Chapter 45: Entrustment

When Li Mu saw Aunt Ninth hesitating to speak several times, his eyes dimmed. After a moment’s thought, he set down his broom and walked over, taking her hand in his.

Before she could say anything, Li Mu smiled and said, “Auntie, Uncle Ninth will be all right. Even if something truly happens to him… it’s all right. From now on, the two of us will manage just fine together.”

“My own parents are gone now. You’re all I have left, Auntie. You can’t collapse. If you do, then I’ll truly be alone in this world.”

These words made Aunt Ninth tremble all over. After a long pause, her eyes grew moist as she bit her lip and nodded fiercely.

Yes, Old Ninth was gone.

But she still had Mu.

She could not fall apart.

Mu was a child with a hard fate—he had faced calamity, lost his father, and then his mother fell ill. For more than three months she lingered between life and death; just as she began to recover and hope returned, a tiger took her away. Now, as he finally found a trade and managed to stand on his own, disaster struck again—her own husband’s misfortune.

All day long, Li Mu had been rushing about; she had seen it all with her own eyes. Especially when he finally settled the accounts with the villagers, paying them with his own money… Others might not know, but how could she not? In her panic, she hadn’t the faintest idea what to do, nor did she have any money to give him. That was Mu’s own money! Yet he’d said it was from Old Ninth…

Such thoughtfulness and care…

A true son could be no more considerate.

Mu was a child of deep feeling and loyalty. If she collapsed, it would surely weigh on him, causing him even more worry and making her a burden. But how could she become that?

At that thought, her gaze grew resolute. At last, she took a deep breath. “Mu, wait here a moment…”

With that, and under Li Mu’s puzzled gaze, she returned to her room. Soon, she called out from inside, “Mu, come in.”

“Auntie?”

Li Mu stepped inside almost instinctively.

There he saw Aunt Ninth holding a small wooden box, which she handed to him.

Li Mu was startled, but reached out and took it. Inside were several large silver ingots and some paper notes.

Looking closer—

They were banknotes!

“Take this money, it’s what your uncle has brought home over the years. I’ve had no use for it in the village, so it’s quietly accumulated. You spent quite a lot today, didn’t you? I don’t understand matters outside, but from now on, with your uncle’s situation, you’ll have to handle many things. This money is for you—use it whenever you need,” Aunt Ninth said, pushing the box toward him.

Li Mu glanced at the thick stack of banknotes—each was for ten taels, and there must be two to three hundred taels at least.

There were also several large silver ingots.

And inside, even a small lump of gold, perhaps four or five taels in weight.

Altogether, the box must have held four to five hundred taels of silver!

Li Mu drew a sharp breath. Four or five hundred taels—in this era—was an immense sum.

Today, entertaining over two hundred guests, he had spent only five taels. True, some villagers had undercharged him, but it showed the purchasing power of the money.

Even if he shod horses for a year or two, he might not earn so much.

But he could not accept this. He quickly said, “No need, Auntie, keep the money. I’ve earned plenty from shoeing horses lately…”

Before he could finish, Aunt Ninth had already pressed the box into his hands, smiling. “I don’t know much about big principles, but you’re a good child—I trust you. From now on, it’s just the two of us. If I don’t give you this money, who else could I give it to? Just take it and be at ease.”

“But I—”

“That’s enough, off you go. I’m exhausted after these past days, and need to rest. You should get some sleep too.”

Before Li Mu could say another word, Aunt Ninth had ushered him out and closed the door.

Standing at the threshold, box in his arms, Li Mu stared in a daze for a long time. He gazed at the box, and at last let out a gentle sigh.

Though the box, mostly filled with banknotes, was not heavy in itself, it felt weighty in his embrace.

It was not the box that was heavy, but Aunt Ninth’s affection.

She had come to see him as her very own son.

Perhaps even more so…

Even families with some wealth would not entrust all their money to a son at his age, for him to manage.

After a long silence, Li Mu carried the box back to his small room. Sitting on the bed for a while, he took a deep breath; his gaze grew resolute.

What happened today had left him with an overwhelming sense of helplessness.

Had the village and the station not stood up for him, he might already have been forced to flee with Aunt Ninth.

It sounds easy, but “fleeing for one’s life”—why is “life” in the phrase at all?

No one leaves home unless utterly desperate.

Especially in this brutal world.

Martial arts, martial arts—the thought had crossed his mind countless times, yet until now, he had never truly taken the first step.

At first, the reason was simply lack of money; there was nothing he could do.

Later, he’d hoped Uncle Ninth might teach him—which would have been best.

But now, with Uncle Ninth’s fate uncertain, that path was closed.

He had only one choice left.

The county town. The martial arts hall!

The Hatchet Gang was a looming threat.

And perhaps…

Even the Clear River Society might become a danger!

If he could not quickly gain some fighting strength… who knew what new threats would appear?

He had tasted this helplessness once—never again!

At that thought, he looked down at the box in his arms.

Aunt Ninth’s affection was deep, but truthfully, this was also a timely rescue. He had just over a hundred taels to his name—not enough for his training needs.

But now, with Aunt Ninth’s support, everything was different.

He could finally throw himself into it, without reservation.

…

The next morning.

“Martial arts training?”

Aunt Ninth stared at Li Mu in shock, eyes wide with disbelief.

Li Mu nodded softly. “Yes.”

“But…”

She opened her mouth, but after uttering that single word, she could say no more.

“Uncle Ninth’s fate is unknown; the Hatchet Gang still eyes us like tigers. If I don’t learn martial arts, and Uncle Ninth truly comes to harm, who will avenge him? At most, the village might block the Hatchet Gang at our gates, but they would never go to the county town and cause trouble for them.”

If the Hatchet Gang came here to bully the villagers, everyone would unite against them—they wouldn’t stand by.

If they came for my family today, they might come for yours tomorrow. And with most of the village related by blood, how could they watch and do nothing?

Otherwise, everyone here would be oppressed to death, sooner or later.

Other villages come to help for the same reason.

But to leave the village, go to the county town, and fight a gang head-on… that was another matter entirely.

Especially not a major gang like the Hatchet Gang, with martial artists at their command—villagers would stand no chance.

Even facing a minor gang… it would still be impossible.