“Uh…”
Gou Dezhu immediately felt embarrassed, hiding his legs behind his clothes and straightening his posture as he declared, “Today was completely an accident! I just didn’t have the right tools!”
After speaking,
He still felt unsatisfied and glared at Niu Qi, “Just you wait! Next time we fight again, I’ll definitely beat you until you’re crying and running away!”
Gou Dezhu waved his clenched fists in front of Niu Qi twice before hobbling away quickly before Niu Qi could get angry.
“Hey!”
Seeing that Gu Yanxi was ignoring him, Niu Qi waved his hand in front of her face, “Give me back my knife!”
Gu Yanxi turned her gaze to Niu Qi, “Want the knife? Bring money to redeem it.”
After saying this, she and her younger brother pushed the stall cart away.
On the way home,
Gu Yanxi bought fifty catties of flour, thinking she wouldn’t need to buy flour for the next few days.
Then she went to the neighboring stall to buy potatoes, and also placed a daily order for twenty catties, to be delivered by the vendor to her stall on Back Street.
Passing by the chicken stall, she saw a large basin of fresh chicken feet and immediately had a new idea.
“Granny, how much for these chicken feet?”
When Granny Hao heard someone wanted to buy chicken feet, she thought she had misheard.
She looked up, her cloudy eyes seeing a young woman dressed in hemp clothes, and revealed a kind smile, “Young lady, these claws aren’t for sale. If you want them, just take them. Just return the basin later.”
“That won’t do. I can’t just take your things for free.”
Gu Yanxi examined them – the chicken feet in the basin were very fresh and of excellent quality.
“Granny, name your price. I’ll take all the chicken feet in this basin.”
“Five copper coins, take them away.” Granny Hao waved her hand.
Chicken feet don’t have much meat, are difficult to prepare, and have a strong foul smell when cooked. People in Jingdu don’t like eating this stuff.
Seeing the young girl dressed neatly and not looking like someone who couldn’t afford food, she couldn’t understand why she would want so many chicken feet.
Gu Yanxi also knew these chicken feet were meant to be thrown away, so five copper coins was reasonable.
She put down five copper coins, “Granny, please keep all your chicken feet for me from now on. I’ll come to collect them daily, and I’ll return the basin tomorrow.”
After saying this, Gu Yanxi turned and left.
“Hey, young lady—”
Granny Hao couldn’t call her back in time. She wanted to say that if she wanted them every day, she could make them even cheaper, and it would save her the trouble of dealing with the things.
Gu Family.
Before Gu Yanxi even stepped through the courtyard gate, she could hear her father and mother’s voices.
“Hey, hey, hey, Little Niu, slow down. Watch your step, be careful not to fall.”
“Little Niu, you must be tired. Come have some cool tea and rest.”
“Father, Mother, what are you doing?”
Gu Yanxi entered the house and saw her parents busy in the courtyard, while someone was standing on the rooftop drying area.
“Ah Yan’s back! Why are you so late today? Have you eaten?” Zhao Shi quickly took the things from her daughter’s hands.
Gu Yanxi shook her head.
“Perfect, I’ll cook some noodles.” As she spoke, Zhao Shi called out to the person on the roof, “Little Niu, come down quickly and wash your hands. Time to eat noodles!”
“Okay.”
This voice…
Why does it sound somewhat familiar?
Gu Yanxi stared intently at the back of the person on the roof.
She hadn’t noticed earlier, but this figure also looked somewhat familiar.
When that person stood on the ground facing her, she finally understood why it seemed familiar.
“It’s actually you!”
“Ah Yu, quickly get a rope and tie him up!”
Gu Guosheng, seeing the situation spiraling out of control, hurried over to intervene. “What’s going on here? Why are you tying someone up for no reason?”
“Aren’t you two friends?”
“What friends?”
Gu Yanxi tightened the rope as she asked.
Gu Guosheng glanced at Niu Qi, then at his daughter. “He said he’s your friend and came to catch up with you.”
Gu Yanxi turned to Niu Qi. “I already let you off today. Why did you come looking for me? Tell me, what other schemes do you have?”
“I just want to become your disciple…” Niu Qi struggled, but the rope only tightened further. “Could you untie me first?”
Seeing the young man’s pitiful state, Gu Guosheng chimed in, “A-Yan, if there’s any misunderstanding, let’s sit down and talk properly. Look, Little Niu even helped us sun the vegetables earlier. He doesn’t seem like a bad person.”
Gu Yanxi waved her hand, signaling her subordinate to take him away. “Father, he tried to cripple my hand today! Now he’s trespassing into our home. I’m sending him to the authorities!”
Gu Guosheng stared at Niu Qi in disbelief, his voice trembling with anger. “You! You deceived me! And here I thought you were a good kid!”
“Uncle Gu… I just wanted my sword back.”
“Sword? What sword?” Gu Guosheng became alert.
Gu Yu immediately interjected, “Father, it’s the sword that almost cut Sister! It’s still on the stall cart. I’ll fetch it for you.” After speaking, Gu Yu shot a fierce glare at Niu Qi.
He retrieved the large sword from the stove, blowing off the ashes clinging to it.
“Father, this is the one. It works quite well for poking the fire,” Gu Yu muttered under his breath.
Niu Qi, seeing his treasured sword being used to tend flames, struggled desperately to reclaim it. But the increasingly tight ropes rendered him immobile.
Gu Guosheng picked up the sword and examined it carefully. “The blade is fine, but the character wielding it… leaves much to be desired.” As he spoke, his fingers traced a slight indentation on the scabbard.
Turning it over for a closer look, he discovered the character ‘Yu’ engraved there.
Gu Guosheng’s pupils constricted sharply. “Where did this sword come from?”
Noticing Gu Guosheng’s intense reaction, Niu Qi’s voice grew urgent. “Uncle recognizes this sword?”
Gu Guosheng studied it more carefully, his eyes reddening as he spoke. “I’ve seen someone use it before.”
His gaze grew distant, scenes from the battlefield flashing before his eyes.
“I lost my memory ten years ago. I only remember that this sword seems to have been given to me by someone. If you recognize it, Uncle, perhaps you could help me rediscover my past.”
Niu Qi furrowed his brow, his head beginning to ache again. Ever since his amnesia, attempting to recall anything brought splitting headaches.
Gu Guosheng stared intently at Niu Qi’s face, scrutinizing it carefully. “The resemblance… you look so much like your father!”
“That year, when the new emperor ascended the throne, Da Shuo faced internal strife and external threats. The Great General was ordered by the emperor to campaign in the Western Regions…”
It turned out Gu Guosheng had been a personal guard of the former Great General Yu. Back then, he and General Yu had fought side by side through life and death, their bond closer than brothers.
And Niu Qi was the Great General’s only son.
Hearing this, all of Niu Qi’s memories came flooding back.
Back then, the Yu General’s household was accused of colluding with the enemy and treason. The entire family was sentenced to execution. It was Niu Qi’s maid who set the room ablaze, allowing him to fake his death and escape beheading.
But after fleeing the estate, he was still discovered by soldiers who chased him off a cliff, causing his amnesia.
Throughout it all, Gu Guosheng never believed the General would commit such acts. To clear the General’s name, he moved his entire family to Jingdu, disguising himself as a hunter while secretly gathering evidence everywhere—though his efforts proved fruitless.
Gu Yanxi never expected Niu Qi to have such history with her father.
Her gaze toward Niu Qi was filled with confusion, “How did you end up in this murderous trade? Who sent you?”