"I'm not going anywhere! Why are you forcing me to leave my home to avoid those bandits? I said that when I grow up, I want to go out and learn skills, but I learned skills to protect our own inn in the future. And it's definitely not to escape.
"Now you ask me to leave my home with others. Isn't this a sign of cowardice and incompetence? You are afraid of them, but I am not! I will not be humble and grovel to them like you.
"In the future, I will be a man who stands upright and protects what belongs to me with my own ability. I will never kneel on the ground and beg for others' favors like you do now."
Before Shao Xi could figure out whether he should agree to what Lu Hu wanted from him, he heard Lu Yunxiang's words.
At this moment, Lu Yunxiang stood at the door of the kitchen again, looking angrily at the back of his father kneeling in front of Shao Xi and others.
He still couldn't understand that this was the inn that the father and son had worked so hard to run, and this was the home they had built.
Why should others break into their homes and take away what belongs to them, but they themselves have to be cautious and humble to please others?
His father was timid and fearful, and succumbed to the power of horse bandits, but now he knelt down and begged for guests who came to stay in the shop, just to get help from others.
This made Lu Yunxiang's small chest unable to help but ignite anger.
At this time, he was filled with resentment. He hated his father's weakness, incompetence, and cowardice, and he also hated his own weakness.
If I had the ability to protect my home, I wouldn't have let that group of horse bandits be so rampant, breaking down the wooden door of their inn at every turn, and extorting a sum of money from them after coming in to eat and drink for free.
That was what he and his father had worked hard to earn, why should he give it away like this?
He hates the injustice of this world, and also hates those shameless people who bully the weak and take advantage of their power.
Although he is still young, he also knows that as a man, he must stand upright and be a man, instead of groveling like his father and begging others.
Lu Hu turned around and saw his son's appearance. He quickly got up and ran to Lu Yunxiang and squatted down in front of him.
He grabbed Lu Yunxiang's shoulders with both hands and said, "Yunxiang, dad did all this for you and your mother! Your mother's last instruction to me before she left was for me to take good care of you.
"I can't let you get hurt in any way. I want you to grow up safely. You are your mother and I's only thoughts in this world. Dad doesn't want you to get hurt because of him.
"Now the Yesha Gang has forced you and me, father and son, into a desperate situation. It is not a pity for your father and I to die, but I can't harm you! My child, be obedient! Promise your father to leave with these benefactors.
"They will take good care of you and let you grow up safely. In the future, if you can marry a wife and have children and live a stable life, you will understand your father's painstaking efforts."
Lu Yunxiang raised his hand and opened Lu Hu's hand from his shoulder. His face was full of sorrow and anger, and he looked at his father in front of him with disappointment and contempt.
"How could I have a father like you? How could I be your son? If my mother were still alive, I don't know how disappointed I would be to see you like this!
"Why did my mother marry you back then? Why did she give birth to me? You are not my father! I don't have a weak, incompetent, cowardly father like you!"
When he said these words, Lu Yunxiang's face was already filled with tears. Lu Lu was such a disappointment to him.
He didn't expect that his father was just cowardly and incompetent in front of the horse bandits, but now he was giving himself to others to work as a handyman under others, but he never thought about those who bullied and insulted their father and son. People rose up in resistance.
In his eyes, Lu Rover's father was simply extremely incompetent, which made him completely disappointed in his father.
He shook off Land Rover's hand and turned around and ran upstairs. With the sound of the wooden door slamming shut, everyone knew that the child locked himself in the room because he was either angry, aggrieved, or depressed. , but more of a disappointment to his father.
Land Rover's performance also filled some people present with contempt. As a man, he cannot stand up to protect his home and his son. Instead, he has to kneel in front of outsiders and beg for his son to be taken away. This is seen by many people. It's not just incompetent, it's even a bit shameless.
Although everyone understood that Lu Rover did this to better protect Lu Yunxiang and enable him to get rid of the days of being bullied by the group of horse bandits.
But is this the only way? Is it possible that only the separation of flesh and blood can lead to peace? Why not resist?
When an ordinary man is angry, blood will be splashed five steps away. Even a native is still angry. Why does this Land Rover with the word "tiger" in its name live like a bereaved dog?
Although it can't be said that he is wrong for being a man with his tail between his legs, there is a limit after all. He is simply a useless wimp like this, and it is a shame for a man.
At this time, there were already people nearby who couldn't stand it anymore and began to scold Lu Rover.
"How did you become a father? You don't care if you are useless, but you still want to send your son away. I really don't know what you think!"
"That's right! A man who is so submissive has someone riding on his neck and shitting on him, yet he doesn't know how to resist. It's really useless!"
"I'm telling you, shopkeeper, this inn belongs to you. Although you can't afford to offend those bandits, you're not like that! How come you can't even protect your own home and son?"
"Oh! Forget it, everyone, stop talking! Everyone has their own difficulties, let's just mind our own business!"
"That's right, let's go upstairs to bed after eating and drinking. We have to travel tomorrow! Why are you meddling in other people's business?"
The gushing remarks of these porters and guards seemed to have made Lu Rover feel ashamed. At this moment, he stood there with a complex expression, including grievances, pain, unwillingness, helplessness, and seemed to be mixed with a bit of anger.
It's just that this anger looks even more incompetent in the eyes of others. No one knows who he is pointing at. Maybe it's the horse bandit, maybe his son, maybe it's directed at himself.
But everyone is certain without a doubt that his anger is useless. No matter how angry he is, he can only hide it in his heart.
Seeing this, Sun Lichang couldn't help but stand up and said to everyone: "Okay, okay, shut up! What does this have to do with you? Eat and drink enough and go upstairs to bed. We have to leave early tomorrow morning!"
When everyone saw what the shopkeeper said, they all drank the wine in their bowls quickly. Some people even reached out and grabbed a few more pieces of mutton to eat as they walked upstairs.
Except for the guards who stayed outside the inn to guard the goods, everyone else went upstairs to rest. At this time, only Shao Xi and his group were left downstairs.
Looking at Lu Rover who was still standing there in a daze, Shao Xi stood up and walked to his side and said softly: "I sympathize with your situation, but this is a caravan after all, and it is really inconvenient to have a child.
"Have you ever thought about it? What your son said is not unreasonable. Some things can never be solved by repeatedly forbearing and evading. We are just passers-by and can't help you. The only one who can help you is yourselves.
"Since there is something here that you can't let go of, then use your own hands to protect it! Whether as a father or as a man, this is something you should shoulder."
After saying that, Shao Xi walked straight upstairs.
Sun Lichang, Lao Wu, Fu Biao and others did not have any objections to Shao Xi's decision. They felt that what Shao Xi said was not wrong.
If you place all your hopes on others, then hope cannot be called hope.
Several people also got up and walked upstairs. When passing by Land Rover, Old Wu couldn't help but patted Land Rover on the shoulder, which was considered a kind of comfort and encouragement.
Everyone went upstairs, leaving only Lu Rover standing downstairs blankly.
He looked up at the messy cups and dishes on the wooden table, then turned to look at the wooden door that was almost broken by Li Er's pockmark, and the expression on his face gradually began to become calm.
At this moment, his eyes gradually flashed a hint of coldness from the previous grievances, unwillingness and disappointment.
After a while, he turned around and lifted the curtain and entered the kitchen. Soon after, the sound of sharpening a knife came from the kitchen.
…
Originally, the caravan planned to set off after dawn and continue on its way, but luck could not have been better. A sandstorm suddenly broke out in the desert in the middle of the night.
This thing is extraordinary. It is different from the ordinary sandstorms encountered in daily life. A sandstorm can completely submerge a caravan in the desert into the yellow sand.
Many teams encountered sandstorms on the way and completely disappeared into the vast desert.
Not to mention a small caravan, if this inn was not located in an oasis, this sandstorm would have buried the entire inn.
When the sandstorm came, the sky was covered with wind and sand, and horses neighed and camels were heard outside the inn in the middle of the night. Added to the shouts of the guards, it was already chaos.
Everyone in the caravan quickly got up and rushed outside despite the sandstorm to gather the camels and horses around the goods to ensure the safety of the livestock and goods.
The whole caravan worked in a hurry for most of the night, and it was not until dawn that they were settled and returned to the inn.
At this time, everyone's head, face, and body were covered with sand and dust, and they all looked like newly unearthed terracotta warriors and horses.
Lu Lu and his son quickly boiled water for everyone to clean. After struggling for a long time, they finally calmed down. Everyone complained and went back upstairs to catch up on their sleep. Some people sat downstairs and ordered some mutton, flour cakes and whole grain wine to fill their stomachs. Full belly.
Everyone was exhausted from the night's tossing. They originally planned to rush on their way, but now the sandstorm kept coming and no one could leave.
After Sun Lichang, Shao Xi and others discussed it, they could only wait for the sandstorm to completely subside before setting off for the caravan.
But looking at this situation, the sandstorm will not stop until it lasts for a few days, and the caravan can only stay in the inn and wait for the weather to improve.
Now it seems that we are lucky to have encountered this oasis and stayed in this inn. If we were on the way, the sandstorm might have left the entire caravan in the desert.
