Chapter 179 World 8 (Part 2)

A single lamp burned in the room, its warm orange candlelight illuminating Shen Yunshan's slender figure against the mottled walls. Ever since Shen's father left home, the Shen family had been practically destitute. Shen Liushi scrimped and borrowed heavily from others to afford Shen Yunshan's place at the prestigious Xiangjiang Academy.

At Xiangjiang Academy, Shen Yunshan, in addition to studying, also copied books for others and wrote letters to supplement his family income.

Shen Yunshan moved the candlestick to the window frame. Under the bright, frosty moonlight, the dim candlelight could clearly illuminate the words on the scroll.

The candlelight flickered, and half of Shen Yunshan's handsome face was filled with light, while the other half was hidden in darkness.

Even while reviewing, Shen Yunshan didn't sway for comfort, but instead held his back straight, with the unwavering grace of a bamboo. He stared intently at the scroll, his hair ruffling against his nose as the wind rushed into the room. His knuckles resembled bamboo, their ridges distinct and defined. With a slight movement, he turned a page.

Only after he had finished reading the book in his hand did Shen Yunshan blow out the candle and fall asleep on the bed.

The next day, Shen Yunshan went to his family's farm. It was only three or four mu of thin land, but the crops in the land were taken care of very well by Shen Liushi. The wheat seedlings were thriving, and the rapeseed and peppers planted in the fields were also green and pleasing to the eye.

Shen Yunshan tied his wide robe with a thin hemp rope and picked up a gourd ladle to water the crops in the field.

When the villagers saw Shen Yunshan, they hurriedly said, "Scholar, that hand of yours is for holding a pen and writing, how can you do these kinds of work? Your mother is so willing to let you do it!"

Shen Liushi was naturally reluctant to part with it. She had gone to fetch the pitiful treasured fan early in the morning and wouldn't be back for a while. Otherwise, given how much Shen Liushi valued Shen Yunshan, even if Shen Yunshan said anything, she would never agree to let her future son, a successful scholar, do these rough farm work.

Shen Yunshan had a calm expression, not showing any anger at being teased. He simply corrected the villagers' words lightly.

"It's just farm work. It's not a question of whether I'm willing to give it up or not."

The villagers looked at Shen Yunshan busy in the fields and whispered to each other.

"How come Yunshan doesn't have the airs of a scholar at all?"

"That's right, Yunshan is a scholar, it's only natural that he doesn't do these rough jobs.

The son of my uncle took the exam for several years but he didn't even get close to becoming a scholar. However, he claimed to be a scholar and refused to do any housework.

Even if they asked him to hand over a piece of clothing, they would sigh and say it was "disgraceful."

Shen Yunshan looked weak, like a poor scholar in a storybook who was unable to even tie a chicken, but he quickly finished the work in the fields.

Shen Yunshan untied the hemp rope on his legs, and his outer robe immediately loosened and swayed in the wind.

With Shen Yunshan's gentle face like jade, in an instant, he became the scholar in the eyes of the villagers again.

"Brother Shen."

A clear and pleasant call sounded in front of Shen Yunshan.

He looked up and saw the woman in front of him, wearing a starched, whitish dress.

But she was dressed neatly and tidy, and her eyes were shining as she looked at Shen Yunshan, looking very happy.

Shen Yunshan frowned: "You are..."

Although she knew that Shen Yunshan did not intentionally forget her name, Shen Yunshan stayed in Xiangjiang Academy for a long time and only came back occasionally to review his lessons. He seldom had any interaction with women, so it was understandable that he could not remember what she looked like.

But the brightness in Li Dongran's eyes faded a little.

She was clearly a generous and polite person, but now she was fiddling with her clothes and explaining to Shen Yunshan, "I am the third daughter of the Li family at the head of the village, Li Dongran."

When mentioning his own name, Li Dongran deliberately emphasized his tone.

As for the Li family, Shen Liushi’s complaints yesterday flashed through Shen Yunshan’s mind.

Shen Yunshan's eyes softened a little, but he still didn't understand what the connection was between him and Li Dongran.

"What do you want?"

Li Dongran hurriedly opened a square cloth bag and handed a golden-brown pancake to Shen Yunshan.

A rich sweet fragrance permeates the air, as if it was mixed with a sufficient amount of sugar to create such a sweet fragrance.

Seeing that Shen Yunshan didn't reach out to take it, Li Dongran looked around, fearing that the aroma of the pancakes would attract the Li family over, which would be troublesome.

Li Dongran thought that Shen Yunshan was unwilling to take the order because he felt that there was enough sugar in the pancakes and it would cost too much money.

After all, country folk cook with less salt and sugar, and prefer not to use too much oil. Li Dongran quickly explained, "These pancakes aren't made with sugar. Instead, they're made with a kind of fruit I found in the bushes. The juice is very sweet, so I used that fruit to mix with the dough, and the pancakes are naturally sweet and delicious."

Shen Yunshan gradually remembered Li Dongran's name. She was the third child in the Li family and was not favored.

But Li Dongran is very clever and can make delicious meals out of ordinary vegetables and radishes.

When Shen Yunshan returned from Xiangjiang Academy, he heard the villagers talking about the daughters of the Li family.

"Dong Ran is hardworking and capable. She will definitely be a good wife in the future. But she's not as pretty as her elder sister Li Qiu Ran."

Li Dongran's appearance is not ugly. She has a dimple on the right cheek, which is faintly visible when she smiles.

But Li Dongran has a beautiful sister. When she stands next to Li Qiuran, they are so different that people can't even see them.

Shen Yunshan rejected Li Dongran not because of any other reason, but because Shen Liu had already made the plan in advance.

Although it is not as sweet and soft as the one sent by Li Dongran, it tastes okay.

Li Dongran left with a depressed look. She hid in a remote corner and put the burnt pancake into her mouth.

She made plenty of pancakes, but because Li Qiuran liked them, she gave them all to her.

Fortunately, Li Dongran secretly hid a piece while cooking, so he avoided having to eat the astringent grains.

As sweet as sugar juice, it slowly flowed into Li Dongran's mouth. She ate the pancake clean, patted the crumbs on her hands, and looked at Shen Yunshan's back in the distance with a dazed expression.

Li Dongran heard that his family wanted to arrange a marriage for Li Qiuran, and the match was with the scholar Shen Yunshan.

But this did not happen. Shen Liu looked down on Li Qiuran, which made Li Qiuran very angry at home.

These days, the Li family members were in a depressed mood, only Li Dongran felt a little happy in her heart. She was very happy that Shen Xiucai did not marry Li Qiuran.

Li Dongran couldn't explain the reason clearly. She only knew that every time she met Shen Yunshan in a bamboo green robe, her heart would beat non-stop and her eyes would not blink.

Li Dongran only had one pancake hidden, but when she saw Shen Yunshan coming to the field, she couldn't help but give the pancake to him.

When Shen Liu arrived at Zhoujia Village, she was guided by the villagers to find the current residence of her distant niece, Zhou Baoshan.

When she saw a precarious thatched hut, Shen Liu's eyelids twitched slightly, and she secretly regretted in her heart that she wanted to repay the one hundred copper coins she had paid that year.

But it had been more than ten years since Shen Liushi had seen the treasure fan, when it was still a baby without any teeth.

Baoshan was having such a hard time now, and she had no idea what her character and temper were like.

What if the person is difficult to deal with and stays at her house?

Before Shen Liushi even stepped into the thatched hut, she had already become timid, thinking that if she didn't do anything, she would pay back the precious fan for two hundred copper coins and not take her home.

The accompanying villagers, unaware of the twists and turns in Shen Liushi’s mind, shouted towards the thatched cottage: “Baoshan, your aunt is here to see you!”

A clear and sweet response came from the thatched hut, soft and gentle.

Immediately afterwards, a graceful figure walked out of the thatched hut.

Her face was like a peach blossom, with a faint pink tint on her cheeks, pearly teeth and soft lips. She looked gentle and charming, but her figure was timid.

Her raven-feathered hair piled up on her slender neck like clouds and mist. When she saw Shen Liushi, Baoshan's pair of glass-like eyes opened slightly and she called softly, "Aunt?"

Shen Liushi had never thought that the fair and soft little girl would be so beautiful.

Baoshan has a delicate figure, like a willow swaying in the wind, but her clothes are tattered, and behind her is a thatched house that is almost collapsing, making the pearl covered in dust.

The villagers explained: "This is your aunt from a distant place, she came to see you specially."

Shen Liu concealed her purpose of coming and only talked about her relationship with Baoshan's father.

"Your cousin Yunshan and I were thinking of you, so we came to see you."

Baoshan gracefully welcomed Shen Liu into the thatched cottage.

Shen Liushi had already learned about the situation of the treasure fan from the villagers of Zhoujia Village.

His uncles and aunts treated Baoshan badly, so they gave him a thatched hut that was uninhabitable.

Shen Liu looked inside the thatched hut. Unlike the rough exterior, it was kept clean and tidy. On the simple wooden table, there was a thin-necked porcelain vase with a few corners missing from the mouth. It must have been picked up from somewhere rather than bought with money.

In the thin-necked porcelain vase, a few wild flowers are inserted diagonally, alternating between pink and blue, which looks quite interesting.

Shen Liu looked at Baoshan with a bit more pity in her eyes. Unconsciously, she told Baoshan about her own affairs, even which academy Shen Yunshan went to, during the casual conversation.

Bao Shan lowered her beautiful eyes slightly, and she naturally saw Shen Liushi's intention. However, Shen Liushi suddenly changed her mind and was hesitating whether to use silver to sever her affection or let her sympathy take over and take Bao Shan home.

Rather than repaying the copper coins, Baoshan would rather let Shen Liushi take her back to the Shen family.

Baoshan's situation wasn't as pitiful as it appeared. It was true that her uncle and aunt often treated her harshly. But Baoshan was accustomed to acting so pitiful that she captivated her aunt's two sons.

Every time my aunt asked Baoshan to do some work, my two cousins would scramble to do it, just like a peacock spreading its wings, showing off in front of Baoshan.

My aunt complained that the food was so bad that it was not even as good as a three-year-old child's.

Baoshan timidly covered her face, as if she was extremely ashamed, but she sneered in her heart: No matter how bad it is, it was made by my aunt's two precious sons.

The aunt wanted to arrange a marriage for Baoshan, and she looked for wealthy widowers, saying that Baoshan owed their family and should repay them with a generous betrothal gift.

Baoshan's beautiful eyes were filled with tears, and she was about to nod timidly, but her two cousins refused. They had a big fight with their aunt, and after much argument, they finally moved Baoshan out of her aunt's house and settled down in a separate household.

But as they grew older, the two cousins were no longer as easy to fool as before, and the way they looked at Baoshan became more and more frightening.

Listening to Shen Liu's praise of how successful Shen Yunshan was in Xiangjiang Academy, Baoshan smiled gently and stood up to pour tea for Shen Liu.