Chapter 92

Three years later, on the Winter Solstice.

This winter was particularly cold, and a few days ago, there was a heavy snowstorm during the night. Thick white snow covered the fields and rooftops, turning the entire village into a silver-clad, serene, and beautiful scene.

If this had been two years ago, the villagers of Yang Village wouldn't have appreciated such beauty. They would only worry about the harsh cold of winter, wondering if they could have enough food and warmth to survive the snowy nights.

But now, things were different. The villagers were helping at the brick kiln, collecting and selling firewood, or forming their own transport and construction teams, and everyone was earning plenty of money.

With their newfound wealth, everyone started repairing their houses and most of them bought bricks to build heated kang beds. On a day like the Winter Solstice, when they didn't need to work, the whole family gathered together on the heated kang, and a pot of steaming lamb bone and meat soup added to their sense of hope for the future.

The villagers gave various gifts to the Cheng family, such as their homegrown peanuts, black beans, and Chinese cabbage, as well as salted duck eggs, chicken eggs, and various types of fish. Even though Yong Ge said they had all these at home, the villagers insisted on giving them as a token of appreciation.

They were not ungrateful; several times before when the war tribes came to attack the forage valley, it was thanks to Cheng Duo or the soldiers guarding the Cheng family that their village didn't suffer casualties like other places.

Moreover, Yong Ge had made the decision to build a wall outside the village, so now, besides the war tribes, even the wild beasts from the mountains were less likely to enter the village. The villagers appreciated what Yong Ge did and wanted to give back.

Eventually, the villagers found out about Yong Ge's background. Mainly because their village had soldiers stationed there for a long time, and Cheng Duo frequently visited. Li Wang was afraid that people might misunderstand, so after returning, he voluntarily informed the villagers about Yong Ge's identity.

The villagers didn't feel that Li Wang had raised someone else's child for nothing; instead, they were envious of him. Because Yong Ge's father was a great general, Li Wang's two troublemaker sons were able to enter the army without having to go to the battlefield. They just had to do some miscellaneous work, and they would receive military pay.

The two sons learned something in the military camp; surprisingly, they handed over every penny of their military pay to Li Wang. He used the money to buy land, and during the planting and harvest seasons, Li Changrong and Li Changgui even took leave to help Li Wang tend to the fields.

Yong Ge was filial; he built a warm new house for Li Wang and often brought him good things.

Now, Li Wang had a house, land, food, and drink. Except for the fact that his two sons couldn't marry due to their military service, his life couldn't be any better.

Li Changrong & Li Changgui: "…" They would rather go back to the village and farm!

Life in the military camp was simply unbearable. General Wei seemed to intentionally torment them, making them fetch water in the summer and chop firewood in the winter, which became routine operations. The military camp required a large amount of water and firewood, and they often worked non-stop for a whole day. Their shoulders and palms were rubbed raw, and it was excruciatingly painful, but they had to grit their teeth and persist.

Apart from that, they also had to farm, raise sheep, and pigs in the military camp. They had to do all these tasks. No one would make allowances for them in the military camp. If they were lazy and refused to work, they would be whipped and punished, and they would be denied meals.

Comparatively, being back home felt like living in paradise. Their father, Li Wang, was indeed their own father! Thinking about how good Li Wang was to them, these two brothers would hug their father and cry every time they came back home, saying they didn't want to be soldiers anymore.

Of course, they could only say this, and they were afraid that Yong Ge would see them slacking off and have someone catch them and send them back. They still had to work hard at home.

In the face of the villagers' praises, they had to keep quiet and pretend to be reformed, not daring to say anything extra.

What truly changed these two brothers was the experience of carrying dead bodies back from the battlefield after the big war at the border. They saw the pitiful shapes of the bodies being tossed into graves and buried on the spot. Among them, there were even soldiers they had known, who were chatting and laughing with them just a few days before…

After bringing back the bodies, both brothers became much quieter, and they became more diligent in their work. They were no longer like before, slacking off and being sneaky when the overseers weren't around.

Today, on the Winter Solstice, they naturally came back home. Yong Ge called Li Wang to the Cheng family to celebrate, and these two brothers followed Li Wang. After arriving at the Cheng family, they hadn't stopped since, helping with cooking and cutting vegetables, being obedient and well-behaved.

Of course, this might also be because Wei Zhenyuan, Wei Ling, and many other military officers were at the Cheng family.

As low-level soldiers who had once bullied the real brother of the Great General, they now felt like two little wild dogs trapped in a cage of fierce beasts, trying their best to lower their existence.

Li Wang sat under the eaves with a cup of sweet soup, watching them work with delight. It truly felt like enjoying his retirement.

Of course, when he saw Xie Yuan, An Ge, and their little child playing together nearby, Li Wang couldn't help but feel some regret.

His two sons hadn't gotten married yet, and even after three years since Yong Ge and Cheng Duo got married, there was still no good news. Li Wang was worried that maybe he had mistreated Yong Ge too much when he was young, causing harm to his health…

Under the old tree at the village entrance, the heavy snow had already bent its branches. Feathery large snowflakes continued to fall without stopping.

Yong Ge stood under the tree, dressed in a snow-white fox fur, with snowflakes covering his hair, shoulders, and thick long lashes.

However, he was oblivious to it all, his gaze fixed on the end of the newly repaired road.

His tall figure, ink-black hair, and snow-white skin caught Sha Yang's eyes as he passed by, making him forget why he had come out in the first place.

Feng Ge sneered, "What's the use of being the general's son? He still can't have children!"

Sha Yang became angry, "What have you accomplished? Who do you think you are to talk about others!"

"Sha Yang, do you have any conscience at all? In the past three years, I've been pregnant with two children for you at least. It was your wicked mother who intentionally caused trouble for me, and that's why I lost my babies!" Feng Ge retorted, unwilling to accept it.

"Li Changfeng, that's enough! Look at the women in the village. They still work even when heavily pregnant, going up the mountain to chop wood. My mother only asked you to wash some clothes by the lake, who would have thought you would have a miscarriage again?!" 

Sha Yang persisted for half a year, but he eventually found an opportunity to round out his family. Since then, Feng Ge had gained confidence and often used the excuse of feeling unwell or having abdominal pain to avoid work.

This time, he didn't know if it was because the lake water was too cold or due to his own physical condition, but he started bleeding, and they lost the baby again.

Feng Ge used this as an opportunity to cause a big scene at Sha Yang's home, even refusing to celebrate the Winter Solstice properly. Sha Yang's parents couldn't stand it anymore and asked Sha Yang to send him back to his mother's home. If he still refused to change, they really couldn't afford this son-in-law.

Currently, apart from Li Mancang's family, the poorest in the village was their Sha Yang family. Sha Yang also wanted to live a good life, but Feng Ge wouldn't listen no matter how he tried to persuade him. Sometimes he said Sha Yang's mother treated him harshly, and other times he complained that Sha Yang didn't treat him well.

And he had become paranoid, only believing in his own ideas and not willing to listen to others.

Sha Yang had given up reasoning with him. Holding Feng Ge's hand, he knocked on Li Mancang's door, and without looking back, he handed him over to Wu Guihua and left.

Feng Ge wanted to chase after him, but Wu Guihua grabbed his hand. "Today is the Winter Solstice, can't you calm down a bit!"

Feng Ge struggled, "Why me? Why should I be the only one suffering? Don't think I don't know that you've accepted benefits from Sha Yang's family, that's why you won't let me cause a scene!"

Wu Guihua slapped Feng Ge's face, "So what if we did? Have you ever thought about why we ended up like this?!"

Her temper had become more and more volatile in the past few years, and Li Mancang and Li Changsheng had to endure it. Gradually, they got used to it. The three of them couldn't be separated from each other. What else could they do but to endure?

It was precisely because Li Mancang and Li Changsheng indulged her that now even Li Mancang didn't dare to oppose her much, assuming a posture of being in charge.

"Changsheng, lock your younger brother in the back storeroom. Let him out only when he stops causing trouble!" Li Changsheng answered with a numb look and tightly held Feng Ge's wrist, sending him into the storeroom no matter how hard he struggled.

Ironically, this storeroom was the same one where Yong Ge had been locked up in the past. Now, in this freezing cold storeroom, it was enough to make even a young and strong man uncomfortable, let alone someone who had just had a miscarriage.

But no one in Li's family pleaded for him. They just wanted to rest properly on such a snowy day and warm themselves by the fire.

When they had to climb the mountain in the snow, it was much colder than this. They had stayed in snow caves when it was difficult to come down the mountain due to heavy snow. Feng Ge was just locked in the storeroom; there was nothing to complain about.

Wu Guihua also blamed Feng Ge for not being sensible. If he had fathered a child with Sha Yang, they could have gone to Sha Yang's family to borrow some money.

Changsheng was not young anymore. If he didn't marry a wife, when would they have grandchildren!

Li Mancang was also holding grudges. He wouldn't help marry off his own son and refused to lend money to Changsheng for marriage. Wu Guihua had asked Li Mancang twice, but he refused, and she didn't dare to persist as before.

She was afraid of alarming Yong Ge, who had become more powerful in the village. He managed everything in the brick and tile shop alone and could make decisions about building walls in the village. Even without soldiers around him, she didn't dare to provoke him.

On the other side, Yong Ge, who was guarding the village entrance, finally heard the neighing of the horses. Listening carefully, he seemed to hear the sound of horse hooves on the snow.

He blinked his long eyelashes, as if waking up, and noticed the snowflakes on his shoulder. He quickly shook himself and patted around to make sure his family's Cheng Ge wouldn't notice anything unusual.

However, Cheng Duo was a shrewd person. With one look, he noticed the red nose and ears of Yong Ge, and then he reached out and touched Yong Ge's cold hands…

Yong Ge, feeling guilty, hurriedly retreated, "Uh… Cheng Duo, I didn't wait for too long. You came back just now after I stood here for a while."

"Go back, and I'll settle the score with you later." Cheng Duo coldly glared at him, but his actions were quite the opposite. He used one hand to hold Yong Ge's hands and without hesitation pulled him closer to himself.

When Yong Ge tried to shrink back, he was glared at again.

Yong Ge awkwardly smiled and looked around to ensure nobody was nearby. He quickly kissed Cheng Duo on the corner of his mouth. "We have so many people at home. How will you settle the score?"

In fact, he was quite looking forward to it.

Cheng Duo: "…" Why does he feel like the roles between the two have reversed?