But he was also afraid that if Ruan Ruan really came, he would hear people talking about her in the academy.
Just like right now.
"Brother Mu, did you hear a swarm of flies buzzing?" Fang Ru asked.
"Oh? Are there flies? I don't know, I only heard a few dogs barking..."
"You two, Fang Ru and Mu Bai, how dare you call us flies and dogs! It seems the lesson you learned the other day wasn't enough. Just you wait!"
Fang Ru got up and closed the window. "There's a stench, it's awful."
Mu Bai looked at Fang Ru's left hand apologetically, "I'm sorry, I've dragged you into this."
"Hey, what are you saying? We're brothers, what's this talk of being implicated? That day, when I saw them trying to harm your right hand, could I just stand by and watch?"
"You don't need to be so sad. Fortunately, it's only my left hand that's injured. As long as I apply the medicine on time and do acupuncture, I'll recover quickly. Even if it's not completely healed by the time of the autumn examination, it won't affect me much. As long as I can write with my right hand, that's fine."
Mu Bai looked somewhat worried. "I never expected Zeng Yuan to be so malicious."
"You're only just realizing this? He's been jealous of the Master's favoritism towards you for a long time, and he's been instigating others to oppose you at every turn. It's just that you don't bother with him."
"But usually when you ignore him, he feels like he's punching cotton, it's so weak. Ever since he found out that Su Ruanruan is your weakness, he's been verbally provoking you a lot. This time, you lost your temper, which is exactly what they wanted. You, you've always tolerated it before, why couldn't you tolerate it this time?"
"I can't stand how they describe Ruan Ruan so badly. She's the best girl I've ever met."
Fang Ru neither agreed with nor could he endorse Mu Bai's words.
But the situation is different now. When Mu Bai is suffering a blow, he will no longer say bad things about Su Ruanruan, and he does not want to use this opportunity to kick her while she's down.
The news of their fight with Zeng Yuan's tagalong had already reached the ears of the academy's dean, who was a distant relative of Zeng Yuan's mother.
If it weren't for Master Yao's intercession, they would probably have been severely punished long ago, and it wouldn't have been as simple as just cleaning the yard.
Zeng Yuan's few sycophants also received a minor punishment, but their families were well-off and wealthy in the city.
Their family couldn't bear to see them suffer, so they paid some fines and waived all the punishments.
Of the seven people, only two of them couldn't afford the fine, so they had to start cleaning before dawn, just like the other servants at the academy.
Fang Ru gazed thoughtfully at the slender scholar standing by the window; in fact, the two of them had suffered the most severe beatings.
They were scholars, and they had no sense of fighting or brawling.
Besides, those guys were from wealthy families, so the two of them couldn't really hurt them. If they got into any trouble, they might be extorted, and the two of them didn't have the money to pay compensation.
For a moment, neither of them spoke, and the only sound in the dormitory was the crackling of the candles.
The sky was dark and completely gloomy.
A person lay in bed lamenting the injustice of fate.
The other, however, tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
The next day, Su He appeared early at a corner outside the academy, selling steamed buns while occasionally looking up at the wide-open vermilion gate on the upper steps, hoping to catch a glimpse of that familiar figure among the passing students.
But after waiting for almost half an hour, he still didn't appear.
But he overheard the name "Mu Bai" from two passing students.
"Mu Bai is really pitiful. He just swept the yard, but those people made it dirty again."
"Not only did they make it dirty, they also went so far as to make Ye Xianglang spill a bucket of filth on the ground."
"They've gone too far. They're just using their family's wealth to trample on other people's dignity..."
"If Mu Bai hadn't taken a liking to that girl named Su Ruanruan, they wouldn't have humiliated him like this..."
"I'm getting a little curious myself. Who exactly is that girl that made Mu Bai reject both the county magistrate's daughter and Master Yao's granddaughter?"
The two walked side by side, chatting away.
As Su He listened to their conversation, her expression grew increasingly grim.
He quickly caught up with him and asked urgently, "What happened to Mu Bai? And what's this Su Ruanruan you were talking about?"
The two students were already puzzled when a woman wearing a veiled hat blocked their way. When she asked about Mu Bai, they couldn't help but exchange a glance.
Who are you?
Su He was stunned. Who was she? Who was she to Mu Bai?
She reached for the money pouch at her waist and emptied out a dozen or so coins.
"Gentlemen, please take this and have some tea. I just want to know what's going on with Su Ruanruan and Mu Bai that you were talking about earlier..."
Early in the morning, Su Ruanruan watched Bai Ruan finish a bowl of rice before getting up to tidy up the house and yard.
Mu Bai's room was as clean and tidy as ever, the whole room still carrying the scent of his life. Su Ruanruan sat in a chair, holding the book he had taught her word by word, feeling a little empty inside; she missed him.
She got up and walked to the canopy bed that had always been with Mu Bai, gently stroking the gray-blue bedding.
She tilted her head and leaned down against it for a while, the blanket still carrying Mu Bai's scent.
Taking advantage of the fine weather, Su Ruanruan took the bedding out to air it in the yard.
As usual, she sat on the stone bench and read for half an hour.
I dealt with my stomach in a simple way.
Only then did he carry Bai Ruan to the tofu shop.
Unlike before, she had only turned into the alley when she saw Ziwu standing under a tree, eagerly waiting.
Was he waiting for her? That's really strange.
Su Ruanruan held Bai Ruan in her arms; Bai Ruan had shrunk into a little ball of flesh.
I sensed the person holding it stop, and there was no swaying rhythm.
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