Chapter 60: The neighbor is a scholar who can climb trees.
The Ministry of Revenue, you can see people busy inside from the outside.
Song Baoyuan, dressed simply, stood at the door for a full half a minute, feeling even more nervous than when she entered the palace.
There was a guard at the door, but he didn't stop her. He just looked at her silently.
She was able to enter the Ministry of Revenue without incident, but no one paid her any attention. The various people there all glanced at her briefly, then ignored her and continued with their own business.
Song Baoyuan became more and more nervous and was struggling with what opening remarks to use.
When she mustered up the courage to open her mouth, a passionate voice came to her.
"Madam Song is here!"
Song Baoyuan looked in the direction of the sound and saw a middle-aged man walking towards her with a smile on his face.
It looks very familiar, as if I have seen it somewhere.
When this person came to her, she suddenly realized, "Master Chang!"
"Hey?" Master Chang reminded, "Here, you have to call your official title."
Song Baoyuan quickly changed her tone and bowed, "Greetings, Minister Chang."
"That's right, follow me."
Minister Chang walked in front, and Song Baoyuan followed in small steps.
"Let me introduce to everyone, this is Madam Song who received the imperial edict."
Song Baoyuan bowed humbly and said, "Hello everyone."
The others were not very enthusiastic, they just bowed to her politely, some seriously, some perfunctorily.
"Madam Song, the person in front of you is Doctor Liu Feng."
Song Baoyuan looked at the man sitting across from a pile of bamboo slips. He was a thin, serious man with a beard.
"Meet Doctor Liu."
Liu Feng didn't even look at her, and said coldly, "Don't think that just because you have someone protecting you and you're a girl, you can get any preferential treatment. In my place, everyone is the same."
"How can you talk like that?" said the Minister of State, frowning.
"It's okay." Song Baoyuan said quickly, "It's what I should do."
Liu Feng finally looked up at her and immediately frowned, "You brought a maid with you?"
"Isn't it normal for a girl to have a maid?" Chang Shilang said with dissatisfaction in his eyes.
Although he was his immediate superior, Liu Feng was not afraid at all and still looked unhappy.
Song Baoyuan turned around and said, "You guys go back."
"But..." Qiao Yue was worried.
But the young lady shook her head at her, so she couldn't say anything else and could only leave with Qiao Yin.
The Minister of the Interior glanced around casually and introduced, "The one on the left is Fang Zhafang, the chief officer. The one on the right is Qiao Suqiao, the chief officer. They are also in charge of the winery purchase."
Song Baoyuan bowed to everyone one by one.
The two leaders were much younger and more amiable, smiling as they returned the greeting. The one named Qiao had a fair complexion, while the one named Fang was taller and much more robust.
"Let's go."
Liu Feng suddenly stood up and said.
The other two leaders quickly packed up their things and followed.
Song Baoyuan turned around in confusion, "Where to? Should I go?"
Liu Feng ignored her. Only Qiao, the supervisor, turned around and said, "Come with us to survey the site."
This didn't sound like something the Ministry of Revenue would do, nor was it something she should be responsible for, but Song Baoyuan still followed.
But when I went out, I was dumbfounded again.
"Can you ride a horse?" asked Qiao, "We are going to a place that is far and remote."
Song Baoyuan's eyelids twitched. She had learned horseback riding before, but only for fun. Moreover, after getting married, she rarely left the house and had long lost interest in the sport.
But looking at Doctor Liu's indifferent face, she still said with a stiff upper lip, "Yes."
Mr. Qiao was kind enough to give her a docile horse.
By the time Song Baoyuan safely mounted her horse thanks to her distant memory, the other three had already set off with no intention of waiting for her.
Ah Qi had to show up, "Miss, can you do it?"
"It's okay." Song Baoyuan controlled the direction. Knowing that she couldn't catch up with them, she said, "Please help me watch the road."
Qi nodded worriedly, "Yes."
It was half an hour late before Song Baoyuan arrived at the same place as them.
It is indeed far and remote.
When they first arrived, there was no one there. There were only three horses they had ridden out, tied at the entrance to the village, and the surroundings were desolate.
As soon as she got off the horse, she saw Doctor Liu and his two companions being chased out by people who looked like villagers using brooms, sticks, hoes and other things.
The three of them rolled and crawled, looking extremely miserable, with rotten vegetable leaves and rotten eggs all over their heads and faces.
Song Baoyuan: “?”
She watched as a large group of villagers ran past her.
One of them spotted her and pointed a sickle at her head. "Are you with them?"
Song Baoyuan's eyes froze, and then she shook her head frantically, "No, no, no, I don't know them!"
Seeing that her appearance and dress did not resemble those of the three people, the villagers did not attack her, but they were still suspicious, "Who are you and why are you here?"
"I..." Song Baoyuan's mind raced, "I'm lost!"
"Just don't be in the same group with them."
The villagers believed her and ignored her. They continued to chase and beat Doctor Liu and the other two, cursing, "You have no conscience! Get out!"
Song Baoyuan was stunned and quietly distanced herself from the crowd. After the storm was over, she ran to find Doctor Liu.
Three people were washing their faces by the stream.
Song Baoyuan had nothing in her hands and could only offer a handkerchief.
"Thank you." Manager Qiao could only open one eye.
Song Baoyuan asked, "What happened?"
“That piece of land is where we bought our property.”
Song Baoyuan was stunned. "But isn't there someone living there?"
"We gave them money to move out, but they thought the money was too little, so they kicked us out." Manager Qiao could finally see things clearly.
Manager Fang, standing by, was in an even worse state. He reeked of rotten eggs. He complained repeatedly, wanting to cry but unable to. "Can't you just talk nicely? I'm so impressed."
Song Baoyuan was surprised, "What should we do? Do we have to do this kind of thing?"
Manager Qiao sighed, "No one wants to do this kind of thing. The person in charge kept procrastinating, and in the end, it was us who wasted time. There's no other way. To complete the task within the stipulated time, we had to do it ourselves."
"It's impossible to communicate!" Director Fang wanted to immerse himself in the stream to get rid of the smell. "What a bunch of unruly people!"
Song Baoyuan looked back. The village looked so poor. "Can't they give us more resettlement money?"
"Just give it to us if you say so?" Doctor Liu said unhappily, "You only approved this much money, are we supposed to pay for it out of our own pockets?"
Everyone had a frown on their face and the atmosphere was depressing.
Song Baoyuan hesitated to speak, and finally asked in a low voice: "Your horses were taken away by them, how are you going to get back?"
She touched the surviving horse she was leading with mixed feelings.
There was silence all around.
After a while, the impatient Fang couldn't help but ask, "Boss, what should we do?"
Doctor Liu was silent for a while before he responded. "What can we do? We have to juggle both ends. Go back and negotiate with the higher-ups to see if they can approve more money. We also have to continue to persuade the villagers, using both emotional and logical appeals. We can't give up."
He stood up, and Song Baoyuan realized that he was limping. The villagers showed no mercy when they chased people away, and they were not kidding when they hit them with sticks.
"Let's go back, boss!" Manager Fang looked desperate.
"What else?" Doctor Liu turned around and gave him a blank look. "Can you fly?"
Song Baoyuan had a complicated expression, and she couldn't bear to see them like this. "Well, Doctor Liu, why don't you ride my horse back?"
Doctor Liu looked over questioningly.
Song Baoyuan guessed what he was thinking without even thinking, "I'm not trying to please you! I'm just looking at you walking back like this, your legs are probably going to be broken."
"What about you?"
"I should be better than you."
Doctor Liu: “…”
"Yes, Boss!" Manager Fang chimed in as he led Song Baoyuan's horse away. "If you get hurt, it will only delay things."
As he spoke, he jumped onto the horse first and said, "Come on, I'll take you to see a doctor first."
It did delay things, but considering the overall situation, Doctor Liu did not shirk his responsibility.
The two men rode away together, leaving Master Qiao confused.
At this time, Aqi appeared silently behind Song Baoyuan and said without warning: "Miss, you can ride mine back."
He suddenly spoke, which scared Manager Qiao.
"This is my guard." Song Baoyuan explained quickly.
But Qiao's attention was all on the extra horse. He hesitated and said, "I have something urgent to do. I need to go back quickly."
Song Baoyuan was stunned for a moment, "Oh, then this horse is..."
"Thanks!"
Without waiting for Song Baoyuan to finish speaking, Master Qiao happily took the reins from Aqi.
"Huh?" Ah Qi was stunned. "Miss, what should we do then?"
"It's okay." Song Baoyuan pointed to the village behind them, "Let's go see if there are any horses or donkeys in the village and buy one. By the way, let's go and find out what's going on. We can't come here for nothing."
Ah Qi nodded uneasily, and unknowingly became a visible guard from a secret guard.
Song Baoyuan pretended to be lost and entered the village, and even spent money to buy some food, but the food in the village was really rough.
The fundamental reason is that the village is too poor, which makes them unwilling to move easily.
Where can we find horses in such a poor place?
There were not even donkeys, and only two families had cows to plow the fields.
After noon, Ah Qi asked again: "Miss, what should we do?"
"It's okay." Song Baoyuan thought optimistically, "Let's just walk. We should be able to get back before dark."
Two hours later, it was already dusk and Song Baoyuan was lost in the wilderness.
Ah Qi said embarrassedly, "I'm sorry, Miss. I got the wrong way."
"It's okay." Song Baoyuan subconsciously comforted him, "I didn't remember it either. It's no wonder you're here. Let's look for it again."
Before long, it was completely dark.
"Miss."
"It's okay, at worst we can stay at a villager's house for the night."
"But, we have walked quite far, and I can't even remember the way back to the village."
Song Baoyuan: "..."
Tired.
Fortunately, the weather is good today, the moonlight is particularly bright, and the stars are also very bright.
Song Baoyuan rested against a tree.
In this season, the nights are much colder than the days, so Aqi worked hard to make a fire.
"I have made Miss go through so much trouble. I am guilty of this."
"It's okay." Song Baoyuan covered her face and yawned. "I didn't think it through and gave the horse away hastily."
Speaking of horses, she suddenly heard the sound of horse hooves. Like an illusion, the sound was sometimes far away and sometimes close.
Until Aqi's fire finally started, the sound of horse hooves seemed to have a direction and came straight towards them.
“Whoa!”
The voice stopped beside Song Baoyuan's ear, and she looked in the direction of the sound.
Under the overlapping of moonlight and tree shadows, Jiang Keyu, who was riding on the horse, had a worried look on her face, but she was still extremely beautiful.
Song Baoyuan was slightly dazed, and the image of her brother learning to ride a horse suddenly emerged in her mind.
At that time, she was standing by the horse farm, staring blankly, because she couldn't take her eyes off the handsome young man who was riding a horse and full of vigor.
At this moment, Song Baoyuan was actually thinking that compared with her brother back then, even he now could not match him in the slightest.
Jiang Keyu dismounted, took off her coat as she approached, and draped it over Song Baoyuan, who seemed distracted.
He said, "Go home."
Song Baoyuan raised her head and asked, "Why are you here?"
Jiang Keyu frowned, and her tone revealed a hint of worry. "I didn't see you come home so late, so I naturally had to find you to feel at ease."
"Then what about Chengcheng and Suisui if you are here?"
"They are already asleep. Aunt Yao is watching over them. You don't have to worry."
Jiang Keyu came with Liu'an, who teased her, "You're really capable! I asked you to protect the young lady, but you ended up getting lost with her."
Ah Qi: “…”
Unconvinced, but unable to refute.
Because carriages cannot pass through this place, Jiang Keyu and Liu'an also came on horseback.
Song Baoyuan couldn't find a reason to refuse to ride with her brother.
The same thing happened to Ah Qi, who was mocked by Liu'an all the way.
After getting on the horse, Song Baoyuan's back was pressed against Jiang Keyu's chest, and she could feel the temperature of his body even through the clothes.
Especially after he picked up the reins, it was as if he was holding her in his arms, and his unique breath enveloped her.
Jiang Keyu couldn't help but smell her fragrance, which was the smell he once immersed himself in and inhaled, making him feel satisfied and at ease.
It made him feel itchy.
"Ahem." He cleared his throat. "Why are you the only one here? Did the people from the Ministry of Revenue bully you?"
"No." Song Baoyuan explained softly, "I'm just not familiar with it."
Jiang Keyu's voice was very close to her and was slightly hoarse. "Any problem, any trouble, you can tell me, I will find a way to help you solve it."
"No need." Song Baoyuan lowered her eyes. "Brother has helped me a lot, I know."
As she spoke, she suddenly turned around.
Jiang Keyu was stunned for a moment, and when their eyes met, she forgot to breathe.
"What's wrong?" His voice was so low that it was almost inaudible.
Song Baoyuan tentatively tugged at the reins and asked, "Can I take control?"
It's a good opportunity to try out the feel of it. She will probably need to ride a horse more often in the future, so she can practice now that there is someone to back her up.
Jiang Keyu had no idea what she was thinking, nor could she refuse her.
"Okay." He let go.
Song Baoyuan was secretly delighted and took over the reins completely.
She didn't dare to walk fast during the day for fear of falling, but now she can give it a try boldly.
The faster she went, the freer she felt against the wind, and the smile on her face unconsciously grew brighter.
Is riding a horse so fun?
Jiang Keyu looked at her in confusion, and as if infected, the corners of his mouth rose along with hers.
"drive!"
Song Baoyuan's black hair was disheveled, and the hair blown by the wind brushed across the face of the person behind her.
For some reason, the itchy feeling on her face made Jiang Keyu feel helpless, and her eyes flickered.
The black hair with her scent brushed past her lips like a kiss.
It was a long time before he realized that his heart was in turmoil.
"Ahem!" Jiang Keyu forced herself to remain calm. "While you're away, I've taken Chengcheng and Suisui back home. You should come back today too."
"I'd better go back to the old house." Song Baoyuan said without hesitation, "I may not have time recently. Brother, please take care of these two."
"Oh, okay."
After the words were spoken, Jiang Keyu realized belatedly what she had agreed to.
He wanted to persuade her to go back home with him, but when he realized that they were almost at the old house, he couldn't think of anything.
Before reaching the door of her house, Song Baoyuan had already reined in her horse and stopped.
She jumped down first and saluted, "Thank you for today, brother."
Jiang Keyu was stunned and asked, "Why are you so distant from me?"
"Isn't this as it should be?" Song Baoyuan said calmly, "I'll walk the rest of the way on my own, no need for my brother to see me off. After all... it seems a new family has moved in next door to our old house, and it would be bad if they saw me and misunderstood me."
"you……"
Thank you? No problem? Misunderstanding?
We haven't seen each other for so long, and you're telling him this?
Every word was like a punch to Jiang Keyu's heart, leaving him speechless.
Song Baoyuan also handed back the coat she was wearing.
Jiang Keyu didn't take it, so she put it on the horse and urged him, "Brother, please go back quickly. If Chengcheng and Suisui wake up halfway, they will be scared if they can't find their mother or father."
Jiang Keyu looked unhappy.
After a long time, feeling depressed and at a loss, he reined in his horse, turned around, and left quickly as if he was sulking.
Song Baoyuan watched his figure disappear into the darkness quietly before slowly walking towards home.
"Bang!"
Suddenly something fell from the tree, and she stepped back in fright.
"Excuse me!"
It's a person.
And he is a handsome young man.
He swiftly got up from the ground, holding a beautiful white-haired raccoon in his hand, and said with a slightly apologetic smile, "I'm sorry, I scared you."
"It's all your fault for running around!" He blamed the raccoon in his hand, and pressed its head to bow to Song Baoyuan, "Apologize quickly!"
"Meow!"
The raccoon whimpered reluctantly.
Song Baoyuan became alert. Although this man looked good and didn't look like a bad person, he looked unfamiliar.
As if he had guessed what she was thinking, the young man pointed to the renovated door not far away and said with a smile, "I moved in today."
Song Baoyuan glanced sideways, "So you are my new neighbor."
"Yes." The man picked up the raccoon and said, "We are your new neighbors. Let me introduce myself. I am..."
He paused, then said without blushing or beating his heart, "A scholar."
"Student?" Song Baoyuan looked up at the tree above her head that was dropping leaves, full of doubts.
The man smiled like a cunning little fox.
"Yes, a scholar who can climb trees."
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