Chapter 281: The Bandit Ao Wu
The mood among Mo Yan and the other three was complicated. Xiao Hu had accidentally let it slip that his Beast Father was named "Feng Xuan."
Feng, as in Feng Xuan. And Xuan, as in Feng Xuan.
At that moment, Mo Yan, Han Li, and Lan Yin all whipped their heads around to stare at Feng Xuan, who just looked completely dumbfounded.
’It’s—it’s just a coincidence, right? Someone with the same name?’
’It has to be. Otherwise, how could he, a little boy of only three, have a child with someone?!’
But when the Zaizai spoke the names of the other three Beast Fathers, all four boys fell silent.
One was a coincidence. Two might also be a coincidence. But three, and now four? That couldn’t possibly be a coincidence.
So these five little Zaizai standing before them really were their children—and children they’d had with the Fairy Sister, no less.
The four boys felt a wave of dizziness. After a quick discussion, they decided to find Yu An and get some answers.
"So you know?"
Yu An was stewing pork ribs and commented casually, "In that case, you should take a few more photos with the Zaizai as keepsakes. Come over for dinner in a bit."
The dumplings had counted as lunch, and after all the commotion—plus running, jumping, and playing around in the Space—it was nearly dinnertime.
Seeing how composed Yu An was, it was the four of them who started to get flustered.
They persistently crowded around Yu An, demanding she explain what on earth was going on.
Since she had nothing better to do, Yu An recounted their past to them like she was telling a story. As Mo Yan and the others listened, their expressions constantly shifted.
Feng Xuan said dazedly, "Really? But I... I have a fiancée, Fairy Sister. Does that mean the grown-up me is a heartless scoundrel?!"
Little Feng Xuan was having a hard time accepting this.
The other three felt the same way.
The corner of Yu An’s mouth twitched. "Fiancée? What fiancée? Did you have a childhood betrothal arranged back home?"
"You could say that," Feng Xuan said, nodding seriously. "My mother told me my fiancée was a friend from my past life, and that she came looking for me when I was born."
"But she disappeared later on. I was planning on going to look for her after I went back to see my mother."
Mo Yan exclaimed in surprise, "Hey, me too! My fiancée is also a friend from my past life."
Han Li raised his hand. "Er, I think... me too..."
Lan Yin nodded silently, indicating it was the same for him.
Although the four had mentioned their fiancées to one another before, they had never gone into such detail. So when they put their stories together, they realized... ’Hey, why are our experiences pretty much the same?’
Yu An was completely baffled. She was sure Feng Xuan was talking about her, but she wasn’t sure if she was the "fiancée" the other three were referring to.
’Wait, no, the key point is, when did I become Feng Xuan’s fiancée?’
Since things had already come to this, Yu An decided she might as well stop hiding it.
"What are your fiancées’ names? Is it Yu An? An, as in the tree."
Feng Xuan’s eyes widened, and he and the other three boys exclaimed in unison, "How did you know?!"
"Because I am Yu An," she said, looking at him. "The first words you ever spoke were my name. And also..."
She went on to mention a few small details that only she and Feng Zhi knew. Feng Zhi had shared all those amusing stories with Feng Xuan, so before any doubt could even begin to form in his heart, it vanished with a *pop*.
As for how to convince Mo Yan and the other two... well, actually, there was no need. They already believed that the girl standing before them was their fiancée.
"Not exactly," Yu An said sternly. "I’m positive I never agreed to be any of your fiancées."
The four boys looked at each other, then simultaneously accused Yu An of being fickle, toying with their hearts, and abandoning her husband and children...
Yu An: "..."
’She had no idea where four kids this young learned such phrases. And besides, she never abandoned her children, okay!’
The four boys integrated into the family remarkably quickly, soon getting used to being called "Beast Father" by little Zaizai who were nearly as tall as they were.
They stopped calling her Fairy Sister, too, addressing her familiarly as "An’an" instead.
If only Ao Wu and Fuzai were here, their family would be truly reunited.
’She had no idea where that father and daughter were now.’
Yu An would occasionally zone out, worrying that Fuzai wasn’t eating well or staying warm... Fine, her real worry was that the father-daughter duo would cause some cataclysmic trouble!
"ACHOO! ACHOO! ACHOO!!!"
「Meanwhile, somewhere in the Upper Realm.」
Ao Wu let out three huge sneezes in a row, after which the bandits of Overlord Mountain saw their great chieftain break into a goofy grin.
’What gives? Did he sneeze his brains out?’
Just then, Fuzai came over carrying a jar, and Ao Wu immediately started showing off. "Zaizai, your Beast Father just sneezed three times. Your Female Mother must be thinking about me!"
Fuzai rolled her eyes at her Beast Father. "One sneeze means someone’s thinking of you, two means they’re cursing you, and three means they’re nagging you. Female Mother is definitely nagging about where you’ve run off to this time."
Ao Wu was unfazed. "Couldn’t it just be three times the longing? Besides, nagging is fine. It still means An’an has me on her mind."
Fuzai thought her Beast Father was being delusional. "I think it’s more plausible you’ve just caught a cold."
With that, she opened the jar. Inside were glittering jewels of every color.
Fuzai inspected them one by one, putting the high-quality ones in one pile and the low-quality ones in another.
After she finished sorting, she put the beautiful ones away and gave the unattractive ones to Ao Wu.
This was the haul from today’s robbery. As the second-in-command and young miss of Overlord Mountain, she had to go down the mountain every so often to rob travelers.
Of course, they didn’t rob the poor. Ao Wu had a roster of wealthy households in the nearby cities, and anyone whose name was circled in red was fair game.
Yes, in her Beast Father’s words, they were enacting heaven’s will by robbing the rich to aid the poor.
As for which "poor" they were aiding...
With over five thousand people on Overlord Mountain, all of whom had been forced into banditry, they were, of course, aiding themselves.
"Tsk," Ao Wu said, looking unimpressed. "The quality is so-so. They’re passable for skipping across water, I guess."
Fuzai didn’t even look up. "The beautiful ones are for Female Mother. Beast Father, don’t you dare steal my gems."
Ao Wu was not happy to hear that. "Listen to yourself. Is your Beast Father that kind of person?"
Fuzai just smiled at him, then hugged the jar tightly and prepared to go hide it in her secret spot.
The bandits who had witnessed the entire exchange: "..."
’We have to hold it in... Hold it in...’
PFFT—
’Can’t hold it in anymore!’
Their chieftain looked as fierce as a demon, but in reality, he was utterly powerless against his own daughter. In fact, the young miss often had him wrapped around her little finger, frequently using the "madam" to keep him in check.
Ao Wu shot them a glare, thoroughly exasperated.
’Sigh. Another day spent missing An’an.’
Back in Fei City, Ao Wu had already spotted Ao Er, who was searching for them. He’d been just about to go and make contact when a gust of wind swept him and Fuzai away.
A strange power forced him into his beast form and made him lose all reason—he was liable to snap at anyone who got too close.
When he came to his senses, he discovered that he and his Zaizai had arrived in the Upper Realm, landing right in the Heaven and Earth Illusion Realm where the Heaven and Earth Stone resided.
He later recovered his memories from his past life, which is when he learned that old coot, the Heaven and Earth Stone, was now in Yu An’s Space.
The reason Ao Wu had been sent to the Upper Realm first was to get the Heaven and Earth Illusion Realm cleaned up in advance, so the Stone could have a nice, long, comfortable sleep upon its return.
’Heh. What kind of person was he, Ao Wu? As if he’d do chores for that stinking rock.’
Ao Wu decisively took his Zaizai and bolted. He then found a mountain not far from the Heaven and Earth Illusion Realm and declared himself its king.
He had no idea when An’an would be able to come to the Upper Realm. But when he imagined her seeing the empire he had conquered for her, Ao Wu couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
’Yep, An’an will definitely praise me for this!’