The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 1031 - 1110: A Terrifying Surprise from the Sky

Chapter 1031: Chapter 1110: A Terrifying Surprise from the Sky

Mr. Jiang glanced at them and burst into laughter, rising to roll up his sleeves.

Mr. Zhuang then turned to Manbao and Bai Shan and said, "Go get some good brushes and paper."

Manbao and Bai Shan exchanged a look and ran off to find the items.

But Mr. Jiang was quite casual; he ground the ink himself and wrote on the spread-out paper. He wrote only one or two characters on each sheet. For Bai Shan, he wrote the character "bright", for Manbao the words "elegant and intelligent", and for Bai Erlang, the character "clear".

He looked at Peng Zhiru and Lu Xiaofu and, smiling, also wrote a character for each of them: "gentle" for one and "endure" for the other.

Peng Zhiru and Lu Xiaofu were extremely pleased. They gently blew on their papers to make the ink dry faster before putting them away.

Once Bai Shan and the others saw the characters Mr. Jiang had written, they understood why Peng Zhiru and Lu Xiaofu had been so excited; his writing really was beautiful.

Bai Shan, holding his paper, was tremendously happy with it and decided that once he got back, he would borrow Manbao’s to practice copying.

Mr. Jiang put down his brush, and Mr. Chen beside him laughed and said, "You all are lucky. Mr. Jiang hardly ever writes for anyone. Even old friends like us have to beg four or five times to get a piece from him."

Mr. Jiang glanced at him and said, "Who says it’s hard? My house throws out plenty of scrap paper every day. If you don’t mind it, I can give it all to you."

"No, I can’t compete with those who wait behind your door."

The three of them burst into laughter.

Bai Shan curiously watched his teacher.

Mr. Zhuang explained with a smile, "Mr. Jiang’s writing is excellent, but it’s hard to come by. There are always people waiting outside his door, eager to rummage through his garbage when it’s taken out, all hoping to find a piece of Mr. Jiang’s writing."

Mr. Zhuang continued, "You love calligraphy; you still have much to learn from Mr. Jiang."

Hearing this, Mr. Jiang turned to look at Bai Shan and asked with a smile, "Zhuangzi, is this the disciple you mentioned who especially loves writing?"

Mr. Zhuang nodded, "His writing is the best. When you have time, you must give him some guidance."

Mr. Jiang smiled and replied, "Certainly, certainly."

Bai Shan quickly gave him a respectful bow.

Peng Zhiru and Lu Xiaofu looked on enviously at Bai Shan, and even Mr. Chen at their side started in surprise. He glanced between Bai Shan and Mr. Jiang, hesitating to speak.

While they were lively in conversation, a group of four or five people, chatting as they came this way, rounded the flower bushes and saw Mr. Jiang. They quickly stepped forward, calling out, "So Mr. Jiang is here. We’ve been looking for you."

Manbao carefully put away her character in her bosom and turned around with the others. She immediately spotted Chen Fulin standing among the five.

She was slightly startled, then lightly shifted her position. Bai Shan moved at the same time, standing shoulder to shoulder with her, thereby thoroughly shielding Mr. Zhuang, who was still seated.

Mr. Zhuang looked up only to be met by the backsides of the two children. He: ...

The newcomers had already started greeting Mr. Jiang. Manbao and Bai Shan simultaneously cast sidelong glances at Bai Erlang.

Bai Erlang, who had forgotten all about Chen Fulin, looked at them with a puzzled expression. He stepped forward and stood beside them. Just like that, they completely blocked Mr. Zhuang’s remaining line of sight.

Mr. Zhuang, who hadn’t had a chance to get a clear view of the newcomers: ...

Yet Manbao and Bai Shan thought he was ridiculously foolish and could barely resist glare him to death with their eyes.

Erlang Bai was both guilty and angry as he lowered his voice and asked, "What’s wrong?"

Manbao whispered, "Didn’t you see that our teacher’s enemy has arrived? Quickly take our teacher away; we’ll block their sight for you. Hurry up."

It was only then that Erlang Bai remembered that their teacher was also a concern.

Erlang Bai brooded for a moment, feeling as though among all the people who had come up to the capital this time, except for him, each one had enemies in the capital.

He turned and supported Mr. Zhuang, who was just about to rise and come over to greet them, and with a twist, clicked into action to leave with him.

Mr. Zhuang paused. He hadn’t seen Chen Fulin and couldn’t make out the voice of the other party, but since Erlang Bai was already escorting him away and considering the two disciples blocking his path, he sensed something was up and allowed Erlang Bai to lead him away.

They had only taken two steps when Mr. Chen called out, "Mr. Zhuang, where are you going?"

All eyes then turned their way.

Bai Shan quickly bowed and replied, "Mr. Chen, my teacher is drunk. Allow my Junior Brother to help him go and rest for a while."

Mr. Chen was startled, "But we haven’t had any alcohol today."

Manbao said earnestly, "It’s a tea-drunk agony, a new affliction my teacher has fallen into these past couple of years. If he drinks too much tea, his body reacts, just like getting drunk."

Nobody had heard of this before, but seeing how serious Manbao appeared, they couldn’t help but believe it a bit.

Mr. Zhuang reached for his forehead, half-leaning on Erlang Bai, ready to leave.

Chen Fulin suddenly narrowed his eyes to examine his silhouette before staring at Bai Shan and Manbao. He felt a sense of familiarity and couldn’t help but voice his suspicion, "Is that Zhuang Xun?"

He stepped forward quickly, and Bai Shan and Manbao simultaneously stepped in front of him, eyeing him with a hostile gaze.

Mr. Zhuang’s mind raced as he weighed his options before turning back with a smile towards Chen Fulin, "It is I indeed. And who might this be?"

Chen Fulin, seeing Mr. Zhuang again, reluctantly pieced together the traces of his younger face on the older man’s visage, swallowed nervously, and with a tug at the corner of his mouth, stepped forward, "Don’t you remember me, Brother Zhuang? I’m Chen Fulin. We attended the same prefectural school together, and years ago, we even studied together in the capital."

Chen Fulin looked intently at Mr. Zhuang, "Brother Zhuang doesn’t remember?"

Mr. Zhuang patted his forehead, then said with a laugh, "As I’ve aged, my memory has not been what it once was. I’ve forgotten much, and I must admit I couldn’t quite recognise Lord Chen at first. But now that you mention it, I begrudgingly recall. I hadn’t expected to encounter you here."

"Indeed, who would have thought that Brother Zhuang would come back to the capital?"

Someone nearby upon hearing this laughed and said, "So it turns out that the two of you are not only from the same hometown but also former classmates?"

Mr. Zhuang nodded with a smile.

"My, my, that’s quite a joyous occasion, so you’ll be treating us to a meal today."

"Isn’t it just wonderful? It’s not easy to come across old acquaintances in a foreign place."

Manbao couldn’t help saying, "But isn’t this the capital? There should be quite a few of us from Jiannan here, and there are many from Yizhou too. Could Lord Zhang be lacking fellow townspeople?"

A group of middle-aged and elderly men remarked with a sigh, "It’s not the same, such an unexpected encounter is indeed a delightful surprise from the heavens."

Manbao and Bai Shan exchanged glances: Or perhaps it’s more of a startling scare?

Mr. Zhuang, however, touched his beard and laughed, looking openly and confidently at Zhang Zheng.

Chen Fulin held his gaze with Mr. Zhuang for a moment before he couldn’t help but be the first to look away.