Ugly girl only wants to farm

Chapter 186 First Encounter

Meng Jiuhe had been speaking rather softly, and now he saw Xu Chaoyan's teasing expression.

A hint of doting flashed in his eyes as he reached out and gently pinched her cheek twice: "You're such a naughty child."

Then he leaned down and whispered in her ear, "If you feel you didn't hear me clearly, I'll tell you later."

Xu Chaoyan gently pinched him a few times: "You're so unruly."

They weren't in a hurry on their journey, and leisurely made their way to the county town, arriving at noon the next day.

Last time she returned from the county town, she spent the night in a dilapidated temple. Xu Chaoyan really couldn't compliment the environment there. Not only was it drafty, but a cold wind would blow in at night, making her feel chilly all over, as if she had fallen into an icebox.

This time, she and the driver agreed to stay overnight at a farmhouse in advance, where they had a bowl of hot soup and a hot foot bath. The next morning, they said goodbye to the farmhouse before heading to the county town.

Meng Jiuxia didn't know when her brother and sister-in-law would arrive. She had been peering out the door several times, but each time they came over excitedly and left dejectedly.

Last time, Xu Chaoyan and her group came here just to run some business and didn't really get a good look at the county town. When they entered the town's streets, the secret passage was indeed much more lively than the town itself.

Because it was nearing the end of the year, the streets were filled with the sounds of various vendors hawking their wares, and the clothes worn by the girls were made of much brighter colors.

Xu Chaoyan's heart fluttered with excitement. Meng Jiuhe, seeing the burning look in her eyes, assumed she was envious and said to her with a guilty expression, "My wife, I will work hard to earn money to buy it for you in the future."

At this moment, Xu Chaoyan was thinking that these girls must like to dress up, since they were dressed so brightly and beautifully.

As the saying goes, women's money is the easiest to earn. With expenses increasing, is there any way to make a fortune from these women?

She was a little confused by Meng Jiuhe's words. She looked up at him with a puzzled expression and asked the question that had been bothering her: "Husband, what are you planning to buy for me? I don't need anything."

Meng Jiuhe gestured with his eyes for Xu Chaoyan to look at the girls dressed in bright red and green. Xu Chaoyan then realized that he looked a little embarrassed and, knowing that he was concerned about his image, comforted him with a few words: "Husband, what are you thinking? People like us who do rough work are not suited to wear those kinds of clothes. It's good enough if we can eat our fill and stay warm."

Meng Jiu looked at her with some suspicion and asked uncertainly, "What was with that envious look you gave me just now? I thought, I thought..."

Xu Chaoyan: "What do you think I am? Do you think I envy them for wearing silk and satin? Envy them for using rouge and powder? My face isn't suitable for those things now!"

Meng Jiuhe lowered his head and gave a weak "hmm".

He knew that Xu Chaoyan had suffered a lot after marrying him, and that her grandmother had even stolen her dowry. Now she didn't even have a decent piece of clothing. It was true that his family had wronged her, and he felt somewhat guilty.

Seeing that his expression was a little off, Xu Chaoyan took his hand and held his fingers tightly, leaning on his shoulder and speaking softly, "What are you thinking about? I was just thinking that these girls are dressed so beautifully, and how can I make money off them? As the saying goes, women's money is the easiest to earn. I'm thinking about what kind of business to do next."

Meng Jiu was bewildered by her nonsensical words and it took him a while to come to his senses: "Wife, it's almost the New Year, so there's no rush. I'll go to the bookstore and get some more books to copy and earn some money for you to use as pocket money. You and your little sister should take a good rest."

After entering the main street of the county town, the donkey cart slowed down. The miscellaneous things they were carrying drew disapproving glances from some passersby.

Another woman covered her mouth and muttered with a sarcastic tone, "What kind of person is this? A country bumpkin with a few chickens hanging on his cart. Doesn't he know that chicken droppings are everywhere? It stinks! He must have forgotten to check the almanac before going out today. What bad luck!"

After hearing this, the driver quietly explained to Xu Chaoyan and the others, "This county town is not like our town. These people are a bit more particular. Please don't take offense."

Xu Chaoyan knew that since she was new to the area and unfamiliar with the people, it was best not to cause trouble. Although it was a small county town, there was no guarantee that it was inhabited by a local gentry or wealthy person. If she offended someone, it would be difficult to resolve the situation.

She thought for a moment and said to the driver, "Uncle, why don't you find a wider, less crowded road? We don't mind taking a longer route."

The driver nodded and said, "I thought you were in a hurry to see your family, so I chose this route that you usually take. Drivers rarely use those alleys, mainly because they are so winding and turny, which is a waste of time and makes me dizzy."

Xu Chaoyan waved her hand dismissively: "It's alright. The street is indeed quite crowded with people coming and going. It wouldn't be good if something fell down and hit someone."

As the donkey cart wound its way out of the alley, it suddenly stopped at a corner.

Xu Chaoyan was startled by the sudden situation and accidentally bumped her hand on the wooden box next to her, which hurt so much that tears welled up in her eyes.

Meng Jiuhe quickly took her hand, gently blew on it a few times, and rubbed it a few times. He looked ahead with a puzzled expression and asked, "Uncle, what's wrong?"

The donkey cart suddenly stopped, and Meng Jiu and a small box of books on it all fell to the ground, now scattered all over the ground and covered in dust.

Meng Jiuhe frowned repeatedly. He usually handled these books with great care, and seeing the dust on them now made him very distressed.

The driver quickly got out to check and found that a person had suddenly appeared at the corner ahead. Because it was at a corner, the driver had to stop the donkey cart immediately.

Meng Jiu jumped off the donkey cart and reached out to pick up the books on the ground, lightly patting off the dust. Suddenly, a book was handed to him, and a male voice came from behind him, sounding somewhat abrupt.

"Brother, you are also a scholar. Judging from your refined and scholarly appearance, you must be doing very well in your studies."

Meng Jiuhe then looked up and saw a young man holding his book in his hand.

He has a habit of not liking others touching his books, but Xu Chaoyan is an exception.

He reached out and took the book, lightly stroking it a few times without making it obvious, and replied casually, "My studies aren't that great; I just know a few words and understand things."

Seeing Meng Jiuhe's aloof and indifferent expression, and his lack of attention towards him, the man reached out to pick up the books from the ground and began flipping through them without permission. The more he looked, the more surprised he became.

Meng Jiuhe snatched the book from his hand with a displeased look: "Sir, not only did you disturb our donkey cart, but you also flipped through my book without my permission. This is not the behavior of a gentleman."

The man didn't seem annoyed. He raised his hands, cupped them in greeting, and said, "Brother, I'm really sorry. I was in such a hurry that I didn't see the donkey cart coming and disturbed you. Your books are covered in dust. How about this, I'll compensate you with a few books. Let's just consider it a friendly introduction."

Xu Chaoyan sat to the side and sized up the man. He looked like a refined scholar, dressed like a student, and it was hard to tell anything from his words at first.

She thought it wouldn't hurt to hit someone who was smiling at her. They had just come from town and it wouldn't be bad to make a acquaintance with someone. Meng Jiuhe was going to go to the county school in the future, so it would be good to get some information from this person.

She walked over and gently tugged at Meng Jiuhe's sleeve. Meng Jiuhe glanced at her, understood what she meant, and then hummed in agreement.

Then he added, "These books of mine aren't worth much, but the annotations on them are the result of my long and painstaking research. If you really feel bad about it, just give me a few books instead."

A smile immediately appeared on the man's face: "Brother, my name is Shen Siheng, from Lihe County, and I study at Mingyue Academy. May I ask your name and where you are from?"

Xu Chaoyan noticed Meng Jiuhe's unease and knew that he had only responded to that person's words in response to her.

He's really not good at socializing, but since they're new here, it's best not to offend anyone too easily.

She took the stack of books from Meng Jiuhe's hands, gently patted off the dust, placed them on the donkey cart, and gave Meng Jiuhe a look, indicating that he could just give her a perfunctory reply for now.

Meng Jiuhe reluctantly spoke up: "Meng Jiuhe is from Red Leaf Village."

Xu Chaoyan sighed, rubbing her forehead. This person was indeed sparing with words.