The mountain road was rugged, but it couldn't block the sound of laughter from entering the air. Amidst the rumbling of the large cart's wheels, they returned all the way. Along the way, Uncle Chang and Auntie Chang would greet the villagers they met from time to time. And wherever they passed, they left behind the same shocked expressions. Uncle Chang even hummed a mountain song in a low voice. The old woman proudly held the somewhat restrained Zhao Min's hand, then looked at Gong Chenying on the other side who was holding Little Wu. Her face had long since bloomed with happiness. For those who didn't know, they would really think she had married several daughters-in-law. Especially when someone in the fields stood up or someone came toward them, looking at the other party's look of disbelief, the old woman would even more loudly introduce Zhao Min and Gong Chenying, saying this was Li Yan's second aunt, that was Li Yan's cousin, and this was someone's newly married wife, and so on... Especially when she said that it was someone's wife, she would even emphasize her tone, and a look of hope would occasionally appear on her face as she looked at the two women.
Li Yan easily pulled a cart of wheat. Li Wei and Xiao Yu followed on either side of the cart. They each used a fork to support the wheat stack as they walked with the cart. Li Yan looked at Zhao Min in front, who was walking a little stiffly, and couldn't help but smile inwardly. 'You cultivation families, when have you ever seen the enthusiasm of the villagers? You insisted on experiencing mortal life. This time, you brought it upon yourself.'
Zhao Min felt that she didn't know what expression to make. She wanted to smile but couldn't do it very naturally. When the old woman held her hand, she didn't feel uncomfortable because of the old woman's rough skin. On the contrary, a warmth flowed from her palm, which made her not know what to feel in her heart for a moment. She just felt that the old woman's hand was very warm and kind. A feeling that she had forgotten for a long time rose in her heart—relaxation. But she didn't know how to express her emotions and could only remain silent.
Gong Chenying was a little less cold. Little Wu in her arms would occasionally lean against her ear and talk about things that he thought were a big deal.
"Big sister, the day before yesterday, Little Yaozi secretly took the old wine from home. He even drank a mouthful in front of us, but... but... but he fell to the ground. Later... later he was carried back by Uncle Bai and was even spanked..."
"Big sister, look at Third Fat Auntie in that field. She's the worst. Yesterday she said my dudou was the... the best-looking, and she even took off my pants. In the end... in the end, Si Ya... they... they saw it. It was so embarrassing."
"Big sister..."
As Gong Chenying listened, a smile slowly appeared in her eyes, and she would occasionally ask Little Wu about the village in a soft voice.
Little did they know, although the two of them were cold to the bone, in the eyes of outsiders, this was considered to be the cold beauty they should have. After all, Uncle Chang and Auntie Chang had said that they were the daughters of high officials in the court. Even the young ladies from the few wealthy families in the county town, when seen from a distance, would have a "strangers keep away" and noble look on their faces. Which one of them didn't have a very tight expression?
Soon, they arrived at the entrance of the village. At this time, many people had already gathered at the entrance, all craning their necks to look into the distance. When they saw the figures of Li Yan's family from afar, they began to point and talk, and the sound of discussion also grew louder.
"I say, can you all have some manners? Don't bring out that rascally, thick-skinned set from home. Don't let Li Yan be gossiped about when he goes back," Li Guoxin stood at the front of the crowd, a hint of anger on his face. As he spoke, the surroundings immediately became much quieter.
He was resting at home, thinking about how many days it would take for each family in the village to finish their farm work before they had to go into the mountains. He didn't expect a few loud cries of surprise to reach the village. The mountain village was not very big, and a loud shout could be heard throughout. Not to mention several people shouting at the same time.
When Li Guoxin walked out of his courtyard, he saw a figure running straight for him, shouting as he ran, "Uncle Guoxin, that boy Li Yan is back, and he brought two fairies with him..."
Li Guoxin quickly figured out what was going on and couldn't help but feel overjoyed. The village had been relying on the blessing of the belt that Li Yan had sent back all these years. This made him feel even more guilty toward Uncle Chang. No matter how hard he had tried to find someone, he couldn't find a single piece of news about Li Yan. He never thought that today would be a day of good fortune.
Instantly, the village was in an uproar, like a pot that had exploded. Li Guoxin frowned as he watched, but he also knew that this was how people in the mountains were. If he directly restricted them, no one here would disobey, but then the village would seem too quiet and lose its atmosphere. In the end, he didn't say anything more.
As they approached the mountain village, the small path also became a large road paved with green stones. Stepping on the smooth green stones, a very familiar feeling rose in Li Yan's heart. He had walked on it countless times with bare feet when he was a child. Every pit and grave path on every green stone slab was so familiar. The wheels of the cart rumbled. Li Yan, through the gap between his parents' figures, saw the familiar faces under the few old locust trees at the head of the village. There were also some unfamiliar people among them. Most of these strangers were young women, and many of them were holding children in their arms. The person at the very front was big and burly, with knotted muscles. A smile appeared on his square face, and he was looking at Li Yan with a burning gaze.
Seeing this, Li Yan quickly put the cart on the side of the road, straightened up, and walked over quickly. In an instant, he had passed a few people and had already taken the lead to the entrance of the village.
"Uncle Guoxin," looking at the strong man who was still as strong as a tiger, Li Yan bowed respectfully.
"Hahaha, it really is Brother Yan. With this appearance, how could I dare to recognize you?" Li Guoxin looked at the young man who was already half a head taller than him and couldn't help but sigh.
"Uncle Guoxin, it's been several years since we parted at the military camp. You are still the same as before." Looking at the big man before him, Li Yan felt emotional. It was this person who had sent him to the military camp. It could be said that all cause and effect started with him, like a past and present life.
"Good, good, good. It's been several years, and you've learned to speak so eloquently. I imagine even the scholars and provincial graduates are not as learned as you. Your return today has also put an end to your parents' longing. Otherwise, I would have felt that I had let them down, hahaha..." Li Guoxin looked at the respectful Li Yan and couldn't help but laugh heartily.
At this moment, a somewhat hesitant voice came again. "Brother... Brother Yan." Li Yan looked over at the sound. In the crowd was a man as big as a black pagoda, looking over here with some hesitation, wanting to come over but not daring to.
"Li Shan?" Li Yan looked at the vaguely familiar features and said hesitantly.
"It's me, Brother Yan." The black pagoda-like man scratched his head when he saw Li Yan look at him.
"Hehe, it really is you. With this change in appearance, I almost didn't recognize you." Li Yan smiled at Li Guoxin, then strode toward the crowd.
Seeing that Li Yan had no airs, Li Shan's heart was overjoyed. He had long heard from others that Li Yan was back, but seeing Li Yan's attire, how could he dare to go forward for a moment?
Li Shan squeezed out of the crowd and came to Li Yan. Li Yan grabbed his large hand. Looking at the big man who was about the same size as himself, Li Yan smiled faintly. "Li Shan, you must have been doing well these few years. Otherwise, how could you have grown so strong? By the way, where is Li Yu?"
Seeing Li Yan's familiar attitude toward him, Li Shan's mood relaxed even more. He grinned. "Li Yu, he's still in the city. He's a head chef now and can't easily get away. I came back because of the village's harvest, and many of the farm tools in the village were made at my master's place, so I brought them back together. I'll collect the broken ones in a few days and take them back for repair."
"Oh, that's a pity. I thought I could see Li Yu this time," Li Yan said, lightly punching Li Shan in the chest.
"Hehe, what's the big deal? I also used my master's two fast horses to bring back the farm tools this time. I'll ride to the city in a while and call Li Yu. I'm sure he'll come back no matter what," Li Shan said with a hehe laugh.
At this moment, Uncle Chang and his group had already walked over. But the moment they arrived, the place fell into a dead silence again. Uncle Chang and Auntie Chang were already used to this familiar scene, and a somewhat childish pride appeared on the corners of their mouths.
Auntie Chang even more so, quickly spoke up, as if she were afraid someone would steal her words. "My fifth son is finally back today. And look, he's now in the north... what was it again? Look at my memory. He works under Marshal Zhao. And, and, this is Marshal Zhao's daughter." As she spoke, she couldn't help but be annoyed at her own memory. The place where her fifth son stayed, the old man had said it several times along the way, but she just couldn't remember.
She gently helped Zhao Min forward, then pointed to Gong Chenying on her side who was holding Little Wu and was also cold and beautiful. "This is the daughter of the imperial physician Gong from the imperial palace."
The crowd had long heard from the few who had come back to spread the news about the fairies. Although they had long been looking forward to it, when they really saw the two women, their tall figures, their cold and unparalleled temperament, their skin that could be broken by a puff of wind, everything combined to create an unimaginable beauty. It made them stare blankly, unable to speak. And when Auntie Chang spoke, gasps could be heard from the crowd.
Especially the young men, whose eyes revealed a look of being stunned as if they had seen a celestial being. And when this fell into the eyes of their own wives, although they were smiling, they had already quietly come forward and pinched their husbands' hands or waists, and were already twisting forcefully. For a moment, the sound of gasping was even louder, but it was not clear whether it was from surprise or pain.
"This... this... are they all your wives?" amid the crowd's surprise, Li Shan asked Li Yan blankly.
"This... this... cough cough cough..." Hearing this, Li Yan stretched out his hand and patted Li Shan on the shoulder, coughing dryly a few times.
"You fool, how can you ask like that?" At this moment, a young woman holding a child of about one year old walked out of the crowd and kicked Li Shan directly on the calf. Although the young woman was not very beautiful, she was also extremely delicate and pretty. A blush appeared on her face, and she smiled apologetically at Li Yan.
Li Shan yelped in pain and was about to shout, "What..." but when he turned his head and saw the delicate and pretty young woman, his voice immediately disappeared. He immediately put on a smiling face and then turned to Li Yan and said, "Brother Yan, I'm even married now." After speaking, he even pinched the face of the child in the young woman's arms with his large hand. The child was clearly in pain and immediately started to cry.
Seeing this, the young woman's willow-like eyebrows shot up. "You rough and clumsy brute, you treat your own child like you're kneading iron. You really shouldn't have come back from the city this time." After speaking, she glared fiercely at Li Shan, then bowed to Li Yan again, and hurriedly went to the side to comfort the child.
Li Yan's face was full of smiles as he looked at Li Shan. Li Shan, on the other hand, stood there with a frustrated look on his face.
After this commotion, the crowd immediately became lively again. Praises came from the mouths of the women one after another. Many people even went to Auntie Chang and talked to her, and from time to time, they would look at the two women with a clicking sound. For a moment, the place was extremely lively.
Li Yan, on the other hand, glanced at the two women. Seeing that Gong Chenying's jade-like face was flushed after hearing Li Shan's words, and Zhao Min was in a daze, her gaze sweeping to Gong Chenying at her side, her body a little stiff as she still let Auntie Chang hold her hand, not saying a word. Seeing this scene, Li Yan smiled inwardly.
"Alright, alright, every family doesn't have to go back to cook tonight. It will be like the New Year's festival, and we'll gather at the head of the village. Every family should bring out their stored demonic beast meat and their own good wine. Don't let our distinguished guests think that we villagers are petty. You... you... and you... go to the fields and call everyone back together." Li Guoxin waved his hand and said loudly. Then he pointed to the three old locust trees with thick leaves and fragrant white flowers at the head of the village, meaning to gather here. He then raised his hand again and pointed to two or three people, instructing them to go around and find people to come back.
Hearing Li Guoxin's words, the village became even more lively for a moment. What Li Yan saw was the dazed gazes of Gong Chenying and Zhao Min, and he couldn't help but laugh.