Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

Chapter 1374: Chapter 445: Ordeal and Gratitude, Idle Move, Trial and Opportunity

Caiqiu Calendar Year 297, February 15, night

Qinghua City, Guest Residence at Hong Mansion

Hu Tiejiang hurried in from outside with a worried expression, and upon seeing a burly figure practicing with a spear in the courtyard, his face instantly lit up with joy.

"Tiechuan, have you recovered?"

The person practicing with the spear turned his head, revealing an extremely terrifying face.

His lower jaw had been mostly sliced away, and seven or eight long scars resembling giant centipedes were irregularly distributed across his face: some slanted from the left brow to the right cheek; others stretched from above the left ear to the forehead; several were across the mouth area... a truly horrifying sight.

"Mmm..."

Not only his face, but Hu Tiechuan instinctively opened his mouth to speak, revealing only a small stub of a tongue. He uttered a few sounds, realizing he had lost the ability to speak, and then responded with a nod and a smile, indicating his injuries were fine.

Yet, with that face, every attempt at a smile appeared eerie.

Hu Tiejiang wasn’t disgusted, but seeing his brother’s ghastly face, a deep-seated hatred flashed in his eyes. He first clenched his fist slightly, then immediately relaxed, forcing a smile, "That’s great! In a couple of days, let’s go together to thank the master for his kindness."

Hu Tiechuan nodded, walked up to Hu Tiejiang, and gently shook his head, offering some comfort by pulling on his brother’s arm.

Their brotherly understanding was strong, and even though the younger brother said nothing, Hu Tiejiang immediately understood his intentions. His initially relaxed expression tensed up, and the hatred in his eyes reappeared, suppressed only after a long while as he spoke in a deep voice, "Don’t worry, elder brother won’t act rashly. I once thought the Zhang Family only controlled the Red Tiger Ridge area, perhaps even dominated the Red Fox Ridge, but didn’t expect them to have influence in Qinghua City, causing you to end up like this... it’s all my fault."

By the end, Hu Tiejiang’s face was full of regret and guilt, his voice trembling slightly due to his overwhelming remorse.

The dream they had been planning for years of escaping their status shattered the moment they entered the Subordinate Bureau in Qinghua City on the seventeenth of last month.

......

Hu Tiejiang was from a place called Red Tiger Ridge in the central Evergreen Valley area, consisting of five villages, one of which was Tiger Tail Village where he lived.

Even though they lost their father early on, the brothers were blessed with good cultivation talent and an intense fighting spirit, breaking through to the Cold Resistance Level at a young age. To seek greater development, they registered as lowly status as soon as they broke through, and started working as porters, transporting goods in the Red Tiger Ridge area.

Being a porter was considered a lowly occupation and wasn’t illegal for them to pursue.

Originally, their lives could have continued smoothly, but everything changed after they married.

Their wives, Fang Jing and Wang Qing, were servants from the household of Zhang Yiqing, the leader of Tiger Tail Village. In fact, their marriages were arranged by Zhang Yiqing. At that time, both were considered promising young men in the village; lowly matched with slaves, neither was disgraced, and both parties were overjoyed.

The catalyst for everything began when the brothers had offspring.

According to the Caiqiu Six-class System, statuses were inherited; whatever the parents were, the children would be, at least until they entered the registry at fifteen years old.

Under these rules, the brothers’ five children could only inherit slave or lowly status, which was unacceptable to them.

Hardworking and capable, with strong hunting abilities, the brothers diligently saved money over the years. They approached Zhang Yiqing expressing their desire to free their wives from their status.

Zhang Yiqing agreed readily, promising as fellow villagers that if the brothers helped him hunt for two years without pay, he would hand over Fang Jing and Wang Qing’s slave status without charging them a cent.

But when the two-year term ended, things took a sudden downturn. Zhang Yiqing shamelessly reneged on the deal, infuriating the brothers who already had enough money and were justified in their actions. They boldly stole their wives’ registration books, intending to escape to Qinghua City and resolve their status first, making their escape plan irreversible.

Their dream of escaping shattered from then on.

Rushing from Tiger Tail Village to Qinghua City, they never encountered Zhang Yiqing or anyone chasing them, leading Hu Tiejiang to believe they hadn’t been discovered or had a good head start.

It wasn’t until they were actually in Qinghua City that he realized, Zhang Yiqing had never intended to pursue them; he had long since made ample preparations in the city.

On the seventeenth of last month, to be cautious, Hu Tiejiang intended to go with his family to the Subordinate Bureau for their status change. But his brother, Hu Tiechuan, volunteered and went instead.

Having no other choice, Hu Tiejiang could only watch from the shadows.

Unexpectedly, as soon as his brother entered, their entire family was immediately captured.

Hu Tiejiang was naturally in a panic and found out through inquiries that the Zhang Family from Red Tiger Ridge was influential even in Qinghua City.

The captain of the fifth Law Enforcement Team, Zhang Yiping, turned out to be Zhang Yiqing’s cousin.

Upon learning this, he was devastated and filled with despair; not only was their escape dream in ruins, but now the safety of his brother and family was also at stake.

In desperation, Hu Tiejiang turned to the recently rumored miraculous Hong Yu, treating him as their last hope.