He saw his father stumbling home, covered in mud and blood all over his face. Not far behind him, three children were chasing after him, laughing and throwing stones and clumps of mud at his father.

Although David Thompson didn’t particularly like this Song Dynasty father, not liking him was a family matter behind closed doors. When outsiders bullied his father, he couldn’t just stand by and do nothing.

“Dahei, go bite them!”

David Thompson opened the courtyard gate. Dahei let out a furious “Woof!” and charged out.

Dahei rushed forward fiercely, instantly dashing past Brian Thompson. Brian Thompson was startled and stopped in his tracks. He turned around and saw the big dog pounce at the three kids, and he stomped his feet anxiously, “Come back!”

But Dahei ignored him, angrily lunging at the three bullies. The three of them screamed in terror and turned to flee, running off like rabbits and disappearing without a trace. In the distance, Frank Brooks’s shouting could still be heard.

“Oh no, this is going to be big trouble.”

Brian Thompson was so anxious he didn’t know what to do. He hurriedly chased after them, but before long, he returned in frustration—both the people and the dog were nowhere to be seen.

When he walked into the courtyard, he kicked the gate open hard and gritted his teeth, “I have to slaughter that dog!”

“If it were me, I’d give those three little brats a good beating. I’d never kick my own door, and I’d never scold a dog that’s loyal to its master!” David Thompson retorted stiffly from the side.

Brian Thompson stared blankly at his son. Over the past month, he had already gotten used to his son’s mature tone. Ever since his son was pulled out of the well, it was as if he’d become a different person. He used to be known as the village fool, spending all day digging holes and racing with the black dog in the fields, making the whole village laugh at him for raising a “puppy.”

But now, his son seemed like a changed person, with a completely different temperament, and he even liked reading. All these changes made him extremely excited.

But what also left Brian Thompson deeply puzzled was that his son, at such a young age, was so resistant and averse to the imperial examinations. Did he even understand what the imperial exams were?

Of course, Brian Thompson had taught his son, and had spent two whole years teaching him to read. His foolish son was hard to teach, and it was a tough process, but Brian Thompson refused to give up, pouring his heart into it. Finally, his foolish son could recite “Quiet Night Thoughts,” though not smoothly and often forgetting parts. But as long as he was given the first line, he could stammer through the rest, which made Brian Thompson incredibly proud. Who said his son was a fool? Didn’t he know how to recite Tang poetry? Many kids in the village couldn’t do that!

Although Brian Thompson couldn’t understand his son’s sudden, miraculous self-taught abilities over the past month, he still found a reasonable explanation: his son had actually remembered everything he’d been taught over the past two years, but just couldn’t express it before. Falling into the well had somehow opened up his mind.

As he was distracted for a moment, he saw his son carrying a broken wooden bucket toward the well, which startled Brian Thompson so much that he quickly shouted, “Don’t go near the well! Let Daddy do it!”

He rushed forward in two steps, snatched the bucket, drew half a bucket of water from the well, and washed the blood off his face. At this moment, Dahei came running back from outside, wagging his tail in front of his master, asking for a reward.

Actually, Brian Thompson liked Dahei very much. When his son fell into the well, it was thanks to Dahei bringing people to the rescue in time that his son’s life was saved.

But today, he was in a terrible mood. When the dog wagged its tail for a reward in front of him, he flew into a rage, grabbed a stick from the corner, and started beating Dahei over the head, “I’ll kill you, you crazy dog! I’ll kill you, you troublemaker!”

Dahei yelped in pain, curling up into a ball. David Thompson rushed forward to shield the dog, but Brian Thompson couldn’t stop the stick in time, and it landed hard on his son’s shoulder. The blow hurt David Thompson to the bone. Brian Thompson lost his grip, and in a panic, threw away the stick and rushed forward, his voice trembling, “My son, Daddy didn’t mean it! Are you alright?”

David Thompson gritted his teeth through the pain and glared at him, “Why didn’t you pick up a stick and beat those three little bastards just now? All you know how to do is hit your own family!”

Brian Thompson didn’t bother to explain, and hurriedly massaged his son’s shoulder, “Let Daddy see, are you alright?”

David Thompson shook off his hand in anger and turned to walk into the house. He sat cross-legged on the kang, facing the wall, his chest heaving with rage. He was truly fed up with this cowardly, timid father.

He’d been bullied by the stable hands while working odd jobs at the Li family stables, and after so many years of studying, he was still scolded by illiterate servants to the point he couldn’t lift his head. Today, he was bullied by three little brats and didn’t even dare to say a word, only taking it out on the loyal dog. In his two lifetimes, twenty-eight years, David Thompson had never felt so stifled.

“I know you look down on Daddy. Daddy is useless!”

A sigh came from the doorway from Brian Thompson, “There are some people we can’t afford to offend. Daddy isn’t afraid of those kids, it’s just that… sigh! You wouldn’t understand even if I told you. You’ll understand when you grow up.”

David Thompson ignored his father, still sulking in silence. How could he not understand?

Seeing his son ignore him, Brian Thompson started thinking about how to cheer him up. Suddenly, he remembered something and slapped his forehead hard, “Look at this muddleheaded Daddy! I forgot the good stuff. Daddy bought this for you.”