Chapter 49

Chen Jue lifted the curtain and pointed out the direction: "Not really—I don't even remember."

He knew where the house was because he'd been there before—but only to look, never to go inside.

Huo Jilin paused: "Then do you know which ones are your parents?"

Turns out Chen Jue was even worse than him—he hadn't kept a single memory from the original Chen Jue.

Chen Jue looked toward the rather conspicuous five-bay compound at the eastern end of the village. The courtyard wall was made of blue bricks.

His family was considered upper-middle class even in the wealthy Chen Family Village, because they dealt in herbal medicine and were always in the know.

He recognized the original Chen Jue's father not from memory, but because he had come to observe—he had once held a faint hope that his parents might look like Director Zhou or Dean Chen. No such luck.

Which made sense. Dean Chen and Director Zhou weren't his biological parents; he'd been abandoned as a baby.

So even though Chen Jue had once stood on their doorstep, he had never stepped inside.

Just like Huo Jilin, he didn't know these people at all.

Huo Jilin saw the look in Chen Jue's eyes and knew he couldn't count on him for help. So he figured he'd just roll with it—after all, a son-in-law isn't a son. Even if he got something wrong, his father-in-law wouldn't make a fuss.

Besides, he'd brought gifts. They couldn't exactly kick him out, right?

Huo Jilin's guess was right—fathers-in-law had always been good to their sons-in-law. It was just how patriarchy worked.

Of course, that was yet to be seen.

The moment Huo Jilin arrived at their doorstep, a young boy in embroidered clothes playing by the entrance asked: "Who are you looking for? You here to sell medicine?"

The kid didn't even recognize Chen Jue's husband. Huo Jilin let out a small laugh, not sure whether to blame the original body for never visiting or the Chen family for not liking him.

Huo Jilin didn't bother with the kid, parked the carriage, and helped Chen Jue down. The two stood at the gate while the kid scurried back inside, yelling: "Grandpa! Grandpa! Little uncle's here with a big carriage! The horse is huge! Come look!"

Oh, so the kid did know Chen Jue—they hadn't come to the wrong house after all.

Huo Jilin stayed put, looking up at the Chen family's gate. It was a nice setup—a big gate, a roomy courtyard, and the blue-brick walls even had decorative patterns. He could see through the brick gaps that the courtyard was spacious.

The Chens were way better off than his own family.

Huo Jilin thought about how the original Huo Jilin had ended up marrying Chen Jue.

If Huo Lin hadn't carried Chen Jue down the mountain, Chen Jue never would've married him. The families didn't match up in status.

From the looks of it, the Chens probably didn't think much of him as a son-in-law.

Sure enough, Chen Jue's father came out when his grandson called him. He stroked his goatee and said, sounding annoyed: "Since you're here, why aren't you coming in?"

"Big horse! So tall!" The boy pointed at the imposing steed outside.

The horse had fully recovered after all the careful tending these past days—it really was a fine-looking animal.

Chen Jue's father was tall and had sharp eyes. He naturally spotted Huo Jilin's carriage too, and his brow creased a little. He knew this son-in-law had made it back alive from the war.

He'd also gotten a hundred taels of silver. Was the money burning a hole in his pocket?

It'd only been a few days, and he'd already gone and bought a carriage?! Couldn't he save it and live decently?! Was he planning to live off their handouts?!

Chen Jue's father was already disapproving before he even asked. But he aimed his displeasure only at Chen Jue: "You're this far along and you still had to come by carriage?"

Chen Jue didn't say anything, didn't greet anyone, just stood there.

Just then, a woman in a blue cloth headscarf came out of the house. She wiped her hands on her apron and hurried over: "Is that Jue Geer? Jue Geer!"

Her voice broke into a sob, but Chen Jue's father snapped at her: "What are you crying for? On a happy day like this, aren't you afraid people will laugh? Get inside."

The woman quickly wiped her tears and went to take Chen Jue's arm, saying to Huo Jilin beside him: "Son-in-law, come in and have some tea. You must be thirsty from the trip, right?"

Huo Jilin nodded and smiled at her: "Mother, I brought some small gifts in the carriage. Just a little something."

Huo Jilin then pointed at the horse: "This horse is pretty wild. Best not to get too close while it's tied up here."

He was looking at the child who was pulling a younger-looking woman toward the horse.

Chen Jue's mother quickly said to the boy: "Chenchen, don't touch the big horse. Third daughter-in-law, take the son-in-law inside first."

The third daughter-in-law quickly grabbed Chenchen's hand, also staring in surprise at the tall horse. She never imagined the Huo family could afford such a fine horse.

When this young brother-in-law had married into the family back then, she had accompanied him—the Huo family had been so poor they could barely keep the pot boiling.

Even if he'd come back from the battlefield with silver, he shouldn't be spending it like this.

The third daughter-in-law looked at the silk clothes on Chen Jue and Huo Jilin, not knowing what to say.

Was this a triumphant return home?

She hadn't expected Chen Jue to come back for a visit today. When he'd married out back then, things hadn't ended pleasantly. This young brother-in-law wasn't the type for easy banter, and they'd never gotten along well as in-laws.

Now his temper didn't seem to have improved either. The third daughter-in-law watched Chen Jue's perpetually expressionless face, and her smile was starting to falter. They said sisters-in-law were hard to please, but this young brother-in-law was no better.

She should have left early today—it was all her children's fault for dawdling, and now she was stuck here.

Chen Jue's third brother came out then, also taking in their transformed appearance. He smiled at the two of them: "Come in, come in. Dalin's finally here. We were thinking you two might not make it today."

Huo Jilin could more or less tell that this family hadn't prepared at all for their visit.

Wasn't this a major festival? Why hadn't they expected them to come? It seemed they weren't exactly welcome here before.

Probably because of poverty.

By now, Chen Jue's mother had spotted the things in the carriage—especially the two bolts of silk. She scolded first: "You should have just come empty-handed. Why buy so much cloth, and such expensive silk at that? We country folk can't wear things like this!"

She might have been the only one in the family still wearing rough cotton. Everyone else—Chen Jue's father, the third son, his wife, and the children—was dressed in silk.

Though they had dressed up today for the visit, the difference was obvious at a glance. Chen Jue's mother was too meek, like an old servant in her own home, unwilling to spend on food or clothing for herself.

Chen Jue had understood this the first time he came. That's why he knew that even if he gave her silver bracelets, she'd end up passing them to her daughters-in-law.

Chen Jue's mother had no idea what he was thinking. She kept fussing about him wasting money—the carriage held not only silk but also wine and pastries.

Gifts for young and old alike.

Was this boy trying to bankrupt himself?!

The third daughter-in-law averted her eyes from the gifts, and her smile became a bit more genuine. A triumphant return did have its benefits after all. She hadn't expected this young brother-in-law to finally learn some social grace—or maybe it was his husband who'd prepared everything. Either way, at least he hadn't come empty-handed.

Chen Jue's father looked at the two jars of fine wine and said nothing more, just told the third son to brew some tea.

After three rounds of tea, Huo Jilin raised his cup. This was actually the reason Chen's father was reluctant to deal with Huo Jilin—this Huo Lin, whose family was so poor it rattled, couldn't even scrape together two taels of silver for a bride price, yet still had all these fussy airs.

But at this moment, a little courtesy never hurt anybody.

Chen's father cleared his throat, playing the senior card, and asked about Huo Jilin's affairs.

Huo Jilin didn't say much about the battlefield, and Chen's father didn't know much about it either, so Huo Jilin brushed it off with a few words and changed the subject.

After all, the fact that he was sitting here now meant he had come back alive.

Huo Jilin brought up the topic of medicine merchants.

This was something he could chat about with Chen's father in a casual, back-and-forth way, without coming across as too aloof or disrespectful.

Chen's father was a buyer of medicinal herbs, and in his previous life, Huo Jilin had been the CEO of the largest pharmaceutical company group. Even if he only touched on the surface, he could keep his father-in-law from nitpicking.

So the father-in-law grew more and more fond of him, feeling that in this one year, he'd really turned himself around—not only could he hold a conversation, but he also knew his stuff about herbs and the medicine trade.

Chen's father asked him, "Dalin, it's been a year—how'd you get so sharp on herbs?"

Huo Jilin's expression didn't change. He casually slung an arm over the back of the silent man beside him, Chen Jue, and said with a smile, "I only knew a little before. After Jue Geer came, I learned a lot from him. Jue Geer said he'd only scratched the surface with you, which shows you, Father-in-law, are even more impressive."

Chen Jue had barely spoken since entering the room—just sipping his tea, blending into the wallpaper like he wasn't part of this family. Though that was indeed the case, shouldn't they at least put on a show?

Chen Jue glanced at him. He wouldn't back him up, but he didn't call him out either, just let him ramble.

From the moment he'd walked in, he hadn't said more than five words. If not for Huo Jilin making small talk and smoothing things over, Chen's father would have already started scolding him. Even now, Chen's father said to Huo Jilin's face, "He's like a block of wood—no wonder he's only picked up scraps. Lucky for him you're so kind, son-in-law. From now on, be sure to teach him well."

Huo Jilin glanced at Chen Jue, who remained expressionless, as if utterly indifferent to this harsh, old-school patriarchal jab.

Chen's father went on: "And don't get cocky just because you've got a kid now. You still do what you're supposed to do. At home, you listen to Dalin. Don't talk back. Take care of the house and raise the kid right..."

Chen Jue just gave him a blank, emotionless look—like he was looking at a stranger—no, an alien.

That look got under Chen's father's skin. He slammed the table: "Look at your attitude! Nothing gets through to you. You just sit there with that deadpan face, who knows what's going on in your head. Son-in-law, you need to straighten him out... fix that attitude of his... Otherwise, how's he gonna take care of you properly!"

Huo Jilin fell silent.

Even he—a chauvinist, a control freak—couldn't sit through this.

How could Chen's father have such severe patriarchal notions? It wasn't like he was an emperor.

Discipline Chen Jue? He wouldn't dare.

Back when he was the client and boss, Chen Jue could walk right past him without a glance, treating him like a ghost. Let alone now.

Chen Jue had been speaking in one- or two-word sentences for days now.

Because Huo Jilin was staring at him in silence, Chen's father froze for a moment.

Had he said something wrong?

Why was his son-in-law looking at him so strangely?