Chapter 140: The Suffering Woman of the Zhu Family

After making sense of the entire situation, Zhou Qing pressed his foot lightly against the surface of the river and, in a single bound, leapt from the water onto the dirt road. The little boy had won Zhou Qing’s affection after recounting his story.

“For someone so young to possess such resolve is truly admirable,” Zhou Qing said, gently ruffling Zhu Yidan’s hair. “I have no intention of taking on a disciple at this time, but our meeting today can be considered fated. If what you say is true, I can help you rescue your aunt.”

“Really, Immortal?” Delight lit up Zhu Yidan’s face at Zhou Qing’s words.

For him, the main reason for wanting to become Zhou Qing’s apprentice was to avenge his father and save his aunt. Yet, he was reluctant to part from his mother. If he became Zhou Qing’s disciple, he might have to leave Maple Leaf Village forever. Zhou Qing’s reply was exactly what he had hoped for, and so he was now overjoyed.

Zhou Qing nodded silently in response, smiled, and said, “Very well, then, you should go back now.”

“Immortal, may I go with you to Wolf Howl Mountain?”

Worried that Zhou Qing might be placating him with empty promises, Zhu Yidan made his own request.

“If you’re not afraid, you may come with me,” Zhou Qing replied. With Zhu Yidan leading the way, they set off toward the village’s western edge.

Over the past two years, Zhou Qing had wandered from the State of Tianyue to this place. Whenever he encountered injustice along the way, he would usually intervene, except in matters beyond his power. As for the bandits on Wolf Howl Mountain that Zhu Yidan spoke of, Zhou Qing agreed to help for a simple reason: such murderous, thieving mortals were unlikely to possess any real abilities. If they had, they wouldn’t have become bandits in the first place.

Furthermore, Zhou Qing found himself quite taken with this young boy. If he were an old Taoist already nearing his grave, he might have agreed to take the boy as a disciple.

The two of them circled halfway around the village and finally emerged on a narrow path at the western edge. Behind them was Maple Leaf Village; ahead, a rugged mountain road wound into the distance. At the trailhead, Zhou Qing came to a stop.

“Child, do you not suspect I might be deceiving you? Are you not afraid your family will worry if you just follow me so rashly? Look, it’s nearly dark…”

“I’ve already witnessed your immortal abilities, sir. If you meant me harm, you wouldn’t go to such trouble to trick me. As long as I can avenge my father and rescue my aunt, nothing else matters.”

Hearing Zhu Yidan’s resolve, Zhou Qing felt his fondness for the boy deepen inexplicably. He reached out and took Zhu Yidan’s small hand, leading him up the winding mountain path.

Meanwhile, atop a solitary peak thirty li from Maple Leaf Village, a rowdy cacophony echoed.

This peak was called Wolf Howl Mountain. Sheer cliffs dropped on three sides, with only a single steep road leading to the summit. A checkpoint stood on this road, a massive stone wall built from immense boulders. Because of this natural fortress, the bandit scourge on Wolf Howl Mountain had plagued the area for years, and the authorities had never managed to wipe them out.

The reasons were threefold: the treacherous terrain, the large and skilled bandit force, and, most importantly, the fact that the bandit chief of Wolf Howl Mountain possessed magical powers.

Several times, local officials had mustered troops to besiege the mountain, only to be thwarted by the chief’s sorcery just as they were about to breach the gate. After repeated failures, the authorities finally gave up trying to eradicate the bandits.

The Great Tang itself was a nation in turmoil, with banditry rampant everywhere and large-scale uprisings in the north. Even if this small locale remained troubled, it was only the local people who suffered.

Atop Wolf Howl Mountain stood a sprawling complex, home to more than three hundred bandits. When not plundering, they gathered on the mountain to drink and revel, leading carefree lives. To them, wine and women were inexhaustible resources. Their raids followed a certain code: they rarely killed indiscriminately, usually only robbing and abducting. Only when they encountered particularly obstinate victims did they resort to murder.

As the bandit chief put it: “When you go down the mountain to seize goods, don’t stain your hands with too much blood. If you kill all the people below, who will provide us with wine and women in the future?”

Despite this, Zhu Yidan’s father, Zhu Gen, had still been killed by them. The reason was that his younger sister—Zhu Yidan’s aunt—had caught the bandits’ eye and been abducted. Zhu Gen tried to stop them and was stabbed to death by one of the bandits. Zhu Yidan had witnessed his father’s death with his own eyes and thus bore boundless hatred for the fiends of Wolf Howl Mountain.

Night gradually shrouded the lonely peak. At the mountaintop, rough men laughed heartily as they drank and feasted; beds creaked; gamblers roared with laughter over their winnings. The sounds atop the mountain were boisterous and varied. In front of one tightly closed wooden hut, a woman’s cries could be heard.

Soon, a man’s ragged breathing sounded from within, and then the room fell silent.

A moment later, the door opened. A bare-chested man emerged, slipping on a robe as he went. Glancing back, he gave a wicked grin before leaving.

Inside, a young woman fastened the sash around her waist with an expressionless face. She looked to be about eighteen, with delicate features—her name was Zhu Ting, Zhu Yidan’s aunt.

As for what had just occurred between her and the man who had left, Zhu Ting no longer cared. She had been abducted to the mountain two years prior and had endured countless hardships since then. At first, she had wept bitterly, but after two years of torment, she had become numb to it all. Such things had become as commonplace as daily bread; she could only silently endure them.

When she first arrived, Zhu Ting had considered ending her own life to escape the misery, but after being confined to a single room and attempting several painful methods, she eventually abandoned the idea.

She suffered in silence, and a few months after her abduction, Zhu Ting discovered she was pregnant.

“Mother~”

As Zhu Ting was tying her sash, a toddler about a year old called to her from an open wooden box in the corner.

Hearing her child’s soft voice, Zhu Ting rushed over, scooping the child into her arms and gently patting his back. She cherished her child deeply. Though she did not know who the father was, the child was, after all, her own flesh and blood.