Wei Mingxia held Xiaobao, cast down her eyes, and let out a sigh.
“Xiaobao is the child we wanted after the eldest left back then. I truly harbored yearning for the eldest in my heart, so that’s why I also gave the youngest son the same name.”
Husheng simply didn’t understand what she was saying, only knowing that he shouldn’t have mocked Ji Bao’s name not long ago; Ji Yunlang’s heart certainly was unhappy.
And also…
He raised his head, looking at Wei Mingxia seriously, “Everyone’s name is unique; why do you want to give two children the same name?”
Wei Mingxia: “I said, I harbored yearning for the eldest in my heart—”
Husheng simply didn’t eat this set of hers, interrupting her, “If you truly yearned for him, how could it be possible to let him have a home yet not return for so many years? Not right, this place is simply not his home; you all are not even as good as that wife of his!”
Wei Mingxia was for the first time educated by a small child, what’s more a child about the same age as her own Xiaobao, for a time a face full of vegetable color, yet again capturing the key word inside his words, asking: “What wife?”
Husheng gave her a glare, “What does it have to do with you?”
Outside the room, Ji Lan waited in the courtyard. Listening to the rounds of miserable cries coming from within the door, she clenched the just-washed handkerchief tightly in her hand.
When the door finally opened from the inside, Ji Yunlang lifted his foot to step out, and she hurriedly welcomed up, stuffing the clean handkerchief into his hand.
And then crossing past him, she let out a shout of “Dad!”, running to the room inside to support the beaten-into-prostrating Ji Xing up.
Ji Yunlang used the handkerchief to wipe clean the blood caught on his hand, smoothly putting it away, and then walked into the other room, saying to the Xiaobao nestled in Wei Mingxia’s embrace: “Come out.”
Seeing him, Husheng rose immediately, “Then what about me?”
Ji Yunlang: “You sit.”
Xiaobao was terrified into tightly plucking Wei Mingxia’s clothes, “Mom!”
Wei Mingxia looked toward Ji Yunlang. He had wiped clean the blood on his hand, yet hadn’t noticed the few drops splattered on his side-face. Currently standing outside the door, that pair of dark purple eyes was unceasingly staring at Xiaobao without a single blink.
Wei Mingxia’s heart was somewhat flustered. She wanted to call Ji Yunlang, yet didn’t know how to call him, protecting Xiaobao into her embrace a bit and saying: “Your younger brother is still small; if there is some business speak to Mom ba.”
Ji Yunlang had no patience to speak a second time, and also didn’t move, just standing outside the door.
Seeing the situation, Husheng went over to forcefully drag Xiaobao out from Wei Mingxia’s embrace to push him out the door, and then with a pa sound closed the room door, turned his body around and revealed a smile toward the Wei Mingxia who was just preparing to get off the bed, “Your legs and feet are no good, so don’t go to add chaos; otherwise the moment my sister-in-law… my brother gets angry, your Xiaobao won’t even be able to cry out.”
In the kitchen, Ji Yunlang and the Xiaobao who had dried his tears stared with wide eyes.
Ji Yunlang said: “Standing blankly for what? Stir-fry dishes.”
Xiaobao lowered his head awkwardly, “I… I don’t know how.”
“Who asked whether you know how or not?” Ji Yunlang stuffed the spatula into his hand, “Stir-fry.”
When Ji Lan arrived, what she saw was precisely the rolling thick smoke inside the kitchen and the flustered and clumsy Xiaobao waving the spatula and placing salt. Ji Yunlang stood outside the door with folded arms coldly looking on, and on the small long table not far away already sat three plates of charred black dishes.
For a time Ji Lan didn’t know what to attend to; merely standing at the doorway she was about to be choked into tears, unable to imagine how uncomfortable Xiaobao was inside.
She anxiously looked toward Ji Yunlang: “Big Brother, Xiaobao he doesn’t know how to cook food… these ones he made also cannot be eaten. What do you want to eat, I’ll go make it, okay?”
“Don’t know how?” Ji Yunlang cast a glance at the flustered and clumsy silhouette inside the kitchen, “How old is he already, why doesn’t he know how to cook food? Lanlan, do you still remember starting from how many years old, the entire family’s food had to be made by me?”
Ji Lan gave a start.
“The first time I stir-fried dishes I was also exactly like him, completely charred, and the ingredients were specially placed not a little salty, sour, and bitter. None of you were willing to eat, so Mom forced me to eat it all completely alone; otherwise she would drive me out of the house door.”
Ji Yunlang leaned against the doorframe, slightly lowering his eyes, staring at the chain on his wrist, “I wasn’t even half his size at that time, carrying fear and trepidation every day. What I feared most was being driven out of the house. The moment I opened my eyes it was sweeping the floor, chopping firewood, boiling water, cooking food, and looking after the entire family. The bad dishes stir-fried had to be eaten by myself, so that’s why I quickly learned how to cook food. I was called Ji Bao, and he is also called Ji Bao; he is already this large, why doesn’t he know how to cook food?”
Ji Lan stood in front of him, her eye sockets red, yet she couldn’t speak words.
Xiaobao had already stir-fried the fourth plate of dishes, placed down the spatula, and wiping his charcoal-grey face walked out.
Ji Yunlang said since he stir-fried four plates he could stop.
Ji Yunlang looked at the sky, “It’s mealtime, call Dad and Mom, open the meal ba.”
On the dining table, everyone held their chopsticks without moving.
Ji Xing had come too, but didn’t dare get onto the table, holding his legs, his thin-statured frame half-dead curling up in the corner.
He stared at Ji Yunlang for a long half-day, before barely recognizing that pair of purple eyes from his blurred vision.
The moment he learned that he had just been beaten by him, Ji Xing’s anger covered over his fear. Hard-bracing he stood up his body, putting on the posture of serving as a dad, extending his finger to point at him, and panting with coarse breaths said:
“Good for you Ji Bao! Good for you Ji Bao! I knew you, this monster, didn’t die. Back then the daughter spoke quiet words with the dead old woman, saying you were let to be saved by someone, and thought this old man didn’t hear in truth this old man long since went to tell Master Lin! If it weren’t for Master Lin being magnanimous and not pursuing it, could you still live to be this large to return to thrash your dad?”
“Our family picked you back back then because we heard your body carried immortal energy, capable of bringing fortune to the family; we didn’t expect you to be a grand harm-bringer! A grand disaster-star! When you were at home, my old woman’s first birth was a daughter; the moment you left, my old woman gave birth to a son for me, let alone back then Young Master Lin took a liking to Xiaolan, what a grand fortune that was. If there weren’t you, our family would have been grandly wealthy long ago!”
While cursing he walked forward, his finger tip about to poke onto Ji Yunlang’s forehead. Wei Mingxia hurriedly got down from the chair to intercept him, “You say a few less sentences! Haven’t received enough beating?”
Ji Xing’s mouth unceasingly popped out foul words. Ji Yunlang had no reaction, but Husheng was so angry he snapped his chopsticks, with a leap over, consecutively grabbed two plates of charred dishes to slap onto his face.
He still wanted to throw dishes, but Ji Yunlang held him grasped, saying: “Don’t move; if thrown what will everyone eat?”
Husheng’s eyes were red from anger, “You let go of me! This dish at a glance cannot be eaten, nobody eats it!”
“Who said so,” Ji Yunlang pulled him to sit down, took a pair of chopsticks and placed them in front of Xiaobao, “The dishes stir-fried by Ji Bao—if nobody eats them then let Ji Bao eat ba.”
“My son simply doesn’t eat these things!” Ji Xing wiped his face full of dish oil, rushing over intending to overturn the table.
Ji Yunlang picked up the chopsticks Husheng had just snapped, tossed them at random, half resisting Ji Xing’s stomach to fling him backward, and the other half piercing through his palm, pinning his entire person firmly onto the wall behind him.
Severe pain delivered over. Ji Xing opened his mouth wanting to howl, but was stuffed in the mouth by a large clump of rag flying from outside, only capable of releasing painful whines.
Wei Mingxia’s face turned white from watching, blocking Xiaobao’s eyes, and saying with a trembling voice toward Ji Yunlang: “Ji Bao, you leave your dad a life, is it fine? A-and also Xiaobao, back then it was us who were sorry to you, but this doesn’t concern the child ah, he after all is your younger brother. We also because we missed you too much, would give him this name—”
“Enough,” Ji Yunlang interrupted her, pushing the two plates of dishes a bit in front of them, “Spoken so much, yet still unwilling to eat a single mouthful. If you all don’t eat again, I will completely feed them to Ji Bao.”
Ji Lan had been wordless since just now, and at this moment also didn’t raise her head, picking up the chopsticks to eat.
Seeing the situation, Wei Mingxia while cradling Xiaobao, also picked up the chopsticks to begin taking large mouthfuls to eat.
Xiaobao also wanted to take chopsticks, but her hand pressed him, “It’s fine if Mom eats; you are still growing your body, don’t eat these.”
Ji Yunlang let out a cold sneer, close to being moved by this motherly affection.
Wei Mingxia was truly old.
This woman used to be most fierce, her voice large, her strength also large, giving him food and wear, giving him a home, yet also wishing he could requite her immediately.
Taking the name Ji Bao was because she took him as a precious fortune star, yet didn’t expect after the fortune star grew large he possessed a pair of monster-like purple eyes.
Back then he was still in swaddling clothes, appearing out of nowhere at the village entrance, happens to tally with the fortune star prediction of a gentleman not long ago; therefore many people in the village wanted to adopt him, and in the end this fortune fell onto the Ji couple who unceasingly had no child.
But the Ji family didn’t become grandly wealthy because of his arrival, and even if later they had their own child, it was also because it was a daughter so didn’t follow Ji Xing’s wish.
What benefit was also not fished, yet had to raise one more child, behind their backs there were plenty of people mocking them.
As Ji Yunlang grew along with age, the dark purple eye color became deeper and deeper, and some slightly smaller children seeing him would even cry on the spot from fright.
The Ji couple quickly didn’t want to raise him anymore, but with so many people in the village watching, they also didn’t dare easily abandon him; therefore they began various difficulties, scolding, and blaming him, wanting to make him unable to endure to leave home on his own accord.
Where could a small child go? A small child could only stay at home. He couldn’t distinguish the family’s good or bad to him, only knowing the family would give him food and wear.
Until the year he was ten years old, the entire family entered the city together. He collided with Young Master Lin who wanted to forcefully snatch Ji Lan back home, digging out one of his eyes until he was blind.
In the end it also followed his father and mother’s wish, thoroughly leaving home.
Later Jiang Zhou brought him to a new place, took a new name, clumsily treated him well, coarsely raised him, and from then on the place where Jiang Zhou was was precisely his home.
The dishes Xiaobao stir-fried were truly too unpalatable; Ji Lan and Wei Mingxia ate until they dry-retched, yet one whole plate still remained.
Ji Yunlang felt annoyed staying with them, and he again missed Jiang Zhou, tapping the table, and urging: “Don’t stop, eat.”
He was uncomfortable, he was un-prosperous; from the moment he saw Ji Bao, he must come to release this breath.
Ji Lan seemed to have settled a certain resolution. With a placement of her chopsticks, she carried that plate of charred dishes, and in Ji Yunlang’s somewhat astonished gaze walked toward Ji Xing, ripped down the rag in his mouth, and poured the dishes all into it at one go.
Then she carried the empty plate back, stood in front of Ji Yunlang, the hand hanging at her side secretly clenching her robe hem, and opened her mouth to say: “Big Brother, can you help me a bit?”
Ji Lan had a request of him, so she first did some affairs capable of pleasing him and letting him be satisfied.
The astonishment in Ji Yunlang’s eyes changed into a kind of bizarre satisfaction.
He said: “Sure ah.”
Ji Yunlang let Husheng stay at home, exiting the door alone.
He could dig one of Lin Wei’s eyes fourteen years ago, so now naturally he could dig his second eye.
Back then Lin Wei submerged him in the river. After Master Lin learned of it, he felt this affair was devoid of virtue, and again feared it would spread out and there would be casual talk outside; so he managed his son to the point of death, not letting him approach the Ji family even a single step again, and even gave the Ji family not a few benefits, letting them live comfortably inside Luxi City.
His father and mother mapped out this bit of benefit, simply hadn’t thought about moving home, and naturally also hadn’t thought that Master Lin would also have a day of riding a crane to the Western recesses.
Ji Yunlang went to break into the Lin family’s residential courtyard. Not finding the person, he first found Ji Lan’s husband locked inside the woodshed.
A culturally weak white-faced young scholar, stripped bare of clothes and poured full of excrement and urine all over his body, with one leg crippled, half his face sliced into a complete mess, yet the other half was completely undamaged. Under the contrast of the two sides, the despair and drop-off in his heart when looking in the mirror could well be imagined.
This person Lin Wei shouldn’t stay in the Immortal Continent; he should go to the Bafang Region to be happy.
This husband of Ji Lan’s looked like a silly one, even after being like this still persisting in bowing to him, “This scholar Qi Zixiu, thanks the brother for the rescue.”
Ji Yunlang used spiritual light to lead a stream of water to wash him clean, let the young servant casually get a set of clothes for him, and found a club to let him act as a crutch, asking: “Can walk on your own accord?”
Qi Zixiu again was about to bow to him.
Ji Yunlang had never seen such a courteous person, unable to communicate, waved his hand, and said: “Hurry up and leave ba.”
He asked the remaining few young servants of the Lin residence, “Where is Lin Wei?”
The young servants at first didn’t speak, but he had plenty of methods to make them open their mouths, and in the end asked clearly the concrete position of that residential courtyard of the Lin family on the back street, lifting his steps to go over.
Outside the sky grew dark, turning into a dim yellow, and again began to blow wind, gathering large clumps of grey clouds. There was a booming sound of muffled thunder rising in the distance, and it was estimated not long after a torrential rain would break out.
This kind of weather was most suitable for digging people’s eyeballs. Ji Yunlang walked across the front street, two long swords already added in his hands.
He obtained these two swords the year he was seventeen years old; these were the tokens of love between him and Jiang Zhou.
Having just settled the token, Jiang Zhou sent him into the Bafang Region.
He had already forgotten how he relied upon the hatred and love toward Jiang Zhou to endure through those two years; in truth he long since forgave Jiang Zhou, and he only wanted to live out days safely and steadily together with Jiang Zhou.
But over these years he frequently couldn’t cast off the Bafang Region, and also had no method to handle the relationship with Jiang Zhou well.
With the Second Domain Lord leading that crowd of people, they not only stared at the Senro Beast-Bone Palace, but similarly cast greedy eyes upon the Immortal Continent too. Ji Yunlang harbored dread toward them, because he didn’t want them to come to the Immortal Continent to make a mess, destroying his and Jiang Zhou’s home.
Now all was not important anymore.
Jiang Zhou would leave because he accompanied less, and didn’t watch tightly enough, so he would discard all, grab Jiang Zhou to his side, and never separate.
There would be a day he would let Jiang Zhou thoroughly forget Yun Yan, with only him one person in his eyes and heart.
It began to rain, and the dark spiritual light surging all over Ji Yunlang’s body blocked the rain curtain. He grew closer and closer to that residential courtyard, looking as if he had already smelled the blood-aura, and heard the pleading for mercy and wailing beside his ears.
The moment he thought about using the sword Jiang Zhou gave him to go avenge his ten-year-old self, digging out Lin Wei’s eyeball bit by bit, a round of sweetness well-nigh swirled onto his heart.
Where on earth was Jiang Zhou? He currently urgently wanted to hold him, kiss him, tear up his joyous robes, mess up his crowned hair, press him beneath his body, and viciously possess him amidst the fresh blood flowing all over the floor.
Exactly like the first time they entangled passionately the year he was seventeen years old—the swaying wedding candles, the blood-colored bridal chamber, the cloud-lingering Yun Yan gasping for a final breath, the passionate and confused Jiang Zhou—which scene didn’t let him be happy and sink down.
However, only when he walked to that residential courtyard did he find that someone had already stepped one step ahead of him, laying down all the Lin family’s young servants, and blocking Lin Wei into the wall corner.
In that person’s hand, was carried a cold, detached, and sharp large knife.