A Good Country Wife

"Whose reckless child is this, not watching where he’s going, barreling through like a headless fly?" Zhao Erhu cursed irritably as he hurriedly put down what he was holding and helped Lin Yue get up. He normally wouldn’t be so aggressive, picking a fight with a kid in clothes, but who asked for this little boy to bump into his own wife, and it seemed that his little wife took quite a hard fall, so Zhao Erhu couldn’t help but start scolding."

The little boy knew he was at fault and wanted to apologize to the pretty sister in front of him, but when Zhao Erhu shouted like that, he got really angry, "You’re the one not watching where you’re going! I am one of the gallant men from Longhu Mountain. Dare to speak to me like this, and I’ll make sure you learn your lesson."

While speaking, the little boy picked up the bundle that had fallen to the ground during the collision. He seemed to be about eight or nine years old, clever and mischievous. His clothes were somewhat worn, clearly not the child of a wealthy family, but his tone was full of bravado. Clearly, he admired the bandits of Longhu Mountain greatly, which was why he kept calling himself ’One of the gallant men from Longhu Mountain’."

Everyone in Longmen Town knew the score, but they all conducted their business in secret. If the government caught wind of such talk, it would be a serious crime. Who knows who this little boy really is, daring to speak so carelessly about such taboo subjects? His family hasn’t instructed him properly. If someone with ill intentions overheard him, there could be serious trouble."

"You bump into someone and still have the nerve to talk back? Believe it or not, I will beat you up!" Zhao Erhu, seeing that the little boy was not only unapologetic but also talking back, was getting quite annoyed.

"Bullying the young because you’re older, shameless! Go ahead and hit me! I will definitely have my brothers take revenge for me." The little boy was indeed tough, speaking boldly, not in the least bit scared by Zhao Erhu. Indeed, he had guts, for even at home, Dalang and the others were somewhat intimidated by Zhao Erhu.

Lin Yue dusted off the dirt from her clothes and quickly stepped in to mediate, "Alright, stop fighting! Brother Erhu, don’t worry, I just fell lightly, I’m fine. He’s just a child and ran into me by accident. Why pick a quarrel with him?"

"Little guy, why the rush? Where’s your family? You can’t just blurt out stuff like that, otherwise, if someone from the government heard it, they could lock you up, understand?"

The little boy obviously responded better to a soft approach. Seeing Lin Yue speak so softly and reasonably, he lowered his defenses at once; his own brother had warned him as much. He had only spoken the way he did because he had lost his temper earlier.

"Big sister, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do it, I was just running too fast and ran into you. But this uncle is really annoying." The little boy quickly admitted his mistake and apologized to Lin Yue, though his attitude towards Zhao Erhu was still unfriendly.

Zhao Erhu, listening on the side as the little boy called Lin Yue sister and him uncle, kept a sour look on his face. Was he really that old? His little wife often called him an old man too, making it seem like she was criticizing him for being older. This wouldn’t do.