Chapter 236

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Chapter 236: Childhood Sweethearts, Two Innocents

"How nice." Chao Lu said, "Childhood sweethearts, carefree and innocent."

She was somewhat envious because she didn’t have someone like that, which was why she felt envious.

The old lady smiled, "It’s very beautiful, after all, during childhood, everything is fresh and wonderful."

Chao Lu continued to ask, "And then?"

"And then?" The old lady thought for a moment, "The two children played shuttlecock ball all afternoon, and Wood didn’t hold back at all, beating Liu Xiaowan twenty to zero, making the little girl cry in anger."

Chao Lu chuckled, "Again?"

"But she also had a great time playing, just that the next day when she brought the shuttlecock ball, Wood refused to play with her no matter how much she threw a tantrum or got angry."

"Will Liu Er give up easily?"

"Of course not, she’s very stubborn, insisting on Wood playing with her."

"Wood wouldn’t easily agree, right?"

"So, they made an agreement to only play one day a week and spend the rest of the time practicing swordplay and studying."

"That’s too disciplined." Chao Lu marveled, "Is Wood really a child? Why does he want to practice swordplay so much?"

"Liu Er asked him the same question before, but the first time she asked, he couldn’t answer and it seemed like he didn’t even know why he wanted to practice swordplay."

"That’s a bit strange." Chao Lu didn’t quite understand.

"The old lady smiled, "You should go find the next item."

"I’ll go now, what is it?" Chao Lu didn’t forget her plan to leave, but it wasn’t easy to escape this space. Instead of rushing and panicking, it might be better to calmly listen to the rest of the story. After all, waking up might not bring any good news, and she also had an escape mentality, shameful but effective.

She even wondered if she was already dead, and this was just a carousel of reincarnation for her soul.

The old lady said, "A book called ‘Crouching Tiger Sword Decision’."

Chao Lu left the courtyard once again, and this time, the path leading to a different direction illuminated. She walked through the darkness and arrived beneath the stage lights.

She saw Liu Xiaowan, who seemed a bit older now, maybe around ten years old. Her eyes were more open, but she was still a child.

At this moment, she was crouching sneakily under a corner of a wall.

"Over here, over here." She waved and called out to Chao Lu.

Just as Chao Lu was about to walk over, a pair of sharp eyes glanced over.

Inside the house within the wall, there was a middle-aged man standing inside, patrolling back and forth through the windows. There was a book placed below his line of sight.

Chao Lu immediately hid behind the wall and walked over to Liu Er, lowering her head.

"What are you doing here?"

"I want to get that book."

"Coincidentally, I also want to get it," Chao Lu said.

"Why? Stealing is not good, you know."

"I’m just borrowing it. I wanted to borrow it before, but Uncle Liu wouldn’t lend it to me. He said girls are not allowed to read these things. He’s very mean, not kind at all. I’ve been afraid of him since I was little," Liu Er pouted.

"If you’re afraid, why did you come?"

"Well, I want that book."

"Why?" Chao Lu raised her head to take a look inside, but Liu Er held her hand and pressed her head down.

Liu Xiaowan explained cautiously, "It’s a martial arts manual. I saw the title and some stick figure drawings last time. My father mentioned that Uncle Liu had excellent martial arts skills, but something happened later, and he became dispirited and spent his days drowning his sorrows in alcohol. However, he doesn’t have much savings, and recently he can’t even afford to buy alcohol. He can only earn a living by watching the courtyard for others."

"Chao Lu asked in surprise, ‘Do you want to learn martial arts?’"

"No, why would a girl learn martial arts?" Liu Xiaowan tilted her head. "I want the manual for the wooden dummy."

"Ah… Chao Lu was surprised. ‘But you clearly don’t like him practicing martial arts, right?’"

"Well, Wooden Dummy looks clumsy, but he’s actually smart. Father praised him as a great talent in reading, even though he deviates from the conventional path. But he still likes practicing martial arts," Liu Er muttered and grumbled, "I can’t stand him."

"Then why would you help him steal the manual?"

"I don’t like it, but Wooden Dummy does. I just want to make him happy. Lately, he’s been down and uninterested in everything. He’s even distracted during sword practice, saying he’s going through a bottleneck period." Liu Er hesitated and said, gesturing with her index finger against her index finger, "I don’t want to see him like that. It’s better to watch him practice sword and wield a blade…"

Chao Lu looked at Liu Er and couldn’t help but hug her. "You’re so adorable, good girl, sweetheart."

The demon princess couldn’t help but show a skilled aunty smile.

"Don’t hug me, we’ll be discovered," Liu Er hurriedly escaped from Chao Lu’s embrace and asked, "Uncle Liu has been home these days, so I didn’t have a chance to do it."

"How about waiting a few days and then trying?"

"No, if we wait a few days, he’ll take the book with him," Liu Er worriedly said, "What should we do?"

"Hmm, he’s a drunkard, right?" Chao Lu suggested, "How about buying him some alcohol and trying to get him drunk?"

Liu Er’s eyes lit up. ‘Yes, that’s a good idea!’

She immediately got up. "I still have some alcohol at home. My father doesn’t drink it, it’s been there for a long time."

She ran back home and soon returned with a jar of wine. Then, she moved it below the window and opened the seal on the jar, letting the fragrance of the wine waft out.

Before long, the door opened, and a scruffy middle-aged man walked out. He noticed the wine, looked around, didn’t see anyone, and became suspicious.

But he couldn’t resist and took a sip.

"Good wine," he exclaimed, raising the jar and downing it. Before long, snores filled the room.

Liu Er brought a chair and climbed in through the window, then came back with the sword technique manual.

"I got it!" Liu Er held up the manual, smiling happily. "I’ll bring it to the Wooden Dummy right away."

Chao Lu followed Liu Er back to where they obtained the wooden sword and handed the manual to the Wooden Dummy. The Wooden Dummy moved slightly, and its wooden mouth dropped open.

The next moment, Liu Er disappeared, and the Wooden Dummy disappeared as well. On the ground, there appeared a manual titled "Crouching Tiger Sword Technique."

Chao Lu took the book back to the courtyard where the elderly woman was.

In the courtyard, a boy knelt down, his shirt stripped off, bamboo strips leaving red marks on his back.

The elder of the Bai family became furious, "You insolent brat! You think you have grown wings? At such a young age, you’ve already learned to steal?! What do we lack in this family that you had to resort to theft?"

"Stealing books shouldn’t be considered theft… I was just borrowing them to take a look, and I would have returned them afterwards."

"You dare to be defiant!" the man grew even angrier.

"You don’t allow me to learn martial arts, so I had to learn in secret," the young boy said through gritted teeth, with no trace of remorse. Perplexed, he asked, "Why don’t you let me learn martial arts?"

"What’s the use of learning martial arts? Study hard instead!"

"But I want to learn martial arts."

"Are you obsessed with sword training? With your talent for studying, why can’t you focus on academics? How can you understand principles if you don’t study? Engaging in petty theft at a young age, how can you establish yourself as a gentleman?"

"I don’t think I’m wrong. Even a gentleman is not a perfect saint. It’s enough if we can recognize our mistakes and improve."

"Well, have you recognized and improved your mistakes?"

"I haven’t done anything wrong. If you’re in a bad mood, you can punish me."

Bai Wei stood firm with an iron will: "If crying out in pain counts as my defeat."

"You rascal!" The older generation was furious, picking up a bamboo stick and striking fiercely. Under the scorching sun, the sound of the blows was heavy, and the skin turned purplish.

The older generation didn’t hear a single cry for mercy, not even a grunt. This made them even more angry, and they reached for a thicker stick.

"Stop hitting him!" Liu Xiaowan raised her hand to protect the young boy from behind. Kneeling on the ground, she pleaded with tears: "I’m the one who stole the books! I’m the one who stole Uncle Liu’s books. Please don’t hit him with the bamboo stick anymore. Please, don’t hit him anymore. It was all me."

Bai’s elder, with a cold expression, said: "Xiaowan, step aside. This is our Bai family’s matter, and it has nothing to do with you. This boy was caught stealing books red-handed! He didn’t just steal books, he also took your wine and our own wine!"

Liu Xiaowan cried like a kitty, shaking her head repeatedly, refusing to move: "I really stole the books. It was me."

She regretted it now, originally wanting to make him happy, but ended up causing trouble and hurting him.

But this boy’s head was as stubborn as wood, silently accepting punishment and taking on all the blame without uttering a word.