The Boy on the Bamboo Horse, Green Plum Boils the Wine (16)

Beanie is absolutely not a child who can keep secrets. By that afternoon, everyone in the Assassin Alliance—including the just-returned Left Shore—knew that at Beanie's first-birthday choosing ceremony, he grabbed a sword in his right hand and an erotic picture-book in his left.

A first-birthday choosing ceremony is a luxury for anyone in the Assassin Alliance. Anyone who ends up as an assassin has, to some extent, a childhood that was far from happy.

If the family conditions were good, who would sell or abandon their own child?

With backgrounds like these, how could their families possibly hold a first-birthday choosing ceremony for them? Beanie is probably the only one among them who ever had one.

Left Shore has no memory of such a ceremony, nor has he ever heard any of the servants who cared for him mention what he might have picked. Left Shore is sure he never had a first-birthday choosing ceremony.

Hearing Beanie talk about the first-birthday choosing ceremony, Left Shore felt a hint of envy—but that envy vanished instantly after hearing Beanie’s childhood 'grand ambition.'

Sword in the right hand, erotic picture-book in the left—isn’t that the classic image of ruling the world sober and reclining drunkenly on beauties’ knees? But when Beanie says it, somehow it turns into a vow to become a great general and sleep with every top courtesan in the Nine Provinces.

Beanie, can you have some self-respect?

Beanie, can you not be so dumb?

Beanie, you’ve once again lowered the bar for what we thought possible—do you realize that?

Left Shore never expects anything from Beanie, and this time he’s completely given up hope. He plans to stay a few days and then take on new assignments—not because he dislikes the Assassin Alliance, but because he’s out of silver.

Since childhood, Left Shore has always enjoyed doing things with his own hands. For years, constant training left him no time to pursue his interests, but now things are different.

Now, besides taking assassination jobs, Left Shore only needs to spend an hour a day maintaining his skills. That leaves him plenty of time to do his own thing.

If he wants to build something for himself, he can’t do it in the Assassin Alliance; Left Shore needs a place of his own. And to create a private kingdom, he needs a lot of silver—killing is definitely the fastest way to earn it.

Left Shore took a new assignment, said goodbye to Master Graves, and prepared to head out. But just before leaving, he received a mission from the Seven Old Monsters of the Assassin Alliance.

Beanie was going out for training, and he’d also accepted a killing job. The Seven Old Monsters told Left Shore to keep an eye on Beanie.

Hearing Beanie was assigned a kill, Left Shore’s first reaction was: “Can he even find his target?”

“He can. We’ve prepared a Guide-Bee Tracker for him. As long as he follows the bee, he’ll reach his mark.” The Seven Old Monsters have really gone to great lengths for Beanie.

With things at this point, Left Shore really couldn’t refuse. He just nodded. "If I have time, I’ll keep an eye on him."

Left Shore rarely makes promises, especially when it comes to anything involving Beanie—he’s even less likely to agree easily.

In the past, the Seven Old Monsters would have forced Left Shore to protect Beanie, but now that Left Shore has become independent, they can't order him around so easily. Besides, they know he can't look after Beanie forever. Left Shore has his own life, and Beanie has to learn to grow up.

Left Shore went out on his mission, with Beanie leaving alongside him. But their targets were in opposite directions—one south, one north—so they split up as soon as they stepped out the door.

Left Shore glanced at Beanie, worried he’d panic on his first job, but instead found Beanie’s face full of joy—no nerves at all, just pure happiness.

Left Shore silently turned his gaze away and headed toward his own target. As soon as Beanie left the Assassin Alliance, he released the Guide-Bee Tracker. Seeing Left Shore walk off, Beanie shouted at his retreating back: “Left Shore, just you wait! I’m definitely going to beat you—I’m the number-one killer under heaven!”

From fighting to be the number-one expert to fighting to be the number-one killer, Beanie’s path is anything but easy!

Left Shore didn’t want to respond to Beanie, but when he heard that, he couldn’t help turning back to say: “You want to be the number-one killer? Wait until I retire from the mountain!”

What Left Shore meant was, as long as he’s still active, Beanie will never have his day. But Beanie insisted on hearing it as Left Shore promising to retire for his sake.

“Left Shore, you’re so good to me! If you were a woman, I’d marry you and forget about those courtesans!” He was genuinely moved.

“Pig-brain.” Left Shore was thoroughly defeated by Beanie.

Beanie’s shamelessness has reached heights no ordinary mortal could ever hope to achieve.

Left Shore set up his ambush as planned, spent three days killing his target, and then went to collect the rest of his silver. By the time everything was done, half a month had passed.

Only then did Left Shore have time to worry about Beanie. He asked about Beanie’s job and learned the target was already dead. Left Shore nodded, wisely didn’t ask how the man died, and only asked: Where’s Beanie?

“No one knows. After the target died, nobody saw Beanie again.”

“He said he went to look for you.”

“Beanie said he wanted to find you and share the good news with you first.”

Left Shore questioned several people and finally tracked down Beanie’s likely route, but…

Left Shore followed that route for three months and still didn’t find a trace of Beanie. He sent word back to the Assassin Alliance, asking if Beanie had returned. The answer: no—Beanie had vanished as if into thin air.

“Beanie got lost?” Left Shore guessed that was possible, but…

“Beanie has a Guide-Bee Tracker—how could he possibly get lost?”

“I trust the Guide-Bee, but I don’t trust Beanie. Search the nearby woods; odds are he’s lost in the mountains.” That’s what Left Shore said and did, but the others in the Assassin Alliance disagreed—they figured even if Beanie got lost, he’d end up in a village.

So everyone split up and searched. Half a month later, Left Shore found Beanie in the mountains, starving and skin-and-bones.

Left Shore didn’t say a word—he just picked Beanie up and hauled him back, dropping him at the feet of the Seven Old Monsters.

Left Shore thought that after this lesson, Beanie would wise up and be more careful next time. But soon he realized he’d overestimated Beanie—Beanie didn’t think getting lost was his fault at all. He blamed the complicated terrain and swore he wouldn’t get lost next time…

With this conviction, Beanie kept charging headlong down the road to disaster, never looking back. Every time he got lost, he used the same excuse. The longest time, Beanie went missing for over half a year before Left Shore finally found him.

“Left Shore, you’re so good to me. No one else came looking for me—only you remembered.” Beanie clung to Left Shore’s leg, refusing to get up.

"Left Shore, be a good guy to the end, please. I'm exhausted—I haven't slept for three days. Just carry me out, will you?" Beanie kept whining, though he knew Left Shore would never agree.

Left Shore would rather drag Beanie back with him than carry him out. The more times he had to search for Beanie, the more annoyed he got—but Beanie never noticed. He always thought Left Shore was the best, even better than Master Graves.

It really was a wonderful misunderstanding. When Left Shore realized it, he tried to explain, but…

Even up to the day Beanie died, he never believed it!

Left Shore could only think: If someone can spend their whole life living inside a lie of their own making, then Beanie, in the end, was truly happy…