Ugly girl only wants to farm

After hearing his story, Xu Chaoyan asked with some concern, "How did you handle this matter later? Was Qi Yu punished? Today, my sister and I saw him walking towards the city gate on the street. He was probably checking to see if his mother had come. We were also wondering why he would be on the street at this hour."

Meng Jiuhe picked up a palm-leaf fan and waved it around the room a few times to drive away the buzzing mosquitoes. Then he deftly went to close the window next to him.

"You mean this? We all know about it. He asked his husband for leave, saying he had some heatstroke and wanted to go home to rest. We saw that he didn't look well, so we advised him to go home early."

Xu Chaoyan looked at him with some skepticism: "Are you sure Qi Yu didn't suffer any retaliation after his argument with those spoiled brats? Aren't those rich kids the ones who love to play this game the most? You'd better be careful these days."

Meng Jiuhe nodded: "They only argued for a few words. Oh, just as that person raised his hand to hit someone, the teacher came over and punished them by making them copy the book ten times each."

Xu Chaoyan nodded: "Copying the book ten times is considered mild. I'm afraid that person might do something underhanded. We're new here and don't know anyone. If someone were to trick us, no one would know."

Xu Chaoyan pulled Meng Jiuhe to sit down beside her and said softly, "Husband, as the saying goes, 'I will not offend others unless they offend me.' You should be careful in the academy, as long as they don't bully you. Just turn a blind eye to some things. Even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake, and we're new here."

Meng Jiuhe gently pinched her cheek again: "My wife, I know and I will handle it accordingly. Don't worry too much about Qi Yu's matter, and don't tell your sister about it. I only found out later that Qi Yu's father's death anniversary is coming soon, so he was a little angry when he heard someone call him a bastard without a father. His father passed away when he was young."

Xu Chaoyan gently hummed in agreement: "Okay, then you rest first, I'll go make you some hand-pulled noodles."

Zhang Yueniang had looked out the courtyard gate several times but hadn't seen Qi Yu. She asked Xu Yang about him, but he just gave her a few perfunctory replies, his mouth as tight as a clam's shell.

“Brother-in-law, the handwriting is so good, it must be because he went to the bookstore to get a book and copied it. Sister, don’t worry, I’ll go outside and take a look for you.”

At this moment, Zhang Xuyang was also wondering why his brother-in-law hadn't returned home by this time, even though he had left before them. He looked at his anxious sister.

He became somewhat uneasy. Could something have happened outside? Had he been stuffed in a sack and left in an alley to get a beating?

The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became. He hurriedly put down the book in his hand and ran outside, shouting anxiously.

"Meng Jiuhe, Meng Jiuhe."

Meng Jiuhe was helping his wife start a fire and boil water when he heard the hurried noise. He quickly put down the fire tongs. Seeing Zhang Xuyang's panicked expression, he also felt a jolt and quickly composed himself.

"Why are you so panicked?"

Zhang Xuyang then spoke up: "My brother-in-law left the academy a long time ago, and he hasn't returned yet at this hour. I don't know where he went. Do you think he was put in a sack and beaten up in an alley?"

Meng Jiu gave him a strange look: "You haven't been reading too many storybooks or listening to too many plays in theaters, have you? What could possibly happen to your brother-in-law, a grown man? He must have gone to a bookstore. Didn't you hear him say the other day that he was looking for a book? He said it was a bit hard to find, and he planned to go to every bookstore, big and small, in the prefecture. Maybe he's engrossed in reading it in one of the bookstores right now?"

Zhang Xuyang was still a little uneasy after hearing what he said. Zhang Yueniang, who was not far away, was looking at them anxiously. He quickly moved closer to Meng Jiuhe and whispered.

"What I'm worried about is whether those people who argued with him today will retaliate. We're new here and not very familiar with the area. How about we look around these streets? I always thought he was at home studying."

The two exchanged a glance and nodded. After telling their families, they went out to search for the person. There were dozens of bookstores of all sizes in the city, and for now, they could only start by looking for the one closest to their home.

The two wandered around a bookstore for a while but didn't see Qi Yu, so they decided to go to another bookstore.

As they walked through an alley, they suddenly heard a string of curses coming from ahead. The voice sounded somewhat familiar.

The two men were on tenterhooks. Could it be that what he said was true? Qi Yu had been put in a sack and beaten up.

Meng Jiuhe glanced at Zhang Xuyang: "You jinx, don't let your words actually come true."

Zhang Xuyang, with a long face, slapped himself across the mouth, looking annoyed: "It's all my fault for saying things I shouldn't have. Brother Meng, hurry up and stop my brother-in-law from being bullied. Don't let my sister be a widow in the future."

The two ran towards the source of the sound. From a distance, they saw three or four people surrounding a person, but they couldn't make out the person's face. Meng Jiu recognized those three or four people; they were some of his classmates.

These people either sleep all day or play pranks on others, disrupting the teacher's lectures.

"What are you doing?" Zhang Xuyang shouted at the group of people, unable to hold back and speaking first.

Everyone was startled by the shout and turned around to find the two of them looking at them with mocking expressions.

"So it's you two country bumpkins. You gave me quite a fright. Hurry up and pay me back, I need to find someone to summon my soul."

As he spoke, the man walked towards them and spread his hands, and his henchmen also came over.

“You, surnamed Zhang, have scared my brother Biao half to death. You’d better pay up quickly. Otherwise, you won’t be leaving this alley today, and you certainly won’t be going to the academy tomorrow.”

The young man leading the group was quite strong and burly; it was said that his father and uncles were very famous in the area. They were local bullies, and even the students would give him a wide berth.

This man was not only burly and strong, but he also frequently extorted and blackmailed others. Everyone avoided him. They just happened to run into him today.

Meng Jiu glanced at a man huddled in a corner, trembling. Seeing his clothes and back view, he confirmed it wasn't Qi Yu, which reassured him somewhat. He gently tugged at Zhang Xuyang's clothes and gave him a meaningful look.

Then, Meng Jiu and Yang said with gentle smiles, "We are really sorry to have disturbed your enjoyment. We were just passing by and have offended you in any way. Please forgive us, we have important matters to attend to and will be leaving now."

My wife said it's better to mind your own business. Since that person isn't Qi Yu, it's best for them to stay out of trouble.

After receiving his look, Zhang Xuyang understood and smiled as he looked at Brother Biao, who was in the lead.

"We need to go to the bookstore in front to get some books to copy back to us. Could you please do us a favor? Considering we were classmates."

The thugs behind Brother Biao also revealed a mocking expression.

"You were all so capable just now. Who were you yelling at? Now you're all scared out of your wits. A country bumpkin is a country bumpkin, nothing special."

Meng Jiu glanced at the person in the corner and waved lightly, signaling him to leave quickly. The person acted as if he hadn't seen him, muttering something under his breath. Meng Jiu couldn't help him.

"Brother Biao, those two pretty boys ruined our plans today. I think we shouldn't let them get away with it so easily. That kid doesn't have many coins on him, so let's get them to cover for him. What do you say?"

Brother Biao looked at them with great interest but didn't say a word.

Zhang Xuyang was thinking to himself, what were the chances that these people would catch up with him and Meng Jiu as they ran?

Seeing that the person remained silent, Meng Jiuhe spoke up once more.

"For the sake of our time as classmates, please do me a favor. Xuyang and I have something to do at the bookstore."

"You think you can just do me a favor like that? Who do you think you are?"

The two sides remained deadlocked, neither uttering a word.

"Let them both go. Remember to be more careful next time."

The little follower looked at him in disbelief, his mouth agape enough to fit an egg.

"Brother Biao, why are you being so kind today, letting these two leave? It's not like you at all. What if they expose this?"

Zhang Xuyang's mouth reacted faster than his brain: "My mouth is as tight as a clam shell."

After the two left, the henchmen asked with puzzled looks, "Brother Biao, why did you let these two leave so easily today? It's not like you usually do things this way."

"Hey, Brother Biao, why are you giving me another sunflower seed? Can you please stop hitting me on the head? I'm already stupid enough."

Brother Biao glanced at him and rolled his eyes. "You know you're stupid, right? I need you to tutor those two kids, they're really good at studying. I heard they're from a county down below. All of us combined can't compare to them. And the monthly exams are coming up soon. My old man said if my parents are called in again, he'll give me a good beating. Those two kids are quite academically gifted, it won't hurt to get on their good side. With your brains, you can't even write a proper essay without stuttering. How can I expect anything from you?"

The men lowered their heads in shame, and one of them quickly flattered, "Brother Biao, you really have foresight. I admire you so much for planning ahead."

"Ouch, Brother Biao, why did you hit me again?"

Brother Biao couldn't help but roll his eyes again: "Idiot, it's utter utter admiration."