Unorthodox Wuxia: While Others Practice Martial Arts, I Cultivate Immortality - Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Liu Dazhu’s Scheming

Good news? Great news?

Yuan Zhao grew even more suspicious.

“If you’ve got something to say, just say it.” She replied politely.

Liu Dazhu took a step forward and intimately grabbed Yuan Zhao’s arm. “Aiya, it’s not convenient to talk outside, let’s go inside! Inside!”

Yuan Zhao was very uncomfortable with this level of familiarity from a stranger. She quietly pulled her arm away.

To her surprise, Liu Dazhu refused to give up and once again grabbed her arm, this time even tighter.

Yuan Zhao had had enough. She shoved Liu Dazhu aside. A flash of displeasure passed across Liu Dazhu’s face, but it vanished as quickly as it appeared. With a forced smile, she said, “Zhao girl, come on now, let’s talk inside!”

Since they were neighbors, Yuan Zhao didn’t want to make things too ugly, so she gave a slight nod.

She turned to the vendor, “Big brother, could you please unload the stuff at the door?”

“Sure thing! You go ahead, I’ll take care of it,” the vendor replied, beginning to move the baskets of red fruits to the corner of the wall.

Meanwhile, Yuan Zhao led Liu Dazhu and her son, Wu Yong, into the house.

As soon as they stepped inside, Liu Dazhu’s eyes greedily scanned the room, while Wu Yong stared intently at Yuan Zhao’s back.

Ah Qing turned around and immediately noticed Wu Yong’s greasy, sticky gaze. Furious, she asked: “Uncle Wu, why are you looking at my sister like that?”

Wu Yong’s face turned guilty in an instant. He defensively replied, “You little brat, what nonsense are you spouting? Your sister’s walking in front of me—am I supposed to close my eyes while I walk?”

Ah Qing was momentarily speechless but gave him a vicious glare.

After settling them inside, Yuan Zhao placed the chicken cage aside and asked again, “Alright Liu Dazhu, can you tell me what this is about now?”

Liu Dazhu sat down with a grin and said, “Zhao girl, now that old Zhao is gone, you two sisters have no one to rely on. But don’t say I didn’t look out for you!”

“I’ve arranged a wonderful marriage for you! Once you’re married, you’ll have someone to depend on. Life will finally have some hope!”

“Marriage? Me getting married?” Yuan Zhao glanced at the greedy Wu Yong, “Don’t tell me… you’re talking about your son?”

Liu Dazhu slapped her thigh, “Aiya! Zhao girl, you’re smart! You and my son are a perfect match!”

“Once you’re married, you two can reopen old Zhao’s noodle stall, live harmoniously, have a few kids—what a beautiful life!”

“If you’re worried about Ah Qing, just bring her along. You be the main wife, she can be the secondary. You two aren’t even blood sisters anyway, right? Sisters by bond!”

“As long as you serve my son well, we won’t treat you poorly!”

“Exactly!” Wu Yong rubbed his dirty hands together, eyes lecherously scanning Yuan Zhao. “As long as you both serve me, I’ll make sure you’re fed and clothed for life!”

Truth was, Wu Yong had his eyes on Yuan Zhao.

Though still young and not fully matured, her delicate face already showed signs of blossoming beauty.

Unlike most girls in Tianmen Town, who were tanned and yellowish from the environment, Yuan Zhao had fair and clean skin.

Ah Qing, on the other hand, was scrawny and small, like a bean sprout. Wu Yong had little interest in her, though if she came as a bonus, he wouldn’t mind.

After hearing this absurd offer, Yuan Zhao was shocked and enraged.

How shameless could they be? Her grandfather’s stall, their home, and his skills—they made it sound like they were doing her a favor!

Before Yuan Zhao could respond, Ah Qing exploded. She pointed at the mother and son and started scolding them furiously:

“You shameless pigs! Want to marry my sister and take over our home and stall?

Have you looked at yourselves in a mirror lately? Do you deserve her? Do you?!”

“You, an old sour cabbage and a mangy dog—both are rotten to the core!”

Then she jabbed her finger at Wu Yong: “This old man’s old enough to be our father, and he’s still trying to prey on the young? Disgusting! Don’t you worry about shattering your old teeth chewing on something so tender?”

“Get lost! Get out of our house! Or don’t blame me for getting rough!”

Exposed and enraged, Wu Yong’s face turned red and he lunged to grab Ah Qing.

“You little b*tch! What nonsense are you spouting! I was giving you face and you don’t appreciate it? You need a good beating!”

But before his hand could touch her, his whole body flew back like a sack of meat, rolling from inside the house straight out the door.

Yuan Zhao had struck him.

Seeing her son fly through the air, Liu Dazhu froze for a moment before screaming: “AAAAAHHH!!! My son! My precious Wu Yong!”

She rushed to him, screaming the whole way: “D*mn you! You two little sl*ts! How dare you?!”

Wu Yong curled on the ground like a shrimp, moaning in pain.

Liu Dazhu helped him up while sobbing and yelling: “You d*mn little girls! We took pity on you orphans, tried to give you a good life, and you repay us by hitting us? There’s no justice left in the world!”

Ah Qing stormed out and shouted angrily: “Lies! Say one more word and I’ll rip your mouths off!”

Liu Dazhu screamed louder, “See? See? No respect! We’re the only ones willing to take them in, and they act like this? Ungrateful wretches!”

Their yelling attracted neighbors, including an elderly woman peering over the wall—Aunt Zou, who lived next door on the other side of Yuan Zhao’s house.

Seeing an audience, Liu Dazhu wailed even louder.

Yuan Zhao walked straight up to her and her son, frightening them into stepping back.

“What? You still want to fight? Hurt us and we’ll make sure you pay dearly!” Wu Yong threatened.

Before he could finish, Yuan Zhao punched both of them in the face.

“Owww! That hurts!”

“You crazy b*tch! You dare hit me?”

Without hesitation, Yuan Zhao grabbed them by the collar and threw them out of the house.

Liu Dazhu landed on her backside, rolling on the ground and wailing, “Help! Help! We’re being attacked!”

By now, the street was full of curious onlookers.

Inside the courtyard, Yuan Zhao shouted: “Old Wolf!”

With a howl, the old wolf shot out like an arrow and lunged at the mother and son.

They scrambled to run, but Wu Yong was too slow—the old wolf sank its teeth into his butt, leaving a large, bloody bite mark.

Screaming, Wu Yong shouted: “You little b*tches! Just wait!”

They fled in disgrace.

After they left, Aunt Zou sneered and said, “Hmph! Liu Dazhu and her son are no good. Everyone knows what they’re like. Her former daughter-in-law was tortured to death by that family. Now they want to ruin you two as well. No shame!”

Turns out, Wu Yong had been married, but his wife couldn’t bear children and was mistreated until she died. That’s why his reputation in town was awful and he never remarried.

Yuan Zhao glanced at the gossiping Aunt Zou and thought to herself: ‘I need to plant some cactus along the wall, can’t let just anyone climb in here.’

With that, she turned to leave the courtyard.

“Hey! Yuan girl, don’t go! I’m not done talking!”

Yuan Zhao ignored her.

Once she was gone, Aunt Zou turned her attention to Ah Qing.

“Ah Qing, listen to me—” she had just begun when Ah Qing turned and walked back inside.

Aunt Zou grumbled, “Ungrateful little brats…”

She muttered as she left the courtyard wall.

Back outside the gate, the old wolf ran over to Yuan Zhao, tail wagging proudly.

She chuckled and scratched his chin.

Looking over to the corner, she saw the vendor had already left, and the tomato seedlings were neatly stacked.

She called back into the house: “Ah Qing, come out and help!”

“Coming!” Ah Qing’s voice immediately came from the courtyard.

Just like that, the two sisters began moving the tomato seedlings into the courtyard one by one.

After placing the tomato seedlings neatly in one corner of the courtyard, the sisters fetched their tools and began digging up the vegetable garden.

Their courtyard was spacious, more than enough to carve out a piece of land for growing vegetables.

At some point, Auntie Zou reappeared on the wall of Yuan Zhao’s house. She looked at the two sisters with suspicion and said, “Yuan girl, Ah Qing, what are you two doing?”

Yuan Zhao and Ah Qing were busy working, not paying her any attention.

Auntie Zou gritted her teeth and thought to herself, What a couple of wild girls with no manners!

But her face broke into a smile as she looked at the tomato seedlings stacked by the wall and started talking to herself:

“Yuan girl? Did you buy all those yourselves? Not that I want to criticize, but young ladies shouldn’t be spending money so freely—you need to save it for your dowries. Only then will you have a firm standing in your husband’s family…”

Whether the sisters were listening or not, she just kept babbling on.

“I say, Yuan girl, your grandfather must’ve left you quite a bit of silver, right? I see you two living quite comfortably these days, not even running the noodle stall anymore. I always said, Old Zhao had great skills—he must’ve made a lot of money! If you ask me, you two should save more and spend it on your future husbands. That’s the way to make them value you!”

Just as Auntie Zou was about to say more, Yuan Zhao suddenly shouted, “Old Wolf!”

The old wolf understood instantly. With a loud “Awoo!” he charged toward the courtyard wall and leapt at Auntie Zou.

The old wolf was no longer the pup who needed a stool to jump onto the wall.

“Oh my heavens!!”

Auntie Zou was so frightened that she fell off the wall and ran away, cursing as she went.

“Hahaha~” Ah Qing burst into laughter at the scene. This was the first time she had laughed so happily since Grandpa passed away. “Sister, did you see that? Auntie Zou was so scared… that was hilarious!”

Even Yuan Zhao couldn’t help but laugh.

After scaring off Auntie Zou, The old wolf trotted back to the sisters with a proud look.

Ah Qing joyfully patted his head and said, “Our Old Wolf is getting more and more capable!”

***

On the other side, Liu Dazhu and Wu Yong returned home in a panic. Not long after, Wu Dazhuang came home carrying a butcher’s knife.

Wu Dazhuang lived up to his name—tall, burly, with a face full of menace. He was even taller than his son, with bulging muscles that made him look like a walking wall.

As soon as he entered, he asked, “Did you go to Old Zhao’s place today?”

Liu Dazhu sighed and said, “Of course we did! You have no idea…”

She exaggerated and embellished everything that had happened at Yuan Zhao’s house.

Upon hearing it, Wu Dazhuang slammed the table so hard it creaked under the pressure, almost falling apart.

He glared furiously at his wife and son. “Useless! Can’t do anything right!”

Liu Dazhu, a little scared, said, “Who knew that girl was so strong… and their…”

A sinister look flashed across Wu Dazhuang’s face. “If that’s the case, then we’ll have to use… other means.”

He waved at the two of them to come closer. They leaned in, and he began to whisper.

After hearing the plan, Wu Yong said nervously, “Will that really work?”

In response, Wu Dazhuang slapped him across the face. “Spineless wimp! How did I raise such a worthless son!”

Wu Qing clutched his swollen cheek, not daring to talk back.

***

Meanwhile, Auntie Zou’s family was sitting down for lunch.

There were seven people in the household: the couple, their eldest son and his wife, a grandson, a granddaughter, and one maternal grandson.

The elderly couple originally had one daughter, but tragically, over a decade ago, the daughter and her husband were killed in a fight between two martial artists. They left behind an infant son.

The old couple pitied their orphaned grandson and took him in.

But as the years went by and the boy grew up, tensions in the household began to rise. The son and daughter-in-law increasingly resented the nephew for living in their home without contributing.

Halfway through lunch, the daughter-in-law, Wu Xiaohui, suddenly said, “Mother, don’t you think it’s time for A Bao to get married? Our house is too crowded. Shouldn’t Xiao Niu move out? He’s old enough to support himself now.”

A Bao was Auntie Zou’s grandson, full name Hu Dabao. His family descended from the Hu Yan clan of the Northern Xiao Dynasty.

Xiao Niu, on the other hand, was her maternal grandson, full name Guan Xiaoniu.

Hearing this, Xiao Niu lowered his head in silence, bitterness on his face.

Auntie Zou looked at her son and asked, “Da Jinzi, is that what you think too?”

Hu Jin stayed silent.

Auntie Zou kicked him under the table and angrily whispered, “Ungrateful b**tard! Have you forgotten how your sister treated you when you were kids? And now you treat her only child like this?”

Old Hu also looked at his son with deep disappointment.

Unfortunately, the old couple were too old to be the heads of the household anymore.

After lunch, Auntie Zou pulled her grandson aside and whispered, “Tomorrow, go buy half a jin of meat and take it to Old Zhao’s granddaughters. Try to get closer to them. If you can marry one of them and learn Old Zhao’s skills, your life will be set.”

Guan Xiaoniu frowned. “Isn’t that… not right?”

Auntie Zou smacked him hard. “What’s not right?! Do you want to be kicked out by your aunt? Haven’t you suffered enough from her already all these years?”

Guan Xiaoniu could only nod silently.