Dusk!
Outside in the slanting sun, a thousand white gulls, flowing water winds around the mountain village.
The assessment ended in the morning, so today the trainees could rest and many chose to leave the Martial Hall and return home.
For the past six months, the Martial Hall required daily boxing practice, and many trainees from nearby villages hadn't been home in this time.
Lin Chen wanted to return to the village, and so did Gu Fei and the other two boys from the same village.
The four of them traveled home together, talking and laughing along the way, feeling light-hearted now that the assessment was over. Even Lin Chen noticed his steps felt lighter.
Entering the village, the villagers greeted them warmly.
"You're back. How's the training at the Martial Hall going?"
"With you rascals gone, our village has been peaceful."
At the age of fourteen or fifteen, they were quite mischievous, often causing trouble in the village before.
But after six months at the Martial Hall, everyone had matured considerably.
Training at the Martial Hall not only represented hope but also pressure.
Pressure is what helps a young person mature quickly.
"Chen, want to come over to my place?" Gu Fei suggested.
"Nah, I'll head home first."
"Alright, let's meet at the village entrance tomorrow morning then."
After parting with Gu Fei and the other two boys at the crossroads, Lin Chen didn't delay and went straight home.
His house was at the far end of the village, requiring him to walk through most of it.
When he reached his home, he saw his mother drying fishing nets through the fence.
"Mom!" Lin Chen shouted.
"Chen'Er?"
Mrs. Lin was initially surprised and looked up to see Lin Chen through the fence with a look of delight.
"You've grown taller. Your brother told me you grew a head taller, but I didn't believe him."
After not seeing her son for six months, Mrs. Lin was overjoyed to see her younger son was now taller than her, circling around him excitedly.
Her elder son Lin Liang had visited the Martial Hall a few times and told her about his younger brother's condition.
"You've lost some weight." Mrs. Lin said, a bit distressed.
Lin Chen smiled, "Mom, I'm growing. It's natural to be thinner. Our instructor said in a few months I'll fill out. Is Dad and Elder Brother working in the fields?"
"Your dad and brother are watering the crops. Why are you back today?"
"Mom, I missed you."
"You sure know how to say sweet things. If you really missed me, you would have come back more than once in six months."
Mrs. Lin wasn't buying it, but she was pleased with her son's change. Before he went to the Martial Hall, her younger son had been quite reserved; surprisingly, the training made him not just more open, but also sweeter with his words.
Being sweet with words is good; it will help with getting a wife in the future.
"Did you pass the Martial Hall assessment?"
"Mom, you've really got a knack for guessing things! You guessed it."
Lin Chen flattered her, prompting Mrs. Lin to proudly say, "I gave birth to you, of course, I know your little thoughts. Now that you've passed, your grandfather will support your martial arts training. Tonight I'll speak to your grandfather. Go find your dad in the field and bring a jug of wine back from the village entrance; your grandfather loves drinking."
"Okay, I'll go see if Dad and Elder Brother need help."
Lin Chen agreed, took a hoe, and went to their family field.
The father and sons had a happy reunion; Lin Chen noticed there was still a small plot of land to water, so he helped carry water until the work was done before returning.
The father and sons went back home, put down their tools, and made their way to the ancestral home where the grandfather lived.
The Lin Family hadn't separated into different households yet, so everyone still dined together at the ancestral house.
"I was wondering why sister-in-law was so eager to prepare food; turns out Chen'Er is back," said a woman sweeping the courtyard with a smile as Lin Chen came in.
"Second Aunt." Lin Chen greeted the woman who was sweeping.
"You've grown quite a bit, almost as tall as your father now," Second Aunt looked Lin Chen up and down with a smile. Just as she was about to say more, a little girl walked in at the door, clutching a piece of green mud pie.
"Oh, didn't I tell you not to go near the chicken coop? You're even holding chicken poop!"
Second Aunt hurriedly went to knock the chicken poop from the girl's hand, but the girl just giggled relentlessly, giving Lin Chen a rather unfamiliar look.
"Xi, don't you recognize your fourth brother?"
"F-Fourth Brother."
Lin Xi, his cousin, had a habit of putting her fingers in her mouth when she was deep in thought.
Children often see their fingers as sweets, and babies love sucking on them; some outgrow it, while others don't quit until they're five or six.
Lin Xi's fingers still had chicken poop when she put them in her mouth, and Second Aunt scolded her, making her cry.
Seeing his cousin cry made Lin Chen a bit embarrassed, but it wasn't really his business.
"Why cry during mealtime?"
A grandfatherly voice emerged as Lin Chaoyang, grandfather, walked out with his hands behind his back. When he saw Lin Chen, he paused momentarily before calling back to the kitchen, "Chen'Er is back! Daughter-in-law, add a couple of eggs to nourish Chen'Er's body."
"Thank you, Grandfather. I've completed six months of training at the Martial Hall." Lin Chen hinted at something in his words.
"Six months is enough. Even if you're not selected, you can farm well, or learn a craft from your dad," Grandfather said with a loving expression. "In a few years, it'll be time to get married."
"Dad wants great-grandchildren soon. Unfortunately, Ming'Er is off learning martial arts, so we can only rely on Hui'Er and Chen'Er."