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Chapter 66: Lu Xiao Li
Chapter 66: Lu Xiao Li
"Giving a name?"
Lu Qing wiped his hands.
"Yes!" Xiao Yan nodded earnestly as she counted her fingers, "Little Beast is our friend now, and all my friends have names, like Da Niao, Er Niao, and Xiao Hutou. They all have their own names!"
"What's wrong with calling it Little Beast?"
"Little Beast doesn't sound nice, and many animals are called little beasts. We should give it a special name." The little girl shook her head.
Lu Qing wanted to say that, in fact, names like Da Niao and Er Niao were also very common outside.
He thought for a moment and saw the little black beast poking its head into the kitchen curiously.
So he asked, "Little one, do you want a name too?"
A thoughtful look appeared in the little black beast's eyes, and it nodded.
"Brother, look, Little Beast wants a name too!" Xiao Yan exclaimed happily.
"Since that's the case, let's give it a name."
Seeing that even the little black beast wanted a name, Lu Qing no longer refused.
However, what should its name be? Lu Qing thought for a moment and suddenly had an idea.
"How about the name Xiao Li?"
"Xiao Li?" Xiao Yan tilted her head, puzzled.
The little black beast also looked confused.
Obviously, neither of the two little ones understood the meaning of this name.
"Yes, Little Beast looks very similar to a type of animal called a raccoon dog, so calling it Xiao Li is fitting. Also, the character 'Li' represents fire, and look at its fur—doesn't it resemble burning black flames?"
As Lu Qing explained, he picked up a piece of charcoal and wrote the character 'Li' on it.
After this period of learning, he had already mastered the writing of the world's script.
Xiao Yan might not have understood, but the little black beast seemed to feel that the name Xiao Li was very prestigious after Lu Qing's explanation.
It stared at Lu Qing intently, its eyes sparkling.
"Do you like this name?" Lu Qing realized what it was feeling and said, "Then from now on, you'll be called Xiao Li. As for a surname, you can choose to have one or not. If you want a surname, you can share ours and be called Lu Li or Lu Xiao Li."
"That's great, Little Beast! You have a name now!" Xiao Yan was thrilled. "Your name is Xiao Li, and mine is Xiao Yan. Our names sound similar."
The little black beast's eyes shone with emotion.
With a name, it was even more natural for the little black beast to stay with the Lu family.
It started playing with Xiao Yan in the house, chasing each other around.
Of course, it was mostly Xiao Li teasing Xiao Yan. Otherwise, with its speed, even a hundred Xiao Yans wouldn't be able to catch it.
"Right, Xiao Li, I want to ask you something."
Lu Qing, seeing how happy the little black beast was, suddenly remembered something.
Xiao Li stopped and looked at Lu Qing.
"Yesterday, were you being chased by someone in the mountains who wanted to capture you?"
Lu Qing was recalling the conversation he had overheard between the Wei family guards the night before.
They had mentioned that their young master had fallen into a valley while chasing a unique black beast in the mountains.
At the time, he had suspected that the beast they were talking about might be Xiao Li, and now he could ask to confirm his suspicions.
Xiao Li tilted her head in thought and then nodded.
"The ones who wanted to catch you—were there six or seven of them, including one who was about my age?"
Xiao Li nodded again.
Lu Qing broke into a sweat; it really was them.
His expression turned serious. "Xiao Li, stay inside the house for now and don't go out. If anyone else comes, find a place to hide and don't let them see you, understand?"
Xiao Li nodded.
It had never liked being around other people anyway.
Lu Qing turned to his sister and instructed, "Xiao Yan, when you're outside, you must not tell anyone about Xiao Li being here, not even your friends. Otherwise, Xiao Li might be taken away, and you won't be able to see Xiao Li again. Do you understand?"
Chapter 66: Xiao Li
"I understand, Xiao Yan! I won't tell anyone about Xiao Li!"
Hearing that she might never see Xiao Li again, the little girl's face turned serious as she nodded in response.
She had just become friends with Xiao Li and didn't want to lose it.
Seeing Xiao Yan's agreement, Lu Qing finally relaxed a little.
The little girl had always been tight-lipped, which gave him peace of mind.
With all the silver taels they had at home, he had instructed her not to tell anyone, and so far, she hadn't breathed a word of it.
Lu Qing wasn't being overly cautious.
Although the young master of the Wei family had fallen into the valley by himself, it was ultimately related to Xiao Li.
This time, the young master had nearly lost his life, and even if he recovered, his body would be severely weakened, requiring many precious medicinal ingredients to heal properly.
After such a calamity, who could say that he wouldn't resent Xiao Li?
If he didn't see Xiao Li, it would be fine, but if he did, he might try to capture and take revenge on it.
Lu Qing remembered that the young master's personality wasn't particularly pleasant.
Although Xiao Li was a Red Light Spirit Beast, Lu Qing's ability assessed it to be at the same level as an Internal Organs Realm cultivator.
However, Lu Qing didn't think it could defeat the Wei family's guards.
Humans had too many combat techniques and cunning schemes, which a pure-hearted spirit beast like Xiao Li might not be able to understand.
Not to mention, the Wei family's head steward was also an Internal Organs Realm martial arts master.
With this in mind, Lu Qing thought it best for Xiao Li to stay away from the Wei family for a while.
In fact, Lu Qing wanted Xiao Li to hide deep in the mountains, far away from the village, until the Wei family left.
But seeing how Xiao Li had chosen to guard the roof overnight just for the sake of fish, he knew that Xiao Li had already considered the area around the village as its territory.
It wouldn't be easy to convince it to leave.
If it couldn't resist the temptation of fish and sneaked over like it did today, the risk of exposure would be even greater.
It would be better to let it hide in the house and avoid any encounters for a while.
In the following days, through further inquiries, Lu Qing learned that Xiao Li didn't have any parents nearby.
It was the only Black Night Spirit Raccoon in these mountains.
It didn't even know how it had appeared in the mountains.
All it knew was that as long as it could remember, it had lived in the mountains, just in a different area.
It had only recently wandered into the mountain range behind Jiuli Village.
Knowing this, Lu Qing was truly relieved and no longer worried about the sudden appearance of two mature Black Night Spirit Raccoons seeking revenge.
And so, Xiao Li officially moved in with the Lu family.
As the young master of the Wei family had stabilized, Lu Qing no longer needed to stay at the hillside courtyard all the time.
His life returned to its previous rhythm.
Every morning, he would go to the hillside courtyard to pay his respects to his master and study medicine for half a day. The rest of the time was his to spend as he wished.
He could go fishing, tend to his vegetables, or practice martial arts.
For Xiao Li, this life was undoubtedly blissful.
Every day, it got to eat the fresh fish that Lu Qing caught, and the taste was simply irresistible.
After eating its fill, Xiao Yan would give it massages and scratch its itches.
This life was far more comfortable than its previous one in the mountains.
Xiao Li didn't want to leave and just wanted to stay in the house forever.
Days turned into weeks, and Lu Qing's worry about Xiao Li being discovered never came to pass.
As for the young master of the Wei family, under the old doctor's careful treatment, his body began to heal at a noticeable rate.
Finally, on the seventh day after the young master woke up, he was able to get out of bed and walk.
This meant that he could endure the journey back to the Wei family.
(End of Chapter)
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