"I understand, Great-Grandpa." Qiu Yan took the herbs, gave Old Man Zhao some copper coins, chatted with him for a while, and then went home.
Back home, Wang and Zhao Yuanyuan had already prepared the meal.
It was already late, and Qiu Xu had finished school and was helping the craftsmen serve food.
Qiu Dafu went to Old Qiu's house and returned shortly afterward.
When Qiu Dayu saw his second brother return, he approached him and said, "Second brother."
Qiu Dafu patted Qiu Dayu on the shoulder, "Fifth brother, it's alright now, everything will be alright from now on."
Qiu Dayu nodded earnestly, "Yes, thank you, Second Brother." For the first time, he felt a strange feeling towards his Second Brother.
Qiu Yan glanced outside the door; Gu Qian and the others had not yet returned from their hunting trip.
Madam Ye had been waiting at the door for a long time. When Li Zheng didn't come back, she lost her appetite and waited for him to come back so they could have dinner together every night.
As her pregnancy progressed, she was constantly on edge, afraid that Li Zheng might get hurt while hunting.
After all the craftsmen had left, Gu Qian and his two companions finally appeared outside the courtyard gate.
Gu Qian was carrying a large wild boar on his back, with five or six small pieces of prey wrapped around his waist.
Li Zheng carried a wild deer on his back and held Gu Xiaoran in his arms.
They had a very fruitful hunting trip in the mountains today.
Gu Xiaoran sweetly called her "housewife," and after getting off Li Zheng, he quickly ran to Qiu Yan, revealing the little wild rabbit in his arms.
Qiu Yan counted them; there were eight grayish-brown wild rabbits in total.
"Xiao Ran, are you tired?"
Gu Xiaoran shook her head, "Father and Grandmaster are tired, but Xiaoran is not."
When Ye saw the wild rabbit, his eyes lit up.
Wild rabbits are great, you can keep them as pets.
Qiu Yan helped Li Zheng and Gu Qian put down their prey. "Uncle Li, Gu Qian, please don't come back so late again. Your family will worry."
Ye nodded in agreement, looking at Li Zheng and saying, "Did you hear that? Come back earlier next time. I won't feel at ease if I can't see you after dark."
Li Zheng nodded: "Understood."
Gu Qian looked at Qiu Yan and felt a warmth in his heart when he heard her say the word "family".
That night, everyone left, leaving only their own people in the courtyard, and even the little dog in the yard quieted down.
Qiu Dayu pinched his nose and drank the bitter medicine that Qiu Yan had brewed for him. After swallowing it, he coughed a few times and, feeling bored, went outside for a stroll.
It's so hot now, he can't sleep even if you ask him to. Let's go out and get some fresh air.
Under the candlelight, Qiu Xu was engrossed in his reading, completely undisturbed by the outside world.
Gu Xiaoran had been hunting with Gu Qian for a long time today and had long since fallen asleep.
Qiu Yan and Gu Qian strolled along the stream, the place where they first met.
"Yan Yan, I've been back for two days and haven't seen you rest yet. Don't work so hard in the future." Gu Qian's face was full of heartache.
Qiu Yan bent down and squatted down, stroking the stream with her hand, "I'm just taking a break now."
"What time is it?" Gu Qian squatted down beside her and patted his shoulder. "You can lean on my shoulder."
Qiu Yan stood up. "I don't feel tired."
"Yan Yan..."
Gu Qian felt uneasy because Qiu Yan had a childhood sweetheart.
He was afraid that after he left, Qiu Yan and Zhao Zheng would rekindle their relationship, since Qiu Yan had always been lukewarm towards him.
Gu Qian carefully observed Qiu Yan's expression, and seeing that Qiu Yan's face was indifferent, he felt inexplicably irritated.
Seeing her continue walking forward, Gu Qian followed closely behind.
"Gu Qian, you've been working hard for a long time, go back to sleep."
Gu Qian looked at Qiu Yan anxiously, "I'm not sleepy yet. Yan Yan, I know Aunt doesn't like me serving in the military, are you...?"
Qiu Yan smiled at him, "I don't mind."
She is straightforward and knows what she wants to do.
Although she had some feelings for this man, making money was her top priority right now.
Her body is only fourteen years old.
Gu Qian's heart raced a little. He grasped the key point in Qiu Yan's words: she didn't care about her status.
He stepped forward and stood beside Qiu Yan.
"Yan Yan, you can't go back on your word. Don't forget what you said today. You have to take responsibility for me."
It wasn't just because of Zhao Zheng; his aunt now had a prejudice against him, which was why Gu Qian's state of mind was so unstable.
He was afraid that Qiu Yan would listen to her aunt and ignore him from then on.
Once someone falls in love with another, their heart is like an open riverbank, from which there is no stopping them.
Qiu Yan raised an eyebrow, "What did I do to you? Why should I take responsibility for you?" This man really knows how to take advantage of people.
Gu Qian smiled gently, "No, it's me who needs to take responsibility for you."
Qiu Yan assumed the man was just talking to himself.
"Do you have a fiancée? Do you have a childhood sweetheart you can't have? Do you have someone who is devoted to you and you need to take responsibility for them?"
"No, nothing at all. I've been in the military for most of my life, and you're the first woman I've ever met."
"He can lie without batting an eye."
"Everything I said is true."
Gu Qian was making a strong guarantee when he turned his head and saw his second uncle looking at the two of them.
"Second Uncle..." His face stiffened, and he moved far away from Qiu Yan.
In the distance, Qiu Dayu's eyes widened, as if he had confirmed something significant.
"Gu Qian, have confidence in yourself." Qiu Yan waved to Gu Qian and turned back.
Gu Qian carefully savored Qiu Yan's last sentence, feeling that the moonlight tonight was extremely beautiful, and the twinkling stars illuminated his entire heart.
Tonight, Qiu Dayu and Gu Qian slept on straw mats in the courtyard.
Fortunately, Qiu Yan had prepared mugwort in advance, which repelled the mosquitoes.
Sleeping like this in the sweltering summer heat is actually quite nice.
"Gu Qian, you're really brave. Aren't you afraid of my second brother?" Qiu Dayu admitted that he was a coward.
When his second uncle was mentioned, Gu Qian was indeed a little hesitant. "My second uncle didn't object."
Qiu Dayu continued, "But he didn't agree either."
Gu Qian opened his mouth, then, remembering Qiu Yan's words that told him to have confidence in himself, he slightly curled his lips into a silly grin.
Qiu Dayu was completely baffled. Was this guy crazy?
A short while later, Qiu Dafu also came outside carrying a straw mat.
It was so hot in the room that he tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
As soon as Qiu Dafu came out, the surroundings became quieter.
Gu Qian turned around, rested his head on his arm, and faced away from Qiu Dayu, seemingly lost in thought.
Qiu Dayu found it boring and tossed and turned until late at night before finally falling asleep.
The next morning, Qiu Dayu went to work early.
Zhao Shan led the villagers to look for Qiu Yan.
Among the villagers were both men and women. Upon seeing this, Qiu Yan frowned deeply.
Because almost the entire village had been summoned by the village chief.
Of course, no one from the Qiu family was there. Qiu Dafu's trip yesterday wasn't for nothing. They are now completely afraid to provoke Qiu Yan and her family, and have vowed to live their own lives from now on, with the two families no longer interfering with each other.
When Gu Qian and Qiu Dafu saw so many people suddenly arrive at the courtyard gate, they walked to Qiu Yan's side and looked at the villagers with curiosity.
Actually, Zhao Shan didn't expect so many people to come. He only told a dozen or so people, but in one night, the word spread like wildfire, and by early morning, they all came looking for him.
When he first arrived, he didn't want to bring these people with him; they followed him on their own.
Most of the villagers are very poor, and when there is work to be done in the village, everyone is eager to do it.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
