Starting with the frog, he has ruled for eternity.

Chapter 25 Croak! Impact

Quack?

Nan Nan glanced at the little frog in surprise.

What's wrong?

Does Little Frog have something to say?

But the little frog can't talk!

What is it trying to tell itself?

"What's wrong?" Zhou Shouzhen was taken aback and looked at the frog on Nan Nan's head.

Ok?

Why is there a frog?

Zhou Shouzhen was stunned. He stared at the frog for a moment, but didn't sense anything unusual about it.

Apart from his brighter eyes and slightly larger size, there's nothing strange about him.

But it's normal for rich people's pets to be pampered and overfed, right?

"N-nothing..." Nan Nan lowered her head.

She was just about to tell them who saved them when Little Frog suddenly cried out, as if to remind her not to reveal that it was it that had helped.

The little frog's webbed paws gripped her hair with a little force.

This gave Nan Nan an idea.

"It was my second brother, he stopped that, that big bad guy for us..." Nan Nan sobbed softly, explaining as she cried.

However, she did not mention Fang Yuan's actions.

Fang Yuan also loosened the pressure on his webbed hands appropriately...

"Yes! That big bad guy was awful! He was wearing a full suit of armor, and my second brother was no match for him. If he hadn't blinded him in a moment of desperation, we wouldn't have been able to escape at all..."

Nan Nan spoke faster and faster, more fluently and more angrily!

He even stomped his foot!

"A full suit of armor? And blinded them?"

Zhou Shouzhen's eye twitched violently.

None of the city's defenders wore armor! The only way they were forced to blind them meant they were fully armored!

Full armor!

Good heavens, even Lord Zhang's personal guards don't have a full set of armor... Zhou Shouzhen seriously doubted that Nannan was talking nonsense. He estimated Nannan's age and sighed.

What kind of lies can a child tell? At most, they might exaggerate a bit... But even if they're not fully armored, they're no ordinary robber!

They could only be deserters who came from who-knows-where!

...Since he was a deserter, it's only natural that the second young master of the Lu family couldn't defeat him!

However, the most important issue now is not whether what Nan Nan said is true or false; the most important thing now is to take action! Quickly rescue the eldest son of the Lu family!

As for whether the deserter was blinded by Lu Feng?

In this chaotic world, it's not uncommon for people to unleash their potential on the brink of life and death, or for their inner energy to go berserk in a desperate struggle. The Lu family is a martial arts family, so it's somewhat plausible that Lu Feng, in a desperate situation, stabbed a broken piece of wood into the gap in Zhao Wu's mask.

Who else could it be but him?

After all, he couldn't possibly believe that it was that green frog that was perched on the little girl's head that did it, could he?

Zhou Shouzhen didn't doubt the frog at all; he simply remarked:

"Young Master Lu... truly a man of fierce character!"

Zhou Shouzhen took a deep breath, his face instantly turning cold and violent. He whirled around and roared at the guards behind him:

"Zhao Qian! Gather two squads of men, grab crossbows, and follow me back along the main road! These deserters dare to rob and kill the Lu family outside Yinyang City; they think my head is just for show!"

"yes!"

In an instant, the sound of horses' hooves thundered at the city gate, and the scraping of armor plates filled the air.

……

…………

……

The dim yellow light flickered on the roof, and the air was filled with an intense, almost overwhelming, herbal scent.

This is……

Where is this...?

My thoughts were somewhat slow and rigid, like a rusty wheel starting to turn again.

Then came the excruciating pain.

pain!

Oh, right... Nan Nan, Xiao Feng!

And my mother!

Lu Yong subconsciously tried to raise his hand to prop himself up, but as soon as he put his hand on the bed and tried to get up, he trembled and fell back onto the bed!

I can't muster any strength at all!

My hands... are shaking.

It hurts, it hurts terribly!

"Hiss..." Lu Yong gasped.

But then he realized that his throat was so hoarse, as if it had been sanded with sandpaper, or cut with a knife.

thirsty.

I was burning with thirst.

He rolled his eyes, his vision blurry. It was an unfamiliar room; medicine packets were piled in the corner, and several earthenware pots were bubbling and emitting white smoke over a small fire.

"Someone come here... water..."

He called out weakly. Normally, even if the servants of the Lu household were asleep, they would immediately wake up and answer. But now, the surroundings were eerily quiet, with only the occasional sound of the watchman's clapper in the distance.

Yes……

Luoshui Bridge... crossbows... fully armored bandits...

Fragmented memories flooded back, and Lu Yong suddenly remembered that he had been slashed on the wrist by the scarred bald man, and then those men rushed at him.

...Mother, Nannan, Xiaofeng, are they alright?

Just as he was getting anxious, the door creaked open.

A figure staggered in.

Lu Yong managed to focus his gaze and realized it was his second brother, Lu Feng. Lu Feng was in extremely poor condition; his head was wrapped in thick, bleeding bandages, his right arm was in a sling across his chest, and his left leg was dragging on the ground. He had to stop and catch his breath after every step.

It's Xiaofeng, at least Xiaofeng is still alive...

Lu Yong breathed a sigh of relief...

"Big brother...you're awake."

"Water...what...what happened..." Lu Yong managed to squeeze out a few words.

Lu Feng hurriedly poured a bowl of warm water from the table beside him with trembling hands and carefully brought it to Lu Yong's lips. Lu Yong swallowed greedily, not caring that the water was dripping down his chin and into his collar.

After drinking a bowl of water, Lu Yong regained some of his strength.

He stared intently at Lu Feng, his eyes reddening: "Where's Mother? Where's Nannan? How many of our Lu family's guards... are still alive?"

Lu Feng was silent for a moment, his eyes bloodshot, his voice heavy with sorrow, as he whispered:

"Brother, we've arrived in Yinyang City. Lord Zhang has taken us in; this is one of his side residences, absolutely safe. As for the guards..."

Lu Feng closed his eyes in pain: "Of the thirty skilled fighters who rushed out with us, more than half of them perished at the bridgehead. There are probably only six or seven left unharmed, and another seven or eight are seriously injured and are recovering. Mother was frightened and took some calming medicine to go to sleep. Nan Nan... that girl is quite strong; she's been guarding your door the whole time, and was only just persuaded by her wet nurse to go and rest."

"What about the gold and silver treasures?" Lu Yong pressed. "And Father, has there been any news from him?"

"The gold and silver have all been recovered." Lu Feng gave a bitter smile. "When Zhou Shouzhen led his men back, those bandits were fighting amongst themselves around our carriages. Those guys were deserters; seeing the city defense forces pressing in, they tried to put up a fight, but Lord Zhang arrived and took them down one by one..."

"As for Father... Lord Zhang has sent someone to inform Father what happened to us... but there has been no reply yet. It will probably take another day or two before Father can return."

Upon hearing this, Lu Yong's tense body relaxed slightly, and he let out a long sigh.

His life was saved, his wealth was saved, and his family was saved. The Lu family was spared from extinction in his hands.

But then he realized something was wrong.

His hands, his feet.

Somewhat numb, somewhat sluggish, somewhat unresponsive.

"Xiaofeng, my injury..." Lu Yong remained relatively calm, only looking down at his hand.

Lu Feng froze, avoiding his elder brother's gaze and remaining silent with his head down.

"Speak!" Lu Yong sighed, but showed no emotion.

Lu Feng nodded... clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking, and finally choked up as he said:

"Brother... those beasts were too ruthless. They were afraid you'd unleash your inner energy and fight back in your death throes, so they severed your tendons in your hands and feet. The doctor said... the doctor said..."

So you've ruined yourself...?

Lu Yong took a deep breath and said nothing.

only……

Lu Yong looked at Lu Feng and suddenly had a question.

Those bandits, it seems, were chasing Lu Feng and his group because of Zhao Wu... That guy is a fully armored and fierce bandit. How did Lu Feng and his group escape and get to Yinyang City?

He knew Lu Feng's martial arts skills; he could hold his own against ordinary bandits and martial arts masters, but in a real life-or-death struggle... how could he possibly be a match for them? And according to those men, Zhao Wu was agile and quick; there was no way he couldn't catch up with Lu Feng...

Lu Feng was unaware of his elder brother's strange gaze; he was still immersed in self-blame.

Just as the room fell into a deathly silence of despair, a small footstep sounded at the door.

"Big brother! Second brother!"

Nan Nan pushed open the door and entered, her little face still covered in mud that hadn't been washed off, carrying a delicate little food box in her hand.

Seeing that Lu Yong was awake, her eyes lit up, and she ran over excitedly: "Big brother, you're awake! Nanny steamed your favorite minced meat porridge, and I secretly added lots of sesame oil!"

A dark green shadow was perched steadily on her head.

Lu Yong looked at his younger sister, then at the steaming bowl of minced meat porridge in her hand.

She was only a few years old, and she suddenly experienced all of this...

Lu Yong opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything.

"Big brother, have some porridge." Nan Nan carefully scooped up a spoonful and brought it to Lu Yong's lips.

Lu Yong could only swallow mechanically, the warm porridge sliding down his throat.

But at that moment, Lu Feng suddenly took a deep breath.

He looked at Nan Nan, then at the frog on Nan Nan's head that was staring at his older brother.

He hesitated, unsure whether it was a hallucination he had experienced before losing consciousness, or whether what he saw was real...

after all……

Can frogs really learn martial arts?

Nan Nan seemed to sense her second brother's gaze, tilted her head, and looked over.

Their eyes met, and soon, Lu Feng made a decision.

He took a deep breath, stared intently at his elder brother, and his voice trembled slightly.

"Brother... what I'm about to tell you might be unbelievable, you might find it absurd... I want to know, are all the things I experienced, including Nan Nan's, really true?"

Nan Nan tilted her head, not quite understanding what Lu Feng was trying to say.

Lu Yong was also taken aback for a moment, but then his expression immediately turned serious: "Was it the two of you who escaped from that fully armored bandit? Who saved you?"

Nan Nan paused for a moment upon hearing this, then looked up at Fang Yuan.

However, she never imagined that when she looked up, she would be moving along with Fang Yuan.

As a result, Fang Yuan had no choice but to jump off Nan Nan's head and into her arms.

Lu Feng didn't answer directly, but instead looked at the frog in Nan Nan's arms with a complicated expression:

"Brother, do you really think a frog can learn martial arts?"