At first light, the roosters crowed proudly, and Shenjia Village, shrouded in gray-black morning mist, began to stir.
Shen Ruo felt a tickling on his face and thought something had fallen from the ceiling, maybe a bug, so he immediately opened his eyes. He wasn’t afraid of anything, except soft, wriggling creatures.
Once he opened his eyes, he saw a small, fair hand, still smelling faintly of milk, rubbing against his face.
Xiao Yuntun found it fun and, noticing his father awake, began babbling baby sounds, spreading his tiny fingers wide.
A smile tugged at Shen Ruo’s eyes and brows as he gently grabbed Yuntun’s little hand and pretended to give it a big, affectionate kiss.
“Good morning, my fragrant Xiao Yuntun treasure!”
Yuntun flailed his arms and legs energetically, greeting his father: “Ah… ah-woo~”
Older people slept lightly and woke early, so Li Shantao was already busy outside, attending to the small chores around the house.
The family’s four sheep were fed fresh grass cut early by Shen Feng, while the chickens and ducks foraged for bugs on the ground, occasionally supplemented with rice bran. The hens, being more delicate, needed extra care.
By now, Shen Dashan and Shen Feng were surely already in the fields.
Liu Shan should be preparing breakfast, which left Shen Ruo as the only one with some free time.
He immediately got up, carefully swaddled Yuntun, and took him to the kitchen.
Sure enough, Li Shantao and Liu Shan were there. Shen Ruo said, “Mother, can you feed Yuntun? I’ll make breakfast, and later I’ll take it to Father and my brother.”
“All right. Your father has a temper as hard as a stone in a cesspit, so don’t argue with him,” Li Shantao said, carefully taking Yuntun in her arms.
The household had been tense, and as the matriarch, Li Shantao had felt miserable for the past several months. Last night, Shen Dashan had finally eased up a bit, and she wanted to tell Shen Ruo first thing in the morning.
“Last night your father even snuck over and told me, ‘Our Ruo’er is turning out well,'” Li Shantao said, speaking kindly of Shen Dashan.
Shen Ruo replied, “I know Father was angry before. When I was carrying Yuntun, I was all over the place and never had the chance to speak properly with him. Later, I’ll talk to him properly, act a little spoiled, he’ll forgive me eventually.”
Yesterday, he felt Shen Dashan wanted to say something but didn’t. Shen Ruo figured that his father’s anger came from one main thing: that the original Shen Ruo hadn’t protected his own reputation or health. Deep down, it was all out of love for his children.
Otherwise, he could have just let things slide and not gotten so angry that the original Shen Ruo wouldn’t say a single word. This was probably a silent protest, a quiet disappointment at how things had turned out.
Li Shantao laughed at him. “You’re already nineteen this year, and you’re still acting spoiled. Don’t you know what shame is?”
Shen Ruo imitated Yuntun, waving his hand and leaning on Li Shantao’s shoulder. “Not ashamed, not ashamed, Mother. I’m still a baby!”
Liu Shan couldn’t help but giggle. Shen Ruo really seemed completely recovered. Before, he had spent whole days in a sulk, barely speaking a word, gloomy as could be. Now he was back to his cheerful self and even acting silly, hahaha.
“You…” Li Shantao poked Shen Ruo’s forehead with her finger, a loving smile on her face.
Shen Ruo smiled too, feeling very happy.
In his memories, he had always been the apple of his father and mother’s eyes. Although they cared about Shen Feng, they were genuinely very fond of Shen Ruo as well. So even though the family was poor, Shen Ruo had been truly happy.
The tragedy began when he fell in love with the male lead of this story, Gu Yun.
What good ending could there be for someone who steals the heroine’s official partner? Of course, you’d just get written off as a plot’s cannon fodder.
Shen Ruo sighed inwardly, feeling sorry for the original Shen Ruo.
Sure, Gu Yun was handsome, smart, and emotionally intelligent, a clear future star. But you can’t hang your whole heart on just one tree, right?
Three-legged ones are hard to find; two-legged men are everywhere.
Before Shen Ruo transmigrated, he had never liked anyone that way, so he couldn’t understand the “can’t live without him” feeling.
Forget it, making money is the priority! He still needed to save up for his own child’s milk powder!
ᘻᘿᓍᘺ
Shen Dashan and Shen Feng were sweating in the fields, working hard to harvest while the day was still dim and the heat hadn’t set in.
Shen Ruo came along carrying a basket. The small path along the field’s edge was well-trodden. He had walked this path often while carrying Yuntun before, and his body seemed used to it. Back then, he had been slower and heavier, but now he moved like a swallow, almost flying along the path, the hem of his clothes fluttering in the wind.
Since transmigrating, Shen Ruo felt like his body’s self-recovery had sped up, and his strength had increased considerably.
He hadn’t gained any flashy “golden fingers,” but a healthy, strong body is the real capital, you can’t ask for luckier than that!
People from nearby fields were also busy harvesting, and when Zhou Lang glanced up, he saw Shen Ruo walking along the ridges of the paddies.
He waved the sickle in his hand and called out, “Ruo’er, are you bringing breakfast for Uncle Dashan and Brother Feng?”
Shen Ruo replied, “Yes, I made a few extra egg pancakes. Do you want to eat some together?”
Although Shen Ruo’s words sounded like the usual polite phrases villagers use, Zhou Lang had actually helped him before. So this wasn’t just politeness, he genuinely meant it, inviting him to share breakfast.
Zhou Lang rubbed the back of his neck, feeling a little embarrassed. His fields were next to Shen Dashan’s paddies, and Shen Feng had already spotted his younger brother with a basket, but he couldn’t stop working in his own field.
Before Zhou Lang could reply, Shen Feng called out, “Brother Lang, don’t be shy, come eat! You can finally try Ruo’er’s cooking!”
In that brief moment, Shen Dashan had already set down his sickle, ready to eat breakfast, giving Shen Ruo a chance to ease the tension with his father after half a year of cold war.
“Father, have some water first to quench your thirst; the food’s just out of the pan and still a little hot.” Shen Ruo took a bamboo tube from his basket and offered him some cool water.
“Ah,” Shen Dashan accepted it, pulled out the stopper, and gulped down a mouthful.
Shen Feng and Zhou Lang also put down their sickles and came over. Both had sweat towels around their necks and were about the same height, though Shen Feng was a bit sturdier.
“Ruo’er’s cooking keeps getting better; I could smell it from far away!” Shen Feng didn’t mind the heat, sat down on the ground, and grabbed a pancake.
“Same as always, maybe your nose is just too sharp, Brother!” Shen Ruo teased, calling him a “dog nose,” and Shen Feng laughed, barking “Woof woof” in response.
Seeing his children get along so well, Shen Dashan, a man who had lived a rough, hard life, rarely cracked a smile, but now he did.
Zhou Lang sat a little awkwardly to the side. A straightforward, honest man like him had never sneaked someone else’s food before, but since Shen Ruo had made it himself, he couldn’t resist.
At Shen Feng’s call, he had followed over, and now sitting on the ridge, he felt shy. At his age, still craving someone else’s food, how embarrassing!
Worried Zhou Lang might feel too shy to take it, Shen Ruo used the clean leaves lining the basket to hold two egg pancakes and handed them to him. “Zhou Lang, here.”
Zhou Lang froze for a moment, not sure, so Shen Ruo nudged them closer, tilting his head in curiosity.
Finally, Zhou Lang snapped out of it, quickly took the pancakes, and bit into one.
The egg pancake was golden, soft, and slightly oily; one bite, and the flavor was irresistible, making him wish he could swallow it all at once.
People who work hard always eat a lot. Shen Dashan and Shen Feng finished an egg pancake in just a few bites and were already reaching for a second one, while Zhou Lang was still slowly chewing each bite, as if savoring some rare delicacy.
Shen Feng couldn’t help himself. He had always been fiery and straightforward, and the reason he and Zhou Lang got along so well was that their temperaments matched. Seeing him eat so slowly now, Shen Feng said, “Brother Lang, when did you start eating so slowly? You’re like some old codger whose teeth can’t handle it. I’ve never seen you eat like this before!”
Zhou Lang’s eyes were fixed on Shen Ruo, and hearing Shen Feng, the bronze tone of his skin flushed red. He stammered, “I…I’m choking a little.”
Shen Ruo had just taken a sip from his bamboo tube and, hearing this, handed it over.
“Drink some water to help it go down. Eating just pancakes is a bit dry.”
The bamboo tubes at home were shared; you tipped your head back and poured the water straight in, and it was perfectly clean.
Zhou Lang thanked him, took a sip while tilting his head back, then put the stopper back in and handed the tube to Shen Ruo. “Th-thanks.”
“No need to thank me. If we’re talking thanks, I never got a chance to thank you in person back then. If you hadn’t carried me back, I might have died, and Xiao Yuntun wouldn’t even be in this world.” Shen Ruo had been busy before and hadn’t had the chance to express his gratitude, so now he sincerely thanked him face to face.
Zhou Lang scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. “It’s nothing… a-and besides, you’re really light; carrying you wasn’t any trouble at all.”
He almost bit his tongue after saying that, what on earth was he blabbering now!
Shen Ruo smiled kindly. Once everyone finished breakfast and slung their baskets over their shoulders, they got ready to leave.
“I’m heading home first. Today one of the aunts is bringing cloth for me.”
“Go ahead, just watch your step on the way so you don’t fall,” Shen Dashan reminded him.
Shen Ruo nodded, appreciating his father’s concern, and waved with a smile. “I’m off now.”
Then he turned and left.
Shen Feng laughed, giving Zhou Lang a friendly punch on the shoulder, half-joking, “So, Zhou Lang, you couldn’t get a word out just now… could it be that you’ve got your eye on our Ruo’er?”
Shen Dashan, who had been about to head to the field, slowed down, frowning as he looked at Zhou Lang.
Zhou Lang had grown up under his watch, a young man who grew up alongside Shen Feng, so Shen Dashan knew him well.
He had once thought about trying to set them up, but his son’s heart had always been completely devoted to Gu Yun, anyone else didn’t even register.
Zhou Lang felt the weight of two pairs of eyes on him, as if his little secret thoughts had nowhere to hide. He stammered, “W-what are you talking about! Ruo’er is great, but he already has a child. Even though you’re his older brother and father, you can’t joke about him like that.”
“All right, all right, no more joking,” Shen Feng said awkwardly.
Shen Feng knew Zhou Lang well, they’d grown up together for over twenty years, playing side by side as children.
When Shen Ruo was a baby, he liked clinging to Shen Feng; once he could walk, he’d follow Shen Feng everywhere.
Back then, Shen Feng and Zhou Lang were the leaders among the village kids, playing “King of the Hill” with a group of children. Because Shen Ruo was so pretty as a child, pale and tender, the kids naturally elected him as the “Lady of the Stronghold.”
And since “King Shen Feng” was Shen Ruo’s older brother, this “Lady of the Stronghold” was, by default, promised to Zhou Lang, the “Second Hill King.”
At that time, Shen Ruo didn’t understand any of it, still calling out “Elder Brother” and “Brother Ah Lang.”
Unfortunately, as Shen Ruo grew up, his heart went entirely to Scholar Gu, and he drifted away from Zhou Lang, otherwise, who knows, it might have really worked out.
Fate is tricky like that.
Suddenly, Shen Dashan spoke up: “Even if Ruo’er never marries in this life, I can still take care of him forever.”
To Shen Dashan, Zhou Lang’s words sounded like he was looking down on Shen Ruo for already having Xiao Yuntun. Since that’s the case, there’s no need to force anything. Shen Ruo is handsome, capable, and can earn money. How could it be possible that no one would want him?
So what if he doesn’t marry now?
Just like his wife said: once the family has money, finding a husband will be no problem!