Chapter 113

The more experienced elders in the village could already tell from the recent weather that a heavy rain was coming. Every day, they worked until the moon hung high in the sky, returning home under its pale light.

Li Dazhuang had been working all day, and his back ached so badly he could barely stand it. Unlike the others who grit their teeth and bore it, he made no effort to hide his pain, groaning and whining loudly all the way home.

No matter how many people stared at him, he just kept on wailing without a care.

Granny Li, seeing her youngest son—whom she’d always doted on—in such a state, couldn’t help but feel a pang of heartache. But there wasn’t much she could do, so she simply reached out and took what he was carrying.

By this time, little Xiao An’an, who had stayed home, was already fast asleep. Xiao Hua, who had been watching over her little brother, had also dozed off beside him.

Sister-in-law Li walked over and gently carried her daughter back into the house.

No one in the family had the energy to heat water that night. They washed up quickly with cold water and collapsed into bed.

As for the plan Li Dazhuang had made earlier—to give a certain little rascal a stern talking-to once he got home—he couldn’t even remember it anymore. His head hadn’t even touched the pillow before his eyes shut tight.

The autumn harvest was in full swing. At the crack of dawn, everyone headed to the rice fields. Even the team leader brought along his five-year-old son to help with the harvest.

Finally, just before the deadline, all the rice was bagged and stored in the village granary. The villagers could finally take a well-earned rest.

That night, in the second half of the night, the autumn rain began to fall. The soft patter of rain woke Li Dazhuang. He tugged the blanket closer, shifted positions, and drifted right back to sleep.

The next morning, even the usually energetic Sister-in-law Li didn’t get up. The whole Li family, in perfect unspoken agreement, slept straight through to noon.

During the harvest days, they hadn’t had a single good night’s sleep. Even in their dreams, their hands still clenched sickles.

Xiao An’an, on the other hand, woke up early. Seeing that Grandpa and Grandma were still fast asleep, he lay quietly on his back, playing with his fingers and picking at the embroidery of Xiao Hua on his clothes that Granny had stitched.

The family only began to stir just before lunch. Granny Li specifically told her eldest daughter-in-law to gather the grains they had saved from last year so they could have a proper meal.

The rain was pouring down in sheets, like strings of broken pearls. Li Dazhuang sat staring blankly into the misty curtain of rain outside.

Granny Li had things to do, so she stuffed her grandson into his arms without ceremony.

Xiao An’an, who had been smiling at everything just moments ago, froze the moment he was plopped into his father’s lap. His smile stiffened, lips pursed, and after a moment of inner struggle, he reluctantly decided to put up with it.

Grandma looked busy, after all.

“What are you staring at?”

Li Dazhuang reached out and pinched his little nose. An An scrunched up his face in disgust and swatted away his father’s hand. His fierce little expression made Li Dazhuang chuckle.

“Go ask around—what other kid your age is as fierce as you?”

Elder Brother Li and Grandpa Li were the type who couldn’t sit still. Before lunch, they’d already tidied up the house, which hadn’t been cleaned in ages. They simply couldn’t stand the mess.

After the rain started, some parts of the house began to leak. Elder Brother Li threw on a raincoat, grabbed a ladder, and started fixing the roof.

Sister-in-law Li hurried out to remind him to be careful.

Xiao Hua had woken up and brought a small stool over to sit beside Li Dazhuang. Meanwhile, Li Shi stood at the doorway, gazing longingly at his sister like a jilted lover.

“Uncle, little brother is so well-behaved.”

Li Dazhuang glanced down at An An and immediately retorted, “Him? Well-behaved?”

“Mhm, I think he’s very good.”

Xiao Hua looked up at him with clear, innocent eyes and a soft smile curling at her lips.

Li Dazhuang wanted to scoff at her poor judgment, but before he could say anything, he saw his son snuggling up to her affectionately.

Xiao Hua tended to be shy and quiet around people she didn’t know well. She didn’t say anything else, just gave her little uncle a glance.

With anyone else, it wouldn’t be worth arguing. But Li Dazhuang was the kind of person who absolutely would argue with a child—he had to get the last word.

“Xiao Hua, don’t be fooled by how sweet this little rascal looks. He’s got a nasty temper.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than An An raised his hand and gave his father a solid smack.

The sharp ‘smack’ echoed through the air. Not only Xiao Hua, but even Li Dazhuang was stunned.

The kid didn’t have much strength, so even if An An had hit him with all his might, it didn’t hurt. But the blow to his pride? That stung.

“Don’t think I’ll let it slide just because you’re my son. I’m not above spanking kids!”

An An seemed to realize he’d done something wrong. He buried his head in his father’s chest and clung to him tightly.

When Li Dazhuang looked down, all he could see was a fuzzy little head.

After a while, when An An still hadn’t heard his father say anything, he cautiously tried to lift his head to peek.

Just as he poked his head up, he met Li Dazhuang’s icy stare and immediately ducked back down in fright.

At first, Li Dazhuang was genuinely annoyed—his own mother had never hit him like that. But watching An An’s little antics, his anger melted away.

“I’m not mad at you.”

“Huh?”

The little rascal, who had been playing dead just moments ago, immediately perked up, lifting his head and even planting a kiss on his father’s cheek for the first time.

Feeling the damp little lips against his rough face, Li Dazhuang turned and gave his son a big smooch in return, grinning as he scolded, “You little rascal.”

An An, still feeling guilty, didn’t get mad at being called names. He just laughed sheepishly.

Everyone in the village was hoping the autumn rain would end soon. Once the public grain was handed in, it would finally be time to distribute food to the households.

Right now, no one had proper cooking pots. Meals were cooked in makeshift jars, just enough to get by.

As long as they could fill their bellies, no one dared be picky—being full was already a luxury.

An An and Xiao Hua’s meals occasionally included some finer grains—not as coarse and scratchy as what the adults ate.

During the few days of rest, Li Dazhuang didn’t want to do anything except play with An An.

He treated spending time with his son as the most important task of the day.

Even at night, he didn’t let his mother take An An to sleep. He tucked the boy into bed with him.

At this age, kids naturally grew closer to whoever spent more time playing with them.

It didn’t take long for Li Dazhuang to turn An An into a clingy little cub who would cry the moment he left his side.

Even Granny Li, seeing how attached An An was to his father, would pinch his little hands and joke that all her years of raising him had gone to waste.

Every time, Xiao An’an would wave his hands and deny it, saying “nooo,” but his actions made it clear—he was now firmly Team Dad.

After the team leader and others delivered the public grain, the village officially began distributing food.

Everyone came out, even the elderly leaning on canes, eager to witness the event.

Li Dazhuang, who now couldn’t bear to be apart from his son, of course brought An An along.

An An wore a new outfit made from Xiao Hua’s old clothes. Originally, Sister-in-law Li had planned to give it to her niece on her mother’s side. It was one of the few decent pieces they had.

But seeing that her brother-in-law had genuinely changed for the better, and that Xiao Hua adored her little brother, and given that Sister-in-law Li was soft-hearted despite her sharp tongue, she decided to give the outfit to An An instead.

The bright fabric made An An look especially lively.

He was already a handsome little thing, with fair skin and delicate features. His arms were as pale and smooth as freshly dug lotus roots—utterly adorable.

Li Dazhuang’s favorite pastime was showing off his son in crowded places, inviting everyone to admire his precious boy.

Thanks to him, there were few people in the village who didn’t know An An.

And a child as beautiful as An An was rare even in neighboring villages.

From afar, the team leader spotted Li Dazhuang carrying his son and couldn’t help but be curious. Just how cute was this kid, to make the infamous village rascal turn over a new leaf?

He only managed a few glances before the excited villagers dragged him off to start the food distribution. Understanding their eagerness, he didn’t waste time and got straight to work.

Once the food was divided, Elder Brother Li and Grandpa Li carried it home.

The team leader personally locked up the communal kitchen and announced that from today on, every household would cook for themselves. Cheers erupted from the villagers.

Most people were genuinely happy. No matter how good the communal meals were, they could never compare to the comfort of eating at home.

Of all the happy people, Sister-in-law Li was probably the happiest.

Others were just glad to be done with communal meals and to have control over their own kitchens.

But Sister-in-law Li had another reason—her brother-in-law had brought back meat several times while out walking with An An.

Because the meat was too conspicuous and they didn’t want the neighbors to find out, Granny Li had simply cleaned it and hidden it away.

When Sister-in-law Li saw the stash, she was shocked by how much there was.

Now that everyone would be cooking at home, she planned to trade for some meat coupons and mix the meat in. Just thinking about it made her heart race—she couldn’t wait for the day to come.

Of course, not everyone was happy. Take the old Wang family, for example.

They’d never been good at managing their household. They’d hoped the communal meals would continue indefinitely, letting them scrape by on a few work points.

But now the team leader had announced the end of communal cooking? What were they supposed to eat?

No matter how much they grumbled, the decision was final—every family would now fend for themselves.

Back home, Li Dazhuang saw Xiao An’an curiously looking around and gently pinched his little hand, lowering his voice to ask:

“When should we head up the mountain again, just the two of us?”

Everyone else thought their lucky finds were just that—luck. Either that or they believed Li Dazhuang had learned real skills from that hunter and was just keeping a low profile.

No one suspected that every time he found something, he had An An with him.

After all, to them, Li Dazhuang was just a doting father who liked to carry his son around.

Li Dazhuang knew they had the wrong idea but didn’t bother correcting them. He let them believe whatever they wanted.

After all, the animals really had come to him—he wasn’t lying. It was just that no one wanted to believe the truth.

When An An saw his father suddenly lean in close, his face looming large, he was so startled he flinched back, eyes wide, and raised his hand to slap him.

Li Dazhuang had only been caught off guard before because he never thought to guard against his own son.

He used to think: how could such a tiny kid possibly land a hit?

But after getting smacked more times than he could count, he’d learned his lesson—this little guy could hit!

And the older he got, the more it hurt.

So this time, just as An An raised his hand, Li Dazhuang quickly caught it in his palm and kissed the back of it.

“Be good, An An. We’ll go play in the mountains again soon.”

Everyone else thought all the meat was thanks to Li Dazhuang’s efforts.

But he knew better. If it were just him relying on the scraps of knowledge he’d picked up from that hunter, he’d be lucky to find a few stray feathers.

He’d even tried going up the mountain alone, thinking maybe he’d just been lucky—but he never brought back a thing.

It was only when he brought An An along that the animals practically threw themselves at him.

That’s when he realized: it was all thanks to his son.

An An, seeing his father like this, nervously picked at his fingers, glancing between his dad and his own hand.

Finally, as Granny Li walked by, he made a snap decision and reached out to her, asking to be held—an escape from his father’s clutches.

Granny Li, seeing her precious grandson looking at her so sweetly, couldn’t possibly say no. She scooped him up and gently patted his back.

Li Dazhuang watched as his son, now safely in Grandma’s arms, shot him a smug look.

He shrugged helplessly. No point arguing with a kid—he’d have plenty more chances. The little rascal was still young.

An An, content in Granny’s arms, snuggled up to her neck and nuzzled, making her beam with joy.

Earlier, Sister-in-law Li had tried to scare Xiao Hua out of going into the mountains by making up stories.

She told her there were monsters in the woods that would snatch up naughty children and drag them into caves.

Or that snakes clung to every tree, and one bite would hurt for half a month.

But neither Xiao Hua nor Shitou ever took her words seriously.

After all, they’d snuck up the mountain more times than they could count since they were little, and never once had they encountered anything like what their mother warned them about. Both brothers had long seen through her scare tactics.

Her words went in one ear and out the other, leaving Sister-in-law Li fuming but helpless to do anything about it.

At the time, Sister-in-law Li was holding An An in her arms while recounting the tale to her own two children.

Her kids weren’t fooled in the slightest, but little An An, nestled in her arms, took every word to heart.

So when he later overheard his father saying something similar, An An immediately began imagining terrifying monsters with fangs and claws trying to eat him.

Ever since An An started sleeping with his father, Granny Li had never seen the little one cling to her so much. Eventually, even cooking duties got passed on to her eldest daughter-in-law.

Watching her mother-in-law’s face crinkle with joy as she cuddled An An, Sister-in-law Li could only shake her head helplessly and head into the kitchen.

Thankfully, there were only two brothers in the family, and they didn’t have too many conflicts.

Now that Li Dazhuang had started to turn over a new leaf, tensions at home had eased even more.

Sister-in-law Li was a girl from the neighboring village, personally chosen by Granny Li. She had a genuinely good temperament and wasn’t the type to hold grudges.

A little fiery, maybe, but that just meant she could keep Elder Brother Li in check.

Even after Li Dazhuang had gone too far in the past, once he began to mend his ways, Sister-in-law Li, considering herself the elder, chose not to hold it against him. All she cared about was keeping the family together and living in peace.

Granny Li took her precious grandson for a stroll around the village, and when the other old ladies showered her with envious praise, she smiled so hard her face nearly froze.

By the time they returned home, Li Dazhuang was still there. An An, who had been all smiles, immediately went stone-faced when he saw his father.

In An An’s little mind now, his father wasn’t “Daddy” anymore—he was a villain trying to trick him and abandon him on the mountain.

Granny Li had thought An An was just being clingy or maybe, after all this time, had finally remembered his grandmother. But seeing the little one sulking like this, she immediately realized something must’ve happened between father and son.

“What’s wrong? Come tell Grandma—did your daddy bully you again?”

That sounded exactly like something Li Dazhuang would do. And holding a grudge? That was definitely in this little guy’s wheelhouse.

An An couldn’t speak fluently yet, but he understood most of what adults said. Hearing his grandma’s question, he nodded decisively and gave a pitiful little “Mm.”

Li Dazhuang hadn’t even had a chance to speak before he heard his mother’s words.

The moment his son responded, he had a sinking feeling in his gut and shot to his feet.

Sure enough, Granny Li immediately started looking around the courtyard for a broom. She handed An An off to Elder Brother Li and began chasing her youngest son around the yard to give him a beating.

As a child, Li Dazhuang had been spanked plenty for being naughty. But ever since he’d grown up, nearly every beating he got was somehow related to this little rascal.

“Ma! Let’s talk this out! Just listen to me—this time it’s really a misunderstanding!”

“What misunderstanding? You bully An An every single day!”

Elder Brother Li looked down at the little one who’d been shoved into his arms and met his gaze.

An An tilted his head in confusion, as if wondering why his uncle was staring at him with such a strange expression.

“Waaah.”

Hearing An An’s soft baby voice, Elder Brother Li suddenly understood why both his mother and even his own wife doted on this little guy so much.

He really was adorable.

Failing to trick An An during the day wasn’t a big deal. But come nighttime, when they were getting ready for bed, An An was so sleepy his head kept nodding—yet his father insisted on keeping him upright on the bed.

An An wriggled like a little caterpillar, trying to burrow under the covers to sleep.

But every time he was about to make it, his dad would pull him back out and sit him upright again.

Eventually, An An was so tired he had tears in his eyes, glaring at his father with a mix of exhaustion and indignation.

“Don’t even think about tattling to Grandma. I bet once you sleep, you’ll forget all about this.”

“Mmph.”

Hearing that, An An looked even more aggrieved—because what his dad said kind of made sense.

“Alright, how about this—tomorrow we go up the mountain together, just once. I promise we’ll come right back after.”

Normally, Li Dazhuang wouldn’t take such a risk.

But now that food was being distributed based on work points, and their mountain was known for its abundance of wild game, he couldn’t trust that everyone was as selfless as they claimed to be.

He wasn’t bragging, but if he picked a random time to go up the mountain, he’d probably run into a few familiar faces.

Even knowing the risks, he still wanted to go.

An An was so drowsy he was barely conscious. At this point, even if his dad said he was going to spank him, he’d probably just stick his head out and ask him to get it over with quickly.

Inside the system space, the system was starting to panic watching how things were playing out.

But An An was still too young—there were things he just wouldn’t understand, no matter how many times the system repeated them in his head.

Even if it said something hundreds of times, by morning, the best it could hope for was to leave a faint impression in the little one’s mind.

The reason Li Dazhuang was so desperate to go up the mountain was because a former friend of his in the village had recently broken his leg.

The man’s family didn’t care much for him, especially since he’d been a good-for-nothing for years. Even after he started to change, they still left him in the old house to fend for himself.

Li Dazhuang had gone to check on him out of old friendship and found him lying in bed, clearly having missed several meals—he was practically skin and bones.

In the past, Li Dazhuang would’ve just snuck some food from home, cooked it, and brought it to his friend.

That’s what his friend had asked for too—he said he hadn’t eaten in days and just wanted something warm.

At first, Li Dazhuang hadn’t thought much of it. He was more concerned about his son needing porridge soon.

There were so many mouths to feed at home, and if he didn’t work hard, that tiny little guy might not survive.

He didn’t want to deal with the hassle of raising a child, so he decided to straighten up and work hard, letting his mother and sister-in-law help take care of An An.

Compared to the endless troubles of raising a toddler, going to work—where he only had to use his hands, not his brain—was practically a vacation.

But then he realized that as long as he didn’t slack off and showed up to work, there was peace at home.

His sister-in-law stopped making snide remarks, and his mother wasn’t stuck in the middle.

No matter how much of a slacker he was, he still cared about the parents who’d raised him.

Once he saw that his efforts made life easier for them, he committed to the change.

And over time, he found that it wasn’t as hard as he’d imagined.

All he had to do was work during the day, then come home and cuddle his son. His sister-in-law even started treating him better, sometimes giving him extra food under the pretense of “building up his strength.”

Life was actually more comfortable than when he’d been loafing around!

Li Dazhuang was a practical man. He lived however made him happiest.

In the past, slacking off made him happy. Now, working hard did.

Eventually, it became a habit. He even started enjoying this new routine—playing with his son was way more fun than hanging out with his old drinking buddies.

They gradually lost touch, but that didn’t mean he could just ignore it when he heard his old friend was starving.

He couldn’t take food from home—his parents saw those friends as bad influences. So he could only hope this little rascal would help him find some wild game again.

Then he could bring it to his friend. The important thing was to keep him alive.

Eventually, An An was so exhausted from being tormented that he curled up into a pitiful little ball.

Li Dazhuang knew full well that if his mother found out he was bullying An An like this, he’d get another beating—but he didn’t have any better options.

The system, watching from its space, was frantic when it realized Li Dazhuang was planning to save that man just like in the original plot.

In desperation, it used the points it had painstakingly saved over the years to redeem two Dream Cards.

It had always been one of the stingiest systems—while others used their points to upgrade their living conditions, it hoarded every last one.

But now, to make sure the mission with this little cub succeeded, it had no choice but to spend a tiny bit of its hard-earned stash.

That night, Li Dazhuang had a dream.

In it, when he went up the mountain the next day, things didn’t go as smoothly as before. Instead of stumbling across rabbits or pheasants, he ran into a crazed wild boar.

It looked injured, just like the animals they’d found before—but a wild boar was a whole different beast.

Even if it was exhausted, a full-grown boar wasn’t something they could just pick off.

In the dream, the boar charged straight at them. Li Dazhuang instinctively shielded his son, but both of them were gored clean through.

Blood splattered across his face, and Li Dazhuang jolted awake in terror.

He sat up with a start, drenched in cold sweat, the vivid images from the dream replaying in his mind.

The final scene was An An reaching out a trembling little hand before it dropped lifelessly mid-air.

That chubby, fair little hand was now smeared with blood, and his usually expressive little face was so covered in it that his features were unrecognizable.

The more Li Dazhuang thought about it, the more uneasy he became. His heart pounded wildly, and he struggled to breathe—until he heard An An mumble something in his sleep.

That faint sound snapped him out of his spiraling thoughts.

He took a deep breath and quickly pulled the sleeping An An into his arms, hugging him tightly. Only when he felt the warmth and weight of the little body did his heart begin to settle.

An An, who had been sleeping soundly, let out a soft whimper, clearly hoping his father would stop disturbing his rest.

But instead of backing off, Li Dazhuang only hugged him tighter.

Eventually, the already-sleepy An An was woken up completely. He opened his big eyes, tears welling up from the lack of sleep.

“An An’s a good boy. The best boy.”

Li Dazhuang’s voice trembled slightly in the dark, and that alone was enough to melt An An’s resistance.

Though he acted like he disliked his father, deep down he cared.

Mimicking the way his grandma usually comforted him, An An reached out and gently patted his father’s back.

Before he could say anything else or offer more comfort, he closed his eyes and fell back asleep.

For a child as young as An An to be woken in the middle of the night and not cry, even offering comfort instead—it was a rare and precious thing.

Li Dazhuang’s wildly beating heart finally began to calm. He took a deep breath and started replaying the scenes from his dream with a clear mind.

Because he’d woken up mid-dream, the images were still sharp in his memory.

He could tell without a doubt that it was the mountain near their village.

And if An An agreed to go with him tomorrow, that would be the exact spot they’d head to—because they’d once found a pheasant there.

If they were lucky, they might find another. It would be perfect for helping his friend recover.

No one had mentioned wild animals in the area before, but at some point, the village chief had issued a strict order forbidding anyone from going near that mountain.

When Li Dazhuang was young, his mother had warned him repeatedly, just like she did now with Xiao Hua and Shitou—never go up that mountain.

But she never explained why.

Back then, he thought it was just because she was afraid he’d fall out of a tree and break something.

Some things are fine as long as you don’t dwell on them. But once you start thinking, everything starts to feel off.

Now, Li Dazhuang couldn’t sleep at all. That bloodied little hand from his dream had left too deep a shadow. Every time he closed his eyes, that scene replayed in his mind.

He might tease his son all the time, but his love for him was no less than his mother’s.

Back when An An was just a tiny thing, barely bigger than a kitten, even his mother had said he probably wouldn’t survive. “However long he lives is a blessing,” she’d said.

But Li Dazhuang had gone out of his way to bring back a sheep and managed to keep it, giving An An the milk he needed to grow strong.

He’d worked so hard to raise An An to this point—now the little guy could even call him “Daddy.” Every time he heard that, his heart melted.

If he were to die at the hands of a wild boar just to help an old friend, he’d never forgive himself.

Even in the afterlife, his wife would probably scold him to death.

Li Dazhuang admitted he had planned to take An An up the mountain to get some meat for his friend—but only under the condition that it wouldn’t put them in danger.

If he had to compare, even ten sworn brothers couldn’t hold a candle to his son in Li Dazhuang’s heart.

As for that so-called friend—well, they were friends, after all, so Li Dazhuang couldn’t bring himself to say anything too harsh.

Back then, they used to loaf around together all day, aimless and idle. If he said something unpleasant now, it would be like mocking his past self.

But ever since that dream, Li Dazhuang couldn’t stand the sight of that brother, no matter how he looked at him.

After all, in the dream, if it hadn’t been for that brother saying he wanted to eat some meat to build up his strength, that he didn’t want to die, Li Dazhuang wouldn’t have taken little An An up the mountain—and he wouldn’t have lost his life there.

The more he thought about it, the more he blamed that useless brother!

Of all the things to crave, why meat? Given the state they were in, didn’t he have even a shred of self-awareness?

If it really came down to it, even pulling up weeds from the roadside would be something to eat.

What made it worse was that Li Dazhuang remembered what his mother had told him about that brother—how he’d broken his leg trying to flirt with a girl from the village, only to get it smashed by her older brother.

If that ever got out, it’d be a real disgrace. The guy’s mother just claimed he broke it himself and then washed her hands of him.

Li Dazhuang turned around and scooped his son into his arms. The little one, still shaken from being woken up earlier, reached out and gently tried to push his father away.

His tiny, wrinkled face—so much like his grandfather’s—was scrunched in a frown, even in sleep, as if he were silently protesting his father’s affection.

But Li Dazhuang wasn’t about to take that lying down. He held An An tightly and planted a firm kiss on his forehead.

One kiss wasn’t enough. He leaned in and gave him several more.

In his sleep, little An An let out a few soft whimpers, and that sound made Li Dazhuang’s lips curl into a smile he couldn’t hold back.

Thank goodness. Thank goodness his son was still alive.