Chapter 147: Family Matters

Seeing that the news about recruiting talent had already been spread, Cheng Feng decided to let those disciples persist for another three days.

Even if there were no harvest, Cheng Feng would accept it.

The reputation of the Hong Sect would certainly not be spread directly, and even the contact address was fake, but that address had Hong Sect disciples watching it; as long as someone inquired, wouldn't the feedback effect come?

Cheng Feng walked slowly back home, watching the luxurious three-courtyard mansion before him with a pleasant mood. His heart was filled with a sense of satisfaction, but at the same time, he realized that the silver in his hands was not much left.

Currently, he only had ninety taels in hand plus the two hundred taels obtained from the transaction just completed, totaling only two hundred and ninety taels.

Cai'er told him that the daily expenses of the family had forty taels left, which could barely sustain them for a period of time. And there were still over three hundred taels of reserve funds on the Hong Sect side.

At this very moment, Cheng Feng began to think about the matters on his hands.

First is the material from that red-scaled giant snake. He planned to use it to make Light Armor and arrowheads, though the remaining snake fangs, those parts as thick and long as an adult's arm, might still be able to be crafted into four sharp Bone Knives. This might require an additional investment of some silver.

As for the snake bones and snake gall, they could be used to brew fine wine. A few days ago, Cheng Feng had already sent people to custom-make five super-large wine jars, each at least as tall as a person, to ensure they could accommodate the massive snake bones. Cheng Feng estimated that these five jars should be enough to use.

Up to this point, the benefits brought by the red-scaled giant snake, which Cheng Feng had exchanged his life for, were basically exhausted.

It had already been five or six days since he brought the whole family over, and during this time, his parents and his elder brother and sister-in-law had gradually become familiar with the surrounding environment. The main task for Cheng Fu and Cheng Mu was to accompany the children; looking at these cute little lives, their faces were always filled with happy smiles.

However, the moods of the elder brother and sister-in-law had seemed a bit low recently. According to what Cai'er revealed to Cheng Feng, the elder brother and sister-in-law appeared somewhat cautious while living in the Cheng Mansion.

Cheng Feng knew very well in his heart that this was a common display of self-esteem in honest people; they worried about their brother living poorly, yet were also afraid of their brother becoming too successful. Regarding this situation, Cheng Feng expressed that he could understand and had long since made plans.

This day, in the study of the Cheng Mansion, Cheng Feng invited his elder brother and sister-in-law to drink tea and chat. After some pleasantries, he went straight to the point: "Big Brother, I see your complexion hasn't been good lately; are you feeling unwell?"

Cheng Shu hurriedly replied with a smile: "That's not it, it's just that I haven't done any work these past few days, and my heart is always thinking about the fields back home!"

The sister-in-law sitting to the side couldn't help but gently pat Cheng Shu's arm, saying with a hint of reproach: "Look at you, you've already come to the county town, yet you're still thinking about those few acres of fields back home!"

Cheng Shu scratched his head and gave a silly laugh, but his eyes still revealed a sense of attachment to the land of his hometown. Cheng Feng understood the thoughts of his elder brother and sister-in-law; they were used to a life of hard labor and felt somewhat uncomfortable suddenly having nothing to do. Thus, he decided to have a good talk with them about future plans.

"Big Brother, don't worry. The reason I moved our whole family to the county town is because I need your help here. Big Brother, you still remember me asking you to practice martial arts last year, right? I've already made arrangements with the Martial Arts Hall, and we can go tomorrow. I mainly came today to ask if you are used to living here. I just got back and have many things to do, so I'm afraid of not taking care of you well. If you feel it's inconvenient, I have a small courtyard outside, which was my first residence when I first came to the county town, not far from here. If you feel you aren't used to living here, you can live there." Cheng Feng calmly reassured Cheng Shu.

Seeing that Lao Er was so understanding, Cheng Shu was also quite moved. Living in Lao Er's house these past few days had indeed opened his eyes. But Lao Er had many family members, and looking at himself with only one wife, he did feel a bit constrained. If he learned martial arts, would he be able to be as glorious as Lao Er in the future?

On the other hand, the sister-in-law Liu Juan, seeing Cheng Shu's relieved look, sighed inwardly; the younger brother-in-law had made it big now and had the ability, so they should take the opportunity to build a good relationship and arrange for a job with higher income, why practice martial arts!

However, hearing that they could have a residence of their own, the concerns in her heart dissipated.

Since the younger brother-in-law came to invite them privately today, he must have already had a plan in mind, and it was also for the good of her and Da Shu. Liu Juan found it hard to agree directly, so she could only follow her husband's lead.

Cheng Feng watched his elder brother eager to try and full of longing for the Martial Dao, and nodded inwardly.

The thing most feared between people is comparison; Cheng Feng had to first let his elder brother Cheng Shu understand the hardships of the Martial Dao before he could proceed with subsequent actions.

If he only blindly treated his family well, but the family turned into ingrates, that would truly be a waste of his painstaking efforts.

To avoid unnecessary misunderstandings,

Since the elder brother was not used to living in the current Cheng Mansion, Cheng Feng decided to first let his elder brother transition into the house with the courtyard he had before, which would become the residence for the elder brother's family.

A proper distance might make the two families get along more comfortably and could also satisfy the sister-in-law's wishes.

The elder brother was already married, and Cheng Feng himself had women to take care of; he couldn't look after them all the time, or wouldn't he become a nanny?

As for his parents, that was naturally no problem. Cheng Fu and Cheng Mu were full of care for the children; if Cheng Feng had children in the future, it might make the two elders even happier. The two elders only needed to be responsible for enjoying their old age.

The Super Serum and Secret Manual in Room One had already been brought back to the Cheng Mansion by Cheng Feng.

Cheng Feng dug a hole in the corner of his master bedroom, enough to put the Secret Manual in.

Seeing that his elder brother and sister-in-law had no objections, Cheng Feng also felt relieved.

He had been busy these few days since his parents returned and hadn't paid attention to the situation at home, so he let Cai'er look after things on his behalf to prevent any conflicts among the family members.

Cai'er was indeed attentive; she had even discussed it a little with the sisters in private, telling everyone to be mindful. Even though Cheng Feng said his parents and family were very kind, the group of Concubines also dressed themselves carefully and spoke to his parents with caution.

Women are indeed meticulous; very soon, the women discovered that the elder brother and sister-in-law were living a bit awkwardly. Cai'er dared not be negligent and had communicated with the sister-in-law in private. Liu Juan also waved her hands repeatedly, saying there was no problem, just that she was a bit bored.

The women had some who had to take care of children, some who had to serve their men, and some who were preparing for pregnancy; having experienced much, they immediately understood that the sister-in-law was also worried about the issue of children.

Lao Er's family had already had three, but Lao Da's family hadn't had any movement yet; wasn't this a woman's problem? Cai'er communicated with Liu Juan for a while, understood where the problem lay, and guaranteed that this problem could be solved.

Thus came today's scene; Cheng Feng having an idea was one thing, and the actual needs of the elder brother's family were another.

If it happened to be a perfect fit, then that would be even better.

After solving the problem of the elder brother's family, Cheng Feng took the key and went straight to Number One Courtyard with his elder brother. Looking at the two-bedroom house with blue bricks and tiles, which also had a small courtyard for growing vegetables,

Cheng Shu's heart was filled with mixed feelings: "Lao Er, this, you're just giving the house to me?"

Cheng Feng laughed: "Otherwise? Big Brother, you have sacrificed so much for the family, what is getting a house? If you must have me set a condition, I actually do have two that you must fulfill."

Cheng Shu said impatiently: "Don't say two, I can do ten."

Cheng Feng looked at his elder brother's excited face: "Then I'm really going to say it?"

"Are you trying to kill me with anxiety? Say it quickly!" Cheng Shu urged.

"Alright, my request is very simple. The first one is that you must come to see our father and mother more often in the future; at least five times a month, no matter how long you stay, you must come." Cheng Feng said seriously.

Cheng Shu understood: "Hey, does this even need you to say? These are our father and mother, not just yours alone."

Cheng Feng didn't mind: "You'll know how hard this is later. The second one is that you and sister-in-law hurry up and have a little nephew; although father and mother haven't said it, I know that's what they are thinking."

Cheng Shu's neck turned red with embarrassment: "Don't worry, this doesn't need you to arrange; I'll have one immediately once I'm settled here." Cheng Feng saw his elder brother was shy and smiled slightly. The two brothers tidied things up and returned to the Cheng Mansion.