After becoming a widow, I became the apple of a rough man's eye.

Looking at her like that, Mu Wenbin's anger completely died down, leaving only helplessness and an indescribable heartache.

He bent down, picked Song Weihe up in his arms, and without glancing at Li Ergou on the ground, strode back to the main room with Song Weihe in his arms.

Qin Lie looked at Mu Wenbin's back, then at Li Ergou who was half-dead on the ground, and kicked him.

"Get out of here."

Li Ergou didn't dare to say another word. He scrambled out, leaving a trail of blood on the ground.

Inside the main room.

Mu Wenbin placed Song Weihe on the bench.

Song Weihe was wrapped in his shirt, with a bath towel underneath, making her look like a rice dumpling.

Mu Wenbin was shirtless, revealing his strong muscles and several old scars. He didn't seem to feel cold and turned to get a towel.

"Dry yourself out." He tossed the towel to Song Weihe.

Song Weihe suddenly laughed, grabbed Mu Wenbin's neck, and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Oh dear! Let me see who's angry!"

Mu Wenbin was stunned for a moment. At that moment, the curtain of the east room was lifted.

Lin Qingqing poked her head out, holding a bottle of safflower oil in her hand.

"Um... Sister Weihe, are you alright? I heard something outside..."

Before she could finish speaking, she saw this scene.

Mu Wenbin was shirtless, while Song Weihe, wrapped in a shirt, clung to him.

Lin Qingqing's face flushed red instantly, and she quickly pulled her head back.

"I...I didn't see anything!"

Song Weihe released Mu Wenbin, her face flushed, but she was thick-skinned and shouted towards the east room, "Qingqing, bring me some safflower oil! This guy's hand is swollen from hitting someone!"

Mu Wenbin looked at the back of his hand; the knuckles were indeed scraped and bleeding. It was from when he hit the millstone earlier.

He didn't care about the minor injury, but seeing Song Weihe's anxious expression made him feel much better.

The next day, the news that Li Ergou had been beaten half to death spread like wildfire throughout Qingshan Village before dawn.

Wang Dazui didn't even sleep; he stayed up all night listening from the wall.

The next morning, they set up a chat under the big locust tree at the village entrance.

"Oh my, you didn't see that! The blood was flowing like a pig being slaughtered!" Wang Dazui spat as he spoke. "Those soldiers were really ruthless, they were beating them to death! We usually think the Qin family members are fierce enough, but compared to these soldiers, they're just lambs!"

"That's what Li Ergou deserved! Who told him to peep at young women bathing?" A woman nearby cracked sunflower seeds. "People like that are rare, you couldn't beat them to death."

"That's true, but he's a high-ranking official from the capital. What if someone gets killed..."

The villagers were buzzing with discussion, but the atmosphere at the Qin family's house was surprisingly... eerily harmonious.

Mu Wenbin's hands were wrapped up like pig's trotters by Song Weihe.

Those are real pig's trotters.

Although Song Weihe is a young lady from a wealthy family, her bandaging skills are really nothing to write home about.

The gauze was wrapped layer upon layer, and finally tied into a crooked bow.

Mu Wenbin looked at his right hand and tried to move his fingers. He couldn't.

"Don't move! I just applied medicine!" Song Weihe slapped his hand away. "You need to rest."

Gu Qiangying pushed up her glasses, suppressing a laugh, "Yes, rest. It's best not to even pick up chopsticks."

And so, this scene unfolded at the breakfast table.

Mu Wenbin sat upright at the table, expressionless.

Song Weihe sat next to him, holding a spoon in her hand, feeding him porridge spoonful by spoonful.

"Ah—open your mouth." Song Weihe coaxed her like a child.

Mu Wenbin's face was as black as the bottom of a pot.

Across from him, Li Dongye was laughing so hard he almost buried his face in his bowl.

"That's pretty good treatment," Li Dongye said smugly. "How about I injure my hand and try it out?"

"You dare." Mu Wenbin swallowed the mouthful of porridge and gave him a cold look.

Li Dongye shrank his neck.

After what happened last night, he's genuinely a little intimidated by his older brother.

Adding to that what Mu Wenbin told him when he left J City, and what Song Weihe mentioned about the punishment when she came, he had a pretty good idea of ​​what was going on. Although he couldn't sort out his inner conflict anytime soon, he felt better knowing that his family cared about him.

"Even eating can't shut you up." Qin Lie stuffed a steamed bun into Li Dongye's mouth.

Lin Qingqing ate with her head down, trying to minimize her presence. But she could sense that the atmosphere at the table had changed.

If Mu Wenbin and Qin Lie were previously two distinct groups, after last night's less-than-honorable "fighting side by side," although it was mainly Mu Wenbin who launched the attack while Qin Lie tried to break it up, that sense of estrangement seemed to have dissipated considerably.

Qin Lie didn't push Li Ergou and the Li family to the brink at first, mainly because of Lin Qingqing's household registration issue. Since it could be resolved with money, he was happy to buy peace and quiet, and also to make the mother and son feel that there was something to gain, so that the matter of Lin Qingqing's household registration and supporting documents could be handled more smoothly.

But Gu Qiangying had already helped with most of the household registration matters, so Qin Lie should have been happy that someone was taking care of Li Ergou.

But he insisted on breaking up the fight, which shows that he genuinely cares about Mu Wenbin's career and doesn't want to delay him because of these village matters. Everyone can understand his intentions.

Friendships between men can be strange sometimes.

Having fought together, even against the same thug, can quickly bring you closer.

"Is the road open?" Mu Wenbin asked.

"Not yet," Qin Lie said. "The village chief just sent a message saying it will take another two days. The rain has loosened the mountainside, so it needs to be reinforced."

Mu Wenbin frowned.

He has meetings at the military base for two days.

"Um... well..."

"Gurgle..."

Li Dongye cleared his throat and clucked several times, but he still couldn't pronounce the word "brother" properly.

But his tone was unusually serious, "If you have something urgent, take the mountain road out first. Leave the car here, and I'll drive it back for you when the road is clear again."

Mu Wenbin looked at Li Dongye.

Is this kid trying to shoo someone away, or is he showing concern?

"I'm not in a hurry, why are you?" Mu Wenbin said calmly, "The matter isn't finished yet."

Hearing this tone, Li Dongye paused, his chopsticks still in his hand. "You're ungrateful, aren't you?"

Mu Wenbin glanced at him: "What's your attitude?"

Li Dongye felt like he'd seen a ghost. He just wanted to say a few words, and somehow it turned into a discussion about attitude!

Just as he was about to explode, Qin Lie tapped the table and said unhappily, "Hurry up and eat."

Li Dongye turned his face away, and Mu Wenbin sneered as the doctor turned to look at Song Weihe.

Song Weihe was wiping his mouth with a handkerchief. "Why are you looking at me? Do you want to eat eggs after you finish drinking?"

"I'm not eating anymore." Mu Wenbin grabbed her hand. "Don't bother me, you should eat your meal."

"I'm already full." Song Weihe pushed her bowl away. "By the way, Qingqing, what are we doing today? We can't just stay cooped up inside, can we?"

Lin Qingqing thought for a moment, "The weather is sunny today, and my older brother said he's going to pick mushrooms in the back mountain. Mushrooms are freshest after the rain."

"Mushroom picking?" Song Weihe's eyes lit up. "I want to go! I want to go! Qingqing, let's go too..."

"No," Mu Wenbin and Qin Lie said at the same time.

"Why not?" Song Weihe protested.

"The path on the back mountain is slippery, and there are wild animals," Qin Lie explained. "It's not safe."

"What are you afraid of with you guys around?" Song Weihe pointed at the room full of burly men. "Five grown men, can't you even protect two women? Besides, doesn't Mu Wenbin have a gun?"

The atmosphere in the room froze for a moment when the gun was mentioned.

"I didn't bring it," Mu Wenbin lied without blushing. "I handed it in."

"Liar." Song Weihe snorted. "Anyway, I'm going. If you don't let me go, I'll go by myself."

Mu Wenbin had a headache.

Give them a little sunshine and they'll be all smiles. They were just frightened last night, but they've already forgotten the pain today.

In the end, they compromised.

Qin Lie, carrying a hunting rifle, led the way.

Jiang He followed behind, carrying a large bamboo basket, while Li Dongye stayed home to watch over the house, supporting the injured Xiao Yong. Gu Qiangying, though frail, also carried a medicine box and followed, ostensibly to gather herbs, but really just to watch the excitement.

Mu Wenbin and Song Weihe walked in the middle.

Lin Qingqing was sandwiched between Qin Lie and Jiang He, and was also being protected very well.

The forest air after the rain was so fresh it was intoxicating.

Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on the fallen leaves scattered on the ground. The air was filled with the fresh scent of earth and pine resin.

"Wow! What's that?" Song Weihe pointed to a cluster of bright red mushrooms under the tree roots.

"Those are poisonous mushrooms." Gu Qiangying pushed up his glasses. "Eating them will make you see little people dancing."

"Huh?" Song Weihe pulled her hand back in fright. "It's so pretty, yet it's poisonous."

"The more beautiful something is, the more poisonous it is." Gu Qiangying glanced at her meaningfully, then at Mu Wenbin.

Song Weihe glared at him. "Are you talking about me?"

"I wouldn't dare," Gu Qiangying replied with a gentle smile.

Lin Qingqing was quite skilled at it.

With a small stick in her hand, she could find a cluster of plump matsutake or termite mushrooms by poking around in the grass.

"Sister Weihe, you can eat this." Lin Qingqing handed a mushroom that looked like a small umbrella to Song Weihe. "This is called chicken mushroom. It makes a really delicious soup."

Song Weihe took it and placed it in the basket as if it were a precious treasure.

Mu Wenbin followed half a step behind Song Weihe. The path was difficult to walk on, covered with slippery moss and tree roots.

"careful."

Whenever Song Weihe slipped, Mu Wenbin's good left hand would steadily support her waist.

"Mu Wenbin, look at that!" Song Weihe pointed to a squirrel on the treetop.

Mu Wenbin followed her finger and looked over, a very faint smile unconsciously curving his lips.

He hadn't felt this relaxed in a long time.

In the military, he was a strict officer;

At home, he was the eldest son who was expected to uphold the family's honor.

Only here, in this deep mountain forest where no one knows him, can he seem to unload his burdens, even if only for a moment.