#109 - I owe that number one scholar a favor.

A farmer's courtyard in Baihe County.

Xu Ming stood outside the fence.

In the courtyard, a woman was scattering bran.

Several chickens inside the fence pecked incessantly.

These chickens looked well-fed, probably raised for a year or two.

Two children, no more than six or seven years old, were playing with mud in the courtyard, their bottoms sticking out.

One of the little girls, with her hair in pigtails, saw Xu Ming, her eyes lighting up instantly. She ran towards Xu Ming with open arms: "Brother Xu~ Brother Xu~~~"

The little boy also saw Xu Ming and ran over happily: "Brother Xu, why are you here?"

The two children opened the fence and jumped happily in front of Xu Ming. Xu Ming ruffled their hair: "Of course, I came to see you."

The grandson of Prime Minister Fang is named Fang Wan, and his granddaughter is named Fang Qianqian.

The names were chosen extremely casually.

Xu Ming even felt that if Prime Minister Fang had a third grandchild, they would be named Fang Bai.

Because Xu Ming often took the siblings to play together when traveling, such as hunting small game, Fang Wan and Fang Qianqian both liked this older brother, Xu Ming.

"Greetings, Number One Scholar."

Madam Fang put down the basin filled with bran, stepped forward, and bowed slightly to Xu Ming.

"Junior greets Madam Fang," Xu Ming returned the bow.

Madam Fang, although she was fifty or sixty years old, looked no more than thirty.

Although Madam Fang's appearance was not stunning, only slightly above average, the accumulation of years gave this Madam Fang a lingering charm.

At first, Xu Ming thought this Madam Fang was Prime Minister Fang's concubine, but he didn't expect that she was actually his wife, and Prime Minister Fang only had this one wife.

Madam Fang smiled and said, "Is the Number One Scholar here to see our old man?"

Xu Ming nodded: "There are some things I want to ask Old Mister Fang about."

Madam Fang: "That old man of mine has gone to farm the fields. If the Number One Scholar is in a hurry, you can have Qianqian take you there."

"Then I'll trouble you," Xu Ming didn't refuse.

"Brother Xu, here, here!" Fang Qianqian wiped the mud off her hands on her skirt, then happily took Xu Ming's hand and walked towards the fields.

A quarter of an hour later, in the fields, Xu Ming saw an old man wearing a straw hat, sleeves and trouser legs rolled up, planting rice seedlings in the paddy field.

There were also many people around busy with farm work.

Perhaps they couldn't imagine that beside them was a Prime Minister of Wu Kingdom.

Xu Ming took off his shoes, rolled up his trouser legs, rolled up his sleeves, took a handful of seedlings, and also went down into the field.

Fang Qianqian also wanted to go down and play, but remembering that she hadn't planted the seedlings well yesterday and was scolded by her grandfather, she sullenly found a shady place to squat down, observing the ants and looking for small frogs.

Fang Ling saw Xu Ming helping him plant rice seedlings in the field, and it seemed that he was very skilled. He didn't say anything, just continued with his farm work.

Half an hour later, Fang Ling took Xu Ming to rest by the side of the road. Fang Ling took a sip of water and handed the water gourd to Xu Ming.

"Thank you," Xu Ming raised his head and took a big gulp.

"I didn't expect the Number One Scholar to know how to do farm work," Fang Ling said with a smile.

A young man born into a noble family probably hadn't even seen rice seedlings, but he knew how to do farm work. This was something Fang Ling hadn't expected.

"During those years in the Blood Floating Pagoda, I helped an old farmer in a village when I was on a mission once," Xu Ming replied.

In fact, Xu Ming's knowledge of farm work came from his previous life's experience.

"On the contrary, I didn't expect the old gentleman to be so old and still come to the fields," Xu Ming looked at Fang Ling.

"What's so unexpected?" Fang Ling took a sip of water, "I used to study and farm at the same time. Now that I'm back, I naturally have to grow some grain for myself to eat."

Fang Ling wiped his mouth: "Speak, what is the matter for you to come to me, young man? You don't know how to deal with the four wealthy families of Baihe County?"

"Yes," Xu Ming nodded, "These days, Third Brother has found a breakthrough, but..."

"But this breakthrough is like a dead end?" Fang Ling interjected.

"We found out that the scholar whose legs were broken before is actually the current Tan Hua, Yu."

Xu Ming told Fang Ling about the situation.

"I'm wondering why Yu Tan Hua didn't tell the Emperor about this. Is it because Yu Tan Hua cherishes his reputation, or does Yu Tan Hua actually have some handle in the hands of the Li family?

I heard that Old Mister Fang had some exchanges with Yu Tan Hua before?"

Fang Ling looked at the fields: "I talked to all three of you who passed the imperial examination with the highest grade. After all, you will be the trendsetters of the Wu Kingdom court in the future, so I have to see what kind of personalities you have, what kind of people you are."

Xu Ming: "Then, in Old Mister Fang's opinion, what kind of person is Yu Tan Hua?"

Fang Ling smiled: "After talking with you, I found that you are a person who has no ruler in your eyes. For most people, the monarch is the supreme existence, but you are different. You are very dismissive of the monarch.

After talking with Xu Pangda, I found that he is a patch-up man. In the future, the court will be turned upside down by Xiao Mo Chi and others. Even if it's not a complete mess, it will be a mess, and Xu Pangda can clean up the mess very well.

As for Yu Ping'an, he is a madman... He gives me the feeling that he can do anything in the future. He doesn't care about his reputation. As long as it's something he wants to do, I feel he wouldn't hesitate to destroy himself.

This kind of person, this kind of personality, he will be patient, but he will never suffer losses. Even if he dies, he will bite off a piece of the other person's flesh.

However, there is someone who has locked him up.

And this person is his only weakness.

If it's really as you said, Yu Ping'an is the scholar whose legs were broken back then.

Then, the reason why the Li family is still alive now is probably because of the girl beside Yu Ping'an."

In a courtyard near the Hanlin Academy in Wudu, Yu Ping'an, who was resting today, was sitting in the courtyard, lecturing a little girl.

At first, the little girl listened to the lecture very seriously, but as time passed, the little girl listened to the lecture as if she was listening to a lullaby.

The little girl listened and dozed off, like a chick pecking at rice.

Her little head nodded and nodded, and the little girl finally couldn't help but fall asleep on the table.

"This little girl," Yu Ping'an smiled and gently picked up the little girl and put her back on the bed in her room.

Even when she was picked up, the little girl didn't wake up.

Looking at the sleeping little girl on the bed, Yu Ping'an tucked her hair behind her ear:

"Don't worry, you will live well.

It's just that your Brother Yu, owes that Number One Scholar another favor."