Mother's Relief, Wife's Devotion

Lin Feng saw his wife, Zhou Chunlan, smiling at him.

That smile swept away her sickly pallor, making her seem like a delicate, radiant rose.

There seemed to be light in his wife's eyes, as though it illuminated her whole being, making her bright and lovely.

At that moment, Lin Feng felt that his wife had become even more beautiful.

Sure enough, a woman's beauty depended three parts on her state of mind.

Back when Zhou Chunlan had followed the original owner, not only had she gone hungry, she had also endured his temper and the village tyrant's bullying. Whenever she went out, the villagers pointed at her, mocked her, and sneered at her.

The worst part was that she could only endure it all. For the sake of the children, she had to rack her brains to keep their days going.

With the resentment in her heart impossible to dispel, her state of mind naturally could not have been good.

This illness was partly caused by that as well.

Today, Lin Feng had acted completely out of character. He had dared to stand up against the bullies and vented her pent-up anger for her.

Once the resentment in Zhou Chunlan's chest had dispersed, her entire state of mind immediately improved.

Sensing the change in his wife's attitude toward him, Lin Feng hurriedly struck while the iron was hot. He walked over and handed the five taels of silver he had just gotten from the bullies to Zhou Chunlan.

"Wife, keep the silver."

Hearing that, Zhou Chunlan's cheeks flushed red. She softly said, "You should give it to Mother instead."

The Lin Family had no one specifically in charge of the money. Mainly because they were too poor; there was hardly any money to manage.

Whatever little money they got had to be spent on grain.

Lin Feng grabbed Zhou Chunlan's soft, boneless little hand and pressed the silver into her palm.

"I've already given Mother some. These five taels are for you. When you have money in hand, your heart won't panic. I'm giving it to you, so take it."

Lin Feng's attitude was somewhat forceful.

Her little hand was wrapped in her husband's strong, powerful palm. Zhou Chunlan felt a long-lost sense of security, and her little heart began pounding wildly. Her face grew even rosier.

Mother Lin smiled and spoke up then. "Chunlan, since Xiao Feng gave it to you, take it. From now on, you'll manage the money in our family."

Mother Lin had always felt deeply indebted to this daughter-in-law.

Not only was her daughter-in-law capable, she had also borne her four grandsons and one well-behaved granddaughter.

But the original owner had been useless. Not only had he failed to let his wife enjoy a good life, he had made her suffer plenty of grievance.

Her daughter-in-law possessed beauty like a flower and a face like the moon, and she was still young. She could have easily divorced him and remarried.

Mother Lin also knew that her daughter-in-law had stayed for the children.

In private, Mother Lin had even suggested to Zhou Chunlan that she find a good man to marry, while they themselves would raise the children.

Zhou Chunlan had refused outright at the time.

Mother Lin had always kept those words in her heart.

"Mother, it's already hard enough for the two of us to raise five children, and your health is poor. How could you possibly manage alone?

"Xiao Feng may be useless, but we mother and daughter will work harder and raise the children together."

From then on, Mother Lin had treated Zhou Chunlan as her own daughter.

That was why Mother Lin suggested today that Zhou Chunlan manage the money.

Since her mother-in-law had spoken, Zhou Chunlan no longer insisted. She accepted the silver and said, "I'll listen to Mother in all things."

When Zhou Chunlan accepted the silver, Lin Feng lightly scratched her palm. It made her heart itch, and she fled back into the room as though escaping.

"Wife, hurry and rest. Sleep first. I'll brew your medicine in a while, and when you wake up, you can drink it."

Lin Feng's heart was brimming with joy. He and Zhou Chunlan had already been an old married couple, yet he had somehow found the feeling of being in love.

After his wife left, Mother Lin came over and seized Lin Feng's hand. Raising her head to the sky, she choked back sobs and said, "Xiao Feng's father, did you see? Our Xiao Feng has grown up. He can protect us, his mother and siblings, now. If your spirit is watching from heaven, go in peace. Be reborn soon."

Lin Feng embraced his mother and patted her back.

"Mother, don't cry. Our family will only get better and better. I'll carry this family on my shoulders too."

"Xiao Feng, these past two years, I've always dreamed that your father came to visit us. He must have been unable to let go of his children and grandchildren."

Lin Feng guessed that it was because the original owner had been useless and unable to support the family. His mother missed the days when his father had still been alive. Back then, no one had dared bully the Lin Family, so she kept dreaming of his father.

"Mother, I've mastered the Beast Hunting Fist Father taught me. If Father knew, he would definitely be proud of me."

"Mm. My son has become somebody."

When Mother Lin looked up and saw Lin Hu's Parents, she hurriedly wiped away her tears.

"I've made his second uncle and second aunt laugh at me. I'll go make dinner now."

Lin Hu's mother smiled. "What are you saying, Sister-in-law? We're all family. Who would laugh at you?

"Huzi and Xiao Feng are like blood brothers.

"Xiao Feng's martial arts are truly impressive. When you have time, teach our Huzi some too."

Low-tier Martial Arts were not rare. One could buy secret manuals in the city, but without a master to teach them, very few people could make anything of them.

Lin Feng patted Lin Hu's shoulder. "I treat Huzi as my own younger brother. It's only right that I teach him some martial arts."

The five little children surrounded Lin Feng, chattering excitedly. "Daddy, we want to learn martial arts too! When we grow up, we want to be as amazing as Daddy!"

"Heh-ha!" Sibao, Lin Yuze, swung his short little legs and imitated the kick Lin Feng had used earlier, drawing a burst of laughter from everyone.

Lin Feng rubbed the children's little heads. "Daddy will teach you all. We'll start right now."

Lin Feng's second aunt went into the kitchen to help Mother Li cook.

His second uncle helped tidy up the somewhat messy courtyard.

In the courtyard, Lin Feng taught Lin Hu and the five children the Beast Hunting Fist.

Lin Feng felt that although the Beast Hunting Fist passed down by his father was Low-tier Martial Arts, it was still remarkably formidable.

It was a genuine martial technique for life-and-death combat. One had to observe the habits of wild beasts and fight them in order to cultivate it to great mastery.

Having seen Lin Feng display such might earlier, Lin Hu and the children were deeply inspired and practiced with exceptional enthusiasm.

Lin Feng thought that merely practicing the movements would not give them much attacking power, so he had Lin Hu accompany him to the sandpit beside the village to fill a sack with sand.

When the two went out, they happened to run into Widow Zhao, who was stepping out to dump some water.

Widow Zhao greeted Lin Feng with a face full of smiles. "Xiao Feng, you were really amazing. You drove off those four scourges today and vented the anger of us honest villagers of Xiaohe Village."

Lin Feng had heard that Widow Zhao had become a secret prostitute, but he did not look down on her because of it.

These were hard times, and she had been forced into it by life.

Still, Lin Feng did not particularly like Widow Zhao.

Because Lin Feng had noticed that Widow Zhao bore hostility toward his wife.

The two households had never had any conflict, so this hostility had come from nowhere.

It was most likely jealousy.

People consumed by such jealousy were the most dangerous. They could not stand seeing those around them live better than they did, and who knew when they might stab someone in the back.

Lin Feng did not reply, merely nodding once.

Lin Feng and Lin Hu brought back a large sack of sand and hung a large sandbag and a small sandbag in the courtyard.

The large one was for himself and Lin Hu, while the small one was for the children.

"Huzi, come practice martial arts whenever you're free."

"Mm-hm, mm-hm."

Thud! Thud! Thud! Lin Hu punched the sandbag again and again, feeling strength surge through his body. Even the places where the village tyrant had injured him no longer hurt.

He swore that he would practice diligently and become as formidable as his big brother Lin Feng.

The little ones gathered around the small sandbag, throwing punches at it one after another.

But they grew tired after practicing for a while. Only little Sibao remained there, tirelessly punching the sandbag again and again.

Lin Feng had little Sibao return to the room to rest. The child was too young and still growing, so he could not train too hard.

Sanbao, the little glutton, noticed the fish basket Lin Feng had brought back.

He glanced inside it, and his face turned deathly pale with fright. He stumbled several steps backward.

Little Sanbao turned and ran into the house, shouting as he ran, "Waaah, Grandma, Mother, come look!

"Daddy caught a basket full of River Critters that can't be eaten! It's scaring me to death!"