When they reached the bottom of the hill, a spring gushed from a crack in the rocks. By inserting a bamboo tube with one sharpened end, they could channel the water into their buckets.
Others fetched water with a shoulder pole and two buckets, filling them quickly and walking back swiftly.
But Hu Ma and Zhou Datong, this pair of sleeping dragon and young phoenix, only filled two buckets, then threaded the pole through the handles to carry them together.
Wobbling their way back to the Manor, they saw Cui Xie'er directing some boys on duty with odd jobs. When he saw the water they had brought filled less than a third of the water tank, his face turned cold, and he ordered them to fetch several more buckets.
They could only rest once the tank was full.
As these two sullenly left the Manor, he called over a nearby youth, "The vegetable plot in front of the Manor needs watering too."
"Take this water and go water the vegetables."
The few youths who were called over looked at each other in dismay; watering the winter radishes was usually a task everyone did together.
Realizing Cui Xie'er intended to give those two a hard time, one of them awkwardly said, "Brother Xie'er, why are you picking on them?"
"One's from the Clan Leader's family, the other from Granny's family..."
"Heh..."
Cui Xie'er sneered, "So what? Here, under the Second Master, skill is all that matters."
"I just can't stand their lazy attitude. They eat well and use good things, yet they don't put in any effort. If that's the case, that Blood Food would be better saved for us."
Seeing his stance, the other youths fell silent.
When Hu Ma and Zhou Datong carried their second load of water up and saw the water tank was empty, they understood what had happened.
Zhou Datong didn't dare speak inside the Manor, but once outside, he fumed, "This is too much! He's bullying us!"
"I feel like peeing in the bucket! Let him have a good drink of it!"
Hu Ma was startled and quickly said, "Don't you usually get your drinking water from this tank? Don't make things harder for yourself!"
"Then what should we do?"
Zhou Datong, fuming, said, "We can't beat him..."
"He's got genuine skills. Last time, even when I grabbed a weapon, he still beat me until I knelt and called him Brother Xie'er..."
Hu Ma looked at the naive Zhou Datong. I definitely won't end up like that, he thought. But after further reflection, he found he wasn't so sure.
He hadn't practiced martial skills much, though his progress with the stove fire was quick. But that was for exorcism and ghost-expelling, not for fighting people.
Just as he was pondering, a red shadow flashed nearby, and Hu Ma suddenly had an idea.
He stood the carrying pole upright and said to Zhou Datong, "You go fill the buckets first; I have something to do."
Zhou Datong nodded and went to fill the two large buckets.
Hu Ma, meanwhile, turned towards a nearby thicket of wild grass and said, "Come out, Little Hongtang."
A gust of yin wind blew, parting the wild grass. From behind a crooked Stele on the slope, Little Hongtang poked her head out, holding a basket covered with red cloth.
She had been bringing Hu Ma his meals recently. Wanting to avoid attention, Hu Ma had grown accustomed to eating outside the Manor. He sat on the hillside, opened the basket, and began eating the meat inside.
"What's Granny been up to?"
He asked curiously as he ate, "I haven't seen her around lately."
"Looking for someone..."
Little Hongtang said, playing by the Stele, "She found them, but they ran away again, so Granny went to look for them again."
She's so old, yet she has to help me cut the Tai Sui and also handle all these things...
A complex feeling stirred in Hu Ma's heart.
He sighed softly before asking, "Do you know a girl from the Cui Family named Cui E?"
"Little Hongtang knows! She was married off by the Mountain God!"
Hu Ma's interest was piqued. He pressed, "Was she really married away by the Mountain God? I heard the Cui Family wasn't too pleased."
"It's not Granny's fault!"
Little Hongtang pouted, climbing onto the Stele. "The Cui Family was cutting trees in the forest and found a golden grain. That was a betrothal gift from the Mountain God! Whichever family found it had to marry a daughter to him. Granny told the Cui Family to return anything they'd recently found, but they secretly kept a small piece. That's why Sister E was taken away by the Mountain God in the middle of the night."
"But when Granny said the Cui Family hadn't returned everything they found, they denied it and even accused Granny of lying."
"Is that so?"
Hu Ma listened, frowning slightly. "Then what about the Mountain God?"
"Granny drove it away."
Little Hongtang said, "It was an evil spirit from somewhere else. When Granny saw it had taken a life, she wouldn't let it stay. Later, Granny muttered several times that she should have dealt with it decisively from the start; then Sister E wouldn't have been killed by that fiend..."
No wonder people in the village haven't heard about it...
Hu Ma's eating slowed, a sense of injustice for Granny welling up inside him.
Then, thinking of Cui Xie'er's hostile glare, his anger intensified.
Our Granny has already been wronged by your family, and you still pick on me?
Suddenly, an idea struck him. He whispered to Little Hongtang, "Little Hongtang, are you afraid of the Second Master?"
Little Hongtang paused, then nodded vigorously. "Mhm!"
Hu Ma thought for a moment, then asked, "Are you afraid of anyone else? Like the people in the Manor?"
"Not afraid."
Little Hongtang seemed to consider it seriously. "They radiate warmth. Little Hongtang doesn't like getting close to them."
"But Little Hongtang isn't afraid."
"The Second Master can't be touched; touching him burns the hand. But they... they don't burn to the touch."
Then I understand... Hu Ma thought quietly. He picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks and suddenly said, "If that's the case, will you help me with something later?"
Little Hongtang looked up blankly, unsure what he intended.
Hu Ma dangled the meat from his chopsticks. "Do this well, and this piece of meat is yours!"
Little Hongtang's eyes instantly lit up, as if she'd brave any danger for it.
"We've hauled three loads and six buckets of water. Can we rest now?"
Back at the Manor, Hu Ma and Zhou Datong poured the water into the tank. It was still less than half full.
Normally, six buckets from these large pails should have filled the tank. But now, because water had been taken to irrigate the radishes, the amount looked pitifully low, not even enough for the midday meal preparation.
Cui Xie'er saw Hu Ma put down the carrying pole and head indoors. Anger flared within him. He slammed the firewood chopper in his hand down, glared at Hu Ma, and demanded, "Didn't I just tell you to fill the tank? Didn't you hear me?"
"It should have been full long ago under normal circumstances," Hu Ma said. "We poured in six buckets today, and it's still not full. I wonder if the tank is leaking. Should we flip it over and check?"
The surrounding youngsters all quietly raised their heads. Flip it over to check? Does that even make sense? they wondered.
Cui Xie'er gave an angry laugh. Twisting his wrists, he advanced. "You said you were injured and hadn't been practicing. Now that you can carry water, your injury must be healed, right? Since the Second Master isn't here today, I'd like to see what you've learned."
Hu Ma sighed. "Then bring it on!"
"Are they really going to fight?"
The surrounding youths buzzed with excitement and crowded around. Zhou Datong, however, saw the situation and quietly slipped to one side.
Cui Xie'er, seeing Hu Ma didn't back down, was somewhat surprised. Then, his heart hardened. "You asked for this! Don't go crying to the Second Master when you get hurt..."
The word "hurt" had barely left his lips when he lunged forward.
With the agility of a rabbit and the speed of a swooping falcon, he covered three or four meters in an instant, his fist carrying heavy force.
The surrounding youths gasped. "Hu Ma's in trouble! Brother Xie'er is going all out..."
"First he subdued one from the Clan Leader's family, and now he's taking on one from Granny's family. He's really something..."
THUD!
But just as everyone's hearts leaped into their throats, a chilling yin wind swept through the courtyard. Cui Xie'er, whose fist was about to connect with Hu Ma's face, suddenly tripped and fell flat on his face.
Only Hu Ma could see that Little Hongtang had suddenly appeared and grabbed Cui Xie'er's legs.
Nicely done! he silently praised Little Hongtang. He then rushed forward, signaling with his eyes for Little Hongtang to pull Cui Xie'er's legs apart, exposing the target between them. He aimed a kick.
After all, the Second Master said that with the black oil ointment, any injury can be treated, right?
I don't usually practice fighting moves, but I've carefully memorized the techniques Second Master taught!
And since we're fighting, there's no holding back. Don't you look down on me just because I'm the grandson of the Walking Ghost Granny?
Didn't you always say our Hu Family raises little ghosts?
Well, let me tell you, you guessed right!
As someone in his second life, he understood that one shouldn't actively seek trouble. It's best to avoid it if possible. But once it's unavoidable, it's better to take the initiative to resolve it.
The more proactive you are, the easier it is to find a Method.
Just consider this payback for that strip of cured meat in this morning's porridge, or... for the grievances Granny suffered?
"I'll kill you..."
Cui Xie'er, dizzy from the fall and feeling a sharp pain in his crotch—though strangely mixed with a fleeting, odd sensation of comfort—was both enraged and frantic. With a roar, he struggled to his feet, raising his fist high.
Hu Ma hastily retreated a few steps, but Cui Xie'er's punch didn't fall.
Slightly puzzled, he then saw Little Hongtang perched on Cui Xie'er's neck, her small hands covering his eyes.
None of the surrounding youths could see Little Hongtang. They only felt an inexplicable, dense yin qi fill the courtyard, making their hair stand on end. They were utterly bewildered. Cui Xie'er had tripped, sure, but why was he now spinning around like a headless fly?
It can even work like this? Little Hongtang is more useful than I'd thought! Hu Ma was pleasantly surprised.
Taking advantage of Cui Xie'er spinning in place, he darted forward and punched him in the stomach.
This Cui Xie'er was truly resilient; the kick to his groin seemed to have barely affected him. Hu Ma didn't dare hold back this time, putting all his strength into the punch. Unexpectedly, as he threw the punch, the stove fire within his lower abdomen was suddenly triggered.
Though unintentional, the force of his fist surged dramatically.
BANG!
With a loud sound, Cui Xie'er spat out a mouthful of blood and was sent flying like a broken sack. He crashed heavily against the courtyard wall, smashing a gap in it, and tumbled out of the courtyard.
"OOOH..."
The surrounding youths of the same age all gasped in unison, nearly sucking the courtyard dry of its cool air.
Little Hongtang, who had also been flung a few meters, saw she'd caused a disaster. She hastily scrambled to the ground, snatched up her basket, and vanished.
Hu Ma sucked in a breath, also surprised. He stood stunned for a few seconds before reacting, hurriedly running towards the outside of the wall and exclaiming, "How could you be so fragile?"
"Please don't die, Brother Xie'er..."