After Gong Ze left with Shuisheng, not far from Lu Youling’s house, he encountered that same group of rural loafers again.
They were craning their necks, peering toward the earthen house. When they saw Gong Ze, they averted their gaze, pretending nothing was wrong.
Gong Ze frowned.
After returning to the Gong residence, still worried about Lu Youling’s safety, he called Shuisheng into the room and said, “Shuisheng, can Second Master trust you?”
Shuisheng straightened up with a jolt and said earnestly, “You can rest assured, Second Master. I may not have been with you long, but from the moment I met you, I could tell you’re a man of great ability. I’m willing to stay by your side. Whatever you need me to do, just give the order. I promise my lips will be as tight as if I had no mouth at all.”
At just sixteen, Shuisheng was clever and sharp-witted.
His parents had been servants of the Gong family in the early years. After he was born, he became a household servant as well.
Even though the Reform and Opening Up had already begun, life in the countryside hadn’t changed much from the old days. They were still the Gong family’s servants, living in the Gong household from birth to death, with no home of their own.
Shuisheng didn’t want to live like this forever.
He wanted to leave Fenshan Village, see the big outside world, and have a life of his own.
But neither the old woman nor the eldest Gong son had ever seen any way out beyond being servants.
The day Gong Ze returned, Shuisheng had a feeling—his chance had arrived.
So he served Gong Ze loyally, striving to make Gong Ze see his value.
Now that Gong Ze was suddenly speaking to him like this, Shuisheng realized that at last, there was a place for him to prove himself. He immediately swore that he was absolutely on Gong Ze’s side.
Gong Ze looked satisfied. “Tonight, after the household lights go out, I need to leave and go to Miss Lu’s place. You will pretend to be me, stay in my room, and handle any unexpected situations. Can you do that?”
Shuisheng’s eyes widened in shock at Gong Ze’s words. “You and Miss Lu—”
“I can!” After his initial surprise, Shuisheng realized what he was being asked to do and found it both thrilling and exciting. His eyes sparkled with excitement as he quickly agreed. “I can do it, Second Master! I’ll take care of it!”
“Good.”
Seeing this, Gong Ze smiled and placed five silver dollars on the table. “This is your reward. If you do well, I’ll take you with me when I leave Fenshan Village.”
Five silver dollars was enough to stir anyone’s heart—not to mention that Gong Ze’s promise afterward made Shuisheng’s face flush with excitement.
“Second Master, Shuisheng will not let you down!”
“Mm.”
That night, after the lights of the Gong household were extinguished, Gong Ze changed into a black outfit. Taking advantage of the darkness, he quietly left the Gong residence. Using the cover of night, he made his way along the small paths until he reached Lu Youling’s earthen house.
The window of the earthen house was dark. Lu Youling had already put out the light.
But he hadn’t slept. He sat fully dressed on the long wooden bench, waiting anxiously.
When he heard rustling sounds from the back door, Lu Youling quickly stood up. He quietly pushed open the room door and went into the yard. Carefully, he asked in a low voice, separated by the back door’s wooden panels, “Who is it?”
“Me.”
Gong Ze’s voice came from outside.
Overjoyed, Lu Youling quickly pulled open the latch and let him in.
After vaguely making out Gong Ze’s handsome face in the darkness, Lu Youling’s heart pounded with excitement. His face instantly flushed red, and he hugged him tightly.
The night and the thrill of their secret rendezvous left both of them extremely agitated.
“Let’s go inside first.”
Gong Ze wrapped an arm around him and whispered in his ear.
“Mm…”
Lu Youling nodded shyly. The two silently slipped into the house in the darkness, pulled the door shut, and then, unable to hold back any longer, embraced each other and kissed passionately.
When the kiss ended, they held each other close, catching their breath in heaving gasps as they exchanged whispers.
“Were you bothered by anyone after I left?” Gong Ze asked.
“No.”
The buttoned clasp at Lu Youling’s collar had already come undone. Tormented by Gong Ze’s large, kneading hands, his toes curled. His body went soft as he hung onto Gong Ze, a hint of coquettishness coloring his voice.
At the same time, afraid that Gong Ze might notice something off, he quickly took hold of Gong Ze’s hand and said, “I’m a bit small down there. You don’t mind, do you?”
In the darkness, he could hear Gong Ze’s breath against his ear. Shyly, because of his words, Gong Ze said, “No… You wandered outside for so long, your body must have been depleted. It’s fine. Just eat more good food to nourish yourself from now on.”
Lu Youling realized that Gong Ze simply thought he had a small chest and hadn’t suspected his gender. Relieved, he sweetly wrapped his arms around the man’s waist and snuggled up to him.
Gong Ze couldn’t help but keep kissing his face.
“Alright, stop tempting me. Do you… do you even know how poor a man’s self-control is at a time like this? What if—”
Lu Youling, overjoyed, clung to him and said, “I’m not afraid of that ‘what if.’”
Hearing his bold remark, a helpless sigh came from the man above him.
Suddenly, Lu Youling remembered something. “Oh, by the way, where are you sleeping tonight? I only have one set of bedding here.”
Gong Ze hesitated, then said ruefully, “…Forgot about that. I’ll just lean against the edge of the bed tonight. Tomorrow I’ll bring another blanket.”
“But you’ll freeze!”
“Would my back even survive sitting up all night? Why don’t you just share mine?”
Gong Ze was nearly undone by Lu Youling’s innocence. He rubbed Lu Youling’s cheek and said with amusement, “How can a young woman be this bold? Saying such unashamed things. We’re not married, we don’t have a certificate—how can we sleep together?”
Lu Youling knew perfectly well that he was a boy and wasn’t afraid at all. He said, “Why not? We’ll keep our clothes on.”
Gong Ze replied, “Even with clothes on, it’s not right…”
If friction sparked a fire, what could two layers of pants really stop?
“Gong Er~~”
Newly together, even a single glance could set them ablaze.
They fell into another kiss, tumbling onto the bed, tangled together. Just as the temperature in the room continued to rise, a faint sound of voices suddenly came from outside.
Gong Ze’s eyes sharpened instantly. He raised a finger to press against Lu Youling’s lips. “Shh…”
Lu Youling’s eyes darted around as he pricked up his ears to listen.
As they fell silent, the voices outside became clearer. They were clearly the voices of several men.
Curled up in Gong Ze’s arms, Lu Youling immediately tensed up.
He hadn’t expected that on his very first night here, someone would actually come climbing over his courtyard wall. Weren’t these people way too bold?
“Don’t be afraid.” Gong Ze pressed him down, leaning close to his ear, and whispered, “You stay inside. I’ll go out for a bit. I’ll be right back.”
With that, he moved to get up.
Panicked, Lu Youling grabbed him. “What are you going to do?!”
Gong Ze was just a gentle, educated man. What if he went out and got hurt?
“It’s fine. Trust me.”
Gong Ze patted his back and walked out despite Lu Youling’s attempts to stop him.
Frantic but afraid to raise his voice, Lu Youling hurried after him. He watched Gong Ze circle to the back door, push it open, and step outside.
Just as he was at a loss, a head suddenly appeared over the courtyard wall, scaring Lu Youling so much that cold sweat broke out instantly.
After squinting in the darkness for a long time, he realized the person was a stranger.
The man didn’t know Lu Youling wasn’t in the house. He craned his neck, peering toward the window, not spotting Lu Youling.
Lu Youling didn’t dare move.
He gritted his teeth, searched around for a while, found a rock, picked it up, and quickly hid by the back door, looking for Gong Ze’s figure.
On the other side.
Three men wrapped in cotton jackets lurked furtively outside Lu Youling’s courtyard wall.
“Why did that little widow go to sleep so fast? I was hoping to see her bathe. What a letdown. I’ve frozen my ass off for nothing.”
“I’m thinking of climbing in for some fun. You two dare to come with me?”
“That little widow is so pale and delicate, it’s maddening. She’s got no family, no husband, living all alone out here. Even if we do something to her, would she dare tell anyone? If she did, she’d be the one ruined. Who would want a woman who’s been violated?”
“And besides, she’s still a virgin. The eldest Gong son died early—never got to touch her.”
“If we could also squeeze some money out of her…”
After he finished speaking, the other two showed tempted expressions.
“If you dare, so do we.”
“Let’s go!”
The one leading the way wore a lecherous grin. “You cover her mouth, you pull down her pants. I’ll go first, then you two can take turns. I’ve never had a virgin before.”
The other two felt a pang in their groins just thinking about it.
“Hurry up. Damn, my dick’s about to explode.”
The three men began climbing over the courtyard wall.
Just then, the leader’s clothes were yanked hard. Caught off guard, he fell off the wall.
“Ouch—” He grunted, then quickly covered his mouth, terrified of being discovered. He cursed at the other two, “Which one of you did that? Fuck, why’d you grab me while I was climbing?”
Both of the others thought the other had done it. “Who grabbed you?” / “It’s pitch black—an accident, I guess.”
“Shit.”
The leader swore a string of curses. Just as he was about to get up, a hand suddenly reached out from behind and pressed down on his shoulder.
The man shuddered with fear. A flurry of ghost stories from folklore flashed through his mind.
Trembling, he opened his mouth and turned his head in terror. The next second, a fist enlarged in his pupils and slammed hard into the bridge of his nose.
“Ahhh—”
The leader let out a miserable howl, clutching his nose and rolling on the ground.
The other two were startled. They quickly jumped down from the wall and shouted in the darkness, “What happened? What the hell? Why are you screaming? Don’t let anyone find us!”
But soon, they too were punched.
They clutched their stomachs, writhing in agony, wishing they could roll on the ground.
Finally, the three of them realized—shit, someone was here!
Furious, they hissed through their teeth and tried to make out the figure in the darkness to fight back. “How dare you hit us? Grab him!”
In the pitch-black night, the group brawled chaotically. The sounds of muffled grunts and thudding fists landing on bodies filled the air.
The three thugs fought without any technique, and because it was too dark, they couldn’t even tell friend from foe.
But Gong Ze had traveled through many worlds and taken on all sorts of professions. Beating up a few thugs was easy for him.
Using the system’s night vision, he dodged a tackle from one man and drove his knee into the guy’s head.
He created distance from another thug, then threw a series of hooks, leaving the man dazed, sitting on the ground with his head buzzing, unable to collect himself for a long time.
After that, the rest were just Gong Ze steamrolling amateurs.
He gave them a Russian-style thrashing that left them completely bewildered.
After Gong Ze beat them down several times, their ferocity was completely shattered, replaced by nothing but fear. Screaming, they scrambled to their feet and fled in all directions, stumbling and falling multiple times without stopping.
It was safe to assume they wouldn’t dare come near Lu Youling’s house for a long time.
As for whether they might in the future?
Gong Ze would happily beat them a few more times—turn their semi-permanent fear into something permanent.
Gong Ze flexed his wrists, relaxed his tensed muscles, and then made his way back through the back door, following the same path he had taken out.
Then he ran into Lu Youling, who had rushed out in a hurry, still carrying a large rock in his hand.
The sharp edge in Gong Ze’s expression instantly softened into a look of amused exasperation.
“Gong Er?” Lu Youling spotted him and trotted over, overjoyed. “Are you okay? Where are those bastards?”
Gong Ze held back a laugh. “I’m fine. They’ve already run off. Were you planning to crush them to death with that huge rock?”
Lu Youling said, “I didn’t have anything decent within reach… Phew, you scared me. When I saw them climbing over the wall, every hair on my body stood up. Those animals deserve a beating. Good thing I’m a man—if it were an actual girl, that would’ve been…”
“Wait. What did you say you’re ‘good thing you’re a’ what?” Gong Ze pretended to be confused.
Lu Youling realized he had slipped up. Stiffly, he tried to cover it. “I—I said, good thing you were here today.”
“Is that so? That didn’t sound like what you said.”
Gong Ze deliberately teased him.
In the darkness, Lu Youling stammered nervously, “Uh, oh, never mind that. Quick, let’s go inside. After all that noise, people might come to see what’s going on.”
He dropped the rock and tugged at Gong Ze to turn back, trying to change the subject.
Gong Ze watched his flustered state and smiled secretly behind him.
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