Brothers Talk at Night

Now, undercurrents surged through the city. Strength spoke!

He and his family needed someone to rise further within Hundred Herb Hall.

At such a time of chaos, he was already getting on in years, but his younger brother was still young and eager to learn martial arts. This was also the only clear path for their family to change its fate.

"Oh? Now that you mention it, I seem to remember saying something along those lines."

After a brief moment of thought, Steward Fei smiled indifferently.

"But I still do not wish to recommend anyone from your family for admission."

"Th-then... why...?"

"Because I believe that lowly families like yours—herb-gathering servants, porters, and laborers—are only fit to spend their entire lives doing such base work.

Do you understand?

Mud-legged peasants should stop indulging in wild fantasies!"

"J-just because of that?"

The sudden humiliation made Yang An's face flush crimson. Even Yang Ning, who had remained silent all this time, raised his head.

"Just because you are mud-legged peasants."

The steward repeated coldly.

"B-but... Steward Fei.

Back then, my father shared brotherly bonds with you.

You both rose from humble poverty.

When your family fell gravely ill, my father and several companions pooled their money to help you through that hardship.

At the time, you said that such kindness and loyalty would be engraved upon your very heart and soul..."

"All these years, I have kept to my place and rarely troubled you, Steward, all to preserve this bond..."

"But you...

You are now the mighty steward of Hundred Herb Hall!

I have worked diligently under you for so many years, yet when faced with the descendants of an old friend, you act in such a manner..."

"If you are dissatisfied with me or have anything to criticize, you may say it. I can change. I can do whatever you ask.

I only ask that you recommend my brother for the inner hall and grant him the qualifications to practice martial arts...

Even... even if he can only become an inner hall menial disciple..."

Yang An spoke hoarsely.

If he had been alone in the world, he naturally could have flicked his sleeves and walked away.

But now, he could not.

At home were a wife and child who cared deeply for him, and a younger brother who longed to practice martial arts. Within the city, undercurrents churned.

The inner hall martial artists of Hundred Herb Hall were also among the strongest in the Outer City. Even the motley rabble of all trades had to show them respect.

If his younger brother wanted to train in martial arts, to embark upon the path of a martial artist and protect their family, they had to rely on the power of Hundred Herb Hall.

And in order to earn the favor of this family connection, during more than ten years when he should have been at his most youthful and spirited, free and unrestrained, he had endured Steward Fei's constant instructions and came whenever summoned.

He had served this steward, who owed his family so much, for nearly ten years!

Over those years, he had suffered endless exploitation from this inner hall steward, simply because Yang An knew that he was an inner hall martial artist with an opportunity in his hands that could change their family's fate through martial cultivation.

Under countless dawns fraught with peril, through countless star-cloaked nights, he did not know how many herb-gathering assignments he had completed, all in hopes of winning the other man's favor.

Just one month ago, it had seemed that he had finally received that chance.

He had lived up to expectations and found mountain ginseng in the wilderness.

Overjoyed, he had raced all the way home to share his happiness with his family.

He had begun to look toward the future, imagining his younger brother returning as a martial artist and giving their family a better life.

But now...

The future that had been within reach had turned into a bubble, all because of this steward's unreasonable humiliation and discrimination...

The future of his dreams was about to shatter.

Beside him, Yang Ning clenched his fists tightly. His face remained expressionless, and no one knew what he was thinking.

"Oh? You are bringing up your father to pressure me?"

Steward Fei sneered. His tone remained indifferent as his cold, sharp gaze settled upon the Yang brothers.

"You dog servant truly have a sharp tongue and pointed teeth!

The money your father gave me back then was merely an offering of favor because he saw that I would one day become somebody!

All these years, by sheltering your family, I have already repaid him!

Do you know what a mess the city is in now?

Without Hundred Herb Hall's protection, your family would have been finished long ago!

And now you find it amusing to accuse me between the lines?

What nerve!

Besides, has anyone in your family ever practiced martial arts?

Do you even have the talent for it?

Even if you forced yourselves to cultivate, you would only waste the hall's resources!"

Was this the friend whom the elders of his family had known for years?

Was this the old friend and family associate who had received such great kindness from them?

Was this the benefactor whose recognition he had yearned for day and night?

Yang An, standing to the side, felt only absurdity and ridicule.

What kind of human were you? You were clearly a wolf of Mount Zhong with great white eyes, repaying kindness with betrayal!

How could he still fail to understand? This so-called benefactor before him had never regarded someone like him—a person who, just like Steward Fei in the past, wanted to claw his way up from the bottom—as a human being.

The words had gone this far. The meaning was already crystal clear.

Yang An, who had gone from rage to near madness, had just been about to step forward and reason with him properly.

But his younger brother yanked him back hard. Turning around, he saw that Yang Ning's eyes were frighteningly calm.

Yang Ning gave his brother a slight shake of the head, signaling him not to act rashly.

An ordinary herb gatherer could never defeat an inner hall steward.

A bag of silver and a tattered book were thrown at their feet.

"Today, I have finally had my fill of saying what I have wanted to say for years. As a steward, I will not bully lowly commoners like you.

For the sake of our 'past friendship,' take them back.

This silver and this fist manual are your compensation.

Want to learn martial arts? Go learn them, then.

As for becoming an inner hall disciple, there is no chance in hell!

Hahahaha!"

Seeing the two Yang brothers standing before him in numb silence, he could not help bursting into laughter. He tossed down the items and turned to leave.

Without saying a word, Yang Ning slowly stepped forward and picked up the discarded silver, then led his elder brother away from Hundred Herb Hall.

He supported his elder brother. The brother who had once always been sunny and optimistic was now hunched over, wandering the streets in a daze.

He looked as though his three souls and seven spirits had been drawn out, his five organs and six bowels hollowed clean.

Like a walking corpse, he drifted through this murky world.

Yang Ning watched from the side and committed it all to heart.

Countless words filled his heart, words he wished to say to his brother. But at this moment, his brother clearly could not take in any of them.

The two brothers supported one another like this, walking and walking.

They walked until the sky grew dim, until the sun set in the west.

Only when they saw the familiar building did Yang An's eyes gradually regain their light.

They were home.

After suffering such a devastating blow, this was the place he instinctively wanted to return to.

He rubbed his face hard until he forced out a smile. Only after exchanging a strained smile with his younger brother did he knock on the door.

His niece, Xiao Hua, opened the gate for them and said in her childish voice,

"Daddy and Uncle are back! Time to eat!"

Hearing the sound, Sister-in-law hurriedly brought out the food that had been kept warm in the pot. She had clearly been waiting for them for a long time.

Two bowls of mixed-grain rice, a plate of stir-fried greens, a plate of fried tofu, and several small dishes of homemade pickles.

As usual, the Yang Family sat down together. Yang An also forced himself to keep his spirits up, occasionally picking up food and shoveling rice into his mouth.

But beneath his overwhelming grief, he had no appetite at all. He could not even taste what was in his mouth.

Still, he forced himself to eat, pretending to be no different from usual.

Because he knew that every grain of rice before him had been earned by his family through rising early and working late into the night.

Sister-in-law was a thoughtful woman. Looking at the two brothers before her, she seemed to sense something. She stood and headed toward the kitchen stove.

Before long, she brought over an oil-paper-wrapped parcel and a porcelain flask, placing them before the Yang brothers.

Yang An slowly opened it. Inside was a steaming packet of pig head meat and a flask of wine.

"This..."

"This is what I bought outside while I was working today.

I thought Ning would soon begin learning martial arts, and you have not had a proper drink in far too long.

I thought the two of you could take this chance to celebrate properly and have a drink together.

Pig head meat is your favorite. I kept it wrapped on the way home, and it is still piping hot!"

"Hua'er and I ate early. It is getting late now. I need to prepare some things, and Hua'er needs to rest as well. You and Ning eat."

Sister-in-law quickly left with Xiao Hua, leaving only the two Yang brothers at the Yang Family dining table.

The atmosphere was silent and oppressive.

The brothers looked at the steaming food, wine, and meat before them. For a time, neither raised their chopsticks.

Looking at his wife's thoughtfulness, Yang An let out a long breath and reached for his wine cup.

Seeing his brother move, Yang Ning hurriedly picked up the wine flask and filled his brother's cup.

Yang An drained the brimming cup in one swallow.

Yang Ning followed beside him and drank his own wine dry.

Cup after cup of wine went down his brother's throat, and time after time, Yang Ning refilled it.

Before today, Yang Ning had never seen his brother speak as he had at Hundred Herb Hall.

This man before him had lost both parents when he was young and had a little brother at home. He had experienced all the warmth and coldness this world had to offer.

Due to malnutrition, he had grown into a short, stunted figure.

Yet this small man had relied on no one. He had married, had children, and raised his younger brother.

He was smooth and tactful, optimistic, and skilled at reading people.

But today, because of him, because of his future, he had risen up against the "mountain" he had always endured.

"Ning."

A low murmur broke Yang Ning from his thoughts.

"Brother."

"What happened today... do you... do you have any thoughts about it...?"

"No, Brother. It is just..."

"Just what?"

"Steward Fei's mouth looks like it has eaten in a latrine. The stench is unbearable.

I think the inner hall of Hundred Herb Hall reeks of the same rot. It is no loss not to join it!"

Those sharp words forced a trace of a smile onto Yang An's gloomy, sorrowful face.

"That is right! My Er Lang is right!

That Fei Yan—calling us country bumpkins, mud-legged peasants? Was he not one himself?

If our father had not lent him a hand in the village back then and helped him enter the city,

what would he have been?

After being a city dweller for a few years, he wants to cut ties with it all?

Er Lang, practice martial arts well. So what if you have lost Hundred Herb Hall's status?

My Er Lang will still master martial arts and show him!"

"I will, Brother.

I will make them look properly."

"Good... good..."

After three rounds of wine, once the brothers had eaten and drunk their fill, they each returned to their rooms to rest.

After an unknown amount of time, Yang Ning felt some pressure in his lower abdomen. He pushed open the door and stepped out, intending to relieve himself.

When he reached the main hall and was about to head for the latrine, he heard a faint sound of sobbing coming from the small room.

As if thinking of something, Yang Ning quietly approached the little room. Through the narrow crack in the door, he looked inside.

It was the room where his parents' memorial tablets were kept.

At this moment, his own older brother—the man who seemed unbreakable no matter when—

Held a wine cup in one hand and covered his face with the other, as though all strength had drained from his body. He had collapsed over the table before their parents' memorial tablets, weeping silently.

He muttered to himself, as though saying something.

Perhaps he mentioned the humiliation Steward Fei had inflicted on him at Hundred Herb Hall. Perhaps he spoke of the city's treacherous undercurrents and increasingly chaotic situation.

Yet every word and sentence seemed like a soundless howl.

Within this cramped space, the man who bore such heavy burdens looked like a frail, helpless child.

Yang Ning said nothing. He merely left in silence.

He would not disturb his brother as he licked his wounds. What he had to do was shoulder his brother's burden and take up the family's responsibilities.