This year, Xiaofeng was able to walk during the Spring Festival. He ran all over Xichun's house, and the two of them had to keep an eye on him at all times.
"Sister, sister, candy." Xiaofeng held a handful of candy in his hand, which he had taken from Xichun's table. He handed the candy to Xichun, his mouth watering.
"Xiaofeng is just trying to give you candy. This child always thinks you're his older sister and asks me every day where his sister is." Wang explained Xiaofeng's meaning. Every time she brought Xiaofeng to show Xichun the jars, she would say, "This is your sister's house." So even though Xiaofeng didn't see Xichun often, he remembered that he had an older sister.
"Hehe, how about I eat one and give the rest to Xiaofeng?" Xichun took out one and ate it, and put the rest into his shirt pocket.
"The Chen family is much quieter now, right? That family is really vicious. Your brother Chen Lizhong is still your cousin. Even if you're no longer related, they shouldn't have bullied you like that. Who knew they would bring people to destroy your stall? I'm so angry just thinking about it."
"Now they probably won't dare to be so smug, and they won't dare to mess with me anymore. Mother, you should avoid them in the village, otherwise I'm afraid they'll retaliate against you," Xichun advised.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. A few days ago, Chen Lizhong's mother tried to act tough in the village, but after we all gave her a sarcastic remark, she slunk away." Wang Shi spoke of this with great satisfaction. At the time, she didn't stand up for herself but joined in the discussion, so Du Shi didn't dare to blame her on the spot.
"They probably can't cause any trouble. I heard the county magistrate even sent people to give their family a dressing down. But we're not going to kick a man when he's down. Who knows, they might rise again someday. Anyway, they've offended quite a few people in the village."
This year, thankfully no one caused any trouble during the Spring Festival, and everyone had a peaceful and happy holiday. Some people even started working on the mountain as soon as the third day of the Lunar New Year. The earlier they planted fruit trees, the sooner they could harvest them, and all the money they earned later would be their own.
It wasn't until the eighth day of the lunar new year that Xichun's stall reopened. Before customers came, Fu Changfeng came instead.
"Miss Chen, I have something I want to talk to you about." Fu Changfeng found Xichun when there were fewer people around.
"Young Master Fu, what's the matter?" Xi Chun looked at him and then remembered that he was going to take the county examination in early February, and she hadn't had a chance to cheer him on yet.
"I'm going to the prefectural city after taking the county exam in February. If all goes well, I might not be back until after August. I've come to say goodbye."
"Then I wish you all your dreams come true and everything goes smoothly, Young Master Fu." Xi Chun said with a smile. She still felt that Fu Changfeng had a great chance. After all, when his classmates came to eat together, they all said that his scholarship was among the best in the academy.
"Thank you. I also wanted to say that if you encounter any trouble, you can go to my older brother. I've already spoken to him, and he'll help you out if you get into any problems." Fu Changfeng revealed the purpose of his trip.
"Alright, then I'll thank you in advance, Young Master Fu. If anything happens, I'll definitely let you know."
"Then I'll be going now. And, well, never mind, I'll talk to you when I get back." Fu Changfeng originally wanted to muster up the courage to finish speaking, but after thinking about it, he didn't say it again. He turned around and walked home. At this point, he no longer needed to go to the academy to study.
February was still a bit cold. After successfully passing the county examination, Fu Changfeng prepared to set off from Weinan County to Guangming Prefecture to take the exam. If all went well, he would have to wait to go to Yizhou Prefecture, which was under the jurisdiction of Jiannan Circuit, to take the provincial examination before he could become a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the county-level imperial examination).
When Xichun learned that he was setting off today, she also brought a bundle containing some food and chili oil. Even if it was inconvenient to travel, she could use the chili oil as a condiment to eat with her meals.
"Changfeng, is that the Miss Chen you mentioned? She must be here to see you?" Fu Changjin asked as he saw Xichun walking over.
"That's right, Father, Mother, Elder Brother, I'm going to have a word with Miss Chen." When Fu Changfeng saw her, he couldn't help but smile.
"Why are you here? Did you come to see me off?" Fu Changfeng asked as he walked up to Xichun.
"Yes, I heard you're going to the prefectural city. Here are some dry rations and chili peppers that I made myself. They'll be just right to accompany you when you don't have much to eat on the road."
"Thank you, it's kind of you to think of me. I'll definitely eat it. My parents and older brother are over there. Shall I take you to meet them?" Fu Changfeng said happily as he took the bundle.
"Okay." Xi Chun heard that his elders were there, so he couldn't just turn around and leave, as that would be against etiquette.
"Father, Mother, this is Miss Chen. She came especially to see me off today and gave me so much dry food." Fu Changfeng had already told his parents last night that he liked Xichun. When Master Fu and Madam Fu heard about this, they frowned and disapproved.
After all, their son would be taking the imperial examinations in the future, so they naturally hoped that he could find a virtuous and well-bred girl who would be a good help to him. However, their son fell in love with an orphan girl who, although from a respectable family and hardworking, was not the daughter-in-law they were looking for.
But thinking that their son was about to leave, and worried that this might affect his mindset and the exam, neither of them said anything to object, only saying that they would talk about it when he came back.
"Master Fu, Madam Fu, Brother Fu, hello." Xi Chun stepped forward to greet them. She had actually seen through Fu Changfeng's feelings, but before he made it clear, Xi Chun didn't want to curry favor with anyone.
"Hmm, I heard that Miss Chen is doing business on the street. She is indeed a capable girl. If anything happens, she can ask us for help." Madam Fu did not speak, but Master Fu still admired this girl. It would be even better if his son did not like her.
"Not at all, not at all, I'm just trying to make a living." Xi Chun observed their tone and guessed that perhaps the Fu family didn't like her that much, so there was no need for Xi Chun to try to win them over.
After saying goodbye to Fu Changfeng, Xichun returned to her stall to continue doing business.
Meanwhile, Chen Xique, who was staying at the county magistrate's mansion, had been neglected by the master for several months. She was filled with resentment. If things continued like this, what would she do in the future? No, she had to find a way to regain the master's favor.
Ultimately, she found an opportunity. With the master drunk, she devised a play and successfully gained his favor again. Chen Xique thought to herself that she wouldn't be in such a hurry this time and would definitely seize every opportunity to rise in rank.
"Miss Chen, give me another jar of chili oil. The ones I bought last time have all been eaten." The old man who was so clean back then had come to eat again. He was already familiar with Xichun, so he wasn't as polite as before.
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