome everyone to express your opinions and comments in the review section.

  The cover of this book was provided by Jen, deputy editor-in-chief, and we would like to extend our gratitude.

  (Congratulations to the first master of this book, Hai Lan Zhu, and thank you to every reader who has rewarded me.)