Thank You For Being Born (Arc 1)

The fateful day came earlier than expected. Feng Yongrui felt like time was flying so fast, because it was finally Hou Renshu and Ma Bo's birthday. Of course, Hou Renshu and Ma Bo had absolutely no idea about their Master's plans.

For them, their lives had continued as usual. The only difference was that their Master seemed quieter and more secretive. Initially, Ma Bo had grown anxious, but Hou Renshu calmed him down and told him to relax -- it did not seem like their Master was investigating them.

When their birthday arrived, Feng Yongrui gave his two disciples an errand, telling them to go down the mountain.His two disciples wouldn't have to go outside the sect, but they would be far enough from the mountain peak so that Feng Yongrui could prepare everything for the birthday.

Ma Bo pursed his lips and asked, "Master, are you coming with us?"

Feng Yongrui shook his head. "No. This time, you two should go by yourselves... You both have grown up already, you should learn to do things on your own..."

Hou Renshu raised an eyebrow. Master was the one who always insisted on going with them, saying that they were still ten year old children. Now, why did their Master tell them to go by themselves? It was very strange...

Ma Bo's face was filled with disappointment, and Feng Yongrui couldn't help but wince.

Sorry, Bo'er, but it's for your own good!

Hou Renshu pulled Ma Bo and the two boys went down the Mountain Peak. When they had finished their errand, the two boys started going up the mountain.

"Say, what do you think Master is doing? Master isn't usually like this," Ma Bo said.

Hou Renshu shook his head. How would he know their Master's thoughts? When the two disciples reached the Mountain Peak, everything was quiet. Hou Renshu was immediately on alert, and Ma Bo clenched his fists, ready to make a spell.

Usually, they could hear the sound of birds chirping, the incessant barking of Little Prince, and the rustling of the trees. However, at that moment, everything was deadly still.

"Master!" Ma Bo cried. Why was there no response?

"I can't sense any enemy or any murderous aura," Hou Renshu whispered.

"I know... Let's check the Main Hall. Maybe Master is over there," Ma Bo replied.

Slowly, while watching their surroundings with vigilant eyes, Hou Renshu and Ma Bo walked to the Main Hall. The place that was usually brightly lit was dark.

Hou Renshu made a hand signal to Ma Bo, and the two entered the dark room. Their hearts were hanging and their blood felt cold...

Bam!

The entire room suddenly became bright. Before the two could react, they saw Feng Yongrui standing behind a large table. The table was filled with lots and lots of food, from exquisite deserts to tasty meals. The room had also been decorated with a banner that read "Happy Birthday Hou Renshu and Ma Bo~".

Feng Yongrui looked at his stunned disciples and smiled. "Happy birthday, you two! Thank you for being born~"

The two boys felt their hearts burst with joy. They finally understood the situation... Ma Bo could not stop himself from smiling from ear to ear. Hou Renshu's cheeks were dyed with a faint blush and he tried to suppress his smile.

Next to Feng Yongrui, Little Prince gave a few barks to announce his presence. He was wearing a cute pink collar with the words "blessings and fortune" written on it.

Of course, Little Prince did not want to wear the collar willingly. When Feng Yongrui first showed the collar to him, Little Prince couldn't help cringing at how tacky and horrible it looked.

But no matter how hard he tried to run, Feng Yongrui was able to hold him down and put the collar on Little Prince. The puppy had no choice but to wear the collar begrudgingly. Little Prince couldn't help barking and glaring at the two disciples.

"What are you looking at?" It seemed to say. "What, you've never seen a puppy wearing a collar before?"

Hou Renshu and Ma Bo had no idea that a certain puppy's dignity was being crushed. Instead, they looked at the table full of food, the meticulous preparation... and felt their hearts growing warm.

Ma Bo felt his nose turning sour and his eyes started getting red. He sniffled, but a stray tear managed to slip away. Ma Bo pursed his lips and his heart grew anxious. Why? Why was he crying? This was obviously a happy occasion...

Instead of crying, shouldn't he be smiling?

But his tears were gushing out like a broken dam, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop himself from crying. Ma Bo put a hand over his mouth in an attempt to muffle his sobs, but he heard the sound of soft sobbing.

Wait, that sobbing sound didn't come from him! Ma Bo turned his head, and through his blurry tears, he saw his Shu Ge crying. Yes, Hou Renshu was crying too. Hou Renshu's nose had turned red and he was desperately rubbing his tears away, but his tears did not obey him at all.

"M-master, this... My tear ducts don't seem to be... sniff, functioning properly... sniff, hahaha..." Hou Renshu muttered between sobs.

Ma Bo let out a small laugh. It had been so long... so long that Ma Bo forgot that Hou Renshu could actually cry. Even in their darkest moments, Ma Bo knew that his Shu Ge didn't cry or complain. Yet now... he was crying so badly...

"M-master, I think someone is cutting onions," Ma Bo said with a broken voice. He immediately regretted saying such a stupid thing. Crying had seemed to make his brain turn into mush. How could he say that?!

Ma Bo wanted to berate himself, but he was torn between laughing and crying. His vision was turning blurry because of his tears, but Ma Bo used his sleeves to repeatedly wipe his eyes.

Feng Yongrui had been stunned when the two kids started crying. His brain went blank for a few moments. Little Prince, who had been barking at his feet, was shocked too. Feng Yongrui hurriedly went over to the two kids, who were thoroughly embarrassed but couldn't stop crying.

"You're right, Xiao Shu. Maybe your tear ducts are leaking... It must be because I was cutting onions just a while ago... Don't worry, I'm here," Feng Yongrui patted the two disciples' heads and stroked their backs soothingly.

He guided them to their seats and waited until they had calmed down. When the two of them had finished crying, they both looked at Feng Yongrui with a shy face.

"Ahem, so, as I said before, we'll be celebrating your birthdays every year... Since you don't remember when your birthdays are, we'll just celebrate the day you were accepted as my disciples," Feng Yongrui explained.

Feng Yongrui took out his pair of chopsticks. "Come on, let's eat~"

The three people began eating, and the dog also ate the kibble in its bowl. Ma Bo occasionally gave Little Prince a few bites of osmanthus jelly or mung bean cake.

As the sun gradually disappeared behind the horizon, the room was suffused with the warm glow of the candlelight. The hearts of everyone present were filled with warmth and indescribable joy.

Most of the food on the table were finished, and Feng Yongrui took out three Sky Lanterns. Since it was night time, the three of them went outside and launched their respective lanterns.

"Don't forget to make a wish," Feng Yongrui reminded his disciples. The two boys nodded.

Hou Renshu clasped his hands and closed his eyes, making a wish. Ma Bo did the same. Their two wishes were similar, but they did not know it. Feng Yongrui also closed his eyes and made a wish sincerely.

Far away, in the night sky, three shooting stars flew past the three of them, igniting the sky with light and brightening the dark night. The witness to this was only Little Prince, because the three people had their eyes shut.

When this was over, Feng Yongrui brought his two disciples inside the Main Hall and gave them their presents.

Hou Renshu received a dagger decorated with dark obsidian and black onyxes, matching the color of his eyes. Feng Yongrui knew that this disciple of his liked close quarter combat, and this dagger was just the right size to carry around and hide in an inconspicuous place, like his boots or sleeves.

Ma Bo received a set of ink stone and a typical Chinese brush, used for painting. He was the type of person who actually preferred writing than fighting, and his temperament was softer than Hou Renshu's.

Feng Yongrui saw the smiles on their faces and the gleam in their eyes and knew that they both liked their presents. He couldn't feel any happier than this.

At a time when he felt alone in this world, he had these two shining stars to protect and nurture. The feeling of being depended on and accomplishing something was really good.

"Oh right," Feng Yongrui bent down and picked up the puppy.

"I'm giving this guy to you, Bo'er. You have to take care of him properly from now on. Make sure you bathe him and feed him properly..."

Ma Bo's eyes widened.

"Master! You're giving me Xiao Hei...?" Ma Bo's face was filled with excitement.

Feng Yongrui nodded. "That's right. Take care of him properly, okay? Xiao Shu, you can help taking care of the puppy too, if you want."

Hou Renshu nodded in understanding. The puppy was held in Ma Bo's arms while it rolled its eyes. Anyway, whether it belonged to Ma Bo or Feng Yongrui, it would still be staying in this Mountain Peak. Its lifestyle wouldn't change too much.

When the four of them went to bed that night, their hearts were filled with an indescribable sweetness. They all had a pleasant night with sweet dreams.

***

Hou Renshu: *serious face* I wasn't crying. My tear ducts were leaking.

Ma Bo: *serious but shy face* T-that's because someone was cutting onions!

Author: *red face* N-no, I'm not crying... There was something in my eye...

System: *bawls loudly* Waaaaa! What about me? Is no one going to celebrate my one year anniversary with my dear Host?

Feng Yongrui: "..."

***

P.S. What excuse do you usually give when someone sees you crying?

Comment below~