If it were anyone else, and two people just stood at the door without saying a word, they would definitely get scolded.
But their family of three was passive by nature, and it was Er Huang’s barking that forced Lu Liu to break the silence, cautiously asking, “Who are you looking for?”
Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian had already prepared their story at home, and they followed the relatives’ protocol.
“We’re from Lujia Tun. Your mother’s name is Lu Sanfeng, right? She’s our third sister. We haven’t seen her in many years, and we heard her little boy got married, so we came to pay a visit.”
Such a close relationship, yet they hadn’t even attended the wedding feast. To visit the family of a married child was truly unusual. Normally, people would misunderstand and think they were here to take advantage of the family.
But Lu Liu immediately opened the gate and welcomed them in.
“You all sit down. I’ll go check on the dog in the back, and I’ll come right over.”
Er Huang was barking loudly, so Lu Liu went to calm it down. But his thoughts were racing, and just as he was about to reflect more, someone else knocked at the front door, interrupting his train of thought.
It was Yao An, coming to deliver fish to Lu Liu.
The village was wide open, and the mountains nearby created echoes, so Er Huang’s loud barks reached far. Yao An heard them and peeked inside. Seeing two formal-looking people standing in the main room, he asked, “Did you have guests? I thought you were getting some things delivered; I was just about to call Da Qiang to come help.”
In homes near the woods, it was common to have visits from wild animals, and snakes were often seen. The hunting dogs were there for protection, and manpower was needed to deal with any disturbances.
Lu Liu didn’t have time to be afraid and simply said, “No, it’s my second uncle visiting me.”
Yao An was curious upon hearing that, and he peeked inside again.
Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian had brought meat and sugar with them, and they hadn’t even sat down yet. It was obvious they came with gifts.
Yao An couldn’t hide his envy: “Your family really is wealthy. Even the uncles come with such grand gifts when visiting, I’ve never seen anything like this in my life.”
He didn’t say much more to Lu Liu. “Go on, we’ll chat later.”
Lu Liu agreed and took the fish into the house.
It was only after Yao An’s comment that Lu Liu realized his two fathers had brought gifts.
Knowing his family’s situation, he immediately rejected them.
“Why all this formality? We don’t need anything here. You can take it back later.”
The things Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian had brought were the same meat and sugar that Lu Yang had brought back.
They were mindful of their feelings and guilty at the same time. They wished they could offer more, but they were ashamed of their poor circumstances. No matter what, they wouldn’t take it back.
Lu Liu understood their feelings for his brother and after several attempts to refuse, he finally accepted the gifts.
After accepting the gifts, there was a brief silence.
Lu Liu missed his two fathers but didn’t dare look at them for too long. He was afraid of giving himself away.
But Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian couldn’t help themselves. They kept looking at him, studying his face carefully.
He really was so similar to Lu Yang.
After a few moments of admiration, a strong sense of familiarity hit them. They assumed it was the bond of blood that caused this feeling.
As they looked again, they noticed the resemblance was becoming more and more evident.
The two brothers looked alike, though their temperaments and personalities were different, and there were slight differences in their features—one had a heroic look, while the other appeared softer.
If you only knew one of them, it was hard to tell the difference. But once you knew both, it was difficult to confuse them.
The couple grew more and more uneasy, and their feelings made Lu Liu feel even more nervous.
The more they stared, the more nervous Lu Liu became, to the point where he couldn’t sit still.
In a panic, Lu Liu began to find things to do. He took the fish to the stove room to place them in a bucket of water, then brought the stove into the main room.
The stove could provide warmth and dry up the damp air.
He had just brought some rice cakes home last night, but there was no brown sugar left. Fortunately, his two fathers had brought some sugar, so they could roast brown sugar rice cakes.
But Lu Liu didn’t realize his actions were giving him away.
The way he worked, his habits—everything was so familiar to the two fathers.
Lu Yang’s squatting posture was like a little man, with one knee slightly lower, squatting sideways to stoke the fire, skillfully handling the flames. He would place two pieces of firewood in the stove, then hold a bundle of straw and light it, watching it burn halfway before carefully placing it in the stove.
Lu Liu, on the other hand, squatted properly in front of the stove, both heels on the ground, carefully arranging firewood and stuffing dry grass into the space beneath the firewood. He lit the dry grass with a matchstick and used fire tongs to place it into the fire, never daring to use his hands.
Wang Fengnian had seen Lu Yang stoking the fire a few days ago and hadn’t thought much of it. But today, seeing Lu Liu do the same, his heart was trembling. Lu Erbao felt the same way.
The couple grew more and more alarmed, and their emotions were directly affecting Lu Liu.
In a panic, Lu Liu tried to change his habits, but he ended up burning the rice cakes terribly.
The two fathers could see what was going on but chose not to speak up. They hurriedly helped him cover up the mess.
The three of them exchanged looks, and it became clear that nothing could be hidden anymore.
Aside from the two rabbits and one dog, there was nothing else in the house, but they didn’t dare to acknowledge it openly.
Lu Liu thought to himself that as long as he didn’t admit it, there was no way to give himself away.
The two fathers were afraid of making a mistake, and even with just a one-in-a-million chance, they didn’t dare say anything. They were afraid of hurting Lu Yang and also worried about Lu Liu’s feelings.
They became increasingly polite, but the familiar topics of conversation made Lu Liu’s eyes sting with emotion.
Wang Fengnian asked, “How are you adjusting to life in Li Zhai? Are you getting used to it?”
Lu Liu answered a series of questions eagerly: “I’m a bit unaccustomed to some things, but I don’t go out much, so it’s fine. There’s nothing lacking at home. I get to eat meat almost every day—either eggs or meat. The other day, I had egg pancakes! It was made with four eggs! Yesterday, I went with Da Feng to make rice cakes, and his mother is also very nice. She gave me a rabbit to raise. The female rabbit is going to have babies, which I can sell, and the male rabbit, once it’s grown, I can eat for New Year’s… Da Feng is very capable and reliable. Er Huang can guard the house, so no one bothers us. Oh, Er Huang is the dog, and we also have a mule cart, so it’s easy to go to the county… Oh, and I have several cotton coats this year, and the heaviest one weighs three pounds! When I wear it, it feels like I’m wrapped in a quilt—so warm!”
Listening to him, both of his fathers had tears in their eyes. Wang Fengnian wiped the corner of his eyes, nodding repeatedly, saying “Good, good.”
Lu Liu then asked how things were at home. Wang Fengnian said things were going well.
It hadn’t been long since they got married, so things hadn’t changed much. Now, their eldest brother was helping them with buying and selling land.
They had sold all the chickens, and now they were just managing the vegetable garden. The couple was idle and helping people raise pigs. This year was a bit harder, but by next year, they’d be more familiar with pig-raising. Once they raised fat pigs, they’d make money and everything would be better.
Lu Liu’s eyes sparkled as he listened. His brother was truly impressive, even able to get piglets!
He also didn’t like the few acres of land at home—it was too scattered and thin to yield much grain. He had always been reluctant to exchange it, fearing it would cut off their source of income. But now, things were looking up.
Wang Fengnian, seeing that Lu Liu was interested, went on to talk about Lu Yang selling meat buns.
He didn’t directly mention it but referred to it as “Liu Ge’er’s” (Lu Liu’s brother).
Lu Liu found it strange and began thinking about other things.
He recalled that on the day they first met, his brother had kept staring at the meat bun stall. It wasn’t because he was hungry—he must have been observing it!
He then remembered that when they were returning to the village, Lu Sanfeng had mentioned that Chen Lao Die wanted to eat the buns his brother made.
His brother must be very good at making them. Lu Liu had never had the chance to taste them.
After chatting for a while, Lu Liu relaxed and smiled, his expression soft and obedient. It made his two fathers’ hearts ache even more.
It was so familiar—it couldn’t be mistaken.
The two children were bold beyond measure, not knowing when they had switched identities.
After leaving the house, they took a final glance, not daring to stay any longer in Li Zhai.
Once on the main road, the couple wanted to discuss something, but when they opened their mouths, not a single word came out.
They were confused, overwhelmed, their hearts feeling both empty and full, a mess of emotions.
It turned out the child they had been thinking of had already gone home.
They needed to go to Shangxi Village to see Lu Yang.
At that moment, Lu Yang was comforting Chen Lao Die.
After meeting with his younger brother, Lu Yang’s resentment toward Chen Lao Die had faded.
After all, he wasn’t his biological father, and the kid was still young. It was good enough that he could take care of him.
Chen Lao Die had come to sell tofu that day. He had been hawking it at the market for over an hour before finishing. When he heard Lu Yang calling out “Dad” from a distance, he didn’t even want to respond.
