Chapter 392
"Little piglets, into the pot you go—time to get cooked!"
Gungun and Dandan burst out giggling. They were just past a year old, but they could already talk quite a bit: "We're not, though!"
The fire wasn't big, so the bottom of the cauldron didn't burn their bottoms. The three little ones sat inside, having a blast with their towels—wiping here, scrubbing there, then twisting the towels and pretending to wash clothes like grown-ups.
Now there was no need to worry about the water getting cold—whenever it cooled, Fang Zichen just added more fire.
Uncle Tang heard noises from the kitchen and, afraid the children were playing with fire, ran over to check. He saw Fang Zichen adding firewood to the stove. The cauldron was so deep he could only see the top of Guaizai's head, but he could hear Gungun and Dandan's laughter rising from inside. Uncle Tang stood there frozen, utterly stunned.
His master was actually boiling his children.
What on earth was he doing?
Had he lost his mind?
Zhao Ger came too, rushing in with a pale, ashen face.
"Husband, what are you doing?"
He moved to scoop up Guaizai, Gungun, and Dandan, but the three kids didn't want to get out!
"Daddy, Guaizai wants to soak a bit longer."
"Gungun wants to soak too."
"Dandan's butt still smells, so Dandan wants to soak a little more too."
Fang Zichen said, "I'm giving the kids a bath! Just let them soak a while longer—they're having fun right now! You don't need to worry about the water getting cold and the kids catching a chill; I'm right here keeping an eye on it."
Zhao Ger: "..."
Uncle Tang: "..."
This man could come up with the most bizarre ideas.
Zhao Ger looked at the children in the cauldron, then at Fang Zichen: "I thought..."
Fang Zichen knew exactly what the two of them were thinking: "You thought I was boiling my children? Do I look like some kind of lunatic?"
"A little bit," Zhao Ger muttered.
Fang Zichen's eyes went wide. "You blind fool—how do I look like one? How can you spout such nonsense? Get out of here, or I'll hit you."
Seeing him sulk and wave his fist like a paper tiger, Zhao Ger laughed and headed out.
Fang Zichen glared after them. These two are hopeless—their heads are full of dangerous ideas, and way too creative ones at that. A kind, righteous, selfless person like me—do I look like someone who'd boil children?
These three are my precious darlings!
What other man in this village is like me? The other men don’t even bathe their own kids!
"Ah! Father, Guaizai's butt is hot!" Guaizai suddenly yelped.
Fang Zichen snapped back to attention and quickly pulled the fire.
"Still hot?"
"Not anymore."
Fang Zichen leaned over to scrub Gungun and Dandan. Their armpits were caked with black grime that needed washing clean.
There were still embers in the stove, so the water cooled slowly. The little ones soaked for a good long while before they were finally satisfied and came out.
Gungun and Dandan had been fully weaned by the end of the year and now slept with Guaizai. Fang Zichen carried them back, dressed them, and after they fell asleep, he went back to the kitchen.
Bathing the kids this way still wasn't entirely safe—their bottoms could easily get scalded. As the fire burned, the bottom of the cauldron would heat up, gradually warming the water, but the temperature at the base was always higher than the water itself. However, if he placed a wooden board inside to create a layer of insulation, it would keep them from getting burned.
Fang Zichen busied himself in the kitchen for a while. When he returned to the room, Zhao Ger was still awake and asked what he'd been doing. Fang Zichen said he'd measured the cauldron and would find a carpenter tomorrow to make a small wooden board for the big iron pot.
"You're just spoiling the kids," Zhao Ger said helplessly. "It's cold outside. Just take them out when they're done washing—no need for all this trouble."
"The kids love playing in the water," Fang Zichen said. "It's not a big deal."
Zhao Ger frowned and said softly, "Go on, keep spoiling them. If they end up rotten later, don't come crying to me."
"How could they turn out bad? You've said that before. Is your eldest son now a street thug? Does he bully gers and women?" Fang Zichen said with some pride. "He's still upright and sound. I'm happy to spoil them—as long as they haven't done anything wrong, I'll fulfill their little wishes if I can. But if they make a mistake, just watch me discipline them."
When they did something wrong and he didn't correct them, that was when they would truly become spoiled. He knew exactly when to scold, when to punish, and when to indulge.
He himself had been raised the same way—whatever he wanted, his parents gave him. If it wasn't available in the country, they'd go abroad to buy it. Did he turn out bad?
What a joke!
He couldn't be more straight and proper.
His sons were still young, and he just wanted them to be happy and carefree.
Gungun loved playing in the water more than anything. The first few times, when the water went cold and Fang Zichen had to lift him out, the way Gungun clung on so reluctantly really tugged at Fang Zichen's heart. It was only a little water play—no big deal. All it took was one big iron cauldron to make it happen.
Zhao Ger naturally didn't object; he just mentioned it in passing. He knew best what kind of character Guaizai had now—diligent, obedient, caring toward his older and younger brothers, fond of special treatment, a bit vain, but all in all, he hadn't gone astray.
At nearly eight years old, most kids in the village that age were starting to act more mature, because poor children learned to take charge early. But Guaizai was well protected by Fang Zichen—carefree, happy all day long, coming up with all sorts of wild antics, still every bit a child without a single worry in the world.
---
Anhe Village
The fertilizer factory wasn't all that big—it was finished just a month after they broke ground.
Over there, Zhou Ger and Liu Xiaowen kept a close eye on everything. The workers worked hard and never dared to slack off, so not a single mistake had been made.
With the factory finished, Zhou Ger sent word to Zhao Ger, who replied that Zhou Ger should handle things as he saw fit, giving him full authority to manage it. Zhao Ger said he wouldn't be coming over himself.
So Zhou Ger and Liu Xiaowen went ahead and recruited workers on their own, giving priority to the families in the village who were struggling the most. The two of them were walking back to the village, discussing matters as they went, when they passed by the banyan tree at the village entrance. A group of women were gathered there, chatting away.
This was nothing unusual for the village—Zhou Ger was used to it. He hadn't paid them much mind and was about to keep walking when he caught them talking about Guaizai.
Liu Xiaowen and Zhou Ger stopped in their tracks. They listened for a while and soon pieced together what was being said.
Guaizai had been recruiting soldiers in Annan County, and he had enlisted a young woman.
Zhou Ger and Liu Xiaowen weren't particularly surprised after hearing this. They felt it was exactly the sort of thing he would do.
After all, something similar had happened before—back at the academy, the master had beaten him so badly that his hands had swollen up like pig's trotters. In any ordinary family, people would have surely sided with the master—what kind of boy was always sneaking into the kitchen? That was women's work. It just wasn't proper for a man to be doing that sort of thing.
If his parents had found out, they'd likely have gone to the academy to offer apologies. And Fang Zichen and Zhao Ger did go—except they went to give the master's son a good beating.
Back when that incident first happened, the vast majority had been unsupportive and disapproving. In Anhe County, the villagers all looked up to Fang Zichen, but they still felt that the prefect and his son had done wrong—it was simply too out of line. The training camp was full of men, and as for Tang Daniang—she was simply shameless.
But now, with Tang Daniang's story getting out, people seemed to finally understand her a little.
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