Chapter 82 Ping'er, where did you get the meat?
"Back then, my father said that if I married you, I would never suffer in my life. Now it seems I really haven't suffered, because my mouth is empty, and I don't even have anything to eat!"
"Madam, please calm down."
"Get out of here! I don't want to see your pathetic behavior."
Before long, a refined-looking man in his thirties, dressed in a long robe and with a thin face, was pushed and shoved out the door.
Even after leaving the house, he still wouldn't give up and kept knocking on the door, muttering, "Madam? Madam? Don't be angry. The academy has given out money; I'll buy you eggs right away."
"roll!"
Jiang Nuanzhi blinked twice and exchanged a glance with Li Junping: "Um, how about we come back later?"
Li Junping: "Didn't you bring a gift?"
Jiang Nuanzhi nodded and then handed him the meat.
Li Junping took it, and the next second he immediately put on a very standard smile: "Master, your student has come to see you."
Jiang Nuanzhi's expression was strange.
That brat has never smiled so brightly at me before.
Damn, it's actually kind of cute.
As soon as Li Junping spoke, the surroundings fell silent.
Master Du turned around and saw his student. He immediately became somewhat flustered, straightened his clothes, cleared his throat, and said, "Ping'er, what brings you here?"
Li Junping smiled and said, "I've come to see you and brought a gift."
After saying that, he held the piece of meat up with both hands.
Master Du's eyes widened instantly: "A gift for me?"
Immediately afterwards, he said to the tightly closed door behind him, "Madam, open the door! Look! My student has brought me meat, come and see!"
The lady said, "Don't try to fool me! Get out!"
Master Du touched his nose, glanced at the meat in his hand in a daze, then looked at Li Junping, realized something, and his whole face scrunched up: "Ping'er, where did you get this meat?"
He paused, then said solemnly, "I know you are in a difficult situation now, but you must remember not to go astray. I don't care where you got this meat, return it to where it came from immediately, and I will pretend this never happened."
With a pained expression, he stuffed the meat back into Li Junping's hands.
Just then, the door burst open.
Madam Du came out from inside and took the meat from her.
Then, she looked at Li Junping and clicked her tongue in amazement: "You little debt collector, you didn't come here to freeload today, you actually came to deliver meat? The sun really did rise in the west."
I'll accept this meat on behalf of your teacher; consider it repayment for the money he advanced earlier.
"This meat cannot be accepted! Madam, how can you be so unreasonable?" Master Du suddenly became firm. He snatched the meat from the First Madam's hands and shoved it back into Li Junping's arms: "Take it away, take it back quickly, we don't want it!"
Upon hearing this, the lady pointed at Master Du for a long while before saying, "Fine! Fine! You're so high and mighty! I'm the one who's unreasonable, I'm not human, okay?"
After saying that, her eyes welled up with tears again. This time, she looked genuinely heartbroken.
"Madam, that's not what I meant. Anyway, we just can't accept it."
Looking at the two of them, Jiang Nuanzhi timidly raised her chubby little hand.
"Um, let me interject. Please don't get angry, both of you. Ping'er, I bought this meat properly, specifically to offer as a token of respect to the teacher as tuition. It's perfectly acceptable to accept it."
Seeing that all three people were looking at her, Jiang Nuanzhi simply put the basket on the table.
"These are some gifts I bought today." Jiang Nuanzhi placed the gifts on the table one by one.
Two pounds of red beans, one pound of longan, two pounds of red dates, three pounds of celery, and three pounds of pork were divided into two portions. The gifts piled up on the table.
Master Du and his weeping wife were both stunned, staring blankly at the object.
Jiang Nuanzhi wasn't finished yet; she immediately took out more silver.
"Here is three taels of silver. I heard that Ping'er was in arrears on some of it before, so I'm making up for it here. Also, here is the tuition fee for the next six months. Please accept this as a token of my appreciation, Master."
The air seemed to freeze for a moment.
Even Li Junping was unaware that Jiang Nuanzhi had bought so many things, and was momentarily lost in thought.
Master Du's expression shifted rapidly, and he stared at Jiang Nuanzhi for a long while before saying, "You wouldn't happen to be Ping'er's stepmother, the vicious woman who kicked him out to live with the dogs, would you? You've really changed a lot."
Jiang Nuanzhi: "."
How should she respond to that?
"Husband, what nonsense are you talking about?"
It was Master Du's wife who was the first to come to her senses. She smiled and came up to him, saying, "Judging from how much you care for this little cough cough and Ping'er, you can't possibly be that wicked stepmother, can you? Sister, are you related to him?"
Jiang Nuanzhi coughed awkwardly, "Sister-in-law, I am indeed Ping'er's stepmother."
After these words were spoken, the air fell silent once again.
Jiang Nuanzhi broke the awkward atmosphere once again, saying directly, "I've come today to discuss Ping'er's enrollment in school. Teacher, is there anything else you need?"
"That's enough! The tuition fee is only two taels of silver, and Ping'er only owes five hundred coins before, so it's actually more than that."
Madam Du snapped out of her daze and immediately said...
As he spoke, he glared at Master Du.
Unfortunately, even after she glared at him, Master Du couldn't help but ask, "Why are you so vicious? Did you not have a teacher to guide you from a young age?"
Jiang Nuanzhi: "."
If anyone else had said this, she would have thought it was an insult, but the teacher in front of her was full of curiosity and was clearly waiting for her answer.
"What does Master think?"
“Master, it’s all in the past. Ah Nuan is very good to her students now,” Li Junping said.
Master Du glanced at Li Junping: "You're a good boy, but I still want to know what she's thinking."
Then, she continued to look at Jiang Nuanzhi.
"Sister, don't mind him. He's just a fool. If it weren't for his temperament, we wouldn't have ended up in this place." As she spoke, she smiled at Jiang Nuanzhi, "You must eat here today. My noodles are delicious, and Ping'er loves them too. Sister, you should try some!"
Now it was Master Du's turn to look surprised. He looked at his wife with a strange expression: "Madam! You actually invited others to have dinner at our home!"
Madam Du gritted her teeth: "If you can't speak, then shut your mouth. Nobody thinks you're mute!"
Master Du: "."
But he really wanted to know why.
Madam Du ignored him, smiled at Jiang Nuanzhi, and pulled her out the door.
Jiang Nuanzhi looked at Madam Du in surprise, and suddenly realized that her smile was very gentle and kind, completely different from her tantrum just now.
Before long, Jiang Nuanzhi realized that although what Madam Du said was harsh, it was all true; their family really had no rice to cook.
Fortunately, Jiang Nuanzhi brought three taels of silver; otherwise, they wouldn't even have had money to buy rice and would have had to wait until Master Du received his salary next month.
"My husband, Lao Du, hasn't been this happy in a long time."
A little later, Mrs. Du said while kneading the dough.
Her gaze fell through the window onto Master Du and Ping'er, who were not far away.
In the courtyard, Master Du was with Ping'er under a tree, peeling garlic while testing her lessons.
When he got excited, Master Du tilted his head back and spoke passionately, as if he had drunk two catties of fake wine.
His saliva sprayed onto Ping'er's face. Ping'er wiped her face, still engrossed in listening. She even forgot to peel the garlic in her hands.
Jiang Nuanzhi couldn't help but smile knowingly.
"The Master likes Ping'er very much."
"Yes, Ping'er is his most prized student. You don't know, in the first few days when Ping'er didn't come to school, he was like a wilted eggplant every day."
(End of this chapter)
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