C13

Yang Muyun was eight years old.

Yang Qianqian was seven years old.

Spring.

It was a warm, sunny day and a pleasant day.

Yang Muyun was squatting beside a small stream, facing the river, looking at his childish little face.

He had been running madly for many days already. He did not know why he wanted to run, he only knew that his uncle, who had played with him for so many years, had told him to run before falling down.

He was an obedient child. If his uncle told him to run, he would run. His uncle was not an outsider. Moreover, his uncle even gave him a brocade sack.

But just now, Yang Muyun fell into the mud pool, so he was washing his face by the stream. He wanted to wash off all the dirt on his face.

"Ah, I've finally washed it clean." Yang Muyun said happily as he stood up.

Uncle only told him to run, he didn't say he couldn't rest, so it shouldn't be a problem to lie down for a while, right?

Thinking of this, Yang Muyun instantly fell asleep on the lawn.

After an unknown amount of time, Yang Muyun woke up. He suddenly saw a little girl in front of him.

The little girl had delicate features, carved jade, and a touch of beauty.

Wait, Yang Muyun shook his head, "Miss, you …."

Before he could finish, the little girl covered his mouth, "Little big brother, don't talk. They're here."

Just as he finished speaking, he heard the sound of horse hooves approaching. A pair of horses came from both the north and south.

However, they wore black armor and a pair of ordinary clothes.

At this moment, the soldiers in regular uniform met up with the black-armored soldier. The soldier in regular uniform asked, "Who's in front?"

The black-armored soldier replied, "Zhao Zhen!"

"Oh, could it be 'Black Blade' Zhao Zhen?"

"I am Zhao."

"My apologies." The uniformed soldier cupped his hands.

"May I know who brother is?" Zhao Zhen asked.

"This one is the imperial guards, Hu Tong. On His Majesty's orders, I pursue the fugitive." The uniformed soldier was extremely courteous.

"Brother Hu." Zhao Zhen also cupped his hands in response.

"Come on, brothers, move to the right. Make way for Grand Marshal Hu." Once Zhao Zhen shouted, the Black Armored Army immediately changed formation.

"Thank you Brother Zhao, we will meet again if fate allows." Hu Tong did not hold back and left while taking care of the troops behind him.

Zhao Zhen also passed through from the right side as if he didn't want to leave any more time behind.

As for them, they still hadn't seen Yang Muyun and the little girl lying on the grass on both sides of the road.

Yang Muyun and that little girl were a bit further away from them, so they didn't hear what they were saying.

They only saw that the two armies had met, muttered something to each other, and then separated.

At the same time, they also saw the complex expressions in each other's eyes.

The only difference was that Yang Muyun was a soldier, while the little girl was a soldier in black.

Yang Muyun stood up from the lawn and brushed off the dust on his body. He had slept for quite a while and the sky was about to turn dark. His uncle told him to never go home, so he had to find a place to temporarily stay.

At this moment, that unknown little girl tugged on Yang Muyun's sleeve.

Yang Muyun asked, "Is there anything else?" It's getting late, I have to go. "

The little girl shakily said, "Little big brother, I …" "I don't have a place to go, can I follow you …"

"Miss, I'm not some rich person, what's the good of following me? Let's hurry up and go home." Yang Muyun waved his hand and rejected her.

Yang Muyun couldn't go home now, since he had no fixed place to stay. He knew that if he brought a little girl with him, he would only be a burden.

Thus, although this little girl was very good-looking, he still rejected her.

Although Yang Muyun was still a child, he had learned to be calm and meticulous from his father, as well as to protect a good girl.

"I... I'm homeless, big brother is so good-looking, he will definitely protect me right? " The girl blinked, her eyes glistening with tears.

"Sigh …" "Alright then." Yang Muyun couldn't stand the sight of the girl crying the most, so he softened his heart, "What's your name?"

"I'm called Qian Qian, what's your name, little brother?" The little girl replied.

"My name is Yang Muyun." Yang Muyun simply answered, "Qianqian, don't you have a surname?"

"My father said that surname is very important. All of them have the surname of family. "

"Ah?" "Then I'll follow little brother from now on, I'll follow little brother's surname, okay? I'll be Yang Qianqian from now on."

"Alright, alright. I have another family member now."

Yang Muyun suddenly thought of something. He took out the brocade bag his uncle gave him before and opened it.

There were a few silver notes and a piece of paper filled with dense writing.

He unfolded the paper and started to read word by word. After reading just a small paragraph, he started to tremble all over and started to cry out loud.

At this moment, Yang Qianqian immediately came over and asked, "Little brother, what's wrong?"

After a while, Yang Muyun raised his head and ignored her. He wiped away his tears and continued to read the note.

After reading the note, Yang Muyun held it in his hand and said, "Qianqian, let's go."

His voice was icy cold.

Yang Qianqian trembled, "Where are you going?"

"Find a place to stay." Yang Muyun held Yang Qianqian's hand and walked away.

His eyes were currently filled with rage and hatred. He could no longer remain calm. He had instantly grown up.

"..."

Yang Muyun was eleven years old.

Yang Qianqian was ten years old.

Autumn.

The wind from the golden sky had already begun to blow colder. Many leaves began to fall down.

If someone were to carefully observe the inside of Yongan Town's bridge, they would definitely find that there was a simple door that was built inside the bridge.

Yang Qianqian hugged her blanket and curled up on top of it.

Ever since they met, she had been wandering all over the country. Even though they had saved a lot of money, they had still used up all of it.

They couldn't find a place to stay, so they stayed in the cave. They had been in Yongan for three months, and they had been living hard every day.

Yang Qianqian fell asleep out of boredom as she looked at the monotonous scenery in front of her.

At this time, in Yongan town.

"Stinking brat, you stole my steamed bun again, stop right there." A chef was shouting outside a bun house while holding a rolling pin.

Not far away from him, there was a little boy wearing a white robe running quickly.

This boy was Yang Muyun, and currently he was holding two meat buns.

It was obvious that he was the thief that the chef had mentioned and had stolen his steamed bun.

"Sigh …" "Forget it, it's just two steamed buns …" A man with a mountain beard and wearing a black daoist robe said.

From the looks of it, he should be a Daoist Priest with a bit of an immortal demeanor.

"It's not that I'm stingy, this is not the first time …" The cook sighed.

When the Daoist Priest heard this, he did not say anything.

Seeing that Yang Muyun had already run far away, the chef returned to his bun house.

Yang Muyun took the two steamed buns and ran all the way to the bottom of the bridge.

He knocked on the door familiarly. Yang Qianqian was awakened by the sound and cautiously asked, "Who is it?"

"Qianqian, it's me, Mu Yun." Yang Muyun gasped.

When Yang Qianqian heard the sound, she immediately pulled the wooden board aside and Yang Muyun walked in.

As soon as he entered, he stuffed the two buns into Yang Qianqian's hands.

"Come, Qianqian, this is something uncle Baobao gave us. Hurry and eat it."

"The uncle of this bun house is such a good person. He gives us buns every day."

Yang Muyun looked at the bun in Yang Qianqian's hand and gulped.

Yang Qianqian looked at him and passed him a bun, "You eat too."

Yang Muyun turned his head and patted his waist. There was a paper bag there, but he didn't know what was inside.

"Uncle Steamed Bun, every day, I'll take one for myself. If you're sick, I'll go out and eat. I won't disturb you." Yang Muyun said as he walked out.

As Yang Qianqian ate the steamed bun, she started to wonder what was going through her mind.

Yang Muyun went outside of the cave and built a fire. He placed the pot he picked up before on top of the fire, scooped up some water from the river and began to boil it.

The water started boiling, Yang Muyun scooped some out with a wooden bowl, shook it a bit, poured the water out and scooped another bowl.

This wooden bowl had been given to him by a kind aunt in a previous place, and he had kept it until now.

He carried the bowl of water into the cave and gave it to Yang Qianqian.

Yang Qianqian had just finished eating her bun, so she looked at Yang Muyun with a puzzled expression.

"You have a fever. Drink more hot water." Yang Muyun passed the water to her.

"Thank you." Yang Qianqian replied,

"Alright then, finish drinking the water and have a good night's sleep. I'm going into the town to look for food." Yang Muyun pushed open the door again and walked out.

Yang Qianqian nodded silently as she watched his back.

It was already afternoon. Yang Muyun walked under the sun.

He was sweating profusely. He didn't even have the time to use his sleeve to wipe off the sweat that was pouring from his forehead.

Fortunately, the town wasn't too far away, in less than an hour, Yang Muyun already walked on the street of Yongan town.

He looked around to make sure no one was paying attention to him before he felt his way to the bun house in the morning.

He looked out the door and saw the cook greeting the guests. He slipped inside and approached the steamer slowly.

As he thought about it, he decided to steal two steamed buns and keep his movements down. It would be best if he did not let anyone discover him.

However, just as he was opening the steamer and taking out a steamed bun, a voice came from behind him, "Yo, is my food delicious?"

Yang Muyun was shocked. He didn't even look back as he put the steamed bun into his pocket and ran.

The chef, however, had already expected this. He picked up Yang Muyun and said, "Little brat, run again!"

Yang Muyun grabbed the chef's hand and kicked his stomach. The chef felt pain and let go of Yang Muyun.

The moment Yang Muyun landed on the ground, before he could steady himself, he immediately started running.

"Stinking brat." The cook scolded and ran after her, calling for a few of the stewards in the bakery at the same time.

As Yang Muyun ran, he looked back at the distance between the chef and himself. Just like that, they continued to chase each other through the streets of Yongan Town.

Suddenly, Yang Muyun felt his foot tripped, and he instantly lost his balance and fell to the ground.

When the chef saw him fall, he called for someone to surround him. "Stinky brat, run. Why aren't you running anymore?"

The cook waved his hand. "Brothers, call me."

"..."

Within the bridge.

Yang Qianqian woke up from her dream and was covered in sweat.

She stood up weakly, pushed open the door, and looked at the sky.

Why had he not returned yet? Yang Qianqian couldn't help worrying about Yang Muyun.

Yang Qianqian walked out of the bridge and headed in the direction of Yongan town with this uneasiness.

Just as he arrived on the main street of Yongan town, he saw a group of people beating people up and some nasty words coming out of their mouths.

She stopped because she suddenly saw a hint of white in the middle of the crowd. It seemed to be the color of Yang Muyun's white robe.

"Big brother Mu Yun." Yang Qianqian quickly shouted.

"Qianqian, why are you here? Run." Yang Muyun's voice sounded.

After Yang Qianqian heard Yang Muyun's voice, she became even more anxious. She anxiously stopped a passerby and begged, "Uncle, can you stop them?"

The passerby only took a glance before leaving in a hurry.

She immediately grabbed a passing woman. "Auntie, can you stop them?"

The woman had no time to evade and quickly left.

Yang Qianqian begged a few more times, but none of them worked.

She walked up to stop them and said, "Stop fighting. You guys stop fighting."

The chef became impatient. "Where did this little girl come from? Don't be annoyed." Then, he was about to slap Yang Qianqian.

Ah!" Yang Qianqian shouted.

"Qianqian!" Yang Muyun heard her scream and tried his best to push away the people surrounding him. He saw that the chef was about to hit her.

Yang Muyun made a decision on the spot and pushed Yang Qianqian onto the ground. He protected her under him and used his back to protect the chef.

"Alright, brat. You still want to be the hero and save the beauty?" The chef said harshly, "Then I'll let you save him."

Another round of punches and kicks landed on Yang Muyun's body.

Yang Muyun endured the pain and smiled at Yang Qianqian.

Yang Qianqian's eyes were filled with tears.

"..."

As the sun was setting, Yang Muyun, supported by Yang Qianqian, limped to the river beside the bridge.

He looked at himself. He took a handful of water and wiped it on his face.

"Si!" Yang Muyun sucked in a breath of cold air. He discovered that there were some wounds on his hands and face, the moment it touched water, it would start to hurt.

Yang Qianqian hurried forward and asked, "Brother Mu Yun, how is it?"

"It's nothing." Yang Muyun slowly took out the steamed bun he stole.

"Big Brother Mu Yun, tell me the truth, did you get beaten up because you went to steal mantou?"

"Yes."

"Is that actually the truth? There's no kind Uncle Steamed Bun, did you steal all of our food?"

"Yes." Yang Muyun bitterly smiled, "We've become smarter."

"Big Brother Mu Yun, didn't you say before? A man must stand on his own two feet and not do things like this. "

"Promise me you won't ever go back, okay?"

"Alright, I promise Qianqian that I won't steal anything in the future." There's a teahouse in town that's recruiting workers, so I'm going to work to support myself. "

Yang Muyun passed the steamed bun to Yang Qianqian, "Hurry and eat."

Yang Qianqian looked at Yang Muyun, "Then what are you going to eat?"

Yang Muyun patted the paper bag on his waist, it was still bulging. What he wanted to say was self-evident.

He lowered his head again and continued to wash his face with water.

While Yang Muyun wasn't paying attention, Yang Qianqian pulled out the paper bag from his waist and opened it.

Yang Qianqian's tears fell down. There was nothing to eat in the bag, only a bunch of leaves and grass.

Yang Qianqian hugged Yang Muyun, "You …" "You lied to me."

"Alright, stop crying, it's just a few meals, isn't it? "Hungry to death." Yang Muyun patted on Yang Qianqian's head, "If you keep on crying, it won't be pretty anymore."

"It's the same with you every time. It was the same with Yanchang City." "For me, you were pushed down the hill by that rich kid. You also said that you were fine."

"And that time at the foot of the Qingcheng Mountains, you tried to make me happy by forcibly snatching the filming crew's torches. In the end, you were burned, and you said that you were fine."

"And …"

"For the past three years, you've been caring for me and helping me, but I've never done anything to help you …"

As she spoke, Yang Qianqian's tears flowed, "We obviously have nothing to do with each other, so why are you being so nice to me?"

Yang Muyun hugged Yang Qianqian tightly, "Because from the moment you called her Yang Qianqian, you were my family. My father said that family must be protected with their lives."

"We've shared the hardships of the past three years. Shouldn't I protect our sister?"

"You … "Would you like to be my sister in the future?" Yang Muyun nervously asked.

"I'm willing …" "Brother!" Yang Qianqian cried, "We will always be family, we will never part …"

"Alright, we'll always be family, never be apart …"

As Yang Muyun spoke, Yang Qianqian suddenly approached and kissed him.

Yang Muyun's face turned red as he slowly pulled her into his embrace.

The two of them tightly embraced each other in the sunset. They both found the warmth of home on each other's bodies.