Farm Tough Girl
Chapter 603 - 603 604 Hiring a Master_1

Chapter 603: Chapter 604 Hiring a Master_1 Chapter 603: Chapter 604 Hiring a Master_1 If it were an ordinary day, she would have just endured quietly, but today her heart was preoccupied with Zhao Jiangshui, and she couldn’t calm down at all. She even lay on the bed and giggled foolishly from time to time, muttering to herself, “Once my injuries heal, I will come to find you!”

Madam Liu watched her daughter alternate between giggling foolishly and saying silly things, and thought her child’s mind was addled. With a helpless sigh in her heart, she had once worried that her daughter would never marry. Now that her daughter had finally found a man she liked, she was instead afraid her child would drift away from her because of it. Such is life.

Zhao Jiangshui had actually forgotten about Tianniu these days. It had been nothing more than a brief encounter, and since she hadn’t come to look for him, it meant she had forgotten him too. Although the girl had given him quite a surprise, the shocks were considerable too, and having no further interactions was no hindrance.

This time, the Shanshin Academy had invited him to give a lecture. He had recently arrived in Qinghua City, and his reputation from Qingcheng had preceded him: Becoming a Scholar at sixteen was indeed an extraordinary feat, and naturally there were many invitations for him to share his experiences as a guest speaker.

Zhao Jiangshui was not fond of such occasions. It felt as though people were praising him too highly, which could lead to his becoming conceited. However, the Shanshin Academy had visited to invite him several times, so if he refused to go again, it might make him appear arrogant, so he went just once.

Little did he know, on his rare outing, he would run into Cai who had led him and Tianniu up the mountain before.

“Well, isn’t this Jiangshui?” Cai greeted enthusiastically.

Zhao Jiangshui replied with a smile, “Uncle Cai, are you here on an errand?”

“Yes, didn’t I catch a big one on the mountain last time? I only needed its hide, so I sold the meat to the restaurant, and have just finished delivering it there. Isn’t Tianniu with you?”

Zhao Jiangshui was startled, then said, “We’re not that familiar with each other.”

Cai chuckled meaningfully. Not that familiar, it seemed to him they were actually too familiar with each other. That girl’s actions were so obvious, probably only a bookworm like him would fail to see them. But Cai was not the type to gossip, so he didn’t spell it out.

Instead he said, “I haven’t seen that girl for several days. She loves to roam around, and has to visit my fur shop every day. I figure she must have been punished by her parents for sneaking out last time, haha.”

Zhao Jiangshui hadn’t thought much about it at first, but after Cai’s reminder, he remembered the incident of Tianniu climbing over the wall—it was clear she had sneaked out of her house. His brows furrowed slightly. “She hasn’t come out for so many days, I hope nothing has happened to her.”

Cai spoke deliberately, “Well, that’s not certain. She’s a clever girl; she can’t stand being confined at home. Even if she’s locked up, she could escape. I think, maybe she just can’t leave her bed due to a beating.”

Zhao Jiangshui agreed with Cai’s words. He had witnessed Tianniu’s audacious wall-scaling escapade and knew her lively nature meant she couldn’t be kept detained at home. It was indeed possible that she had been beaten.

At this point, Cai didn’t say more and took his leave from Zhao Jiangshui. He understood Tianniu’s feelings for the young man and thought to himself, ‘Tianniu, Uncle Cai cares for you, but that’s as far as I can help.’ The words he had spoken were intended to be heavy—though Tianniu’s punishment was inevitable, it surely wasn’t serious. Her mother treasured her more than her three sons, especially cherishing her eldest daughter. She’d never really punish her harshly!

Zhao Jiangshui couldn’t help but worry. Although they were just acquaintances, if something had really happened to her, he would feel guilty.

He knew where Tianniu lived; after all, he had been hit by her right under her home’s wall, a location he was bound to remember for a lifetime.

Standing in front of the house, Zhao Jiangshui hesitated, uncertain what excuse to use to enter. If he said he was Tianniu’s friend, would her parents just see him as a bad influence and chase him away with a broom?

At this thought, Zhao Jiangshui was reluctant to proceed.

But then he noticed a large poster attached next to the gate, advertising for a private teacher. Zhao Jiangshui’s eyes lit up, and as he pondered, the gate creaked open, and a middle-aged scholar stepped out, shaking his head. Seeing Zhao Jiangshui looking at the notice, the kind scholar warned, “Young man, though the pay is good, I advise you not to demean yourself there. That family’s girl… alas!”

He had the look of someone who’d suffered a great indignity, as if Tianniu had bullied him terribly.

Zhao Jiangshui, recalling Tianniu’s temperament, suddenly understood the man’s words and couldn’t help but laugh, then stepped forward to knock on the door.

He wasn’t really there to become a Master; after arriving in Qinghua City, there were many who wanted him to teach, but he felt it would hinder his studies. Besides, that was something only penniless scholars did to fill their stomachs. His family was quite well-off; he didn’t need to do such things, so he had turned them all down. His visit now was just an excuse to see how Tianniu was doing.

The door was opened by Qiao Yuanming, who, upon seeing him, asked, “Are you here to hire the Master?”

Zhao Jiangshui nodded, “Yes.”

Qiao Yuanming looked at him skeptically, “So young, probably not much of a scholar,” he thought, but considering that he himself was but a simple farmer and didn’t understand these matters, he decided to invite him inside anyway.

Madam Liu had already gone to the Embroidery House to keep busy, so Qiao Yuanming hosted him alone. He handed several sheets of paper to Zhao Jiangshui, “My daughter, I’m afraid, is a good-for-nothing, always coming up with all sorts of messy and bizarre ideas. Please don’t take offense, Master. These are questions she came up with herself. If you answer them, I’ll show them to her, and if they’re correct, you can take the position.”

Zhao Jiangshui smiled and began to read carefully. Although the girl was a bit wild, her handwriting was fairly good, but these questions…

What egg can you look at but not eat?

Who has the biggest belly in the world?

If the house is dirty and messy, how do you clean it in the shortest possible time?

Zhao Jiangshui’s mouth twitched, “What is this nonsense?”

Seeing Zhao Jiangshui’s troubled expression, Qiao Yuanming said, “If you don’t know, that’s fine. She’s just like this. Please don’t take it to heart, Master.” Mostly, he was worried about offending the guest.

Zhao Jiangshui glanced at Qiao Yuanming and asked, “With such learning, your daughter must have benefited from her uncle’s teaching.”

Qiao Yuanming scratched his head, feeling embarrassed, “Benefited from me? I’m just a rough man. She’s been studying since she was young, but that’s all from following her tutors and her older cousin. I can’t even recognize the characters.”

Zhao Jiangshui smiled again, saying nothing more; he then dipped his pen in ink and wrote down a line: “I am Zhao Jiangshui.”

He handed the sheet to Qiao Yuanming, “Uncle, take this to her and see if it’s correct.”

Qiao Yuanming was stunned, “Just these few characters are the answer?”

Zhao Jiangshui nodded, “Correct.”

Qiao Yuanming, somewhat doubtful yet impressed by Zhao Jiangshui’s confident demeanor, took the paper and went inside.