TNIBFT -Chapter 3 He’s Not Normal Today

Ye Yunting was stunned, looking at Ye Tian with confusion in his eyes.

In the past, by evening, even without Ye Yunting saying a word, Ye Tian would beat and curse at them, ordering the three siblings to go out and beg for food. He would only remind them to get more, and if they failed, they might as well die outside. He also threatened them not to sneak a bite on the way—otherwise, he’d take their lives.

But today, he actually said he wasn’t hungry?

And even said they should return what they borrowed?

One had to know—anything Ye Tian managed to “borrow” was never meant to be returned.

Ye Shuangxue was even more surprised. Since when did Ye Tian care whether they were hungry or not?

Ye Hanjiang kept his head down, trying to make himself as invisible as possible.

“Go inside and rest first. After we borrow some food, I’ll come back and cook,” Ye Yunting said, quickly signaling to his younger siblings. The three little ones lowered their heads and tiptoed toward the courtyard gate.

Ye Tian wasn’t normal today.

This was definitely the calm before the storm. No one knew what he was planning.

At least they could leave for now. Avoiding this strange and unpredictable Ye Tian felt safer than anything else. Ye Yunting clenched his small hands together, his palms slick with cold sweat. The moment he stepped out of the courtyard, he visibly let out a sigh of relief.

“Wait!”

Ye Tian’s voice rang out like a curse, instantly dragging the three siblings back into hell.

Ye Yunting gritted his teeth and took a deep breath, already bracing himself for Ye Tian’s fury. Ye Shuangxue clenched her tiny fists, her eyes blazing with anger, hating her own weakness.

Ye Hanjiang curled into himself, trembling like a frightened quail. As he heard Ye Tian’s footsteps drawing closer, he suddenly felt a warmth spread through his lower body—warm liquid trickling down his legs onto the snow.

“F-Father…”

Ye Hanjiang’s teeth chattered, his voice barely louder than a mosquito’s buzz.

Ye Tian had originally wanted to remind them not to linger outside in the heavy snow, and to come back quickly once they had borrowed some food.

But when he saw the patches of dampness at Ye Hanjiang’s feet, he frowned. Suddenly, he remembered from the book that Ye Hanjiang had developed a stress response from Ye Tian’s abuse. Every time, Ye Tian would deliberately scare the boy, watch him wet himself, then mock him and find an excuse to beat him again.

Ye Hanjiang slowly shifted his feet, afraid Ye Tian would notice…

No one spoke.

The three siblings kept their heads lowered, their hearts already in their throats.

“I’m hungry. Once you get the food, all three of you come back immediately and cook.”

Ye Tian looked away, pretending not to see, and coldly tossed out the sentence before turning and heading back inside.

The children’s hatred toward him was too deep. It couldn’t be changed with just a few words or a couple of days. It would take time.

As someone from the modern world, Ye Tian was still confident in winning over a few little kids.

In the wind and snow, the three children watched Ye Tian’s departing figure.

The tension in Ye Yunting’s body instantly melted away. Seeing one of Xiao Jiang’s pant legs darkened in color, his face filled with heartache. As he unfastened his own coat, he stepped forward. “Xiao Jiang, it’s okay, it’s okay. Big brother will give you my padded coat.”

“Don’t be afraid. I promise you—just hold on a few more days. Just a few more days, and we’ll be able to escape that beast Ye Tian forever. No one will bully us again.”

Seeing his brother’s frostbitten red hands, Xiao Jiang shook his head. “Don’t take off your clothes. Xiao Jiang isn’t cold.”

Lowering his head, tears streamed down his face in guilt. “Big brother, big sister… Xiao Jiang is stupid. Xiao Jiang wet his pants. Xiao Jiang is useless…”

These were the words Ye Tian often said—so often that they were carved deep into Xiao Jiang’s mind.

“You’re not. Xiao Jiang is our little brother—the best Xiao Jiang in the world.” Ye Shuangxue’s small face was stubborn as she lifted her chin, refusing to let her tears fall. She stepped forward and tightly hugged Xiao Jiang. “When I grow up, if anyone dares to mock Xiao Jiang, I’ll cut out their tongue.”

The three siblings held each other, wiping away each other’s tears.

Feathery snow fell, dyeing the hair of the three children white. Ye Yunting glanced toward the village entrance. “It’s getting late. If Ye Tian gets hungry, we won’t escape a beating.”

With that, the three siblings stepped through the snow and headed toward the village.

…

At this moment, Ye Tian returned to the house.

Outside, heavy snow drifted down. Inside, it might as well have been snowing too. The place was full of drafts, and half of the structure had already collapsed and been abandoned. The family of four could only huddle in the remaining third. Calling it a house was generous—there wasn’t a single piece of furniture. Just a few large stones suspending a broken copper pot, inside of which some liquid had frozen solid.

Not far from the pot, a wooden plank was propped up on stones. Ye Tian walked over with disgust—this was probably his bed. The quilt on it was so filthy its original color was unrecognizable, stiff with grime.

A few foul-smelling clothes were piled on the bed. Ye Tian couldn’t help but admire the original owner’s physique—living in this kind of environment without falling sick was almost impressive.

There were no beds for the three children.

Ye Tian recalled that the original host never allowed the children inside. The three of them slept by the doorway every day. Whether it was wind or rain, Ye Tian never showed mercy. When he was in a bad mood, he would even deliberately tear or soak their clothes.

Watching them shiver from the cold, fall sick with fever—he actually enjoyed it.

If he hadn’t read the script, Ye Tian would’ve doubted whether those three were his biological children.

This kind of behavior—it was like having a blood feud with one’s own father!

Damn it, someone else committed the sins, and now he had to take the blame.

Speechless, Ye Tian looked at the pile of ragged clothes under the eaves outside the door. He knew those were what the kids used to keep warm while sleeping. After a moment’s thought, he picked up a few of the dirty clothes and carried them over to the fire.

The first step to improving relationships—bring warmth!

Ye Tian grinned. Three little brats—what was there to worry about? Once he latched onto their future “thick thighs,” he’d be able to live in luxury for the rest of his life.

For now, his main task was to survive in this world. No point if he starved to death before the end.

He sat in front of the copper pot, preparing to start a fire. The fire pit was dug deep, and there were still plenty of glowing embers inside. Ye Tian casually grabbed a handful of firewood and tossed it onto the coals.

Crackle!

As soon as it met something flammable, the flames leapt up, and a sharp, pungent smell spread through the air.

“Cough, cough…”

Ye Tian waved his hand, coughing and frowning from the choking smoke. The spicy, acrid scent—this had to be pepper.

“You little bastard, you still dare talk back to me?”

“Believe it or not, I’ll call your father out right now to beat you! You bed-wetting idiot, and you dare argue with me?”

An arrogant voice came from outside.

Ye Tian dropped the half-burnt stick in his hand and stepped out. At the entrance of his courtyard, Ye Yunting and his siblings stood facing a boy a head taller than them, clearly in the middle of an argument.

The boy wore a padded jacket trimmed with gray animal fur. His hair was neatly combed, and he looked tall and sturdy. With one hand, he snatched the fish from Xiao Jiang and said smugly, “It’s going to be eaten by Ye Tian anyway. That useless trash spends all day thinking about how to please me.”

“Since you know it’s for me, maybe your useless father will even praise you, you little bastard.”

Zhang Fan curled his lips into a disdainful sneer, not taking the three siblings seriously at all. As if taking their food was some kind of favor.

“N-no… you can’t…”