"Hey, Brother Xiangping." <br><br>Matthew Lee was walking back with a basket on his back when he saw a girl approaching from afar. The girl had a round face with rather ordinary features, but her bright smile added a certain charm to her demeanor. <br><br>"Grace." <br><br>Matthew smiled as he looked at her and turned around to hand over the basket of fish he had caught. <br><br>"Look at these great fish I caught! Take a couple home to try." <br><br>"I couldn’t possibly." <br><br>Grace Tian lowered her head with a shy smile. At eleven years old, she had already grown taller than the thirteen-year-old Matthew. <br><br>In Li Jing Village, it was common for men and women to marry around the age of thirteen or fifteen. Among their peers, they were the most age-compatible, and Grace had long decided in her heart that Matthew would be her future husband. <br><br>Matthew, however, shoved two fish into her hands without giving it much thought. Among the villagers, Grace's father was one of the most kind-hearted men, someone Matthew greatly respected. Naturally, he would extend care to his daughter when he met her. <br><br>After bidding farewell to Grace, Matthew rushed home, tossed the basket into the small pond, and then thought for a moment. He took out the inspection lens, gave it a quick polish, tucked it into his pocket, and grabbed three wooden boxes from the table before heading to the fields. <br><br>There, his two older brothers were working alongside their father. <br><br>The Lee family had four brothers: Lee Changhu, Lee Tongya, Matthew Lee, and Lee Chijing. Mention the Lee brothers in Li Jing Village, and everyone would give an approving thumbs-up. Grace's father never missed a chance to express his admiration: “Matthew Lee is truly a blessed man!” <br><br>But Matthew Lee himself didn’t see it that way. As the only man in the village who had ventured beyond its borders, he often looked at his sons working in the fields with a painful heart. <br><br>"A good man should study and serve in the military. Working in the fields is for the faint-hearted!" he'd often scold Grace's father. <br><br>However, life was just like that. Those who had seen the light would often feel its absence most acutely. Matthew Lee had served in the military, taken lives, and returned to Li Jing Village in his forties. Using his military pay, he bought land and became a wealthy landowner, though he was far from content. <br><br>When Matthew arrived at the edge of the fields, his eldest brother, Lee Changhu, was already waiting under the shade of a tree. At seventeen, he was the oldest, and a hint of a beard adorned his face. <br><br>"Slow down, third brother. No rush." <br><br>Lee Changhu smiled as he patted Matthew's head, looking at him kindly. <br><br>"Uncle Tian said you had quite the harvest today." <br><br>"Too much, Brother!" Matthew laughed heartily. "Tonight, we’re finally going to have a feast!" <br><br>"You’re something else." <br><br>Lee Changhu wiped the sweat off Matthew’s brow, picked up a wooden box, and shouted toward the fields, “Second brother—” <br><br>"Coming!" Their second brother, Lee Tongya, hurried over with a hoe in hand. He first greeted Lee Changhu with a respectful "Eldest brother" before turning to smile at Matthew. <br><br>“You all eat; I’m heading back.” Matthew, ravenously hungry after a morning of hard work, quickly made his way home. <br><br>——— <br><br>River Sage Lu, resting in the basket carried by Matthew, had been feeling a faint but inexplicable pull. The closer they got to the Lee family home, the stronger this feeling grew. <br><br>As they passed The Old Locust at the village entrance and entered the houses, the pull reached its peak. River Sage Lu felt an oppressive tightness in his chest, and the surface of the mirror in the basket started to tremble, faintly glowing red. <br><br>"That must be a part of me. Or something of vital importance to me," River Sage Lu thought with sudden clarity. <br><br>"It's to the north! In the direction of the big lake!" As Matthew slowly moved away from the village entrance, the pull gradually diminished. River Sage Lu made a mental note of the direction. <br><br>Staying with Matthew, River Sage Lu observed the people he met and listened to their words and tone. Gradually, he came to understand what they were talking about. <br><br>It appeared to be an ordinary village with no martial arts masters leaping from rooftops nor any immortal cultivators flying through the skies. <br><br>The villagers went about their lives, working at sunrise and resting at sunset. Their tools and fields were nothing extraordinary. <br><br>"This place truly seems like an ordinary little village. The best house here is just a two-story mud-and-wood structure," River Sage Lu thought, pondering. "If there were immortal cultivators here, surely they wouldn’t live in such modest homes." <br><br>"Powerful abilities generally bring about advancements in productivity, and this village is far too backward." <br><br>Having formed a rough understanding of the place, River Sage Lu began piecing together plans for the future. <br><br>That evening, the Lee household was unusually lively. The mother and youngest brothers were busy washing and preparing vegetables. <br><br>Matthew returned home with a great haul, and his youngest brother, Lee Chijing, even caught a nest of plump voles while gathering mulberry leaves in the mountains. He secretly brought them back in a grain sack. Their father, Matthew Lee, was so delighted that he gave the boys a hearty pat on their shoulders, praising them until they were bursting with pride. <br><br>At fourteen or fifteen, they were just at the age when they ate voraciously. The dishes on the table vanished, eaten almost entirely by the four brothers. <br><br>Matthew Lee only took a single bite, and their mother, Lin Yun, watched her sons with a warm smile. The family’s dog paced nervously under the table, weaving through their legs. <br><br>After dinner. <br><br>The moon slowly rose over Dali Heights. Matthew leaned against a wall with a stalk of wild millet in his mouth, while his father, Matthew Lee, frowned as he gazed at the sky, seemingly searching for something. <br><br>"Father," Matthew said, patting his father’s pant leg. He took the inspection lens out of his pocket. <br><br>"I found this thing in the river this morning." <br><br>"Huh." Matthew Lee took the lens, squinting as he examined it closely. <br><br>"Neither iron nor copper. What a peculiar thing." <br><br>The cold moonlight slowly spilled over the yard, gathering above the lens and forming a faint halo. Matthew couldn’t help rubbing his eyes; it seemed to him that the most beautiful moonlight he had ever seen in his thirteen years was condensed into that delicate glow. <br><br>"Father!" Matthew whispered. <br><br>"Quiet!" Matthew Lee’s face was filled with alarm as he forced himself to look away from the halo. His hands trembled as he shoved the lens back into Matthew’s arms and whispered in his ear: <br><br>"Hide inside and tell your brothers to grab the weapons and come out." <br><br>It was the first time Matthew had seen such a fierce look in his father’s eyes. They narrowed like those of a hawk ready to strike. <br><br>"Yes…" <br><br>Matthew’s voice shook as he dragged his trembling legs toward the house. <br><br>Inside, Matthew pushed the door open. <br><br>"Brothers… Father said to quickly grab the weapons and head to the front." <br><br>His voice nearly broke as he stammered to his two older brothers sitting by the bed. <br><br>"What?!" <br><br>Lee Changhu stood up in shock, grabbing Matthew by the shoulders and looking at him with concern. "Is Father alright? Did he say what’s happening?" <br><br>Lee Tongya didn’t say a word. He turned over, pulling out two knives from under the bed. Then, he took down the woven vine attire and long staff hanging on the wall, glancing grimly out the window. <br><br>"It must be an enemy at the door," he muttered. Handing a knife and the vine attire to Lee Changhu, he held the staff in his hand and patted him on the shoulder. <br><br>"Brother, no need for further questions. Third Brother, take Mother and Fourth Brother to hide in the back courtyard." <br><br>"Got it." <br><br>Matthew hurried off to find their mother, while Lee Changhu quickly composed himself, donned the vine attire, and stepped out with a knife in hand. <br><br>Outside. <br><br>Matthew Lee stood at the entrance, quietly gazing at the melon field in front of their house. When the two young men stood behind him, he gestured for the long knife. <br><br>"You two, check the area front and back to make sure no one’s around," he ordered. The two brothers immediately followed his command, spreading out to investigate. <br><br>Matthew Lee boldly strode into the melon field ahead. Bending down, he suddenly lifted someone out of the ground. )
