Hearing the old man talk about Xu Huaiqian nonstop, Gu Fengchao grew even more curious about him. Eager to meet Xu Huaiqian in person, he bid farewell to the old man and led his horse toward the Chen family courtyard as directed.
It was easy to find—he located it right away.
At that moment, Xu Huaiqian was having a barbecue in the courtyard with his family. Chen Liejiu's trip to Suzhou Prefecture had earned over six thousand taels. After deducting what he spent on silks and satins for Xu Huaiqian and other miscellaneous items, he still had six thousand taels left. The couple's wealth now dominated Mishan County, so Xu Huaiqian was no longer stingy—he spent his days eating, drinking, and enjoying life with his younger siblings.
They had earned money, a lot of money—it was time to enjoy it and not be misers.
"A-Qian, I want a drink today!" Since returning from Suzhou Prefecture, Chen Liejiu had developed a strong liking for alcohol. The private savings he had tucked away were now spent on buying wine.
In the past, the family had no money, so he couldn't afford to drink. Now that they were wealthy, he could drink as much as he wanted and didn't want to hold back.
But Xu Huaiqian wouldn't let him drink too much. The last time they celebrated their earnings from Suzhou, Chen Liejiu got too happy, drank excessively, and ended up drunk. In his excitement, he stripped Xu Huaiqian and pestered him all night. The next day, Xu Huaiqian strictly forbade him from drinking without permission.
"...Alright, but only one jar." Hearing that Chen Liejiu wanted to drink again, Xu Huaiqian felt a pain in his back and waist. When his wife got drunk, he went wild—not only did he pester endlessly, but he would also ride on top and take initiative himself. With his firm, tight waist and faster-than-motor speed, who could withstand that?
The whole night, Xu Huaiqian was in pain and pleasure.
If he were healthy, he could play along. But his health was too poor—he was afraid he wouldn't last more than a couple of rounds before collapsing.
"One jar is fine!" Chen Liejiu wasn't picky—having any wine was good enough. Happy days called for a drink. He turned and went inside to get the wine.
Just then, a young man in a long gown leading a horse appeared at the gate and greeted them with a smile: "The master of the house is in high spirits."
Xu Huaiqian turned around to see a completely unfamiliar face: "Who are you?"
"A passerby asking for water." Gu Fengchao didn't reveal his identity.
He had heard the villagers describe Xu Huaiqian's appearance—handsome but sickly—so the moment Xu Huaiqian turned around, he recognized him.
He was nothing like the farm boy Gu Fengchao had imagined.
He expected a farm boy to be hardworking, simple, and enduring, but Xu Huaiqian was strikingly handsome and elegant, completely out of place in this village.
Xu Huaiqian didn't believe he was just a passerby asking for water either. Who leads a horse into a village, all the way to his home, just to ask for water?
But there was no malice in his eyes; he seemed upright and didn't appear to be a bad person. Even though Xu Huaiqian didn't trust him, he still kindly poured him a bowl of water.
"Aren't you afraid that high officials will bully you for acting so boldly, Scholar Xu?" After drinking the water, Gu Fengchao didn't mind giving him a hint.
The commotion here was too big—it definitely wouldn't escape the prefect's notice. He was afraid the prefect would target this talented scholar and wanted to warn him.
This warning made Xu Huaiqian see him in a new light. If he were from the prefect's side, he wouldn't give such a warning. If he were an ordinary person, he wouldn't think of this level.
So he must be someone neither ordinary nor above the prefect.
The magistrate of Yong'an Prefecture?
Xu Huaiqian had some guess about the visitor's identity but couldn't be sure. After thinking, he replied ambiguously: "Even if my body is shattered, I'm not afraid; I want to leave integrity in this world. I believe what I'm doing is right—why should I fear oppression from power?"
Since he didn't know the person, he might as well say something vague. Who knew if he was good or bad?
But he didn't realize that his casual words would deeply stir Gu Fengchao.
"Shattered body... integrity in this world"—such a resolute character! If I were as resolute as him, could I protect this rare talent for the world?
Gu Fengchao had already learned from the villagers what kind of person Xu Huaiqian was.
An orphan, bullied by his uncle's family, married into another family, once blind—yet still actively striving to live.
Compared to Xu Huaiqian, he, a magistrate who wanted to do something for the people but dared not oppose the prefect, choosing to drift through life day by day, was like a coward!
"You are right. I know what to do now." Xu Huaiqian's words gave the confused Gu Fengchao some direction. If he, like Xu Huaiqian, refused to yield to fate and bravely took a risk, wouldn't it make the world much different?
Gu Fengchao drank the bowl of water, mounted his horse, and left, his eyes bright and determined, saying Xu Huaiqian's words were right—leaving Xu Huaiqian utterly puzzled.
"Who was that?" Chen Liejiu had already drunk half a jar of wine by the grill. Seeing Xu Huaiqian taking so long to come over, he asked with bleary eyes.
"Not sure, a passerby asking for water." Since the man said he was a passerby asking for water, Xu Huaiqian decided to treat him as one.
"Oh." Chen Liejiu responded, his eyes burning with intense flames as he looked at Xu Huaiqian.
Under that gaze, Xu Huaiqian's heart skipped a beat: "Which jar of wine did you drink?"
"The one you left on the cabinet?" Chen Liejiu answered honestly.
That was the strongest jar of wine!
"A-Qian—" Chen Liejiu called softly by Xu Huaiqian's ear.
Xu Huaiqian immediately felt a ache in his back—tonight would be another night of suffering. If he ever bought wine for Chen Liejiu again, he'd be an idiot!
"Let's go back to the room." Chen Liejiu said, pulling Xu Huaiqian firmly toward the room.
Xu Huaiqian had no choice but to follow him inside.
As soon as the door closed, Chen Liejiu's lips pressed against his. Unlike the cold wind outside, the room was filled with fiery passion.
"Nineteen, A-Qian—today you're nineteen!" Chen Liejiu always remembered Xu Huaiqian's birthday, murmuring continuously even as he undressed.
"Yeah." Xu Huaiqian knew it was his birthday, and he also knew it was Chen Liejiu's heat flush day. After nurturing his health for months, he had hoped to properly help Chen Liejiu through his heat flush, but Chen Liejiu's last drunken episode had ruined it.
"Happy birthday." Chen Liejiu whispered tenderly in Xu Huaiqian's ear as he sat atop him. "I won't make you suffer today."
Knowing his last drunken frenzy had tormented Xu Huaiqian, Chen Liejiu held back a bit this time. Though somewhat drunk, his mind was clear.
"W-Wait a moment." Just as he was about to act, Xu Huaiqian suddenly stopped him.
"...Hmm?" Being interrupted midway was not pleasant. Chen Liejiu lifted his eyelids and looked at Xu Huaiqian in confusion.
"...Should I cooperate with you?" Xu Huaiqian asked, his heart pounding like a drum.
He knew his wife was wild, but he couldn't just lie there like a tool, completely passive while his wife did all the work.
"How would that work?" With their positions reversed, it would be hard for Xu Huaiqian to move.
"...Like this." Xu Huaiqian said, then imitated Chen Liejiu's usual way of panting softly.
Role-playing—he understood.
Chen Liejiu instantly held his breath. In the past, looking up at Xu Huaiqian's affectionate expression made his blood race. Now, looking down, he could see Xu Huaiqian's loving gaze even more clearly and even detect a hint of allure in his panting—it made him utterly mesmerized.
Then, Xu Huaiqian paid a painful price for his momentary lack of rationality.
Letting him play role-playing—how could he be a match for someone like Chen Liejiu, who had escorted for years and was in excellent physical condition?
Not only did he not leave the bed for several days, but his legs trembled when he finally did. And seeing Chen Liejiu looking radiant and lively every day, full of energy, made him deeply understand the saying: "Only the ox dies of exhaustion; the field never wears out."
Fortunately, not long after their indulgence, the family became busy again. Chen Liejiu no longer focused solely on Xu Huaiqian, finally allowing him to catch his breath.
Chen Xiaomei's newly built heated kang room was ready. Since the family wasn't short on money, she directly built one with blue bricks and hired Chen Xiaoqing and Jiang Xiaoshan to take care of it, paying each three hundred coins per month. It wasn't much, but it was enough to make them grateful.
Chen Xiaoqing used to be unable to find a husband because of Chen Liejiu's reputation. Now that the Chen clan was wealthy and she could earn her own money working for Chen Xiaomei, matchmakers had visited her home over ten times. Her parents and older siblings were overwhelmed with choices.
They finally decided to arrange a meeting for her when she turned twenty, around the time of her heat flush.
As for Jiang Xiaoshan, while he worked for Chen Xiaomei, she personally went to his home to warn that if anyone beat him so badly he couldn't work, she would have that person beaten too.
Sun Wangcai, no matter how brutal, confused, or prone to violence he was, didn't dare lay a hand on Jiang Xiaoshan again out of respect for Chen Xiaomei and Chen Liejiu.
Wang Wanwan's situation was even better. Since it became known that she accepted knotwork and taught villagers for free, most of the women and men in the village came to her to learn knot weaving.
They often gathered at the Chen house—the Chen family was generous, often lighting imitation silver frost charcoal indoors. In the cold winter, they could chat while doing knotwork.
Xu Huaiqian was forced to meet many villagers and occasionally found it interesting to listen to their gossip about village life.
Chen Liejiu was even busier. The Chen clansmen, having just received money, were all building houses and ordering bricks from Chen Liejiu's kiln.
Since Chen Liejiu helped them earn money, they should help him make more!
Xu Huaiqian calculated that just these brick orders would keep Chen Liejiu busy for the next year!
The whole village was thriving in the dead of winter, with no sign of decay. Everyone seemed to have found goals to strive for.
Xu Huaiqian had been worried about the prefect causing trouble, but as time passed without incident, he gradually relaxed.
Winter passed, spring came—another year. As Chen Jinhu packed his bags to go on another escort mission and Xu Huaiqian prepared to return to the academy, news spread throughout Yong'an Prefecture that shocked everyone.
The prefect of Yong'an, Tai Anxiang, who had been weighing heavily on them, making it hard to breathe, was arrested on charges of corruption and bribery and sentenced to execution in the autumn.
All the magistrates under Yong'an Prefecture were stunned—how did their superior suddenly fall?!
While the magistrates of the other seven counties were still confused, those from the counties near Mishan rushed to Xu Huaiqian's home to ask: "Was it you? Did you use some method to bring down the prefect?!"
Xu Huaiqian was also baffled: "No! I was waiting for him to come after me!"
Xu Huaiqian had been waiting for their flimsy lies to be exposed by the prefect, for him to come knocking, so he could try bribing him to see if he would accept. Instead, the prefect had somehow managed to destroy himself?
Since it wasn't the magistrates' doing, Xu Huaiqian looked at Chen Liejiu—could it have been his wife?
Chen Liejiu shrugged: "Why look at me? No matter how capable I am, I'm just a rural man—I couldn't pull off something this big."
Did they think selling a few cartloads of charcoal to capital officials meant he had connections in the capital?!
In reality, the servants of those officials were quite arrogant. If he didn't have charcoal, they wouldn't even bother speaking to a rural man like him.
Since it wasn't any of them, Xu Huaiqian was momentarily lost: "Then what happened?"
At that time, he didn't yet know that the Emperor far away in the capital had already taken notice of him, a small-time scholar.