Chapter 381 Subtle Influence
"That's what Master Tianzun said," Qian, who had been keeping an eye on this place and spreading fertilizer nearby, put down her winnowing basket and confirmed, "When Manbao was just one year old, I had a dream. Master Tianzun said that our Manbao was the smartest person within a hundred miles. But we only said this to ourselves and didn't dare tell anyone else."
A villager who was resting in the next field burst into laughter when he heard this, and said happily, "Aunt Qian, Manbao didn't listen to you. I remember hearing her talk about this a few years ago. Hahahaha, she even said it was her friend who said it. Turns out it was Auntie who said it!"
Qian said calmly, "She's not wrong. She said she wants to be friends with everyone. But this kid must be afraid that I'll get to know her and get beaten."
"Then do you want me to beat up Manbao now?"
"Get lost," the villager's wife couldn't help but push him, saying, "Manbao is the reincarnation of a fairy. You dare to incite your aunt to beat Manbao? Let's see if Master Tianzun will come after you tonight."
Yang Heshu: ...
Manbao: ...
Bai Shanbao and Bai Erlang: ...
Until now, they, including Manbao, still don't believe this enough.
Yang Heshu had nothing more to ask. He felt that he couldn't stay with the Zhou family for too long, otherwise he would be affected.
A man does not talk about strange things. He does not think that Laozi has really become an immortal and is watching over them from heaven, and has a fairy as his concubine.
Well, I have heard that the Bodhisattvas of Buddhism have fairies under their seats. Does Taishang Laojun have some too?
Yang Heshu shook his head, clearing the strange thoughts from his mind, then smiled and said to Manbao, "Would you be able to take me for a walk in the village?"
"OK."
Manbao looked at the time and felt a little hungry, so he generously invited him, "Do you want to come to my house for lunch?"
She shouted towards the field, "Sister-in-law, did you leave any food for me?"
"No," Xiao Qian said, "but your third and fourth sisters-in-law are at home. If you're hungry, go back and ask them to make you something."
Qian also waved and said, "Go back."
Manbao didn't want to eat what his third and fourth sisters-in-law made, so he looked at Bai Shanbao.
Bai Shanbao didn't want to think about it anymore. He felt that their cooking skills were not as good as the cook at home, so he said, "Then let's go back to my house and eat."
Yang Heshu couldn't help but nod his head repeatedly, that's right, that's right, your family is poor, why do you want to invite guests? Isn't there a rich family here?
Everyone saw him nodding continuously and looked at him.
Yang Heshu coughed lightly and said, "I've heard that Mr. Bai has a good reputation in the village, so it's a good opportunity for me to stop by and pay him a visit."
Bai Erlang said: "That's my father, not his father."
Yang Heshu: "...I can go to your house."
The group walked back to the Bai family.
When walking along the river at the entrance of the village, Yang Heshu couldn't help but stop and sigh, "Your river is great! With the river, irrigation will be much more convenient."
"Yes, the village head said that although our village is poor, we have a river. With a river, we won't starve to death. If we die of starvation, it will be a few days later than others."
Yang Heshu: "...Do all the people here speak so sharply?"
He looked around and asked, "Isn't there a canal leading to that side?"
It refers to the largest piece of land. As far as the eye can see, except for a few scattered mountains, it is endless fields.
"Yes, there are two."
"Only two?"
Manbao said, "These two points are good. Last year, everyone wanted to save food, so they didn't do labor service or repair the village's water conservancy. In previous years, the county government always wanted to conscript people, so there was no time to repair the village's water conservancy."
"Isn't your village's water conservancy project within the scope of the county government's labor service?"
Manbao said: "My father said that our place is remote and the adults don't remember us."
"That's not true," Bai Erlang retorted. "My father said that because our family lives here, the county officials wanted my father to pay for the repairs for free so that the county government wouldn't have to spend money."
Bai Shanbao had obviously heard what Master Bai said, and he expressed his support for Bai Erlang. "My cousin said that he paid for the repair of several large canals in the village. Sometimes when the villagers couldn't help or didn't want to contribute, he had to use the money to buy food for everyone."
Bai Erlang nodded, "My father is really distressed."
Yang Heshu didn't know whether to praise Mr. Bai for his kindness or for being stingy, so he could only smile in response.
Mr. Bai is playing chess with Mr. Zhuang.
Mr. Zhuang now has only three students, so teaching is easier for him and he doesn’t even have to follow the previous schedule.
Manbao and Bai Shanbao can take the same courses, but the focus of their extracurricular reading will be slightly different, which is not a problem for Mr. Zhuang.
Bai Erlang's classes were easier. The child was a slow learner, so the pace of class had to be slowed down, but perhaps because Mr. Zhuang was now more accommodating to his pace, he learned better than before in the academy.
Now he only guides them in writing in the morning and gives them lessons in the evening, leaving him with plenty of free time in between.
Mr. Zhuang would occasionally go to the fields to check on the farms of a few of his disciples, but more often he would read books in the courtyard, or come to see Mr. Bai to play chess, drink, and chat.
Yang Heshu had heard of the two of them a long time ago, and came to Qili Village specifically just to meet Mr. Bai, and even Mr. Zhuang was there by the way.
However, after meeting Mr. Zhuang's three disciples, he felt that he could no longer just visit Mr. Zhuang.
Mr. Bai was the most famous and largest landlord in Baimaquan Town. Yang Heshu came to the county town quietly. After arriving, apart from having a meal with the gentry in the county town, he had no time to get to know the gentry in the countryside.
Bai Shanbao would help Yang Heshu hide the secret from the villagers, but he would not hide it from Mr. Bai and Mr. Zhuang. Therefore, before he reached the door, he whispered a few words into Bai Erlang's ear.
Bai Erlang was too lazy to pay attention to him, so he knew that his stubborn temper had come back again, so he looked at Manbao.
Manbao coughed lightly and said with a stern face: "Junior brother, don't you listen to me?"
Manbao took out two candies from his pocket and gave them to him, waving his hand and saying, "Go ahead."
Bai Erlang took the candy and ran home. As soon as he reached the yard, he shouted, "Dad—County Magistrate Yang is here to see you!"
Yang Heshu: ...
He turned his head to glance at the two children who were looking straight at him, and remained silent.
Mr. Bai and Mr. Zhuang put down their chess pieces and came out of the door to greet them. They bowed from a distance and said, "We are honored to have received our distinguished guests. We are sorry for not coming to greet them in person. We are sorry for not coming to greet them in person."
When I got closer, I saw that Yang Heshu was very young and couldn't help but be stunned.
Mr. Zhuang's eyesight was even worse than Mr. Bai's. He could only see Yang Heshu's face clearly when he got close. Such a young county magistrate must have either a good family background or great talent. Of course, the most likely possibility was that he had both.
Therefore, Mr. Zhuang also happily bowed and said, "Zhuang greets the County Magistrate."
Yang Heshu quickly supported the two men's hands, returned the greeting, and said with a smile, "Mr. Bai and Mr. Zhuang are too polite. I came here uninvited. It would be better if you two didn't mind."
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com