"Mr. Jiang, you're back."
"Yes, I went to town to buy some things."
"Oh, Mr. Jiang, if you need anything, just tell me directly. Why bother Mr. Jiang to make the trip himself?"
"That would be too much trouble for you."
"Mr. Jiang, you don't need to be so polite. If it weren't for you, our Wangjia Village wouldn't have had such a great harvest last year. You are our great benefactor."
The rain had just stopped, and the muddy road was trampled by cattle and horses. Jiang Wen stepped on the muddy ground, carrying a sack towards his home.
Along the way were farmers rushing to plant early spring crops. When they saw Jiang Wen in white, they all showed joy, greeting him enthusiastically, afraid that they might say too little and neglect this handsome young scholar.
Jiang Wen wasn't bothered, nodding and smiling at everyone. He was used to the villagers' enthusiasm.
Returning home, he pushed open the fence of the yard. The stray chickens and poultry heard the footsteps and, hungry, flocked around him. Jiang Wen kicked them a few times, driving them aside. Then, he scraped the mud off on the stone steps next to him, stomped his feet, and pushed open the door of the house.
The furniture inside was arranged neatly, and several windows were opened just right, making the house seem bright and spacious.
Putting the things down, he poured tea from the teapot and drank it, his eyes looking at other places in the house.
"She's not home again today?" Jiang Wen frowned slightly, his tone a little disappointed.
Looking again at the weapon rack placed against the wall, it was already empty, with no weapons to be seen.
"Forget it, what am I thinking? She was only willing to pledge herself because I saved her life. I'm just lusting after her beauty, why be so greedy?" Jiang Wen said with a wry smile.
Taking a dipper, he scooped up some grain and walked to the door, calling to the chickens foraging in the yard. The chickens ran over quickly, surrounding Jiang Wen and chirping. Jiang Wen pinched a handful of grain and threw it on the ground, smiling as he watched the excited chickens.
Then, he waved his hand, and the chickens immediately cried out even more joyfully.
"There should be fresh eggs to eat tomorrow." Jiang Wen looked at the plump chickens with satisfaction.
Jiang Wen didn't know if he was from this world. When he woke up, he had lost his past memories. Only some behaviors, habits, and customs remained. But he knew nothing about his past.
He was rescued by the villagers of Wangjia Village. After accidentally displaying some skills that even he didn't know he possessed, the village chief didn't dare to neglect him in the slightest. He not only prepared a residence for him but also often sent food over.
And Jiang Wen didn't disappoint the village chief's expectations. Relying on the knowledge that occasionally popped up in his mind, he led the villagers to live a good life.
He had no great ambitions, only wanting to farm peacefully and find a steady wife to live out his life.
After feeding the poultry, Jiang Wen went into the kitchen to prepare some food.
Before he could start a fire, the sound of the courtyard door being pushed open came from outside.
Jiang Wen rolled up his sleeves and leaned out to look, only to see a young girl in tight-fitting clothes carrying an adult wild boar more than a meter tall, easily walking into the yard.
The wild boar was about two meters long and weighed no less than five hundred pounds. Its teeth protruded, and its face was ferocious, making people's hearts jump with fear just looking at it. Even the tigers in the mountains rarely dared to provoke such a ferocious thing. But the girl carried it as if it were nothing, quickly walking into the yard and throwing it on the ground.
She saw Jiang Wen by the stove and smiled. She stuck the iron spear behind her into the ground and walked to his front in a few steps.
"Husband, are you going to make lunch?" The girl's voice was like a trickling stream, gentle and pleasant to the ear. A few expectations were revealed on her fair and pretty face, and a pair of eyes rippling with autumn waves looked at Jiang Wen affectionately.
Jiang Wen looked at the huge wild boar, then looked at his cheap wife's slender figure, only to feel that this world was a bit bizarre.
"You hunted it?" he asked curiously.
"Yes. I recently saw that there was not much meat at home, so I wanted to hunt some wild game to try. It just so happened that this beast ran into my hands, so it's bad luck for it." The girl said casually, and Jiang Wen was a little speechless. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, it would have been difficult for him to believe that the girl in front of him could kill a tiger with one punch.
"Then cut some leg meat and braise it." Jiang Wen said, looking at the wild boar. He took a kitchen knife and prepared to walk towards the wild boar, but the girl stopped him.
The girl snatched the kitchen knife, looked at him demurely, and said, "My husband is a scholar, how can you do such a vulgar thing? Let me do it."
Without waiting for Jiang Wen to say anything more, she skillfully cut off a large leg from the wild boar, skinned it, deboned it, and sent it into the kitchen.
Jiang Wen opened his mouth, but in the end, he didn't say anything. After all, from the moment he rescued this girl, he knew that this woman was no ordinary person.
She said her name was Wenji, and she was a girl from a wealthy family. She encountered bandits on the road, and her whole family suffered. She desperately escaped, was seriously injured, and was rescued by Jiang Wen.
After her injury healed, in order to repay Jiang Wen's life-saving grace, she married him as his wife.
Jiang Wen originally thought that the saying "repay a life-saving grace with one's body" was just a joke, but he didn't expect to actually encounter this. Perhaps because he coveted Wenji's beauty, he agreed to this matter under some strange influence.
After making lunch, Jiang Wen filled a bowl of rice and handed it to Wenji.
The couple sat at the table and ate quietly. Wenji occasionally told him about what she saw and heard when she went into the mountains today.
When he heard that Wenji had encountered a poisonous snake, Jiang Wen was still apprehensive. He looked at her worriedly, warning her not to be so reckless in entering the mountains next time. If it were an ordinary hunter, he would have died countless times.
Wenji responded with a smile when she heard this.
Just as the meal was about to be finished, they heard a burst of noise from outside the yard. Jiang Wen put down his chopsticks and went out to look, only to see a group of constables with knives.
The leading constable was tall and burly, with tiger-like eyes that concealed a sharp glint. The bulging official uniform indicated that this person was no ordinary person, and his every move was decisive and efficient.
Seeing Jiang Wen walk out, this person sized him up and down. After Jiang Wen felt a chill down his spine from the gaze, he slowly opened his mouth: "We are constables from the county, and we have come here today to search for rebels. If you find any trace of the rebels, you can report it to the county yamen. After verifying the authenticity, you can be rewarded with silver based on the clues."
"If Mr. Jiang sees any of them, please report it to the county yamen immediately. With Mr. Jiang's talent, the imperial court will definitely value Mr. Jiang."
As the constable spoke, he handed Jiang Wen a few portraits and turned to leave without searching Jiang Wen's home.
Jiang Wen watched them leave, then took the wanted posters back to his home.
His wife, Wenji, was still sitting at the table, eating heartily. Seeing him holding a few scrolls, she asked curiously, "Husband, what are you holding in your hand?"
"This? Wanted portraits of fugitives." Jiang Wen took the portraits in his hand and watched them with Wenji.
"These are portraits of rebels. The constables told me that if I can catch these people, I can be promoted and ennobled."
The portraits on the scrolls were quite vivid, and the characteristics of each person were expressed. Jiang Wen watched with relish and discussed the bounties of these people with Wenji.
However, he didn't notice that Wenji's face changed slightly when she saw the people in the portraits.
When Jiang Wen turned to the last one, a woman appeared in the portrait.
This woman was painted beautifully, and there was a heroic spirit between her smiling eyes. The cinnabar dot between her eyebrows was like the finishing touch, making the whole painting become incomparably lively.
"There is actually a woman among these rebels?" Jiang Wen was a little surprised looking at the portrait. He looked at the description next to him, which clearly stated the woman's identity.
"I didn't expect the imperial court to be so generous, even catching a girl can have such a rich reward." Jiang Wen smiled at Wenji, and also fantasized about what he would do if he caught this person.
Wenji responded with a smile. Ancient nights were mostly boring. Besides going to bed early, only the affairs between husband and wife remained.
Jiang Wen wiped the sweat from his forehead, stroked Wenji's smooth back, and gently kissed her while holding her.
He was enamored with the girl's beauty and liked her very much. Pinching Wenji's rosy cheeks, he said softly, "My wife, you are so beautiful."
"Husband." Wenji shyly lightly hammered Jiang Wen's chest, and let out a soft moan after feeling some kind of erupting throbbing.
After a long time, the two stopped, hugging each other and whispering. Until Jiang Wen couldn't bear it anymore and fell asleep groggily, the house fell into silence.
The moon rises above the willow branches, and a few bird calls are heard.
