Chapter 682 - 352: Worrying About Yun Ying (Part 2)

Chapter 682: Chapter 352: Worrying About Yun Ying (Part 2)

Huai Zi nodded. "I’ll go remind them again tomorrow. We can’t be careless about this."

Juhua looked at him seriously and said, "Do you think you’re so sensible that you’d never do something foolish?"

Huai Zi asked in surprise, "Juhua, don’t you trust me?"

Juhua shook her head. "It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s just that you can’t imagine the kinds of tricks people will pull. Blackmail, extortion, deception... they’ll stop at nothing. You might do something without thinking it’s wrong, and the next thing you know, you’ve fallen right into their trap. I’m only saying this to remind you to be on your guard. Don’t assume you’re any better than Laicai and the others. If they manage to stay out of trouble while you—the one everyone thinks is so promising—get tricked into a brothel, now *that* would be a real joke!"

Her words made Huai Zi’s expression turn solemn. He paused what he was doing and nodded gravely at Juhua. "I get it now. I’ll be sure to be careful. You’re right. We farmers are simple-hearted. We might try to help someone with good intentions, only to get blackmailed or swindled. Things like that definitely happen."

Seeing that he had taken her words to heart, Juhua felt much more relieved, and they let the matter rest.

The next morning, the family had just finished breakfast when some extremely distant relatives showed up at their door, looking to stay with them and borrow money. In short, everyone now saw the Zhang family as their patron and their hope. In their eyes, this new scholar was practically omnipotent. If they didn’t set them straight, these relatives would probably think that becoming a scholar was the same as becoming an official!

Zhang Huai took Juhua to the Zheng Family’s home. Instead of going to the fields, he stayed home to deal with the situation. Zhang Yang didn’t go out either, joining his older brother to face the motley crew of relatives.

With the two brothers holding down the fort, their words were much clearer and carried more weight than anything Zhang Dashuan and Mrs. He could say. They delivered a firm explanation of the situation, convincing the relatives who just wanted to freeload to give up their plans. For those who were genuinely in hardship, they offered a little help and gently persuaded them to return home. As for those wanting to register their land under the Zhang family’s name, the brothers explained the potential consequences and said they would revisit the matter in a month.

As for the matchmakers who came to their door, Zhang Yang told them flatly that he wouldn’t even consider an engagement until he became an Advanced Scholar. At that, the women tucked their tails between their legs and scurried away.

Leaving the commotion at the Zhang family’s house behind, we turn to Juhua, who was at her parents’ home helping her mother, Mrs. Yang, slice eggplants. The two of them chatted while little Hulu sat in his stroller to the side, watching them.

They sliced the purplish-red eggplants into strips, blanched them in boiling water to remove the bitter taste, then laid them out to dry. Come winter, these dried eggplants could be stewed, a welcome supplement when fresh vegetables were scarce.

Juhua and Mrs. Yang did the slicing, while Liu Yunlan carried the cut eggplants to be blanched, drained them, and then took them outside to dry. Eggplant discolors quickly once cut, so she had to hurry back and forth.

As they were busy working, Yun Ying came over to join the fun. She had grown very fond of farm life, especially harvesting fruits and vegetables—a passion she shared with Juhua.

Juhua smiled and asked, "Aren’t the kids all off selling herbs? How come you have the time?" She had just seen several boys carrying baskets filled with dried Xu Changqing and bellflower root, heading for the courtyard where Qin Feng lived.

Yun Ying couldn’t find a cutting board, so Liu Yunlan went back inside to find a small one and a small kitchen knife—an old one of Juhua’s. She handed them to Yun Ying, who took them and began slicing an eggplant. "I’ve already bought everything from them," she said. "They’d only been gathering for a few days, so they didn’t have much."

Ever since she and her brother opened an herb shop at the market, the older children in the village had found a new pastime. Whenever they were free, they would grab their little hoes and wander the mountains in search of medicinal plants. The most common herbs on the nearby hills were Xu Changqing and bellflower root. Some kids also dug up cicada sloughs or picked honeysuckle to dry and sell. They were thrilled to earn a few copper coins to save as their own pocket money.

Mrs. Yang chuckled. "It’s good the kids are so enthusiastic, and it keeps them busy with something useful. I recognize a lot of those herbs you buy. If I had the time, I’d go dig some up to sell myself. It’d be nice to earn a little extra for sewing supplies, but I’m just too busy."

Juhua and Yun Ying exchanged a glance and smiled. "Ma, the kids are quick and can run all over. It’s the perfect job for them, and it’s not like they have other major responsibilities. You have so much work to do in the fields. If you went off digging for herbs, whatever money you made wouldn’t be worth the time you lost."

Mrs. Yang laughed. "Oh, I was just talking. It’s not like I’d actually go do it. Even if I had the time, I have my grandson to look after." She then tried to get Hulu to call her "Grandma," but he just kept his head down, focused on his cloth doll.

As they were laughing and talking, a little boy suddenly dashed into the courtyard like a blur. He had two streams of snot running from his nose and a small topknot tied on the crown of his head, while the rest of his hair was shaved clean, revealing the bluish skin of his scalp. "Sister Yun Ying! Sister Yun Ying!" he yelled. "Doctor Qin says you need to hurry home right away!"

Yun Ying asked in surprise, "What’s going on? Why the big rush?" She then shot the little boy a disgusted look. "Li Jingshan, did you take the medicine I gave you? Why is your nose still running? Didn’t I tell you to wash your face and blow your nose properly..."

Before she could finish, Li Jingshan gave a mighty SNIFF, sucking the snot right back up his nose as if to destroy the evidence. "Sister Yun Ying, just hurry home!" he said. "Doctor Qin is really anxious! Someone from Qingbei Village came and said his wife is about to die—" Noticing her continued glare, he quickly added, "I’ll blow my nose right away! I forgot to take the medicine you gave me. It smells so bitter!"

But Yun Ying had no time to bother with him now. She quickly excused herself to Mrs. Yang and Juhua, then broke into a run and dashed out of the courtyard.