"Mother! What did Father say?"
Zhen Wanwan was curious about Grandpa Zhen's reaction.
When Grandma Li brought up this matter, she was furious. She said angrily, "Your father is senile. He actually supports your older brother. What kind of nonsense is this?"
Zhen Wanwan raised an eyebrow slightly. Something seemed off about Grandpa Zhen's attitude!
Seeing the agitated Old Mrs. Li, Zhen Wanwan could only try to calm her down: "Mother, don't worry, I'll send someone to look for my elder brother right away, and I'll also send a message to my husband. I'll tell you when I find my elder brother!"
Hearing this, Grandma Li was still agitated, but at least her emotions calmed down a bit.
"Alright, remember to find your older brother. Even if you have to tie him up, bring him back!"
Zhen Wanwan hummed in agreement, but in her heart she was thinking that there must be some secret behind this.
Otherwise, given her older brother's courage and personality, he wouldn't seem like someone who would run away from home.
After thinking for a moment, Zhen Wanwan personally escorted Grandma Li back home. Grandma Li hadn't seen Guabao and Tianbao for two days. When she entered the house and saw that the two children were sleeping soundly, she decided not to disturb them.
Zhen Wanwan did not take the children back to Meizi Village. She and Old Lady Li rode back in a horse-drawn carriage and arrived in no time.
Upon returning to Meizi Village, Zhen Wanwan first went to the study.
Inside the study, Grandpa Zhen was lying in a rocking chair, resting with his eyes closed. Hearing the noise at the door, he opened his eyes.
Seeing that Zhen Wanwan didn't seem surprised, she instead said softly, "Was it your mother who came to see you?"
"Dad, do you know what my eldest brother is doing?" Zhen Wanwan asked with certainty.
Grandpa Zhen remained silent for a long time, then sighed and nodded: "That's right, I was the one who made the eldest son leave."
Zhen Wanwan looked at Grandpa Zhen in confusion: "Dad, what are you thinking? There's still a war going on outside! How can you let my older brother go out?"
Grandpa Zhen looked at Zhen Wanwan intently, which made her feel somewhat depressed.
The next second, Grandpa Zhen dropped a bombshell.
"Your eldest brother has joined the army. He should have arrived in the prefectural city by now. It shouldn't be long before news of Xiao Yuan arrives."
Zhen Wanwan was shocked, then frowned, unable to understand the meaning behind Grandpa Zhen's actions.
"Father, why did you agree to let my eldest brother join the army? The Northern Barbarians are eyeing Anqing City with predatory intent, and they might launch another attack any day now."
“If my elder brother goes at this time, he will definitely be going to the battlefield. If Mother finds out, she will not agree.”
Just by thinking about it, Zhen Wanwan knew Li Laotai's attitude.
She didn't object to it; everyone has their own path, and she would definitely support Zhen Fugui if he wanted to.
However, when marching and fighting, they are most likely to be injured, and in severe cases, they may even lose their lives.
She has deep feelings for Zhen's family now. If something happens to Zhen Fugui, not only will her family be severely affected, but she herself will also have a hard time.
But secretly, she felt that now was the perfect time for the Zhen family to change their ways.
She thought of her husband, and believed he would surely make a name for himself.
Furthermore, she has her own spatial ability, and as long as she has enough money, she doesn't have to worry about losing battles.
Moreover, they possess various miraculous medicines, and with the presence of the herbalist, the casualties can be minimized.
Once we plant high-yield crops like sweet potatoes and potatoes next spring, we won't have to worry about food at all.
When her franchised department store distributors take off, she can provide them with a lot of help in disseminating information.
Now Zhen's family is small, and her two older brothers are getting old and not good at studying.
If we honestly wait for our nephews to grow up, it will take at least five or six years, and not everyone will necessarily be able to pass the imperial examination through studying.
Now that I have the opportunity to fight alongside Zhuyuan, it's better than keeping my head down and hiding in the background.
After figuring this out, Zhen Wanwan looked at Grandpa Zhen across from her.
"Father, you shouldn't have kept this from Mother and Sister-in-law."
Grandpa Zhen lowered his head and sighed, "How could I not want to hide it from your mother? It's just because of your third brother's matter, your mother..."
She mentioned her third brother, whom she had never met, and how gentle and kind he was in her memory.
Zhen Wanwan fell silent. In the eyes of the Zhen family, her third brother was already considered a dead man.
She could understand Grandpa Zhen's concerns; the pain of losing a child is a scene no mother wants to see.
If she were in Old Lady Li's position, she wouldn't want the remaining children to take any more risks.
Suddenly, the sound of a bowl breaking reached her ears, and Zhen Wanwan opened the door to look.
Outside, Old Lady Li's eyes were red-rimmed, and tears silently streamed down her cheeks.
Seeing this, Grandpa Zhen opened his mouth, but ultimately couldn't say anything.
Zhen Wanwan stepped forward with concern to support Old Lady Li, and she could feel that Old Lady Li's palms were sweating.
"mother?"
Grandma Li didn't look at Zhen Wanwan, but looked straight at Grandpa Zhen.
With trembling hands, she asked incredulously, "You old geezer, how could you let the eldest go?"
"Have you forgotten what you said after the third brother left? Can you really bear to see an elderly person bury their young one?"
When the topic turned to the third son of the Zhen family, Old Lady Li was overcome with grief, and the pain in her heart erupted at that moment.
Seeing Old Lady Li so grief-stricken, Zhen Wanwan felt as if she had been pricked by needles.
She always knew that her third brother was the family's Achilles' heel and could not be mentioned lightly.
Seeing Old Lady Li so grief-stricken, Zhen Wanwan didn't know how to comfort her.
He could only gently pat her back and look to Grandpa Zhen for help.
When talking about his third son, Grandpa Zhen looked several years older.
The third son was the most intelligent, filial, and sensible of the three sons. He was also good-looking and learned everything quickly.
During the two years when his family was well-off, he also sent his third son to school.
Although he only studied for two years, he was able to memorize all the knowledge he learned without missing a single word.
Since he had no money at home, he practiced calligraphy on the muddy ground in the yard with dry tree branches.
When Grandpa Zhen saw this scene, he felt both gratified and saddened.
For wealthy families, their children's academic success is a good thing, but for them, it only means they feel indebted to their children.
I thought that not having the money to help him advance his career was something I would feel guilty about for the rest of my life.
Unexpectedly, when the imperial court recruited soldiers, one of the three sons in the family had to serve.
The eldest son was absolutely not allowed to go to the battlefield, so the only option was to choose between the second and third sons.
He had always wanted his second son to go, but his sensible third son insisted on having everyone draw lots to decide.
As a result, the third son was chosen. At that time, Old Lady Li almost cried her eyes out and couldn't sleep for several days and nights.
But both her sons were equally precious to her, and losing either one would feel like having a piece of her own flesh torn out.
Grandpa Zhen hesitated at the time, but seeing his second son's hurt expression, he couldn't bring himself to speak.
The next day, the third brother left a letter and some silver from the government, and went to the front line alone.
In the first few months, we would occasionally receive letters from him. Although the family was worried, they still had hope.
Gradually, the letters became less and less frequent, until I hadn't heard from him for six months, a year, or even several years.
Some people from the same village also went to join the army; some returned safely, while others returned as corpses.
Only their third son disappeared without a trace, neither alive nor dead. Some say his head was cut off, so the court officials couldn't recognize him, and he became an unidentified corpse.
Some say he was captured and died tragically far from home; there are all sorts of ways he died, but none say he survived.
During those years, the family dared not mention the third son again. Old Mrs. Li and he made a vow under the ancestral tablet that no son or grandson in the family would be allowed to join the army.
If the imperial court forcibly conscripts soldiers, they will stay even if it costs them all their savings.
Thinking about the past, Grandpa Zhen was caught in a dilemma.
On one hand, there's the future of the family's descendants; on the other hand, there's the need to protect the child and the guilt towards Old Lady Li.
He faces a dilemma no matter which option he chooses.
Just as Grandpa Zhen was wondering how to explain to Grandma Li, the sound of a carriage moving outside came from outside.
Zhen Wanwan hurriedly went out to check and was somewhat surprised to see that it was Zhen Fugui who had returned.
"Little sister!"
"Brother, where did you go? Didn't Father say you went to the prefectural city?"
Behind them, Grandpa Zhen and Grandpa Li also heard the conversation between the brother and sister.
Old Mrs. Li, not bothering to continue questioning Old Mr. Zhen, nimbly squeezed out of the room.
Seeing that it really was her eldest son, she was both happy and angry. She casually picked up the broom next to her and swung it at Zhen Fugui.
"You little rascal, if these two legs of yours don't obey you, I'll have them chopped off, so you won't be so reckless and run around everywhere..."
Before Zhen Fugui could even process the joy of seeing his younger sister, he was brutally beaten by Old Lady Li.
He looked completely bewildered, and because he dared not dodge Old Lady Li's beating, he could only shrink back and protect his face.
"Mother? Mother? Did I do something wrong to make you so angry?"
"What did I do wrong? I'll change! Please don't get upset and hurt yourself..."
Zhen Wanwan watched this scene helplessly from the side. Although she felt sorry for her older brother, Grandma Li was really furious this time.
If you can't vent your emotions, you might really hurt your health.
Zhen Wanwan had no choice but to lower her profile and avoid her older brother's pleading gaze.
Brother, just bear with it, it'll be over soon. I'll give you something good later.
Perhaps it was because Zhen Fugui had a good attitude in admitting her mistake, or perhaps it was because Old Lady Li was tired of hitting her.
She threw down the broom and leaned weakly against the carriage, panting heavily.
Seeing this, Zhen Wanwan hurriedly stepped forward to pat her back and comforted her injured older brother with her eyes.
Zhen Fugui hid in the corner, feeling wronged, her eyes full of incomprehension.
He was only gone for a day, and when he came back he was beaten up without any reason. He was really wronged.
Seeing her eldest son's defiant look, Old Mrs. Li's anger flared up again.
"Look at you, how old are you? You're already a father of two, and you still act so recklessly."
"I'm asking you, what do you mean by leaving a letter and departing in the dead of night without sleeping?"
Upon hearing this, Zhen Fugui finally understood why his mother had hit him, and he secretly glanced at Grandpa Zhen.
The other party did not react. Zhen Fugui assumed that Old Lady Li was unaware of his true intentions for leaving and began to play tricks.
"Oh dear, Mother, didn't I already say in my letter that I was just going to visit a friend and find a job there?"
"Unfortunately, I went to look for him early today, but I was a step too late. The spot had been taken by one of his relatives. Now I'm back, aren't I?"
Listening to Zhen Fugui's sophistry, Old Lady Li only grew angrier.
Zhen Wanwan gave Zhen Fugui a helpless look, but the other party didn't understand what she meant.
Instead, she asked naively, "Little sister, what happened to your eyes? Did sand get into them?"
Seeing her older brother looking so clueless, Zhen Wanwan also gave up and made a helpless gesture towards him.
Zhen Fugui was completely baffled for a long time. In order to deal with Old Lady Li, he brought up more details about his friend.
As she talked, she started to believe it herself, genuinely thinking she was going to see her friend, not her brother-in-law.
Seeing that Old Lady Li's face was getting worse and worse, Zhen Wanwan hurriedly interrupted Zhen Fugui.
"Brother, Mother already knows you went to the prefectural city, and she also knows that Father sent you there."
"Huh?" Zhen Fugui's smile froze on his face, and he looked at Grandpa Zhen with some embarrassment and helplessness.
He scratched his head and admitted his mistake with a wronged expression, "Mother, I was wrong. I wanted to do this, Father didn't force me."
At this point, Zhen Fugui didn't want his parents to argue because of him, so he took on all the responsibilities himself.
Grandpa Zhen sighed silently as he watched his eldest son return looking disheveled.
"Alright! Now that you're back, come in and let's talk!"
Grandpa Zhen spoke first, entering the house, then suddenly looked at Zhen Wanwan and said, "Wanwan, call your sister-in-law in too!"
Zhen Wanwan was slightly taken aback, realizing that her father was going to hold a family meeting. She readily agreed and went to the soap factory to call Wang Cuihua back.
When she got home and saw Zhen Fugui, she was shocked, but she couldn't hide the joy in her eyes.
"Honey, I thought you were going to abandon us, mother and children!"
Wang Cuihua put on a crying scene that lasted only three seconds, until Grandpa Zhen impatiently stopped her.
"Alright, everyone, please be quiet. I have something I want to tell you."
Upon hearing this, everyone quieted down. They all understood that Grandpa Zhen was definitely going to talk about Zhen Fugui.
Sure enough, when Grandpa Zhen looked around, he felt that his family was pitifully small.
"I'm sure you've all heard the news that the Northern Hu people are besieging the city!"
“We are all people who have experienced war, and we know how difficult it is after a city falls.”
Wang Cuihua didn't understand what he meant. Of course she knew about this, which is why she was distracted while working today, afraid that the good days she had finally achieved would disappear.
She asked nervously, "Father, what do you mean? Are we going to run away again?"
In Wang Cuihua's view, they were powerless and had no choice but to flee.
Grandpa Zhen glanced at his eldest daughter-in-law but did not look down on her for her lack of insight.
"We will not flee; on the contrary, our family will lend a helping hand to the soldiers of the prefecture!"
"I want to donate the money my family has earned during this period, as well as most of the sweet potatoes, to the soldiers of Anqing Prefecture who are protecting our homeland."
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