Chapter 18 - At Least Do It Inside (1/2)

Finally, after unsuccessfully searching for his son for five hours, Mister Zhong returned to the village broken-hearted. He was sure, he had lost his son. Who knew, if they'd ever find him again?

Mister Zhong stopped in front of the door to his own home, not daring to open it or even knock. His wife loved their son even more than he himself did. If he was broken-hearted already … Would she be able to cope with it?

Maybe I should go back to the forest and search again? Or maybe I should gather the other men and ask them for help? With all of us searching, we might stand a chance of finding him.

Before Mister Zhong could decide, the door opened and he found himself face to face with his wife.

Mister Zhong gulped. How to break the news to her?

Madam Zhong stood there, arms akimbo, and glared at her husband. Jing Yi hadn't said anything, but it was easy enough to guess, what had happened. ”You —”

Mister Zhong might not know how to care for a child, but after some years of marriage, he knew the best way to live through the wrath of his wife. At once, he fell to his knees, clasped his hands and plead guilty: ”I'm sorry! I took Jing Yi out into the forest without you knowing. I know, I shouldn't have done it! I … I even lost him!”

Madam Zhong whacked him on the head. ”What are you doing? Kneeling outside and pleading guilty? At least do that inside, where people can't see! I can hear the neighbors talk already!”

”I'm sorry, I'm sorry!” Mister Zhong still didn't get up. Instead, he started tearing up. ”It's all my fault! I wanted Jing Yi to be a little more open, to play with other children and explore the world outside. I thought … I thought, if I just brought him there, he'd certainly like it. But he started crying and ran away and I just couldn't find him anymore. I'm so sorry! I lost our son!”

Madam Zhong whacked her husband over the head again. ”Stop crying already! Really, I feel like you're the only child in this house! What's wrong with Jing'er being a little quieter? He's wonderful like that!”

”Of course he is, of course …” Mister Zhong sniffled. It was too late now. He had already lost him.

”Tch. What kind of father are you? Losing such a small child in the forest? What if anything had happened to him?”

Jing Yi peeked out behind his mother's skirt at that moment and nodded. Mommy's right! What if I had fallen into the river and were swept away? What if a rabbit found me and swallowed me whole? What if a mud monster got me and made me muddy? I don't want to be scolded by mommy!

Mister Zhong stared at his son unblinking. ”Jing Yi?”

The boy hid behind his mother again. His Father wouldn't dare to take him away again, as long as his mother was there. He was sure of it. Even if his wife wasn't there, Mister Zhong probably wouldn't have thought about it again. Nearly losing his own child had made him see things in a different light. What if something really had happened to his son?

”Jing Yi! You're alright!” Mister Zhong extended his arms to hug his son, but the boy stubbornly hid behind his mother and wouldn't come out. Finally, Mister Zhong had to give up.

He got up and followed his wife into the house. Like that, the incident of him kidnapping his own son, was laid to rest. The neighbors discussed for a while, but considering the rumors about the heretic practitioner back then and the following appearance of the daoist master, they didn't believe gossip about the Zhongs as fast anymore. As such, they didn't mind Mister Pi and Madam Pan's stories much and just went back to their normal lives.

But, it wasn't long before the next rumor spread. And yes, it was still about the Zhongs or rather the Zhong's boy, who had started to behave quite strangely.

Qiu Ling smiled smugly, when he listened in on the women discussing the rumor:

”Have you heard about the boy of the Zhongs?”, asked Madam Pan.