After breakfast the next day, An Ran and Ding Changhe went to an old man's home.
The old man looked quite young. He had gray hair and the grooves on his face showed the vicissitudes of life.
The old man looked at Ding Changhe for a moment and then said: "Is he the eldest son? I heard that you were plotted again. Are you okay?"
Ding Changhe smiled and said, "Grandpa Jiang, I'm fine."
"I've been tricked so many times, but I still can't get enough of it."
The old man turned to look at An Ran again and said, "This is your newly married wife. Why did you bring her here?"
When An Ran heard this, she was a newly married lady.
Ding Changhe also laughed when he heard this, "Grandpa Jiang, this is my wife. We have been married for many years. If you don't remember, we live in Daliuzhuang Anjia." ?.?????.???
When the old man heard this, he looked at An Ran for a while and said, "You are the granddaughter of the An family."
Ding Changhe motioned An Ran to move forward, and An Ran took two steps forward and said, "Grandpa Jiang, I'm from the An family."
The old man laughed and motioned for the two of them to sit down, "It's been so many years, and I can still see people from An's family."
When An Ran heard that she knew her family, she looked at Ding Changhe in confusion.
The old man continued, "I have been to your house, and it was me and Lao Ding who went to get you two engaged. You were white and fat back then, and you were so lovable."
When An Ran heard this, he realized that he was indeed an old friend, but he didn't recognize him.
Ding Changhe said to An Ran: "Grandpa Jiang was my grandfather's brother. They were both top soldiers back then. The two have been friends for decades. They were the first to bring out the Black Tiger Camp."
Talking about the past, the old man's face showed fascination, "My brothers from back then are gone, and I am the only one left. It won't be long before I go to find them."
Ding Changhe's nose felt sore and he turned around to bring over the jar of wine he had brought.
"This is the medicinal wine I specially found someone to prepare. You drink a little every night. There are many brothers there. You are the only one left. Why are you in a hurry?"
The old man laughed and said, "Just bring old wine. Why bring medicinal wine? It doesn't taste right. It's better for your father. Every time he gives me old wine, just a little less."
"Okay, next time I will ask someone to give you old wine, but you can't drink too much. I only give you a fixed amount of wine every month, and it will be gone after you drink it."
The old man narrowed his eyes at Ding Changhe and said, "You are stingier than your father."
The old man turned to look at An Ran again and said, "Your grandfather's ability to set bones with his hands is really exquisite. If he hadn't happened to meet your grandfather back then, Old Ding would have been disabled long ago."
Ding Changhe said: "My wife can also set bones. Grandpa An taught me how to do it."
The old man smiled again, "So I said that Dr. An is open-minded and that craftsmanship is passed down from male to female, but he doesn't think so. You have been married for so many years and you have several children."
Ding Changhe said: "A son, sent to Black Tiger Camp this year, is with Uncle Jiang's son."
The old man nodded, "That kid from the Jiang family is pretty good."
Then he looked at Ding Changhe and said, "Why do you only have one son? Have a few more. Don't be like me, who didn't even leave a wife."
An Ran was a little embarrassed and sat aside with his head lowered.
Ding Changhe said: "He will come here in the next two days. I will bring him here to pay you New Year's greetings during the New Year."
The old man was really happy this time and laughed out loud, "Okay, okay, I'll wait."
When Ding Changhe took An Ran away, An Ran discovered that the old man couldn't move his legs. No wonder he had been sitting on a chair since he entered the house.
The two walked back along the path and occasionally saw people with crutches or missing arms. Only then did An Ran understand why the village felt strange.
They were all elderly and disabled people, the most normal ones being women and children.
An Ran vaguely understood.
"You said that you would help the brothers who lost their lives to have children, and you placed these people here."
Ding Changhe glanced at An Ran and said, "No, these are mostly people who retreated from the Black Tiger Camp. The dead are buried in the mountains to the west. Ding Jiu is in charge of things here."
An Ran knew that Ding Jiu was good at martial arts. It seemed that Ding Jiu and Ding Shi were all from the Black Tiger Camp.
When Sister Chen saw the two people coming back, she hurriedly put the meal on the table.
After going out for a while, An Ran felt a little heavy and ate less.
After eating, Sister Chen made a pot of tea, put it on the table for the two of them, and then returned to the house.
Before An Ran could take action, Ding Changhe picked up and poured two glasses.
"Little Shitou won't come back tonight, but he will definitely arrive tomorrow. I left a letter for him, and he will come over after seeing it."
An Ran became happy immediately, "Then I will prepare meals with Sister Chen in the afternoon. He has had a big appetite since he was a child, so he will definitely not be able to eat well outside."
Ding Changhe smiled when he saw An Ran's expression, "I should tell you before eating, so that you won't be so worried that you can't even eat."
"No, it's just that seeing so many disabled people makes me feel depressed."
"Soldiers are risking their lives for their future. How many of them are wearing full masks?"
"Does the little stone also want to take this road?" An Ran felt conflicted today.
Ding Changhe took a sip of tea, put down the cup, and said, "You can ask Xiao Shitou whether he wants to pursue a career in literature or martial arts."
No need to ask, An Ran also knew that Xiao Shitou's temperament was not good at being literate.
"I know what you are worried about, but he is different now than we were at that time. My grandfather started as a big soldier, which was the hardest. I was already
