Chapter 5

Zhou Jing had never had a good impression of the original owner’s family and sneered derisively.

Wang Cheng, without asking for the reasons or context, scolded him furiously: “You ungrateful, unfilial, unkind, and unjust wretch, you’ve lived so long only to end up in the belly of a dog. How dare you bind your aunt and take her to see the officials? Aren’t you afraid of being struck by lightning?”

Zhou Jing ignored Wang Cheng’s curses and directly interrupted: “You yourself just called her “my aunt.” In this village, I generally call everyone aunt. What’s the difference between them?”

“Oh. Maybe there is a difference. At the very least, other people’s aunts wouldn’t have stolen half a basket of wild vegetables that my little brother-in-law dug up while I was lying in bed, dying of illness! They wouldn’t let me, who was seriously ill, have nothing to eat, and wouldn’t let my husband drink cold water to fill his hunger! They won’t come to me and scold me without asking if I’m feeling better, and they will take away every grain of rice from me!”

“Do you think it’s natural for children to be filial to their parents?” Wang Cheng said.

“Certainly not! When you need something from me, you call yourself my ‘father and mother,’ but when it doesn’t involve benefits, it’s ‘uncle and aunt.’ Don’t come back after eating my life-saving food, and then blame it on me for being unkind to my own kin!”

The villagers of Wang Family Village burst into laughter, and Wang Cheng’s face turned red with embarrassment.

“Ungrateful child! Ungrateful child!”

“When the severing of kinship was announced, it was stated clearly and openly in black and white that all familial affection and obligation were to be entirely cut off, and that we would never interact again until death. It was written on that paper clearly. Uncle, don’t make any mistakes, otherwise, if anything goes wrong, it will be blamed on me!”

“You…” Wang Cheng was so enraged that he trembled. This eldest son had never dared to speak to him like this before. “Fine, fine, remember what you said today. If you dare to step on the Wang Family’s doorstep again, I will break your dog’s legs!”

“In that case, Uncle Wang should also go back and tell Aunt Wang that if she dares to come to my house and steal things again, I will definitely send her to the officials. I have the severance document in hand, and we are two separate families now. Also, I’ve heard that the officials don’t care who is right or wrong; whoever goes in will first receive twenty lashes. I’m young and strong, and after twenty lashes, I’ll be fine with a couple of days of rest and taking medicine. With Aunt Wang’s age, those twenty lashes could be fatal, and she might die with the added reputation of being a thief!”

Wang Cheng was so furious that he was at a loss for words. He hated Zhou Jing for disregarding familial bonds and also resented Old Lady Wang for putting him in such a difficult position.

His eyes were burning with rage. Old Lady Wang was so frightened that she didn’t dare to say a word and obediently followed Wang Cheng back home.

Zhou Jing then returned home with the support of Shen Mo. Wang Li, who had been blending into the crowd hoping to see some excitement, was surprised to see Old Lady Wang and her family suffer at Zhou Jing’s hands. He quietly wondered but did not dare to provoke Zhou Jing further. If Zhou Jing could send his own parents to the officials, what was he?

“Brother-in-law, that was really satisfying today. Did you see Wang Cheng’s face? His eyes were about to pop out!” Shen Lin laughed heartily. Unknowingly, his way of addressing Zhou Jing had changed.

As for Wang Cheng, Zhou Jing felt no gratitude or obligation toward him, so there was no need to be polite.

Zhou Jing had confirmed through his own observation over the past few days that this body was indeed his—after all he could not mistake the place of his birthmarks and moles. Even if two people looked exactly alike, they couldn’t have the same moles at the same place. As for why he had come and the original Zhou Jing had disappeared, he didn’t know.

Logically, Zhou Jing, having assumed the original Zhou Jing’s identity, should have shown filial piety to his “biological parents” and treated them as if they were his own.

However, based on the conversations between the Shen brothers and Old Lady Wang’s actions that day, he couldn’t bring himself to do so. Her own son was on the brink of death, and yet they came demanding food and drink, seizing the little food left in the house without a hint of concern for their son.

Instead, they made it clear that they expected food delivered to them the next day. With such behavior, how could he be expected to show filial piety on behalf of the original Zhou Jing? He simply couldn’t do it.

As for the original father of Zhou Jing, he was just as bad. Because Old Lady Wang wanted to eat meat, Zhou Jing had gone up the mountain to hunt but was gravely injured and carried back home by the villagers, his survival uncertain.

Not a single member of his family came to check on him. When they encountered Zhou Jing today, who needed assistance to walk, his father didn’t even inquire about his condition. Instead, he scolded Zhou Jing, as if merely looking at him would bring misfortune. His demeanor was arrogant and disdainful as if just because Zhou Jing was born to them, he was destined to be their servant, to be beaten and scolded, and to suffer.

With such a family, Zhou Jing could only manage to repay the original Zhou Jing’s gift of a legitimate identity by adhering to the principle of “if others don’t provoke me, I won’t provoke them; if they do, I’ll leave them with their lives.”

Seeing that Zhou Jing might be troubled by these thoughts, Shen Mo quickly said, “Stop talking, Xiao Lin.”

Shen Lin seemed to realize that, despite everything, Zhou Jing’s parents were still his own. It was inappropriate to speak this way. He pursed his lips and fell silent.

Zhou Jing, however, remained calm and said, “No matter how things were in the past, I won’t have any expectations from the Wang Family in the future. Having come close to the edge of death, I’ve come to understand many things. From now on, I’ll simply show respect when I encounter them, but there’s no need to endure any longer.”

Zhou Jing did not disclose that he was not the “Zhou Jing.”

The reason was that he urgently needed a new identity at that moment. Without proper registration and documentation, a person in ancient times would typically be treated as a fugitive or a run-away slave.

Life was not like a novel where one could just fabricate a pitiful identity at will. Even a small village chief would not dare to accept someone of unknown background without scrutiny.

In ancient times, the concept of collective punishment was prevalent. If a village accepted a fugitive or an escaped servant, the entire village would be held accountable. Given this, the villagers would not allow their village chief to recklessly admit strangers.

Zhou Jing had no desire to become a servant or a maid. He could only use the original owner’s identity temporarily. How long he would need to use it depended on whether the original owner would return. Therefore, he had to establish his own connections as quickly as possible so that, even if the original owner did come back, he could still retain his own position and that of Shen Mo!

The two Shen brothers, Shen Lin and Shen Mo, kept their heads down and did not speak. Zhou Jing knew that no matter how much he declared his determination at that moment, it would be meaningless.

Everything would depend on what happened in the future.

“Alright, enough of that. Today is the first time we’ve had meat in such a long time. Let’s get the meat and rice on the table,” Zhou Jing said.

Shen Lin, with his childlike temperament, would quickly shift from being happy to being upset and back again. He cheered loudly and jumped up with excitement.

Their house had no oil or salt, so even with half a wild chicken, the best they could manage was to steam it. The small half of the wild chicken simmered in a clay pot until it was tender and soft, surrounded by glistening oil, and the air was filled with the aroma of chicken. Shen Lin, upon smelling it, couldn’t help but salivate uncontrollably, like a dog enticed by a bone.

It wasn’t that Shen Lin was overly greedy. In ordinary farming families, eating meat more than a few times a month was considered a luxury. Although the Shen family was doing reasonably well, the presence of a stepmother meant that good things seldom reached the mouths of the two brothers.

Before Shen Mo got married, the Shen brothers had to rely on luck when it came to meat. They would go up the mountain and, if they were fortunate, they could find bird eggs or catch wild chickens and rabbits, which they would then secretly roast and eat.

However, the best hunters had a success rate of about fifty percent, and given that the Shen brothers were both gers and lacked the strength of men and any experienced guidance, their luck was much slimmer. Catching something once in ten attempts was already a stroke of great fortune.

Since Shen Mo married and came to the Zhou household, Shen Lin initially observed him in secret and saw that his elder brother was struggling with many tasks. Shen Lin then started to help out secretly, not daring to let Zhou Jing know.

When Zhou Jing accidentally discovered this, Shen Lin was unsure of Zhou Jing’s thoughts. Fortunately, Zhou Jing said nothing, allowing Shen Lin to continue helping openly.

Despite this, life in the Zhou Family was difficult and poor. Even though Shen Lin ate there, the food was still not particularly good—better than at the Shen family home, but with the amount of work he did and the limited food he received, he could never be truly full.

Worst, Zhou Jing would often scold Shen Lin for being a freeloader. Shen Lin didn’t dare to argue, fearing that Zhou Jing might prevent him from seeing his brother or, worse, take out his frustrations on Shen Mo because of him.

So, for Shen Lin, it had been a long time since he had tasted meat again, and being at the age where he was growing, his craving was almost unbearable.

Shen Mo wasn’t in much better shape, but being a few years older than Shen Lin and having lost their mother early, he had spent much of his life under the care of others. This made him more mature and composed compared to Shen Lin.

He quietly swallowed his saliva but did not make his hunger too obvious. Yet, it was impossible to escape the watchful eyes of Zhou Jing.

Zhou Jing sighed inwardly. The family was indeed very poor. He needed to quickly get himself in good health; apart from anything else, ensuring that his wife was well-fed and warm was the minimum standard of being a man.

In ancient times, it was customary for the head of the household to start eating before others could. Zhou Jing picked up his chopsticks and pierced the half-wild chicken, tearing off a large chicken leg.

Shen Lin’s eyes followed the chicken leg intently, his hunger unmistakable. Shen Mo was more reserved, but his gaze could not help but flicker toward the leg. This only made Zhou Jing feel more pity for them.

Just when both Shen brothers thought that the chicken leg would end up in Zhou Jing’s mouth, Zhou Jing’s chopsticks veered off and landed in Shen Mo’s bowl.

“Eat,” Zhou Jing said.

“Are you really giving the chicken leg to my brother?” Shen Lin exclaimed in disbelief.

In the past, whenever there was something good, Zhou Jing would always keep it for himself, never giving anything to his brother.

“It’s fine. We’ve swapped the half chicken for some coarse rice. I’ve cooked rice; I can manage with just that. You can have the chicken leg!” Shen Mo insisted. “You need to build up your strength. Have the chicken leg for nourishment.”

Coarse rice was a staple food for peasants, and seeing it on the Zhou family’s table was already a luxury. Normally, Shen Mo could be full with just rice alone. But with the chicken right in front of him, it felt bland in comparison.

“I’m the head of the household, not you. If I say you should eat it, then eat it, or I’ll be upset,” Zhou Jing said firmly.

Although the words were stern, Shen Mo knew it was said out of goodwill, so he wasn’t upset. In fact, he felt a warm glow inside.

Shen Lin quickly added, “I can just have rice porridge. Give the chicken leg to my brother. I won’t eat it.”

In a farming household, meals were usually two times a day when not working—one solid meal and one thin. In the Zhou Family, both meals were small, and they rarely had the luxury of eating coarse rice. Even when they did manage to get some, they only had enough for a small meal.

“Everyone should have some. There’s half a chicken; each of us should get a bit. We all need nourishment,” Zhou Jing said.

“Are you really giving this to me?” Shen Lin asked, still in disbelief.

Even though he and his brother had brought the wild chicken home together, Zhou Jing had never acknowledged how much work Shen Lin had done and often scolded him for being a freeloader.

Whenever there was something good, Zhou Jing would always keep it for himself and not share.

Zhou Jing responded with a laugh and reprimanded him: “If you keep hesitating, I’ll take it back.”

“I’m not hesitating…”

Shen Lin didn’t dare to take a large piece of meat, so he chose a chicken wing instead.

Even though Shen Lin knew the small amount of meat on the wing wouldn’t be enough to satisfy his hunger, he still opted for the smallest piece.

Shen Mo ate one chicken leg and then stopped, while Shen Lin took the wing, a bit of the chicken head, and half of the chicken neck. The remaining best part, a large piece of chicken breast, was left for Zhou Jing. Zhou Jing sighed and divided the remaining chicken, giving the most and the best pieces to Shen Mo, and distributing the rest equally between Shen Lin and himself.

“Eat quickly, or you won’t get any more,” Zhou Jing threatened.

Shen Mo understood Zhou Jing’s intentions and knew that accepting the offer was the best course of action at this moment. Otherwise, he would seem ungrateful.

The warmth of the chicken in his mouth was a long-missed comfort.

Zhou Jing, as the head of the household, ended up eating the least of the meat, having only a couple of bowls of meat broth and rice porridge to satisfy his hunger.

Zhou Jing had a large appetite, normally eating two servings of rice with little regard for the vegetables. Now, he ate less and barely had enough to fill him. With the family’s meager food supply, all cooked into small meals, of course, he can’t eat as much as he wants. Otherwise, the two brothers of the Shen family will have nothing to eat.

Making money… making money… that was the urgent matter at the moment!