Chapter 164 Sending Away Two Great Buddhas
The main road in Dahe Village is not smooth.
Zheng Wangfeng and Qian Hui came here once before, and they were so dizzy from the bumpy ride that they were completely disoriented.
The two made a pact that they would never come to such a shabby place again, but unexpectedly, their carriages met on the mountain road.
On a carriage were a young master, a page, two servants, and a rough coachman.
The carriage stopped at the gate of Cheng Wanwan's courtyard. Two servants carefully helped their young master down and then stood properly on both sides of the gate.
When Cheng Wanwan and Shen Zheng returned, they saw the two young masters standing in the courtyard, with Cheng Zhao greeting them. The three of them seemed to be having a pleasant conversation.
The people working nearby kept their heads down and tried to minimize their presence.
"Brother Zheng, Brother Qian, what brings you here again?" Shen Zheng walked in with a nonchalant air. "You two are so particular. This is the countryside, with muddy ground and chicken and duck droppings on the ground. Aren't you afraid of getting your brocade boots dirty?"
Zheng Wangfeng immediately frowned and took a few steps to the side, stepping onto the clean straw stalks on the ground.
Qian Hui sneered, "If I hadn't come, I really wouldn't have known that someone was so shameless as to steal my credit!"
Shen Zheng grabbed Qian Hui by the collar: "No, why do I feel like you're insulting me?"
"Xiao Zheng." Cheng Wanwan went over and pulled Shen Zheng away. "He's a guest, don't lay a hand on him."
As she spoke, she looked at Qian Hui again, "Young Master Qian, let's make things clear. I'm an old man, how can I live if I'm called shameless by a young man?"
"I'm not insulting you!" Qian Hui sneered, turning to stare at Shen Zheng. "Was it me who had the stone roller made? It was my servants who had the stonemasons of the Qian family make it. How dare you say it's all your doing?"
"What nonsense!" Shen Zheng frowned. "If you think it's your achievement, then it's yours. Why are you coming to me with this? I can't be bothered with you!"
Qian Hui snorted. Anyway, his grandfather had already asked the magistrate of Baiyun Town to report the matter to the prefect, so he could just wait to receive the credit.
“Aunt Zhao, I’ve come here on my father’s orders to study under Brother Cheng,” Zheng Wangfeng said, cupping his hands in greeting. “My father gave me ten taels of silver for food and lodging, so I’ll be troubling you for the next ten days, Aunt Zhao.”
He respectfully handed over the money bag in his hand.
Cheng Wanwan didn't answer, but said calmly, "The villagers eat a bowl of white rice with a bowl of wild vegetables, and occasionally buy some meat for a treat. A dozen or so copper coins are enough for a meal. As for the place to live, Young Master Zheng, look at my house. It's only this big. Young Master Shen and Cheng Zhao sleep on the floor in the main room. They lay out straw stalks... oh, that's the dry grass you're standing on, Young Master Zheng, on the ground, and then put a sheet on it. That's a bed. For such conditions, ten taels of silver is a bit too much."
Zheng Wangfeng's outstretched hand froze.
They ate white rice and wild vegetables every day, and only occasionally could they eat meat. That was alright, since they could send a driver to the restaurant in town to buy food.
Sure! He is the son of a dignified county magistrate; how can he use the land as a bed?
Cheng Wanwan smiled.
Last time, she could tell that this young master Zheng was pampered and completely different from Shen Zheng. Such a person cares a lot about enjoyment, and no matter how she tries to guide him, he will never accept her family's conditions, which will only lead to more trouble.
Such a distinguished young master is like a Buddha statue; she must be crazy to invite him back.
Furthermore, she hadn't forgotten that Cheng Zhao's expulsion was orchestrated by these two, and she didn't quite trust their character.
"Come on, Mr. Zheng, move aside. I'm drying these haystacks to get rid of the bugs and mosquitoes inside, so I won't feel itchy when I sleep at night."
Zheng Wangfeng's face cracked.
There are also bugs and mosquitoes; if you sleep on one for a night, you'll definitely get a lot of welts all over your body.
Shen Zheng scoffed lightly: "The main room is only so big. It's a bit cramped for me, Cheng Zhao, and Afu to sleep. Brother Zheng and Brother Qian, you should find another place."
Qian Hui was speechless. Did they really think they wanted to sleep on the ground?
He snorted: "Then we'll go back to town tonight and stay overnight, and come to Dahe Village during the day. Brother Zheng, you can study with Cheng Zhao, and I'll take the time to study what this stone roller is all about."
Cheng Wanwan followed up on their conversation, saying, "That's a good idea. Anyway, Young Master Zheng and Young Master Qian have carriages, so it's convenient for them to come and go."
Zheng Wangfeng had a headache.
His father had instructed him to follow Cheng Zhao and Shen Zheng day and night, to learn from Cheng Zhao's diligence, and to befriend Shen Zheng, so as to lay a foundation for his future career in officialdom.
If he dares to try to enjoy life back in town, his father will definitely be furious.
After all, if Shen Zheng can stay in the countryside for so long, why can't he?
He glanced at the dry straw that Cheng Wanwan was tidying up, and with his sharp eyes, he spotted a dead locust and a puddle that he couldn't tell if it was chicken or duck droppings.
The thought of sleeping on this place that night made him want to die.
Instead of turning around and leaving, he maintained the demeanor of a refined gentleman, cupped his hands and said, "Aunt Zhao, then Brother Qian and I will go and find another place to stay. We'll take our leave now."
As soon as the two left, a smile appeared on Cheng Wanwan's face.
Shen Zheng leaned closer: "Auntie, were you also disgusted with me and afraid that I would stay here back then?"
Cheng Wanwan shook her head against her will: "Of course not, otherwise why would I have agreed to let you stay?"
In reality, Magistrate Shen ran too fast, giving her no room to refuse.
Shen Zheng wore a smug smile.
His father always said that he didn't study as hard as Zheng Wangfeng, and that anyone would prefer to befriend Zheng Wangfeng.
That's why Aunt Zhao likes him even more.
Aunt Zhao would praise him and give him rewards, so he liked staying there.
Although there was no Eight Treasure Duck, Assorted Pork, Lion's Head Meatballs... Shen Zheng swallowed hard. Even though he couldn't eat these dishes, he was still willing to stay. Aunt Zhao's food was actually quite delicious. The same dish tasted better than what the cook at the county government office made.
Zheng Wangfeng and Qian Hui sat in the carriage. After discussing it for a while, they sent someone to inquire around and learned that the best house in the village was the one owned by the village head, which was spacious and bright. So they decided to go find the village head.
Both of them were young masters of status, and they didn't believe that Zhao Lizheng wouldn't treat them well, since they had plenty of money.
The village head had already heard that people from the town had come, but it was the son of the county magistrate of Phoenix Town and another young man he had never heard of. It had nothing to do with their Ping'an Town, so he naturally didn't bother to deal with them and was busy in the fields until Tiezhu ran into the fields to call him back.
The village head hurriedly walked back.
Zheng Wangfeng and Qian Hui stood at the door of the village head's house, utterly speechless.
The best house in the village was actually an adobe house, with only a few uneven bluestone slabs laid at the entrance to make it look a little cleaner and tidier, but it was even worse than the house where their groom lived.
But since they were already there, they had no other choice but to make the best of it.
Qian Hui tossed the money bag in his hand over: "Arrange two rooms for us to stay in, and take some effort to prepare dinner tonight."
The village head was having a headache. His family was large, and all the houses were full. Where could he find two rooms?
However, he weighed the silver in his hand and realized it was more than ten taels. Since the person could afford it, he couldn't very well kick them out.
So the village headman asked his daughter-in-law to clean up the room for the eldest and second sons. This was the largest room in the house, and it even had windows that let in light during the day.
The two daughters-in-law did their best to clean the house, sweeping the floor spotless and even taking out the floral fabric from their wedding day to spread on the table. They also changed all the blankets and pillows on the bed to clean ones.
He thought the two young masters wouldn't mind, but he still saw blatant disdain in Zheng Wangfeng and Qian Hui's eyes.
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