Zhao Guanggun's face darkened with humiliation, his expression turning fierce.
"Hey, what do you mean, you damn woman? Are you trying to welch on the deal?"
Su Xiaoqi wasn't afraid of him, standing on the steps and looking down at him.
It was as if she were looking at a pile of disgusting garbage.
Zhao Guanggun felt uneasy under her piercing gaze.
His legs involuntarily went weak.
But then he thought of the four catties of wild boar meat. If he ate it sparingly, it would last him a whole month.
The temptation was too great, and he couldn't bear to part with it. He glanced around the courtyard with his inverted, triangular eyes.
He didn't see Shen Yun, and his courage suddenly swelled.
He reached out to push Su Xiaoqi, intending to snatch the meat and take advantage of her.
Before his hand could even extend, Su Xiaoqi kicked his calf.
"Ah..." he cried out in pain, clutching his leg, his face contorted with agony.
Su Xiaoqi hated that he had repeatedly set his sights on her.
Taking advantage of his squatting position, she aimed a kick at his chest.
Zhao Guanggun was sent flying backward, landing headfirst on the gravel path.
Zhao Guanggun felt a sharp pain in the back of his head and began to curse.
"Fuck me, I'll fuck your ancestors, you bitch..."
Before he could finish speaking, he was grabbed by the wrist by a powerful force and pulled up.
Zhao Guanggun's wrist throbbed with agonizing pain, as if his life force had been seized.
He trembled from the pain, and when he met the other person's cold, sharp gaze.
He swallowed the rest of his words.
Shen Yun's grip was truly strong, and his gaze was too, too terrifying.
When those eyes looked at him, they were like the legendary soul-snatching Ox-Head and Horse-Face.
He felt a wave of dread wash over him, and he couldn't hold it in, wetting himself from fear.
Shen Yun threw his hand off with disdain, his voice as cold as ice.
"Get lost. If you pester me again, I won't be polite!"
Zhao Guanggun's face turned ashen. Wetting his pants, he scrambled away on all fours.
So terrifying, so terrifying.
He fled like a startled rat, unable to explain what exactly made Shen Yun so frightening.
Even though he looked handsome and kind, he was inexplicably afraid, and it left him with a psychological shadow.
From then on, he would actively avoid Shen Yun whenever he saw him from a distance.
Su Xiaoqi patted her hands, as if to remove nonexistent dirt, and smiled brightly at Shen Yun.
Inside the house, Shen Xiaomei and Zhao Xiaozhu saw this and rushed out with concerned expressions to inquire.
Su Xiaoqi looked at Shen Yun and said meaningfully, "I'm fine. You must remember:
A good horse is ridden by the whip, and a good person is bullied by others.
When facing such wicked people, strike first and don't give them a chance to do evil."
Shen Yun listened and thought about how she had thoroughly thrashed Zhao Guanggun twice.
He mused that she was strictly adhering to her own principles.
Seeing the yearning on his younger sister's face, Shen Yun quickly advised,
"Don't listen to her nonsense. They aren't like you; they might have the will but not the strength."
Not everyone was as agile as her, with the power to resist when facing danger.
"If you don't know how, you can learn. I wasn't born knowing this," Su Xiaoqi shrugged.
"I... I want to learn," Zhao Xiaozhu said earnestly, puffing out her chest.
Su Xiaoqi patted her shoulder and said it was no problem, she could teach her.
She wasn't just talking; she immediately began explaining the basics to Zhao Xiaozhu.
To be agile, one must first train the body.
Running, horse stance, various postures.
Her explanations were detailed, and Zhao Xiaozhu learned diligently.
She thought about how if she had had Sister Xiaoqi's crisp skills back then.
Perhaps she wouldn't have had to suffer so much.
Su Xiaoqi tilted her head and asked her, "Training is very hard. Can you handle it?"
Zhao Xiaozhu nodded resolutely.
Having gone through what she had, she wasn't even afraid of death.
There was nothing in this world that could make her retreat.
Su Xiaoqi greatly admired the spirit of resilience she possessed.
By the end, Shen Xiaomei and Shen Erdan had also joined in.
Shen Yun observed the movements Su Xiaoqi was teaching. They were simple yet practical.
Regardless of whether they could strike first in the future, they could at least strengthen their bodies, so he no longer objected.
Inside the house, Madam Zhao watched with satisfaction as her children interacted harmoniously in the courtyard.
Her heart was filled with happiness, but her vision suddenly blurred.
The already indistinct figures became even more hazy.
She quickly rubbed her eyes, and Old Madam Yu took her hand and waved it in front of her eyes.
"Sanniang, can you see me?"
Zhao Shi took a deep breath and, seeing her mother's outline before her, shook her head and then quickly nodded.
"I can see you." She didn't want her aging mother to worry about her.
The good times were only just beginning.
Shen Yun was the top scholar in the court examination and did not need to participate in the county school selection competition. He directly became a stipend student.
Not only did he not have to pay for his studies, but he also received one dou of rice per month and an income of one tael of silver.
Upon hearing this, the entire village became envious.
They returned home and secretly instructed their children:
"Look, studying is useful. If you do well in your studies, the land and houses will be exempt from taxes.
Studying in the city doesn't require tuition; instead, you receive money and grain."
However, while they taught this, their families were desperately poor and couldn't afford the tuition for private schools.
They could only watch from the sidelines.
But the idea had taken root in their hearts and would sprout whenever the opportunity arose.
The next day, Shen Yun was to formally visit the teachers at the county school.
Su Xiaoqi prepared the "Six Rites of Tuition" for him.
The pork was readily available at home, ten catties were prepared, and the celery was freshly pulled from the field by Shen Xiaomei early in the morning.
As for candied dates, lotus seeds, jujubes, and red beans, they would have to be bought from the market.
Fortunately, today was the day they delivered fish every two days.
Zhao Laoshi's mule cart, which Su Xiaoqi had arranged, arrived shortly after Chen Shi.
It pulled Su Xiaoqi, Shen Yun, and Zhao Liushun toward the city.
They successfully delivered the fish and settled the cart fare.
However, buying the four types of dried fruits proved to be quite troublesome.
They bought candied dates from one shop but couldn't find red beans.
They bought lotus seeds from another shop but not jujubes.
Although they were all dried fruits, they had to run to four different shops.
Some had sold out and hadn't restocked, while others had shopkeepers who felt that two items weren't in the same category and therefore shouldn't be sold together.
Su Xiaoqi was furious. What she thought would take fifteen minutes dragged on for more than half an hour.
By the time Shen Yun arrived at the county school with the complete set of the Six Rites, it was nearly Si Shi.
Looking at the rows of shops on Hu