Chapter 3: Rainy Night

Yuying gently caressed the head of her younger brother Hanwei, feeling both heartbroken and regretful as she said, "Take more care of yourself and go to bed early"

Heikzi busily gave himself a symbolic slap on the face and smiled, saying: "I misspoke, I misspoke, I deserve to be punished, I deserve to be punished"

Today marks the anniversary of Sister-in-law Xianru's passing, and coincidentally, Elder Brother is not at home

Like many families, the relationship between Sister Yuning and her stepson Liang'er is fraught with tension, akin to that of sworn enemies. Liang'er, lacking in cleverness and charm, is overly dependent on and misses his biological mother, making it difficult for him to accept his stepmother. To make matters worse, last month, Liang'er inadvertently overheard a conversation between Sister Yuning and her family, during which she revealed the embezzlement scandal involving the Ni family to the press, resulting in her uncle from the maternal side suffering a complete loss of reputation and nearly severing ties with the Yang family

Yang Hanwei spat in anger, and only then did Xiao Heizi realize he had misspoken. At the ball held at the Cai Mansion that day, the renowned young master Li Xiaoyun and Zhao Saner, who had rushed from Shanghai to experience the 'male wind' of Longcheng, mistook the piano-playing young master Hanwei for a piano boy and teased him, which led to the subsequent awkward events and created enmity.

Returning to his room, Han Wei threw himself onto the soft and comfortable bed as if he had been relieved of a heavy burden. Although he had briefly shone as a translator the day before, his elder brother did not praise him; yet, he could see affirmation in his brother's gaze. Now, those two ruffians from Shanghai had fled in disgrace, which was a great relief to everyone. He proudly hugged the tiger-shaped pillow and rolled over on the bed.

He went to great lengths to speak well of his nephew, Xiao Liang, in order to help him stand out.

Han Wei has always referred to this successor sister-in-law as "sister." He does not have strong feelings, positive or negative, towards this sister-in-law; rather, the esteemed title of "sister-in-law" has been deeply buried with the passing of his first sister-in-law, Xianru, who raised him since childhood, and can no longer be bestowed upon any woman by his elder brother.

It is said that Li Xiaoyun, a cousin of the Cai family, had his leg bitten to shreds by a dog; the flesh wounds should not be serious. However, the situation regarding Zhao Sangongzi, who claims to be the young master of the Blue Gang, is uncertain. When the firearm exploded, it released a mass of iron sand, and it is said that none of it was wasted, all landing beneath him. Rumor has it that he might end up without descendants. Little Heizi laughed heartily, pounding his chest and rubbing his belly, and Han Wei couldn't help but laugh as well, thinking that Sister Yuning must have learned that the Cai family's relative had been found, which is why she did not pursue the matter further. Fortunately, during these days, the elder brother was too busy to read the newspapers, and he cleverly hid the newspapers at home. A sly smile crept into his heart, as this matter seemed to have settled down.

Sister Yu Ning smiled gently and asked him, "Little brother, why is it so busy in the camp today? We even missed dinner. Fortunately, your elder brother is not at home; otherwise, both you and your uncle would be returning late, which would surely anger him"

***

He turned around and leaned over the desk to continue reviewing the documents left by his elder brother, which was his daily essential "window lesson." Those in the military who were familiar with their brothers jokingly referred to him as the elder brother's "second secretary." Over the past year, the elder brother had increasingly "looked after" this brother, and at times, when there were many documents, it truly kept him busy to the point of sleeplessness.

The sound of knocking echoed as Yu Ning entered the room, holding a plate of pastries in her hands

Taking two steps back, she turned and smiled at him, reminding: "Little brother, today is the anniversary of Sister Xianru's passing. I have prepared offerings and burned joss paper in her room on behalf of your elder brother. How could you and your uncle forget such an important day? Let's go pay our respects later."

Sister Yu Ning, even at home, is elegantly adorned, wearing a beige qipao draped with a pearl shawl, her light makeup exuding grace, and as one approaches, a waft of fragrance accompanies her.

Rushing down the stairs

They dared! They obediently rolled back to Shanghai, and I heard they were taken away by plane last night. Little Heizi chuckled and cursed, "Young master, just rest assured and sleep soundly; that person surnamed Li is blind and doesn't realize whose territory this is!"

Thank you for your trouble, sister. Han Wei stood up to greet her, revealing a sweet smile. She skipped to the bathroom to wash her hands, then returned and pinched a piece of flaky pastry to put in her mouth. Pointing to the heavy rain outside, she said, "With the rain coming down so heavily, will my brother's flight still land on time?"

Little Heizi chuckled softly: "These two fellows are clueless, not knowing how to find their way down from the back mountain. With their bodies exposed and no cover, they went out in the middle of the night to steal the big floral underpants hanging in the courtyard of a farmer's wife in a nearby village, only to be chased and bitten by the guard dog, a big yellow one, thinking they were thieves"

To speak frankly, since Sister Yuning married into the Yang family, she has treated her younger brother quite well. Although the elder brother has a bad temper and often scolds him, it is Sister Yuning who cleverly intercedes and pleads for him. However, he has never been willing to call Sister Yuning "sister-in-law".

Han Wei was taken aback, his face showing joy, but he soon put down the red and blue pencils in his hand and feigned calmness as he asked: "Where did you find it? I said, it must be a false alarm; how could two living people just disappear without a trace?"

Yang Hanwei could no longer contain himself upon hearing this, bursting into laughter and leaning back in his swivel chair as if relieved, exclaiming: "You little rascal, I only said to scare them a bit, but you went and stripped them completely. Running around naked in the middle of the night is quite indecent"

Han Wei smiled and said, "Sister, you are overthinking; elder brother is just honing Wei'er."

He paused his steps, standing halfway on the stairs, and bowed slightly to greet, "Elder brother, you have returned? The wind is strong and the rain is heavy outside; it has been a hard journey for you."

Han Chen stood on the rain mat in the foyer, while Yu Ning was assisting him in removing his military uniform jacket, and Aunt Luo was helping him take off his boots

If you are overwhelmed, just tell your brother directly to find someone else to help manage things. Don't wear yourself out; this is a crucial time for your growth.

He secretly took his nephew Xiao Liang to pay respects at the grave of his late sister-in-law, fearing that it would upset Sister Yu Ning. To avoid her displeasure, he concocted some excuses to cover up his actions. Sister Yu Ning is generally agreeable, but there has always been a lack of harmony with Xiao Liang, the son left behind by his sister-in-law Xianru. Whenever the topic of Sister Xianru arises, the atmosphere at home becomes extremely tense.

"Young Master, Young Master, there is a joyous occasion, a great joyous occasion!" Little Heizi excitedly entered Han Wei's bedroom, "Young Master, those two scoundrels have been found."

He looked up at the Hanwei upstairs and calmly instructed, "Aren't you asleep yet? Go to bed, it's getting late."

"The more matters there are, the easier it is to forget things in the midst of busyness, and mistakes are inevitable." Yu Ning's voice hesitated, but her gaze was assessing her younger brother Han Wei. However, she swallowed back the words she wanted to say and asked with a smile: "I heard that the main road outside the West Gate was washed away by a mountain flood today. You must have taken that road, which delayed your return home, right?"

"Yes! Big Brother!" Han Wei respectfully withdrew.

Younger brother, are you hungry? Have something to fill your stomach. I instructed Mother Xue to make you a cup of coffee to refresh you

Did those two bastards not seek revenge? Han Wei asked

The sky is filled with flashes of lightning and the roar of thunder, with torrential rain pouring down. The summer weather changes as unpredictably as a child's face; yesterday it was bright and sunny, yet today it is raining heavily.

The sound of a car horn echoed from the yard outside, and Han Wei abruptly leaped from his seat, leaning against the window to peer out, muttering to himself, "Big brother!"

With a sudden sniff, "Achoo!" Han Wei looked at Sister Yu Ning with a startled gaze, his trembling lips revealing a hint of unease and guilt. Could it be that he had underestimated her intentions? If Sister Yu Ning were to find out that he and Liang Er had deceived her by secretly going to the cemetery to pay respects to Sister Xian Ru, he wondered what her thoughts would be

Han Wei hesitated for a moment; he had gone to pay respects at the grave today and had not gone to the camp at all, merely nodding absentmindedly in response.

Han Wei wearily sat beside the desk, gazing out the window at the lights that illuminated the densely falling rain, a sense of melancholy arising within him

Although it was a few days ago's newspaper, Han Wei could not help but shudder. He had already sent someone to teach the newspaper office a lesson and had silenced the major newspapers in Longcheng, ensuring that no similar "scandals" would emerge. However, the continued disappearance of Li Xiaoyun, Tu Shu, and Zhao San was giving him a headache. Sister Yuning was a close friend of Lady Lucy from the Cai family, and afterward, Lucy had called several times, crying and asking about Sister Yuning, but he always maintained an innocent demeanor and had nothing to say.

Who knows what misfortune has befallen these two lads. When that yellow dog barks, the villagers think it’s a bear or a mountain spirit causing a ruckus, and they rush out only to see two white figures howling and darting about in the distance. They then chase after them and fire a few shots. As luck would have it, one of the shots hits the slow-running Zhao San in the backside. Little Heizi, not waiting for the story to finish, is already laughing so hard he can hardly stand: "Oh dear, let them have their ill intentions; this time they’ve truly witnessed what 'Dragon City' malevolence is like"

As Yu Ning left, Han Wei, with a look of astonishment, noticed a neatly folded "Longcheng Daily" on the table. A photograph caught his eye; the person in the photo, who was pointing a gun at Zhao San's head, was none other than himself. The headline read, "In a fit of rage for a beauty, Young Master Yang of the Yang Family challenges a rival with a gun."

After the negotiation concluded, the elder brother hurriedly left for Shanghai without knowing the reason. I am also uncertain whether, in this torrential rain, he will be able to return to Longcheng tonight as scheduled. What troubles me even more is the relentless downpour; the embankment of the Huanglong River is likely in grave danger once again. The fields, the refugees, the flood—each and every issue weighs heavily on Han Wei's mind. It seems that heaven is particularly unkind, deliberately making things difficult for Longcheng.

The sound of footsteps "dong dong dong dong" came to a halt, and the figure of the elder brother had already entered his line of sight

"There are some issues with the river embankment defense, I am busy..." Han Wei ambiguously arranged his response, pondering the intentions of Sister Yu Ning.