Chapter 125 – First Time Committing Theft

Feng Mansion.

"Feng Yuan-qianbei, what do you mean that Young Master and Young Master Zhuang are missing?" Mu Tingxuan asked somewhat agitatedly.

"Originally, Young Master Qi had set out to inspect the medicinal garden today, but the steward at the garden said that they never arrived." Feng Yuan sighed.

Mu Tingxuan frowned and said, "How could that be?"

Feng Yuan looked at Mu Tingxuan and Yi Fan and said, "I have already sent someone to go investigate the situation. I will notify you as soon as I receive any news."

Yi Fan frowned and said, "We've troubled Senior again."

Feng Yuan looked at Yi Fan and Mu Tingxuan and said, "You two shouldn't worry too much. Maybe they just stopped to admire the scenery on the way there and got delayed."

Mu Tingxuan smiled with difficulty and said, "I hope so."

Mu Tingxuan and Yi Fan walked out with heavy hearts.

"What do you think happened?" Mu Tingxuan asked Yi Fan.

Yi Fan shook his head and said, "I'm not sure, but I think that Feng Yuan probably withheld some information from us. I'm afraid we'll have to investigate this matter ourselves."

Mu Tingxuan closed his eyes and said a little tiredly, "I feel that the Young Master may have gotten involved in the Business Alliance's internal strife."

Inside Feng Mansion.

Feng Yuan clasped his hands behind his back. His expression was gloomy as he looked at a person dressed in black, and asked, "You said that there are signs that the God-Imprisoning Ring was used at the scene?"

"Yes, if Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao's magic was sealed, then we can only expect that the worst possible outcome has occurred."

"Feng He, that guy, he's gone insane. Not only did he steal the God-Imprisoning Ring, he even used it on Zhuang Hao." Feng Yuan said, full of anger. Zhuang Hao had a saint-level expert in his family, and Feng Yuan couldn't help feeling some dread.

"Patriarch, if something really happens to Qi Shaorong, then what are you going to do about your promise to him?"

"Even if something bad happens to Qi Shaorong, I can't give up Mu Tingxuan's matter. Qi Shaorong only got involved in the Business Alliance's power struggle because he saved my life. If I go back on my word just because of this, then what will people think of me?"

"What Master says is true, in fact, it won't take much effort to help Mu Tingxuan deal with the Mu Family anyway."

"Get more people to search for the whereabouts of Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao. Zhuang Hao should've had some sort of life-saving tool with him, at least. I don't believe that those two will get in an accident so easily." Feng Yuan said.

Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao were lying stomach-down on a roof, looking at a clothesline hanging in someone's yard.

"You tell me, where exactly did we get teleported to?" Qi Shaorong asked.

Zhuang Hao shook his head and said, "I don't know."

"This place sure is behind the times." Qi Shaorong said with some disdain.

Zhuang Hao nodded and said, "Right!"

"Was that teleportation scroll just a random one? Was your grandfather not afraid that you'd be teleported into the middle of somewhere dangerous or something!" Qi Shaorong said in bewilderment.

"The scroll's destination was originally set to the Zhuang Family's residence, but we're currently too far away from home. The teleportation scroll couldn't send us all the way there and a problem occurred. I also don't know where we are now." Zhuang Hao said.

Qi Shaorong took a deep breath and said, "Okay, that's enough, we can talk about this later. Our top priority right now is for you to go down there, steal two sets of clothing, then run away quickly."

Zhuang Hao frowned and said, "Can't we think of a different way, this is too embarrassing."

Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao and said, "Don't worry, even if you're discovered, you probably won't be recognized. At most you'll just get beat up, it's no big deal."

Zhuang Hao frowned and said, "But…"

"No buts… Have you forgotten, there's a line in our pre-engagement agreement stating that when we go out travelling, you're responsible for food, clothing, housing and transportation! Right now I don't have any good clothes to wear, so of course you have to do something about it." Qi Shaorong said.

Zhuang Hao looked at Qi Shaorong and sulked, "I have to say, your pre-engagement agreement sure is comprehensive."

Qi Shaorong smiled and said, "There's a saying that fortune is as unpredictable as the weather. In case of an emergency, you must be fully prepared! Only in these kinds of situations will you be able to realize the benefits of taking precautions."

Zhuang Hao: "…"

Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao and said, "Alright then, stop stalling. Hurry up and go borrow some clothes, just two sets are good, we don't need any more."

Zhuang Hao frowned and jumped down from the roof. As soon as Zhuang Hao landed, a dog started barking.

"Grandpa, Grandpa, there's a thief! A thief snuck in!"

Qi Shaorong held his forehead and thought to himself: He would've never expected that in this world, dogs were also used to guard people's houses!

Zhuang Hao, it seems that he is not suitable for being a thief! Qi Shaorong hesitated between staying and waiting for an opportunity to rescue, and evacuation first.

"Little Brother, there's another one over there." A young girl ran out.

A young boy abruptly shot an arrow in Qi Shaorong's direction, and Qi Shaorong fell down from the roof.

Qi Shaorong's face was hot. How embarrassing, he hasn't been this embarrassed in a long time.

"Grandpa, I caught a thief, I caught a thief, I caught two thieves!" The boy said excitedly.

Qi Shaorong bit his lip. As soon as the boy made his move, Qi Shaorong could see that he was a second-level martial artist. Before, Qi Shaorong could've finished off a whole group of people like him in a second with just a wave of his hand, but now…

An old man slowly walked out and said, "Let me take a look." The old man looked over Zhuang Hao a few times, then looked at Qi Shaorong. Qi Shaorong noticed that a wave of magic seemed to have circled around him briefly.

"How strange. These two are both magic wastes, they don't have any magic power or fighting skills at all."

The boy placed his hands on his hips and looked smugly at the old man, saying, "Grandpa, and you called me a good-for-nothing? Look at these two, they're the real good-for-nothings! Both are so old, yet they can't use any magic or fight at all."

The old man glanced at the boy and said, "You're thirteen years old, yet you're still a second-level martial artist. You're definitely a good-for-nothing."

Qi Shaorong's eyes widened. He's only thirteen? But he's already 1.8 meters tall! The girl was only 1.5 meters tall. Qi Shaorong had even been surprised when the girl had called this rotten boy her younger brother.

"Hey, you two, you're so weak, yet you're still trying to be thieves. Are you looking for death?" The silly boy said viciously.

Qi Shaorong: "…"

Zhuang Hao: "…"

The old man, while smoking a pipe, said, "That's enough, life isn't easy these days. These two guys are also pitiful, let's give them some clothes."

"Grandpa, cloth is expensive! Two pieces of clothing costs a lot of money." The boy was dissatisfied.

The old man said, "Then let's keep them here and make them work until they've paid off all their debt."

Qi Shaorong: "…" As the saying goes, a phoenix that's fallen on hard times isn't even as good as a chicken. Well, it looks like that's true after all!

"Grandpa, these two guys are both wastes, what can they do!" Yun Hu said.

The old man unhurriedly said, "It's still better than nothing!"

Yun Hu rolled his eyes and said, "That's right!"

Yun Hu placed his hands on his hips and looked at Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao, and said, "Hey, let me tell you, from now on, you two will be responsible for all the chores at home. I… I'll supervise you, if you two dare to slack off, I'll beat you up."

Qi Shaorong looked at Yun Hu and thought: Stinky boy, what are you doing, pretending to be a big-tailed wolf [1]! Only thirteen years old, but still just a kid! However, he was built like a bear, who knows what he ate to grow this tall.

Qi Shaorong looked at the dimming sky, and frowned. He turned to Yun Hu and said, "Where will we be staying at night!"

Yun Hu froze, then looked at the old man, "Right! Grandpa, where will they sleep! We don't have any extra rooms in our house."

Yun Ping slowly took a puff of his pipe, pondered over it for a moment, and said, "Well, they can stay in your room at night."

[T/n: Ah yes, what a responsible decision, letting two strangers who tried to rob your house stay with your grandson lol.]

Yun Hu turned pale with shock and said, "My room?! Grandpa, my bed is really small, there's only enough space for me to lie down!"

Yun Ping looked at Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao, and said, "Then let them sleep on the floor."

Yun Hu nodded and said, "You're right! These two guys are thieves, and they're only staying here to pay back what they owe us. There's no need to treat them so well."

Qi Shaorong: "…"

Zhuang Hao and Qi Shaorong followed Yun Hu to his room. Yun Hu's room was very messy, and there were a few earthen jars with missing pieces piled in the corner, causing Zhuang Hao to frown when he saw.

"Here, for you." Yun Hu threw two quilts to Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao.

Zhuang Hao looked at the quilt in his hands and couldn't help but feel some misgivings, "Why are there so many holes in this quilt!"

Yun Hu scratched his head and said, "It was probably a rat that gnawed on it or something."

Zhuang Hao instantly felt his scalp go numb, "A rat gnawed on it? Why would a rat chew on the quilts?"

"How should I know?" Yun Hu thought to himself: Maybe it's because he used to like hiding food in his bed when he was a child, and a rat managed to find it because the smell got into the quilts.

"This quilt stinks!" Qi Shaorong pinched his nose.

Yun Hu glared at them and said, "Do you want it or not? If you don't want it, then I'll use it myself."

"I'll take it." Zhuang Hao said.

"It's been pretty cold lately and the quilts alone might not be enough. You two should share a quilt, that way it'll be a little warmer." Yun Hu said.

Zhuang Hao was excited, and he secretly thought: After all this time, just that one simple sentence could bring him so much comfort.

Not long after Yun Hu lay down in his bed, he started snoring.

Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao were nestled together. Zhuang Hao looked at Qi Shaorong and said, "What do you think we should do?"

"Let's wait and see what happens first." said Qi Shaorong.

Qi Shaorong frowned. If the news of their presence here were to spread out, and they still hadn't managed to undo the seal placed on them yet, then it would be good if they're found by the people on their side. If the news fell into the hands of the enemy, then they'd be as good as dead.

Zhuang Hao looked at Qi Shaorong and said, "Are you cold? If you're cold, you can hold onto me for warmth."

Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao and said, "I'm not cold, I'm just dizzy from the smell."

Zhuang Hao: "… …"

"That idiot must have secretly snuck food into his bed to eat." Zhuang Hao said.

Qi Shaorong: "…"

The sound of Yun Hu's snoring became louder and louder, and Qi Shaorong's eardrums started hurting, "This guy is really noisy."

Footnotes:

Big-tailed wolf: Refers to a wolf that's trying to hide but isn't very good at pretending, so the tail is exposed, causing the tail to appear big. It's a term usually used to ridicule people who pretend to be serious, cool, authoritative, competent, etc.