Chapter 428: Chang is the 'Chang' of General Changsheng, and Sheng is the 'Sheng' of General Changsheng

After I shouted angrily, the sound inside the temple stopped abruptly, and then a sound like a child's crying came from inside.

I couldn't help but feel doubtful; in the middle of the night, how could there be a child?

Then, I held a flashlight in my left hand and the Huaguang Seal in my right, and stepped lightly into the temple.

As I moved my steps, the child's crying grew louder, and I could clearly tell which direction it was coming from.

Under the damaged altar, a dirty little boy curled up in the corner, whimpering softly; especially when I shone the flashlight on his face, his small body couldn't help trembling twice.

The little boy lifted his head, revealing a tender yet dirty little face. His eyes looking at me were full of panic; his small body kept rubbing backward, clutching a piece of wood tightly to protect himself.

"Don't move, you're bleeding, I'll bandage you!" I grabbed the child's body and pulled him out gently. I tried to make my tone gentler, and let my actions be as light as possible,

At the first sight of this child, I was absolutely certain he was not a ghost. Beside him there was also a small kangaroo plush toy and an adult's wristwatch.

These traits indicate that the child likely got lost while playing with his family on the mountain, so he hid in this ruined temple.

I placed the flashlight on the ground, clamped it between two stones, then took out gauze from my travel bag and began to bandage his wound.

The wound on the child's leg is about three inches long, likely caused by an iron nail, a stone, or something similar that tore it open.

If it's a stone, that's fine to say; but if it's an iron nail… then it's troublesome, as a slight mistake could easily cause tetanus. Therefore, before bandaging him, I must draw out the pooled blood on his thigh.

I said to him, "Child, don't be scared; Uncle will now draw out the pooled blood for you, Uncle is not a bad person."

Despite my comfort, when I lowered my head to draw out the pooled blood, his body still couldn't help trembling slightly twice.

If only I could have picked some mugwort on the way up the mountain. Looking at the gauze on the child's leg, I let out a long sigh.

Although the wound is bandaged, no one can be sure it won't become inflamed; if there were mugwort, crushed and applied to the wound, it could somewhat reduce inflammation and detoxify,

"Child, did you get separated from your family when the mist rose?" I took out a bottle of mineral water from my pack and took a big gulp,

The little boy seemed very shy; even after I bandaged his wound, he still sat with his arms around his knees, crouched on the ground, silent for a long time.

"Sigh… having been separated from his parents for so long, his spirit must be near collapse." The child's silence only earned me extra pity; I know well the feelings of a ten‑year‑old who has lost his parents—that panic and unease are beyond what ordinary people can imagine.

When I took out bread to eat, the child's stomach made gurgling sounds; he widened his eyes, staring at the bread in my hand and gulped twice. His expression meant he wanted to eat but didn't dare.

"Here, have one; this is red bean cake, it's delicious." I found a slightly deformed red bean cake in my pack, tore open the wrapper, and shoved it into the little boy's hand.

The bread in my hand are all pre‑packaged instant loaves; this food is dry, hard to swallow, and full of preservatives. Even adults find it unpalatable, let alone children.

Fortunately, when I bought the bread I casually grabbed a few pastries; otherwise, tonight would have been miserable for this child.

The little boy looked at the red bean cake in his hand, hesitated for a long time, and finally, unable to resist his hunger, opened his mouth and shoved the cake in.

"Wait…" I suddenly shouted, startling the child. I quickly waved my hands, trying to soothe him with the gentlest tone: "Drink a sip of water first before eating, otherwise you'll get appendicitis."

The child seemed not to understand what appendicitis is, blinking his cute big eyes, staring at me in confusion for a while, frozen in place. He didn't even dare to take the water I offered.

"Appendicitis… means that if you're hungry for too long, your intestines will knot up. If you don't drink water, or eat after just having some soup, your stomach will get blocked, your intestines will grow thorns, and those thorns will then stab your lower abdomen…"

I tried hard to put on a cute face, explaining appendicitis in the most matter‑of‑fact way.

Finally I realized. Even after spending half a day spitting out saliva in vain, trying to make this child understand appendicitis is truly too difficult.

"If you eat without drinking water, worms will grow in your belly, get it?" I rubbed my temples and said weakly.

At that moment, the dazed little boy nodded, then took my water, took a small sip, lowered his head, and began to bite big mouthfuls of the red bean cake.

I… in an instant, tears streamed down my face, thinking back to how the lie "skip meals and worms will grow in your belly" had fooled generations. Now that lie appears again, and in a new version.

Watching him stuff his mouth full, crumbs all over his face, I couldn't help feeling a warm joy; this scene is utterly adorable, like a clumsy little panda.

If I had a child, how wonderful that would be!

I now finally understand why people say a life without children is incomplete. Sometimes, watching a little tyke follow you around, chattering away, and seeing him babble and cause mischief, that too is a happiness, a warmth.

"Are you full? If you want more, Uncle still has some!" After our earlier interaction, the child's wariness toward me eased considerably; even when I reached out to touch his head, he no longer resisted as he did at first.

"You got separated from your mom, right?" I stroked his head again and asked softly.

This time the child didn't stay silent; he gave a soft "hmm."

When I asked his name again, the little boy thought, then firmly tapped his cute little head and declared: "My name is Changsheng; Chang is the 'Chang' of General Changsheng, and Sheng is the 'Sheng' of General Changsheng."

I was stunned at first, then after a moment I couldn't help laughing and crying. Without thinking, I could guess the child's father is a hardcore Three Kingdoms fan. General Changsheng— that seems to be the title of Zhao Zilong of Changshan,

Though they never swore the peach‑garden oath, in a past life they believed in fate; loyal and brave, they served the Han court, their righteousness rivaling that of the Peach Garden brothers. Riding alone, they broke through encirclement; their heroic spirit and vigor made enemies tremble; their battle‑stained robe spoke of valor; at Dangyang, Changsheng's heart burned red— who is this? He must be the foremost of the Five Tiger Generals, Zhao Zilong of Changshan.

Because in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Zhao Yun— whether at Bowang or at the Battle of Changbanpo— never suffered a defeat, people today call him General Changsheng, the undefeated war god.

Look at this little boy saying his name with an undisguisable pride; obviously his father has brainwashed him.

I gave a thumbs‑up and said, "Changsheng, a fine name, kid, what does your father's name start with Chang?"

I intended to find out Xiao Changsheng's father's name; tomorrow morning I will take this child down the mountain and hand him over to the patrols of Xiao Tan Shan.

Xiao Changsheng didn't even think, nodding vigorously and replying, "My dad doesn't have the surname Chang; his surname is Zhao."

I: "... Then what about you?"

The little boy stared at me oddly and said, "My dad's surname is Zhao, so naturally mine is Zhao too."

After saying that, he cautiously looked at me and muttered, "Uncle, your head couldn't have been knocked askew, could it? My dad's surname is Zhao— how could I possibly be surnamed Li?"

I could almost feel Xiao Changsheng's contemptuous glance; for a moment I was filled with dark lines, really wanting to shout, "Hey kid, your private thoughts are way too loud!"

…………

Looking at his lovable, harmless cute face, I struggled to suppress the rising gloom, took a deep breath, and smiled at him,

"All right, you're surnamed Zhao, called Zhao Changsheng; then Xiao Changsheng, could you tell Uncle how you ended up hiding in this ruined temple, and were you separated from your mom?"

Xiao Changsheng puffed his cheeks, thought for a while, then under my expectant gaze he stared at me and solemnly corrected: "Uncle, I'm surnamed Zhao, not Xiao……"

"Clang—"

I fell face‑up, wanting to cry but no tears— is this the crux of the problem? The crux is how you got separated from your mom, okay?

Kids these days are really getting harder and harder to communicate with.

Just as I rubbed my forehead, weakly pushing myself up, preparing to explain again to Xiao Changsheng, he suddenly burst into loud wails that tugged at the heartstrings, catching me off guard.

"Uncle, there's a monster…… a huge monster, it wants to grab me!" Xiao Changsheng cried out in fear, loudly alerting me.

So I hurriedly patted his back, comforting him: "All right, all right, don't cry, don't cry; tell Uncle what kind of monster it is, and Uncle will help you catch it."

I was comforting him like this, and I also felt somewhat doubtful in my heart. Could it be that there really is a monster on Xiao Tan Shan.

But, after I finished listening to Xiao Changsheng's account, I thought, that monster must be something he imagined.

"It's true, that monster looks like a big tree, this tall, this long!" Xiao Changsheng stretched out his chubby little hands, gesturing up, down, left, and right

"He's so scary, he even bites people..."

Watching his gestures, I couldn't help but twitch at the corners of my mouth, little kid, that monster is probably just the shadow of a tree you saw at night, which you imagined yourself.

Seeing that I didn't believe him, Xiao Changsheng pointed to his thigh, which had just been bandaged, and said: "It's true, my leg was still scratched by him."

At this moment, I believed it. I truly believed that the monster was just something Xiao Changsheng imagined; the wound on his leg was clearly a scratch. Earlier I had worried it was rust, but now it looks like it's just some dry branches from old trees.

"Xiao Changsheng, don't worry, that's not a monster..." I smiled faintly, coaxing Xiao Changsheng.

However, suddenly, a sound seemed to come from outside the door, making me stop abruptly.

Listening more closely, it sounded like someone or something dragging along the ground, and the sound grew nearer and louder.

Xiao Changsheng's body suddenly began to tremble without rhythm, he hid in my embrace, shouting: "Uncle, the monster is coming, it's here."

No sooner said than done—I grabbed the small flashlight beside me and shone it toward the source of the sound.

The object illuminated by the flashlight made my pupils contract involuntarily, and I sucked in a breath of cold air,

"What the hell is this thing?"

In an instant, I was drenched in sweat from fright; I swore I had never seen anything like this before.