Chapter 77: 77 Oaths

No sooner had the county magistrate left than Huang Zhong arrived.

“Marquis! Marquis!”

“How come it’s just you? Where’s the child?”

“Almost been swindled! The Gu Family deceived us!” Huang Zhong told the story of how the Gu Family had sent a decoy, “Luckily, we ran into brother Xiaoshun, otherwise we would have made a mistake again!”

The Marquis was livid. Very well, these people were asking for death! He would deal with them later!

“Are you deaf when I ask you something?” The Marquis glared at Huang Zhong.

Huang Zhong sneered, wasn’t he hesitant about recognizing the child at first? Why was he so anxious now?

Huang Zhong took out a lifelike wooden carving from his bosom: “Brother Xiaoshun gave it to me, he said this is the young miss!”

The last wooden carving had been given to the head of the courtyard’s old mother, and then Gu Xiaoshun carved a new one, which had not yet been presented to Gu Jiao.

Having learned his lesson, Huang Zhong didn’t reveal the truth to Gu Xiaoshun but simply said that his master had received Gu Jiao’s favor and wanted to invite her to the town to thank her.

Gu Xiaoshun, afraid that they would make the same mistake again, presented him with the carving.

The Marquis was struck by a sense of familiarity looking at the wooden carving.

“There’s something missing.” Huang Zhong fumbled in his bosom, took out a small patch, and pasted it onto the left face of the wooden carving, “Brother Xiaoshun said, the young miss has a red birthmark on her face.”

A red birthmark…

The Marquis finally realized why the wooden carving looked familiar. Wasn’t it the same wretched girl whom he had just ordered to be arrested?

“Did you get it wrong?” The Marquis frowned.

“Absolutely no mistake this time!” Huang Zhong had confirmed with the villagers and it was indeed the child from the Gu Family’s third branch!

The Marquis felt as if he had been struck by a thunderclap; he began to wobble unsteadily.

Noticing the oddness of his master, Huang Zhong asked worriedly, “Marquis, what’s wrong? You wouldn’t despise the young miss because of her facial flaw, right? Brother Xiaoshun said that although she has a birthmark, she doesn’t look bad at all!”

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder; Xiaoshun never thought his sister was ugly.

Just as Huang Zhong was waiting for the Marquis to respond, in the next second, the Marquis had disappeared!

Naturally, the Marquis went after Gu Jiao. He had no idea that the wretched girl was the one he had been looking for!

What had he done?

He had personally sent her to prison!

Whether she could be recognized or not was one thing; it would even be difficult to collect her blood for the medicine now!

When the Marquis arrived at the county government, the county magistrate and his men had just arrived.

Earlier, his identity had been revealed in order to gain the county magistrate’s obedience. Now, when the county magistrate saw him, he hurriedly greeted him. However, the Marquis didn’t even spare him a glance and walked straight to the carriage holding Gu Jiao and the other.

An unexpected thing happened; the carriage was empty, not a single figure inside!

The Marquis glared: “Where are they?”

The county magistrate was also taken aback. Right, where had they gone? He had seen her get onto the carriage with the child, they had not stopped along the way. How did they just disappear?

Could that girl be some hidden expert?

Wiping the cold sweat from his brow, the county magistrate said: “I, I have been negligent. I will immediately send people to catch her and give her severe punishment! Let her dare to run away again!”

A mere ninth-ranked official, daring to severely punish the lineage of the Marquis Residence? The Marquis berated: “You dog official! Even children you arrest! And give severe punishment! Can’t you soar to the heaven?”

With a stupefied expression, the county magistrate said, “Wasn’t… Wasn’t it you who ordered me to arrest them?”

The Marquis kicked him: “Just because I told you to arrest them, you did? Who is the real parent of the people? You don’t stand up for the people and instead curry favor with the powerful. What use are you?”

The county magistrate, greatly disheveled, was speechless.

The evening twilight set in, the last sliver of sunset disappeared over the horizon, where the sky was gray and half-illuminated.

Gu Jiao, holding Little Jingkong’s hand, paced leisurely along the silent street.

Although there were no Osmanthus Cakes left, candy haws were still available.

Little Jingkong was small in stature, but not short on courage. The series of incidents had not frightened him at all. He licked his candy haw, very seriously, one bite at a time!

Gu Jiao paused, before finally asking, “Are you scared?”

“Huh?” Little Jingkong paused his nibbling on candy haw, his big twinkling eyes looked at Gu Jiao. It took him a while to understand, “I’m not scared!”

So he said.

Gu Jiao just made an acknowledging sound.

It’s good that he’s not scared.

The first thing Gu Jiao learned was the rules of survival, she hadn’t paid much attention whether she was good or bad. However, ever since she began caring for Little Jingkong, she seemed to gradually care more.

To teach a child about things such as escaping from prison didn’t seem right.

Just as Gu Jiao was wondering how to educate Little Jingkong, he shook her hand, “Jiaojiao, you are very amazing!”

“Hm.” Gu Jiao dismissed it as child’s talk.

Little Jingkong: “I also want to become amazing! Even more amazing than Jiaojiao! This way, Jiaojiao doesn’t have to be amazing anymore!”

“Huh?” Gu Jiao stopped in her tracks, she looked at him puzzled.

Little Jingkong lifted his head, his clear eyes stared unblinkingly into Gu Jiao’s, “Jiaojiao, you must have had a tough time, right? Master says that all powerful people must have suffered a great deal, and they will continue to bear hardships in the future.”

Actually, he didn’t understand why people should still suffer after becoming strong. His master said, it’s because all powerful people were destined to climb uphill, and climbing uphill was hard, only descending was easy.

This was the first time someone had asked Gu Jiao if she was having a hard time.

When she joined the Organization at the age of eight, whipping, electric shocks, tortures… She almost trained herself to unconsciousness daily, there were people who cared if she could handle the next task, but nobody cared if she was having a tough time.

Gu Jiao didn’t know how to react for a moment.

Thinking of the recent incidents, Little Jingkong drooped his head down, “Did I… bring trouble to Jiaojiao?”

Gu Jiao hadn’t expected him to say that. She stroked his bald head, “No, having Little Jingkong around is not hard at all.”

“Really?” Little Jingkong looked at her, startled.

Gu Jiao saw a hint of hesitation in his eyes. This carefree little child was, in reality, more sensitive than anyone else.

Gu Jiao nodded assertively, “Yes, really.”

A smile returned to Little Jingkong’s eyes. He patted his tiny chest firmly, “Jiaojiao, wait until I grow up. I’ll carry you uphill when I grow up!”

If all strong people have to climb uphill, then he would climb uphill with Jiaojiao on his back!

Jiaojiao wouldn’t have to walk. He would bear all of Jiaojiao’s hardship!

Gu Jiao didn’t really understand the uphill-downhill metaphor, but she could feel the child’s concern.

She squatted down and gently almost teasingly touched the little one’s nose.

At this moment, Gu Jiao had no idea that the solemn oath made by someone at the tender age of three and a half, would indeed come true when he grew up.

Nobody expected that the cute little rice dumpling would one day become an awe-inspiring divine general—

No one within the six nations, or in the whole Universe, dared to make her suffer hardship anymore.

By the time they returned to the village, Little Jingkong had already fallen asleep, drooling in Gu Jiao’s arms.

There was a carriage parked at the edge of the village. Gu Jiao paid it no mind, until she approached and spotted someone standing by it.

It wasn’t just anyone – it was the Marquis, the very man who had ordered her and Little Jingkong to be thrown into the dungeon.