Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The sky outside was still dark, but his internal clock woke Shen Yuan up, and he was soon wide awake.

As he got up, he found the blanket had been pulled back over him. Turning his head to see the four children sleeping closely together, Shen Yuan felt a warm glow in his heart.

He tucked in the corners of the blanket and went out to wash up.

Tooth powder was too expensive for ordinary folks to afford; they used willow twigs instead. Those with a bit more money would dip them in fine salt.

The Shen family, of course, had no money—they were dirt poor.

Shen Yuan first lit the stove to warm up the food, then, following his memory, found some cut willow twigs from the cookhouse and chewed on the ends to clean his teeth.

It was a rather novel experience. After rinsing his mouth, there was a faint herbal fragrance. After splashing some water on his face, Shen Yuan saw that the food wasn’t ready yet, so he chopped some firewood.

The cookhouse firewood was running low; chopping some would make it easier for the kids to heat their meal at noon.

Dashu Village was relatively close to the county docks, but walking there took about two and a half hours.

The Xie family’s merchant ship unloaded its cargo around 7 a.m., so leaving now would get him there just in time.

As usual, Shen Yuan drank two bowls of millet porridge, put out the fire in the stove, and made sure there were no embers left in the unburned wood before leaving.

The official road was just a compacted dirt path. Though it was still dark, many people were already on it, struggling to make a living.

No one carried lanterns or lamps; everyone walked in the dark.

Occasional conversations drifted around him, and Shen Yuan listened quietly.

Almost everyone was worrying about not having enough food, complaining about landowners increasing their share or the government raising taxes.

Shen Yuan turned his head and looked out. In the dim morning light, fields stretched as far as the eye could see.

But with so much land, it still couldn’t fill the bellies of those who worked it.

It didn’t belong to the hardworking peasants.

Even surrounded by such vast open space, Shen Yuan felt a sense of oppression and confinement.

Shen Yuan shook his head. Dwelling on this now was useless; it would only make him feel bad, and a bad mood could ruin the whole day.

He quickly pushed the thoughts aside. When he looked up, he saw a man across the way glancing at him furtively. When their eyes met, the man flinched and looked away hurriedly.

Though it was still dim outside, Shen Yuan recognized him.

He broke into a smile as he strode forward and slung an arm around the man’s shoulders. “Brother Sanhu! Why didn’t you call out to me so we could walk together?”

The man called Brother Sanhu stiffened, his dark face full of awkwardness and unease, his eyes still darting away.

He walked almost stiff-legged and said woodenly, “Oh, Shen Da. It’s too dark; I didn’t see you.”

Shen Yuan, kind-hearted, didn’t press the honest, simple man. “Alright then. Now that you’ve seen me, shall we walk together?”

Wang Sanhu gave a dry laugh and nodded in agreement.

Shen Yuan withdrew his arm and chatted with a hint of amusement. “Brother Sanhu, did I get taller? I didn’t even have to go on tiptoe when I just put my arm around you. I feel like I’ve gotten taller.”

Wang Sanhu actually looked Shen Yuan up and down. “You are taller than before.” He gestured. “You used to come up to my neck. Seeing you every day, I didn’t even notice.”

Shen Yuan laughed. “That shows Brother Sanhu is focused on his work and doesn’t get distracted. Someone like you will be good at anything you do in the future.”

Wang Sanhu, who had never been praised before, tensed up. If it weren’t for the darkness and his already dark complexion, his face would surely have turned as red as a monkey’s bottom.

He stole a glance at Shen Yuan. “I think you’re different from before.”

“How so?”

Wang Sanhu pondered for a moment before saying, “You talk more, you’re friendlier, and you smile more.”

The old Shen Yuan barely spoke to anyone, was withdrawn, kept his distance from people, and rarely smiled.

Shen Yuan knew exactly what the original owner was like, which was why he didn’t hide his own nature at all.

Their personalities were completely opposite; he couldn’t hide it even if he tried.

Rather than pretending to be the original owner and later being discovered as odd, it was better to just be himself from the start.

And he had a ready-made excuse.

“Brother Sanhu, you’re really observant and attentive.” Shen Yuan’s smile faded, and he looked serious. “This time, I almost died. Walking through the gates of hell once makes you see and understand many things. You never know when the King of Hell will really take you away. Being sad and miserable is one day; being happy and joyful is also one day. While you’re alive, it’s better to be cheerful.”

Wang Sanhu understood the latter part.

That made sense.

But he didn’t quite get the first part.

“What’s the ‘gates of hell’? Who is the ‘King of Hell’? When did you travel so far?” Wang Sanhu asked plainly.

This caught Shen Yuan off guard.

He was about to explain when he realized the original owner’s memories had no related recollections.

Thinking carefully, not only were these absent, but there were also no scenes of sacrifices or tomb-sweeping.

When people died, they were simply buried, and that was it.

Without any knowledge of these cultural concepts, explaining would be lengthy and potentially “shocking.”

Shen Yuan didn’t want to scare anyone so early in the morning, so he just brushed it off. “It’s nothing. I wasn’t fully awake and was talking nonsense.”

Wang Sanhu didn’t doubt him. Looking at Shen Yuan’s pale, bloodless face, he said gloomily, “Shen Da, Brother Sanhu let you down.”

Shen Yuan turned, puzzled. “What?”

“Yesterday, your Dongzi came to my house to borrow grain, and we didn’t lend any…” Wang Sanhu’s voice grew softer and softer, filled with regret. “If you want to blame someone, blame Brother Sanhu for being useless—not only can’t I keep my own family from going hungry, but I couldn’t even help a brother.”

Finally, Shen Yuan understood why Brother Sanhu, who was warm-hearted and always helped the original owner in his memories, had been avoiding him and acting strangely today.

It was because of not lending grain yesterday.

When you got down to it, you couldn’t blame him for that.

Wang Sanhu had already lent grain to the original owner several times before. The Wang family wasn’t wealthy either; over a dozen people were crammed into three rooms. Children under six didn’t even have clothes to wear and had to run around bare-bottomed all day. The adults didn’t have enough clothes either; once they washed their clothes, they had nothing else to change into.

When clothes wore out, they could only try to patch them up and keep wearing them; otherwise, they’d have to go naked.

Everyone’s life was hard and difficult. Lending was a kindness; not lending was their right.

You can't let your own family go hungry just to help others, right?

Shen Yuan knew that Wang Sanhu genuinely felt guilty for not lending grain. This man was sincere at heart, a truly honest and simple, good person. He patted Wang Sanhu on the back. "Your family has lent me grain many times before, and I still haven't paid it back. Your uncle and aunt never blamed me and even came to my aid again and again. That's already more than enough, Brother Sanhu. Don't even talk about blame—I should thank you for finding me such a good job. Carrying cargo for other families doesn't pay as much as carrying it for the Xie family merchant ship."

Shen Yuan spoke with genuine emotion, and Wang Sanhu scratched his head, looking quite embarrassed. "Well, that's only because everyone in my family is already busy and can't do it, so I called you."

Honest and straightforward people don't know how to say pretty words; they call a spade a spade.

Shen Yuan wasn't the least bit upset hearing this. In fact, he felt happy inside.

He himself was also easygoing and wouldn't overthink or get hung up on others' words. Someone like Wang Sanhu, pure and straightforward without any hidden motives, was very easy to get along with.

Wang Sanhu blinked, thought for a moment, then nodded honestly, saying with great embarrassment, "I'll listen to you, Brother Shen Yuan."

Thinking about how Shen Yuan didn't blame him at all and even praised and comforted him, Wang Sanhu felt as sweet as if he had eaten honey, warm and content. He also added earnestly, "From now on, whatever you need, Brother Sanhu will definitely help with all his might."

Shen Yuan understood Wang Sanhu's temperament—a bit reserved, perhaps, but when he spoke, his word was his bond; he didn't deal in empty talk.

Once he made a promise, he would definitely keep it.

Shen Yuan also said sincerely, "We'll support each other, and we're sure to make our lives better and better!"

In times like these, relying solely on one person or one family isn't enough to live well.

You need friends, neighbors, and relatives.

Dashu Village was a mixed-surname village, formed by people who had gathered here due to war and turmoil to put down roots and start anew. This also meant that the villagers had few relatives or friends to rely on; neighbors were the only ones who could help each other.

However, Shen Yuan didn't dwell on it too much for now. He simply enjoyed liveliness and making friends—his personality naturally led him to this, and it happened to work out well.

Shen Yuan and Wang Sanhu chatted all the way to the county dock. Mostly, Shen Yuan did the talking, while Wang Sanhu responded in real time, making for a harmonious and pleasant journey.

Meanwhile, back in Dashu Village.

Shen Dong was the second one in the family to wake up. After getting out of bed, he also tucked the quilt over his younger siblings and smoothed it out. Opening the door quietly, he saw someone standing outside the fence.

"Auntie Ping?"

It was Wang Sanhu's mother.

Shen Dong trotted forward and opened the fence gate. "What brings you here, Auntie Ping? Is there something you need from my brother?"

Auntie Ping's wrinkled face wore a stern expression, making her seem unapproachable and intimidating.

Shen Dong was actually a bit afraid of Auntie Ping, especially after yesterday when she had dragged him out by the arm—his arm still ached faintly.

Without a word, Auntie Ping directly pulled out a large handful of wild vegetables from the bamboo basket hanging over her arm and stuffed them into Shen Dong's arms. Her gaze quickly swept over the scabbed wound on Shen Dong's forehead, not daring to look too long.

"Take these wild vegetables. As for grain, Auntie really can't lend any more."

The wild vegetables nearby had basically all been picked. Shen Dong looked at the vegetables in his hand—they were fresh, just picked.

It was just dawn, and he didn't know how early Auntie Ping had gotten up or how far she had walked to pick these wild vegetables.

After stuffing the vegetables into his arms, Auntie Ping turned to leave. She hadn't planned to see any of the Shen family today, intending to just toss the vegetables into the yard and go. Who would have thought Shen Dong would come out at such a coincidental time?

Holding the wild vegetables, Shen Dong called out to stop her and thanked her sincerely. "Auntie, thank you. I can make fresh wild vegetable porridge for my brother now. If he eats his fill, he'll get better."

He wouldn't leave them again. He would always have his big brother.

Hearing the child's heartfelt thanks, Auntie Ping couldn't help but feel her eyes well up. She turned to look at the wound on Shen Dong's head. "Dongzi, don't blame Auntie for being heartless and driving you away yesterday."

The family truly had no grain.

If the village chief hadn't refused to lend grain yesterday, she wouldn't have just stood by and watched Shen Da starve to death. But any grain lent to the Shen family was given without expectation of repayment. If she lent it, her own family would have nothing to eat.

If only the landowner hadn't made the tenant farmers keep their own grain seeds for planting, things wouldn't be so hard.

Auntie Ping resented this in her heart, but there was nothing she could do.

No matter how difficult life was, they still had to carry on.

Shen Dong watched Auntie Ping leave, then carried the wild vegetables in his arms to the kitchen.

Thinking that the family had no firewood left, he decided that while gathering wild vegetables later, he would also collect some small branches to use as fuel.

He couldn't chop wood for firewood himself.

Pushing open the kitchen door and seeing the pile of firewood in the corner, Shen Dong smiled.

His brother had already thought of it for him.

He believed everything would get better.

It definitely would.

At the county dock, the laborers had long since started working. Bare-chested, they carried large bundles on their lean shoulders that exceeded what they could bear, their backs bent under the weight as they trudged forward with difficulty.

Occasionally, there were shouts from foremen cracking whips to supervise the work, but more prominent were the rhythmic chants of numerous trackers straining to pull the ships.

The merchant ships were all very large, and bringing them to shore relied entirely on human strength.

Many merchant ships were docked at the wharf, bustling with noise and activity, extremely lively.

Shen Yuan and Wang Sanhu headed toward the Xie family merchant ship and stopped in front of a wooden table.

A clerk dipped his brush in ink. "Surname and given name? Where do you live?"

It seemed that Wu Country didn't yet have paper, using bamboo slips instead, and writing was done with a brush rather than a carving knife.

"Wang Sanhu, living in Dashu Village, Shuiwan Town."

The clerk noted it down with his brush. Shen Yuan looked at the characters but didn't recognize them much.

They weren't simplified or traditional Chinese characters; if he had to describe them, they resembled small seal script.

Shen Yuan could be certain that in Wu Country, he was a complete illiterate.

He couldn't read.

"Shen Yuan, living in Dashu Village, Shuiwan Town."

After the clerk recorded their names, the two continued inward, directly boarding the ship to unload the cargo.

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