Chapter 4 — Tham Nuong Does Not Marry Ta Family

8

Outside the hospital, the man was still very young, around twenty years old, wearing a black long robe, eight meters tall, with a handsome appearance, and long, narrow phoenix eyes that were slightly narrowed. Looking at this person, I feel a bit familiar. This person, I recognize. That year, when bandits raged in Duong Chau, there was a young man holding a red spear in his hand, leading people to wipe out the bandits and return peace to Duong Chau. But I clearly remember him not because of his great merit, but because of something embarrassing. At that time, he came to our restaurant to eat, but he did not bring silver with him. At that time, my father-in-law went to take care of work at other shops, leaving this small shop for me to take care of. —— That year I was only eleven or twelve years old. I didn't know he was a great hero. When I saw him stealing, I didn't let him go. I grabbed his sleeve and said: "If you don't pay, you have to stay here and wash dishes for my family!" His expression was very fierce, I was a little scared, tears welled up in my eye sockets, threatening to spill out. Seeing that I was about to cry, he had no choice but frantically comforted me: "I, I will wash you, don't cry!" I held back my tears and said with a serious face: "Then wash it off." After that, I watched him finish washing a hundred dishes before letting him go. Now that I think about it, I... my face turns red. Sometimes, human memory really shouldn't be that good. But, something so trivial, surely he doesn't remember? Indeed. He just glanced at me, not recognizing me, then turned and said to sister A Man:

"Big brother, the war on the front lines is tense, the national treasury is exhausted. Big brother ordered me to go back and get some silver, how much silver is left in the house?"

A Sister Man manages everything in the palace. At this moment, her face looked awkward. She hesitated for a long time without saying anything. Pho Hoai Tich seemed to understand, did not ask further, just frowned deeper, turned and left. Looking at him, I hesitated for a moment, then finally chased after him.

“Hey——”

Deputy Hoai Tich went too fast, I ran to the courtyard gate to stop him. Pho Hoai Tich slightly lowered his eyes, his voice was faint: "What's going on?" I pursed my lips, squeezing the box in my hand. The murderous aura on his body was very heavy, making me feel a little scared. It took all his courage to open his mouth, but his voice trembled involuntarily: "I... I have money."

9

“Hmm?” He trailed off, a bit confused, his eyes falling on the box in my hand.

The sunlight shined down, illuminating the cold lines on his face, seeming to make it a little softer. I opened the box: "There are ten thousand taels in here, everything... is for you." This amount of silver is not small for a businessman in Yangzhou like me, but for him, it is even more important. Think of it as repaying his favor from the past.

—— My father once said, if it weren't for that jasmine, there wouldn't be a Tham family like today.

Pho Hoai Tich's eyes glanced over the banknotes, wavered slightly, then finally stopped on my face, and said in a deep voice: "No pay, no benefits."

"I am also a citizen of Dai Hanh, so naturally I should contribute my part."

I put the box in his arms, but was afraid he would refuse, so I mustered up all my courage and held on to some relationship:

"Furthermore, Sister Tang is your sister-in-law, so logically I should call you uncle. Ah, if possible, please Uncle in the military camp, pay attention to see if there are any handsome men with good temperaments. If they have official positions, even better, they don't need to be too high."

The relationship between me and sister A Man is very close, I really can't bear to see her suffer. The day the battle is over, the day the family reunites. Besides, this money is not mine, spending it without feeling sad. Hearing the words "little uncle", his eyebrows furrowed even more. Finally, he looked at me intently and replied: "This is easy, I already have someone." I blurted out: "Then next time tell that person to come to Duong Chau to find me."

“Okay.”

He immediately responded, his eyes still resting on me. Suddenly, he asked: “Is there anything else you want to say?” I hummed, actually there was nothing left. But facing his deep gaze, I thought and said sincerely:

“The battlefield is dangerous, I hope the general will have a smooth sailing trip and soon triumph. If I come to Yangzhou, I will invite the general to dinner."

Hearing that, Pho Hoai Tich's eyes slightly stirred. After a while, he seemed to smile:

“Okay, little treasurer.”

The person who was always serious, now had a slight smile at the corner of his eyes and lips, making his cold appearance disappear, making him more charming and charming. My heart suddenly beat faster, my cheeks turned red. He... still remembers!

10

Seeing me confused, Pho Hoai Tich didn't laugh at me, took the box from my hand, turned around and left. But after walking a few steps, he turned around, his eyes stopped on me, and suddenly said:

“In the snow, the roads are slippery and carriages are inconvenient. If nothing happens, you can stay at the general's palace for a few days, after Tet, then go."

This word came unexpectedly. I looked up in confusion, met his gaze, couldn't react, and stupidly replied: "Ah... okay." Seeing that, the corner of Pho Hoai Tich's lips curled slightly, but quickly returned to normal. Just like he said. Tet comes, heavy snow falls, roads are not easy to travel. But Pho Hoai Tich did not stay to celebrate Tet, but quickly led his people back to the front line. Sister A Man kept me and my mother here through Tet, then personally sent us off. The day my mother and I said goodbye to sister A Man and returned to Duong Chau, the sky was clear and the sun was mild. The snow melts and the clear blue sky seems to have been washed. I looked back at the bustling capital one last time, my eyes no longer had the same expectations as when I first arrived. So let's go home.

11

The news of my leaving the capital for unknown reasons reached the Ta family. Ta Nam Tu is currently in the hospital chatting with a few friends, but is clearly in a bad mood. I don't know who in that group first mentioned:

“Thank you, brother, this morning I heard that your mother-in-law has left the capital.”

“It's fair to say, such a vulgar woman is not worthy of brother Ta. I don't know why Ta brother decided to get along with her in the first place?"

These words attracted the curiosity of many people, everyone was curious and asked questions. Ta Nam Tu was momentarily stunned, then suddenly remembered: That year in Duong Chau, when he was seriously ill, it was A Can who sat next to him every day and took care of him. She has a lively personality and always tells him interesting stories about Duong Chau. At that time, he felt that she was sweet and lovely, and was a little touching. But this time we met again, compared to A Kieu, she was truly no different from a firefly with bright moonlight. A Kieu has a beautiful appearance and is a young lady of a famous family, not that A Can can compete with her. Now that he has broken off the marriage, he should be happy. But for some reason, I felt a bit frustrated inside. Could it be that... in her heart, he is not even worth ten thousand taels of silver? What a shallow business woman. He thought, over the past few days, he still felt like he was a bit rude that day, it was a waste of effort. Thinking of this, his voice became even colder:

"She has a rude personality and is not a suitable person to be a life partner. This marriage was originally just a joke between the elders."

The friends immediately burst into laughter. Ta Nam Tu looked toward the outside of the city. He thought, after she returned to Duong Chau, with her appearance and background, she was afraid she would only be able to marry ordinary people and live a quiet life.

12

Three months later, I returned to Duong Chau, mother told the Ta family story to father. At first, my father was so angry that his face turned red, but then he gradually calmed down and comforted me:

“My daughter, our A Can is so good, don't worry about not having any suitors, don't worry!”

But turning away, he was busy looking for a husband for me all over Yangzhou. There were countless people who came to see him, but each time they were not satisfied, making him scratch his head every day, almost going bald. I'm not in a hurry, marriage is a matter of fate. But unexpectedly, the following summer, my father suddenly returned happily, saying he had found a good match for me. I asked: "What's the matter?" The father smiled mysteriously: "It's a good match, the husband's family is easy to live with, you will meet in a few days!" I still don't understand that, and I'm not too concerned. Recently, Duong Chau has been plagued by bandit attacks, with many people wandering around. But luckily this year's harvest is still good, my mother and I set up a camp to distribute porridge and do good deeds. That day, when the pot of porridge was empty, we prepared to clean up, but unexpectedly, the group of people who had not yet received the porridge would rush in and rob it. In the chaos, I was pushed to the ground, my foot was stepped on, and intense pain immediately came. I instinctively crawled out. But at that moment, a wind-breaking sound rang out. An arrow hit the wooden post! The unexpected turn of events caused the group of wandering people who were robbing them to immediately stop. I raised my head, only to see a man wearing armor, quickly jumping off his horse, a deep voice rang out: "Get out of the way!" The murderous aura on him scared the crowd and quickly gave way. In just a moment, Pho Hoai Tich came before me, his deep eyes glanced over my dirty clothes, his eyebrows slightly furrowed. Suddenly, he bent down and picked me up. My body suddenly left the ground, reflexively hugging his neck. Mother's eyes widened in surprise, but because there were so many people, it was inconvenient to say anything. Being stared at by so many people, I couldn't help but feel embarrassed, mumbling: "Little uncle, quickly let me down! I can go!" At this time, Pho Hoai Tich spoke up, his voice serious: "You are injured." Me: “……”