The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 693 - 682: Grudges and Favors

Chapter 693: Chapter 682: Grudges and Favors

Ying Wenhai thought about it and realized that if, according to Manager Ying’s words, Ji Hao survived and seemed to be recovering quite well, he too should be able to go out before long. Thus he no longer stayed silent, keeping things to himself.

He said, "Ji Hao has a damn foul mouth."

The County Magistrate Tang nodded, not disputing this point at all.

So their first feud began three years ago during their first meeting, both being descendants of the gentry, keeping within the same social circle. Ji Hao, attending to his grandmother, returned to his hometown to recuperate from illness, and they naturally bumped into each other.

Their first encounter was at Old Madam Ying’s birthday banquet, where Ying Wenhai, dressed for the festive occasion, wore a bright red garment.

A twelve or thirteen-year-old boy, clad in bright red, with a complexion pale as jade, looked quite charming.

Whether Ying Wenhai liked it or not, a group of old ladies certainly did, with Old Madam Ying adoring him to no end.

Already unhappy about wearing the outfit, Ying Wenhai, while receiving guests in the front courtyard, was called "little miss" by Ji Hao, who then moved closer to touch his chin as if he were a bride.

Ying Wenhai wasn’t Manbao; he was a real young nobleman, oh no, a young man. So, he was beside himself with anger.

And since Ji Hao truly had a foul mouth, Ying Wenhai carelessly forgot that it was his grandmother’s birthday banquet and started fighting with Ji Hao right then and there.

Afterward, his father punished him by making him kneel all day in the ancestral hall, and so their enmity was sealed.

More unexpectedly, they ended up attending the same academy. Spoiled by their families, how could either of them step back for the other?

Thus, in the academy, they competed for everything and quarreled or fought every couple of days, making a big fuss, with their discord growing ever deeper.

In the end, they almost forgot why they started feuding in the first place or even that Ji Hao had once humbled himself and apologized to Ying Wenhai after the incident.

But at that time, Ying Wenhai didn’t accept the apology.

As for the Spring Breeze Pavilion incident, it also arose from their habitual fighting.

Initially, Ji Hao was admitted into the prefectural school, and Ying Wenhai, unwilling to use his family background to gain entry, reduced their interactions. Unexpectedly, when both were in their impetuous youth, they were each brought by friends to the Spring Breeze Pavilion to gain experience.

During their first visit, they again crossed paths, and naturally, it came down to a competition with money, each coveting the girl the other was interested in. After a showdown, they spent all their private savings. Ji Hao might be fine, but Ying Wenhai was caught by Ying Wei and got a beating after returning.

This incident left Ying Wenhai quite irritated, leading to the subsequent Spring Breeze Pavilion rivalry.

He bribed a girl and promised to help her buy her freedom, asking only that she slash Ji Hao. Originally, he shouldn’t have gotten involved.

That way, even if Ji Hao was cut, it wouldn’t be traced back to him, and he could still mock him. After all, which young noble would get scratched by a girl while visiting Spring Breeze Pavilion?

Such an event, if leaked, would be a massive embarrassment. How would Ji Hao show his face at the Spring Breeze Pavilion again?

Outsiders hearing about it would only say that Ji Hao lacked grace or had some strange predilections, which forced the Spring Breeze Pavilion’s girl to retaliate.

To make the situation believable, he even chose a silver hairpin as the weapon.

County Magistrate Tang picked up some meat with his chopsticks and asked, "How did he find out it was you?"

Ying Wenhai curled his lips, "We were hiding in the side room watching. That girl struck too viciously, startling Lu Shiming into stumbling, and then we were discovered."

Ji Hao was quite wounded at the time, but what enraged him even more was seeing Ying Wenhai and realizing it was a set-up. With many classmates in tow, Ji Hao gestured, and a fight erupted between both sides.

The two parties fought from upstairs to downstairs, and because it was such a commotion with bloodshed, the female manager of the pavilion had someone report it to the officials, and that’s when the yamen officials got involved.

Coincidentally, Second Old Master Ji was home on vacation celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival with the Old Madam and disapproved of his son brawling in Spring Breeze Pavilion as it sounded unseemly. Therefore, he sent people to fetch Ji Hao and reach a private settlement with the Ying Family.

Both families considered their sons’ injuries comparable, so they didn’t delve into the details, treating it as just another of their usual fights, swiftly bringing them home for punishment.

Ying Wei beat Ying Wenhai again and made him kneel at the ancestral hall.

But Ji Hao, protected by his grandmother and mother, escaped a beating and kneeling at the ancestral hall, ending up sent to board at the prefectural school.

Then, his chest wound was discovered, and County Magistrate Tang visited the Ji Family to lodge a complaint, which resulted in Ji Hao being brought home once more.

However, this time it was to recuperate from his injuries.

Originally, County Magistrate Tang thought that with the Ying Family using such underhanded tactics, the Ji Family would pursue the matter, and he would have a headache dealing with the case. To his surprise, the Ji Family didn’t give him the chance, acting as if nothing had happened, continuing to minimize major issues and trivialize minor ones. Now in hindsight, the County Magistrate Tang didn’t know whether this was good or bad.

However, County Magistrate Tang asked, "Wasn’t all your money spent during your first visit to Spring Breeze Pavilion? Where did you get the money to bribe and redeem the girl?"

Ying Wenhai matter-of-factly replied, "I took it from home."

The County Magistrate Tang laughed and asked, "Didn’t your father question you when you withdrew so much money at once?"

"The accounts are managed by my mother," Ying Wenhai glanced at him and said, "As long as my mother doesn’t tell my father, he won’t know."

The County Magistrate Tang laughed again, asking, "Who told you about the method of coating something on the silver hairpin?"

"No one told me; I thought of it myself," Ying Wenhai said, "I have a Little Girl who once accidentally pricked her palm with her silver hairpin. It took a long time to heal, and she had to be moved to the village to recover because the wound got infected. I couldn’t sprinkle something on Ji Hao’s wound, but I figured that coating something on a silver hairpin and then stabbing him with it would have the same effect."

The County Magistrate Tang clapped his hands laughing, "Very clever, indeed! Well done, well done."

County Magistrate Tang stood up and inquired one last time, "That Lu Shiming, is he Mrs. Ying’s..."

"He’s my cousin, my mother’s nephew."

The County Magistrate Tang chuckled and nodded, indicating that he understood, "Right, the day of the fight, your own cousin Pei Yun was there too, wasn’t he?"

Ying Wenhai hung his head and acknowledged softly, "He was in the Spring Breeze Pavilion drinking at the time. After our scuffle broke out, he came to help me, but he didn’t hit Ji Hao; he was breaking up the fight."

The County Magistrate Tang nodded, pleased to see that some were still clear-headed.

As he was about to leave, he glanced at the table full of dishes, recalled something, and summoned the yamen officials, "Young Master Ying cannot eat this, so you all are rewarded with it. Take it away quickly."

The yamen officials were delighted, and they came in and cleared away the table full of chicken, duck, fish, and meat, while the County Magistrate Tang reminded them, "Make sure to eat it all up; don’t waste it."

Ying Wenhai had wanted to eat after the County Magistrate Tang left, but seeing this, he got quite annoyed.

The County Magistrate Tang smiled amiably at him, "You’ve been hungry for two days; it’s best not to eat those greasy foods right now. How about this: from now on, your meals will be prepared at my house, all light and nourishing for your stomach."

Ying Wenhai gritted his teeth and said, "Thank you very much."

The County Magistrate Tang beamed, "No need to thank me, no need at all."