Chapter 148: Chapter 138: Justifiable Reason

"No, all those little brothers and sisters are yours. Every single one of them. Don’t worry, no one’s going to fight you for them!"

Mo Xiaoman said as she walked up to Tang Yaxuan, standing face-to-face. They were the same height, but Tang Yaxuan was plump while Mo Xiaoman was a bit frail-looking.

Tang Yaxuan shook her head and yelled, "They only know you! They’re *your* little brothers and sisters! Not mine, they’re not!"

"Whether they are or not isn’t up to you!"

Xiao Man reached out with her left hand and lifted Tang Yaxuan’s chin. "Tsk, tsk," she said. "No wonder Liu Fengying obsesses over you. Her own flesh and blood is her own flesh and blood, after all. The resemblance is uncanny! All those little sisters have the same cute apple face as you!"

Tang Yaxuan struggled, but Xiao Man tightened her grip, squeezing until Tang Yaxuan shrieked in pain. With a swift movement, Xiao Man slapped her four times across the face without an ounce of pity before letting go.

"When I said you didn’t have to compensate me for the little cat, I meant I didn’t want your money. As you well know, how much could a little clay cat possibly be worth? A couple of slaps are much more fun! He ran off, so you have to take his place! And another thing, who were you calling a lunatic just now? This is for that, too!"

After speaking, Xiao Man ignored Tang Yaxuan’s miserable cries and quickly turned, running toward another tree-lined path. She had sensed someone approaching, just ten steps away.

The newcomers were Gu Shaojun and Wei Zhenqing. They had already reached the intersection and had a clear view of Xiao Man hitting Tang Yaxuan. After the beating, she had arrogantly pointed and lectured her victim for a few moments before ducking into a side path and running off!

Both men were stunned. They never imagined that such a gentle and well-behaved little girl could be a bully, and such a violent one at that—pinning someone down and slapping them across the face!

Gu Shaojun immediately turned and ducked into the small woods nearby. Wei Zhenqing stood where he was, shaking his head with a wry smile. He knew Gu Shaojun was taking a detour to apprehend the "culprit." He pulled out a cigarette, found a place to sit and have a smoke. The girl who’d been hit was crying pitifully, and he figured he wouldn’t be any good at consoling her anyway. He’d just wait for Gu Shaojun.

Gu Shaojun intercepted Mo Xiaoman on the other path and pulled her under the shade of a tree to talk.

Mo Xiaoman didn’t know what was going on yet. When she suddenly saw Gu Shaojun appear, she was overjoyed, her clear, bright eyes sparkling. "Brother Shaojun! Zheng Shaolian told me you were coming, so I didn’t go anywhere. I’ve been waiting for you here!"

Gu Shaojun was speechless. ’Did you get bored while waiting and decide to go beat someone up?’

He glanced at his watch. He was short on time and couldn’t have a long talk with the girl, so he asked directly, "Why were you hitting someone for no reason? Do you even know who you hit?"

Mo Xiaoman: ...

’So he was the one who arrived just now. I’ve been caught.’

She blinked, turning her face away as she said flatly, "I had my reasons. It wasn’t for no reason. I don’t care who she is. If she offends me, she gets a beating!"

"How did she offend you?"

"She... they broke my toy cat first, then tried to leave without apologizing or paying for it. Of course I wouldn’t let them. Then she called me a lunatic and looked down on me for being from the countryside. Tell me, wasn’t she asking for a beating? It’s a good thing I could take her, otherwise I would have gone and gotten Squad Leader Xiao Zhao to help me!"

Gu Shaojun felt a headache coming on. Perhaps it was because he had already accepted this girl as his own little sister, but he found he couldn’t bring himself to dislike her arrogant behavior. But when she refused to face him and he couldn’t see those brilliant, sparkling eyes, he felt a pang of disappointment. "What reasons? Explain them to me."

"I’m not explaining! Investigate it yourself!"

The girl simply turned her back on him completely. Gu Shaojun sighed to himself. He really was out of time.

He reached out and ruffled her two smooth braids. "Fine. I’ll investigate. If... if your toy really was broken by her, then we’ll say you had a valid reason!"

Xiao Man spun around, her eyes shining brightly. Gu Shaojun was both annoyed and amused, but her expression inexplicably put his mind at ease. He took a kraft paper envelope from his pocket and handed it to her.

"I’m going to be getting busier and busier from now on, and I might be away on ’business’ a lot. I won’t have time to manage your schooling anymore. Think some more about whether you want to study in the provincial city. This is your tuition money. Inside the envelope, there are also the addresses and phone numbers of three people. If you decide to go to the provincial city, you can contact any one of them, and they’ll get everything arranged for you."

Xiao Man pushed it away. "I don’t need it. I have tuition money. Grandpa prepared more than enough for me. You don’t have to worry."

Gu Shaojun grabbed her satchel and stuffed the envelope inside. "Be good. I have ten minutes left. I need to go see Shaolian, and then I have to head back to the provincial city! Xiao Man, goodbye!"

Xiao Man watched Gu Shaojun turn and leave without hesitation. Knowing he was truly in a hurry, she bit down hard on her finger, then chased after him.

As she ran, she pulled a large, succulent peach from her satchel. "Brother Shaojun, eat this, quickly! Don’t let Zheng Shaolian see!"

Gu Shaojun: ...

’I’m not used to eating things all by myself,’ he thought. ’But since she gave it to me, I might as well eat it.’ He was thirsty and hungry anyway, and he didn’t have the time to be as chatty as Zheng Shaolian, who would ask a million questions while eating.

When they reached the bottom of the building, he had finished the peach. He tossed the pit accurately into a trash can and said just one word: "Delicious!"

Xiao Man’s eyes curved into crescents as she smiled. After eating one peach, the pain from Zheng Shaolian’s wound had stopped bothering him. If Gu Shaojun ate one, it would eliminate his fatigue and restore his strength and spirit.

’If these peaches didn’t look so impossibly perfect that they’d raise suspicion, I’d give you a whole basket!’

As they were going up the stairs, Xiao Man handed Gu Shaojun a small lotus pod. "Keep this safe. Eat it when you get back to the provincial city. It’s best to eat it when you don’t have to go on a trip. There are six lotus seeds. Eat one every six days."

Gu Shaojun found this strange. "Aren’t they just lotus seeds? Why can’t I eat them on a business trip?"

"Because they’ll give you diarrhea."

Gu Shaojun shot Xiao Man a look, his star-like eyes carrying a hint of feigned anger. ’Are you trying to poison your brother, little girl? And so openly, too!’

"Hehe! It’s not what you think. This is a special variety of lotus seed. It can expel toxins from the body and enhance physical fitness... I’m studying traditional Chinese medicine and cultivating some precious herbs. You have to believe me! This type of lotus is very difficult to grow. I only managed to cultivate a few after a lot of hard work. I couldn’t bear to give them to anyone else. If you don’t want it, give it back. Don’t let it go to waste!"

’This is the Purple Lotus from the Little Spring Pond,’ Xiao Man thought. ’My family has only eaten it once, stewed in chicken soup. The three of us had one seed each. I’ve already undergone Bone Marrow Cleansing and Tendon Forging, so I was fine. Grandpa and Grandma have also had lotus leaf soup a few times, so the effect wasn’t too strong on them. But when Mo Chengfu rushed over at mealtime, Grandma kindly gave him a bowl of the chicken soup with a few pieces of meat, and he was stuck in the toilet for half the day!’

Gu Shaojun had practiced martial arts since childhood and entered the army to train at fifteen. His Combat Power wasn’t low; he should be able to handle one seed every six days.

Xiao Man thought Gu Shaojun would return the lotus pod, but instead, he looked down and tucked it into his pocket, even patting it carefully twice. Xiao Man quickly reminded him, "Remember, every..."

"One every six days," Gu Shaojun said, turning back to her. He stretched out a long arm and, from three steps below, lifted her straight up the stairs. "Hurry up, we’re out of time!"

Xiao Man was speechless and could only hurry to lead him toward Zheng Shaolian’s hospital room.

Zheng Shaolian was alone in his hospital room. When he saw Xiao Man and Gu Shaojun enter together, he first called out, "Big Bro," then looked at Xiao Man with some surprise. "How did you end up with him? Where did you go just now? Were you in the courtyard... and where’s the little clay cat that Xiao Zhao gave you?"

Xiao Man pouted. ’I knew it! Those two must have come to the hospital for Gu Shaojun, and they probably know Zheng Shaolian too. When Tang Haocheng ran over earlier, he was probably planning to borrow money from Zheng Shaolian or Gu Shaojun, wasn’t he?’

’So everyone knows I hit someone? Let them know, I don’t care. As long as Tang Yaxuan is involved, things won’t get blown out of proportion!’

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