Chapter 90: Childhood Interlude III

The next day, the usually sleepy little chubby boy woke very early, simply because his chest felt unbearably tight. When he opened his eyes, he found Chu Chu lying atop his arms, her head resting on his chest.

She was so lovely. Even in sleep, she made one fond of her, like one of the cloth dolls his grandmother used to make. No, not a fragile porcelain doll a sturdy cloth doll. He liked a little sister like that.

The two sisters of the house, one four and one one year old, were still only babies, not a bit fun. And besides, here in the Jin residence, he could not return to the Duke of the State of Xin residence, so there was no sister for him to play with at all.

Since there was nothing else to play with, he might as well play with this little sister.

He traced her brows and eyes with his finger. She really was beautiful, like the little girls on New Year prints, pink and obedient. And those lips red, soft, the very picture of a cherry mouth, were they not?

He rather wanted to kiss her.

She was not awake yet; a quick kiss would not be discovered, yes.

Thinking this, the chubby boy shifted slightly upright, lowered his head, and pecked her lips once. Afraid of waking her, he dared only touch and then withdraw, closing his eyes to wait a moment before opening them again when she gave no response. Thus he repeated the act, over and over, delighted beyond measure, kissing her again and again.

Still grinning to himself, the chubby boy pinched her nose with a soft laugh. Even her nose looked as though it had been carved from white jade, pale and tenderly smooth.

But it seemed his nail had scratched the tip of her nose. Little Chu Chu frowned, wrinkled her nose, and slowly woke.

When Chu Chu opened her eyes, she discovered she was nestled in the chubby boy's arms, his hands wrapped tightly around her waist, his face flushed red as though he were in great discomfort.

The five-year-old child did not think this posture improper at all. Instead, she worriedly tugged at his sleeve.

"Brother Cheng, Brother Cheng, wake up."

"Mm..." The chubby boy smacked his lips but still refused to open his eyes.

Chu Chu thought that chubby people were fond of sleep, and that she ought to let him sleep a little longer. So she lay in his arms and played with his fingers. Soft and white, they could be bent all the way back to the back of the hand. How fun.

The chubby boy knew he was pretending, but Chu Chu felt nothing at all and was still toying with his fingers. Did she think that even if she bent his finger in half he could still sleep? But since she liked to play, he would let her. Besides, she was looking down, and had not seen him open his eyes.

Chu Chu played for a while, and then felt that the sound of the chubby boy's breathing seemed somewhat different from before. She turned her head slightly and met his black and white clear gaze. He bared his teeth in a smile at her, revealing a row of neat white teeth, exceedingly good looking.

"Brother Cheng, you're awake." Chu Chu did not notice anything amiss. She propped herself up on his legs and stood.

The chubby boy thought to himself that it was fortunate she was small and weak, otherwise she might have crushed his legs to pieces. He grinned foolishly, lifted his numb leg and arm, and struggled to get up.

"Chu Chu, let's eat two more sweet potatoes and then set off."

"All right." Chu Chu went to fetch the sweet potatoes and wipe the mud from them for him, not at all polite. Yes, she was a girl; such things should naturally be done by him. Still, she gave him a great big smile in return.

The chubby boy did not mind either. After eating the sweet potatoes, he hid a few more in his pouch, then led her toward the place where the mountains could be seen. They needed to find a higher spot and see where water might be visible; following the direction of the water would not be wrong.

However, even after they reached the mountainside, they still could not see any river water, and could only continue upward toward the summit.

"Brother Cheng, it sounds very noisy below. Is it a wild beast?" Chu Chu had already walked herself nearly to exhaustion and longed to sit and rest. Just as she was about to speak, she heard an odd sound and asked anxiously.

The chubby boy stood on the slope and listened carefully. "No, there are voices. And the sound of blades cutting through grass. We've already come as far as this path will allow, but it's not easy for them to travel. Bad news, they're clearing a way up here."

"Are they in black clothes?"

"Yes! We need to run farther up and hide as quickly as possible."

"Can't we hide behind the trees?"

"No. There are too many of them; they'll search inch by inch." The chubby boy had no time for further explanation and pulled her onward.

"Brother Cheng, who are they?"

"I don't know."

"Then are they chasing you, or trying to capture me?"

"Perhaps both."

"We're so well behaved, why would they want to catch us?"

"I don't know." The chubby boy felt that he was about to be driven mad by her endless questions. After answering once, he refused to say another word.

But the scene before them stunned them both.

A miscalculation.

They had actually chosen a cliff to climb up.

Having reached this place, let alone hide, there was nowhere left to run.

"Chu Chu, there's a cliff ahead. We can't go on. We need to find another path down the mountain."

Chu Chu looked at the ground below, then at the other mountain a hundred paces away, and was so angry she nearly cried. Why was there a cliff here? And the noise from those men in black was growing louder and louder. Where were they supposed to find another path now?

The chubby boy grabbed her and wanted to run, but in the blink of an eye the men in black were upon them, each and every one clad in black, revealing only a pair of fierce eyes. He gritted his teeth and placed Chu Chu behind him.

"You, you, you are after me! Take me and let her go."

"Let her go?" said one of the men in black, apparently the one who had come for Chu Chu.

Chu Chu froze. Her legs began to tremble at once. She still could not escape. She wanted to cry.

"Chu Chu, don't be afraid. Brother is here." The chubby boy sensed her fear and comforted her in a shaking voice.

But the man in black opposite them laughed. "Oh? The son of Xue Jingyi is quite stout-hearted. A little man indeed."

"You are not allowed to call my father's name!"

"Bah, I'll call him whatever I please. What will you do about it?" The man pointed his sword at the chubby boy's throat. "Brat, do you understand the debt a father owes is paid by the son?"

"What nonsense is that? What debt?" The chubby boy truly did not understand and looked utterly blank.

The man in black no longer wished to waste words. He shook his head. "You don't understand? Fine. Go ask Xue Leran down in the underworld and you'll know."

"What does my grandfather have to do with this!"

"Mm, you'll understand when you go down."

The man in black stepped forward without warning, and the tip of his sword had already pierced the hollow of the boy's shoulder.

The chubby boy lowered his head in shock. He had not expected that he would truly die here.

When Chu Chu saw dark red blood instantly staining his gray robe, she burst into tears and cried out loudly, heedless of danger, even trying to push the man in black who was about to kill the chubby boy. "You killed my brother! Give me back my brother! Give me back my brother!"

"Oh? You're really a fool." It was the man in black who had come for her. He seized her by the collar and lifted her up off the ground. "But you two are quite brave, daring to pretend, and daring even to drug me?"

"Third Brother, this little one is still useful. Don't frighten her to death."

"Understood, Boss." The man in black called Third Brother answered unwillingly, then tightened his grip on Chu Chu's throat.

"Third Brother, what are you doing!"

Chu Chu had never known what suffocation felt like. Now she did, and it was truly unbearable. But why was no one still coming to save her? Hadn't the boss said not to frighten her to death? Could they kill her instead?

Just when she thought she was about to see her grandfather, she suddenly heard an "ah" and the black-clad man's hand loosened all at once. Her breathing immediately became easy again. She coughed hard several times before realizing that the chubby boy, she did not know when, had already escaped from beneath the other man's blade and saved her.

"Chu Chu, Chu Chu, don't be afraid."

The chubby boy's own shoulder was wounded, but he could not spare attention for it. He held her shoulders and soothed her breathing.

"Brother, he's going to kill you!" Chu Chu clearly saw someone behind the chubby boy moving to strike him from the rear. She was so frightened she nearly lost her voice, yet he embraced her and rolled backward in one motion. But once they started rolling, they could not stop. The chubby boy could not stop either.

By the time Chu Chu realized that the whooshing in her ears was the wind from the bottom of the cliff, she could no longer even scream, much less cry. This cliff must be at least a hundred paces high. Were they going to die?

Wuwu, she did not want to die yet. She missed her grandfather and grandmother very much, but she did not want to see them just yet. Wuwu.

Boom.

Wuwu, her waist seemed about to break, but the two of them appeared to have stopped falling. She felt beneath herself. Something soft, something hard, a little damp, a little dry. Turning her head, she saw that they had fallen onto a haystack.

A blessing amid disaster.

But Brother Cheng did not seem to be in very good shape. Blood from the hollow of his shoulder was still flowing, his face was deathly pale, and his eyes were tightly shut. It seemed he had fainted.

"Brother Cheng, Brother Cheng..." Chu Chu called again and again, but he only let out one pained cry and then gave no answer. Helpless, she let out a long sigh.

She could only rely on herself now. Chu Chu sat up and looked around. The men in black above must surely think they were already dead. But she could not drag the chubby boy away, because he was too heavy. She could only wait until he woke and leave together. Yet the chubby boy was injured and had fainted; they had to find somewhere to hide. This place seemed full of weeds. Was there a cave?

If only there were a sweet potato cave.

Thinking this, she had already climbed down from the haystack to look for a cave.

Since it was a mountain, there would certainly be caves, and Chu Chu quickly found one. It was a pity that it was not a sweet potato cave, but merely an ordinary stone cavern. Still, a place to take shelter was enough.

After much effort, she dragged the chubby boy into the cave, then went outside to gather dry grass to make a little bed. Fortunately she was clever; one glance was enough for her to learn.

Chu Chu was especially pleased with how deft her hands were.

What was even more delightful was that there was a thin mountain spring outside the cave. As long as she picked a large leaf, she could bring Brother Cheng plenty of water. He had lost a great deal of blood, so restoring some moisture ought to help. Still, the most important thing was to stop the bleeding.

Fortunately, when she was little, she had heard her grandfather mention several kinds of herbs that could stop bleeding, and she had seen their shapes in a medical book. She went out and searched for quite a while. Those she was uncertain of, those that did not quite resemble the drawings in the book, she had to discard. The other two, however, she was sure of. She chewed them up despite their bitterness and pressed them onto his wound. There were no bandages here, so she could only tear off the hem of her skirt to wrap it.

It seemed to have stopped.

Chu Chu rested her chin in her hands and sat waiting for a while. Seeing that his lips were dry and white, she guessed he was thirsty and went to fetch water for him.

She only did not know when he would wake. And as for Father, could he find this place and rescue her? She deeply doubted it.

Still, there was nothing else to be done. She could only wait for him to wake and think of a way together.

So she sat there, kicking her legs, playing with his fingers. When hungry, she would nibble on half a sweet potato; when thirsty, she would drink mountain water. In this way she endured until nightfall.

Yet in the second half of the night, the chubby boy began to complain of cold, his body curling up almost into a ball. Chu Chu was startled awake, and after touching his forehead, realized he had a fever.

Misfortune never comes singly: he was injured, then ran a fever, and his body grew cold. Chu Chu could not care about anything else and removed her own clothes to cover him. She wanted to find a silk handkerchief and soak it in water to wipe his forehead, but could not find one no matter how she searched, and the hem of her skirt had already been torn nearly away. Surely she could not take off her trousers? After long hesitation, she slowly removed her undergarment.

He was unconscious after all and could not see her. It should be fine, right?

Comforting herself thus, Chu Chu ran back and forth with the undergarment, wiping his forehead. Fortunately the bottom of the cliff was warmer than the forest from the previous day. Running around like that even made her sweat. And Brother Cheng's fever gradually subsided. However, she was already exhausted. When she felt his forehead and it was no longer so hot, she collapsed beside him and fell sound asleep.

When the chubby boy woke, he did not know where he was. He only saw, in his arms, a half-naked little girl with her hands and feet wrapped around him, seemingly drawing warmth from him. There was a little butterfly on her chest, pink and as if ready to fly away. He rubbed his eyes in disbelief before daring to confirm that it was indeed Chu Chu. All of her clothes were covering him, while the torn hem of her skirt was wrapped around his shoulder, and in her hand she still held a half-damp undergarment. It seemed he had had a fever last night. But this girl, lying half-naked in his arms...

Although Chu Chu was only five, he was ten. He already understood many things, both what ought to be understood and what ought not. Since he had seen her body, he had to take responsibility for her.

But she was still so small.

The chubby boy touched the jade around his neck. Then he would have to bind her to him first and marry her later. Besides, she had saved his life, and he ought to repay her with himself. More than that, he rather liked her. Just thinking that he might spend his whole life under the same quilt with her made him so excited he wanted to sing and dance. Yet he clearly did not like singing or dancing at all. Truly, he had been bewitched and drawn in by her.

And that little butterfly, was it a birthmark? Truly adorable, like a gift from heaven. She too was a gift from heaven to him.

"Brother, you're awake?" Because she worried about him, Chu Chu slept very lightly. Feeling someone touching her chest, she suddenly opened her eyes.

The chubby boy seemed electrocuted, instantly snatching his hand back, chuckling awkwardly while scratching the back of his head. "Ah, yes. Chu Chu, you're awake too."

"Are you all right now? No fever anymore? Does the hollow of your shoulder still hurt?" Chu Chu had completely forgotten that she was still unclothed. She clutched his arm and asked with concern.

"It doesn't hurt. I don't have a fever. I'm all better." The chubby boy glanced once more at the butterfly, then returned her clothes to her. "Hurry and get dressed. After you're done, I have something to tell you."

"All right."

Chu Chu obediently dressed herself in a hurry, then sat across from him with a cheerful smile. "Brother Cheng, how do we get back to Hangzhou?"

"Mm, let's set that aside for now. I have something else to tell you."

"What is it?"

"This is for you."

As he spoke, the chubby boy removed the jade from his neck and fastened it around hers. "Let this count as our betrothal token."

"What is a betrothal token?"

"It means, um, since I just saw your body, I have to take responsibility."

"Take responsibility?" Chu Chu blinked at him blankly, her large eyes wide.

"That's right. Take responsibility. I will marry you in the future."

"Why will you marry me?" Chu Chu asked, but she was already looking down at the jade pendant on her chest. This jade Guanyin was truly beautiful. She liked it very much.

"Because I saw your body."

"Oh."

The topic circled back to the beginning, but Chu Chu no longer pursued it. She only knew that she was terribly hungry now and very much wanted to go home.

The chubby boy gazed at her, still entirely in a daze, and muttered, "And also because I rather like you."

"Mm, I like Brother Cheng too."

Chu Chu lifted her head, her brows and eyes curving into smiles. Then she turned slightly aside. "It seems someone has come looking. I hear my father's voice."

"I think I hear my father's voice too." The chubby boy supported her as she stood and led her quickly out of the cave.

"Chu Chu!"

"Father!"

With her father there, Chu Chu forgot all about him. She flung open her hands and ran.

Seeing Xue Jingyi with a stern face, the chubby boy shrank back toward the cave, but was still grabbed and tossed over to the guards who had come with them. He had wanted to say farewell to Chu Chu, but those guards listened only to Xue Jingyi. Without a care, they put him on a horse and rode out of the valley.

Xue Jingyi exchanged a few words with Chu Chu's father and then also pursued them.

From far away, he could only see Chu Chu's eyes, brimming with tears, reluctant and worried. Even many years later, he still remembered that scene.

It was at that very moment that he resolved to learn martial arts well, and in the future protect the Chu Chu he wished to protect.

The author's note: Chu Chu and Ao Ao's extra chapter is complete. As for the matter of the birthmark, it truly was not Ao Ao's fault, haha. As for the kidnapping and the mystery of the men in black, that will not be solved until many, many years later. Kisses. Thank you, Kiki, for the thunderbolt. Kiki Athena threw a thunderbolt, time: 2014-03-02 15:22:27