A master of metaphysics is farming.

Smelling the aroma of food early in the morning, Xiang Yun also woke up, but she knew nothing about what happened last night, only that she had suddenly fallen asleep.

Su told her to put away the amulet, and although she didn't understand, she obediently put it away.

Xiang He told them to take amulets so they wouldn't be tricked again and she wouldn't be able to come to their rescue in time.

"What are you doing?"

He Suian got up early in the morning and saw her walking around the house.

"Set up the Four Directions Formation." Xiang He inscribed talismans in the southern corner. "The Four Directions Formation can suppress evil spirits and demons. If others want to do something to my family, they will not be able to easily break through this formation, and evil spirits will not be able to step into the gate."

"With your abilities, finding a job in the capital would be a piece of cake."

Xiang He smiled and said, "My only goal is to find a way home and make money. I don't care about whether it's a job or not."

"Too."

After Xiang He finished her Four Directions Formation, Xiang Yang came out with his wooden sword. When Xiang He saw that Xiang Yun was awake, she could only shrug and give up.

"Let Xing Ji teach you?"

Xing Ji, who was eating a steamed bun, immediately stood up straight and stuffed the remaining half of the bun into his mouth.

Xiang Yang did not immediately agree, but looked at He Suian, after all, Xing Ji was his subordinate.

Seeing this, He Sui'an nodded, "A few simple moves will do."

Xiang He poked her head out from the courtyard and said, "Don't teach me any killer moves."

"Yes……"

The responsibility of teaching swordsmanship fell on Xing Ji's shoulders. Xiang He asked Xiang Dayong to continue teaching her how to make umbrellas until she completed all seventy-two umbrella ribs. Then Xiang Dayong went to the kitchen.

"I'll boil mulberry bark for you to make paper."

Xiang He nodded, "Thank you, Father."

After he walked away, Xiang He took out a small carving knife. She had asked her fourth uncle for it. She wanted to carve talismans on the umbrella ribs and also carve some on the handle.

Feeling that there was nothing to do, He Sui'an imitated her earlier actions and began whittling some unused bamboo branches.

This secluded and tranquil place, viewed from below, evokes a variety of opinions.

He Suian has been visiting Xiang He frequently lately, which has led to some speculation among the villagers.

In Xiang He's view, the two were just friends, and He Suian only came here often because he wanted something from her.

I don't care what others say.

Aunt Si, who had just finished her work, came up with a basket on her shoulder and greeted He Suian warmly when she saw him.

He Suian simply nodded. His fourth aunt pulled up a chair and sat down, then lifted the white cloth covering the basket. "Here are some hot pies, young master, would you like to try some?"

Before he could even move, Xiang He had already reached out and picked it up. "Fourth Aunt, do you still have time to make dumplings today? Is the millet harvest finished? Do you need us to help?"

"You silly girl!" Fourth Aunt put the basket on the ground, her face beaming with a smile. "Young master, I wanted to ask if you have any empty seats? My child would like to learn too, and the tuition will definitely be generous!"

This caused He Sui'an to frown in distress, "The seats are already full, and we can't accept any more students for the time being."

The private school only had about ten seats, and since he was going to the capital in February to take the imperial examination, he didn't plan to add any more desks and chairs for the time being.

Seeing his predicament, Fourth Aunt quickly waved her hand and said with a smile, "I was just asking. If you don't have it, then forget it. I was just asking, please don't take it to heart, sir!"

"It doesn't matter."

Seeing no disappointment on Fourth Aunt's face, Xiang He pulled over some chairs and hid the umbrella ribs engraved with talismans.

"Fourth Aunt just wanted to ask about this?"

"I almost forgot!" Fourth Aunt's gossipy nature kicked in, her eyes glancing towards Fourth Brother's family. "Didn't you hear? This morning, Grandpa went looking for Fourth Brother's family, and Lotus was missing!"

Upon hearing this, Xiang He frowned slightly, "When have we last seen each other?"

"They disappeared early this morning. I don't know where they went last night, or if they were scared and ran away because of the pig cage incident..."

Xiang He raised an eyebrow slightly, "They're gone... Maybe they're afraid of being drowned in a pig cage? After all, that's choking to death alive, anyone would be scared."

He Sui'an, standing to the side, was focused on whittling bamboo, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"I suspect so too. I don't know what Lotus is hiding. He's just a man, why doesn't he dare to speak up? It's really..."

I chatted with my fourth aunt for quite a while, until the sun was high in the sky, before she finally went home.

Watching his fourth aunt's departing figure, He Sui'an finally looked up and asked, "Where do you think Xiang Lianhua went?"

“I don’t know,” Xiang He shrugged and continued carving. “I’ve looked at her face. She’s not someone who dies young. It seems she’s hiding somewhere. We’ll definitely meet again in the future.”

"There are truly endless trivial matters."

Who said no?

Xiang He quickly sketched with his hands, Xiang Yang was learning a move or two from Xing Ji, and Xiang Yun found it interesting and followed along, holding a bamboo stick to learn. When Su Shi returned from washing clothes and saw this scene, the worries from last night dissipated.

Leisurely days always fly by, and by the time Xiang He finished attaching the umbrella, night had already fallen.

For the past three days, Xiang Dayong has been teaching her how to make an umbrella. Xiang He has been learning diligently, and a bamboo umbrella hangs out to dry in the yard, which is quite eye-catching.

By the time they set off, the umbrella was finally dry. She was very satisfied with the umbrella. Although there were no patterns drawn on the paper, there were talismans written by Xiang Hesu, but they still needed to be dyed.

Xiang He carried a bamboo basket and held an umbrella. Xiang Yang and Xiang Yun were also going back to the private school. He Suian naturally wanted to go into the city with them. He opened the folding fan in his hand.

"You actually managed to make it happen."

He Sui'an, who was bored, made a folding fan himself and even asked Xiang He to draw talismans on the fan surface.

"Are you doing painting or calligraphy? It looks too plain."

"Go back and draw it again."

"Oh."

As they chatted and laughed, they arrived at the village. Every time they passed by Xiang Lao Si's house, Xiang He looked on with some curiosity. Just then, the gate was wide open, and Xiang Lao Si walked out with a cold face, followed by Xiang Fusheng.

Yu Shi and Xiang Daqiang also came out from inside. When they saw Xiang He, their eyes looked like they wanted to devour her.

If it weren't for Xiang Laosi being there, Yu Shi would probably have already started cursing.

Xiang He ignored them and called Xiang Huiying to get into the carriage first. He Suian invited Xiang Fusheng to join them, and Xiang Fusheng did not refuse and thanked them before getting into the carriage.

He Sui'an sat outside the carriage, listening to the unusually quiet atmosphere inside, fiddling with a folding fan in his hand.

Inside the carriage, Xiang He looked up at Xiang Fusheng and asked, "Young Master Xiang, I heard your sister is missing?"

"That's your sister..." He stopped mid-sentence, deflated, "What do you want to ask?"

"I just want to ask her when she disappeared. If I see her in the city later, I might be able to persuade her to come back."

Xiang Fusheng glared at her irritably, "They must have left at night, but I don't know where they went..."

"Oh, then I'll keep an eye on it."

Seeing her nonchalant attitude, Xiang Fusheng wanted to question her, but he held back because He Suian was outside.

He glanced at her bamboo basket and said, "You've been going to the city a lot lately."

Xiang Huiying immediately hugged the bamboo basket, her eyes filled with vigilance.

Xiang He patted her forearm lightly, but her eyes were on Xiang Fusheng. "Indeed, things are better in the city, so we should buy more to take home, otherwise it will be troublesome to get through the winter."

"I heard...you're getting quite close to the young master of the Wang family?"

Originally, that's what I wanted to ask. Xiang He raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "Not really. We just did business at his fabric shop, and got to know each other over time. What, do you think I stole your sister's man?"

Upon hearing this, Xiang Fu became angry and said, "You are an unmarried young lady!"

"I know, I know, I'm completely innocent with him."

Faced with Xiang He's flippancy, Xiang Fusheng turned his face away and stopped talking to her.

But Xiang He was still staring at him. Although he was born into that family, aside from being a bit arrogant, he was still morally acceptable.

"Young Master Xiang, study hard, and getting a good ranking will be a piece of cake."

Hearing her soft words, Xiang Fusheng turned around in surprise, but blushed after a moment. "Of course I can get a good ranking. I don't need an uneducated girl like you to interfere."