Wu Xin: The Monster Killer

Chapter 46 The Triumphant Lord Gu

Lord Gu has become very busy, getting up earlier than a rooster and going to bed later than a night owl. Whenever he's awake, he's definitely not home. Wuxin and Yueya, who work from sunrise to sunset, haven't seen him for several days in a row.

Crescent Moon still had some money, enough to eat and drink comfortably. Since growing a head of short hair, Wuxin's limbs gradually became stronger, his torso slimmer, and he fully regained his former human form. His appetite also slowly returned to normal, and he no longer frantically searched for food all day. Now that they were full and had plenty of free time from morning till night, their only entertainment was in bed at night.

Wuxin loved everything about Yueya, burying his face in her chest all night, as if he wanted to drown between two large steamed buns. Yueya, sweaty, hugged him tightly, her body soft and comfortable from head to toe. The truce didn't last long; Wuxin suddenly tilted his head back and climbed on top of him again, moving his hands and feet. Only an exhausted ox can plow a field to death; Yueya wasn't afraid of him.

One night on New Year's Eve, Lord Gu returned home unusually early. Though he said early, it wasn't really early at all; it was already completely dark, the courtyard was covered by the afternoon's heavy snow, and the inky sky was sprinkled with a handful of silvery stars.

Lord Gu finally got his assignment and changed into a majestic military uniform. He excitedly walked to the door of the west wing, first reaching out to push it open, but failing, he then knocked on the glass window: "Hey, are you two asleep?"

Inside the room, Crescent Moon spoke, her voice high-pitched and trembling: "We...we've already fallen asleep..."

Lord Gu bent down and blew his nose on the ground, then looked up and grumbled, "Don't give me that bullshit. Who can sleep like a cat? You two are a match made in heaven, all you do is eat and sleep, neither of you has any ambition! Let me tell you, I have some good news today. If you two have any feelings for each other, you should come out and see my new military uniform. Also, I have three theater tickets. If you're free tomorrow night, please come to the theater."

Inside the room, the man answered listlessly, haltingly as if he were doing arduous work: "Lord Gu, congratulations. See you tomorrow!"

Lord Gu was very disappointed and went back to his east wing grumbling.

The next morning, Yueya was sweeping snow in the courtyard when Lord Gu came out wearing an old cotton-padded coat and asked her for hot water to wash up. Yueya pointed to the kitchen, telling him to fetch the kettle himself. As he walked, Lord Gu glanced at her, thinking to himself that Yueya's backside was getting bigger and bigger.

While Yueya ran to the kitchen to cook rice porridge and chop pickled vegetables, Wuxin also got up. He squatted at the kitchen doorway with a small basin of water, washing potatoes for Yueya. Lord Gu quickly changed into his new military uniform, donned his knee-high riding boots, and strolled triumphantly in the courtyard. Yueya glanced outside and saw him, laughing loudly, "Wow! Lord Gu looks so handsome!"

Lord Gu stood with his hands behind his back in front of the kitchen door, seeing the young couple looking at him and laughing, and felt quite satisfied: "Nonsense, would I work for nothing? If the old marshal didn't give me a new set of clothes, why would I go out early and come back late every day to flatter him?" Then he pointed at Wuxin with his chin: "You, you're really hopeless. The old marshal has asked you several times. If you had even a little bit of social skills, you might have made a fortune under the old marshal! If I were as immortal as you, and I'm not bragging, I would have been the emperor by now! Oh no, now we call him president, I would have been the president by now!"

Wuxin carefully rubbed the dirt off the potatoes, his hands pale and wet: "It's pointless."

Lord Gu bowed to him: "What do you mean, 'meaningless'?"

Wu Xin replied, "Being an emperor is meaningless."

Lord Gu stretched out a hand and flicked his finger on the top of his head: "You've been one?"

Unwilling to stop what he was doing, he took a minute to think, and finally lowered his head to continue washing potatoes: "I think I saw someone else do it. I can't remember clearly."

Lord Gu straightened up, and because he couldn't reach an agreement with Wuxin, he turned his gaze to Yueya: "Yueya, stir-fry the pickled vegetables in oil, otherwise they won't taste good!"

Crescent Moon wiped her wet hands on her apron and asked with a smile, "Lord Gu, didn't you say last night that you were going to invite us to see a play today?"

Lord Gu nodded: "Yes!"

Crescent Moon immediately picked up the oil bottle and chuckled to herself, "Great!"

Wuxin and Yueya never found out what official position Lord Gu had become; they only knew that he would be sent out to lead troops after the New Year.

Lord Gu gave Yueya fifty yuan to use during the New Year; he added, "I'm not exactly flush with cash right now, I'll buy the diamond pendant next year!"

Crescent Moon took the money: "Forget it, do you really think I want your diamond pendant? I've heard diamonds are expensive. Instead of spending money on diamonds, you should save it up and buy a small house or a piece of land."

Lord Gu was both amused and exasperated: "You're destined to be a maid your whole life. I wanted to promote you to a wealthy lady, but you don't even know how to enjoy the good fortune!"

Crescent Moon still smiled, feeling that Lord Gu's words were like a fantasy: "Our Li family has never had a wealthy lady in generations. Besides, aren't we living quite well now? Eating fish and meat and wearing silk, what more do you want?"

Lord Gu couldn't do anything about Wuxin and Yueya, so he decided to save his breath. After all, he could easily support the poor, unambitious couple with his own abilities. That night, he led the way, locked the courtyard gate, and indeed took Wuxin and Yueya to the theater.

The garden was filled with smoke and dust, but the play was truly excellent. Wuxin and Yueya watched intently, their mouths churning listlessly at the candied fruit Gu had bought. When the play ended at midnight, the three of them braved the cold wind to walk outside. Suddenly, Yueya was stunned again, for she saw a voluptuous woman standing beside a car, wearing only stockings despite the freezing weather.

She looked, and Wuxin followed her gaze, staring for quite some time. Finally, Master Gu called two rickshaws and hailed them both. Upon arriving home, Master Gu carried a basin of hot water back to the east wing, took off his clothes, and sat on the edge of the bed to soak his feet. Just as he was enjoying the blissful sensation, the door opened, and Wuxin, dressed only in a single layer of clothing, rushed in.

Lord Gu was puzzled: "What is it?"

Without thinking, he closed the door, then walked to the small stove and stopped: "Crescent Moon chased me out."

Lord Gu immediately perked up: "Why?"

Wuxin was clearly feeling cold, so he hunched over and sat down on the edge of the bed: "She said I'm obsessed with women and that I'm a pretty boy who's not honest."

Lord Gu splashed water in the basin with his bare feet, shaking his head as he commented, "Hey, is your wife trying to rebel? A real man has three wives and four concubines, it's only natural, let alone just a glance? I'm not trying to stir things up, but if it were me, I would have slapped her across the face long ago and made her know who I am!"

Without thinking, she rolled onto the bed, pulled the blanket up to her shoulders, and whispered, "It's good enough that she didn't hit me."

Lord Gu turned to the side, stretched out his long arm, and poked him with a finger: "What do you mean? Aren't you leaving?"

Without thinking, she turned her back to him and said, "I'll stay with you for the night, and then I'll go and coax her tomorrow morning."

When Lord Gu opened his eyes after one night, he found that Wuxin was gone.

Yawning dismissively, Lord Gu, as usual, put on his cotton-padded coat and went out to fetch hot water from the kitchen. But as soon as he reached the door, he saw Yueya and Wuxin flirting and teasing each other in the kitchen. It turned out that Wuxin had woken up in the early hours of the morning and sneaked back to the west wing like a thief. Yueya, on the other hand, was fast asleep, her anger long since dissipated. Before Wuxin could even utter his prepared sweet words, the two of them had automatically embraced in the warm bed.

Lord Gu went out and returned in the evening. Yueya had stewed three large pig tails, and the whole courtyard was filled with the aroma of meat. Lord Gu first went back to his room to take off his military uniform and disarm himself. Only after Yueya brought a large pot of pig tails to the table in the main room did he appear before everyone with one hand in his pocket, looking quite dashing.

He pulled out three movie tickets and threw them on the table. With a smug look, he glanced at the pig's tail in the pot and said, "Let me tell you two, I changed my name today! From now on, my full name is Gu Guoqiang!"

Wuxin sat down at the table first, smiling and looking up at him without saying a word. Yueya, while serving rice, asked, "Not called Xuanwu anymore?"

Lord Gu waved his hand: "Don't mention that bastard's name again! Guoqiang was named by the old marshal himself, hehe, the old marshal said that as a soldier, I should keep the country in my heart, so the name Guoqiang is just right!"

Crescent Moon recalled the origin and cost of the name Xuanwu and couldn't help but sigh, "If I had known I would have to change the name today, I would have just kept the name Gu Shitou and saved a dollar."

Lord Gu pointed at her dismissively: "You're so petty, you're just a short-sighted little wench with long hair—find a plate and scoop out that big pig's tail from the middle."

Crescent Moon curled her lip: "Such a big shot, even when eating pig tails, he has to grab the biggest one. If you become a general someday, will you have to change your name?"

Lord Gu plopped down and replied matter-of-factly, "Of course! Guoqiang is stronger than Xuanwu, but it doesn't sound elegant enough. What if I were destined to become a military governor or president? Wouldn't I need a more respectable name? But that's a matter for later, let's not talk about it now. Hurry up and hand me the chopsticks, I'll take you to see a movie after I've eaten!"

(End of this chapter)