Everyone, having worked hard all day, did not stand on ceremony or hesitate. They eagerly began to eat. The meat, stir-fried in rendered lard, was incredibly fragrant. It came from wild boars that roamed freely in the mountains—naturally leaner, more flavorful, and substantially chewier than the meat from farm-raised pigs.
"In Tongzhou, we couldn't afford such a luxury. Pork costs over ten wen per jin, while wild boar meat is double the price."
"I've seen wild boar meat sold many times in the city, but I never could bring myself to buy it. I never thought I'd get to taste it while fleeing as a refugee."
There weren't enough stools, but everyone enjoyed standing while eating.
They piled their bowls high with vegetables, and the meat on the table was plentiful.
It had been many days since Ji Taoyu had eaten freshly stir-fried meat. Back home, he really liked lean meat stir-fried with scallions or celery—he could eat two bowls of rice with that.
Since they didn't grow vegetables here, they used water celery and wild onions to stir-fry the lean meat separately. The taste was even more fragrant than domestic pork.
He ate a big bowl of rice and filled up on more vegetables, so he didn't go for a second bowl.
Midway through the meal, Ji Yangzong saw that the time was right and stood up from the main table: "Fellow villagers, let me say a few words."
Everyone stopped eating and turned their attention to Ji Yangzong.
"Fellow villagers, we have escaped death. Though we have left our homeland and come to Yuchang, it is fortunate that we are all familiar faces reunited here—this is a great blessing."
"We should thank Village Head Ji for leading our group away from the war, giving us this chance to start anew."
A villager said: "Brother Huo Shu, the village head and his family's great kindness to us is unforgettable. Our descendants for generations should be grateful to the Village Head's family."
Hearing this, the villagers all echoed in agreement.
Ji Yangzong, deeply moved, raised his hand to signal that there was no need for such gratitude: "As fellow villagers, helping each other is only right. No more need be said; from now on, we should advance together."
"Today, since everyone is here and it's such a joyous occasion, I'll also take this opportunity to share some happy news with everyone."
Ji Wanglan was happily gnawing on a large pork bone when she heard Ji Yangzong's words and had a feeling he was going to talk about Wu Lianhe's matter.
Before she could gather her thoughts, she heard Ji Yangzong say: " Brother Zhao family only had one son, who was conscripted by the court to go north. It is lamentable that he died in battle, leaving the Zhao family without an heir."
"Unexpectedly, heaven took pity on the Zhao family. In the past, the third daughter of the Wu family in the village was engaged to Changsui, but unfortunately, they had not yet married when Changsui went north. The third daughter of the Wu family is a devoted person. Despite hardships, she followed Changsui to the northern regions and left behind a bloodline for the Zhao family. After all these years of hardship and wandering, fortunately, Huo Shu found them and brought them back."
"Now that they have been brought back, they have again suffered the hardships of war. Thankfully, Changsui's spirit in heaven protected them, allowing the family to reunite."
Ji Yangzong said: "Now the mother and son have returned to their ancestors. They will be living here from now on, and I ask everyone to take care of them."
Wu Lianhe led Zhao Pan out, bowed to the gathered villagers, and, witnessed by everyone, kowtowed to Yuan Huiru.
The Wu family members were present and produced the hairpin that was the token of engagement between Wu Lianhe and Zhao Changsui.
Everyone was stunned. News of Wu Lianhe's return that afternoon had already reached many ears, but before it could be openly discussed, this happened.
Zhao Pan walked up to Huo Shu, kowtowed to him too, and addressed him: "Uncle."
Huo Shu helped the young man up and patted his shoulder.
He turned to the crowd and said, word by word: "Zhao Pan is the son of my comrade-in-arms. He is now my nephew, part of my family. After such hardships to reunite, from now on, I do not want to hear a single word spoken against this mother and son."
Ji Wanglan's heart sank upon hearing this, and the large bone in her hand nearly dropped.
She had no idea things were like this. She guessed they might be family, but not this kind of family.
The farmers from Mingxun Village, and even those from neighboring villages, had more or less heard about the Wu family's troubles. It had caused quite a stir back then, but over ten years had passed, and even Zhao Pan had grown into a young man. Everyone had somewhat forgotten about the Wu family's affairs.
Now hearing about it again, though Ji Yangzong's words contained many loopholes regarding the improprieties between Zhao Changsui and Wu Lianhe, with Huo Shu's statement, no one dared to say a word against it.
Nowadays, everyone depended on Huo Shu's favor to get by. He said Zhao Pan was his nephew, part of his family, which made it clear that anyone who spoke against the mother and son was going against Huo Shu.
Everyone had escaped, settled down, and even now could sit here eating and drinking well all thanks to Huo Shu. Who would dare talk nonsense?
"I thought the young man looked familiar, like I'd seen him somewhere. Now that you mention it, he really is the spitting image of Changsui when he was young."
"Absolutely. Lianhe has had a hard time all these years."
"Now that they're reunited, it's a happy occasion. Brother Huo, let me offer you a toast with tea instead of wine..."
Ji Yangzong said: "All these years, the third daughter of the Wu family has struggled to raise the child alone, yet she managed to send Zhao Pan to study, learn to read and write, and even become a xiucai. If not for the war, he would have achieved great things."
He deliberately mentioned this, which surprised everyone even more, and they praised them further: "The Wu family really knows how to raise children."
And so the matter was publicly announced. Originally, the Wu family and even Wu Lianhe herself were apprehensive, worried that everyone was just being polite during the feast and that later there would be gossip or people looking down on the Wu family in secret.
Unexpectedly, that really didn't happen. People treated the Wu family as before, were warm towards Wu Lianhe, and respectful towards Zhao Pan. No one looked at them differently.
It was unclear whether it was because of Huo Shu's influence or because Zhao Pan had achieved scholarly honor.
Perhaps it was partly fear of Huo Shu that kept people from openly acting out, and partly because Zhao Pan, despite his young age, had already become a xiucai—truly talented, and potentially a future talent.
No one was a fool. For the present and the future, there was no need to offend anyone over idle gossip.
Amid the busy reconstruction, the matter quickly passed.
Thank you for the update 💝💝💝
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