Tao Mo looked him up and down. “And you are?”
“This one is Mu Chun.” Mu Chun cupped his fists in greeting. Though scholarly in appearance, he carried an easy, carefree elegance. “An old acquaintance of Old Tao’s.”
Hao Guozi frowned. “How did you find your way here?” When they had left their hometown, they had not informed anyone.
Mu Chun smiled. “Please rest assured, the two of you. I mean no harm. I merely wish to catch up with an old friend.”
Hao Guozi coughed awkwardly and muttered, “I never said you meant harm. A guilty conscience speaks first.”
“In that case, come with me.”
Although Tao Mo wanted far more to chase after Gu She, he had no choice but to set that thought aside for the moment and lead Mu Chun back to the county yamen.
Truthfully, he was quite curious about the relationship between Mu Chun and Old Tao. For some reason, the moment he saw Mu Chun, he thought of the former master Old Tao had once mentioned. Could this really be someone from that household?
Mu Chun responded to Tao Mo’s repeated glances with nothing but smiles, never showing the slightest displeasure.
Once they arrived at the county yamen, Hao Guozi exercised some extra caution. He asked Mu Chun to wait outside while he and Tao Mo first went to notify Old Tao. If some suspicious character had come looking for them, they could at least discuss how to deal with him.
When Old Tao heard someone had come looking for him, his expression immediately changed. When he heard the visitor’s name was Mu Chun, he froze.
Reading his expression, Hao Guozi blurted out, “Could it be Old Tao’s illegitimate son by an old sweetheart?”
Old Tao whipped his head around and glared at him.
Hao Guozi instantly shrank back.
“What did you just say?”
“Nothing. I didn’t say anything.” It was the first time Hao Guozi had ever seen such a stern expression on Old Tao’s face. He naturally did not dare admit it.
Old Tao said, “Do you think he’s old enough to be my son?”
The abrupt change of subject left Hao Guozi completely bewildered. After a long pause, he nodded.
“Actually, yes. He doesn’t look much older than Young Master.”
“Mu Chun?” Old Tao frowned. “Could he be…”
“Indeed, it is I.”
Mu Chun entered from outside with a smile.
Hao Guozi planted his hands on his hips.
“You there! How can you just barge in without being announced?”
Mu Chun cupped his fists.
“My apologies.”
Yet his eyes never left Old Tao.
By now Old Tao had already regained his composure. Not a trace of emotion could be seen on his face.
“So it is Mister Mu.”
Mu Chun smiled.
“Not at all. I have long heard of Old Tao’s former reputation. Now that I finally meet you in person, it seems the stories did not exaggerate.”
“The Yangtze’s later waves drive the earlier ones onward. Every generation produces its own talents. The world belongs to your generation now.”
“You are too modest. Your achievements from those days are still spoken of today. All of us who have heard of them admire you greatly.”
Old Tao’s expression shifted ever so slightly.
He stared fixedly at Mu Chun, as though trying to bore a hole through that refined and smiling face.
Hao Guozi tugged at Tao Mo’s sleeve and whispered, “What are they talking about? Reputation? Achievements? Could Old Tao have been some famous figure in the past?”
In truth, Old Tao had not served the Tao household for very long. However, he was exceptionally capable, and Master Tao had trusted him completely. Within only a few years, he had become the head steward of the Tao household and the man entrusted with Tao Mo’s care on Master Tao’s deathbed.
Tao Mo pondered for a moment. “Perhaps he’s someone from Old Tao’s former master’s household.”
“His former master?” Hao Guozi was startled, then immediately grew worried. “He’s not here to take Old Tao back, is he?”
The two of them were speaking softly, but they were standing so close that it was impossible for Mu Chun and Old Tao to pretend not to hear.
Looking at Mu Chun, Old Tao said slowly, “Let’s continue this conversation inside.”
With a smile, Mu Chun nodded. “That suits me perfectly.”
Having said that, the two of them ignored Tao Mo and Hao Guozi, who were still standing there staring at them eagerly, and headed straight for Old Tao’s room.
Hao Guozi was about to follow when Tao Mo grabbed him.
Hao Guozi’s eyes widened. “Young Master, don’t you want to know what they’re talking about?”
“I do.”
“Then let’s go.”
Hao Guozi had barely taken a step when he was pulled back again.
Tao Mo said solemnly, “One must not listen to what is improper.”
“…”
Old Tao and Mu Chun talked all night.
When Tao Mo got up the next morning, he saw Hao Guozi sneaking over with a mysterious expression.
“I heard noises coming from Old Tao’s room last night.”
“Noises?”
“The kind of noises that could overturn Heaven and Earth,” Hao Guozi said gravely.
Tao Mo was shocked. “They were fighting?”
“Who knows?” Hao Guozi shook his head.
Tao Mo stepped over the threshold and was just about to run toward Old Tao’s room when Hao Guozi grabbed him.
“You—”
With a completely serious expression, Hao Guozi said, “One must not listen to what is improper, Young Master…”
“…”
⸻
Old Tao and Mu Chun talked through the entire night.
When Tao Mo woke the next morning, he immediately saw Hao Guozi sneaking toward him.
“I heard noises coming from Old Tao’s room last night.”
“Noises?”
“The kind that turned Heaven and Earth upside down.”
Hao Guozi spoke gravely.
Tao Mo was shocked.
“They were fighting?”
“Who knows?”
Hao Guozi shook his head.
Tao Mo stepped over the threshold and headed straight for Old Tao’s room, only to be grabbed by Hao Guozi.
“You…”
Hao Guozi said with complete seriousness,
“One should not listen to what is improper, Young Master.”
“…”
⸻
As a compromise, the two of them ended up crouching together outside Old Tao’s room, sneaking about suspiciously.
Inside, it was completely silent.
“Could they have gotten tired from fighting and gone to sleep?” Hao Guozi asked.
“There are so many rooms in the county yamen. Why would they need to squeeze into the same one?” Tao Mo replied.
“Maybe they wanted to.”
The surroundings suddenly fell silent.
Hao Guozi and Tao Mo exchanged a glance and saw the same shock in each other’s eyes.
Could it be that Old Tao and Mu Chun were… that kind of relationship?
An indescribable sense of envy immediately welled up in Tao Mo’s heart.
While the conversation outside had been quite pleasant, the atmosphere inside the room was nowhere near as harmonious as they imagined.
With a half-smile, Mu Chun looked at Old Tao and said, “Elder Lu, have you decided to keep hiding here and never come out?”
Old Tao turned his head resentfully. “How am I supposed to go out looking like this?” His old face was covered in bruises and purple welts.
“That’s still better than you specifically aiming all your punches and kicks at my stomach.” Mu Chun clutched his abdomen, grinning so hard his teeth showed despite the pain.
“At least nobody can tell from looking at you. How am I supposed to explain this to the young master?” Old Tao kept staring into a mirror.
“I never expected Elder Lu to be so utterly loyal to him,” Mu Chun said.
Old Tao’s movements paused. “Back when I was being hunted down, it was Master Tao who saved me. If someone gives you a drop of water, you repay them with a spring. What’s wrong with that?”
“I never said there was anything wrong with it. I’m simply surprised that there would come a day when Elder Lu willingly submitted himself to someone else.”
Old Tao fell silent. After a long while, he finally said, “Back then, I was wrong.”
Mu Chun looked at him.
“Radiant Lord was right.”
Just five short words, yet they overturned everything he had done in the first half of his life.
A trace of emotion flickered across Mu Chun’s face. He knew that for someone like Old Tao, killing him would be easy, but making him admit defeat was infinitely harder.
“At the very least, I don’t believe I could have done better than he did. However…” Old Tao changed the subject. “As for the matters between him and Marquis Xueyi, I cannot honestly say I agree with them.”
Mu Chun smiled. “I was under the impression that neither Marquis Xueyi nor the Radiant Lord required your approval.”
Old Tao sighed. “Who would have thought the older generation would be like this, and now the younger generation as well?”
“I assume Elder Lu understands perfectly well why I’ve come today,” Mu Chun said.
“For the time being, I cannot leave with you.”
“Oh.” Mu Chun was not surprised by the answer.
“The young master still needs me.” He paused. “At the very least, I must wait until I’m certain he has fully spread his wings and no longer needs me at his side.”
Mu Chun laughed. “Elder Lu, what makes you think… that at this point in time, you still have room to negotiate?”
Instead of becoming angry, Old Tao smiled. “Although I lost everything back then, I still left quite a few pieces on the board. Even a cornered dog will jump over a wall. How much more so a man?”
“I’ve heard a little about the Tao family,” Mu Chun said. “For the Demonic Cult, taking revenge would be no more difficult than lifting a hand. As long as Elder Lu agrees to return to the Demonic Cult, I can make that small decision myself.”
“If revenge is needed, I can accomplish it alone.”
“You want Tao Mo to take revenge personally?”
Old Tao shook his head. “This world has always been one where the strong prey upon the weak. Whether revenge is taken or not should be decided by the young master himself. The only thing I want is to help him become one who devours flesh, rather than flesh to be devoured!”
“Rabbits don’t eat meat,” Mu Chun said.
“He doesn’t need to eat meat,” Old Tao replied. “He only needs the heart of a lion.”
A rabbit with a lion’s heart?
Mu Chun pictured Tao Mo and could not help but shake his head with a smile.
“This is my only wish,” Old Tao said. “Once that wish is fulfilled, whether you kill me or flay me alive, I’ll leave it entirely to your discretion.”
“You think the Radiant Lord would kill you?”
“As long as my wish is fulfilled, whether he would or not is no longer important.”
After pondering for a long time, Mu Chun finally said, “How about we make a wager?”
“A wager?”
“I believe the Radiant Lord will spare your life.”
Old Tao remained expressionless. Though he did not fear death, neither was he weary of living. He knew that the man before him was one of the Radiant Lord’s most trusted confidants. Since he was saying this, there had to be some basis for it. Unconsciously, the tension in Old Tao’s heart eased.
“How about this?” Mu Chun continued. “You return to Pini Mountain first. As for Tao Mo, I’ll temporarily watch over… take care of him. If you survive, you can naturally return and continue assisting him. If you die, I promise I’ll keep him safe for the rest of his life.”
Old Tao frowned.
Before he could speak, Mu Chun cut him off. “Otherwise, we can only settle the matter with swords and blades.”
Old Tao remained silent, his eyes continually scrutinizing him.
Mu Chun met his gaze with complete composure.
A long while passed.
Finally, Old Tao said in a deep voice, “It’s a deal.”
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