Volume One, Chapter 16: The Old Rules—Truly Frightening!

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Yao Village Ancestral Hall.

About thirty people from Shangye Village had gathered together, facing forty or fifty from Yao Village.

The atmosphere was somewhat tense.

That this matter had to be discussed inside the ancestral hall already showed the old village chief’s attitude and the seriousness of the situation.

At the same time, Yao Jian and the others braced themselves and stepped into the hall.

In an instant, nearly a hundred villagers inside turned their eyes sharply toward them.

The old village chief, Yao Jinchun, leaned on his cane and fixed his cold gaze on Yao Jian, who had entered first. His voice was deep and stern as he asked, “Yao Jian, I ask you now as the village chief of Yao Village: when you were in the mountains, did you try to snatch the roe deer that Xu Heizi from Shangye Village had hunted?”

“Village Chief, please listen to me. It’s not what you think.”

“Then tell us, what is it then?”

The old village chief was willing to give Yao Jian and the others a chance. If the people from Shangye Village were just making baseless accusations, then holding this meeting in the ancestral hall wouldn’t have been for nothing.

“Village Chief, we were just joking with Heizi back then. We never expected he would take it seriously,” Yao Jian swore earnestly. “Village Chief, I, Yao Jian, am one of the most rule-abiding men. How could I truly snatch the deer Heizi hunted?”

The old village chief nodded slightly and turned to Xu Mo. “Heizi…”

Before the chief could finish, Xu Mo stepped forward, surveying Yao Jian and the others coldly. “Master Yao, I know the customs of the neighboring villages well. You are the most principled man around. That’s exactly why I came to Yao Village today. Master Yao, the situation back then can no longer be clarified.”

“As long as Yao Jian and his group insist it was just a joke with me, what else can I say?”

“I’m stepping forward now to ask, Master Yao, are the mountain rules still to be upheld?”

The old village chief fell silent. Just as Xu Mo said, as long as Yao Jian and the others refuse to admit the truth, the matter cannot be resolved.

“Rules are rules. Once you enter the mountains, no matter who you are, you must abide by them. Those who break the rules will be dealt with according to village regulations,” the old chief declared.

“Good!”

Xu Mo nodded, staring at the old chief. “With Master Yao’s words, that is enough. As for whether Yao Jian and the others were joking with me, everyone has their suspicions. Whether you choose to punish them is a family matter for Yao Village; it’s none of my business.”

He cupped his hands toward the old chief in salute, then turned to Xu Datou. “Big Brother Datou, let’s go. I believe Master Yao understands clearly and knows how to handle this.”

Yao Jian cursed Xu Mo silently for his cunning, realizing he had put the old chief in a difficult position.

The old chief watched Xu Mo stride out of the hall without hesitation and thought, “That little bastard is sly indeed.”

After the thirty or so people from Shangye Village left the hall, the old chief narrowed his eyes and eyed Yao Jian coldly. “Now that the outsiders have gone, tell the truth.”

Yao Jian tried to keep hiding the facts, but Yao Aiguo beside him couldn’t hold back. “Village Chief, this time we broke the rules. We accept the punishment.”

“Good, that’s the spirit of a Yao Village man—admit your mistakes.”

The old chief strode forward and stared at Yao Aiguo. “Take off your clothes!”

In this cold weather, really taking off clothes could lead to catching a cold, but the old chief was resolute.

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Yao Aiguo gritted his teeth and quickly took off his coat and inner shirt in front of everyone, revealing his thin chest.

The old chief walked behind Yao Aiguo and raised his cane.

“Whack!”

The cane struck Yao Aiguo’s back hard, causing him to gasp sharply.

The villagers present wore complicated expressions but no one spoke up to stop it. Even Yao Aiguo’s father just clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

Three strokes in a row left Yao Aiguo’s back raw and bleeding.

“Put your clothes back on!” the old chief said as he turned to look at the pale and trembling Yao Jian. “You scoundrel, breaking the rules and refusing to admit it—tonight you will kneel in the ancestral hall and tomorrow when the clan genealogy is compiled, this matter will be recorded.”

“Old Chief, no, please don’t!” Yao Jian’s mother panicked and fell to her knees.

If this went into the clan genealogy, it would be a disgrace that lasted a lifetime.

Meanwhile, Xu Mo and the others returned triumphantly to Shangye Village.

“Heizi, do you think Yao Jian and the others will be punished?” Xu Datou asked.

Xu Mo smiled and replied, “If you did something like this and everyone made a fuss in the village, how do you think the village chief would handle it?”

“Surely I’d be beaten half to death… my father might even disown me.”

…

Back in the village, Xu Mo distributed the venison and carried two pounds of it home himself.

After a whole day’s effort, only two pounds of venison—somewhat unprofitable.

Returning to the mud-brick house, Xu Mo was surprised to see two dishes on the low table: one plate of wolf meat and a basin of pickled vegetables.

“Where did this pickled vegetable come from?” Xu Mo asked instinctively.

The madwoman sitting by the table tilted her head and looked at Xu Mo.

Just as Xu Mo thought she wouldn’t answer, she suddenly said, “Sister-in-law brought it.”

Sister-in-law?

Xiao Cui?

Xu Mo tossed the two pounds of venison onto a wooden tray and sat beside the madwoman, smiling. “You know Sister-in-law?”

“Sister-in-law told me to call her that.”

Alright then!

The madwoman was merely repeating what Xiao Cui had told her.

“Eat!” The madwoman pointed at the wolf meat on the low table.

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“Let’s eat together!” Xu Mo smiled and picked up his chopsticks.

About ten minutes later, after a satisfying meal, Xu Mo stepped out of the mud-brick house and resumed his horse stance.

Today in the mountains, after less than half a minute fighting against Yao Jian and the others, Xu Mo already felt somewhat exhausted.

This body’s physical training still needed to be strengthened.

Training is training, combat is combat—they can’t be equated.

While Xu Mo stood in horse stance, Xiao Cui, heavily pregnant, came from the front yard.

Seeing Xu Mo, Xiao Cui quickly lowered her head and dashed into the mud-brick house, clutching something in her arms.

Xu Mo didn’t pay much attention and continued practicing his military-style boxing.

Two or three minutes later, Xiao Cui came out of the house, avoiding Xu Mo’s gaze.

Curious about her purpose, Xu Mo stopped and walked inside.

“Pancakes?”

Xu Mo looked surprised at two pancakes on the low table.

Did the old Xu family still have coarse noodles?

Impossible!

“Eat!” The madwoman picked up a pancake and handed it to Xu Mo.

Xu Mo smiled and shook his head. “I just ate. I can’t eat more now. Put it away for tomorrow.”

The sky darkened.

Since there was still some food, Xu Mo naturally wouldn’t risk going into the mountains at night.

In this era, in this season, there was simply no entertainment.

As night fell, Xu Mo helped the madwoman wash her face, then held her close, wrapped in a quilt, and drifted into sleep.

He didn’t know how long he had slept when he was suddenly awakened by the sound of hurried gongs and drums outside.

“What’s going on?”

Listening to the urgent beating of gongs and drums, Xu Mo’s expression turned strange. He slipped out of bed, put on his cotton coat, and looked at the madwoman, who was also awakened. “You keep sleeping; I’ll go see what’s happening!”