Chapter 4861: Dissonance In a remote, uninhabited spot halfway up a mountainside, a large area had been cleared in front of a simple thatched hut and planted with vegetables. At this moment, a man in his forties, dressed in gray and with a sturdy build, was turning the soil with a hoe. Sweat dripped from his sunburnt forehead, ran down his cheeks, and fell onto the soil. The man worked hard in the field, each swing of the hoe sending sweat flying, and the sound of the hoe digging into the soil became the only sound in this quiet place. From the thatched cottage, an elderly woman with white hair emerged. She held a bamboo basket in one hand and a water jug in the other. Her hair was snow-white, her face was wrinkled, her back was slightly bent, and her frame was frail. She moved slowly with each step. When the man with the hoe saw the old woman walking toward him with something in her hands, he quickly put down his hoe and walked swiftly toward her. He took the items from her hands and put them aside, then took her hand and said reproachfully, “Didn’t you say you didn’t need to bring me water and food? It’s so close; if I’m hungry or thirsty, I’ll go home to drink.” As he spoke, he took the cloth covering the basket and placed it on the ground as a mat. “Come, sit down.” 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖 The old woman smiled and said in a warm voice, “I can carry this little bit; it’s not heavy.” As she spoke, she poured him a cup of water and pulled him down to sit beside her. “Have some water! Look how much you’re sweating.” She took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his face. The man sat beside her, looking at her with gentle eyes, letting her wipe the sweat from his face. He held her hand and said, “It’s okay, you don’t need to wipe it anymore. Just sit for a while, and the sweat will dry.” With that, he drank the water in the cup in one gulp, poured another cup, and handed it to her. “You drink some too! It’s hot today; drink more water.” The old woman smiled, took the teacup from his hand, held it with both hands, and because of her old age, her hands trembled slightly, causing the water in the cup to sway gently. Seeing this, the man’s heart ached, and a hint of pain flashed across his eyes. However, the pain in his eyes was fleeting. When he saw her drink the water and look at him, a smile appeared on his face again, and he picked up a steamed bun from the basket and ate it. The old woman sat next to him, holding his hand. She looked at the vegetable patch in front of her and said gently in a hoarse voice, “These vegetables are growing so well. In a few days, they will be ready to harvest. When that time comes, I will dry them and make them into dried vegetables for you to eat.” “Dry them and make them into dried vegetables so we can eat them later,” the man eating the steamed buns deliberately emphasized this point, looking at her. Hearing this, the old woman smiled helplessly. “Alright, after they are dried, we will eat them together.” Hearing this, the man smiled and pointed to the half-plowed empty lot in front of him. “By this evening, I’ll have finished plowing this new piece of land. Then I’ll move two fruit trees over from the left and right sides and plant them. Next year, we’ll be able to eat fruit that we grew ourselves. What do you think we should plant in the middle?” The two sat in front of the vegetable patch, chatting. It was quiet all around, except for the sound of the wind and their low voices. Not far away, halfway up the mountain, Feng Jiu and Song Mi’er were watching the scene from behind a large rock, feeling that something was amiss.