Jing Li was also very angry and wanted to beat up the bastard who knocked on the door right away.
What are you doing today? Have you all made appointments? Do those who disturb others' good times know that they will be struck by lightning
—He didn’t think there was anything wrong with him and Qin Zhao being locked in the room and having sex in broad daylight.
"If it's still Chen Yan'an, I will definitely write a letter to Ayi saying bad things about him!" Jing Li said angrily.
Qin Zhao rubbed his nose against Jing Li's cheek affectionately and whispered, "It's probably not him."
This time the knock on the door was not as rude as the previous one from Chen Yan'an, but because there was no shouting, it was impossible to tell who it was.
The two of them were reluctant to open the door, but the knocking never stopped, as if they were sure that Qin Zhao must be at home.
There is no hope of expecting the other party to leave on their own.
Qin Zhao breathed a sigh of relief silently, pulled Jing Li up, and helped him straighten his loose clothes: "I will finish the sign tonight."
Jing Li's ears turned a little red, but he didn't want Qin Zhao to think that he was too unsatisfied, so he didn't dare to show too much anger.
He turned his head and whispered, "Go open the door quickly. I told you not to do this during the day..."
"Well, not next time." Apart from anything else, he couldn't stand being disturbed all the time.
Qin Zhao lowered his head and kissed Jing Li on the lips, then turned and walked into the yard.
When he first heard the knock on the door, Qin Zhao felt that the other party did not seem to be a rough countryman.
The visitor knocked on the door neither fast nor slow, knocking a few times and stopping a few times, and not using much strength. He was much more elegant than Chen Yan'an.
After opening the door, Qin Zhao's guess was confirmed.
It was the scholar, Yan Xiu, whom I had met at the poetry gathering in town before.
Compared with the day of the Mid-Autumn Poetry Meeting, this man looked much more haggard.
There were dark purple bruises under his eyes, his beard had not been trimmed for several days, and he had not even changed his clothes. His originally exquisite and luxurious silk shirt was wrinkled by him, and his hair was tied up casually behind his head, messy and unwashed.
and…
“… Unlucky, so unlucky.” Yan Xiu lowered his head and grabbed a small piece of cloth on his chest, wiping it hard with a handkerchief, cursing uncontrollably.
If I'm not mistaken, the stain on this man's chest is most likely bird droppings.
Qin Zhao hesitated: "You..."
"Mr. Qin!" Yan Xiu just noticed that the door was open. Seeing Qin Zhao staring at his movements, he gave him a bitter smile and said, "There are so many birds in the mountains. I was knocking on the door just now, and several birds flew over my head."
Only then did Qin Zhao notice that there was a lot of bird droppings at his feet.
Qin Zhao: “…”
It seems that his little fish is really angry.
Qin Zhao was about to ask about his purpose when he suddenly took a half step back and bowed deeply to him: "I apologize for my previous offense, Mr. Qin!"
Yan Xiu's attitude towards him was completely different from that on the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Qin Zhao could roughly guess the reason for his change and said calmly: "If you came here just to say this, I don't take what happened that day to heart, please go back."
As he said this, he wanted to close the door, but Yan Xiu took the lead and stepped forward: "No!"
The smell on his body was hard to describe. Qin Zhao backed away calmly. Qin Zhao also noticed this and withdrew his hand in embarrassment: "I... I have something to ask of you."
Yan Xiu looked haggard, but his eyes were surprisingly bright. He said eagerly, "I want to become your disciple!"
Qin Zhao: “…”
Jing Li, who had just put on his clothes and walked into the yard, asked: "?"
These days, there are indeed many scholars who want to become my disciples.
The town is small and news spreads quickly.
After Qin Zhao composed that poem, the literati in the town did not stop for a moment and tried to find out all his information.
Qin Zhao not only had talent in poetry, he had also taught Chen Yan'an several scriptures earlier. His understanding of the scriptures even amazed Chen Yan'an's teacher, Yan Xiu's teacher, the scholar Song who ran a private school in the town.
Needless to say, this person also went to the county town and helped the county magistrate to control the flood that had plagued him for many years.
Once these deeds were spread among the literati, they aroused the interest of many people. With such achievements, whether Qin Zhao had any fame became less important.
As for the fact that Qin Zhao had an unknown origin and no memory, the literati in the town did not care much about it.
A few years ago, there was war on the border and many refugees fled here from the north. Qin Zhao might have come here to escape.
A hero is not judged by his origin; the literary circle is sometimes just that simple.
Yan Xiu took out a few strings of copper coins from his bosom, bent his waist very low, and repeated earnestly: "Sir, I beg you to accept me as your disciple!"
Qin Zhao turned aside to avoid Yan Xiu's greeting: "I am not well-educated and cannot bear Master Yan's behavior. Please go back."
Yan Xiu had won the first place in the county exam three years ago. Even if he didn't pass the prefectural exam, he still had a high reputation in the town. Regardless of his academic knowledge, Qin Zhao was a commoner who had never even participated in the county exam, so he was not qualified to accept Yan Xiu as his disciple.
But Yan Xiu refused to give in: "Sir, what do you want me to be your disciple?"
"Then let me ask you, why do you insist on taking me as your master?" Qin Zhao said coldly, "In terms of age, you and I are almost the same, and in terms of fame, I am not as good as you, not to mention that you are a disciple of Mr. Song. Once a teacher, always a father. You came here today, but you haven't informed your master yet, right?"
Yan Xiu's face turned pale instantly.
In this era, there is no rule that you cannot learn from two teachers, but if you want to learn from a second teacher, you must seek the consent of the first teacher.
Yan Xiu was Song Xiu's favorite student, so Qin Zhao didn't believe that Song Xiu would agree to let him become his disciple.
Yan Xiu stammered for a moment and didn't utter a word.
Qin Zhao didn't say anything more to him and closed the gate.
"Qin Zhao! I won't give up, just wait!"
Yan Xiu's voice came from outside the door, but halfway through his words, he heard a scream, as if he had slipped and rolled down the stone steps in front of the bamboo courtyard.
Qin Zhao was silent for a moment, then turned to look at the young man sitting in the yard.
The young man quickly raised his hands and said innocently, "I didn't curse him secretly in my heart!"
Qin Zhao: “…”
The boy's ears were still red as he lay on his back on the bamboo chair, his body swaying gently with the chair.
Seeing Qin Zhao looking at him, he uncomfortably withdrew his hand and tugged at his collar, trying to cover the red marks on his neck left by Qin Zhao's kiss.
After countless experiments, Jing Li finally stopped revealing his true form after just one kiss. But he always felt that Qin Zhao seemed a little regretful about this, and insisted on leaving some marks on him when they were intimate.
… It seems like it was intentional anyway.
Jing Li's cheeks became even hotter when he thought of this.
Qin Zhao's Adam's apple rolled, and he strode across the stone bridge, whispering, "Wait for me for a moment."
After he said this, he went straight into the house. When he came out, he was holding a piece of rough paper in his hand.
Jing Li leaned his head over to glance at his hand and vaguely saw a few words written on the paper.
An ominous feeling arose spontaneously.
Qin Zhao walked out of the yard quickly, stuck the piece of paper on the gate, closed the door, and skillfully locked it from the inside.
Jing Li swallowed and shrank unconsciously: "What did you post outside the yard?"
Qin Zhao said calmly: "Can't you guess?"
"Guess... I can't guess..." Jing Li smiled at him bitterly, and the next second he was ready to get up and slip into the house. But Qin Zhao, the sickly man, moved surprisingly quickly and pushed him back onto the bamboo chair in an instant.
Qin Zhao lowered his head and kissed his cheek, saying softly, "I've wanted to try this for a long time."
"What did you say—" Jing Li's words were blocked back into his throat before he could finish.
The bamboo chairs in the yard were shaking and making creaking sounds. A piece of yellowed, rough-edged paper was pasted on the gate, with the four big words "No Visitors" written on it in vigorous and powerful strokes.
The village chief had actually already planned to build a primary school in the village. He knew the importance of studying, and now that so many villagers had mentioned it to him, even if Qin Zhao didn't agree, the school had to be built.
Now that I have Qin Zhao's promise, I no longer have to worry.
On the second day after the village chief came to see Qin Zhao, construction of the village's elementary school began in full swing.
After the Mid-Autumn Festival, it is time to sow wheat.
Jing Li is now much more skilled in farm work than Qin Zhao. He teaches Qin Zhao how to turn the soil and sow seeds in a very methodical way.
"…Are you tired? Do you want to take a break?" Jing Li asked, "How about we do it again tomorrow?"
They bought wheat seeds for one acre of land, and as for the remaining acre of land, they planted some vegetables that could survive the winter. Most of them have already sprouted and are growing particularly lushly.
If a skilled farmer were to work on this acre of land, turning the soil and sowing the seeds would only take half a day to complete. However, Jing Li was afraid of tiring Qin Zhao, who was a sickly child, so he always asked him to rest after a short while of work.
Qin Zhao wiped the sweat from his forehead, shook his head, and pointed to the fields that had not yet been sown: "There is not much left. Let's speed up and finish it before the sun sets."
"Can-"
Jing Li wanted to persuade him again, but Qin Zhao ignored him and picked up the hoe to continue turning the soil.
Qin Zhao had never done this kind of farm work before, and he had learned it all in the past two days. But his movements were already very smooth, and his rolled-up sleeves revealed a section of his forearms, and the thin muscle lines under the skin could be vaguely seen.
Jing Li frowned thoughtfully.
After about another stick of incense time, the two finally finished sowing all the wheat.
It was getting dark, and every household finished their work and headed home. Qin Zhao took Jing Li by the hand and walked along the bluestone road in the village. Seeing that he seemed to be thinking about something else, he tilted his head and asked, "What are you thinking about?"
"I was wondering..." Jing Li looked at him suspiciously, "Are you really not tired?"
Before they started sowing, they had agreed that one person would turn the soil and the other would sow the seeds, taking turns. But in reality, Qin Zhao was in charge of turning the soil most of the day, and only took a short break when he couldn't handle it anymore.
"Worried about me?" Qin Zhao said truthfully, "I'm a little tired, but not seriously."
Now that he has exerted himself physically, his body is no longer as weak and feeble as before, and he no longer has a fever.
But even so, his body is still not as good as that of an ordinary adult man. If he wants to recover his strength as soon as possible, he can't just lie in bed and recuperate.
Doing farm work is the best choice now.
"I'm afraid you're too anxious." Jing Li said in a low voice.
Qin Zhao: "It's okay, I know what I'm doing."
"besides… "
Qin Zhao: "What?"
Jing Li glared at him angrily, his ears suddenly reddened: "You can obviously do farm work in the fields for an entire afternoon, why do you always say you are exhausted at night???"
… Every time he just lay there and enjoyed himself, letting him do it himself.
Qin Zhao: “…”
That's of course because his little fish looks so cute.
Qin Zhao didn't dare to tell the truth, and coughed lightly: "I was indeed physically exhausted in the past."
“…” Jing Li glared at him, “You’re lying!”
"I didn't lie to you." Qin Zhao glanced at Jing Li's expression and added, "But my physical strength has recovered a lot recently, so it's not a problem anymore."
"Okay." Jing Li gritted his teeth and snorted, "Then prove to me that I will not move at all tonight!"
Qin Zhao: “…”
Jing Li: “…”
… He was so angry that he said some obscene words.
Qin Zhao suppressed his laughter and whispered, "Yes, Madam. I will prove it tonight."
Jing Li was so embarrassed and angry that he wanted to dig a hole and bury himself in it. Qin Zhao wanted to tease him again, but suddenly he saw a figure standing in front of his house from the corner of his eye.
It's a woman.
The woman was only fifteen or sixteen years old, and she was also a villager. She didn't seem to notice Qin Zhao and the others coming back, and her eyes were staring at the side in a trance.
Following her gaze, not far away was the Mengxue Academy, which was currently undergoing roof completion.
The village chief built the academy next to Qin Zhao's house as promised, but not completely close.
There is a path between the academy and Qin Zhao's bamboo courtyard, with pine trees transplanted from the mountains planted on both sides of the path to block out the noise.
Qin Zhao didn't have the money to hire too many people when he built the house, but this time the whole village contributed money and labor to build the academy. Therefore, in just five days, the hut used as the academy was about to be completed.
"Do you have something to talk to me about?" Qin Zhao held Jing Li's hand tightly, walked forward, and asked in a gentle voice.
The woman was frightened by his sudden voice and trembled all over. She turned around to meet Qin Zhao's gaze and her cheeks flushed red.
"I... I..." the woman said with difficulty, "I've been waiting for you here. I want to give you these... these...
She stammered as she finished her words, stuffed the bamboo basket in her hand into Qin Zhao's arms, and ran away without looking back.
Qin Zhao: “?”
The bamboo basket was quite heavy. Qin Zhao lifted the blue coarse cloth covering it and found several pieces of dried pork and a basket of eggs inside.
Qin Zhao frowned slightly, vaguely understanding something: "This woman..."
He looked up and met Jing Li's suspicious gaze.
Jing Li narrowed his eyes: "She came here specially to wait for you?"
Qin Zhao: “…”
Jing Li glanced at the bamboo basket in Qin Zhao's hand: "Is he sending you something?"
Qin Zhao: “…”