Wealthy beyond measure, yet you call me a sister-supporting-brother demon?

Yuan Sheng and Zhu Chenxi packed their things and prepared to leave. Yuan Sheng had been learning to drive the carriage for a few days and could now drive Da Huang normally. They pulled Da Huang along and were about to leave.

"Yuanbao, where are you taking Dahuang?"

"I'm going to Qingfeng Bookstore in the county town."

"Oh, okay. Remember to give Dahuang water and hay. We've walked such a long way, don't let Dahuang get too thirsty," Yuan Laifu said reluctantly.

Ha, Yuansheng was speechless. This big yellow dog was really something, instantly stealing his father's affection. Before, his father would always be concerned about whether he was tired or thirsty when he went on long trips.

Zhu Chenxi blinked and shook the water gourd in her hand. "My lord, I brought some mung bean soup with sugar in it."

Hmph, my wife still loves me the most.

Yuansheng took his wife's hand and went out the door.

Before the two even passed the big locust tree at the village entrance, they discovered that the villagers had a new piece of gossip.

Oh ho, the main character has changed again. Before, it was still about Butcher Wang, the Li family, and the Chen family.

"Did you hear what Ma Guifen said? Old Yuan's family bought thirty mu of his land, and he cried a lot in the village."

“Ma Guifen still has the nerve to complain about the Yuan family kicking her when she was down? She has no shame at all! Before, when Yuanbao was seriously ill and needed money for a wedding to ward off bad luck, she even wanted to buy eight acres of land from them for twenty taels! I think the Yuan family gave her family three taels per acre, which is too high a price.”

"Yes, yes, she deserved it!"

Wang Qiao'er said, "Before, Butcher Wang spread rumors that Yuanbao stole money, which made my Uncle Laifu and Aunt Guihua very anxious. They were in a hurry to raise money and asked Zhang Wen and his wife to sell the well and that half-acre of land. Guess how much they offered?"

"How much?" Zhang Wen and his wife had been thinking about the Yuan family's well and that half-acre of land. They remembered that Zhang Wen had offered fifteen taels, but the Yuan family hadn't sold it.

Wang Qiao'er held up five fingers, "Five taels."

What? This is new gossip! "Really? Zhang Wen and his wife are so ruthless! They really know how to take advantage of people's misfortunes!"

"They generously added an ounce or two later!" Wang Qiao'er pouted. "How could that be false? My mother-in-law was there and heard it with her own ears. Luckily, it was all Wang the butcher's nonsense. Yuanbao is perfectly fine. It was just a false alarm."

"That's why I say Zhang Wen and his wife deserve it. They were eyeing someone else's wealth, and now they've gotten what they deserved. And they still have the nerve to complain!"

With Zhang Wen and Ma Guifen absent, no one gave them face, so everyone spoke their minds, especially Wang Qiao'er. Having eaten the Yuan family's rice, she naturally had to tell the truth when the Yuan family was being slandered.

Zhao Zhihua, with her large buttocks, said, "There's something else, have you heard? The Yuan family is so rich, besides the dowry from their daughter-in-law's family, there's another important source of wealth." Zhao Zhihua smiled mysteriously.

Li Yong's father, Li Dacheng, leered at Zhao Zhihua, "Of course I know. Yuansheng sells his penis in the city, seducing those rich, slutty widows, and naturally the money comes in."

Zhao Zhihua frowned. She felt that Li Dacheng's gaze was sticky and made her uncomfortable.

"Is that so?" Several men gathered around Li Dacheng to find out what kind of money-making scheme this was.

“It’s absolutely true. We’ve watched Yuanbao grow up since he was a baby. That ox was big even when it was small. And how much did the Yuan family spend on Zhang Wen’s land? Ninety taels of silver! Yuanbao’s ugly wife’s father was just a scholar. I don’t think it’s worth more than a hundred taels of silver as a dowry.”

"Yes, it's impossible for the dowry to be that much; it must have been made by selling his penis."

The men verbally expressed their utter contempt, but inwardly they were filled with envy. They lamented why they hadn't found such a good opportunity when they were young, and now that they were old, it was useless even if they had connections.

Sun Qiao, the young man, is very shrewd. He should try to build a good relationship with Yuan Sheng in the future. Maybe Yuan Sheng can give him a hand. He also wants to live off Yuan Sheng and avoid taking thirty years of detours.

"You're talking nonsense! Yuanbao isn't that kind of person!" Liang Shi charged over like an angry calf.

"Ignore this idiot!" Li Dacheng clearly didn't want to pay any attention to Liang Shi.

Yuan Sheng, with his sharp ears, overheard the rumors circulating. The discussion about Zhang Wen and Ma Guifen selling land was still going strong, but why did the tone gradually shift?

What does he sell? What does he sleep in?

These people are truly amazing! To have such bizarre ideas, but the fact that his family suddenly has such a large sum of money is indeed the best explanation.

Originally, he was planning to build houses for his brother-in-law and his own family one after another, but that would be too high-profile and would make it difficult to conceal the source of the money.

However, even if he couldn't cover it up, he wouldn't let his family suffer just to keep a low profile, and this rumor is perfect for him.

He already had a bad reputation, being a scoundrel, and his wife was ugly. Now, he's just added the label of selling his penis to his list of crimes, which he doesn't care about.

Yuan Sheng felt a little guilty seeing Liang Shi. This childhood friend was honest and kind to him, and the two often played together when they were young. Later, the other children in the village thought Liang Shi was stupid, so in order to fit in, he stopped playing with him and started playing with the lively Wang Damao and Li Yong. He just didn't join the other children in mocking Liang Shi for being stupid.

In his previous life, when he was down on his luck, only Liang Shi was willing to lend him a helping hand.

Having lived a second life, Yuan Sheng knew that Liang Shi wasn't stupid; he simply possessed a scientific spirit. For example, he liked to ask questions, such as, "Since horses and donkeys can produce mules, can pomelos and oranges produce new fruits?"

For example, "Can peaches grow on apricot trees?"

In Shanhou Village, if a child asks such a question, people won't think he's a genius; they'll just think he's an idiot, that there's something wrong with his head.

Yuan Sheng knew that pomelos and tangerines naturally hybridized to produce oranges in later generations. Liang Shi's question was reasonable. Liang Shi wasn't stupid; he just had a more imaginative mind than most people and preferred to ask "why."

In his previous life, Liang Shi's ending was not good. Because of his reputation as a fool, he could never find a wife. In order to give him an heir, his mother arranged for him to marry a widow. The widow had a son with her, and later gave birth to two more sons for Liang Shi, but both were born out of wedlock.

Liang Shi worked like an old donkey, struggling to support the widow who had cheated on him and another man's son.

In this life, he would never let his childhood friend repeat the same mistake.

Liang Shi had obviously seen Yuan Sheng as well, and ran over in a few steps. "Yuan Bao'er, I was just about to look for you. I was going to stay at Grandma's house. I didn't know you were so sick. When I heard from my mother that you were sick, I was so worried."

Li Yong rolled his eyes at Liang Shi, "An idiot is an idiot, all he knows is to offer his warm face to someone who doesn't appreciate it."

Liang Shi ignored Li Yong. He knew that Yuan Sheng was different from Li Yong and the others. Although Yuan Sheng played with Li Yong and Wang Damao, he never cursed him with them.

Yuan Sheng smiled at his friend, "Don't worry, I'm all better now, as strong as an ox."

Liang Shi's eyes welled up with tears. Yuan Sheng, his only good friend, had previously ignored him, but now he was finally talking to him again.

Liang Shi's tears made Yuan Sheng feel guilty. Damn, how many people who were truly sincere to him had he let down in his previous life? "Wipe your tears. You're a teenager. What kind of behavior is this?"