The Domineering Cultivator Farmer

Chapter 6: Returning Home

After the banquet ended, Fang Yun found Long Fei and offered to treat several injured Heaven-level martial artists. Long Fei was absolutely overjoyed. Having heard from Zeng Yong that Fang Yun had healed the severely injured Li Cheng in no time, he’d been wondering how to broach the subject and ask Fang Yun to examine the injuries of the Heavenly-Rank martial artists—only to find that Fang Yun had volunteered on his own. In truth, Fang Yun had a bit of a selfish motive: he figured that once he’d healed the injured Heaven-level martial artists, he wouldn’t necessarily have to step in personally for future missions—and he’d be happy to have some time off. It took Fang Yun the entire night to heal the four Heaven-level martial artists, and in the process, he secured a promise from the Dragon Group that they would only call on him if the problem was truly insurmountable. Once Fang Yun returned to rest, the Dragon Group’s high command immediately convened a meeting. Now that all four of Huaxia’s Heaven-level martial artists had fully recovered, it was time to make the foreign martial artists who had set foot on Huaxia’s soil pay a bloody price. Early the next morning, Fang Yun set out in the Audi A8 provided by the Dragon Group, followed by two military trucks carrying twenty heavily armed soldiers. Fang Yun donned his military uniform, with the rank of brigadier general on his shoulder. He intended to return home in his capacity as a soldier to explain to his family why he had been out of contact for six years. Fang Yun’s home was in a small mountain village on the border between Province F and Province J. It took him more than ten hours to reach the town where he grew up, and by the time he arrived, it was already dark. Looking at the town before him, which seemed both familiar and unfamiliar, Fang Yun wasn’t quite sure he recognized it—his hometown had changed so much in six years. After driving around the town for a while, Fang Yun finally found his way home. The townspeople had never seen so many soldiers carrying rifles before; they all gathered around, pointing and whispering. As the car rounded a hill, the view suddenly opened up. Ahead, a small river encircled a scattered cluster of houses, appearing quiet and peaceful in the moonlight. The village was called Qiaotou Village. Everyone in the village bore the surname Fang, all descended from a common ancestor, and every household was related to one another in some way. A small concrete bridge spanned the creek, just wide enough for a single vehicle to pass. In Fang Yun’s memory, this bridge had once been a log bridge. When he was a child, a sudden downpour would cause the river to rise until it lapped at the bridge deck. He remembered how, every time that happened, a group of his friends would roll up their pant legs high and hold hands, forming a long line to cross the bridge. A straight concrete road led into the village; Fang Yun’s home was at the very end of the village, nestled against the mountain. At this point, Fang Yun found himself unable to go any further. He got out of the car and looked up at the village; tears welled up in his eyes. “My home… the home I’ve longed for day and night… I haven’t been back in six years. I wonder if my family is all right?” The soldiers on the truck also got off one by one and stood behind Fang Yun, gazing at the little village together. They all knew the nature of this mission, so they understood exactly how Fang Yun was feeling at that moment; one by one, they simply stood there quietly, keeping him company. Just then, the sound of a motorcycle came from the road behind them. Fang Yun turned to look—it was his second uncle, Fang Guofang. Second Uncle was my great-grandfather’s youngest son. As a child, he was adopted by my second grandfather, who had no sons of his own, which is why he was named Fang Guofang. He sold pork in town, and at that moment, he must have just finished selling and returned home. “Uncle Fang,” Fang Yun called out. Fang Guofang had noticed three or four vehicles parked at the head of the bridge, with a group of people standing on the road. As he rode closer and got a better look, he saw they were soldiers carrying rifles. People from the mountains naturally feel a sense of awe and reverence toward soldiers, so he instinctively slowed down. Suddenly, he heard someone call him “Second Uncle” and, without thinking, replied. Only after he’d answered did it dawn on him: the voice had come from the group of soldiers up ahead, and it was in their hometown dialect. But no one from his village was in the army right now—let alone someone who’d call him “Second Uncle.” He looked up closely. “Xiaoyunzi!!!” Fang Guofang didn’t even bother with the RV anymore; he tossed it aside, jumped down, rushed forward, and threw his arms around Fang Yun. “Where the heck have you been all these years, kid? You never even called. Your parents have been looking everywhere for you—they’ve gone gray with worry. All right, all right, it’s good that you’re back. Don’t say a word now—let’s go home. We’re going home.” With that, he spun around and shouted toward the village, “Second Brother, Second Sister-in-Law! Xiao Yunzi is back! Instantly, a chorus of barking dogs echoed through the village, followed by a commotion as a huge crowd rushed out—though Fang Yun’s house was a bit farther away, so his parents probably hadn’t heard yet. In a flash, a crowd surrounded him, though seeing so many soldiers, they didn’t dare get too close. They chattered excitedly, “Xiaoyunzi, where have you been?” “Xiaoyunzi, why haven’t you come home all these years?” Fang Yun was the first person in the village to get into college, and the villagers were all proud of him. Although he’d been a bit of a troublemaker as a child, he was good-looking and a smooth talker, so everyone in the small mountain village really liked him. Over the past six years that Fang Yun had been missing, everyone had pitched in to help look for him, so now that they saw him return, they were all deeply moved. Tears welled up in Fang Yun’s eyes, and he couldn’t bring himself to say a word. Suddenly, a heart-wrenching cry rang out from the village: “Yun! My little Yun! You’re finally back! Grandma has missed you so much!” Hearing this, Fang Yun jolted and snapped his head up. At the village entrance, his mom and dad were supporting Grandma as they rushed toward him. “Grandma! Mom and Dad!” Fang Yun let out a wail and sprinted toward them. “Thud”—the moment he reached his parents, he dropped to his knees with a heavy thud. “Ah… Little Yunzi…” Grandma and Mom immediately embraced Fang Yun and wept uncontrollably. Fang Yun’s father stood to the side, too overcome with emotion to speak; he could only nod repeatedly, his eyes red-rimmed. Seeing that his parents, though only in their fifties, were already completely gray-haired, Fang Yun realized just how worried they must have been about him during the years he’d been missing. The thought made his heart ache as if it were being torn apart. It took quite a while for everyone to calm down. Fang Yun’s father called out, “Fang Yun, let’s go home first. Are those your friends? Invite them along too,” pointing at the group of soldiers. “Right, right, right. We’ve all gotten a bit confused. Quick, invite them inside to rest,” Fang Yun’s mother said hurriedly. “Okay, I’ll go get them,” Fang Yun replied promptly. Fang Yun walked briskly back to the bridgehead. “Guys, thanks for all your hard work. We’re home now—let’s all go inside together.” “Yes!” the soldiers replied in a loud, unified chorus, startling the villagers gathered nearby. Fang Yun hopped into the car, drove it up to his parents, helped his parents and grandmother into the vehicle, and set off for home with the soldiers in tow. “Hey, what do you think Fang Yun has been up to these past few years? I can’t help but feel like he’s the leader of these soldiers,” Fang Guofang said to the person next to him. “That’s not very likely,” the man replied, clearly skeptical. “Why not? Didn’t you see how Fang Yun just ordered them to enter the village, and they all answered in unison? That’s exactly how it’s shown on TV. Fang Yun must be their leader. Could it be that our old Fang family has finally produced an official?” Fang Guofang grew more and more excited the more he thought about it. Hearing this, the group nearby thought to themselves, “That’s right—on TV, whenever an official gives an order, his subordinates all respond in unison. Could the Fang family really be producing an official?” With that thought, everyone hurried toward Fang Yun’s house. But Fang Guofang reached out to stop them. “Listen, everyone, don’t rush. Fang Yun came back unexpectedly today and brought so many soldiers home with him. His family surely isn’t prepared. Go back first and see what you have—bring it all over to Fang Yun’s house to help entertain the guests. We don’t want outsiders to think we people of Qiaotou Village are rude or neglectful of our guests.” “Guofang is right. I happen to have a few fish at home—I’ll take them over to Fang Yun’s place to help cook them.” “I’ve been meaning to slaughter a chicken for a while now—I might as well bring that, too.” One after another, everyone chipped in with what they could, then headed home to fetch supplies to entertain the guests. That evening, Fang Yun’s family set up several tables, and one by one, the simple mountain folk toasted the soldiers. Mountain folk are down-to-earth; when guests come, they insist on entertaining them until they’ve had their fill. The soldiers were just as generous and immediately joined in the drinking contest. By the end, they were all staggering as they walked, while Fang Yun’s parents couldn’t stop smiling all night long. Fang Yun held his grandmother’s hand as he answered a steady stream of questions. Although he had an older brother and a younger brother, his grandmother doted on him the most. Ever since she was little, Grandma had never been able to bring herself to eat anything particularly delicious; she would always secretly hide it away and give it to Fang Yun alone, behind her older brother and younger brother’s backs. Even now, her older brother and younger brother sometimes teased her about being biased. Whenever Fang Yun got into trouble and her parents were about to scold her, she would shout, “Grandma, help!” Immediately, Grandma would rush in and give her parents a stern lecture. And just like that, Fang Yun was saved. Thanks to this trick, she never got spanked as a child.