"Ajiu, be careful!"
Cai Lihua finally caught up and pulled Ajiu behind a rock.
Meng Shaode had no intention of dodging. A grin spread across his lips as he nocked two feather arrows.
"Damn it, let me show you my archery skills!"
Meng Shaode was clearly exceptionally skilled with the bow, reaching a state of unity between man and weapon in an instant.
With a swift *whoosh*, the feather arrows split mid-flight at the distance Meng Shaode had precisely calculated, the two arrows on the left and right meeting the incoming arrow head-on.
The tungsten steel rhombic arrowhead instantly shattered, splitting the opponent's feather arrow into four pieces that fell from the air.
With a *puff*.
The two men were sent flying several meters, crashing heavily onto the rocks at the summit, spitting blood instantly.
The remaining two were the swordsmen guards. Seeing this archery, they knew they had no chance of closing in for an attack. They turned and fled.
"Running? Heh heh..." Meng Shaode, holding the bow and arrows, seemed like a different person, utterly engrossed in the thrill.
Cai Lihua grabbed his arm. "Let them go. We should hurry and leave. If they bring reinforcements, you won't be able to handle it."
"Alright, I'll listen to you." Meng Shaode slung the bow around his neck, picked up the quiver, and quickly pulled Ajiu down the mountain.
The family of three reached the woods in the valley and stopped by the tree trunks to rest, panting heavily.
"This bow is amazing. Daughter, where did you get it?"
Cai Lihua said nothing, her anxiety returning now that the immediate danger had passed. Her daughter's secret engagement flashed through her mind.
For the first time, she felt helpless as a mother. Perhaps the greater the hope, the deeper the disappointment.
"It grew in the spiritual spring space." Ajiu averted her gaze from her mother, unwilling to elaborate on the bow and arrows.
"That's truly remarkable, that it could grow something like this. Quite magical, wouldn't you say, Lihua?"
Meng Shaode had long forgotten everything else. He was now carefully wiping the precious treasure with his sleeve.
"Lihua?" Meng Shaode finally noticed the awkward expressions on his wife's and daughter's faces.
He immediately suppressed his delighted grin. "Lihua, you haven't even asked our daughter what's going on and you're sulking. Perhaps there's a reason?"
Ajiu looked gratefully at her father, fearing she would be crushed by her mother's silent treatment.
"What reason could there be? This is a daughter's lifelong commitment. No reason is more important than this."
Cai Lihua, being a woman, knew how significant this matter was.
What could a man understand?
With that, she angrily stomped off towards the valley floor.
"Lihua, we should discuss things calmly." Meng Shaode glanced at his daughter. In truth, he was also angry.
But now that things had come to this, shouldn't they first understand the situation and resolve the trouble?
Thinking of Tuobayan, that beast, Meng Shaode stamped his foot in anger. "Jiu'er, tell me, did that beast Xiaoyan force you? Just tell the truth, and I'll find him one day and shoot him with two piercing arrows."
"No." Ajiu quickly retorted. She was the one who forced him, after all.
Cai Lihua had walked too fast ahead. Meng Shaode pulled his daughter forward to catch up. "If not, then explain clearly, especially to your mother. Hurry, explain it."
They chased after her, father and daughter, until the sky began to lighten with the first blush of dawn. The forest grew gradually brighter.
Cai Lihua, having walked too quickly in her anger, was now too tired to continue.
"Jiu'er, come to me and explain it to me, word for word. Otherwise, I, as your mother, will have to fulfill my responsibilities and teach you a lesson."
Don't think that because she doted on Ajiu, she wouldn't dare to hit her. Such an event happening once in a lifetime had already taken half their lives. If Ajiu still didn't understand where she had gone wrong, she would be a failure as a mother.