Chapter 39: He left quietly

  Dun Wu sneered, he had been fighting on the battlefield for over a decade, only believing in being faster and more ruthless, never believing in nonsense like "evil cannot defeat justice". Although he didn't understand why Mao Jians could chase after Liu Xiu, he knew it definitely had nothing to do with "evil cannot defeat justice", and in his opinion, Liu Xiu wouldn't be an evil person either.

  "Miss, I was just going to look for you." Dun Wu didn't want to get entangled in this matter and directly called out to Mao Qiang.

  Mao Jiao held up her knife and saw Dun Wu's serious expression, which didn't seem to be joking, so she had to hold back her temper and give up chasing Liu Xiu.

  "I'm going to leave Zhuo County."

  Mao Jie was taken aback and looked at Dun Wu for a moment: "Wu Jun, what happened? Why do you want to leave suddenly? Has someone been disrespectful to you?"

  Dunwu shook his head: "No, I have something important to do. One day without a result, and I won't be able to rest." He turned his head to look at the quiet valley, silent for a moment, but the complex expression in his eyes let Mao Jie know that he had made up his mind. Mao Jie furrowed her brow and sighed: "Is there anything I can help you with? Just speak up."

  "Thank you, miss." Dun Wu gave a self-deprecating smile: "Yan Rou and I are old friends, he's injured, I should have stayed to take care of him, but now I'm about to leave, so please trouble yourself to take care of him, miss."

  Mei shook her hand and said calmly: "This is nothing, he is a guest of my Maojiazhuang, and was injured in my house, I am responsible for it."

  Dunwu nodded: "I've done something wrong to him before, if he says some unpleasant words, you can see my face and don't mind him." Dunwu paused for a moment, then continued: "Besides, there's another thing, please forgive me, Miss and Master Zhuang. My... real name is Dunwu."

  After hearing this, Mao Jie's eyebrows involuntarily rose, and her expression also became solemn. However, after a moment, she smiled faintly: "Then I'll call you Dun Jun Hou from now on." Her words did not seem to mind Dun Wu's deception.

  Dun Wu was extremely grateful, took a step back, bowed and said: "Thank you, miss." He glanced at Liu Xiu in the distance and continued to say: "This time the trial, although the village did not lose, but personal skills are different from battlefield killings. I hope Miss will be careful. If possible, it's better to ask for help from more people with high martial arts skills."

  Mao Jie also glanced at Liu Xiu in the distance, understanding Dun Wu's meaning, but didn't respond. She fell silent for a moment, nodded slightly. Seeing that Dun Wu still had something to say to Liu Xiu, she stomped her foot in frustration and turned back to the manor.

  Seeing Mao Jie leave, Liu Xiu finally let out a sigh of relief and walked up to Dun Wu, bowing: "Thank you for your guidance, General."

  Dun Wu smiled and, with his hands behind his back, looked at Liu Xiu's face which still had a hint of fear on it. He said slowly: "Although the young lady has a wild temper, she is not an unreasonable person. What did you do to offend her?"

  Liu Xiu was originally pondering in the valley how he had gone mad, when suddenly Mao Qiang came to find him trouble. Not only did she wear a full suit of leather armor, but also wore a bronze helmet that covered her face. With an evil tone, she called him a beast and said he was the same as the woman who had been peeking at her washing her feet and fell into the water wearing a yellow shirt. Liu Xiu felt guilty in his heart and didn't have the courage to fight back against her. He was first punched twice by Mao Qiang without saying a word, seeing that she wouldn't let up, he became annoyed and countered with a Black Tiger Heart-Grabbing Fist. This move was one of his most familiar ones, making it seem like a natural fit, until his fist felt an unusual sensation, only then did he realize there might be a problem.

  But by this time, it was too late to regret. Mao Niang, who was already very angry, suddenly became furious, drew his sword and chopped. Facing the crazy Mao Niang, Liu Xiu didn't have any of the murderous aura he had when facing Yan Ruo, and could only turn around and run.

  He wasn't afraid of Mao Jie, he had enough confidence to defeat Mao Jie, but as soon as he thought about what he used to do and what he just did, he didn't have any courage left, only one way to escape.

  Of course, this couldn't be discussed with Dun Wu in detail. He vaguely explained that it was a small matter and changed the subject: "Dun Jun Hou, you and Yan Rou are old friends?"

  Dun Wu smiled wryly and nodded in acknowledgement: "That's right, I've known him for over a decade. Moreover, although he has dealings with the Xianbei people, he's not the traitor you think he is... actually, he's a pretty good guy. I was just trying to provoke you into fighting him when I said that, didn't expect... by the way, do you really hate traitors that much?"

  Liu Xiu pouted and thought to himself: I am just an angry young man, what I hate the most are traitors and Han traitors.

  "I don't like... traitors." Dun Wu saw Liu Xiu not responding, and continued: "However, what you did earlier was not good. If Yan Rou wasn't careless and was momentarily overpowered by your strength, in the end it would still be you who loses. Your hand-to-hand combat skills are already pretty good, but your knife techniques are still far from enough."

  "It's a pity that General Dun is leaving, or I would have liked to ask for your advice." Liu Xiu said with some regret, which was not a polite phrase, he really wanted to ask Dun Wu for more martial arts guidance, unfortunately, Dun Wu had an urgent matter and was about to leave Taogu Valley, it wouldn't be easy to find such a master again in the future.

  Dun Wu lowered his head, thought for a moment: "If fate permits, I'll spar with you again when I return. This time, consider it a favor owed to you."

  "I dare not." Liu Xiu hastily added a humble remark: "If it weren't for Junhou's guidance, I wouldn't have been able to defeat Yan Rou at all."

  Dun Wu hesitated for a while before saying, "If you don't have anything else to do for the time being, then go read books at Taogu. Although Young Master Shao's martial skills are average, he still has some basic skills. You two are from the same sect and can exchange ideas when you have the chance."

  Liu Xiu nodded, he estimated that Dun Wu wanted to advise him to enter the Mao family as a guest, but since he had a past with the daughter of the Zhuang master, it was not good to say it out loud, so he changed his words. Of course, he would not stay in the Mao family, but at least for now, he would still be studying in Taogu, which coincided with what Dun Wu said.

  Dun Wu said a few more words about martial arts, then hastily bid farewell. He returned to the manor to pack some simple luggage and quietly left Taogu Valley with only Liu Xiu accompanying him. Liu Xiu was reluctant to part ways but had no choice, so he returned to his quarters alone. As soon as he entered, he saw Liu Bei waiting at the door, anxiously looking outwards.

  "Big brother, you're finally back! Mao Zong has invited you several times already." As soon as Liu Bei saw Liu Xiu, he felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders and quickly pulled him into the house. He helped Liu Xiu change into clothes that were already prepared, saying as they changed: "Today you defeated Yan Rou, saving face for the Mao family. The Mao family is treating you like an honored guest, inviting you to sit with Master and the others in the main hall. Even I'm basking in your glory."

  Liu Xiu was disappointed by Dun Wu's departure, and with his own doubts in mind, he didn't have much enthusiasm for the banquet. However, since Liu Bei had said so, it wouldn't be good to put on airs and not go, so he changed clothes and rushed over with Liu Bei.

  The Mao family's courtyard had already set up a banquet, with dozens of classmates sitting in the garden. Mao Zongzheng was beaming with joy as he went back and forth to greet them. As soon as he saw Liu Xiu, he hurried over to welcome him and led them to the main hall. Mao Qin took his seat at the head of the table, with Lu Zhi's father and son sitting on his left and Li Ding on his right. Yan Rou was also present, but her face was pale and her expression was listless. When she saw Liu Xiu, her mood seemed to be even worse.

  Liu Xiu had just heard Dun Wu say that Yan Rou was not a traitor, but rather a good man. Although Liu Xiu didn't know much about Dun Wu and was somewhat curious about his sudden departure, their brief interactions over the past dozen or so days gave him some confidence in Dun Wu's character and made him more inclined to believe what he said. At this moment, seeing Yan Rou, whom Dun Wu had referred to as an old friend, Liu Xiu couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed when he thought about how he had beaten and scolded him just now, and had even almost kicked him. He hesitated for a moment before stepping forward and bowing to Yan Rou:

  "I was wrong earlier, please forgive me."

  Yan Rou glanced at him and said coldly, "It's not that Yan is no match for you, how dare I hold a grudge. But defeating me doesn't prove anything, please be careful."