Especially Mian'er, although she looked sickly, still looked very noble with her eyes lowered.
Old Zhong, on the other hand, treated Mian'er with a mixture of kindness and reverence, more like a master and servant than a grandfather and grandson.
At the dinner table, Fang Qing casually asked a few questions about the situation in the village, and then subtly inquired about the time when Uncle Zhong would arrive.
"It's been ten years since I came to Majiazhai."
"Uncle Zhong, where are you from before? You must be having trouble adapting to life in the mountains."
"Yes, life here can't compare to life in the capital. We couldn't adapt at first, but for people like us, having a place to stay is good enough."
"Uncle Zhong, you're actually from the capital?"
Just as Old Zhong was about to say something, Mian'er put down her chopsticks and bowl.
As if reminded, the relaxed expression on Old Zhong's face instantly vanished.
"He's not from the capital at all. He used to perform in the capital, but he offended some powerful people and had to hide in the mountains with Mian'er."
Fang Qing glanced at the grandmother and grandson, but didn't ask anything more.
In the afternoon, Fang Qing followed Uncle Zhong to their fields and explained some farming knowledge to him.
The villagers weren't hostile towards her; on the contrary, they were quite curious about this outsider and gathered around to listen to her talk about these things.
“I’ve seen the land in our village. It’s very fertile, and the temperature here is also good. Instead of growing crops, everyone can try growing tea. Outside, old mountain tea like ours is especially popular.”
Moreover, she noticed that there were tea trees everywhere in the village, and the old tea tree in front of the village chief's house was at least a hundred years old.
Everyone wanted to live a good life, and they were all very interested in what Fang Qing was saying.
"It's too late today. How about this, I'll bring some tea farmers over another day to explain some tea planting and processing techniques to everyone. If you don't want to go down the mountain, I can also help you transport the tea out for sale."
"That's wonderful, Miss Fang, you're such a kind person."
Fang Qing was thus given the "friend zone" card, and she smiled and said goodbye to everyone.
After descending the mountain and boarding the carriage, Fang Qing turned on the light screen.
"Xiaodou, can you help me check the Zhong family in the capital ten years ago?"
What are you doing?!
Fang Qing was initially just suspicious, but Xiao Dou's attitude made it even clearer.
"Why are you so excited? Could it be that Old Man Zhong and Mian'er are really from the Zhong family in Beijing? Is the Zhong family a very wealthy and powerful family?"
They live hundreds of miles from the capital. Even people in their county might not have been to the capital, and she had never heard anyone around her talk about anything happening in the capital.
Xiaodou fell silent again, and only after Fang Qing urged it several times did it finally speak.
The Zhong family was indeed a prominent family in the capital, but their entire clan was exterminated ten years ago.
After Xiaodou finished speaking, Fang Qing paused.
Suddenly, I remembered what the chief of Majia Village said about Old Zhong and his grandson being chased and killed.
Could it be that he really is a fugitive?
Why did the Zhong family plot a rebellion?
[Having lost the political struggle, he had a dragon robe and evidence of treason hidden in someone's home.]
"Isn't anyone going to investigate?"
[What are they investigating? The Zhong family is powerful, and their prestige in the military is even higher than that of the imperial family. Someone is framing them, and the Emperor is just going along with it...]
As Xiaodou was still talking, the system suddenly issued a warning.
That's all I can tell you. If I say anything more, the system will probably ban me!
Fang Qing knew that was enough.
Two days later, Fang Qing came to Majiazhai again.
This time she brought along experienced tea farmers.
The gatekeepers at Majiazhai stopped her, and many people came specifically to greet her.
Right in front of the ancient tea trees in the village, the tea farmers first explained the knowledge about tea cultivation to them, and then the tea-making master shared his experience in tea frying.
Fang Qing and Uncle Zhong sat at the back of the crowd, exchanging a few words every now and then.
Fang Qing didn't even notice when the chief of Majia Village appeared behind them, but she was startled when he spoke.
"These are all family-inherited skills, why should they teach them to us?"
Fang Qing quickly offered him her seat, and the chief of Ma Family Village waved his hand dismissively.
"Of course, I can't teach you the important things. The master can only lead you in; the rest is up to you. You all need to study hard."
The chieftain looked somewhat uneasy.
He squatted down next to Fang Qing, his thick lips moved slightly, and he managed to squeeze out a sentence.
"Thank you for doing all this for our Majia Village."
"What, Chieftain, you don't suspect I have ill intentions anymore?"
"If you're suspicious, why are you helping us?"
Fang Qing smiled and pointed to the sky.
"Perhaps it was fate. God couldn't bear to see the Ma family village living such a miserable life, so He gave me some guidance and sent me here to help everyone."
She spoke with a touch of playfulness, and the chieftain's expression relaxed as he listened.
"Let me make this clear first, there's nothing in our village that you could covet. Our ancestors were all people who came here to seek refuge. Some were retired from the martial arts world, some were being hunted down, and some were wanted criminals by the imperial court. Even if we left, we might not be able to live a peaceful life, so we don't want to leave Ma Family Village, and we never will."
Fang Qing thought for a moment and nodded.
“I can understand you, but you don’t have to be so closed off. After all, those hatreds are from your ancestors, and you and your children don’t have to bear them.”
The village chief fell silent again. He looked up at the century-old tea tree and sighed deeply.
The villagers treated them to lunch, and everyone chatted and laughed under the ancient tea trees while holding their bowls.
"Miss Fang, you're so approachable. You even enjoy the food here."
"This food smells delicious. When I was a child, my family was poor. We ate steamed buns with bran mixed in, and we ate wild vegetables every day. We only had one good meal like this once a year."
"Hehe, there's plenty of meat on our mountain, so please don't be shy and eat more."
“I heard from the tea farmers that you are a very kind person who has helped many people. You came all the way over mountains to help us before, but we turned you away. We were ignorant and apologize for our previous rudeness.”
As they spoke, someone raised their wine bowl.
The wine was homemade and had little alcohol content, so Fang Qing drank it along with them.
After several rounds of drinks, they were chatting in a very relaxed atmosphere when suddenly a rapid drumbeat rang out.
Before Fang Qing could figure out what was going on, the villagers who had been laughing and joking just a moment ago suddenly tensed up, put down their bowls and chopsticks and stood up quickly, some even taking out kitchen knives.
"What's wrong?"
As soon as she finished speaking, a sound came from afar.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
He was the man responsible for guarding the village gate. He was covered in blood and running towards us with very unsteady steps.
Before he could get close, an arrow flew from behind him and pierced his chest.
"ah!"
The villagers were in a panic, and the village chief came out to restore order.
"Everyone, grab your weapons and protect the women and children!"
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