Farmhouse Green Plum

Chapter 136 Going to the Academy

"It's just a small thing. You're welcome." The lady was indeed very kind and amiable. She even said to Xiaoxiang, "Little girl, next time you ask for directions, speak louder. No one will eat you."

As he spoke, seeing Xiaoxiang's reluctant expression, he couldn't help but wonder if his tone was too harsh, and added with a smile, "It's better for a girl to be brave when she goes out. Be like your elder sister, open and generous."

Song Ying smiled and said, "She's just a little shy, she'll be fine once she gets familiar with it."

The old lady said to Xiaoxiang, "If you still don't know the way to the city in the future, come and ask me. You will get used to it after a while."

Song Ying said quickly, "Auntie, you are so kind. Now let's make a deal. From now on, if we don't know the way, we will come to you for help!"

"it is good."

After thanking the enthusiastic lady again, the three of them walked to the tofu stall not far away.

This time, Song Ying took the initiative to speak: "Sister, do you know how to get to the new academy in the county?"

Madam Miao held up a palm leaf fan, swatted away the flies that flew over, and looked at the three of them in confusion, "What are you three girls doing in the academy?"

Song Ying didn't think twice and started to lie: "My brother is studying in the New Academy. My grandmother asked me to ask for directions so that I could bring him some clothes to change."

"So your brother is a scholar," Madam Miao nodded, her attitude becoming more friendly, and pointed to the north, "Go to the end of this road, then turn left... Go forward and you will see a big lake. Jiahu Academy is right by the lake, and it's easy to spot."

It turns out that the new academy was called Jiahu Academy.

Song Ying repeated it, and after getting Madam Miao's approval, he thanked her and left.

After walking for nearly two quarters of an hour, we finally saw the so-called big lake.

The clear blue lake water is like a mirror that reflects everyone, reflecting the softly rolled clouds on the pale blue sky, peaceful and beautiful.

By the lake, a very imposing building stands out, with white walls, black tiles and stone paving, appearing exceptionally quiet and tidy.

It’s very easy to recognize indeed!

With a sigh, the three of them went forward and knocked on the door. Not long after, a man opened the door and came out. Seeing the three of them, he waved his hand impatiently: "Go away, kids, go play somewhere else. This is the academy, not a place for you to play."

"Uncle, we are here to look for someone." Song Ying said quickly, "I am looking for Yuan Qing. He goes to school here. Something happened at home, so the adults asked us to look for him."

Menzi looked at them suspiciously for a long time before saying, "Wait, I'll go call someone."

Before he could finish his words, he had already turned and went inside.

Soon, a man in his fifties, with a short beard and dressed like a manager, came out.

"He Zhaifu, it's them three." The doorman pointed at Song Ying and the other two with a flattering smile on his face.

The monk surnamed He looked at Song Ying and the other two and asked, "Who are you looking for?"

"Yuan Qing." Fearing that there might be a duplicate, Song Ying added, "Yuan Qing from Wutong Village, Qinghuali."

Mr. He seemed to know Yuan Qing, and said with a straight face: "Why are you looking for him? The academy is a place for learning, how can you just enter and leave as you please?"

Song Ying and the other two had been influenced by this since childhood and believed that the academy was a very sacred place. When they heard the monk surnamed He say this, they felt a little scared.

Xiaoxiang even took two steps back and hid behind Song Ying and the other man.

Song Ying clenched his fists and mustered up the courage to beg, "Please be kind, our family really has an emergency!"

"What's the emergency?" Zhaifu asked.

Song Ying was stumped by his inquiries, but soon she said, "Grandma went up the mountain to pick wheat ears, but she accidentally stepped on empty air and fell off the cliff. The doctor said she was dying and asked us to prepare for her funeral. She had no other wish but to see her grandson for the last time."

Luo Yanxing turned his head to look at Song Ying, shocked that she dared to say anything, not afraid that Yuan Qing would find out and blame her for cursing his grandmother.

Then, she realized that she couldn't reveal her true identity in front of these two people, so she lowered her eyes and nodded in agreement, but she never raised her face.

Xiaoxiang behind was also shocked. She was hiding behind Song Ying and the other man, so she didn't need to hide her expression.

The monk surnamed He was startled and said, "Virtue comes first," then turned around and walked into the academy.

Song Ying and the other two looked at each other and asked Menzi, "Does he agree?"

"Yes, wait a moment, your brother should be out soon."

In less than a quarter of an hour, a figure was seen running out of the academy in a hurry. When he saw the three of them, he paused and the anxiety on his face was much less.

After saying something to Menzi, he followed the three men for a long distance before asking, "What do you want from me? My grandma..."

"Grandma Tao is fine," Song Ying explained quickly, "I didn't mean to curse her, but the matter was urgent and that Mr. He insisted on getting to the bottom of it, so I had to say this."

Yuan Qing's last bit of worry disappeared, and he asked, "What's the emergency?"

"It's like this. Didn't I tell you before? We were picking herbs to sell for money. Once before..."

At that moment, Song Ying took them to a restaurant and they were followed by three vicious men, who told them about the wanted poster she had seen at the Shenming Pavilion a few days ago.

Finally, she said, "Three such vicious murderers are hiding in Qingshui County. We want to report to the authorities, but we don't know how to do it. Don't you know Wu Tixue very well? Do you know how to meet him?"

Yuan Qing was stunned. They actually met the criminals who wiped out the entire family of the imperial officials!

For a moment, he didn't know whether to say they were lucky or unlucky.

After digesting it for a moment, he said, "I don't know if I can see it, but I can give it a try."

Now he is just a commoner with no official title, so it is hard to say whether he can knock on Wu Tixue's door.

"By the way, do you have money?"

"Are you going to give the concierge a benefit?" Song Ying asked as he took out his purse. "I've brought all the money I've saved, two taels of silver and 2 copper coins."

Uncle Song often sold eels to wealthy families. Song Ying knew something about this. Some wealthy families would simply drive people away if they didn't give benefits to the doorman.

But she didn't know how much benefit she should give the concierge, so she simply brought all her own money.

"You've saved so much money!" Yuan Qing exclaimed, "Do you make so much money selling herbs?"

"I've been saving for almost a year. It's not easy. Is this enough?" Song Ying was reluctant to give up. It was so much money, all saved by her with great difficulty. Now, she had to spend it on giving benefits to the doorman.

Yuan Qing saw her pain and quickly explained, "That's enough, I want to hire a carriage to go to the city. Wu Tixue lives in Shunqing Mansion, so I'll find another way with the concierge."

As the doorman of a fourth-rank official, he has seen all kinds of high-ranking officials and nobles. If he really had to rely on bribes to get his way, then one or two taels of silver might not be enough for them, which would be a waste of the money Song Ying had saved with great difficulty.