Chapter Four: Your Smile Is Truly Beautiful

Opportunity knocks but once, and when it is lost, it may never return. Yet in that fleeting instant, his opponent seized the chance, and with a sudden exertion, Lu Hu was thrown flat on his back, staring up at the sky.

This Hu Bo woman is truly formidable.

A few sturdy men rushed forward, pinning him down with many hands.

“Tie up this wretched cur!” Though anger colored the voice, it was clearly that of a woman.

Her voice, sweet as a warbler’s song, melodious and clear, rang out like silver bells.

My goodness, what a sweet voice! I wonder what she looks like?

Lu Hu let them bind him as tightly as a pig for slaughter, but he couldn’t take his eyes off the person who had felled him. She wore a fox-fur headband, dressed in deerskin jacket and trousers—a typical outfit for the Oronte people. Yet beneath the fox fur was a face so lovely that Lu Hu’s eyes widened, wishing he could press his very eyeballs closer to hers: her complexion was fair as jade, her delicate face so tender it seemed a breath might bruise it. Slender willow-leaf brows arched above bright apricot eyes, which stared roundly back at him.

A high, straight nose and plump, rosy lips so inviting one felt compelled to steal a kiss.

“What are you staring at?”

Lu Hu’s gaze was so intense, it made the girl uncomfortable; she asked, fuming.

“I’m staring at you, what of it?” Lu Hu replied with a mischievous grin, his tone teasing.

“Keep staring and I’ll give you a beating—beat you to death, you scoundrel.” Even in anger, the beautiful girl had a charm all her own.

“Beat me if you will, beat me to death if you must. To die beneath a peony, even as a ghost I would be content.” Lu Hu assumed the bravado of a street tough, embracing his fate with a rakish air.

“You shameless rogue! Do you have any decency left?” The girl’s cheeks flushed pink, a bashfulness blooming on her face.

“To see your lovely face, Princess, I’d gladly lose what little face I have left.” Lu Hu fluttered his brows, continuing his flirtatious banter.

“How did you know I was a princess?” Her brows arched, a hint of pride glimmering in her eyes.

“There’s no one in the world as beautiful as you. If you’re not a princess, who could possibly be worthy of the title?” Lu Hu offered another extravagant compliment.

“Clever of you.” Though the girl tried to keep a stern face, a pleased expression crept through. Lu Hu, experienced in the ways of women, could tell his flattery had struck the right chord.

Suddenly, a thought unsettled him: why could he understand their language, and why did the words from his mouth come out perfectly intelligible to them? This land was home to many peoples and tongues; to master a foreign language took effort, not something just anyone could do. The body’s original owner only spoke the language of the Central Lands—yet now, suddenly, he was fluent?

He understood: crossing into this world had brought him a golden cheat, a supernatural gift.

Thank you, golden finger...

“Lu Hu, what brings a beast like you to our lands? Have you come to bury your fallen soldiers?” The girl’s fine brows knotted in suspicion.

Lu Hu was taken aback—how did she know his name? And by the sound of it, she knew his background as well. How strange!

“What do you mean, Princess? I don’t understand.” He tried to feign ignorance, hoping to muddle through.

“Don’t play dumb with me, Captain Lu. You led your troops into our territory without cause, slaughtered nearly a thousand of my people. You yourself, crazed as a rabid dog, killed more than thirty with your own hands. My Oronte tribe wishes nothing more than to tear you to pieces and feed you to the wolves. We were fretting about not catching you—yet here you are, delivering yourself into our hands.”

“Oh, lovely princess, my reputation precedes me so far that I’m nearly ashamed. To die by your hand today would be the greatest honor of my life. You are the goddess of my heart—kill me yourself, my goddess, the most beautiful Princess Yanali in all the world.”

The hunters treated this girl with utmost respect; Lu Hu guessed she was indeed Yanali, and his guess proved correct.

Yanali’s brows arched in anger, her apricot eyes wide, lips pressed tight. With a sharp hiss, she drew the knife from her belt and swung it down.

Lu Hu, head held high and chest out, took a bold step forward, beaming at Yanali, posing with all the heroic fervor he could muster.

The blade stopped just short of his forehead. Though Lu Hu’s heart raced, his face betrayed nothing—he suspected his earlier teasing had touched a nerve, and Yanali wouldn’t truly harm him; she only meant to frighten him.

“A brave man.”

“Truly a hero among men.” The surrounding hunters could not help but murmur their admiration; mountain folk are candid by nature, and hold true courage and fearlessness in high esteem.

“Kneel.” Yanali kept her face taut, lips pouty and pink, still trying to intimidate Lu Hu, but her tone had lost much of its edge, and even carried a hint of coquettishness.

Lu Hu craned his neck, deliberately provoking Yanali: “I won’t kneel. A man stands tall—better to die standing than live on his knees.”

Yanali gave her knife a flick, placing it against Lu Hu’s throat. “Today, you worthless cur, you’ll die whether you kneel or not. Kneel, and your death will be swift. Now tell me, will you kneel?”

Lu Hu thrust his neck forward, still putting on a show before the beauty: “A real man doesn’t kneel. Do as you please—kill me or carve me up, I couldn’t care less!”

Yanali glared at him, but her gaze grew softer and softer. Suddenly, she sighed, slowly sheathing her knife. “I’ll spare your wretched life for now—we’ll deal with you later.”

She had just replaced her blade when Lu Hu dropped to his knees with a loud thud, startling her greatly.

“What’s this? Are you scared now? Couldn’t keep up the act?” Yanali’s voice dripped with disappointment and mockery.

“I didn’t kneel before because I wasn’t afraid—fear simply wasn’t in me. Now, I kneel before the most beautiful, most noble goddess in my heart, begging her not to be angry, wishing her happiness always, that she may remain forever so young and lovely.” Lu Hu’s words were as slick as ever, his smile irrepressible.

Though her entourage stood all around, Yanali could not keep from laughing, her smile blossoming like peach blossoms in spring, radiant and bright.

That smile—there could be no lovelier sight!

Lu Hu’s heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly remembered a beloved, widely-known children’s song from his past life, “Your Smile Is So Beautiful.” He changed a few words and began to sing:

Upon coming to the princess’s mountains,
And seeing your lovely face,
No matter how fierce the wind and snow,
With you, I need nothing more.

I love to watch your lips curve,
I love to see your brows arch,
White clouds in the blue sky above
Are like your smile.

Your smile is so beautiful,
Like the flowers of spring,
All worries and sorrows
Are swept far away.

Your smile is so beautiful,
Like summer’s brilliant sun,
The whole world’s sunlight
Is as lovely as a painting.

Though he’d never attended any formal training, Lu Hu had often practiced singing for pleasure, and his natural voice was clear and tuneful, matching the rhythm and rhyme so well that it could rival the original. Each time, his singing won cheers.

Though bound and tied, nothing stopped Lu Hu from swaying to the cheerful beat, his head nodding, tail wagging, body twisting with effortless grace. He shot Yanali flirtatious glances, his eyes brimming with affection, as if he could make his very soul fly to her.

The hunters had never heard such beautiful music; all thought they were listening to the voice of heaven itself, and soon everyone, enchanted and amazed, joined in the rhythm.

Yanali, intoxicated by the song, wanted to sway along too, but Lu Hu’s smoldering glances left her heart in turmoil, nerves fluttering, her limbs suddenly unsure where to rest.

Her cheeks flushed red, she lowered her gaze, studying her interlaced fingers, but her eyes darted up again and again to steal glances at Lu Hu.

When the song ended, its lingering notes seemed to echo in the woods.

Suddenly, the sound of hooves snapped everyone from their reverie.

Several Oronte warriors, clad in bear pelts, galloped up on horseback.

The leader, his face covered in a bristling beard, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, looked every bit the strongman.

“Little sister, you’re no ordinary girl—caught this damned wolf cub, did you? Let me twist his head off!” The man’s voice boomed like thunder, making everyone’s ears ring.

Yanali came to her senses and hurriedly spread her arms, standing protectively before Lu Hu like a mother eagle shielding her chick.

“Brother, don’t be hasty. Let’s take him back for Father to handle.” Perhaps afraid her brother would act rashly, Yanali was so anxious she was close to tears.

“Blindfold him, throw him on a horse, and bring him back for a proper interrogation.” The brother, unable to bear his sister’s distress, relented to her wishes.

Lu Hu’s vision went dark as he was flung over a horse like a sack.

Damn, this posture—after a while galloping like this, my insides will be all scrambled. Damn it, this future brother-in-law really knows how to torment me. We’ve only just met, and he’s already trying to kill me—I’m really your future brother-in-law, you know!

Lu Hu, lost in his own daydreams, consoled himself: a man must dare to imagine the best. We should learn from that rascal Fang Silong—thick-skinned and cheeky, that’s the mark of a real hero.

Just as Lu Hu was thinking this, his body suddenly grew lighter and he was thrown violently upward.