The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 308 - 297: Secretly

Chapter 308: Chapter 297: Secretly

Daji followed Bai Shanbao to the Zhou Family.

Seeing the two of them, Ms. He smiled and took two more bowls, then fetched a few more eggs to boil another dish.

Of course, the last dish was made by Junior Ms. Qian, and although it was also made with eggs, the taste varied with the cook.

They split into two tables for eating, one for adults and one for children.

Manbao turned her head to look at Bai Shanbao, who was also looking at her. They blinked like they were playing charades and then laughed together.

Daji, insisting on sitting amidst the children, silently bowed his head and ate without taking it to heart.

Whatever they did, his job was to always follow the young master.

After the meal was done, Manbao ran to her parents and sweetly said, "Dad, Mom, I’m going to Shanbao’s house to do homework."

Old Zhou glanced at the sun outside and asked, "Aren’t you taking a nap?"

Manbao shook her head, "I’ve just had a full meal, so I’ll do some homework before napping. Then I’ll sleep at Shanbao’s house and come back after dinner in the evening."

Old Zhou nodded then, "Okay, go ahead."

Ms. Qian admonished her, "The sun is fierce at noon and in the afternoon, you children must not play outside under the scorching sun."

Manbao agreed.

Ms. Qian then turned to Daji standing behind Bai Shanbao and smiled, "Daji, please take good care of Manbao. If the child disobeys, feel free to bring her back, and don’t be polite."

Daji smiled and agreed.

After all, whether one child or two were together, his job was to watch them.

Bai Shanbao and Manbao made faces at each other, then paid their respects to Old Zhou and Ms. Qian before going next door to the small courtyard to fetch some items.

Manbao stuffed ink, paper, books, and other supplies into a cloth bag before joining Bai Shanbao on their way to the Bai Family.

It was now lunchtime, and the sun was growing stronger by the minute, its rays so intense they hurt the eyes. Just walking on the road without working made the sweat eagerly push its way out, and it was sure to get even hotter below.

It wouldn’t be until the hour of Shen that the sun’s glare might lessen a bit.

Manbao followed Bai Shanbao directly to the study room, where it was much cooler than outside, so much so that Manbao immediately began to yawn.

But she knew that time was precious and couldn’t be wasted sleeping, so while taking out her homework, she asked, "Does your family have a fishing net?"

"Of course, it’s even a new one," Bai Shanbao said. "Last year, when the water came from upstream, it brought down lots of fish, didn’t it? I thought it was fun to catch fish, so I got someone to buy a fishing net."

Bai Shanbao continued, "It’s bigger and better than the one at your house."

Reassured, Manbao started to flip through her homework and begin writing.

Bai Shanbao also retrieved his homework and asked, "When do you think would be the best time for us to go out?"

Manbao turned to look at the sun outside and said, "I think animals are like us; they surely don’t like the strong sun either, so we need to wait until they come out before we go."

Bai Shanbao glanced at the shining sun outside and nodded, "Okay then."

Actually, he didn’t like being in the sun either; it felt very uncomfortable.

The two began to work on their homework in silence.

Daji sat in the corner of the study room, glanced at them, and then closed his eyes to rest.

Since the young master had come to Qili Village, although he became naughtier, he hardly caused any trouble.

Naturally, the task of watching over him had become much lighter.

They had three days to do their homework, and they had planned their schedule the day before, deciding how much homework to complete each day.

So, once Manbao had written all the homework she was supposed to do in the morning, she immediately dropped her pen and lay down on the couch, closed her eyes, and fell asleep.

Bai Shanbao’s speed wasn’t much different from hers. Right after she lay down, he finished as well.

It was now past the usual time they took their naps, so he was also extremely sleepy.

The two each took one end of the couch and started snoring away.

Daji opened his eyes, looked at them, smiled, and continued to rest with his eyes closed.

They didn’t need to sleep long—half an hour later, the two children woke up feeling much more refreshed.

Ms. Zheng’s maid, Daya, brought tea and snacks for them to eat. After their afternoon tea, the two began excitedly discussing the bird-catching plan with the paper.

"I think the method we used at noon won’t work," Manbao said. "If a person is crouched there, many birds will be scared off."

"Also, the speed at which the net drops is too slow," Bai Shanbao found another issue to discuss. "There’s always a bit of noise when the net falls, and those birds aren’t dumb; they’re sure to fly away."

Manbao nodded, "So we need a new design."

"We don’t need a person; we can dig a hole to support a stick," suggested Manbao, who had read more miscellaneous books than Bai Shanbao and had already thought of a method. "Tie a rope to the stick, and we can pull it from afar. When the stick falls, the net will drop too."

Bai Shanbao nodded, "The net needs to fall quickly, so it can’t be propped too high. When pulling the rope, we need to use strength to ensure it doesn’t fall too slowly, or the birds will have flown away."

The two began drawing on the paper, and of course, this was just theoretical—they wouldn’t know if it would work until they made it.

After looking at the drawing, Manbao nodded satisfactorily and said to Bai Shanbao, "Let’s go get the tools ready."

Bai Shanbao replied, "We have the fishing net at home, and we also have straight sticks."

If not, the servants would fetch whatever was needed.

"My house has wheat grains; we’ll use them as bait to lure the birds over," Manbao added.

The two children high-fived, pleased with their agreed-upon plan.

Daji silently followed them, acting as a porter. They first found the fishing net, then he hoisted three long sticks and followed them.

Despite the fierce sun overhead as they arrived at the Zhou family’s gate, Manbao didn’t let Daji enter but led Bai Shanbao in stealthily.

All was quiet inside the Zhou household; the blazing midday sun demanded that they rest after rising before dawn to work the fields, so everyone, including the mischievous children, was sleeping soundly.

The wheat picked by the Zhou family and spread out in the yard to dry was swiftly snatched up by Manbao, who stealthily grabbed a couple of handfuls with Bai Shanbao before turning to run out.

Bai Shanbao, looking bewildered, carried the wheat Manbao stuffed into his arms and ran out with her.

After running a long distance, they stopped to catch their breath. Turning back, they saw Daji leisurely carrying their stuff, not far behind them.

Only then did Bai Shanbao remember to ask, "Why do we have to be so sneaky?"

"Of course we need to be sneaky," Manbao exclaimed. "If my dad found out I was using our household’s wheat to lure birds, he’d blow his top with rage. What if that makes him sick?"

"Why would your dad make himself sick? He could just spank you, right?"

Like his uncle Bai Er, if Bai Shanbao made him mad, not only would he himself get steaming, he’d also give Bai Shanbao a beating. That way, often it was Bai Shanbao who got beaten while his uncle wouldn’t stay angry.

"My dad never hits me."

Manbao wiped the sweat from her forehead, looked at the wheat they were holding, and smiled, "This should be enough; let’s go."