Chapter 58: Scholar Liu, Blind Yang

The next day, the crowing of cocks came on time, waking up Jiang Ning and Liu Mingan from their sleep.

Today was the last day of the month, and the results of the Tongsheng exam would be announced.

"Coach Zhao and the others should come in the afternoon," Liu Mingan said to Jiang Ning after breakfast.

Jiang Ning only said "Oh" and didn't say much.

Liu Mingan was stunned for a moment, and felt that Jiang Ning's coldness and alienation had become much heavier, as if they had returned to the first few days of their relationship.

After a long time, Jiang Ning was even more silent, and even when Liu Mingan talked to her, he was very frugal.

There was an invisible barrier between the two of them. Liu Mingan looked at Jiang Ning, guessing the reason for this change, with a look of hurt in his eyes.

Jiang Ning knew that her sudden cold attitude hurt Liu Mingan, and she could only sigh secretly.

Liu Mingan shouldn't like her, he doesn't know what kind of person he is. He is so kind and innocent, if he sees the real her, he will definitely not be able to accept her. If you

keep doing it, you will suffer from the chaos. Jiang Ning made up her mind last night that she would not respond to Liu Mingan's feelings and let him give up this thought.

Today, after asking Coach Zhao about her background, she will leave.

The love of young people is like the wind, it comes and goes quickly. When she leaves, Liu Mingan will return to the days without her at the beginning. After a while, he should forget her, right?

She left him more than one hundred taels of silver, which is considered to be the most righteous.

When Jiang Ning thought of this, her heart sank and she felt a little sad.

As expected, Coach Zhao came in the afternoon, holding a large copper gong in his hand, and walked to the door of Liu Mingan's house and knocked three times.

"Dong!" "Dong!" "Dong!"

The deafening sound of the gong echoed throughout the entire Lotus Village. The old and young in the village who loved to join in the fun all ran over and surrounded the courtyard of Liu Mingan's house in three layers.

When everyone saw Zhao Qiang and thought about this time, they all guessed the reason for the gong sound.

"It must be that Liu Mingan passed the exam and became a scholar!" Everyone discussed it at once.

Liu Ming'an had come out and waited when the gong was struck for the first time, but Zhao Qiang ignored him and insisted on striking the gong three times. Only when the villagers gathered together did he shout, "The results of the Tongsheng exam are announced! Liu Ming'an passed the exam and became a scholar! He can take the provincial exam at the county government office on the 16th of next month!"

"Good!" There was a burst of cheers and applause from the crowd. Since Liu Ming'an's father died, this was the second scholar to come out of Hehua Village in nearly 20 years.

Liu Ming'an was polite and likable. Most of the villagers were happy for him, especially the third uncle who was standing in the front. She was excited and relieved to hear the news, just like seeing her own grandson become successful.

He Yiyi, who was outside the crowd, smiled and looked at Liu Mingan when she heard the news, but then she remembered something, and sadness and bitterness flashed across her eyes. After a while, she turned around and went home silently.

Everyone came up to talk to Liu Mingan, saying "congratulations". Some people also mentioned his father, saying things like "a good father will have a good son". It was

the first time that Liu Mingan saw such a crowded scene. He patiently responded. After about half an hour, the villagers dispersed one by one, leaving him some peace and quiet.

According to the established custom, the host would not let someone like Zhao Qiang, who came to announce the good news, go home empty-handed. Generally, he would give him twenty copper coins, equivalent to the price of a bowl of wine, to thank him for his hard work. Of course, the wealthier the family, the more money they give, and the more such things happen, the better.

Therefore, after the crowd dispersed, Liu Mingan invited Zhao Qiang into the house.

Liu Mingan wanted to take the opportunity to ask about Jiang Ning's background, and Zhao Qiang also had ulterior motives. The two of them remained calm on the surface, one was respectful, the other was polite, and they performed the ways of the world.

Jiang Ning had been sitting in the house. When she saw Liu Mingan leading Zhao Qiang in, she put down the book in her hand, glanced at it lightly, and continued to read as if nothing had happened.

Zhao Qiang looked at Jiang Ning, who was sitting upright with neat clothes, and he couldn't believe that she was the woman who was locked in the cage and was dying. But thinking of the purpose of this trip, Zhao Qiang still pretended to be calm. He only glanced at Jiang Ning and looked away.

"Coach Zhao, you've made a long trip." Liu Ming'an smiled politely and handed the thirty copper plates to Zhao Qiang.

Zhao Qiang took them and put them in his arms, saying, "It's my duty. Thank you, Mr. Liu!" But his eyes were rolling around, and he was obviously thinking about something.

Liu Ming'an was about to say something when Zhao Qiang said, "Liu Xiucai, I'm a little thirsty. Can I have a bowl of water?"

"Of course, wait a minute, I'll get you some water."

Liu Ming'an was about to get up when Zhao Qiang grabbed him and said, "The water tank is outside, don't bother you, I'll drink it myself." Zhao Qiang said

, and without waiting for Liu Ming'an to respond, he walked out of the room and walked to the water tank outside the kitchen. He looked around carefully, took out a yellow paper bag from his arms, opened it, and shook all the white powder inside into the water tank.

"Coach Zhao."

Liu Ming'an was worried that Zhao Qiang would drink the water and leave, so he quickly took the silver and chased him out. When he saw him standing by the water tank, he shouted.

Zhao Qiang was guilty of his crime. This shout almost frightened him so much that his heart jumped out of his throat. He turned around in a hurry, crumpled the paper in his hand and held it tightly. He was relieved when he saw that Liu Ming'an looked normal.

"Liu, Liu Xiucai, if you have nothing else, I will leave first. Hahaha, it's getting late. I have to go back to the government office. Hahaha..."

Zhao Qiang smiled and pretended to be calm. As he spoke, he was about to walk out of the yard.

Liu Ming'an hadn't asked the question he wanted to ask yet, so how could he let him go?

So Zhao Qiang was stopped by Liu Ming'an as soon as he took a step forward.

Liu Ming'an said, "Coach Zhao, I have something to ask you."

Zhao Qiang asked in confusion, "What is it?"

Liu Ming'an pointed into the house and said, "I want to know where you got her from and sold her? Do you know who she was originally, what her identity was, and why she was abused and sold?"

Zhao Qiang's suspicious eyes swept over Liu Ming'an. During this time, Liu Ming'an kept smiling gently, and it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

"Why are you asking this? Want to return it? No way!"

Zhao Qiang was pretending to be worried, and answered impatiently. He turned around and wanted to leave, but was stopped by Liu Ming'an again.

"Mr. Liu, don't delay me--" Zhao Qiang didn't finish his words, and a silver ingot appeared in front of him. It looked like it weighed one or two taels, which made him swallow the second half of his words.

Zhao Qiang hesitated for only a moment before grabbing the silver in Liu Ming'an's hand and biting it. His teeth marks were clearly visible.

"I got her from Blind Yang. She looked the same as you saw when I bought her. I don't know who she was originally. Blind Yang owed me money, so he mortgaged her to me." Zhao Qiang lowered his voice unconsciously and spoke quickly to Liu Ming'an.

Liu Mingan simply sorted out the information from these words, and then asked: "Who is Blind Yang?"

"Blind Yang is over 50 years old, a businessman in Qushui City, and he has a little bit of everything. He was born with one eye that can't see, so he got the nickname 'Blind Yang'. I don't know his real name. He is quite famous in Qushui City. If you want to find him, go to Qushui City and ask for it."

Zhao Qiang told him everything he knew, and it didn't make any difference anyway.

Liu Mingan nodded and thanked him earnestly: "Thank you, Coach Zhao!"

Zhao Qiang waved his hands guiltily, said nothing more, and quickly left Liu Mingan's house.