Grandpa Meng understood everything after Commander Lei had said his piece.
Even if they had them, he wouldn't have given them. Their greed disgusted him from the bottom of his heart.
"That, that..." Commander Lei himself felt he had gone too far, and found the next words difficult to utter.
Before Commander Lei could finish, Grandpa Meng cut him off, "To forge such a fine steel saber, an immense amount of good materials must have been used. Even a noble family, with the entire family's resources, might not be able to gather such a sum. Otherwise, there wouldn't be another saber like it in the Great Ming."
Commander Lei's mind raced, and thinking of the saber's weight and size, he felt a pang of shame.
He had been too greedy. Even with the Lei family's vast wealth, they couldn't produce so many good materials.
That was fine steel, just as Uncle Meng the Second had said. Which of those aristocratic families could produce it?
The saber he had intercepted was likely crafted with the best materials his master had accumulated over a lifetime. And he still wanted more? He felt he had gone too far.
Grandpa Meng, however, was resolute and unwilling to speak further.
Commander Lei: The atmosphere had become a bit awkward, but he didn't know what else to say. What should he do!
Qi Yuanshan: Easy.
"Commander, it's almost mealtime. Why don't you return to the garrison with your subordinate for a meal?"
"Alright." Commander Lei took the opportunity to retreat. Alas, he had planned to have a meal at the Meng family's to get closer to them.
But he had been too eager, and now he was too embarrassed to stay any longer.
Alas, a miscalculation.
Grandpa Meng: I wanted you to retreat on your own, so I wouldn't have to waste more words.
Qi Yuanshan: Uncle Meng, I will do as you wish. I'll get him out of here now.
Qi Yuanshan hadn't expected it to be so easy. He had just tried it out, and Commander Lei had actually agreed to leave with him.
Qi Yuanshan immediately stood up and led the Commander out. Lifting the curtain, opening the door – his actions were all in one smooth motion, as if he was afraid that if Commander Lei walked any slower, he might come up with some new trick.
Damn it, they had finally got Commander Lei out of the Meng family's gate. Qi Yuanshan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and thought to himself: It really took a lot of effort to get this bothersome fellow out of Uncle Meng's house.
Grandpa Meng politely came out to see them off. As he watched Commander Lei and his entourage leave, he remembered to look for his granddaughter and grandson. "Xiao He, have you seen Ci'er and the others?"
"I haven't seen them. They must be in the back," Qi He hadn't seen Sister Fu and the others either.
"Possibly." Grandpa Meng recalled that his nieces were helping to make quilts in the back and didn't go to check, returning directly to his East room.
Fu Xin Ci heard footsteps and left. After carefully listening to make sure no one was nearby, she cautiously emerged from her space.
She observed for a moment more, and seeing no one in the courtyard, she began to blink away, flash, flash, flash again...
By the time she returned to her room, she heard her cousins still making quilts in the West room. She then gently took Yu'er, who was already asleep, out of her space, placed him on the kang, and pulled a quilt over him.
"Squeak squeak." Little White discovered that this human was cunning.
"What did you say?"
"Squeak squeak." This White says you're very clever.
"Clever is clever, but why compare it to a thief? Thieves aren't good people."
Little White: Is that how it's supposed to be compared? It didn't know that.
Fu Xin Ci: With a sly smile, she then took a pot of hot tea and two plates of small pastries to the West room.
When Yu'er woke up, he felt a little regretful. "Sister, can I sleep a little longer?"
Fu Xin Ci could guess the reason, but she still cooperated by asking, "Why?"
Yu'er didn't hide anything from his sister's inquiry. He shyly revealed his thoughts, "Sister, I just want to eat delicious food in my dreams." After saying this, he chuckled a little shyly.
"Squeak squeak." Let's see what you do this time.
Fu Xin Ci's expression faltered for a moment, especially when she met Yu'er's hopeful eyes. A trace of guilt rose in her heart.
But thinking of the unclear circumstances at the time, she didn't regret bringing Yu'er into the space.
Yu'er was also a clever child. Seeing his sister's unhappy expression, he immediately retracted his words.
"Sister, I won't sleep anymore. Let's go find Grandpa in the front."
"Okay, let's go find Grandpa together." Fu Xin Ci said, then helped Yu'er put on his outer jacket and led him to the front yard.
Grandpa Meng had been worried about the two children. Seeing them come hand in hand, he asked his granddaughter, "Where were you two siblings before?"
Before his sister could answer, Yu'er replied first, "Grandpa, Yu'er had a dream. In the dream, I ate a lot of delicious food." As he spoke, Yu'er counted on his fingers what delicious things he had eaten.
Qi He: Here we go again. He remembered that on the way to Liaodong, Yu'er always said he ate a lot of delicious food in his dreams, which made the Meng children almost cry with envy.
Grandpa Meng, however, understood the meaning behind his grandson's words. It was likely that Ci'er had taken Yu'er into the small world when Commander Lei and his men arrived.
Ci'er, afraid that Yu'er might slip up, had tricked her brother into dreaming.
Grandpa Meng understood what had happened, so he helped his granddaughter play along. "Mmm, our Yu'er is really good at dreaming. Yu'er, next time you dream of eating good food, be sure to take Grandpa with you."
"And don't forget to bring Brother Qi," Qi He chimed in.
"Mhm, next time I dream of eating good food, I'll definitely bring Grandpa and Brother Qi, and Little Zhi."
Listening to the little fellow's childish voice, Han Zhi was deeply touched. He hadn't expected that Brother Yu'er would even include him when talking about eating delicious food.
Qi He almost burst out laughing. He remembered that on the way to Liaodong, Yu'er had said the same thing, but this time Han Zhi was added.
But then he thought about it, and he seemed to have also dreamed of eating good food, sweet and fragrant.
Fu Xin Ci, however, thought differently. She was now concerned about what Commander Lei and Grandpa had discussed.
Grandpa Meng knew his granddaughter's concern and roughly recounted what Commander Lei had said earlier.
Fu Xin Ci was greatly angered upon hearing this. "I've never seen such a thick-skinned person! He already got a great deal and now wants double? Does he think everyone is a fool, or that he's the only son his mother had, and everything in the house belongs to him?"
Hearing Sister Fu scold Commander Lei, Qi He wanted to add a few words as well. "That person was truly excessive. Not only did he snatch my father's saber, but he wasn't satisfied and wanted more. I dare say, if he succeeds this time, there might be a next time."