Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
Fang Zhengzhi looked at the road leading out of Huai An County, a wave of emotions coming over him.
After all, he had funded the construction of this road.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, sir!”
…
The Northern Mountain Village had changed drastically over the past year. Even though Fang Zhengzhi was a wanted criminal, it had not affected the growth of the Northern Mountain Village.
The Northern Mountain Village had roads and an academy with 50 of the best teachers in the Northern Region.
It was so good that even the noble families of the Northern Region sent their kids here. As such, the Northern Mountain Village had moved away from hunting as their way of life.
Just by size alone…
The Northern Mountain Village had more than doubled in size.
Each house had been extensively renovated. The gardens were bigger and the houses were taller.
However, one thing did not change.
They continued to farm.
It was in their nature to do so. They may be more affluent now, but they were still frugal.
As such, there were still plenty of crops around, from vegetables to fruits.
Spring was the time for harvesting.
This was something that was never going to change.
The villagers started bright and early, working in the fields despite the hot sun.
They started before dawn and ended after sunset.
The sun was about to set. The rays of light stained the ground a golden reddish color.
The villagers began to pack up and got ready to return home for dinner.
At that moment…
Figures appeared on the road to the village. It was a figure in a black cloak. They could not make out his appearance because the veil underneath the hood blocked their vision.
There were more than 10 people.
It was clear that these people were special. They wore good quality clothes and they had weapons in their hands.
Swords, knives, spears…
Every weapon had an icy glow to it. Even those who didn’t know their weapons could tell that these were high-quality weapons.
These people had to be quite special.
The villagers stopped what they were doing. Over the past year, many influential figures had come here. The noble families of Huai An County and the River of Trust Province had all come to visit.
They had seen their fair share.
However, they stopped what they were doing. For starters, this was not the first or last day of school. Secondly, they could see that…
These people were not from any of those noble families.
Because…
All of them traveled on foot.
None of them rode horses and they traveled light. There was no cart of luggage nor did they carry any bags. They looked clean and tidy, without any traces of dust on their clothes. They were not here to deliver things to the sons of those noble families studying here.
The villagers stood in the field and stared.
They wanted to figure out who these men were and what they were here for. However, based on what they saw, they couldn’t figure anything out.
Then, they were shocked by what they saw.
Their eyes were on the verge of popping out of their sockets.
They couldn’t believe their eyes.
They saw a figure inside this group. This was a youth who was dressed in a blue long-sleeved shirt.
He was skinny, had fair skin, and smiled widely.
“Uncle Li, Auntie Zhang, how are you?” The youth noticed the villagers and waved to them as he walked past.
“Ah…” The couple who had been greeted watched in amazement as the youth walked past them. Their jaws dropped…
The youth smiled, unsurprised by their reaction. He then greeted some of the other villagers.
“Uncle Wang, you are still as young as ever. Auntie Liu, your complexion is getting better, is Brother Zhao married yet? Haha… when you’re free, come over to my house for a meal…”
The youth greeted every villager heartedly as he walked by.
However…
All of the villagers reacted with dropped jaws and stunned looks. No one returned the greetings. They all felt like they had just seen a ghost.
“F*ck me, did… did I just see a ghost?!”
“Me too…”
“You saw it too?”
“Yes… yes…”
“Don’t tell me that you saw Zhengzhi as well?!”
“Yes, I… I saw Zhengzhi… in fact, he even greeted me like he usually does. He does seem a little taller though!”
“Ghost!”
The villagers of the Northern Mountain Village were law-abiding. Fang Zhengzhi was the most wanted criminal in the entire Great Xia.
As such…
They couldn’t believe that Fang Zhengzhi would walk towards them and greet them in broad daylight.
Fang Zhengzhi had no intention of explaining his actions to them.
He took a deep breath and enjoyed the fresh mountain air as he watched the sunset. He loved the calm and serenity of the mountains.
The river at the entrance to the village was clear. The fishes swam around in the clear water, creating little ripples wherever they went.
Fang Zhengzhi was not walking particularly quickly.
However, he arrived at the entrance very quickly. He looked at the new signboard and tablet at the entrance.
The person who had done the inscription was quite a skilled man.
This must have been a result of the increased traffic.
With the academy, the culture in the village had improved greatly and people showed a greater appreciation of calligraphy and the other arts.
There were all sorts of art forms, from statues to wood carvings. Fang Zhengzhi guessed that these were the works of the teachers.
Based on Village Elder Zhang Yangping’s skill levels, these things would have crumbled before they even took root.
He entered the village.
It was bustling.
All the villagers smiled and chatted amongst themselves. Many of the families had a signboard on their house.
However, the entire village quietened down quickly.
All of them saw Fang Zhengzhi entering the city and heard the greetings from afar.
They were all stunned.
Even though Fang Zhengzhi had already left the Northern Mountain Village for more than a year, he was still once the pride of the Northern Mountain Village.
They would never forget him.
Even if Fang Zhengzhi left for five or ten years, they will still be able to recognize him on sight.
In fact…
Everyone had wondered if Fang Zhengzhi would return to the village one day.
But it was just a thought.
After all, the crimes Fang Zhengzhi was accused of were too heinous. Killing the Crown Prince of the Southern Region, violating the current Queen of the Southern Region, and injuring the Crown Prince.
Pardon?
With such heinous crimes, a pardon was out of the question.
Of course, they still entertained the thought that Fang Zhengzhi would return. However, they expected him to sneak in in the middle of the night.
All of the villagers looked up at the sky.
The sun was about to set, but enough light shone on that smiling face.
“Zheng… Zhengzhi?!”
A voice stammered.
Then, all the villagers looked at each other with excitement, fear, and worry.
As villagers, they knew everyone inside the village.
That meant that they knew that there were…
“Zhengzhi, why did you come back?! Go!”
“Where is my mom?”
“Ah?!”
“Is she at home? Uncle Chen, if you have time tonight, come and have a meal at my house!” Fang Zhengzhi waved to Uncle Chen.
“Have… have a meal? Zhengzhi asked me to go have a meal… at his house?” Uncle Chen was stunned as he watched Fang Zhengzhi and the cloaked figures around him.
…
In the Fang Family garden.
Qin Xuelian was watering the plants. She already had traces of grey hair and there were wrinkles on her face.
Even though Qin Xuelian was still very beautiful, she did seem to age a lot over the past year.
On the balcony on the second floor of the stone house, they planted nuts in a small yard.
Fang Houde stood there, tending to the plants.
He had a teapot and teacup in front of him. Steam emanated from the teacup, spreading the fragrance of the tea contained within it.
“Father of our child, if you’re tired, you should rest.” Qin Xuelian hollered as she saw sweat pouring down Fang Houde’s face.
Her expression darkened when she said this.
She hadn’t called him the father of their children for a long time. She usually cold him by name…
Or by Old Fang…
Yet, she would end up reverting to calling him that every now and then.
“Mother… Xue Lian ah, you should rest as well. Let me cook dinner tonight.” Fang Houde stopped himself.
His expression was dark as well.
However, he cheered up almost just as quickly as he brushed the dirt off his hands and raised his glass.
He took a whiff.
For some reason, a teardrop landed inside this teacup, causing rippled.
“Let me do it.” Qin Xuelian shook her head, her body trembling. Her eyes became slightly watery. She had cried too many times over the past year.
Spring, summer, autumn, winter.
She sat in the garden, watching the passing figures. All she wanted was to see her son.
But there was nothing!
She wasn’t disappointed. Not seeing him was a good thing!
Then, drops of ‘water’ landed in her pail of water. There were more and more ripples by the second. She felt her energy rush out of her body and she grabbed the pail to stabilize herself.
“My son, I… miss you!”
Qin Xuelian screamed in her heart. She screamed it repeatedly, but never out loud.
The pail was shaking.
The water reflected a wrinkled and pale face.
At that very moment, a figure appeared in the water. It was a figure standing at the door, wearing a blue long-sleeved shirt.
“My son! It’s Zhengzhi!”
Qin Xuelian wanted to shout it out loud but she dismissed the thought. She had seen this figure too many times.
She knew that this figure should not appear here.
He should not be here!
“Zhengzhi, my son…” Qin Xuelian looked at the reflection, staring quietly. She knew that the figure would disappear after some time.
She wanted to stop time and savor the moment.
But it was wishful thinking.
Yet, this was the only thing that kept her going. This was the only way she could keep waiting for someone who was never going to return.
“Mother!” At that moment, a voice rang out at the gate. It was so clear and familiar.
Qin Xuelian shuddered.
She looked at the pail in her hands. The figure’s reflection was still there. It was almost real.
“My son, Zhengzhi is back!”
Qin Xuelian wanted to look at the gate. However, she knew that once she did that, she would lose sight of the reflection.
She didn’t know what to do…
Her instincts took over and she turned back. She wanted to see who was at the gate.
Time seemed to stop…
Qin Xuelian’s body froze as she looked at the gate. There was a familiar figure there smiling at her.
“Mother!” The voice rang out once again.
“Zheng… Zhengzhi, is… is that you?” Qin Xuelian felt a wave of emotions overwhelm her and she dropped the pail on the floor.