Chapter 2

"Mother, I'm back~" Chen Mo put down the basket and, seeing his mother who was doing needlework by the window, smiled happily and said, "The crops are growing well; we should have a good harvest this year."

Since he had improved the manure, the crops in his family's fields had always grown better than others. After this year's harvest, besides the taxes and the food needed for the two of them, there would still be a lot left over. Chen Mo planned to lease a few more acres of land and hire two tenant farmers to help with the work. Their life would surely improve, and his mother wouldn't have to work so hard on needlework every day.

"Go and eat." Chen Mo's mother, seeing her son, smiled faintly, but with a hint of concern. Sometimes, when a child is too sensible, it can also be a kind of failure for the parents.

Chen Mo responded and ran happily to the stove, opened the steamer lid, and a strong aroma of millet wafted out. Chen Mo swallowed his saliva and then looked at his mother, "Mother, these eggs..."

Although the Chen family's situation had improved over the past two years, they still couldn't afford to eat eggs every few days. Twice a month was already quite good.

"My son is growing stronger; you need to eat more." Chen Mo's mother said casually while doing her needlework.

"Mother, you eat." Chen Mo brought the bowl over and handed the egg to his mother, "Mother is weak and needs to be nourished."

"Mother has already eaten." Chen Mo's mother shook her head.

Chen Mo was a bit suspicious. After thinking for a moment, he peeled the egg, found a string, and cut it in half, giving half to his mother, "Then let's share it."

"My son, eat it. Mother has already eaten." Chen Mo's mother shook her head again.

"Then the shell? If Mother doesn't eat, I won't eat either." Chen Mo was a bit stubborn. He didn't want to expose his mother's lie, but he couldn't bear to see her like this.

In the end, Chen Mo's mother couldn't resist and took the half egg, eating it in small bites.

Seeing his mother eat, Chen Mo started to eat his own food. Although their family was poor, they were still a branch of the Chen family, and their ancestors had been people of status. From a young age, he had more rules to follow than others. Even though he was very hungry, Chen Mo still ate slowly and carefully.

"Mother, I want to go to the county town with the village head tomorrow." Chen Mo said suddenly.

"Oh?" Chen Mo's mother asked in confusion, "Why?"

"We have enough surplus grain to last until the autumn harvest. I want to take some grain to the city and exchange it for two chickens, one rooster and one hen. Then we can have eggs every day. When we have chicks, I can stew some chicken soup and eat chicken for Mother." Chen Mo didn't dare to tell his mother about his connection with the Great Virtuous Teacher's disciple. He knew his mother was very averse to such things, always saying that one should not talk about strange and supernatural things. But Chen Mo believed that there were definitely some forces beyond human understanding in this world. Otherwise, how could he explain the mysterious presence in his mind?

"No!" Chen Mo's mother refused without hesitation. Even though Chen Mo had been to the city before, he was still a child. No mother could feel at ease. She put on a stern face and said sternly, "Don't think you're so capable just because you've been there once. You haven't encountered any villains yet!"

"Mother, don't worry. I'll go with the village head." Chen Mo was a bit impatient with his mother's lack of trust. This feeling made him feel like a child, even though he was one. But he felt different from other children.

Chen Mo's mother still disagreed, but Chen Mo persisted. In the end, she sighed and frowned, "When you're out, listen to the village head's advice and don't leave his side."

"Okay!" Chen Mo was delighted that his mother had finally agreed. He immediately responded and started eating his rice.

After finishing his meal, Chen Mo washed the dishes. The Chen family's house wasn't in good condition. Although their harvest had been better the past two years, Chen Mo had expanded their two acres of thin land to ten acres. He also spent a lot of money hiring people to help his mother with her medical treatments and buying medicine. There was no extra money to renovate the old house.

Their home wasn't exactly destitute, but it wasn't much better. Every winter, it was very cold. After this year's harvest, he would definitely renovate the house first to make sure it wasn't as cold as in previous years.

It was almost dark. After washing up, Chen Mo ran to the village head's house and explained his hope to go to the county town with him the next day.

The village head was a middle-aged man in his forties. In this era, it wasn't unusual for a nine-year-old to call a forty-year-old "Grandpa." Although he was the head of the village, he mostly helped the county collect taxes. He had a lot of land and hired a few tenant farmers to help with the work, making him the wealthiest family in the village. He was usually very kind and always smiled. If someone couldn't pay their taxes, he wouldn't act like the cruel tyrants in the stories. Instead, he would help them. This made him very popular among the villagers, and the children liked to be close to him.

"Does your mother agree?" The village head smiled at Chen Mo and asked.

"Yes, Mother said she would be very reassured if I go with Grandpa." Chen Mo nodded, but his eyes couldn't help but glance at the big dog in the village head's house. When he was little, the dog had chased him around, but now they were good friends. He often brought food for the dog.

"If your mother agrees, that's fine. It's not your first time going to the county town. We'll leave early tomorrow, at the first cockcrow, and try to return before sunset." The village head smiled and nodded, looking at his old dog. "There's a butcher in the city named Zheng who is a friend of your Uncle Wang. If you like, he can give you a puppy."

"No... no need." Chen Mo shook his head. Uncle Wang was the best hunter in the village, known for hunting wild boars and tigers alone. However, he looked very fierce, and the village children would cry at the sight of him. Although Chen Mo wouldn't cry like the other children, he still felt intimidated by him. He didn't look like a good person.

"It's just a puppy. Zheng kills many animals every day, and they don't have much meat." The village head shook his head. "Zheng and your Uncle Wang are good friends. Don't judge your Uncle Wang by his appearance; he's actually a good person."

The village head sighed at the end, knowing that people's perceptions are hard to change.

"Kills many every day?" Chen Mo's focus was clearly not on the second part.

The village head nodded, looking at Chen Mo with a speechless expression and smiled. After all, he was just a nine-year-old child. What was the point of explaining these things to him?

Chen Mo was conflicted. He was afraid of Uncle Wang, both because of his appearance and the feeling he gave, but he really wanted a puppy.

"Think about it. We'll decide when we get to the city tomorrow." The village head waved his hand.

"Thank you, Grandpa!" Chen Mo bowed respectfully and took his leave.

Watching Chen Mo leave, the village head's smile was filled with affection. In this village of sixty-three households, there were over thirty children, but he liked Chen Mo the most. He was sensible, well-behaved, hardworking, and had his own ideas. After all, he was a branch of the Chen family. Although their family was poor, they were different. This child might have a bright future.