Chapter 32 Brother

Outside the South Gate of Anlu County, Heifu's elder brother, Gongshi Zhong, stood there.

Zhong was just over thirty years old, more than seven feet tall, and looked a bit like Heifu. He had a brown scarf on his head, which represented the title of Gongshi, and a sparse beard on his lips. He was wearing a coarse brown coat, which was not very warm.

What was strange was that he had a thick new winter coat in his hand, but he would rather shiver in the cold wind of October than put it on.

Although his family was a Gongshi and had a hundred acres of land, they had almost exhausted all their money because of the funeral of their deceased father the year before and the treatment of Zhong's leg injury last year. Now they were living a very tight life.

In winter, even the winter coat had to be worn by the three brothers in turn, and whoever went out would wear it. This dress was sewn by my mother, but Zhong was reluctant to wear it no matter how cold it was. He was afraid that the dust would fly all the way and dirty the clothes. It was new clothes, so he let his younger brother wear it.

At this moment, Zhong was rubbing his hands and breathing out, feeling a little uneasy as the two county soldiers at the door pointed and whispered...

Zhong was an honest farmer who never wanted to cause trouble or become the focus of conversation.

Fortunately, the messenger did not make him wait too long. Not long after, Zhong saw a figure jogging out of the training ground, waving at him from a distance and shouting, "Brother!"

Brother is the name for the eldest brother in the family. Heifu came up to him and bowed to Zhong, saying, "Brother, why are you here?"

"Of course I came here on my mother's orders to bring you winter clothes. My mother has been sewing clothes day and night these days, just for fear that you will be cold."

Seeing his younger brother, Zhong smiled, and his eyes swept over Heifu, but he found that he was already wearing a thick coat. Looking up, there was also a brown scarf symbol of a public official on Heifu's bun, it seems that the rumors are true...

"Hey, I should have written a letter to tell my mother and brother." Heifu slapped his forehead, a little annoyed, and explained:

"Something happened these days. I got some money and bought all the clothes. You don't need to ask my uncle to send clothes from far away. Your legs are not convenient..." Heifu was very ashamed. Zhong had a leg injury when he served in the army last year. It has not healed yet. It is difficult for him to do farm work on weekdays. It is fifty or sixty miles from Yunmeng Township to Anlu County. Heifu simply can't imagine how he walked. "It's okay to let Jing come. Uncle, just take good care of mother at home." Heifu said while taking off his warm clothes and putting them on Zhong without saying anything. He also took the winter clothes that Zhong had sent from far away. After putting them on, his face was full of joy. "The clothes made by my mother are still warmer!"

Zhong put his hands into his sleeves, feeling the warmth, and smiled with relief: "Jing is young and impetuous. I am afraid that he will make mistakes, not to mention..."

He carefully glanced at the two county soldiers standing guard at the gate of the parade ground, pulled Heifu aside, and whispered: "Even if I didn't send clothes, I would have come to the county specially. Heifu, tell me what happened these days? How did you get the title of a duke!"

It turned out that since Heifu left home, Zhong heard rumors every few days.

At first, someone came back to Xiyangli and said that he saw Heifu being arrested by a pavilion chief and taken to the county prison, and he was going to be sued!

This bad news scared the whole family, but the mother didn't believe it. She didn't even raise her head, fiddling with the loom in her hand, and said that my Heifu was an honest child and would never break the law. She still sat on the couch and mended Heifu's winter clothes.

However, the next day, the village head who had a grudge against Zhong came to the door in a rage and said a lot of sarcastic words, which made the whole family feel like they were in an ice cave.

The village head said that the county prison had sent a letter to the village, asking whether Heifu's place of origin and identity were true, and whether he had a criminal record? The village head's implication was that Heifu had been imprisoned and his life was over. Zhong's family would not have a good life for a few days and would soon be punished together!

Now, even the mother who believed in Heifu the most was anxious and fell ill directly. Zhong's wife cried every day while holding her child. The third brother was shocked and suddenly woke Zhong up in the middle of the night, saying that everyone in the village was rumored that Zhongxiong had committed a crime and was arrested. What if he was sentenced to joint punishment? Otherwise, our family should flee overnight...

After his father passed away, Zhong was the head of the family, and he couldn't lose his composure. After saying anything, he calmed down the anxious family and asked them to stay calm.

During those days, the village head spread the news everywhere in the village, making the neighbors look at Zhong's family strangely. Zhong wanted to go to the county town to inquire about it himself, but he was stopped at the gate with farm tools, fearing that he would run away...

Just after the whole family was treated as thieves and guarded for a few days, in early October, people who went to the county town to attend the market brought back completely different news.

"Have you heard that Zhong's second brother Heifu fought three people alone at Huyang Pavilion and captured the thieves!"

"That's right, the whole county is saying that Heifu cut off the thief's head and made a great contribution!"

"I wonder what kind of reward this boy will get."

"Zhong's family is lucky this time."

Just when Zhong was dizzy with these news, he was going to the county town to ask Heifu in person no matter what, but the village head and Tiandian (a small official in the village responsible for supervising farming) came to the door again.

The head of the village had a gloomy face, but Tian Dian was smiling. He said that the county had issued a document, and Heifu was appointed as a public official for his merit in catching the thief. Now, the procedures in the county have been completed, and they were ordered to come here to allocate 100 acres of land and a vacant land to Heifu's family, so that Heifu could build a house for himself in the future...

At this point, the whole family felt relieved. The mother picked up the needle and thread again, and began to brag about Heifu's deeds to her peers. Zhong's wife also smiled, and the neighbors looked at them with eyes that changed from caution and disgust to envy...

Two public officials in one family, this is something worth celebrating, which means that Zhong's land has doubled overnight!

So in the next few days, Zhong was busy dealing with the head of the village and Tian Dian, trying to get a good piece of land for Heifu, and the house could be chosen closer to his old house. When all this was done, it was already mid-October.

Zhong then hurriedly took the winter clothes made by his mother and limped on the road. It took three full days to reach the county town.

Although the matter had been clarified, Zhong was a cautious person and always felt that it was all like a dream. He had to ask Heifu in person to feel relieved.

After listening to Zhong's explanation, Heifu asked anxiously: "Is mother sick? Is it serious? Brother, who will take care of her when you are not at home?"

Although he often mentioned that his cheap father was a scapegoat for him these days, Heifu loved his mother from the bottom of his heart and secretly vowed to be filial to her with "Heifu's share".

Zhong comforted: "Mother was sick because she was worried about you. She has recovered a lot after learning that you are fine. Besides, Jing and your sister-in-law Qiu (eldest sister-in-law) are also taking care of her. Your sister is also back, so don't worry."

Heifu was relieved. At this time, another gust of cold wind blew, and even though the two brothers were wearing winter clothes, they still shivered.

He then pulled Zhong and said, "Brother, this is a long story. Don't stand here. Let's go inside and talk."

Zhong had also served in the army, and he hesitated and said, "It's probably not easy for outsiders to enter the training ground."

"It's okay. I've already talked to General Chen. He said that the guards will have a half-day break today. Brother, please come in whenever you want, but don't stay too long."

As he said that, Hei Fu pulled Zhong inside and greeted the two county guards at the gate in a familiar manner.

Zhong was even more surprised. In his impression, Hei Fu was a taciturn brother with only brute force. Zhong believed that he had subdued the thieves, but how could Hei Fu talk to General Bai?

The further they walked into the parade ground, the more surprised Zhong was, because the county soldiers and night watchmen in the parade ground would stop and bow to Heifu whenever they saw him, and Heifu would return the greetings one by one. It can be seen that his brother has a high reputation here.

Zhong still didn't know what happened a few days ago. Now in the parade ground, the only one who saw Heifu with a stern face was Jiashi Yuanbai...

With surprise, Zhong and Heifu approached the house where the night watchmen lived. As soon as they reached the door, a thin young man with a pointed chin and monkey cheeks strode over.

"My younger brother Ji Ying, meet you, brother!"

The thin monkey shouted at Zhong, and then, regardless of the mud on the ground, he bowed down...

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