We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

Chapter 946 Zhang's Father

Fenzhou, a remote village.

As dawn broke, the crowing of roosters echoed throughout Zhangjia Village.

With his back hunched, Zhang's father carried a well-worn hoe, pushed open his dilapidated wooden door, and silently walked towards the fields outside the village.

My son, Zhang Qian, has been away from home to Beijing for more than three months, and I haven't heard from him at all.

But the work in the fields couldn't stop; it was the foundation for the father and son's livelihood.

Over the years, the family has sold a lot of the land that could be sold, and the few acres of thin land that remain need to be carefully tended.

Although Zhang's father was old, he had been working the land all his life and still had a lot of strength.

His thinking was simple and stubborn: as long as he could still move, he would not stop working in the fields.

On the path at the village entrance, neighbors gathered in twos and threes, preparing to begin their day's work.

When they saw Zhang's father going to the fields alone again, some people cast sympathetic glances, while others curled their lips and looked on with schadenfreude.

People say that country folk are simple and honest, but everything has two sides.

Zhang Qian has traveled around studying in various places over the years. At first, the villagers were quite enthusiastic about him and even pooled their money to pay for his tuition.

After all, if there is someone in the village who can read and write, they can benefit from it, and it will be more convenient for them to handle things on a daily basis.

But as time went on, things changed.

Especially when they saw that Zhang Qian read books every day but still hadn't gotten any job, everyone's opinion began to change.

Why do we study every day if we want to be noticed by those high-ranking officials and get a job in the county government?

Why should I? We all toil in the fields for a living, why do you think you can have such a dream?

When everyone else is giving up, your ambition becomes a sin.

As a result, in recent years, the villagers have become increasingly indifferent to Zhang Qian.

Seeing Zhang's father approach alone, a woman who was always gossipy spoke first, her voice sharp and sarcastic:

"Hey, Old Zhang, going to the fields by yourself again? Where's your precious son?"

"It's been almost half a year since he left, and he hasn't sent a single word home. I hope he's been scammed out there!"

Mr. Zhang's face darkened, and his eyebrows furrowed.

He didn't even lift his eyelids, but simply tightened his grip on the hoe on his shoulder and quickened his pace as if he hadn't heard.

Seeing that he didn't dare to respond, another woman chimed in, her tone seemingly gentle but actually adding fuel to the fire: "His aunt, you can't say that."

"Zhang Qian is a scholar, and he has high aspirations. Maybe he's gone out to study and visit famous teachers!"

The woman who spoke first immediately snorted coldly, raising her voice even higher as if afraid no one would miss her: "Study abroad? Him? He doesn't even deserve to be called a study abroad student!"

"If you ask me, she's just clueless!"

"He doesn't even look at his own family's situation. I'm working myself to the bone at home, while he's out there having a good time."

"I bet he picked up some bad habits outside and is too ashamed to come back!"

"Don't you dare gossip!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang's father could no longer contain himself. His eyes flashed with anger, and he growled, "My son is filial. He has worked hard all these years and brought a lot of money home. He is not that kind of person!"

Although Zhang Qian was away from home most of the year, he was still literate, and in those days, being literate was a rare talent.

Even writing a letter or doing accounting for someone can earn you a little money.

The woman was taken aback by his shout, then, as if she had caught him red-handed, she put her hands on her hips and sneered repeatedly: "Take the silver? Heh, if you took the silver, why did you sell all the fields? Do you think everyone is blind?"

"When your wife was seriously ill, and when your daughter got married, wasn't it always money raised by selling land?"

"What can your son do with the meager earnings? He'll just be living off his savings forever!"

Zhang's father's throat seemed to be blocked; he opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

The woman was telling the truth; the money her son worked so hard to earn was indeed just a drop in the bucket for this family that had suffered so many misfortunes.

Selling the land was a last resort, and it was also his deepest pain.

Seeing that he was speechless, the woman became even more smug, as if she had won a battle: "My family was kind enough to buy your good field by the water earlier, and we offered a fair price, but you refused no matter what."

"Now look what's happened! The more they cultivate the land, the poorer it becomes, and they can't even get a good price to sell it! Serves them right!"

Zhang's father's face was ashen, his chest heaving violently. He forced out a sentence through gritted teeth: "If I can't sell it, I'll leave it to grow wild rather than sell it to your family! How can a farmer's family be without land?!"

"Hmph! You're so stubborn, you'll suffer for it! Let's see how long you can keep up this act..."

The woman sneered, just about to continue her mockery.

Suddenly, a boy came running from the dirt road outside the village, waving his arms and shouting at the top of his lungs:

"Quick! Go to the village entrance and see!"

"This is incredible! People from the imperial court have arrived! Lots of officials and constables are riding tall horses, banging gongs and drums, and even... even the county magistrate has come along!"

The shout was like a thunderclap from a clear sky, instantly resounding throughout the entire Zhangjia Village.

All the villagers by the roadside, including the chattering woman and Zhang's father, were stunned and stared in unison toward the village entrance.

What earth-shattering event could possibly happen in such a remote and impoverished place?