Feb 3, 2026
Chapter 24 — We Don’t Need You to Feel Sorry For Us! • Go to the Market
Early the next morning, after the father and sons finished their usual run and boxing practice, Ling Jingxuan pushed a handcart and headed for Yuehua Ditch. Since they were all going to the county market today anyway, he planned to catch more fish and take them straight to town to sell. Before leaving, he didn’t forget to remind the two buns to turn off the stove once the medicine on it finished boiling. What he overlooked, however, was their curiosity about the man next door. Some things could be brushed off verbally, but blood ties were blood ties—no matter what they said, they couldn’t truly be indifferent.
Yan Shengrui had practiced martial arts for many years and had exceptionally sharp hearing. He knew almost everything that happened in this household, including yesterday’s conversation between Ling Jingxuan and the two buns, as well as Ling Jingxuan’s talk about grape wine, jam, and the like. Though he had lost his memory, many instincts still remained. In just a short period of contact, he’d already gained a fair understanding of Ling Jingxuan’s character, and because of that, curiosity had quietly taken root in his heart, lingering and refusing to fade.
Of course, that didn’t mean he had fallen for Ling Jingxuan. It was just that, compared to recovering his memories, he wanted more to understand Ling Jingxuan—to know more about him.
“This is your medicine. Daddy cooked black-flour mushroom paste this morning. Hurry up and eat.”
The two buns hesitated outside the door for a long while before finally shoving each other inside. With a stern face, Ling Wen set two large sea bowls in front of him, never once lifting his eyes to look at him, and thus missing the man’s focused gaze. Ling Wu, on the other hand, hid behind Ling Wen, but his eyes kept sneaking glances at the man. After Daddy had mentioned it, he’d finally noticed just how alike they really looked—like they’d been carved from the same mold.
“You eat this every day?”
Knowing the children didn’t welcome him, Yan Shengrui didn’t overstep. He withdrew his gaze and looked down at the pitch-black paste. A few brown mushroom pieces floated in it. Thinking back to the food Ling Jingxuan had brought him these past few days, it all seemed to be the same sort of thing. Yan Shengrui raised his head, a faint trace of heartache sliding through his deep, dark eyes.
He’d forgotten everything—naturally, that included what he himself looked like. Having been lying down these past few days, he hadn’t even had a chance to see his own reflection. As for the children’s appearance, he didn’t feel much about it—but whenever he looked at them, a strange tenderness and ache would rise unbidden in his heart.
“What’s wrong with eating this? Having something to eat is already good enough.”
Ling Wen was sensitive. Thinking the man was looking down on their food, he lifted his head, eyes reddening as he glared fiercely at him. His small hands clenched into fists, lips pressed tight and trembling faintly, showing just how hard he was holding it in. Yan Shengrui froze, then propped himself up.
“Don’t misunderstand. I didn’t mean to look down on it. I was just… feeling sorry for you.”
He didn’t know why, but he simply didn’t want the two children to feel any resentment toward him. Perhaps this was what people meant by the instinctive bond between father and son.
“If you really felt sorry, why did you leave Daddy back then? Why did you leave us? We don’t need your pity!”
After shouting in fury, Ling Wen grabbed Ling Wu’s hand and ran out. Yan Shengrui was too late to catch them. After a long while, he slowly withdrew the hand he’d reached out, a helpless, shallow smile appearing at his lips. It seemed the two little ones harbored quite a bit of resentment toward him.
Lingjia Village was fairly well located and not far from the county seat. Walking there took about half an hour; riding an ox cart was faster, though each person cost one copper coin, and goods were charged separately. Today, Ling Jingxuan had caught four buckets of fish. With Ling Jingpeng’s help, the four of them pushed the handcart toward the village entrance to catch a ride.
Along the way, there was no avoiding the pointing fingers and whispered comments. The little bun, who had finally become a bit more lively these past few days, shrank behind Ling Jingxuan in embarrassment. Because they were so prematurely sensible and understanding, the idle gossip—and even outright insults—cut them all the deeper.
“Xiao Wen, Xiao Wu—people only live for a few short decades. If you worry about other people’s eyes all the time, then your whole life will be like a pair of underpants—every stinking fart someone lets off, you end up catching it. Don’t care what they say. As long as our family lives happily, that’s enough.”
Freeing up a hand to pull his two sons close, Ling Jingxuan spoke with a smile. Yet his sharp, phoenix-shaped eyes held not a trace of warmth. He could ignore how others looked at him or talked about him, but he could not tolerate anyone pointing fingers at his boys. Lingjia Village—he’d remember it. One day, he’d make those people look up at them and feel nothing but awe.
“That’s exactly right. Xiao Wen, Xiao Wu—if they want to fart, let them fart. We won’t bother with them.”
Ling Jingpeng, usually the one most bothered by gossip, echoed him unexpectedly. His young, handsome face was slick with sweat—after all, it was June. Even early in the morning, hauling goods could be stifling.
“Mm, we understand.”
Looking up at Daddy, then at Little Uncle, Ling Wen nodded solemnly. He decisively stopped hiding behind Ling Jingxuan, took Xiao Baozi’s hand, and walked openly beside them. Though his small face was still flushed red, inwardly it was as if he’d grown up in an instant.
“Xiao Wen! Xiao Wu!”
Just as they passed through the crowded part of the village and reached the entrance, a crisp, childish voice suddenly rang out. In the direction of the gathered crowd, Tiewa sat atop an ox cart, enthusiastically waving at them. His rosy little face was full of excitement. Standing beside him were two men—one tall and powerfully built, not exactly handsome but unmistakably manly; the other small and slender, fair-skinned and delicate, looking almost fragile, yet with eyes that held worldly experience and resilience.
Both wore coarse cloth garments, yet neither carried even the slightest air of a common villager. Put them in fine silk robes, and one might easily mistake them for young nobles from some influential family.
“Daddy?”
The two buns were clearly delighted, but instead of running over right away, they turned to look at Ling Jingxuan.
“Go on.”
“Mm.”
Already drenched in sweat, Ling Jingxuan nodded with a smile. The two buns took off joyfully, calling Tiewa’s name as they ran and waving at him. Watching them, Ling Jingxuan shook his head with a soft laugh. This—this was how five-year-old children were supposed to be.
“They’re Brother Zhao and Brother Han. Usually, Brother Zhao takes on blacksmithing jobs from the town and does them at home. Brother Han drives the ox cart to the village entrance on market days to earn a bit of money ferrying people around. But folks in our village usually won’t ride in his cart, so he doesn’t make much.”
No wonder there wasn’t a single person by their ox cart. After hearing Ling Jingpeng’s explanation, Ling Jingxuan smacked his lips, utterly out of energy to complain about the self-styled ‘nobility’ of Lingjia Village.
They could do whatever they wanted—as long as they didn’t come looking for trouble. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be polite about it.
Yay! Father’s 1st interaction with buns ৻( •̀ ᗜ •́ ৻)
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Translator: LazyHermitGal
Author: LazyHermitGal
A Lazy Hermit Gal. A little support goes a long way! If you’d like to help me keep creating, you can do so at https://ko-fi.com/lazyhermitgal
