An Jing recalled such a person from Lin Anjing's memory and exclaimed in surprise, "You're Xiao Changyi, the one who came back alive from the battlefield!"
She had thought there was something familiar about him—that's because they were of the same kind, both former soldiers.
Xiao Changyi was silent for a moment before he said indifferently, "We have met on the road recently." He paused, "Several times."
"Hehe..." An Jing laughed awkwardly several times, "I was too self-conscious before, always walking with my head down, how would I know who I had run into. The only reason I knew you came back alive is because I overheard others talking about it when I went to wash clothes by the river."
Xiao Changyi remained silent again.
An Jing seemed to be used to it and continued on her own, "No wonder that Niu Er doesn't like you."
It wasn't just Niu Er who disliked Xiao Changyi; in fact, many people in the village did not like him, they just did not show it openly.
When Xiao Changyi was born, his mother had a difficult labor. Though she didn't die, she suffered greatly, and as soon as Xiao Changyi was born, Xiao Changyi's grandfather died; on Xiao Changyi's fifth birthday, Xiao Changyi's father fell and, despite it being a minor fall, he died too. Later, a fortune teller said that Xiao Changyi's fate harbored evil spirits, which would kill all his elders and siblings if he stayed at home.
So, Xiao Changyi was discarded by his mother, thrown right onto the mountain they were standing on now.
It was villagers who found him and brought Xiao Changyi back, but Xiao Changyi's mother refused to keep him, fearing he might cause her and her other children's deaths.
In ancient times, people were more superstitious. With Xiao Changyi being cursed according to the fortune teller, no one in the village dared to take him in, and there were even quite a few who supported the idea of leaving Xiao Changyi on the mountain to starve.
Just as Xiao Changyi was about to be abandoned in the mountains again, an old hunter in the village couldn't stand it any longer and built a thatched hut for Xiao Changyi to live in.
The old hunter actually had a heavy burden to bear at home, but as long as he had food to eat, he would share some with Xiao Changyi, who grew up with the help of the old hunter.
The old hunter died when Xiao Changyi was thirteen years old, and at that age, even without the hunter's help, Xiao Changyi could survive; unexpectedly, when Xiao Changyi was sixteen, Xiao Changyi's mother found him and asked him to take the place of the Xiao family members in military service.
After that, Xiao Changyi went to serve in the military, a tenure of eight years, until he returned two months ago.
Generally, farmer men who went to serve in the military hardly ever came back alive, and Xiao Changyi was the first to return, making him the subject of much talk among the villagers.
An Jing did feel some sympathy for Xiao Changyi, but compared to sympathy, she was more curious, "Is the battlefield fun?"
Although she had experienced modern gunfire and bullets, she had never witnessed the ancient battlefields of spears and iron horses.
Xiao Changyi looked back strangely at an excited An Jing, but did not speak.
An Jing then realized she might have acted too unlike the women of this era and was incredibly surprised at how unguarded she was around Xiao Changyi, a man.
As a modern special forces soldier, her vigilance was always very high.
An Jing's chin rested on Xiao Changyi's shoulder, and she carefully examined Xiao Changyi's handsome profile for a long time before admitting to herself, All right, the more she looked, the more pleasing she found this man.
"Wait!" Suddenly, An Jing caught sight of many Niu Jin Grass plants along the mountain path, her eyes instantly lighting up, and she immediately asked Xiao Changyi to stop. "Let me down."