Since he had tasted the meat, Shen Yan still wasn't satisfied. Every time he saw the person, he always wanted to touch him.
Gu Changfeng was really worried about him. Because Shen Yanbe had to work hard on his studies, he was afraid that it would hurt Shen Yanbei's spirit, so he didn't dare to mess around with him.
Shen Yanbei also knew that it was not a time to indulge. Anyway, the person wouldn't go anywhere and always beside him. He would be able to always eat him whenever he turned his head, so right now it was time to cultivate his spirit. So he could use the energy to prepare for the imperial examination.
Although Shen Yanbei's temperament was a little loose in his previous life, it did not hinder the fact that he was a true scholar. Since childhood, Shen Yanbei had never made his mother worry about his studies, he even still could help his mother with work. Everyone envied Mother Shen for having a smart and filial son. At that time, Shen Yanbei vowed in his heart that he would make his mother get rid of that scumbag and made her living a good life. Unfortunately, as soon as he was admitted to college, Mother Shen passed away.
This was an irreparable regret in Shen Yanbei's heart. Now since the situation was forcing him, he had to upgrade his class status to make his wife living happily in the future. Therefore, Shen Yanbei gave 101% focus for the imperial examination. It took a few days to sort out the knowledge in the mind of the original owner. He even read the book Li Zhiyuan gave him. Wrote down what you should write and marked out the places that you didn't understand. Shen Yanbei arranged the problem he couldn't solve, then had to take an opportunity to ask Li Zhiyuan on the day of Li Zhiyuan's son's birthday banquet.
Su Qingze said that his brother-in-law liked a diligent and serious person in the study, so he would be willing to help if he asked him sincerely. Shen Yanbei's impression of Li Zhiyuan remained with the young man who came to the field to check the farming situation that day. Although they did not have a deep friendship, Shen Yanbei was still grateful for his book donation. So he packed a lot of fun gadgets for his son.
Early in the morning on the day of the banquet, Shen Yanbei, Gu Changfeng, Su Qingze, Zhou Yu, and Ming'an would go to the banquet by riding Uncle Shen's ox-cart. This was the first time Zhou Yu went out with Shen Yanbei. The young man was surprised and nervous. He was afraid that he could not do well, which made Shen Yanbei losing face.
Ming'an, a qualified servant of a large family, understood his mood very well. On the bullock cart, the two sat together and muttered. Ming'an told Zhou Yu a lot of things to pay attention to when traveling.
Along the way, all they could see were green. At this time, the temperature gradually rose, the wind brought a trace of heat, and summer came quietly. With sufficient rain and suitable temperature, the crops in the fields began to grow wildly. The crops of the Shen's Family grew up to a meter high, and clusters of seedlings in the fields had been sprout. The tender yellow fur of the ducks had faded, and now being covered by the white furs. The fish seeds in the water also thrived.
Everything was flourishing well.
"What's the name of this mountain? What's fun on that mountain?" Su Qingze asked, holding a long reed grass in his hand and pointing to the green hill next to the village.
"This is Huaqiu Mountain. The mountain is quite good!" Zhou Yu enthusiastically introduced the wild fun of the mountain, such as hunting birds and eggs, catching chickens and snakes.
Su Qingze's eyes lit up. "Wow! You are so bold to dare to catch snakes too!"
Zhou Yu scratched his head embarrassedly. "In fact, we didn't catch it purposely. The snake was about to steal the wild eggs, so we caught it when the egg was in the snake's mouth..."
"Then what you were gonna do with the snake?" Ming'an was full of curiosity.
"Eat it!" Zhou Yu took it for granted.
"The snake is so long and so thick..." After making a gesture, Zhou Yu continued, "We picked up dry wood and made a fire to roast it!"
"Is this... delicious?" Su Qingze hesitated.
"It's fragrant!" It was rare for the children of the poor to taste oil and salt all year round. They also seldom ate meat. So it was the happiest thing to catch some small animals in the mountains to relieve their greed.
Shen Yanbei, who was on the side, was also aroused by hearing this. He scratched the palm of Gu Changfeng. "Should we find some time to go to the mountain?" They all said that we should rely on the mountain, so the wild things on the mountain must be very rich! It was a pity that he hadn't gone to the mountains for a long time.
"Okay." Now the weather was hot, so the temperature in the mountain was not so cold. It was fine to go for a walk sometimes. The most important thing was that he had regained his internal strength, so it wouldn't be a big problem even if he encountered beasts.
Suddenly, a carriage slowly came closer. It was wrapped in brocade on all sides and the windows were covered with a curtain of gauze. Suddenly, when the veil was lifted away, it revealed a man's face with plain features.
The man glanced out of the window, then his eyes fell on the few people who were sitting in the bullock cart in front of him talking and smiling.
He frowned slightly. Thinking of what the villagers said, he carefully looked at the two unfamiliar teenagers, one thin and the other fat, his brows became tighter.
Hearing the sound of a carriage came from behind, the people on the ox-cart turned their heads to look and then caught the man's gaze unexpectedly.
Shen Yanbei did not change his face. He joined his hand in salute at the man. "Li Juren." The man who was sitting on the carriage was Li Yi!
Li Yi smiled at a few people for an unprecedented time. He raised his hand to let coachman stopping the carriage, and looked at the people with a pleasant look. He said, "The sun is rising high. Since the bullock cart is running slow, it will make you burn. It happens that my carriage is spacious, why don’t you come up and sit together?"
Hearing this, several people were stunned. They looked at each other, and all saw suspiciousness in each other's eyes.
Shen Yanbei smiled slightly and said, "We don't dare to bother you. This mountain scenery is pretty good, so it's okay to walk slowly and watch the view."
Being rejected, Li Yi didn't show any dissatisfaction. "It doesn't matter if you are used to it, but Su gōngzǐ probably can't bear it." After that, his expression was gentle. He said to Su Qingze, "Since we have the same destination, I don't know if I can invite Su Gōngzǐ to drink tea together?"
Before Su Qingze could answer, Ming'an snorted coldly. "My young master isn't used to riding in such a simple carriage!"
Li Yi's face was a little ugly, but he still persuaded him with patience. "Although the carriage is simple, but can protect from the sun. We shouldn't let Gōngzǐ suffering by the sun."
"No. I like riding a bullock cart." Su Qingze directly rebuffed. If he really couldn't endure suffering, he would have asked people to pick him up long ago!
He squeezed his fist, Li Yi tried his best to keep a smile. "If this is the case, I won't disturb Su Gōngzǐ enjoying the scenery. See you at the county office."
Su Qingze nodded lightly.
"Cih. Cih. Cih!" Ming'an snorted at the carriage who had been going away. "What a fake courtesy!"
"That's right!" Zhou Yu echoed angrily. "He must have known the identity of Su Gōngzǐ so that's why he stubbornly flattering like that!"
Like everyone thought, Li Yi really wanted to climb to Su Qingze. Knowing that what he did last time didn't disgrace Shen Yanbei, instead, he still could show off, Li Yi was full of anger, jealousy, and regret at the same time.
Why it was not him meeting such a noble person? If he could make friends with a son of such a famous family, it would definitely help him in his future career! If he attended Shen Yanbei's crown ceremony that day, he probably could be acquainted with him...
The ambitious Li Yi might think so but he didn't know that the other party was disgusted with him.
"I have seen many types of person, but I have never seen such a very thick-skinned person like him!" Ming'an was full of disgust. "When we came for morning tea at the restaurant before, he indulged his friends by letting them grabbing our dim sum. Now he pretends as if nothing happened. Even do not say a word to apologize. Cih!"
"What happened?" Shen Yanbei couldn't help asking when hearing the words eating dim sum in the restaurant.
Ming'an immediately told them the domineering actions of Li Sheng and Wang Cheng on the day the Tongfu restaurant opened. Shen Yanbei was taken aback. "Is one with a mole on his chin and the other with a cyan brocade robe with a sharp-mouthed monkey cheek?"
Ming'an nodded fast. "How do you know them Shen Gōngzǐ?"
Shen Yanbei said helplessly, "The one with moles is Li Sheng, the eldest son of Li Yuanwai in Lijia Village, and the young man with the sharp-mouthed monkey cheeks is Li Juren's in-law Wang Cheng."
"No wonder! It turns out to be a nest of snakes and rats!"
"I heard from the shopkeeper that the two of them were also disrespectful to the magistrate's wife who came to the restaurant for morning tea, then the magistrate awarded them ten hit by the board."
"What?" Su Qingze widened his eyes, puffing up his chubby face. "How dare they bully my sister!"
Ming'an was also angry. "Xiaojie shouldn't only let them be hit by the board, they should be locked up in jail!"
Zhou Yu doesn't agree with Ming'an's statement. "This only treats the symptoms, not the root cause. It's all because of Li Juren!"
Everyone was silent for a while.
Shen Yanbei said without any expression. "Li Juren gathered most of the village chiefs before. He wants the villagers in nearby villages to raise funds to build public schools. He will serve as the dean."
"This kind of person wants to teach and educate people?" Ming'an exclaimed. "Can he teach students well?"
Su Qingze also doubted it. On the day Shen Yanbei dealt with the thief, he missed it. He only learned the situation from the mouths of the villagers. If Shen Yanbei was not fully prepared at that time, he was really sure that Li Yi would shelter the Lijia Villager who stole the ducks.
Could this kind of immoral person be the head of a school?
"I'll talk to my brother-in-law about this matter later," Su Qingze said sternly. The imperial court encouraged the building of schools, and special funds would be allocated for public schools. Therefore, the establishment of public schools was not a trivial matter. It needed to be reported and approved first before processing.
"Thank you!" It was indeed a good thing to build a school, but he was afraid that the money from the hard work of the villagers would be misused. Even more afraid that Li Yi would mislead these children.
After enduring the shaking of the cart, they finally arrived at the county and directly went to the official residence behind the county government. Because of the banquet held today, there were many carriages parked beside the vermilion gate behind the mansion. Many gentlemen came with the gift waiting by the side of the gate, and the housekeeper was busy greeting them. Those with invitations stepped forward to show the invitations and then came in. Those without invitations could only wait for the housekeeper to send someone to report.
Seeing an ox cart coming from a distance, the housekeeper was happy, and immediately let someone open the middle door to let the ox-cart enter.
What happened? Everyone was dumbfounded. Those of them who come with courtesy and sincerity were no better than a few hillbillies who plowed the fields?
The ox cart stopped and Su Qingze jumped down. The housekeeper looked at him up and down, he smiled, "Fūrén has been waiting for you early in the morning, you have to meet her quickly!" The boy in front of him lost weight, but he looked more energetic.
Then he turned his head and said to Shen Yanbei, "Lǎoyé is in his study. Shen Gōngzǐ please come in!"
Shen Yanbei glanced at Gu Changfeng, Gu Changfeng whispered, "I'll see the Fūrén." The men and women sat in separate seats. He was a Shuānger, so he had to sit in ladies' side. Although he didn't know how to deal with the ladies and madam, as Shen Yanbei's wife, he must learn how to build a relationship.
Shen Yanbei smiled to let him not be nervous, then he took Zhou Yu together with the housekeeper to see Li Zhiyuan.
"Gu Dàgē, let's go! I'll take you to see my little nephew!" Su Qingze greeted him.
Gu Changfeng nodded and walked to the Moon Gate with Su Qingze.
