Chapter Twelve: "Running Away to the In-Laws"

Pei Rong looked up coyly at Cang Mu, batting her eye lashes only to find that he wasn't looking at her, but at... she followed his gaze and found a young woman staring at the two of them. She pulled Cang Mu a little closer, trying to scare her away. The girl turned and left. Mission accomplished! Pei Rong turned again to entice Cang Mu, only to have him shake her off and quickly chase after the other girl. Left stunned, she could only follow.

...

Cang Mu had gained a lot of admirers the last couple months. Someone who was always getting stronger and had yet to be completely overpowered. He was smart and his shizun liked him very much as well. People could easily see how much promise he had. Still, his following mostly consisted of gamblers. The unfortunate part was there was women like Pei Rong who were putting down a little more than loyalties on the table. Ming Ran walked quickly ahead of him, Cang Mu could easily catch up, but he knew what was waiting for him. Reluctantly, he finally reached Ming Ran. 

He had calmed down, for the most part, rationally keeping his head. It wasn't like people always had one wife here. In the empire, it was quite common to have five or six wives at home. Still, Ming Ran didn't want to be one of the wives waiting at home for their husband's favor. He only would ever marry once, but were they really married? If he thought about it, they never really talked about what they were to each other. They spoke about being "husband" and "wife", but was that really what they were? Ming Ran knew what Cang Mu needed to do to gain more support. Marriage was an alliance that could work to his benefit, but what did that mean for Ming Ran? He stopped in his tracks, surprising Cang Mu, looking miserable. 

"Ming Ran?" Cang Mu touched his shoulder, "Listen, don't mind what happened back there. Pei Rong is not somebody who you need to mind."

Even if her family might be a good ally..? Cang Mu tilted his head, and sighed. 

"About that... there's something I need to ask you." he ran his fingers through his hair, trying to find the words. He opened his mouth again to begin,

"Cang Mu!" the lilting twitter of birds called out to him as Pei Rong came bounding over to the two of them. She clung again to his arm and pouted. "You left so suddenly." She casually threw her hair over her shoulder, "Where are you off to?" Cang Mu pulled away, and focused on Ming Ran.

"Ming Ran, how about we go down the mountain today?" he asked, reaching out to touch his shoulder gently. Ming Ran looked at him, and nodded. Cang Mu let out a breath of relief and began to guide him away. 

"Going to town sounds like fun!" Pei Rong said, wedging herself in between the two of them. Cang Mu glared at her. Could she read the room? He was trying so hard to coax his wife! He opened his mouth to reject her, however, Ming Ran only turned away leaving the two of them alone. Tears in his eyes, he headed to the only place where he could have safe refuge.

...

The Dog Peak was filled with warriors. Children who wished to become soldiers, general-to-be's, loyal retainers, anyone who would follow the honor code. This didn't mean it was chalked to the brim with meatheads though-- that was Tiger Peak's specialty. Dog Peak was filled with warriors who could properly wield strategy, power, and wisdom. The studied maps, theory, government, anything that could help them rise through the ranks. The Ming Family had been mostly assigned to the Dog Peak. Thus, both Ming Quan and Ming Cheng were both housed here. The only living Ming relative that had not been assigned to the Dog Peak was their baby brother, Ming Ran. Unlike Cang Mu, the Ming brothers had gained a large following due to their prowess and strength. Ming Quan was popular due to his ability to wield almost any weapon and his approachable personality. Friendly, upright, and tough. Ming Cheng was popular as he was the most reliable. It was rumored that Kang Gong was trying to get him to stay in the Twelve Mountains as a cultivator. Ming Cheng had been able to win the struggle between the empire and their Western neighbors. He had been the captain to a million men and had never lost a battle. He was solemn and serious, but responsible and levelheaded. Everyone on Dog Peak worshipped them. Dog Peak was the only peak where their was no in-fighting. Everyone at that peak was loyal to each other. So, it went without saying that their beloved little brother would be treated with the utmost respect.

Ming Ran only had entered the gates to the Dog Peak and was given an escort to the top by two of the shidi under his brother's wing. Ming Ran could only quietly listen as the two continued to argue about who was better.

"I'm just saying, Ming Quan is ready to help you with anything. He always is taking care of his shidi. He's warm and friendly to everyone. You can't help but want to follow someone like that!" one said. 

"And? Ming Cheng may be less approachable, but he knows what he's doing. He has survived the battlefield and has a perfect record. He has even been recognized by the Emperor himself!"

"So? Ming Quan knows what he's doing too! He has mastered every weapon!"

"But not to the point Ming Cheng has. His sword is an extension of himself! You don't get that kind of mastery when you're always learning a new weapon!"

"Still, he could pick up any weapon on the battlefield and win!"

"Not necessarily."

"Ming-gongzi what do you think?"

"Yes, surely you know best!"

Ming Ran pulled a sheet of paper from his sleeve, as he already was prepared for this argument before he came here. My brothers are the best in the whole world! The two disciples stared at the sheet in awe.

"He's right. If both of them fought on the battlefield together then..!"

"Unstoppable force."

Ming Ran smiled at them, and followed them silently to the training fields. By the time they made it, Ming Ran had already heard everything about what they had been learning by how his brothers had been applying the lesson. Taylor Swift wasn't this popular... Ming Ran thought, dizzy from the onslaught of information. Ming Cheng was overseeing the sword training when they arrived. He stood tall before the rest, and called out commands as the students swung their swords. Their battle cries rose above the clouds. The shidi were turning red in the face as they continued to move. 

"I think they're going to make it to five hundred swings today." one of his guides said. 

"Or more, if Ming-shixiong decides to push their limits."

"True."

"Still..."

"Yesterdays workout..."

"...it was kind of..."

Both of them filled each others sentences and trailed off, their eyes gazing somewhere far into the distance. Ming Ran sighed and moved forward. 

"Stop!" Ming Cheng barked. Everyone went silent, but didn't dare exit their stance. Ming Ran could see the forced endurance in their eyes and the exceptional flush of their skin. Ming Ran began to sign. Ming Cheng had learned how to sign fairly quickly, though it was limited.

Can we talk? Ming Ran tilted his chin downward and peaked up. No one dared breathe. Ming Cheng waved dismissively to his shidi. They dropped their stances with relief, one thought filling their heads: Little brother needs to visit more often! T^T

"So, which one of these idiots came to you?" Ming Cheng jerked his head in their direction. A few yelped. Ming Ran hugged his arm and shook his head. No one. I- he paused, wilting, just wanted to come... 

...

Cang Mu had finally managed to throw off Pei Rong. The woman was becoming irritating as hell. Cang Mu remembered his high school years and commonly wore a sneer whenever he did. There were many times where he wanted to enjoy college life again, where he was bright eyed and filled with the excitement that came with options. What path did he want to take? What would he do in his life? Did he want to go to a football game or did he want to go clubbing? No one could pay him a high enough sum to be sixteen again. Ah, he was seventeen now. He fingered the ring Ming Ran had gifted him. Maybe seventeen wasn't so bad. Cang Mu shook away his thoughts. It was hard having the mind of an adult man in a teenager's body. He found that some things reverted to his teenage year since being reborn. For example, his libido. He pulled Ming Ran into bed four nights a week, kissing him and coaxing him until he gave in. He had the stamina of a well-bred war horse, leaving Ming Ran to rest in his arms around dawn. He was horny as hell. He got jealous over trifles. Everything else was coming from a man's perspective. He didn't fight with kids. Ming Ran was somehow different, and if he was being honest, he found that he had to remind himself constantly that he was the same age in this life as his lover. It was nearly impossible to wrap his head around their relationship, let alone to the fact that they were legally married. Cang Mu sighed, Ancient China...or wherever the fuck this is- was truly a different time. Being able to drink and have a family at sixteen is unimaginable! He made his way up to the Dog Peak. He ran his fingers through his hair, shaking his head. He had zero idea how to be a husband. Never had the chance... no... I suppose that isn't entirely true... that may have been the closest thing to being married... He shook his head. The past didn't matter. The present and future did.

Still, was it just him or was the Dog Peak looking a little hostile?