The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 534 This Lifetime is Completely Ruined (4)_1

Chapter 534: Chapter 534 This Lifetime is Completely Ruined (4)_1

Li Baoxiang and Sun Lizheng returned home, made preparations, and took Li Baolian back to discuss with the family what gifts to send.

Grandma Li was quite dissatisfied that Li Baolian couldn’t stay to see the lantern festival and even got injured, shedding tears of grievance upon being asked.

However, they ultimately valued the son’s future more and decided on tea leaves, pastries, and a hen as gifts.

The next day, Li Baoxiang went back to Taiping Town and started to study under Mo Heng.

Mo Heng only taught for four hours in the afternoon; the rest of the time, he had other work to do, and he also had to tutor Pei Wendong and Chang Yonglin.

There were other schoolmates of Fang Liuming who wanted to visit Mo Heng, but they were all turned away. Some of them were somewhat displeased that Fang Liuming didn’t help to introduce them.

Fang Liuming had no choice; his cousin-in-law taught him to curry favor with his cousin, how could he have a reason to guide his own schoolmates as well!? He concentrated on his studies, making the final sprint.

The new County Magistrate arrived, and after assuming office, he visited Taiping Town, paid respects at the Imperially Bestowed Pai Building, and even called Pei Qin for a talk to understand the situation of sweet potato cultivation in Yuanyang County.

"What do you think of this County Magistrate?" Old Scholar Fang came over and asked Pei Qin.

Pei Qin smiled, "He’s quite adept at putting on a show."

Old Scholar Fang didn’t understand, "Putting on a show? There are so many in the officialdom who put on acts every day, pretending to be honest and upright, pretending to be good officials!"

Pei Qin nodded, "Right now, it’s still unclear, but he’s quite good at putting on an act."

Old Scholar Fang worried about Fang Liuming’s examination, "With this new County Magistrate, I’m not worried about whether he’s a good official; I’m worried he’ll be bought by the Pei family and the Qian family."

"So, we can take the initiative and buy off this Magistrate Huang ourselves!" Pei Qin said with a laugh. He had come over to pay respects to the Pai Building and even sought her out to learn about sweet potatoes, saying if there were any issues, she could approach him and the Government Office would be open to someone like her who works for the country and its people. But the Government Office’s doors may claim to be open to justice, it’s "no money, no justice" at the gates!

Old Scholar Fang was also considering the matter of buying off Magistrate Huang, but he was unfamiliar with this Magistrate Huang and didn’t know how greedy he could be. Although the Fang family’s circumstances had improved over the past two years, they couldn’t risk emptying their coffers just to buy off the County Magistrate.

"Let Yama Raja wait for now, it’s enough to just buy a few lesser ghosts," Pei Qin said.

As the saying goes, it’s easier to meet Yama Raja himself than to deal with his underlings. Old Scholar Fang nodded in agreement.

Qian Wanxiu went the direct route and delivered gifts. Learning that Magistrate Huang hadn’t brought his wife and children and only had a concubine to serve him, she personally sent two pieces of fine brocade and a set of silver-gilt jewelry to buy off the concubine.

As for the lower-ranked clerks and runners, there were too many, and those who could be of use had long been bought by the Wang family and Landlord Chang’s house, receiving their benefits yearly. Even if she stuffed them with silver, they would not hearken to her commands. To catch a thief, capture the king first, so she acted preemptively and aimed to secure Magistrate Huang.

As for hindering Fang Liuming’s examination, unless he was caught cheating or an accident prevented him from taking the exam at all.

Cheating was unlikely, for Fang Liuming’s scholarship was passable, and Mo Heng, coming from the Mo family, had topped the local exams in his youth. With his guidance, it shouldn’t be difficult for Fang Liuming to pass the spring exams.

That only leaves the possibility of an accident that would prevent him from taking the exams. But a delay would only postpone for a year; if he failed this year, they would certainly continue next year. Unless he became disabled and couldn’t take the exams anymore.

After the new year, Fang Liuming moved to live near the workshop. In the morning, he sometimes went to classes to listen to Teacher Sun’s lectures; other times, he stayed in the workshop to read and write essays, as it was quieter there. In the afternoon, he would go to Pei Qin’s place to listen to Mo Heng’s teachings and receive essay coaching, and in the evening, he would digest it all upon returning home.

His life was very regular, basically revolving around three places.

The more Li Baoxiang interacted with him, the more he felt that sometimes Fang Liuming’s insights differed from his. Although some he might not agree with, others could impress him, especially when Mo Heng delved deeper into scholarly discussions which he sometimes found hard to follow. Afterward, discussing with Fang Liuming made it clearer. Sometimes by the time he got back, it was already very late.