Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside-Chapter 705: The Letter

Brother Cheng hurriedly covered his mouth and nodded, "Mmm, I won’t say anymore."

Ouyang Hu looked at Brother Cheng’s adorable appearance and smiled, "What your elder brother said is true, although it’s correct, it’s not something to be told to outsiders."

Gu Jin’an, hearing this, became overjoyed and eagerly asked, "What does Master Ouyang mean?"

Ouyang Hu said, "Although I enjoy traveling, teaching Brother Cheng here for a few years is not a problem. However, I am not here all year round; sometimes I leave for a few months and cannot teach the disciple daily like other masters."

"That shouldn’t be a problem, Master Ouyang’s willingness to accept Brother Cheng as a disciple is already his great fortune." Gu Jin’an brought up a saying Gu Jinli had mentioned: "Moreover, a master only leads to the door; cultivation depends on the individual. How much he learns is up to the student, a master does not need to teach daily."

Ouyang Hu silently recited what Gu Jin’an had just said, "Your words have some Zen in them, but I have not agreed to take Brother Cheng as a disciple, I am only willing to teach him."

"Yes, we will heed Master Ouyang’s words," Gu Jin’an was eloquent, "Whether or not there is an official apprenticeship, Brother Cheng will always be grateful for your teachings."

Brother Cheng really liked this portly old man and seeing that he was willing to teach him, he bowed with clasped hands, "Student Gu Jincheng greets the master, and please take care of me in the future."

Ouyang Hu laughed, "Don’t call me master, call me Grandpa Hu, it sounds more affectionate."

Brother Cheng smiled and nodded, "Alright, Grandpa Hu."

It sounded like he was calling a tiger.

Seeing that Brother Cheng got along well with Ouyang Hu, Gu Jin’an felt delighted, but he wasn’t foolish. After the joy, he felt it was suspicious that Ouyang Hu agreed so readily to teach Brother Cheng, he looked at Ouyang Hu twice, finally unable to hold back, he asked, "Does Master Ouyang have other reasons for willing to teach Brother Cheng?"

Ouyang Hu didn’t hide it, "Of course, there are. One is to snatch a disciple from Xia Gu, and another reason also involves Xia Gu, but I can’t talk about it now. Just remember, I am not Xia Gu, I won’t be as reckless in my approach."

Actually, Ouyang Hu was very curious about why Xia Gu came to this poor and remote village to teach a farmer’s son, there must be something behind it, and this piqued his curiosity.

Gu Jin’an shivered, aware that Ouyang Hu was suspicious of the relationship between the Xia Family and his family, wanting to investigate it.

However...

He smiled, "Then I won’t ask further."

Based on Ouyang Hu’s character, even if he knew the truth, he wouldn’t betray his family, because both Ouyang Hu and Ouyang Hong had spoken for the former dynasty’s loyalists; they believed that the Emperor of Great Chu need not trouble these loyalists.

And as the Gu Family had been Northwest farmers for five generations, Master Ouyang certainly would not trouble a farmer.

Moreover, Gu Jin’an believed that the Lu Family wouldn’t let Master Ouyang discover the truth so easily; otherwise, the Lu Family couldn’t have survived until today and even dared to send Xia Gu to take the imperial examinations, defying Emperor Jingwu.

Ouyang Hu paused as he saw Gu Jin’an’s smile; sometimes this Gu Jin’an seemed more cunning than an 18-year-old youth should be... He looked at Brother Cheng, feeling that this child was indeed having a tough time, being taught alternately by Gu Jin’an and Xia Gu yet he hadn’t turned foolish, truly a miracle.

The little fellow saw him looking and smiled at him, pulling his hand, "Grandpa Hu, I’m familiar with the area around here, let me take you for a tour, and after that, we can go to Yanfu Building for lunch. After eating, you can take Brother Qing and go back, how about that?"

Ouyang Hu nodded, "Very good."

Gu Jin’an didn’t sleep all night, but for the sake of finding a good husband for his little sister, he perked up and accompanied the old man around for quite some time before heading to Qingfu Town in a mule cart.

While sitting in the mule cart, he heard the clip-clop of horse hooves. It was Constable Xiao Yang from the county government, riding to the village to check on Luo Wu, carrying a letter with him.

Constable Xiao Yang came personally because of Miss Yang. She was worried upon hearing that Luo Wu was too ill to report for duty and learned that a letter had been sent to the county government for Luo Wu. So, she simply had Constable Xiao Yang take on the task of delivering the letter and visiting Luo Wu to find out why he had fallen ill.

...

Luo Wu’s constitution was really strong. After taking medicine and waking up from sleep, his high fever had already subsided, and he was much more energetic. After getting up and taking a bath, he came to the front courtyard parlor, where Ms. Chu had already set up breakfast for him.

"Dad, mom, I’ve let you down and made you worry," Luo Wu said guiltily.

Father Luo said, "Stop the nonsense, hurry over and eat. After eating, tell us what you plan to do next."

Being raised by Father Luo and Ms. Chu, other than matters concerning Sister Xiu, Luo Wu approached many things in a robust manner, not one to be soft and dragging. Hearing this, he sat down to eat, and after a few bites, he shared his plans: "I’ve checked the auspicious dates for this year, and the tenth day of the last lunar month is a good day. I will go to the Gu Family to propose to Sister Xiu then."

As he spoke, his face flushed, but a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, thinking about this matter for so many years, it was finally about to come true. Luo Wu felt his heart swelling with joy, as if filled with happiness.

Father Luo teased him, "You sneaky kid, checking the dates behind our backs. Fine, our family will get ready, and we’ll go to the Gu Family to propose formally when the time comes."

Luo Wu was very pleased, grinning continuously until Father Luo scolded him, making him suppress his silly smile, and said, "Dad, mom, I’m thinking of taking over the management of the county’s escort agency. Afterwards, I’ll be running between the county government and the escort agency."

He had heard early on about Uncle Mao and their plans to sell the escort agency, and he was very interested since he grew up listening to stories of Father Luo working as an escort. He really wanted to buy and manage an escort agency.

Father Luo was pleasantly surprised, as the young man was thinking along the same lines as him, but he commented, "You are the squad leader for the constables, plus managing the escort agency might be very exhausting."

However, Luo Wu laughed, "Don’t worry, Dad, it’s just a bit tiring. After we take over the escort agency, Uncle Mao and his team will continue working there. I’ll just handle the management part, not the escorting duties. We can hire some servants to watch over the agency or ask sons and brothers from the county government official’s families to help. I’m sure we can rejuvenate the escort agency."

Father Luo felt a great sense of relief and then mentioned, "You’ll be the owner of the escort agency, but if you’re not out escorting, will the Escort Masters respect you?"

He originally intended to give Luo Wu a bit of a hard time, but to his surprise, Luo Wu responded, "I’ve sparred with Uncle Mao and his team, winning more than losing. If they don’t respect me, I’ll just have to compete and prove myself till they do."

Father Luo laughed, looking proudly at his son, "As long as you have a plan, that’s great."

After discussing taking over the escort agency, Luo Wu mentioned, "Dad, mom, I’ll make a trip to the Gu Family."

He had fainted from illness the night before, and Sister Xiu must have been terrified. He needed to see her and let her know he was alright.

Father Luo and Ms. Chu knew he was going to see Sister Xiu, and they smiled, "Go ahead."

Luo Wu was delighted, straightened his jacket, and even specifically wore a sachet. But as soon as he stepped out of the house, he encountered Constable Xiao Yang, "What brings you here?" 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Constable Xiao Yang, leading the horse, said, "Heard you were ill and came to check on you, also to deliver a letter. Someone sent a letter to the county government for you."