Transmigrated as a Stepmother: Time to Bring the Family to Prosper!-Chapter 167 - 166: Brought Humiliation Upon Himself
On the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth lunar month, the academy’s quiz ended. Liu Ji took the test paper marked with an excellent score by the teacher, took a deep breath, prepared mentally to face everything, packed his luggage, and set off to return home.
During this time, Liu Bai came to the county town to see him once, mainly to confirm that he was indeed alive and back.
Having confirmed that he was still alive and studying hard, Liu Bai felt very relieved and returned home at ease.
At this point, Liu Ji knew that Qin Yao was already aware that he was alive and had returned.
He didn’t dare to step out of the academy gate even for a moment until the quiz was over and the academy began to take a holiday break. Only then did he anxiously leave the city.
Because he had no money, he could only walk.
Along the way, Liu Ji was like a frightened bird, jumping at any little commotion.
After walking for an hour and a half, when he was traveling between Lower River Village and Jinshi Town, the sky suddenly turned dark, and snowflakes the size of salt grains began to fall.
Liu Ji quickened his pace. Having once been a laborer, whipped and urged by soldiers every day, his feet practiced swift walking, and he quickly arrived at Lower River Village.
With less than an hour’s journey left to home, he figured if Qin Yao wanted to ambush him, she would have done so earlier, and would not suddenly act on the way back to the village, so he breathed a long sigh of relief.
Not expecting, just out of the bounds of Lower River Village, a sudden rush of galloping hooves sounded behind him.
Liu Ji felt a chill in his heart, disbelief as he turned to look. He saw a brown horse rushing towards him at high speed.
And the woman on horseback, her head topped with a straw hat, with the brim pressed very low, revealing only a sharp cold chin, was the person he feared encountering the most along the way.
Qin Yao called out "Giddy-up!" and clamped her legs to the horse’s abdomen, compelling the horse to further increase its speed and charge forward.
Liu Ji’s eyes widened in panic, too late to dodge, and in a moment of desperation, he forgot every countermeasure he’d previously considered.
His body honestly dropped to its knees with a "thud," closed his eyes, and quickly recited:
"The Master said: Governing with virtue is like the North Star; it stays put while the stars revolve around it."
"The Master said: Lead them by political measures and keep them in line with punishments, and the people will shelter from shame; lead them by virtue and keep them in line with ritual, and they will have shame and discernment."
"The Master said: At fifteen, I set my heart on learning; at thirty, I stood firm; at forty, I was no longer confused; at fifty, I knew the decrees of heaven; at sixty, my ear was an obedient organ; at seventy, I could follow my heart’s desires without overstepping the line..."
The horse’s hooves were already raised above Liu Ji’s head, forced by Qin Yao into a sharp turn, narrowly landing beside him.
Liu Ji could feel the scorching heat emanating from Old Huang’s strong horse legs. Though he seemed calm, cold sweat rolled down from his forehead.
He didn’t stop reciting, speeding up his speech, "The Master said: Revisiting the old and understanding the new makes one fit to be a teacher... Zi Zhang asked, ’Can this be understood over ten generations?’ The Master said: With the rites of Yin succeeding those of Xia, the losses and gains may be known... If a successor followed Zhou, though it were a hundred generations later, it would be known."
"The Master said: To sacrifice to ancestors not one’s own is flattery; to see what is right and not do it is want of courage!"
After reciting all twenty-four sections of the Analects’ "On Government" Chapter in one breath, he dared to open his eyes and take a look at the current situation.
Upon looking up, he met Qin Yao’s scrutinizing gaze from above, her eyes held a flicker of surprise, as though she did not expect him to have such an ability.
Clearly, he couldn’t recite a single passage under previous pressure. How has he suddenly memorized it now?
"Liu Ji?" she coldly called him, as if confirming whether this person had been possessed.
Liu Ji weakly responded with "Hey" and offered an embarrassed grin, "Lady, I got an excellent in my quiz."
Saying this, he hurriedly took out the test paper from his bag, unfolded it, and held it up high for her to see the large character for "excellent" on it.
Qin Yao inhaled sharply, flicking off the snow on the paper, and indeed, it was a flamboyant "excellent."
She frowned, doubtfully glancing at him.
Liu Ji quickly expressed his loyalty, "Lady, although the corvée delayed my studies for three months, I have already memorized one of the Four Books, and in the next two months, I should manage the other three without it affecting the preliminary exam next year."
This time, Qin Yao truly looked at this waste with new eyes. She sheathed the half-drawn sword and signaled for him to stand up and speak.
She urged the horse calmly ahead, "Where is the dagger?"
This treasure, Liu Ji always kept close to his chest, even at the poorest times he dared not sell it, and now busily took out the dagger wrapped in three layers of tattered cloth and returned it to Qin Yao.
Qin Yao asked, "Where’s the pot?"
Liu Ji patted his bundle, "It’s well kept, not a bit broken. I’ll carry it first, lest it tires your hands, lady."
This fawning demeanor was identical to before, leading Qin Yao to dismiss the suspicion that he had been possessed by someone, and she further asked:
"Since I didn’t pay for you to avoid corvée, do you harbor resentment against me?"
On a snowy day, Liu Ji felt hot, his forehead sweating, discreetly raised his sleeve to wipe it off, and spoke sincerely:
"At first, I did not quite understand why you did it, but later gradually figured out that what you did was right, it was indeed my lack of discipline that led to a neglected education."
"However, now I have realized my mistakes. Your punishments are out of love for me..."
Qin Yao immediately reminded, "Watch your words."
Liu Ji laughed dryly twice, skipped those cheesy words, and continued:
"There’s a saying, under the stick emerges a scholar. Without your constant whipping, how could I enjoy the good days of Liu Ji now?"
"This time delivering food to the border, I understood clearly, only studying can change the fate for us common folks, oh, I mean myself, not you lady, don’t misinterpret."
Realizing he misspoke "us," Liu Ji hurriedly compensated.
Fortunately, Qin Yao didn’t bother with such trivial matters. She was assessing the benefits and troubles Liu Ji could bring her.
In conclusion, the benefits currently outweighed the troubles.
After all, it takes a long payback period to cultivate the Da Lang brothers and sisters.
Liu Ji, on the other hand, if he genuinely devoted himself to studying the way she advised, achieving a scholar’s title was just a matter of time.
By then, she would also benefit.
And the troubles Liu Ji brought, looking at his current attitude after this experience, fell within her tolerance.
Because she believed Liu Ji absolutely did not want to go through another round of corvée.
This time he was lucky enough to return intact.
There might not be such luck next time!
"Lady, are you still upset?" Liu Ji anxiously asked since Qin Yao remained silent.
Qin Yao glanced down at him, smirked disdainfully, "What is there for me to be upset about, do you think you are worth my anger?"
Liu Ji replied, "Sorry, I humiliated myself."
Qin Yao nodded in agreement, "Consider yourself lucky, carrying you through this disaster temporarily."
The snow fell bit by bit, but showed no intention of getting heavier. The two returned smoothly to Liu Family Village, one riding, the other running behind.
As Qin Yao stopped the horse at the entrance of Liu Family’s old house, holding a piece of fresh pork belly, Liu Ji remembered to ask why she appeared behind him earlier.
Was it really a coincidence?
