Phoenix Mouth hasn't changed much since Xiao Yi left two years ago. The stone mill at the village entrance, the well, the country roads, and the people idly sunbathing—nothing is missing, and nothing is added.
In the past, decades or even centuries ago, such a thing would have been met with the villagers' remark of "peace and tranquility!"
But now, the silence is unsettling; it's not over yet!
It's just that Xiejia Village has become a well-known wealthy village, and the sound of children reading aloud in their village school is making the children in the nearby villages envious.
Those who can afford it can spend a few dollars to send a child there to learn to read for a few years; those who can't can only watch helplessly.
Other villages could only envy, but the villagers of Fenghuangzui Village were filled with deep regret. Even the village chief, Xiao Zhengde, fell ill from remorse, waking up crying from his dreams, lamenting that he had let down his ancestors and ruined the future of the entire village.
In the past two years, after gaining fame and fortune, Xiao Yi's mind has been preoccupied with either training troops or his personal feelings. In addition, he has a deep-seated fear and disgust for Old Man Xiao and Old Lady Xiao, so he instinctively wants to stay far away from them and avoid seeing them.
He never thought of using his own power to get the clan to deal with the unreasonable old lady Xiao, nor did he ever think of recruiting clan members to build his own power.
Thus, under these circumstances, Xiao Yi, who had returned to his village in disgrace, once again experienced a devastating blow from Xie Yushu.
On one hand, the villagers pointed and whispered about him, with some resentment and disdain.
On one hand, people kept saying with envy that Xie Yushu had made Xie Baotian the clan chief. They said that in Xie Family Village, even the village patrol guards received monthly stipends, and the village had even opened a clan school where all the children could attend for free, plus there was a sacrificial field.
Moreover, the entire Xiejia Village has become wealthy thanks to her planting medicinal herbs!
This series of news hit Xiao Yi's head like a heavy blow. Only then did he truly understand the difference between him and Xie Yushu.
It turns out that while he was drowning his sorrows in alcohol late at night over who to marry, Xie Yushu had already been thinking about the future a hundred years from now!
No wonder she was able to rise from a village girl to a first-rank princess!
Sure enough, even after becoming a general, he remained a rough and unrefined man, brave but lacking in strategy.
He deserves to end up like this!
He deserves it, he doesn't deserve it!
With such magnanimity, vision, and strategy, one could find very few in the entire court. It would be beneath her to be a princess!
Having grasped all of this in an instant, Xiao Yi was completely convinced!
If two people are evenly matched, there is some basis for comparison. But one is in the heavens and the other is on the earth, so how can they be compared?
He thought he was a general and she was a princess, and that even if she was outstanding, they were equals. But when he returned to the village, he realized that there was a world of difference between them.
This obvious difference made him realize how foolish and ignorant he had been. He suddenly felt that his previous entanglement with her and his determination to have her were ridiculously presumptuous!
However, this was just the beginning. He not only failed to anticipate Xie Yushu's abilities, but also failed to foresee the situation they would face upon returning to the village.
It would be one thing if all I did was complain, criticize, and ridicule from the villagers!
Anyway, they only dare to talk tough, but they don't actually dare to do anything to them.
But the reality is that even if they are mentally strong and can withstand gossip, they cannot survive without land.
So, when the family finally arrived at their doorstep after navigating the rumors, Zhu Mama and Ping'er had just finished admiring the spacious and tidy brick-and-tile courtyard house and hadn't even had time to feel happy, they learned that Xiao Yi's so-called "land with a house" consisted of only two acres of land around the courtyard.
With just these two acres of land, they probably can't even afford to eat porridge!
Ping'er immediately felt a little desperate. She thought that having a house and land meant at least a courtyard house and dozens of acres of land. While she might not be extremely wealthy, she would at least be able to live comfortably!
Who would have thought that Xiao Yi, who had risen to the rank of a third-grade general, only owned two acres of land!
She burst into tears immediately!
As expected of Granny Zhu, she slapped Ping'er across the face.
Why are you crying?
This big house is much more comfortable than living in a tenement. It's just a little small, but we still have some emergency funds and have bought some food. If we're careful, you won't go hungry for a year or two. And your husband's brothers and sisters will help you out in the future.
What's there to worry about?
In this village, people value human relationships. If your in-laws are here, would they just watch you starve to death?
"You agree, right, son-in-law?"
Granny Zhu knew in her heart that since they had decided to rely on Xiao Yi, falling out with him would not do them any good. So she simply pretended to be of one mind with him and tested the waters to see how Xiao Yi's relationship with his family was and figured out where to get some resources.
Having served as a servant her whole life, Zhu Mama had often fought on the front lines and dealt with troubles for her masters. Therefore, scheming and causing trouble was a piece of cake for her, and she was willing to risk her reputation.
However, she knew about Xiao Yi's family situation and his attitude towards them.
As expected, her words softened Xiao Yi's expression, and he said without much emotion...
“The family has long since split up. The only family I still keep in touch with is my eldest brother’s family. My parents favor the fourth brother and are always trying to squeeze money out of us to make up for the fourth brother’s debts. You guys should stay away from the old house.”
Xiao Yi didn't say much, but Granny Zhu gleaned a lot of information from his few words. However, she didn't show it at the moment. Instead, she put down her things and called Ping'er to help her tidy up the house, organize her belongings, and settle down first.
Then she slowly inquired about things related to Xiao Yi.
It's winter now, and the yard is desolate, but not too messy.
The courtyard used to be occupied by Chu Jinyu and Xiao Dayong's family. Later, Xiao Dayong followed along and planted medicinal herbs for two years. As his life improved, he felt that it wasn't right to always live in Xiao Yi's house, so he bought a piece of land behind Xiao Yi's courtyard and built a new courtyard house.
It's a two-courtyard house with blue bricks and tiles, very spacious and bright. Now the eldest son has married, and the whole family is living a prosperous life.
Although he no longer lived in Xiao Yi's courtyard, he always took good care of it. Fearing that the house would be damaged if no one lived there for a long time, he would go over every few days to light a fire. The courtyard was also always planted, so although Xiao Yi's courtyard was desolate, it was not deserted.
However, Xiao Yi returned suddenly without giving any prior notice, so the house was very quiet and deserted.
Fortunately, Xiao Dayong and his group were nearby. Hearing the commotion ahead, they sent Taohua to check it out. Taohua glanced at it and went back, saying uncertainly...
"It seems like my second uncle has come back, but I'm not sure. Wasn't my second uncle supposed to be a great general? That man was a cripple, and he was with two women and a child."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Dayong and Li were stunned for a moment, then quickly dropped what they were doing and ran over to see, only to find that it was indeed Xiao Yi.
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