…………

This way.

Before Lu Shishen arrived at his uncle's house, he met Lu Qingyuan on the road, who was covered in dust and dirt. His clothes were almost torn to pieces and hung on his body in tatters. There were scratches on his face and neck, and they were bleeding.

Lu Qingyuan was walking on the path and sobbing. He looked up and saw his brother coming to pick him up. He wiped his tears awkwardly and forced a smile.

"Shi Shen, why are you out in such a hot day? Look, I'm sweating all over."

To prove that he was so hot that his eyes were red, he pretended to wipe the sweat stains.

It's so embarrassing that you are crying in front of your brother at your age.

Lu Shishen didn't expose him, he nodded and said, "Since you haven't come back yet, I was planning to pick you up, so go home first."

"good."

When Lu Qingyuan saw his younger brother, he felt a lot more comfortable. In order to ease the awkwardness, he kept finding topics to chat with his younger brother. Although his younger brother didn't say much, he responded to every word he said.

When they returned home, Guan Ailian was heartbroken when she saw her husband's appearance. "What happened to you? Why do you look like you've shed a layer of skin just by going to your uncle's house?"

Lu Guozhi was also distressed, and asked with a red face and thick neck, "Did your mother beat you?"

He has been raising his eldest son since he was young, and he has been very close to him since they were young. Although he always says that his eldest son is incompetent, he loves him in his heart!

Although the youngest son is capable, he has never been close to anyone since he was young and does not behave like a child at all.

He felt scared when he was alone with his youngest son. He always felt that his youngest son's eyes were not like those of a baby. It was as if there was an adult's soul living in the small body. That's why he took his youngest son to worship Guanyin or something.

Although his youngest son had been a weird kid since he was young, he just couldn't feel any love for him.

In summary, he does have fatherly love for his younger son, but not much.

Yang Niannian looked at Lu Qingyuan in surprise. She really didn't expect that Ma Xiuzhu would be so cruel to her own son.

Lu Qingyuan was really wronged. At his age, he was still beaten by his own mother.

The injuries were on his body, so he couldn't deny it. Lu Qingyuan nodded and said in a muffled voice, "My uncle said I was unfilial and kicked me twice. My mother scratched my face and clothes. My uncle said that if our whole family doesn't go to pick up mom together tomorrow, he and mom will not recognize my brother and sister."

Lu Qingyuan has two uncles and an aunt. This time when he went there, his eldest uncle didn't say anything, but his younger uncle had a bad temper and threatened to settle the score with his younger brother and his wife.

"Why did he hit you?" Lu Guozhi was furious. "When our family was poor, they didn't come forward to help my sister. Now they are capable."

He was not only angry because his eldest son was beaten, but also because he thought about the time when he was beaten by his brother-in-law.

In the past, his brother-in-law looked down on him and beat him, and now he beats his son. Does he really think that there is no one in the Lu family?

Yang Niannian blinked. Judging from her father-in-law's words, he was not only angry about his eldest son being beaten, but there seemed to be some trivial matters mixed in.

The conflict between my uncle and my father-in-law must be related to my mother-in-law.

Given my mother-in-law's temper, when she was young and had quarrels with my father-in-law, she must have asked her brother from her mother's family for help and support.

She suddenly had an idea and said, "My uncle must have hit my brother to help my mother-in-law vent her anger."

Upon hearing this, Lu Guozhi's anger reached its peak. "Okay, since he wants to help his sister vent her anger, let him keep his sister at home. No one should go to pick them up. Without them, we can still do what we need to do tomorrow."

Hearing this, Lu Qingyuan instantly felt relieved. He didn't want to go to his uncle's house and get beaten again.

Yang Niannian was very happy. It seemed that she was right. Her father-in-law had indeed suffered at the hands of her mother-in-law's family.

She looked at Lu Shishen and said, "Would you like to accompany your brother to buy some medicine and Band-Aids?"

Before Lu Shishen could say anything, Lu Qingyuan waved his hand and refused, "No, no."

Although Guan Ailian felt sorry for her husband, she did not take the injury seriously. "It's just a little skin breakage. It's nothing serious. Your brother has thick skin and will be fine tomorrow."

Seeing that the two were determined not to go, Yang Niannian did not persuade them much. Lu Qingyuan's injury was indeed not that serious, ahem... it was just a bit humiliating.

His eyelids looked a little swollen, probably because he cried on the way.

Without Ma Xiuzhu at home, the afternoon was very peaceful and no one made a fuss.

After dinner, Lu Shishen found some mugwort and fumigated the west room with thick smoke. The whole room was filled with the fragrance of mugwort. Yang Niannian suddenly remembered the smell she smelled last night. No wonder there were no mosquitoes biting her later.

Lu Shishen closed the doors and windows tightly and explained calmly, "Fumigate for a while longer to get rid of the mosquitoes more thoroughly."

Yang Niannian nodded, "I can't sleep now anyway, why don't we go out for a walk?"

She couldn't keep things to herself, so she wanted to ask if she had anything to say, otherwise she would feel uncomfortable holding it in.

When I read novels in my previous life, the male and female protagonists seemed to have no mouths and would not talk about misunderstandings.

She wouldn't do that. They are already husband and wife, and she is not mute. Is there anything she can't ask?

Lu Shishen nodded and said "yeah". Lu Xingxing wanted to follow, but Guan Ailian called him back, "Uncle and aunt are going out for a walk, why are you following them? Go and help your aunt boil some water for a bath."

It was already dark outside, and the moonlight was like a girl's white gauze skirt, sprinkling on the ground, revealing a bright moonlight.

The breeze was much cooler than being in the yard. Occasionally, there were people sitting under the big trees in the village chatting, so the two simply left the village.

When they reached a place where no one was around, Yang Niannian asked directly, "Lu Shishen, since you adopted An An, you can't have another child. Did you know about this?"

Lu Shishen pursed his lips with a complicated look in his eyes, nodded and replied, "I know."

Hearing this, Yang Niannian felt sour in her heart. She had never thought of abandoning An An, but she still felt a little uncomfortable when she thought that Lu Shishen was unwilling to have a child with her.

The more she thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt. She asked angrily, "You don't want to have a baby with me at all?"

Lu Shishen looked at her in astonishment, "How can a human give birth to a monkey?"

Yang Niannian was so angry that she almost died. She was so excited that she brought up a 21st century Internet meme.

The only explanation is, "It's just giving birth to a child."

Lu Shishen nodded seriously, "I do."

Yang Niannian's eyes lit up for a moment, then dimmed again. She puffed out her cheeks and said, "But if we have a baby, you won't be able to stay in the army anymore."

"No." Lu Shishen shook his head, his eyes firm, "Don't worry, I will take care of An An's affairs."

He couldn't reveal too much about An An.

Looking at her thin face, he added in a low voice, "Your physical condition is too weak. Take care of yourself for a year or two before considering having a baby."

Yang Niannian had a hunch that An An’s background might not be simple.

This was the second time Lu Shishen had hinted to An An that something needed to be kept secret.

Yang Niannian believed that Lu Shishen would not lie to her. Her worries were resolved and her mood instantly improved. When she looked at the surrounding environment, she was a little surprised.

"Hey, walk about a mile further and you'll reach my home."

Lu Shishen glanced forward, guessing that she might be homesick, so he asked, "Do you want to take a walk around the village?"

Yang Niannian was just hesitating when someone suddenly covered her mouth. She was startled and heard Lu Shishen whisper in her ear, "There's movement in the woods ahead."

Yang Niannian understood and immediately nodded to indicate that she would not say anything.

It was said earlier that it was a small forest, but in fact there were only a few trees, and the entire area was only about 20 to 30 square meters. She followed Lu Shishen and crouched closer to the forest, but the scene they saw made them both freeze instantly.