Knock... knock*
"...."
Knock... knock
"Dad! Someone! Open up!" Yichen shouted when no one answered the door.
Bang* rustle* creak*
"What the f*ck are you doing banging on the door in the middle of the night?" Yi Xuan asked. His eyes were half shut and his brow was furrowed in anger.
"Get dad. We caught some thieves trying to rob our home." Yichen said after pushing his way past his younger brother.
"Thieves? Who would try to rob your little hut?" Yi Xuan asked.
"Idiots that's who. Now hurry up and get dad. I'm going to prepare the mule cart."
"Why do you need the mule cart?"
"Unless you want to carry them over to the Yamen we need the mule cart." Yichen briefly said before running off to the little stable they had for the mule.
Mochou who hadn't followed was now left at the gate with Yichen's younger brother.
"You okay?" Yi Xuan sleepily asked.
"I'm fine."
"That's good. I'll go get my dad." Yi Xuan said before going inside to wake the rest of the family.
...
"Mochou, you must have been scared. Come, spend the night here where it's safe and leave dealing with those thieves to the boys." Yichen's mother said.
Because of all the noise it seemed everyone was woken up. Yichen, his brothers, and father all decided to head back to the hut and deal with the thieves. Whereas the wives seemed to be standing around worried.
"I appreciate the offer but I'd rather go home." Mochou politely declined.
"Nonsense. How will you get any sleep staying in that place after what happened. Stay here. You'll be safe."
"Mom, don't try to pressure Mochou into staying here. He's coming back with me." Yichen said.
"Yichen, think about his health. There is no way he will be able to sleep soundly in that hut after what happened. He needs somewhere safe." His mother insisted.
"Mom, he will feel safe because I'll be with him. We'll be together." Yichen said, but his mother wouldn't listen.
"You can be together here. Move back in. We have plenty of room."
"No, we like living on our own. We aren't moving in and we aren't spending the night." Yichen declared as he grabbed Mochou's hand and headed for the door.
"You ungrateful son! I'm only trying to help but you dismiss it like I'm the cause of your problems." She shouted in anger. Her words were like a spear to the heart. Yichen had no choice but to stop.
"Sigh... I'm sorry mom. I know you want the best for Mochou and I but we like it this way." Yichen said feeling guilty for his earlier attitude.
"Stay." His mother commanded in return.
"Sorry mom but we won't spend the night. We are going back to our home. Goodnight." Yichen said before once again turning to leave.
It wasn't long after he left that his brothers and father caught up with the mule cart.
"Yichen come here and tell me exactly what happened." His father said.
"There isn't much to say. Mochou and I were at home when two men entered our yard with the intent to rob us. We fought back and tied them up." Yichen said.
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Mochou wasn't quite satisfied with his explanation so he nudged Yichen in the ribs with his elbow.
"Well to be more accurate Mochou knows more than me. He got up in the middle of the and heard the two men and a man named Fu Ling talking from inside the forest." Yichen restated in more detail.
"They were talking? Mochou could you hear what they were discussing?" Yichen's father asked.
"They talked about how they managed to get a lot of rabbits from my traps. It seems they weren't happy today when they checked and noticed they were destroyed by me." Mochou explained.
"So they were the ones who stole from you? Did they mention anything else? Do you know why they would try to rob you tonight?"
"They heard about us wanting to build a house." Mochou said.
"I see. In order to build a house you'd need a lot of money. They must have wanted to take it while you both slept." Yi Ming said.
"The hut is just one room. Did they think they could find the money without waking them up?" Yi Xuan questioned.
"They are either idiots or they intended on attacking the two of them while they slept. Little brother you're lucky you were awake." Yi Hao said.
"Even if we weren't there is no way I would have allowed them to hurt Mochou." Yichen said with conviction.
"That doesn't sound very convincing coming from a face full of bruises. Actually, why does it look like someone bit you?" Yi Xuan curiously pointed out.
"Stop looking at my face!" Yichen exclaimed as he pushed his younger brother away. Meanwhile Mochou burst into a bright red blush from his words.
When they finally reached the hut they thankfully found both men still tied to the tree. Yichen and his brothers didn't waste any time jog tying and throwing the two of them into the mule cart.
"I'll hand them over to the Yamen tomorrow." Yi Hao said. He worked for the town's official so it wouldn't be difficult to do.
"Thanks." Yichen said.
"Yichen, are you sure you don't want to return to the house with us? Fu Ling is still loose. He might come back." His father asked.
"No, this is our home. We won't abandon it because of something like this. Besides, I doubt Fu Ling has the courage to come back." Yichen said.
Mochou had told him how Fu Ling had tried to stop the other two thieves. Knowing that, he didn't think Fu Ling would try to finish what they started.
"If anything does happen don't be afraid to come home. You're always welcome." His father said before leaving.
With everything finished Mochou and Yichen changed into their night robes and snuggled back into bed. As they lay comfortable together Yichen hugged him tight.
"Mochou, next time wake me up. I was really scared when I woke up and you were gone. The worst part was seeing two strange men in our yard and not knowing what happened to you or where you were."
"I'm sorry. I won't sneak out alone next time." Mochou said.
"That's good. Sweet dreams, my little spouse." Yichen said with a big yawn.
"You, too." Mochou whispered back as he closed his eyes to sleep.
...
The next morning Yichen and Mochou were awakened by the sound of their creaky gate opening.
Mochou moved out of bed the moment he heard the sound and crept over to the door to take a peek. Yichen wasn't surprised to see Mochou's behaviour considering their recent troubles.
