Chapter 41 Rumors

  The warm sunshine of early autumn shines down on Liu Yu's home at the foot of the mountain.

  Today, a messenger from the county government came to report to Liu Gui that his son, Jin Sun, had passed the imperial examination and become a Xiucai. At that moment, Liu Gui was stunned and overjoyed, unable to react.

  Liu Yu's father, Liu Zhidong, held his own father's hand and said, "Dad, Rain (Yu) has really made a name for himself this time. He became a high school champion in one move. It's truly the spirit of our ancestors!"

  Liu Gui finally came back to his senses after seeing off the bailiff who had delivered the message, digesting this astonishing news.

  Looking at the several people in the room who were obviously overexcited, he said: "Calm down, Yu'er will probably be back in two days. At that time, you must bring him to pay respects to our ancestors' hall. Alas, I never thought that my Liu family would have such good fortune, and produce a scholar."

  "Dad, don't say that. You know Rain has been working hard on her studies all along, it's only natural that she passed the exam." said Liu Yu's mother, Qin Lan.

  "It's all thanks to you for teaching and guiding Yu'er well, it's really hard on you." His excited mood calmed down a bit, he poked his wife's hand beside him and said, "We must celebrate at home, invite the fellow villagers, and let's rejoice together for my daughter Yu'er!"

  "That's for sure, old man. Liu Yu is now a Xiucai and there's also the possibility of exempting him from corvée labor. Later when the villagers come to discuss this, don't hastily agree on behalf of Yu'er." Lin Lu was somewhat worried that the old man would get too excited and casually agree to whatever anyone said, which would cause trouble for her son later on.

  "Knowing that Yu'er is still young, don't let him worry about these miscellaneous things." But in her heart, she was guessing who would speak up next.

  ……

  After lunch, Zhi Xiao sat on a bamboo stool, his back straight, holding a pen made of rabbit hair that Liu Jian had used in his spare time. He was concentrating on practicing the calligraphy that Liu Yu had brought several months ago. After nearly half a year of hard practice, he had made some progress.

  What surprised her was that both her mother and Erniang were literate, and they both had good handwriting skills. Erniang had been taught by her mother in her spare time, but her own mother was not to be underestimated either. This point made Zhi Xiao unexpected, from ancient times to modern times, famous poems and verses could all be recited a few sentences, and also practiced a good hand of calligraphy, with strokes flowing like clouds and water, and ink coming effortlessly.

  He paused for a moment, holding the brush in his hand, looked up and saw Lanniang making winter clothes. The situation at home was gradually improving, and the coarse cloth clothes with patches all over them were gone.

  The wild vegetables in the ground grow particularly vigorously when spring warms up, but as the weather gradually turns hot, they wither and turn yellow. I guess this is also the living habit of these wild vegetables. It's probably going to start a new cycle of growth after a while when the weather gets a bit cooler again.

  In the afternoon, Liu Jian went to work in the fields at the foot of the mountain again. The cellar at home had stored enough vegetables for winter, and a large jar of sauerkraut had been pickled.

  But...

  Zhī xiǎo lěng xià le yǎn zuàn, bù xiǎng zài xiě xià qù le, gē xià bǐ, móu zhe cháng shí jiān duān zuò wò bǐ huì xiǎn jiāng yìng de jiān.

  English Translation:

  Zhīxiǎo's eyes fell cold, not wanting to write anymore, she put down her pen and rubbed her shoulders which had become stiff from sitting for a long time holding the pen.

  "Mother, I'll go to the backyard to see the rabbits."

  "Alright, I'm tired, go take a rest. Mother will make some lotus leaf pancakes for you, come over and eat later." Lan Niang patted her daughter's small shoulder, forcing a smile on her face.

  In the backyard of the heavily fortified rabbit enclosure, Xiao Hei was tied to a tree stump as usual. As soon as he saw Zhi Xiao, he transformed from being listless to being spirited and lively, wagging his short little tail, and in an instant, he looked adorable and was about to pounce over.

  Miao glanced over and saw Mu Tian, who had moved a recliner under a tree in the rabbit garden, sleeping with his eyes closed. Although it was autumn, the afternoon was still a bit sultry, but the gentle breeze blowing on him made him feel comfortable. The rabbits around him were jumping back and forth, two of them curled up into balls at his feet and in his arms, leaning against him, looking very cozy.

  After closing the door and locking it, Xiao Hei lowered its small head in disappointment once again.

  Knowing walked near Mu Tian, pushed him and woke him up.

  "Zhi Xiao Jie." The seven-year-old boy was as tall as Zhi Xiao, but a bit thinner, rubbing his eyes, showing signs of just waking up.

  "Have you all heard clearly?" Zhi Xiao asked.

  "Hmm." He understood the cryptic words at once, and immediately became half awake. With a sly glance at the garden gate, he whispered something in Xiaoxiao's ear.

  "Stop being so secretive! You're making it seem like you have something to hide."

  He pushed him away, causing Mu Tian to fall back onto the chair. Zhi Xiao adjusted his clothes and said irritably: "Hurry up and speak, if you don't I'll lose my patience."

  The angry warning was that this increasingly arrogant little brat had reached the limit of her patience and no longer wanted to wait for his nonsense.

  "Yes, okay, I'll say it right away. But I was going to tell you anyway, who made you..."

  The last sentence was spoken in a low voice, but it was clear that no one had not heard it. When Xiaozhi gritted her teeth and shot back with a murderous aura, she didn't dare to resist anymore, at most adding another sentence in her heart.

  "Haha......" He chuckled to ease the atmosphere, now he was completely awake, quickly got up and approached the childish voice, "Just now I went down the mountain to ask my former reliable brother, his name is Liu Erbao..."

  "Cut to the chase!"

  Another loud shout, apparently Mu Tian was already used to her violent temper and didn't mind her ferocity, after all, this matter really did infuriate her.

  "Liu Er Bao told me everything. That day Li Da Zhuang was drinking at his place, and it was Li Da Zhuang who first spread the bad rumors about you..."

  "It's him again, looks like what we did last time was too childish."

  "Ah, it's him." Mu Tian grew more and more resentful towards Li Dazhuang over this good thing.

  Zhī xiǎo wān wān dào, mī qǐ yǎn, zhuā qǐ jiǎo biān de yī zhī tù zi, zuò dào gāng cái mù tiān zuò de yǐ shàng, zuǐ jiǎo sì xiào fēi xiào de lù chū yī mǎn ràng rén dàn hán.

  But it was what made Mu Tian, who was standing by, suddenly excited and radiant, with a look of excitement that he couldn't hide.

  He immediately jumped to Xiangzhi's side, pulled her arm tightly, and couldn't help but sneak a glance back before whispering: "Sister Xiangzhi, have you thought of something good? This time, don't forget to take me along!"

  Mù Tiān reminded her not to forget to find trouble with Lǐ Dà Zhuàng, he was the one she liked the most.

  Actually, Zhi Xiao had never met Li Da Zhuang in a positive way. Occasionally going down the mountain to buy some snacks might have led to an encounter, but she would avoid him as much as possible. After all, she had schemed against him once before and didn't want to provoke any conflict with him directly, lest he suspect her again.

  There were only a few times when I was there, looking at him from afar, and didn't quite see clearly, but the last night's quarrel between him and his wife, which ended with a loud noise, is still very vivid in my memory.

  Knowing that for several days in a row, she had been happily adding an extra bowl of rice to each meal, Lian Niang was puzzled as to what was going on with her, and her appetite had improved even more. Afraid that she would overeat, during that time, she especially allowed her to take a walk after meals, and didn't press her to learn embroidery either.

  Those days knew that this unexpected harvest was very happy for a while.

  But I've never had any unpleasantness with this person before, even though I've always been treated poorly in the village, but he suddenly dragged me into it, framing me, why?

  Knowing that he glanced at this small face with a faint blush and said, "Tell me the whole story again before we talk."

  "Ah." "Mù tiān yī dé lìng, jiù kāi shǐ xù shù qǐ dāng shí de shì lái le.

  Translation:

  "Ah." "As soon as the order was given, I began to recount what happened at that time.

  "That day, Li Dazhuang and Er Bao's father, as well as several other men who worked for the wealthy master in town, returned home. The master had given them some money, so they gathered together at Liu Er Bao's house to drink and eat. Er Bao's mother was cooking delicious dishes, and the adults were drinking wine and eating around the table. Er Bao was listening intently on the side, and he said that when he heard your name, he paid special attention. Do you still remember Er Bao, Sister?"

  "I don't remember, didn't I forget? Continue speaking!" Zhi Xiao was dissatisfied with his abrupt change of subject.

  "Yes, it was Li Dazhuang who first brought this up..."