Ger, So Proud

Chapter 17: Reconciliation

“What’s wrong?” Even He Ze was somewhat startled by He An’s reaction, causing him to take two steps back. “See? I’m fine. Didn’t I tell you not to worry?”

“Big Brother!”

“Alright, where are Father and Father? Have you had dinner yet?”

As He Ze spoke, he started walking toward the main house. He An, who was Dadentarily stunned, quickly grabbed him. “Big Brother, wait! Wait!”

“What’s the matter?”

“Um…”

He An looked troubled. Seeing He Ze’s unwavering gaze, he reluctantly lowered his head and sighed. “Father and Father were angry just now.”

“Angry? Why?”

“Big Brother, you bought a lot of stuff today, right? And then Father, Father…”

“Father’s worried I did something wrong?” He Ze raised an eyebrow and then lightly laughed, pushing He An’s hand away. “Alright, I’ll go explain to Father and Father.”

As expected, he realized he hadn’t made things clear that afternoon.

“Big Brother, just… make sure to explain properly. Father has a quick temper; don’t argue with him.” He An was still very worried.

“I know. Don’t worry.”

He Ze waved his hand. The door to the house was not closed, so he stepped inside. He An followed closely behind.

“Father, Father, I’m back.”

“You’re back? Everything okay?”

Inside the room, He Youcai and Dad Li were sitting opposite each other at the table. As soon as Dad Li heard He Ze’s voice, he immediately got up and came over, looking him up and down several times before feeling relieved. “If I’d known it would be so late, I would have told you to find an inn in town for the night. Good thing you’re alright.”

“Father, I’m grown up now. I can handle myself.” He Ze paused, then handed over the few packets of medicine he was holding. “These are the herbs prescribed by Dr. Xu for Father. One packet a day. I’ll go get more when these run out.”

Although the medicine couldn’t cure his father’s injury completely, it would still have some effect.

Dad Li placed the medicine on the table and then quickly spoke up again. “Xiao Ze, you must be hungry. I’ll go to the kitchen and make something for you. What would you like to eat?”

“Father, I…”

“Heh, cough cough—” Just as He Ze was about to reply, he was interrupted by He Youcai’s cough. Seeing all three looking at him, He Youcai cleared his throat and motioned for He Ze to sit down.

“Xiao Ze, sit down first.”

His tone was unusually serious.

Dad Li stopped in his tracks, about to speak but was silenced by He Youcai’s stern gaze.

He Ze glanced at him, recalling what He An had said earlier, and with a slight smile, he sat down opposite He Youcai, in the seat where Dad Li had been sitting.

“Xiao Ze, you…”

“Father, I know what you want to say,” He Ze interrupted, chuckling. “The money I earned today was made honestly, without stealing or robbing.”

Dad Li and He Youcai exchanged glances, full of doubt. He Ze sighed, poured himself a cup of tea, and drank it all in one go. Then he recounted everything that had happened today. He also took out the remaining silver from his pocket, which glinted under the dim light.

“Xiao Ze, is this really what happened?”

Dad Li looked at the money on the table, his eyes filled with disbelief, mirroring the reactions of He Youcai and He An.

“That’s exactly what happened,” He Ze said, a bit exasperated. He stood up, gently seating Dad Li on a stool, his gaze sweeping over Dad Li and He Youcai. “Father, Father, you don’t need to worry about money anymore. Father’s injury will be treated, and I’ll handle the medical expenses.”

“Xiao Ze…”

“Father, Father, I know a lot has happened recently, and you’ve been worried. But I’m the older brother, and Xiao An is still young. We can’t let him bear this burden alone, can we? From now on, I’ll take responsibility for this family.”

He Ze furrowed his brow. He didn’t want a repeat of what happened with He An. Having accepted his new role, he felt a duty to this family.

“Husband, did I hear wrong?” Dad Li clung to He Ze’s hand on his shoulder, his eyes welling up with tears. “Our Xiao Ze, Xiao Ze…”

“Father, Big Brother is so capable, why are you crying?”

He An’s eyes were also red. Seeing Dad Li like this, he quickly moved to his side, patting his back.

“Exactly, this is good news!” He Youcai looked at He Ze, his voice hoarse. “We’ve finally seen the day when Xiao Ze has grown up. This is a good thing! Xiao Ze, I’m sorry for doubting you today. I never thought that my Xiao Ze, my…”

He choked up, covering his eyes with his hand.

“Father, Father, that’s enough,” He Ze said, frowning at the crying trio. Suddenly, he pulled out a jar of wine from the bamboo basket and placed it on the table, turning to He Youcai. “Today is a good day, let’s celebrate. Father, I brought this especially for you. How about a taste?”

“Wine? Sure, fill it up, let’s all have some,” He Youcai wiped his eyes, tightened his lips, and placed several cups in front of everyone. “Everyone, let’s drink. Today is a happy day!”

He Ze finally breathed a sigh of relief. He put the bamboo basket on the ground, lifted the lid of the wine jar, and filled the cup in front of He Youcai, who downed it in one gulp.

Today, Dad Li uncharacteristically didn’t discourage them. Instead, he drank with He Youcai. He Ze, who rarely drank in his previous life, took a couple of sips and then stopped. He An, trying alcohol for the first time, was overwhelmed by its strength, left speechless after one sip, and had to drink two cups of tea to recover.

He Youcai and Dad Li grew more enthusiastic as they drank. They went to the kitchen to fetch some roasted sweet potatoes to enjoy with their wine.

Seeing them so engrossed, He Ze suddenly squatted down and rummaged through the bamboo basket. He placed something in He Youcai’s hand and whispered a few words to him before dragging He An out of the room, closing the door behind them.

“Big Brother, why did you pull me out?”

Outside, the moonlight was bright, illuminating the courtyard. He An and He Ze sat on the stone steps.

“You don’t drink, so why stay inside?” He Ze glanced at him. At this time, it felt redundant for them to stay if they weren’t drinking.

After a pause, He Ze handed a bag of candied chestnuts to He An.

“I… Hey, candied chestnuts?”

He An’s face lit up with joy.

“They’re cold now. Try a few first. Tomorrow, let Dad reheat them.”

“Okay.” He An responded, quickly peeling one and putting it in his mouth. He handed two to He Ze. “They’re delicious, Big Brother, try some!”

“Thanks.” He Ze looked at the two dark red chestnuts in his hand, a slight smile forming on his lips.

“Big Brother, you’re amazing! If I’d known, I would have insisted on going with you today. You earned what others make in a year in just one day!” He An peeled another chestnut, his eyes full of admiration for He Ze.

“So, you’re not worried about the two taels of silver we owe Li Dali anymore, right?”

Although He An hadn’t mentioned it, he had been distracted since they returned from Wang Gui’s place, clearly preoccupied with the debt.

“…” He An paused, then nodded heavily, “Yes, I’m not worried anymore. Big Brother is awesome!”

“Hehe—” He Ze chuckled, popping a peeled chestnut into his mouth. After eating it, he patted He An on the back of his head. “Good, don’t do anything foolish from now on!”

“Big Brother!”

“Alright, I’m heading back to my room,” He Ze stood up, glancing at the brightly lit room behind him. “Who knows how long Father and Dad will drink tonight. You should go to bed early too.”

“Okay, I will.”

Even though he agreed, his mouth was still full of chestnut meat, making his words come out muffled and garbled. He didn’t move an inch.

He Ze shook his head, descended the stone steps, and headed towards his room.

He An, still in the same spot, watched his brother’s retreating figure, then turned to look at the two shadows cast on the door. He chuckled foolishly, peeled another chestnut, and put it in his mouth.

So delicious!

…

Perhaps it was because of the trips to the town and back, but the next day He Ze woke up a bit late. The sun was already fully up by the time he left his room.

At this time, He Youcai and Dad Li still hadn’t woken up, and neither had He An. Perhaps the emotional upheaval of the previous day had been too much for them. He Ze didn’t disturb them. Instead, he found some broken ceramic pots in the yard and started working on something.

When Dad Li came out, he saw He Ze squatting on the ground, scrubbing the pots with some straw.

“Xiao Ze, what are you doing?”

“Dad, you’re awake? It’s nothing. I brought back some flower seeds yesterday, so I’m planting them,” He Ze replied, turning his head.

While strolling through the market the day before, he had passed a flower vendor and bought some seeds of rare flowers with short blooming periods. Luckily, these flowers were difficult to cultivate, but the seeds weren’t expensive.

Now that his wood-based abilities had returned, even if only at level one, growing some flowers wouldn’t be a problem. He hadn’t yet thought of a long-term business, so growing flowers for the time being was a good stopgap.

“Flower seeds? Why are you planting those?” Dad Li was puzzled, but he joined He Ze in scrubbing the pots.

“Dad, I have my reasons. You’ll see in a while.”

“You kid!”

Dad Li glanced at him with feigned annoyance, paused his scrubbing, wiped his hands on his clothes, and pulled out a hairpin from his waistband. It was the plum blossom hairpin He Ze had his eye on earlier.

“This, you bought it yesterday, right?”

“…Yes,” He Ze nodded, glancing at him suspiciously. “Didn’t I ask Father to give it to you last night? Don’t you like it?”

Dad Li looked at He Ze and then lowered his head. “This hairpin must have cost a lot, right? Your Father hasn’t bought me something this expensive in over ten years! Be good, Dad doesn’t need such an expensive thing. Return it to the town tomorrow!”

“Dad—”

“Listen, doesn’t Dad’s wooden hairpin look good too? I’m old, wearing such flashy things will make the villagers laugh! Return it tomorrow; we can’t afford to be swindled.”

He tried to push the silver hairpin into He Ze’s hand, but he quickly took two steps back to avoid it. “Stop, stop, Dad, my hands are dirty!”

“…”

“Alright, Dad, this hairpin looks good on you. You’re only in your thirties, you’re not old. Besides, this hairpin isn’t expensive, and it’s my token of appreciation. If you insist on returning it, I won’t do it.”

“Xiao Ze…”

“Dad! I said I’ll be responsible for the family’s finances from now on. Can you stop worrying about everything all the time?” He Ze frowned.

“You don’t understand, Xiao Ze. Our family still owes money. I thought we could return the hairpin and use that money to pay off some of the debt, as much as we can, to give us some peace of mind. And there’s also Brother Yu’s family. They saved your life; we must thank them properly,” Dad Li sighed. This was the first gift his son had given him, and if it weren’t for the circumstances, he wouldn’t have considered returning it.

“Dad, don’t we still have time to pay off the debt? Don’t rush to repay with the money I gave you yesterday. Our family needs money for daily expenses. We can’t live on air, can we? I’ll find a way to handle it.

As for the Lin family, we definitely need to visit, but let’s wait until my injury is fully healed before we formally call on them. I’ll buy more things from the town when that time comes.

And keep this hairpin. It’s not worth much money anyway, just think of it as a gift from Father.”

“Xiao Ze!”

“Alright, Dad, trust me!” He Ze waved his hand. “Go make breakfast. Father and Xiao An will wake up soon. Cook more meat; Xiao An has probably been craving it for a long time.”

“…”

“Go on. After breakfast, I need to visit the Lin family to return the basket to Lin Yu.”

He Ze squatted down again and continued cleaning the remaining ceramic pots. Dad Li sighed, looked at the shiny hairpin in his hand, and eventually turned towards the kitchen.

After the family finished the most sumptuous breakfast they had had in months, it was already mid-morning. He Ze left the house with an empty bamboo basket on his back.

When he arrived at the Lin family’s home, the courtyard gate was open. Lin Yu was sitting alone in the courtyard, meticulously cleaning his longbow, his expression serious. The sunlight cast a glow on his face, making his skin look like white jade. He Ze was momentarily dazed, then shook his head and walked in.

Author’s Note:
I painstakingly wrote a long chapter, but my writing software crashed, and I lost 3,000 words… I almost spat blood from frustration. Good morning, I’m going to sleep now. Yes, that’s right, going to sleep ╥﹏╥…