Chapter 94 The Academy Turmoil: Who Dares to Hit Your Grandpa!

"Uncle Li!"

Shen Miao turned around and saw Li Tiaozi's mule cart coming to a stop under the willow tree at the alley entrance. Overjoyed, she stopped and ran towards him. "I made Tang Er wait at the water gate for three whole days, and he was still waiting there early this morning. Where did you come from?"

"When we came back, the canal official arranged for us to take a grain ship, saying it would be faster." Li Tiaozi breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Shen Miao, his small, beady eyes narrowing into slits with joy. "The grain ship unloaded its cargo at Tongjin Gate; the granary is there. The grain ship almost never stops at small ports, only docking when there's a resupply, and mostly at night, so I haven't had a chance to send you a message. How have you been these past month, Gou'er? How are you all?"

"Oh, right, the boats going there and back must be different." Shen Miao slapped her forehead. She was really stupid. She had forgotten that there were so many ferry crossings outside Bianjing City. Different boats docked at different wharves. They went through the water gate, but they might not be able to return. It was really bad for Tang Er. He had waited for several days and got nothing in return.

When Shen Miao heard Li Tiaozi's concern for Li Gou'er, she knew he was worried about his son, so she spoke to him in detail, "Everything is fine. Gou'er went to the private school early this morning. Don't worry, Uncle Li. Ninth Brother's father is staying in West Alley these days, and all the children from our families have been taught calligraphy and writing by him. I must say, his family is very prestigious and powerful. Gou'er has only been practicing for a few days, but the private school teacher has already praised his calligraphy for improving a lot."

Everything is fine, nothing could be better. Li Tiaozi breathed a sigh of relief and grinned even wider, "Big sister, this is really all thanks to you, otherwise Gou'er wouldn't have such good fortune."

Shen Miao noticed that only Li Tiaozi was on the mule cart, and asked curiously, "Where's Auntie?"

Just as Li was about to speak, the sound of gongs and drums came from the street, startling the mules so much that they raised their heads and brayed, and even scratched their hooves in frustration.

Shen Miao followed Li Tiaozi and turned around. Just then, twelve novice monks in yellow robes carried a gilded Buddha palanquin around the street corner. The Buddha's body, which had just been washed, shone with golden light, and the fragrant soup dripped along the road onto the bluestone slabs.

"Oh no, they've already been carried out! If there are too many people, they won't be able to get out. Sister, come with me quickly!" Li Tiaozi gripped the reins and said urgently, "Your aunt is still waiting at the duck farm. So many ducks can't be left unattended."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the sound of striking a bronze chime came from the west.

The temple is about to begin having the main deities and Buddhas of the temple parade through the streets!

This day is the day of the Buddha's birth, and major temples will hold a "Bathing Buddha Festival". They will boil fragrant water with licorice and herbs, immerse the bronze Buddha statue in the water, and have the abbot and believers continuously pour the fragrant water on the Buddha statue.

These "bathing waters" used to irrigate the Buddha's body are sold by vendors carrying them on shoulder poles along the streets, who claim they can bring good fortune in the next life. After the bathing, monks carry the golden Buddha through the streets, while incense boys scatter fragrant powder along the way. Many believers follow along, holding incense and bowing in worship, escorting the Buddha statue.

In my eldest sister's memory, at its busiest, the Donghua Gate of the Imperial Palace was so crowded that it couldn't be opened; the outside was packed with people.

"Okay, okay, I'll go back and tell them and come right away." Shen Miao hurriedly lifted her skirt and rushed into the courtyard: "Fuxing, first move this batch of freshly made fish noodles to the courtyard to dry, then run to the water gate and call Tang Er back. Uncle Li and Aunt Li have already come home. Atao, you just watch the shop..."

As she finished speaking, she glanced out of the corner of her eye and saw Mr. Xie Achong leisurely holding a bowl of sweet tofu pudding, sitting under the osmanthus tree, drinking it with great elegance and comfort, and even using his spoon to tease the Qilin with great interest.

Shen Miao then didn't stand on ceremony.

"Uncle Xie, something urgent has happened today, so I have to trouble you to look after the children. I have to go now and will be back later."

After finishing speaking, Shen Miao gently rubbed Lei Ting, who had come over wagging its tail, and then said to Xiang Jie'er and Chen Chuan, who had just finished washing up and were having breakfast in the corridor, "My sister is going to check on the duck farm and probably won't be back for a while. You two should be good and listen to Uncle Xie today!"

The two little ones were still half asleep and nodded blankly.

Shen Miao looked at You Yu, whose mouth was covered in tofu dregs from eating, with concern, and said gently, "You Yu, stay with Xiang Jie and Xiao Chuan, don't run around, understand?"

Yu had already finished two bowls of tofu pudding. She liked it salty, so she was eating her third bowl. When she heard Chen Miao call her, she obediently nodded while holding the big bowl, and even ate the bits of tofu residue and wood ear fungus that had gotten on her face.

It smells delicious and tastes great.

She could just sit there holding the bowl and giggle to herself.

Mr. Xie was inexplicably assigned to look after the children. He held the black pottery bowl and was stunned for a moment. He sighed and wanted to say that he had never taken care of children before. Third Brother, Ninth Brother, and Eleventh Mother all grew up with their wet nurses... But Shen Miao couldn't care less about that now. She grabbed the small handbag hanging by the door and ran out of the yard in a flash.

"I'm leaving! I'm leaving the house in your care!"

Mr. Xie had no choice but to sit back down, hold his spoon, and silently eat a couple of bites. Suddenly, he stopped and turned his eyes to look down at the corridor.

Xiang Jie'er, Chen Chuan, and You Yu were all looking at him with innocent expressions.

The four people looked at each other in silence, while only the fat sparrow hopped around under the eaves, chirping merrily.

After exchanging glances, neither of them seemed very confident about the other's reliability. After a while, Xiangjie, whose hair was still loose, asked tentatively in a low voice, "Uncle Xie, can you help me tie my hair into a bun? I'm going to Douhua's house to play with the silk dolls later."

Father Xie: "..."

What is a flower bud head?

Over here, Shen Miao had already boarded Li Tiaozi's mule cart. The two of them struggled through the increasingly congested traffic and people towards the outer city. On the way out of the city, they would pass by the brokerage firm. Shen Miao hurriedly said, "Uncle Li, wait a moment. I'll take the people I had the brokerage firm hire with me. I was just talking to A Tao the other day. Today, before you and Auntie return, we're going to have the newly hired people go to the duck farm to tidy things up. I didn't expect it to be such a coincidence. Before we even had a chance, you and Auntie arrived."

She called out to the short man, Ya Bao, asking him to help bring the person over. Just then, the street became lively, and Chen Miao's shouts were half-swallowed by the shouts of the street performers.

Fortunately, Dwarf Toothbow also spotted her, ran out to listen to what she was saying, and nodded after understanding: "Okay, okay, I'll bring it right away."

Soon the mule cart was full of people.

These were the four men that Dwarf Tooth had brought to her for a blind date; they were a family.

The man in his prime was named Hong Ba. He used to raise chickens and ducks for others. He was so angry because his employer was too stingy. He had not only not received a raise in five years, but was also going to have his salary reduced this year. He resigned with his whole family.

The woman, who was around thirty years old, was called Luo Niang. She was his wife and had some experience in taking care of chickens and ducks. The couple also had two children, a son named Hongshan and a daughter named Hongxi. Both of them were very capable, and when Shen Miao asked them how to raise ducks, they explained it very well. They could be considered half of the able-bodied laborers. According to Hong Ba, their two children had been helping their parents at the duck farm and learning how to raise chickens and ducks since they could walk.

They are young, but have ten years of work experience.

Shen Miao then hired the whole family, letting them move to the duck farm to live. The four of them would be paid a total of five strings of cash per month, including accommodation. Hong Ba was overjoyed and satisfied when he heard that there were newly built brick houses at the duck farm reserved for them. Before, when they worked for their previous employer, the whole family had to live with the ducks.

After picking up the Hong family of four, the mule cart was stuck between the meat pie stall and the monkey show troupe, unable to move for only a short while.

The air was thick with the smoke of incense, so thick it stung the eyes. Fortunately, after a short while, soldiers from the local street office came and cleared the road, allowing Li to slowly inch forward in his mule cart.

While Shen Miao went to see the ducklings she had been longing for, Shen Ji's quick-cooking soup noodles business was also thriving at Biyong Academy.

The students were the first to return to the academy. They had all spent the New Year at home and eaten a lot of good food, so no one could stomach the swill in the dining hall. The sausages and two large boxes of instant soup noodles that his sister had Tang Er send him had been sold out in just a few days, with only a few pieces left.

Because business was so good, his stove was placed under the corridor behind the school building and was no longer moved; he just cooked soup dumplings there.

Today is Buddha's Birthday, and many students have climbed over the wall to join in the fun. They heard that the acrobatic troupes and puppet troupes from the entertainment district will parade through the streets, and there will also be floats. It's going to be a lot of fun.

Shen Ji only cooked two pots today. The second pot was cooked because Meng Honghe was craving snacks and insisted that he hadn't eaten enough of the snacks his mother brought at noon. So Shen Ji reluctantly put down his book and came to cook for him.

Squatting under the pillars of the covered walkway, the shadows of the window frames fell dappled on the floor tiles. Shen Ji used chopsticks to stir the soup noodles, cracked a raw egg into it, and cut half a sausage. Soon the pot was boiling and foaming, so he quickly turned off the heat and served it to Meng Honghe along with the small earthenware pot.

He lay sprawled on the balconies of the connecting corridor, his eyes shining behind his crystal glasses, already eagerly awaiting his meal.

"Eat up, eat up." Shen Ji shoved chopsticks at him irritably. "I just finished half of my homework, really."

Meng Honghe, holding his chopsticks, smiled ingratiatingly: "I'm really hungry."

"Eat quickly, then go back and memorize your lessons. The teacher said he'll be quizzing us on Mencius tomorrow." Shen Ji said, turning back to clean the charcoal in the stove.

"I know, I've memorized it all. Wow, it smells so good! This soup dumpling only tastes like this when you cook it..."

Meng Honghe hurriedly bent down and picked up the food with his chopsticks, but as soon as he took a bite, the steam on his nose turned into two white mists, making it impossible to see anything.

He had no choice but to put down his chopsticks again, untie the rope hanging on Ai Da's ear, lift the corner of his clothes, and wipe it again and again.

Shen Ji glanced at him sideways and gritted his teeth: "...I didn't memorize it well."

"I'll go back and help you with your studies after I finish eating. I'll quiz you on it. Don't worry, we'll make it in time." Meng Honghe smiled as he wiped his face, but without Ai Da, he could only look at Shen Ji, who was so close to him, as if he were looking at flowers through water, his features obscured by a hazy mist.

After putting his glasses back on, Meng Honghe's vision cleared again. His eyesight had been poor since childhood, and his mother always said it was her fault that she hadn't eaten grapes when she was pregnant with him, which was why he was born with poorer eyesight than others.

But Meng Honghe felt that this had nothing to do with his mother. Some people are born without arms, some are born mute. He wasn't blind, he just couldn't see as clearly as others, and he was already very lucky.

His mother sought medical help everywhere for his eyes, but in the end, they all said that his short-sightedness was incurable and that she could only save money to buy him a diaphragm.

This one is worth about ten strings of cash.

Meng Honghe buried his head in eating the soup dumplings, and soon his eyes fogged up again, but he was too lazy to wipe them. This was the troublesome thing about Dai Aidai. Every day, either his eyes were so hot that he couldn't see, or he would easily lose them after taking them off. Since he couldn't see clearly, he could only squint and feel around.

Shen Ji often said that he spent ten out of the twelve hours of the day searching for Ai Da.

Just as Meng Honghe was about to laugh at those words, he heard a chilling voice come from the side:

"To profit from the land of sages, you really have a way with yourself."

Shen Ji and Meng Honghe turned around at the same time. It was Wang Shanwen and his two lackeys from Yishe. When they saw the three of them walking over, their scalps tingled.

Wang Shanwen was the nephew of the head of the academy. He had a big head, short neck, broad shoulders, thick waist, and thick legs. He also liked to wear dark-colored clothes. If Meng Honghe, who had poor eyesight, didn't have his amulet with him, he would look like a huge and arrogant winter melon walking towards them from a distance.

When Shen Ji saw him, he rolled his eyes upwards and sighed inwardly, "Here we go again. It's never going to end."

Wang Shanwen, accompanied by two men, swaggered up to Shen Ji, crossed his arms, bent over, and stared at him with a crooked mouth. He then began to throw copper coins at Shen Ji's head and body one by one: "Are you here to study or to make money? Aren't you ashamed? Since you love money so much, how about I give you a few coins to save for your coffin?"

Copper coins hit his head and face, and a few hit the clay stove and bounced away.

Shen Ji's hands, gripping the fire tongs, were bulging with veins.

Nowadays, both officials and ordinary people love to play Cuju (ancient Chinese football), and there are two Cuju fields in Biyong Academy. A few years ago, the academy held several Cuju tournaments, and Shen Ji learned to play Cuju at the academy.

But his aim wasn't very good. At that moment, he hooked the ball with the colorful ribbon on it with his foot, and the ball hit the post when it bounced back and hit Wang Shanwen in the face.

Wang Shanwen was hit by the ball and fell backward into the mud, blood coming out of his nostrils, which caused a burst of laughter.

Shen Ji rushed over to help him up, but was kicked in return.

From then on, this person haunted him like a ghost, refusing to listen to any apologies from Shen Ji. He was convinced that Shen Ji had deliberately humiliated him on the football field, and whenever he saw Shen Ji, he would find fault with him no matter what.

Shen Ji had been holding back for a long time, thinking that he was in the wrong and not wanting to cause trouble for his sister. But now he's back again!

Seeing that Shen Ji remained silent, Wang Shanwen became even more arrogant. He pulled out a string of coins from his purse, bit off the string, and poured a handful of coins over Shen Ji's head: "You like money, don't you? How about I give you more? I have plenty!"

Shen Ji glanced at the copper coins scattered on the ground and was somewhat tempted.

So he remained even more silent.

Seeing that Shen Ji dared not resist, Wang Shanwen became even more arrogant. He kicked over the clay stove and stomped on the broken pieces to vent his anger: "I told you to sell! I told you to sell!"

The still-hot coals rolled onto the ground, sizzling as they burned the weeds.

Meng Honghe, holding the earthenware pot, hid behind a pillar, both anxious and frightened, clutching his aida (a type of ancient Chinese jade pendant), too afraid to go forward to help.

Seeing him looking like an ant on a hot plate from afar, Shen Ji shook his head almost imperceptibly, telling him not to come any closer.

Meng Honghe is only a little older than Xiang Jie'er. It's better to hide, otherwise he'll have to take care of him if a fight breaks out.

Looking at Wang Shanwen again, Shen Ji took a deep breath. His elder sister once said, "If you hold back for a moment, you'll only get angrier; if you back down, you'll only feel like you've lost out..."

He was really angry that this bastard had ruined his stove! Just as Shen Ji was about to lift the fire tongs, a bamboo branch with leaves suddenly lashed out at the back of Wang Shanwen's head and lashed him across the back of the neck.

Wang Shanwen jumped in pain, clutching the back of his neck and turning around angrily shouting, "Who! Who dares to hit your grandpa!"

"Good grandson, I'll beat you then."

She spoke in a clear, cold voice, making a witty remark, and then slapped his arm hard.

Wang Shanwen let out a roar and jumped up.

The thin bamboo stick was clearly broken off casually from the roadside, with bamboo leaves still attached. This kind of bamboo stick looks particularly thin, but it hurts exceptionally much when used to whip someone. Wang Shanwen jumped and hopped around as he was whipped, cursing incessantly, which naturally made him get whipped even harder.

"Do you know who my uncle is? How dare you hit me like this!" Wang Shanwen threw a punch, but the man calmly turned around and dodged it. As a result, he was slapped again—right on the thinnest part of his wrist. He screamed in pain. Before the screams could stop, he was kicked to the ground. This time, the screams turned into sobs.

"Waaah, Uncle, someone hit me..." He was pinned down by the man's foot, unable to turn over, and could only cry out, calling out his uncle's name. But the man merely looked down at him and said indifferently, "Master Wang sent you to the academy not to humiliate your classmates. Let me see you like this again..."

The bamboo stick in the man's hand lashed out in mid-air with a frightening whooshing sound, and his unfinished words turned chilling.

Wang Shanwen's two henchmen had already huddled together, cowering to one side. They recognized him; this was a student from the first ward, the top scorer in this year's provincial examination—wasn't that him?

He seems to come from a noble family; such a person is not like Shen Ji, who comes from a poor family and is easy to mess with.

Only after the three of them ran away crying did the frost-like coldness on Xie Qi's face fade.

Shen Ji was still holding the fire tongs halfway up his hand, staring blankly as Xie Qi turned around.

The light, filtered through the shadows of the trees, flowed between his gentle, smiling brows. His face had regained its usual gentle and refined demeanor. He even helped him pick up the small clay stove that had been trampled and broken halfway, and sighed earnestly and regretfully, "What a pity, this stove was just a new one your older sister bought."

Shen Ji then came to his senses: "Ninth Brother, what brings you here?"

After asking the question, he remembered it himself and answered it: "It's the first day of school for the students today, I forgot."

"Your elder sister made incense cakes and asked me to bring them to you." Xie Qi smiled and raised his other hand. He had two loops of hemp rope wrapped around his fingers to tie the oil paper package, which was still intact despite being neatly bound. "Everyone in the family has already eaten these cakes, except for you."

Shen Ji took the paper package, only then realizing that he had been disciplining Wang Shanwen with one hand the whole time. After a moment's pause, he also thought of his older sister, feeling a mix of warmth and sadness in his heart, and his mood became somewhat downcast: "I broke the stove, and I've caused trouble for my older sister."

“It’s none of your business. If that scoundrel brings up Master Wang later, you can just pin it all on me.” Xie Qi gently reached out to pat the embers off his clothes and stood up. “The stove is fine. We can just use the money on the ground to buy another one.”

Shen Ji couldn't help but laugh. An ordinary, more ambitious student would probably be furious if someone threw such a money-grubbing insult at him. Only Ninth Brother would say something like that, which was just what he was looking for.

"Now that the fragrant cakes have been delivered, I'll head back," Xie Qi said gently. He had only just arrived at the academy and hadn't yet paid his respects to Mr. Feng.

"I'll see you off." Shen Ji quickly got up to see him off, and Xie Qi then gave him instructions on what to say if anyone asked.

Shen Ji walked all the way to the outside of the schoolhouse before he saw Qiu Hao standing at the corner with his book box on his back. When the two of them came out, Qiu Hao even clasped his hands in a salute to Shen Ji.

Shen Ji hurriedly returned half a bow, and Xie Qi patted him on the shoulder: "Go back."

He nodded, watched Xie Qi turn around, then suddenly remembered something and called out to him again: "Ninth Brother, wait a minute."

Xie Qi stopped in confusion, only to see Ji Ge'er run back to his schoolhouse. A moment later, he came out again, holding a ball of purple grass soap. He thoughtfully handed it to him and pointed to his neck: "Ninth Brother, did your neck get bitten by insects? The weather this year is really strange. There are mosquitoes so early. This is purple grass soap that my sister gave me. It will stop itching after washing. You can take this new one. I have another one."

Shen Ji smiled, his eyes somewhat resembling Shen Miao's. Seeing Xie Qi hesitate for a moment before taking it, he forcefully shoved it into Xie Qi's hand: "Take it. I'm going back now. I haven't finished memorizing my books yet. I'm leaving."

He ran away after saying that.

Xie Qi stiffly looked down at the purple grass soap in his palm.

He was holding soap, but he didn't smell the fragrance of comfrey. Instead, he seemed to smell a slightly pungent Buddhist incense.

In a narrow, cramped corner of the alley, the clamor of bathing the Buddha outside seemed to come and go. Sunlight drifted across the eaves, filtering through patches of light that dappled the flustered man and the smiling Shen Miao.

Two fingers slowly hooked into the rhinoceros horn buckle of his leather belt. Through the thin clothes, the fingertips exerted a little force, and the knuckles pressed against his lower abdomen, pulling him even closer.

He and Shen Miao were standing almost face to face.

Xie Qi was burning up with fever, and he didn't dare to look down while his head was tilted back. His heart was pounding faster and faster.

She raised her other hand, her slender, white fingertips first touching his neck bone, then her thumb heavily grinding over the pale blue veins that rose on the inside of his neck.

He froze completely.

The next moment, a warm, moist stinging sensation suddenly came from his Adam's apple, which had been bobbing heavily due to his rapid breathing.

The tips of his teeth gently bit down on his Adam's apple.

Breathing almost stopped.

He couldn't bear it any longer and suddenly looked down, only to see a dark, heavy hair bun and a white jade hairpin inside.

Her face was buried deep in his neck.

His back was stiff, and his hands were clenched tightly, but at that time he was still quite tenacious, with a sliver of reason remaining, and he was still standing properly.

“Ah…” He instinctively wanted to call out to her, but his voice was cut off by the sudden touch of her tongue that swept over the teeth marks on the mole.

In that instant, all the bones in his body felt as crisp as if they had been thrown into a pot of oil and fried.

Xie Qi was burning hot all over, and it felt as if the last string in his mind had been stretched to its limit and snapped. He slid down the wall, feeling weak and powerless.

The places she had bitten and licked felt like all the blood in his body was rushing to them. He was dizzy and could feel the veins under his skin throbbing in his Adam's apple.

A breeze carrying the scent of sandalwood swept across the eaves, and the gentle breeze also stirred Shen Miao's sly smile.

She took a half step back, bent down, glanced at the wet teeth marks on his Adam's apple, and tucked the stray hairs behind his ear while suppressing a laugh.

"fool."

“Remember, this is what frivolity is.”

＊

On the small stone path outside the schoolhouse, Qiu Hao stood a few steps away, staring blankly at Xie Qi for a long time. Suddenly, he blushed and staggered, quickly reaching out to steady himself on a bamboo pole beside him.

Qiu Hao tilted his head in confusion.

What's going on?

Can you get heatstroke in spring?

***

Inside the Fu Ning Palace of the Imperial Palace, Zhao Boyun looked curiously at the fish ball the size of a small bowl and the unusually thick soup noodles in the bowl in front of him.

"These are newly made soup dumplings by Shen Ji. I thought they smelled so delicious that I decided to buy them." Liang Qian smiled and placed them beside Zhao Boyun. "Isn't Your Majesty suffering from a toothache? The imperial physician said it's due to internal heat. It's best to eat something light and abstain from roasted duck for a few days."

Madam Shen wasn't home today, but her servants said that the fish soup noodles and fish balls were made by Madam Shen herself. The servant named Fuxing was efficient; he scalded the fish soup noodles, put them in a bowl, and then took another bamboo tube to hold the boiling hot soup. The fish balls were also cooked and put in a separate container.

I told them to take it home quickly, and once they got home, to put the soup noodles, bone broth, and fish balls into a bowl so the soup noodles wouldn't clump together and would still taste just as good.

Da Nei and Shen Ji weren't far apart, so Liang Qian thought about it and decided to buy them anyway—ever since the Emperor had a toothache, nothing tasted good.

His dark, chubby, square face looked noticeably thinner.

Liang Qian had no children of his own, nor a normal family. He spent the first half of his life serving the late emperor, and the second half caring for and accompanying Zhao Boyun. Although he never dared to say it aloud, he actually cared for and protected Zhao Boyun as if he were his own child.

So Zhao Boyun had a toothache and no appetite, which worried Liang Qian. Liang Qian looked at Zhao Boyun with heartache; the Emperor had lost at least two ounces! Look at him, his cheeks were so thin now.

When Liang Qian advised him to give up roast duck, Zhao Boyun covered his swollen, dark cheeks with his black hands and sighed dejectedly, "What's the point of my life if I can't eat roast duck?"

He looked down again, but even the fragrant "fish ball soup with flatbread" in the bowl held no appeal. When he picked up his chopsticks, he complained, "The fish balls have a very strong fishy smell. I'd rather have congee than this..."

But remembering that Liang Da Dang had specially bought these fish balls from outside because he was worried about his health, he still picked up a fish ball and reluctantly took a bite.

"Um?"

As soon as he bit through the fish ball's outer skin, his tongue touched a soft, sweet, and meaty texture. It was smooth on the outside and chewy on the inside, and it was surprisingly bouncy, like a sparrow's tongue.

"Um?!"