Distant Mountain Battle Song

Chapter 242 More people, more trouble

Generally speaking, the relationship between mothers and children is very good, while the relationship between fathers and children is debatable. Whether in Chinese historical records or foreign epics and legends, the relationship between some fathers and children even surpasses that of enemies.

This kind of relationship, where kinship is intertwined with hatred, is a treasure trove for many skilled storytellers. In many beautiful stories that have been passed down through generations, this bittersweet emotion often makes the stories more poignant and enduring.

Just imagine, the moment the son's sword pierced the father's chest, the moment the father's knife severed the son's head, that moment should be expressed with the most magnificent aria.

Yun Ce really enjoys watching this kind of show.

Many times, he would consciously or unconsciously immerse himself in the story. Sometimes he felt a great sense of relief when he stabbed Yun Linchuan in the chest with a sword, and other times he felt an immense sense of pleasure when Yun Linchuan chopped off his head with a saber.

If Yun Linchuan is killed, he will immediately commit suicide as a form of protest through destruction.

He also wanted to see if Yun Linchuan would show an expression of deep remorse after cutting off his head.

In short, this idea is quite perverse, but others don't know that it's a story that Yun Ce had imagined countless times before going to sleep.

He knew it was wrong, but the stories were just too captivating, making it impossible for him to stop reading.

The larger the family, the weaker the kinship becomes. This is mainly because there are more things to deal with within the family, so there is not enough time to cultivate feelings between relatives. After all, maintaining relationships requires a lot of time.

Small families are much better off. Of course, small families cannot be poor, otherwise, the sons will become natural laborers.

Cao Kun's situation is rather unique. His father was incredibly prolific, and with each additional child, Cao Kun's importance diminished. According to Cao Kun, he now has thirty-seven younger brothers and nineteen younger sisters.

The more than 7,000 people who died in battle were all his father's men, not his own, so he didn't feel any remorse for wasting them. He even felt that it was weakening the enemy's strength.

Yes, it's very similar to the thoughts of Yuan Shao's sons at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

"You should store more wheat while there is plenty now. As long as it is stored in a dry place, it will still be a good military ration even after ten years."

"Hmm, are you also planning to stockpile grain?" Cao Kun asked instead of answering.

"I'm currently penniless. The only thing I don't lack right now is food. As for other things, I'm severely lacking. I have to use my surplus food to exchange for other supplies."

If you don't want the wheat, I'll take it and trade it for other supplies.

Cao Kun considered for a moment and said, "Alright, I'm willing to eat all your extra wheat, and I'll even eat all the extra wheat north of the Great Wall."

Yun Ce chuckled and said, "Your father is currently leading your two younger brothers in a fierce attack on Hetian. What, are you trying to take advantage of their busy fighting and inability to purchase military rations to manipulate them on this matter?"

Cao Kun shook his head and said, "I have absolutely no such intention."

Yun Ce was unsure whether Cao Kun had this intention, but since Cao Kun left, there had been a buyer with a huge appetite who not only bought up all the wheat in Yun Family Manor, but also bought up the wheat stored in other caravans.

Wheat was being transported away cart after cart, and gold was being stored in the warehouse at Jin Suo Guan by E Ji. Huo Liao had to stop what he was doing and continue to carve out the mountain to make room for the wheat that would be transported later.

After the wheat matter was settled, the autumn moon arrived. As expected, the autumn rain fell during the Shehuo festival, and the temperature north of the Great Wall never rose again, remaining cool and pleasant.

Perhaps due to exhaustion from harvesting wheat, coupled with the fact that the autumn grains were not yet ripe, the people of Yun Family Manor generally became lazy.

Compared to Yun Ce, who lay on his recliner and told dirty stories to Chestnut Horse, Eagle, and Dogskin, E Ji was the busiest person in the family.

The main reason is that many people come to our house looking for wives, daughters, and even more large families looking for their mothers, sisters, and other female relatives, and they are all men.

"Let me tell you, when looking for a mare, you must check if her rump is full and her coat is bright. Most importantly, check her teeth. Don't be fooled by a beautiful old mare, it's bad for your offspring..."

"And another thing, why is the mating season for Thunder Smoke Beasts only three days? It makes me seriously doubt all that muscle you've built."

The chestnut horse lay down beside Yun Ce, using its head as a small table for him, on which sat a teapot. As Yun Ce took the teapot to pour tea, the chestnut horse took the opportunity to nod in agreement.

Yun Ce put the teapot back, and the chestnut horse stopped moving again. Yun Ce then grabbed the eagle's sharp beak and pulled it in front of him, saying, "Back then, you chased me so hard that I had nowhere to go, and now, how did you turn into this stupid bird?"

Your mistress is waiting for you to grow up quickly so she can carry her all over the world. If you continue to just eat and do nothing, you watch, your mistress will use you as a hot pot one day.

The eagle squawked as if protesting, breaking free of Yun Ce's grasp. The puppy also rushed over, but Yun Ce gave it a disdainful look and then kicked it away.

Eji returned from outside in a huff. Anji and the others who accompanied her quickly removed their cloaks and placed a chair next to Yun Ce. Eji took the teapot from the chestnut horse's head, drank from it mouth to mouth, and tried to put the teapot back, but the chestnut horse refused. It lay down next to Yun Ce and deliberately stretched out its four legs, not wanting to be a table anymore.

Yun Ce said with dissatisfaction, "This is a teapot, and it's filled with tea water. I'm going to use the tea water to season the teapot. Don't keep trying to trick me. If this happened back in my hometown, you would be beaten to death."

Eji placed the strangely shaped clay pot on Yun Ce's belly and said, "I'm not happy outside, and you won't let me be happy when I come back. You're the only one who treats water made from a few rotten leaves like a treasure."

Yun Ce said, "Shennong, who was on par with the Yellow Emperor, risked his life to find this precious treasure, and you actually say it's just rotten leaves? You really are a country bumpkin who doesn't value treasures."

Eji punched Yun Ce on the head and said, "Now you're really something. I heard you're a member of the royal family, and the first in line to inherit the title of Prince of Changsha. It's just that the old man above you never dies, so you, the Prince of Changsha, can only grow wheat in the wild."

"Or, you could go to Chang'an, kill that old man, and let me experience being the Princess of Changsha. After all, I'm just a country bumpkin; I've never seen such wealth."

It's pointless to say that High Priest Liu Changsheng is a dead old man, and it's even more pointless to say that he wants to kill the old man so that he can inherit the title of Prince of Changsha.

The source of advanced martial arts for Han people is the ancestral fire and the folk fire. It is said that if the ancestral fire and the folk fire are heated for a long time, even stones can turn into spirits. Liu Changsheng has been inseparable from the ancestral fire and the folk fire since he was five years old. Who in the world can kill him?

Yun Ce felt that he might not be able to outlast Liu Changsheng in his lifetime. There was a reason why Liu Changsheng chose that name; perhaps it would grant him immortality.

"Who's making you unhappy? I just don't believe it."

Yun Ce's words naturally made sense. In fact, the one who truly held the power of life and death over the Yun Clan Manor was E Ji. Although Yun Ce also held power, and his authority was even higher than E Ji's, it was as if he hadn't used it.

"It's all about those people who come to stay with their relatives. It's easy to arrange for brothers to stay with their sisters. We can just give them a status and let them stay in our family as laborers. Parents who come to find their daughters can also be settled. There's no problem with that."

The problem is that the husband came to see the wife, but the wife already has two children, and there's still a man living in the house. How am I supposed to make arrangements for that?

Yun Ce understood E Ji's dilemma. She wanted to do manual labor but didn't want to break the rules of Yun Clan Manor. Thus, she was torn between the demands of manual labor and the constraints of the rules.

"Does this happen a lot?"

Eji sighed and said, "There are so many, more than 1,700. When their husbands come looking for them, all the women do is cry. They don't even have a clear choice. And the men living in their homes refuse to leave. Isn't that just chaos?"

Yun Ce asked, puzzled, "Isn't there family rule? Just follow it."

“I can’t bear to waste so much labor. If I help one side, the other side will complain, and in the end, it will be a mess and difficult to manage.”

Yun Ce had never been able to handle this kind of thing properly when he was the village head. Now, with such a large-scale incident, he certainly didn't want to get involved. No matter how it was handled, the person responsible for dealing with it would always end up taking the blame.

These women have made great contributions to the Yun family, bearing so many children. Although they haven't taken care of the children much, Yun Ce once allowed them to visit the orphanage or children's home when they had nothing to do. If they are dealt with in an unreasonable and indiscriminate manner, it will inevitably leave hidden dangers.

Therefore, Yun Ce summoned Feng An.

"If two men fight, the winner gets a wife, and the loser doesn't."

Feng An gave the answer without even thinking.

"Okay, that's how it's going to be. When that woman named Dong Lan has a man come looking for her, you go and fight him. The winner takes Dong Lan with him, and the loser doesn't get a wife."

Feng An immediately spoke up to stop him, saying, "My lord, this method may not be appropriate. Let me think about it again."

Yun Ce sighed and said, "That Dong Lan has a fiancé, right?"

Feng An said with annoyance, "Yes, the engagement was arranged in Chang'an. When her father was down on his luck, her fiancé was actively working for their family. He wasn't a heartless man."

Yun Ce glanced at Feng An, who looked troubled, and then at E Ji, who was watching the show from the sidelines. He waved his hand impatiently and said, "Go on, you can handle this little thing yourselves. Don't bother me."

Feng An cupped his hands and said, "My lord, we can handle this matter. However, there are more than 13,000 men who came to Yun Clan Manor this time. There are bound to be spies mixed in among them, and we will have difficulty guarding against them."

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(End of this chapter)