Eldest Brother Was in Trouble

"Ru'er, I'm back. Look what your uncle brought you!"

Meanwhile,

Under cover of night, He An returned home with a beaming smile, carrying the meat and vegetables he hadn't finished eating.

He had just reached the door.

A burst of crying suddenly came from the courtyard.

He An jolted, and the cloth bag in his hand hit the ground.

"Ru'er! Eldest Sister-in-law!"

He shoved the door open, his heart sinking straight to the bottom.

His Eldest Brother sat in the courtyard, his right hand still wrapped in white cloth.

Standing before him were Wang Rou, tears in her eyes, and He Ru, looking utterly lost.

"Ping, how did this happen? How could you... how could you lose a hand?!" Wang Rou stared at He Ping with bloodshot eyes, her voice trembling.

He Ru clung to He Ping, the child's cries ringing through the night.

"Dad, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing!"

He Ping rubbed He Ru's head and grinned. "Just a little accident. I lost the use of one hand, that's all. At least I managed to keep my life."

"Don't worry. It won't get in the way."

"But..." Wang Rou sobbed. "Ping, doesn't it hurt?"

"We're men. What's a little pain?"

Just then,

He An strode over.

"He An, you're back?" He Ping forced a smile.

He An swallowed, gazed at He Ping with a aching heart, and asked firmly, "Brother, is there any chance your hand can recover? If there's a way to heal it, I'll pay however many Silver Taels it takes."

He Ping shook his head.

"Flesh and blood can't heal this."

At that, the light faded from He An and Wang Rou's eyes, while He Ru burst into tears.

He Ping gave a bitter smile, then said, "There's no need to be so sad. I've lost the use of one hand, but now I'll have more time to spend with all of you, won't I?"

"After this, I can say I was injured in the line of duty. The Captain and the County Governor will surely make proper arrangements for me."

"Things might not be as good as they are now, but we'll still be able to get by."

"And with the compensation, we won't be short of Silver Taels for a while."

He looked at He An and laughed heartily. "He An has just started learning martial arts, so he'll need Silver Taels for better food. Now we'll be able to eat meat more often."

"Once you truly become a Martial Artist, I'll finally be able to rest easy."

He An felt a pang in his heart at He Ping's words.

At a time like this,

his Eldest Brother was still worrying about him.

Before their father died, he'd asked He Ping to take good care of him. But in a world like this, there weren't many people who would do as much as his Eldest Brother had.

"Brother!"

"Thank you."

His voice was a little hoarse.

"What are you thanking me for? We're family, and I'm your brother. It's only right for an older brother to do this." He Ping looked at him with deep affection.

"By the way, Brother, there's something else I need to tell you."

"What is it?"

"I've become a Martial Artist. To be precise, I've already broken through the Body Refining Realm, and I've cultivated the Yi Jin Jing to Minor Accomplishment!"

"??"

He Ping's eyes widened, and his breathing quickened.

"He An, you've become a Martial Artist?"

"Yeah!"

He Ping looked at Wang Rou. She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and nodded too, her voice gentle. "He An has done especially well. He became a Martial Artist just a couple of days ago."

"You don't have to worry about him. Our He An is a Martial Arts Genius."

"A Martial Arts Genius?"

He Ping's eyes widened, confusion showing in them.

He'd studied for seven or eight years and hadn't even passed the most basic Xiucai exam.

He'd been learning martial arts for less than half a month.

And now he was already a Martial Artist.

If he'd started training from childhood, would he have already reached Entering the Ranks by now?

As everyone stared in shock, He Ping slapped himself across the face.

"He An, I'm sorry. If you'd been the one to learn martial arts back then, your Martial Talent wouldn't have gone undiscovered until now."

"I... I held back your talent!!!"

He An gave a bitter smile.

Why does my brother's mind work so differently from everyone else's?

"Brother, don't say that. Without you and Eldest Sister-in-law, there's no telling whether I'd have survived in this wretched world, let alone been able to give up studying and take up martial arts."

He Ping burst out laughing.

He gazed at Wang Rou, tender as flowing water, and pulled her into his arms.

"Ha ha ha!"

"My He An is a genius too!"

He An's face turned red at once.

This scene...

Maybe I shouldn't stay here any longer?

"B-Brother, I'm going to practice my punches."

He An fled in a panic, taking He Ru along with him.

Wang Rou blushed and lightly tapped He Ping's chest.

"Ru'er and He An are still here. What are you doing? It's only been half a month since we last saw each other."

"I missed you!"

Wang Rou pouted, her eyes brimming with tears, and leaned against He Ping.

"Ping, you've worked so hard."

"So have you."

He Ping grinned, put his left arm around Wang Rou, and walked toward the house. Then the lights went out.

"Uncle, why wouldn't you let me go check on my dad?" He Ru pouted and fumed. "Tell me, don't you care about my dad?"

He An felt helpless.

Could I tell him that I wanted to give his parents some time alone together?

Of course not.

"You're still little. You'll understand when you're older."

"Okay!"

He Ru nodded, only half understanding.

"Ru'er, are you hungry? Do you want some meat?"

"Yes!"

He Ru licked his lips, practically drooling.

"Uncle, did you buy meat?"

"Not exactly. Your uncle only just started the job, and I haven't been paid yet."

"But I met a rich guy, so I'll be able to bring you meat often from now on."

He Ru didn't catch anything else, but he heard two words.

"Often!!"

Before long,

He An had laid out all the meat and vegetables.

He Ru's mouth was greasy with food, but he still remembered to ask, "Uncle, aren't you eating?"

"No."

"What about my dad and mom?"

"They... they're eating right now!!"

"Okay!"

While He Ru devoured the meat, He An didn't sit idle either. He began practicing his punches right there beside him.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

The wind of his fists howled past, stirring up gust after gust.

His movements flowed like water, without a single hitch.

After one set,

He An didn't have so much as a drop of sweat on him.

His gaze sharpened, and Golden Text slowly rose in his mind.

[Destiny: Success Comes Naturally.]

[Yi Jin Jing: (16/300) Minor Accomplishment.]

He An clenched his fist hard, then gathered all his strength.

Crack.

His bones gave a series of sharp pops.

He could feel the bones in his body changing, bit by bit.

They were growing as hard as iron and stone.

"Even though it'll still be a while before the Yi Jin Jing reaches Great Accomplishment, from what I can tell, I'm not far from the Bone Forging Realm."

"Once I Enter the Ranks, even if my Eldest Brother is injured, I'll be able to protect him and Eldest Sister-in-law..."

"And Ru'er too."