Old Jack: Tang Hao? Too Fragile!

Gathering firewood.

That was the one thing Zhou Qing and Tang San had to do together!

As for why—

Both Zhou Qing and Tang San had received Old Jack's kindness.

By both sentiment and reason, they had to know gratitude.

In the past, Tang San had been fixated on training and had relied on his young age to accept Old Jack's help. Saying "thank you" twice was enough for him to accept it with a clear conscience.

But during the two years he had spent with Zhou Qing, he saw Zhou Qing deliver firewood to Old Jack every day, understood gratitude, and could not help but feel a trace of shame.

Afterward, he joined in as well.

Under Zhou Qing's "example," Tang San's practical acts of gratitude toward Old Jack steadily increased.

Fully developed in morality, intelligence, physical fitness, aesthetics, and labor...

That was naturally impossible.

But he had gained a deeper understanding of right and wrong.

Moreover, as he spent more time talking with Old Jack, Tang San spoke more and more. He no longer kept a grim face all the time and had become much brighter.

Some of the village elders no longer sternly demanded that their children stay away from Tang San.

Of course, Tang San still could not really play with them.

"That's very thoughtful of you, cough cough."

After receiving the firewood, Old Jack beamed. Yet because of his age, he coughed twice, though his expression became even more kindly.

Although there was not much firewood, only enough to cook two meals, Old Jack did not usually eat much. Over the past two years, the little bits had added up, and he had accumulated quite a lot.

"You're both sensible, good children." As he said this, a trace of heartache surfaced in Old Jack's eyes. Especially when he looked at Tang San, he let out a long sigh.

Though Zhou Qing was an orphan, he had not required much worry from Old Jack since he had become sensible. Furthermore, his parents had left him a house and farmland. With Old Jack's help, he had rented out the fields and received half of the grain harvest each season, along with ten Silver Soul Coins. His future was secure.

But Tang San—

Old Jack could only sigh over the fact that he had ended up with such a father.

Old Jack did not know exactly what Tang Hao had gone through before arriving at Holy Soul Village. But judging by the man's identity as a blacksmith, he could more or less guess that Tang Hao had offended a noble, or perhaps a Soul Master.

The helplessness of commoners!

It was precisely because of this that Old Jack had been willing to let Tang Hao and Tang San join the village—since Tang Hao had managed to escape alive, Old Jack assumed the nobles and Lord Soul Masters had not wished to "make too much of it." In other words, he would not bring too much trouble to the village.

In the minds of commoners, any commoner who could survive after offending a Soul Master or noble must have been spared by those important figures.

He just had not expected Tang Hao to remain so utterly dispirited!

No matter what, he had a son named Tang San, did he not?

In Old Jack's eyes, apart from knowing how to forge iron, Tang Hao was inferior to the other villagers in every way.

Holy Soul Village also had three single-parent households. Their children had either lost their fathers or mothers, and some had even lost every elder in the family. Yet the adults who remained alive grieved for a few days at least, or a month at most, before carrying on with life. After all, no matter how bitter or exhausting life became, they could not let the children suffer.

But what about Tang Hao?

He had already been in Holy Soul Village for four years!

Yet he was still immersed in the pain of the past...

Too fragile!

Therefore, Old Jack did not stop the other villagers from speaking ill of Tang Hao behind his back. Tang Hao was simply too outrageous, after all.

Besides, Old Jack hoped those words would reach Tang Hao's ears and spur him to rise after being shamed.

With his build, he could easily find manual labor in the city.

As for the village's farming tools and kitchenware that needed repairing...

They did not need repairs every day. Besides, Holy Soul Village was far better off than the other villages. They did not have just one set of kitchenware or farming tools, so they could simply send everything over together during the New Year.

Yet Tang Hao seemed not to hear the village gossip at all, treating it as wind past his ears. All he knew was drinking and sleeping, and he even had Tang San buy his liquor from the village households that brewed it.

What a freak!

Old Jack had also watched Tang San, that sensible child, grow up. He knew Tang San was filial, though usually rather quiet...

Old Jack did not need to think to know it was absolutely Tang Hao's fault!

Unfortunately, Tang San was Tang Hao's son after all. Old Jack could not say too much, nor could he interfere excessively.

But now—

Old Jack was not too worried about Tang San. He had originally thought Tang San would grow up to have the same temperament as his father, until—

Zhou Qing discovered Tang San, approached Tang San, embraced Tang San, and from then on changed Tang San's entire life! The smile on Tang San's face grew more frequent, and he became livelier too. In the future, he would surely become a kind, upright, normal person!

Tang San's future would definitely be far more promising than that emotionally fragile bastard Tang Hao!

However.

Old Jack did not voice either his mockery of Tang Hao or his encouragement for Tang San. After all, he understood that Tang San did not like hearing such things.

"Grandpa Jack, we'll be going now."

After leaving the firewood behind, Zhou Qing waved goodbye.

"Goodbye, Grandpa Jack!"

Tang San waved as well.

"Be careful on the way!" Old Jack reminded them.

"Mm!"

X2

The two nodded together, then headed toward Zhou Qing's house side by side.

"I really envy you."

Though he had visited Zhou Qing's home several times already, Tang San could not help but feel envious as he looked at the tidy little courtyard and clean house.

"Why not come live at my place?"

Zhou Qing revealed a mysterious smile. "My house is pretty big."

Tang San opened his mouth but could not say anything. He only felt that the way Zhou Qing looked at him seemed a little strange. Then he shook his head. "Better not."

Zhou Qing understood and did not force him. He led Tang San into his room—

Of course, not to do anything boring!

He walked to the window and pulled the rope on the right that connected to the ceiling overhead.

Creak!

A square wooden panel in the ceiling came down, and the folding ladder attached to it unfolded.

Zhou Qing's house had two floors!

Originally, the second floor had always been empty, and the stairs had not been this folding kind. There had simply been an opening in the ceiling, and one had to bring over a separate ladder.

During the two years after Zhou Qing became acquainted with Tang San, he had spent twenty Copper Soul Coins and asked Tang San to bring his folding-ladder design to Tang Hao, asking him to forge one for him.

When Tang San had first seen the design for the folding ladder, he had actually been quite surprised—a three-year-old child being able to think of such a thing was already incredibly impressive.

It was precisely Zhou Qing's "cleverness" that attracted Tang San.

At the time, Tang San had already planned to bring Zhou Qing into the Tang Sect in the future. After all, he wanted to strengthen the Tang Sect in this world, and he could not do it alone.

And Zhou Qing, who had "played" together with him since childhood, was someone whose background he knew well and whom he could completely trust.

Mm!

When it came to "playing," both Zhou Qing and Tang San silently added quotation marks around the word...