Chapter 25: The World’s Best Sword is Indeed a Good Sword

Bunny.

Mount Lingchang was a place of outstanding natural beauty, and Lingchang Village was blessed with simple, honest folk. From the moment Cheng Huan and Mu Ge left Mount Lingchang, they had been living in the village. The Village Chief and the villagers were all very friendly and warm-hearted toward them, preparing three meals a day and hot water without fail.

Normally, Lingchang Village did have outside visitors. As the Village Chief had said, hunters or tenant farmers from other villages passing through would often stay the night, and traveling merchants would stop in the village to ask for a drink of water.

Mu Ge’s right leg had healed over three or four days. She could basically walk on her own without support. Though she couldn’t run or jump yet, a slow walk was perfectly fine.

Cheng Huan was bored staying in the village, so she began teaching the village children some martial arts moves and self-defense techniques.

After all, scum like human traffickers were rampant in both modern and ancient times.

“Steady your Horse Stance. Sink your Qi to the Dantian.” Cheng Huan adjusted Shitou’s shoulder. “Don’t hunch your shoulders. Sink them, pull in your stomach. Inhale through the nose, exhale through the mouth.”

Shitou’s face was twisted in a grimace, complaining bitterly, “Sister Cheng, I’m so tired!”

“Normal. Learning martial arts is tiring.” Cheng Huan took a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from Shitou’s forehead. “Don’t you think reading books is easier?”

Shitou’s expression grew even more pained. “Then I’d rather practice martial arts.”

Cheng Huan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “How spineless. How great is it to be skilled with both pen and sword? Look at Lianti. She’s a year younger than you. A little girl, yet her Horse Stance is steadier than yours, and her homework is better. Don’t you feel ashamed?”

Shitou pouted. “Sister Lianti really is better than me. I don’t feel ashamed. I’m happy and proud for her.”

“Who needs you to be proud?” Cheng Huan kicked Shitou’s calf lightly. “Don’t tremble. Stay still.”

“Sister Cheng, I can’t hold it anymore.” Shitou’s face was on the verge of tears.

Cheng Huan glanced at the setting sun on the horizon. “When the sun goes down, you can rest.”

Shitou grumbled pitifully, “My mother told me the more beautiful a woman is, the more ruthless her heart. That saying really is true.”

Cheng Huan: “…”

I’ll take that as a compliment.

She walked over to Lianti. The little girl’s fair, clean face was flushed red and covered in sweat.

Cheng Huan wiped her face for her. “You can rest now. You don’t need to wait until sunset like Shitou.”

Lianti shook her head. “It’s fine, Sister Cheng. I can hold on.”

Cheng Huan patted Lianti’s head, satisfied, then looked at Shitou with a sense of disappointment. “Straighten your back!”

Shitou was so tired he was about to cry. He looked straight ahead and, seeing someone approaching, immediately cried out for help. “Sister Mu, save me! I’m dying of exhaustion!”

Cheng Huan turned around and saw Mu Ge walking over. She glanced at Mu Ge’s right leg. “It’s healing really well.”

Last time, Doctor Zheng had said the recovery period would be a month and left several prescriptions. Later, Mu Ge had written her own prescription and asked a villager to help buy the ingredients. Her medicine was much more effective than Doctor Zheng’s.

In less than half a month, Mu Ge could walk freely and even manage a little jump or two.

Mu Ge smiled. “I can’t ruin the reputation of my Fanli Clan.”

The Fanli Clan was the most renowned Medical Valley under heaven, famous for its ability to “bring the dead back to life and cure any disease.” A mere fracture was child’s play for the Fanli Clan and Mu Ge.

Cheng Huan gave her a thumbs up. “Amazing, Little Divine Doctor.”

Mu Ge raised her chin, smiling with pride and smug satisfaction.

She walked over and took out the sweet soup and pastries from her bamboo basket. “Stop practicing. Come have some sweets.”

“What did you make today?”

Mu Ge said, “Lotus Seed Soup and Poria Cake.”

Cheng Huan took the bowl of Lotus Seed Soup Mu Ge offered and took a sip. “Sweet but not cloying, smooth and refreshing. Not bad.”

“Eat more if you like it. I brought a lot,” Mu Ge said, then looked at Shitou and Lianti. “Stop practicing, you two. Come eat.”

Neither of them dared to move. Shitou cast a pleading look at Cheng Huan, then at Mu Ge, blinking rapidly for her to save him.

Mu Ge received Shitou’s distress signal. She glanced at Cheng Huan, noticing sweat on her forehead from the heat. She took a handkerchief from her bosom and wiped the sweat from Cheng Huan’s forehead.

The first few times Mu Ge had wiped her sweat, Cheng Huan had been a little uncomfortable. But later, Mu Ge simply ignored her refusals and persistently continued to wipe her sweat and fan her. After doing it many times, Cheng Huan stopped paying attention and let her, since she was the one being served.

“Cheng Huan, they’ve been practicing all day. They should have some sweets to replenish themselves. They can’t over-train. Let them rest a while, okay?”

Cheng Huan bit into a Poria Cake. “Alright, rest. Come eat.”

Mu Ge smiled faintly.

Shitou ran over joyfully, cradled the bowl of Lotus Seed Soup, and gulped it down. Lianti, on the other hand, took her time, eating slowly and carefully. The two of them were as different as night and day.

Mu Ge took out the bamboo fan from her basket and fanned Cheng Huan, then asked Shitou, “You learned the Horse Stance today?”

Shitou’s mouth was full as he mumbled, “Mm-hmm, did Horse Stance all day. My legs are about to fall off.”

Mu Ge said, “You must build a solid foundation before you can master martial arts.”

Shitou pouted. “Sister Mu always sides with Sister Cheng. She doesn’t care about me at all.”

His dark, beady eyes darted back and forth between Mu Ge and Cheng Huan. He joked, “I feel like Sister Cheng and Sister Mu are just like a married couple!”

“Cough, cough, cough…” Cheng Huan choked on a mouthful of Lotus Seed Soup at this child’s innocent words. “Cough… Do you think the training wasn’t tough enough, since you still have the energy to tease your Sister Mu and me?”

Lianti had been secretly laughing, but upon hearing Cheng Huan’s threat, she immediately lowered her head and focused on her pastry.

Shitou quickly waved his hands and apologized. “I won’t say it anymore! I won’t!”

Mu Ge patted Cheng Huan’s back, a sly glint flashing in her eyes. “I actually think Shitou is right. Every day, I wash your clothes, cook your meals, wipe your sweat, and fan you. Aren’t those the things a wife does for her husband?”

Shitou and Lianti heard this and both secretly laughed out loud.

Cheng Huan glared at the two of them, then turned to Mu Ge helplessly. “You’re joining their nonsense too?”

Mu Ge tilted her head. “What part do you think I said wrong?”

“Have I not washed your clothes, cooked your meals, or wiped your sweat and fanned you?”

Cheng Huan: “…”

Good heavens, she had clearly refused all of these things! It was Mu Ge who insisted on doing them. Cheng Huan just hadn’t bothered to argue about it anymore!

“Or could it be that Cheng Huan isn’t satisfied with what I do now?” Mu Ge’s eyes darted, then she had a look of sudden realization. “Actually, thinking carefully, Shitou was right. We missed the most important step.”

The three of them looked over in unison. “What step?”

Mu Ge looked at Cheng Huan with great interest, carefully observing her expression. “We haven’t even performed the wedding bows yet, and I’m already doing all this for you. This is far too much of a loss for me.”

“Cheng Huan, when do you plan to give me a proper title?”

Cheng Huan’s eyes widened. “…”

Big sister! What crazy talk are you spouting?

There are children here!

Lianti blushed and lowered her head with a smile.

Shitou clapped his hands and started cheering. “A wedding! A wedding! Sister Cheng is going to marry Sister Mu as her wife!”

Mu Ge felt incredibly shy saying this. Her heart was pounding violently, as if about to burst.

Ever since Cheng Huan had had an honest talk with her the other day, Mu Ge had not tried to manipulate Cheng Huan again. She began to open her heart, interacting with Cheng Huan purely and honestly. She also believed that Cheng Huan would keep her promise to save her life.

During the time they were recuperating in Lingchang Village, Mu Ge realized that she truly relied on Cheng Huan for everything.

She played the fool knowingly, and Cheng Huan tolerated her gently.

During this period, Mu Ge lived each day happily and joyfully. She even thought that after taking her revenge, if she could return with Cheng Huan to settle down in Lingchang Village and spend their lives together, that would be wonderful.

Mu Ge’s words just now sounded like teasing, but the moment she said them, she felt excited and nervous. The hand holding the fan was already sweaty, and the heat rising to her cheeks made her mind feel hazy.

She was afraid Cheng Huan would be angry at this teasing, but she wanted even more to know what Cheng Huan’s attitude was toward it.

Cheng Huan paused, not expecting Mu Ge to joke with her like this.

The Mu Ge of this moment had a bit of the spirit and liveliness that a girl her age should have, unlike the one from days before, who had been scheming revenge at any cost, weeping silently in the dead of night, and looking thoroughly spiritless and gloomy.

The corner of Cheng Huan’s lips curved upward slightly, and she teased her back. “What title do you want?”

Mu Ge nervously gripped the fan handle. “Does that mean you’ll give me whatever I ask for?”

“What do you say?”

Mu Ge was bold. “A formal wedding and a proper procession, the position of principal wife. How about that?”

Cheng Huan raised an eyebrow and waved her hand grandly. “Granted.”

Mu Ge’s eyes smiled, but her heart secretly trembled. She knew Cheng Huan was just playing along with what she thought was a joke. But to the speaker, the words were lighthearted, while to the listener, they carried a deeper, more meaningful weight.

Shitou started up his mischief again. “Yay! The village is going to have another celebration! I want to eat big pork elbows, pig trotters…”

Cheng Huan slapped him on the back of the head. “First, get your Horse Stance right, or else you’ll be drinking the northwest wind!”

Shitou’s face fell, and he miserably bit into his Poria Cake.

Lianti asked cautiously, “If I get the Horse Stance right, will there be meat to eat?”

Although the villagers of Lingchang weren’t poverty-stricken, they couldn’t eat meat every day. They only got to eat oily dishes during festivals. And each household’s old hens were kept to lay eggs and make money.

Cheng Huan touched Lianti’s hair and smiled, “That’s right. If you train well, there’ll be meat to eat. Whatever meat you want, I’ll buy it for you.”

Lianti grinned. “Okay, I’ll work hard.”

Shitou’s enthusiasm surged at the mention of meat. “I’ll work hard too! I want meat too!”

“Alright—”

After the four finished the Lotus Seed Soup and pastries Mu Ge brought, Cheng Huan led Shitou and Lianti in a bit more Horse Stance practice. Mu Ge sat under a tree, waiting for them.

She casually plucked a few stalks of Fluffy Grass and idly began weaving them.

Cheng Huan didn’t make Shitou and Lianti practice too long. When she saw the sun had set and the sky was getting dark, she let them go home.

The moment Shitou heard he could go home, he immediately pulled Lianti and bolted toward the village. He ran off faster than a bunny, as if afraid Cheng Huan would call them back for more Horse Stance.

Cheng Huan was about to call Mu Ge to go home together when she turned and saw Mu Ge under the tree, weaving something with the Fluffy Grass.

“What are you weaving?”

Mu Ge looked up, smiling brightly. “I’m weaving my betrothal gift.”

Cheng Huan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Still going on with this?”

Mu Ge blinked. “But I’m taking it seriously.”

“Alright,” Cheng Huan played along. “Let me see. What is this carefully prepared betrothal gift of yours?”

“Wait a moment. I’m almost done.”

Cheng Huan leaned against the tree, crossing her arms.

Mu Ge sped up, finishing the final touches. She jumped to her feet, her eyes curved like crescent moons. “It’s done.”

Cheng Huan noticed the hint of childish baby fat still lingering on her cheeks.

It wasn’t very pronounced, but when she smiled broadly, it showed a little outline, making her look even more lively and cute.

She raised an eyebrow. “Let’s see?”

Mu Ge held the object in her hands up to Cheng Huan’s eyes with a mysterious air. “Look! Isn’t it cute?”

It was a little bunny woven from grass.

Cheng Huan froze for a brief moment, then took the bunny. A smile touched her lips, hiding a faint, hard-to-detect trace of nostalgia. “Cute.”