A master of metaphysics is farming.

The newcomer, dressed in blue, half-covered Li's body and bowed to He Suian with his hands clasped. "This student greets you, sir. My grandmother is a country woman who is not good at manners. I hope you will forgive her."

Xiang He stepped forward and helped He Sui'an walk back a few steps to prevent Li from going crazy and pulling people away again.

"Hey, isn't this your older brother? You're back after finishing your studies?"

The person who came was Xiang Fusheng, the eldest son of Xiang Daqiang.

Xiang He felt a bit contemptuous of this older brother after hearing his words. How could someone start by talking about his own grandmother? So what if she was a country woman? Did she have to be inferior to city people?

In my memory, Xiang Fusheng started going to school as a child. He studied until he was seventeen, but he failed to pass the preliminary examination for the first degree. After many years, Xiang Laosi was still willing to spend money to let him continue his studies.

Xiang Fusheng glanced down at Xiang He in front of him and felt that she seemed to have changed.

"Hey, why are you arguing with Grandma?"

"She wanted to steal the master's big cat, so of course I'll defend the master, right, Fourth Aunt?"

Fourth Aunt immediately understood, "That's right! That big cat clearly belongs to the teacher and He'er, and your grandmother still tried to take it away by force. How shameful!"

Su stood beside Xiang He to protect her, lest Li try anything again. "Fusheng, this is the master's big cat. We really can't give it to her."

Xiang Fusheng immediately understood, and his face darkened. "Grandma, how could you accept the master's things?"

Several people kept speaking ill of her, and Madam Li's face turned extremely ugly. "That was originally half mine! It's only right that I take it!"

This old hag is truly shameless to the extreme. She waved the wood-chopping knife in Xiang He's hand and said, "What do you mean you want it? You're practically robbing me! No wonder, people who are greedy for everything naturally think everything they see is theirs, no different from a rogue."

Xiang Fusheng looked slightly surprised, then immediately adopted the demeanor of an elder brother and scolded, "He girl, how can you talk about your own grandmother like that!"

Ignoring his slight arrogance, Xiang He turned around and grabbed the cart again. "Alright, let's not talk about it anymore, Mother, let's go."

Seeing that they were about to leave again, Li was eager to catch up, but Xiang Fusheng stopped her, "Grandma, where are you going?"

"Of course I'm going to chop up my big cat!"

He knew what kind of person his grandmother was. It was obvious that she wanted to take advantage of him. He wouldn't have paid any attention to other people's affairs, but she was his teacher. How could he let his grandmother make a scene and ruin the gentlemanly image he had worked so hard to establish?

He quickly pulled Li Shi aside, bent down and whispered, "Grandma, that's my teacher. If you keep making a scene like this, I'm afraid he'll think you're not a good person, which will affect my career..."

Madam Yu, who was standing nearby, quickly reached out and grabbed Madam Li's wrist, "Mother, let's just forget about it..."

"That's half a big cat! It's worth at least several dozen taels of silver!"

Li tried desperately to break free, but the mother and son held her tightly. "If you lose face in front of the teacher, you might not pass the imperial examination this year!"

"If he's so calculating, what kind of teacher is he!"

"Mr. Ke said that I have a very high chance of passing the children's examination this year!"

With just one sentence, he persuaded Li to stay.

She could only watch the four of them walk away with resentment, her mind filled with a myriad of calculations, her eyes full of malice, "When she comes back, I'll make her spit it all out!"

Seeing her fierce determination, Madam Yu and Xiang Fusheng exchanged a glance and, without saying a word, half-pushed and half-pulled her home.

After closing the door, Xiang Fusheng asked, "What's wrong with He'er? Why is she speaking so rudely today?"

Thinking about this incident, Madam Yu was furious. "Ever since she escaped by cutting herself off and caused our twenty taels of silver to slip away, she's been stubborn like this ever since! She must have been corrupted by Madam Su!"

"But Third Aunt isn't strong-willed, so how did she corrupt He'er?"

Li, chopping wood with all her might, remarked, "I always thought this woman was something special, but I never expected she had such a trick up her sleeve!"

She had nowhere to vent her anger, and seeing that the mother and son were busy talking and not working, she slammed her wood-chopping knife heavily on the ground. "Aren't you going to come and chop wood?! Do you want me to do it?! Where's Lianhua? It takes her forever to wash some clothes. Don't you need to feed the chickens at home?!"

He started cursing early in the morning. Xiang Lao Si, who was asleep in the house, pounded on the bed board. The two people in the yard dared not speak anymore and silently started working. Xiang Fusheng went back to the house to do his own thing.

On the other hand, the four people who had already embarked on their journey into the city were chatting with their companions while pushing the big cat.

There were also some villages nearby, and when people saw He Sui'an, they all came over to try and get to know him.

The journey into the city wasn't too boring; Xiang He could even appreciate the beautiful scenery of ancient times, and even the air smelled sweeter.

After walking for about an hour, the villagers entered the town, leaving only the four of them to continue their journey into the city.

Xiang He glanced at He Suian's profile, leaned closer, and asked in a low voice, "Young Master, did you hear any fighting sounds from halfway up the mountain last night?"

She looked at the other person's face, which remained completely calm and expressionless. "No, Miss Xiang, what do you want to say?"

"This tiger had its throat slit with a single sword strike. Pretty impressive, huh?"

He Suian smiled and narrowed his eyes, "That is indeed very impressive, but I am fortunate that I did not encounter those people, otherwise it is uncertain whether I would have survived."

“That’s true,” Xiang He said, knowing she couldn’t get anything out of him, and changed the subject with a pout, “Do you think Xiang Fusheng can pass the imperial examination for the first degree?”

"He has indeed made some progress recently, but whether he can pass the exam depends on himself."

Well, it's pointless to ask.

"When can Xiaoyang and Yunya enroll in school? What tuition fees will they need to pay? How many days will they stay at the school for rest and relaxation?"

He asked three questions in a row, and He Sui'an answered them one by one.

The journey into the city ended during the conversation.

As soon as they arrived at the city gate, they heard a lively commotion inside. The guards lifted their shirts and saw that it was a tiger, and they all praised the hunter for his bravery.

Seizing the opportunity, Xiang He put on a big smile and said, "Brother Cha, I'd like to ask where I can sell this. Such a large mountain product is not easy for ordinary people to buy."

The official, with his bulging belly, patted his stomach and said, "Then you've come to the right person. Go to the East Market; there are buyers there who collect valuable mountain goods. They'll definitely be able to buy yours too!"

"Thank you so much, Brother Cha!"

The four were allowed to pass. After He Sui'an gave them directions, they separated. Xiang He asked Su Shi and Fourth Aunt to go find what they needed first, and gave her half of the copper coins she had on her. She then pushed the cart alone.

The city is bustling with people, and the streets are packed with them. It's not surprising to see them pushing such a big thing around. However, quite a few people are following them, hoping to see how much they can make.

The streets are lined with stalls selling mountain products, including medicinal herbs and wild fruits.

Not long after they left, someone came up to ask them questions. It was a shop owner, dressed neatly and clearly a businessman.

"Young lady, what kind of mountain produce are you selling?"

"Big Cat, does the boss want to buy it?"

Upon hearing that it was a large cat, the onlookers' eyes widened in surprise, and the shopkeeper was equally astonished. "Oh my! It's been so long since I've seen a large cat! Quickly, lift it up and take a look! If it looks good, I'll take it!"

"okay!"

Everyone stared intently as Xiang He lifted his shirt, revealing a tiger with its eyes closed, and a commotion immediately erupted.

The shopkeeper stroked his chin and nodded slightly. He didn't touch the tiger, but instead circled it to examine it. "It's big, but its skin is a bit dark, and there's not much flesh. Where are the wounds? There aren't many, are there?"

Xiang He lifted the tiger's head directly, "Just one cut on the neck, no other cuts."

The shopkeeper nodded in agreement, but his brow remained furrowed. "But the color isn't very good. How about eighty taels at most?"

It was obvious he was trying to lower the price, but Xiang He still smiled broadly. "Boss, this big cat was hard to come by, could you raise the price a bit? I've been walking for almost two hours, you should give me some compensation for my trouble."

The shopkeeper gestured somewhat awkwardly, "Eighty-eight taels! That's the highest I can go!"

"One hundred taels!"

"Wow!~"

Xiang He turned around at the sound and saw a young man approaching with a folding fan in his hand and his head held high. "Miss, one hundred taels, I'll take it!"