TLWR CH.5: A Misunderstanding

Many people in Qingshan Village remembered that day—a five-year-old girl had dashed out of the Xiao family home completely naked, her hair disheveled, running and crying for her mother as she went.

By the time Shu Lan reached the peanut field, her hoarse, raspy cries had already reached the ears of Mrs. Qin, Mrs. Lan, and the others. When they all turned around and saw Shu Lan running toward them stark naked, screaming for her mother, their expressions could only be described as varied and utterly spectacular.

The hearts of the four Shu family members nearly shattered. Mrs. Qin dropped the peanut seeds in her hands and rushed forward, pulling her daughter tightly into her arms. Shu Lan was crying so hard she could barely breathe, clinging to Mrs. Qin desperately as she called out "Mother!" again and again until her voice went raw.

"Ah Lan, don't cry, don't cry—Mother is right here!" Mrs. Qin didn't even have the presence of mind to ask what had happened. She took the shirt her husband handed her, wrapped it around her daughter's little body, and simply sat cross-legged on the ground, cradling the girl in her lap. She patted Shu Lan's chubby little shoulders and coaxed her softly.

Mrs. Lan was both heartsick, anxious, and worried. She had watched Shu Lan grow up too—the child had never been one to cry much, and to see her in such a state today meant she must have suffered a terrible grievance. And that grievance was most likely caused by Xiao Lang!

Crouching down, Mrs. Lan gently rubbed Shu Lan's small bare feet, carefully picking out the grains of sand that had pressed into the tender soles. Once Shu Lan had gradually calmed down, she asked softly, "Ah Lan, what happened? Where's your Brother Lang?" Her son's name had a third-tone inflection, but Shu Lan always said it in the second tone, so everyone just went along with it.

At the mention of those three words, Shu Lan visibly flinched. Her eyes, swollen from crying, looked pitifully up at Mrs. Qin: "Lang... Brother was giving me a bath, and then he pushed me underwater and wouldn't let go. Wuwu, I felt like I was dying, so I grabbed him. He let go in pain, and I ran out... Mother!"

She had told nothing but the truth, without the slightest exaggeration. Though she had been human for so long now, and knew that her family doted on her and that she could always turn to them for comfort, Shu Lan had never been one for cunning or scheming. But from today on, she had at least understood one thing: Xiao Lang had been reincarnated from that giant beast. He hadn't eaten her in her past life, but he still wanted to kill her in this one. She would have to stay far, far away from him from now on and never fall into his hands again.

"That little wretch—I'm going to beat him to death!"

After listening to Shu Lan's tearful but clear account of her grievance, Mrs. Lan was stunned for a moment. Once it sank in what her son had done, she shot to her feet. Ignoring the protests from Mrs. Qin and Shu Maoting, she stormed off toward home like the wind. She was genuinely furious. Before this, she had put up with her son being too playful and never staying home, but at least he had been sensible for the most part. How could he treat Ah Lan like this today? If they weren't careful, this could have almost cost a life!

Mrs. Qin, with Shu Lan still in her arms, was unable to go herself. She quickly urged Shu Maoting and Xiao Shouwang: "Go stop her! Kids play rough and bumps happen—Xiao Lang has always been sensible and reasonable. He definitely didn't mean it. Maybe he was just trying to scare Ah Lan—it can't be as bad as she says! Hurry, go!" She tried to stand up, but Shu Lan clung to her tightly, crying and refusing to let her leave.

Xiao Shouwang looked at Shu Lan, who was still crying, and gradually realized the seriousness of the situation. Others might not know, but he, as the boy's father, was aware that his son possessed extraordinary strength and had a natural... instinct for hunting and killing. Ever since last year, Xiao Lang had pestered him to go hunting together in the mountains. Whenever they came across prey like rabbits or pheasants, the determined look in Xiao Lang's eyes even made him uneasy. If not for the fact that his son was filial toward his parents, helped with chores without being told, and despite being cold toward other children never actually got into fights, he might have thought the boy was possessed.

"Brother, Sister-in-law, don't worry. If Xiao Lang did something wrong, he deserves to be punished we can't spoil him. This child Ah Lan has been badly frightened, you should stay with her. I'll go back and check on things!" Holding back Shu Maoting, who wanted to go home too, Xiao Shouwang made an apologetic gesture of respect and strode off swiftly toward his house.

Shu Maoting was concerned about his youngest daughter, but she was being comforted by her mother. He was more worried that Mrs. Lan might go too hard on Xiao Lang. He shot Mrs. Qin a glance and hurried after them.

Shu Zhan was fuming. "Mother, I'm going too! He actually bullied Ah Lan I'm going to beat him to death!"

Shu Wan grabbed her younger brother's arm and turned his stubborn little head toward her. "Don't talk nonsense. This might just be a misunderstanding. Let Father and Uncle handle it. If you want, you can go watch, but don't go adding fuel to the fire."

"That's right, listen to your sister. Your uncle and aunt are already angry enough. As the older brother, you should be helping to calm them down, not stir things up." Mrs. Qin gave her eldest daughter a pleased look, then scolded her rash son.

Shu Zhang pouted indignantly. Not wanting to argue with them, he took off running. Women were so troublesome, his sister had been bullied that badly by that brat Xiao Lang, and they still expected him to speak up for Xiao Lang? Dream on!

Mrs. Lan stormed back home furiously. The first thing she saw was Xiao Lang sitting neatly dressed under the eaves, washing the clothes he had changed out of. In the large wooden basin, a hint of pink seemed to be showing. She walked over and saw that it was indeed Shu Lan's pink little shirt.

"Mother, are you done planting peanuts? You've been working all day go rest on the kang for a while." Xiao Lang looked up, his childish face bearing a maturity far beyond his years.

Mrs. Lan was undoubtedly proud of this outstanding son of hers. In the entire village, whose child at five years old could be this sensible?

Still, her son's maturity did not dispel the shock and anger in her heart.

Mrs. Lan pulled Xiao Lang aside, bent down, and asked, "Did you bully Ah Lan?"

A cold glint flashed in Xiao Lang's eyes, quickly concealed by his thick lashes. He pressed his lips together. "Mother, I didn't bully her. She was dirty, so I was giving her a bath. She accidentally choked on some water, grabbed me, and ran off." With that, he pulled down his pants, revealing three clear red scratches on his thigh—some of them already broken through the skin.

After Shu Lan had run off, Xiao Lang had thought things through carefully. Now she was his uncle and aunt's daughter. If he really killed her, the Shu family would be devastated. They had always been good to him, and he couldn't repay their kindness by making them sad. Hmph—revenge didn't have to mean killing someone. As long as he made sure she never had an easy life, that was enough.

That lazy girl was sure to tattle. To avoid a beating, Xiao Lang had deliberately scratched himself on the leg. His mother would definitely feel sorry for him.

And indeed, Mrs. Lan's heart ached at the sight. In fact, when she first saw her son washing Shu Lan's clothes, she had already believed he hadn't bullied her why else would he be helping? They were just little children, and it must have been a misunderstanding. And Ah Lan had always been such a delicate, fussy child...

Mrs. Lan had barely arrived when Xiao Shouwang and Shu Maoting came chasing after her. They too heard Xiao Lang's explanation and saw his injuries. Xiao Shouwang let out a sigh of relief, and Shu Maoting laughed and said, "I told you it was a misunderstanding. It's our fault for spoiling Ah Lan too much she overreacted. Look at Xiao Lang, even kindly washing Ah Lan's clothes. Truly, he's more considerate than a daughter!"

Although Mrs. Lan was no longer angry, she still gave Xiao Lang two smacks on the bottom. "Be more careful next time, don't scare Ah Lan again!"

"Mm." Xiao Lang nodded, but in his heart, he felt otherwise.

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Author's Thoughts: Ahem, the enemies have recognized each other and set their attitudes straight. Next chapter, it's time for them to grow up...