118 Scholar Record
Everyone suddenly drew their weapons. Bai Wutong asked Huang Zhong, “Where is the beast?”
Huang Zhong pointed to a camphor tree not far from them. “It’s there!”
Everyone looked over at the same time. The beast swooshed and hid its furry tail.
Bai Wutong saw the flash of a big white tail and guessed that it was the little snow wolf again.
Huang Zhong also recognized it. Thinking of the strange story Cui Lingyi had told everyone, he immediately asked nervously, “Madam, is it going to follow us back and let the wolves take revenge on us?”
Bai Wutong shook her head. “We didn’t hurt it, so it won’t hurt us. Let’s go.”
Everyone carried the wild boar and continued to rush back. The little snow wolf followed behind unhurriedly.
Occasionally, when Bai Wutong turned around, it would carefully poke its head out from behind the tree or there would be a big tail with bulging fur. Its green eyes had a fawning expression and it was strangely lovable.
As soon as Chu Tianbao turned around, it hid its entire body like a cat seeing a mouse.
When they returned to the village, Huang Zhong could still smell it lingering nearby.
Zhao Pengfei came up to him. Lin Yue spoke to him and inadvertently talked about the little white wolf they had encountered in the forest.
Zhao Pengfei said in surprise, “I’ve asked the local villagers. The wolves in the Jade Spiritual Mountain are all gray-haired.”
Lin Yue said, “Maybe it’s rare, so they haven’t encountered it before.”
Zhao Pengfei nodded, thinking that it was possible.
But Bai Wutong thought of another possibility. The little snow wolf was a rare albino gray wolf.
The probability of an albino gene appearing in every population was one in 500,000. If the little snow wolf was originally a gray wolf and did not have the ability to hunt independently, but it appeared alone at the edge of the forest, it was most likely abandoned by the wolf pack.
It hid behind the tree and peeped at them. Its green eyes were filled with anticipation and joy. Bai Wutong’s heart softened. She hoped that it was not an albino gray wolf and that it could successfully find its tribe.
After they entered the village, the little snow wolf’s aura gradually disappeared. It had probably quietly returned to the forest.
They returned with a wild boar that weighed hundreds of kilograms. The village was suddenly in an uproar. Yang Quanzi’s eyes lit up and he said to Yang Gongbing, “You came at the right time today. Let’s go and see the big wild boar!”
The wild boar was carried into the village and placed in the stone courtyard of Bai Wutong’s house. The adults and children all gathered to watch.
Village Chief Zhao arranged for the butcher to boil water and prepare to remove the wild boar fur.
As soon as Yang Gongbing and Yang Quanzi entered, they saw Bai Wutong and Chu Tianbao standing at the side, watching the pig slaughtering with everyone.
The two of them were like immortals, stained with the aura of the mortal world. They were not unreachable and were like a loving couple.
Yang Gongbing did not expect Bai Wutong to be so young. After his surprise, he followed Yang Quanzi to greet him.
Yang Gongbing said respectfully, “Greetings, Madam Bai and Master Chu.”
Bai Wutong returned the greeting with Chu Tianbao. “Hello, Lord Yang.”
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Bai Wutong could tell that Yang Gongbing had something to say to her, so she invited him and Yang Quanzi into the house to have a cup of hot tea.
Yang Gongbing entered the house with them. There were no servants in their house. Bai Wutong went to serve snacks, and Chu Tianbao went to make tea.
When Yang Gongbing saw that it was Chu Tianbao who was serving the hot tea, he looked at him in surprise before hurriedly thanking him.
Bai Wutong brought out two plates of dried fruits and a plate of rice cake. She smiled and said politely, “My family is simple and crude. Lord Yang, please don’t mind.”
Although Bai Wutong’s house was not as big as Yang Quanzi’s, the decorations were more warm, especially the sofa that he saw when he entered the house and the soft stool he was sitting on. Not only was it romantic, but it was also extremely comfortable.
Yang Gongbing praised exaggeratedly, “No, no. The seats in Madam’s room are exquisite! I’ve never seen them in my life.”
Yang Quanzi stroked his beard and said with a smile, “Indeed! I also got someone to make a replica. I’ll be able to use it tomorrow.”
Yang Gongbing’s face was filled with envy. He originally thought that his teacher had already enjoyed himself, but Madam Bai was even better than his teacher.
Bai Wutong smiled. “If Lord Yang likes it, you can take the blueprint.”
Yang Gongbing quickly shook his head. “I can’t bear to. How can I take away Madam’s carefully designed blueprint?”
Bai Wutong said, “Lord Yang has given us a lot of help. This is a small token of my appreciation.”
Yang Gongbing refused repeatedly. Bai Wutong tried her best to explain that this was just a blueprint that everyone in their village could use, so Yang Gongbing finally accepted it.
Yang Gongbing praised Bai Wutong inside and out before getting to the point. He asked Bai Wutong if he could report the cleaning paper to the Imperial Court.
Bai Wutong looked at him in surprise, as she thought that he was about to talk about the printing technique.
In the end, it was just the cleaning paper.
Yang Quanzi had actually not told him about the printing technique, which surprised Bai Wutong slightly.
At this point, Yang Gongbing hurriedly stood up and bowed again. He turned towards Bai Wutong and said, “Madam, if the paper production machine and cleaning paper are publicized to the people, not only will it benefit the people, you will also be heavily rewarded by the Imperial Court. You will be exempted from the food tax and the military service. Madam and Master Chu can also settle down as soon as possible.”
Bai Wutong did not care about the reward, but she was tempted by the fact that Chu Tianbao would be exempted from military service.
She glanced at Chu Tianbao, who was drinking tea and eating snacks. “Don’t we have to participate in labor for our lifetimes?” she asked.
Yang Gongbing smiled and said, “It’s definitely possible to do so with the permission of the Imperial Court.”
Bai Wutong said readily, “Alright, report it then.”
There were paper making techniques and paper production machines in this world to begin with. She had only modified them slightly based on the original invention. Even if the cleaning paper attracted the attention of the Imperial Court, it should not let her identity as a modern person be given away.
Bai Wutong agreed so readily. Yang Gongbing said excitedly, “Madam Bai is so kind!”
Bai Wutong smiled. “Lord Yang, you’re too polite. I’ll have to trouble you with my husband’s exemption from military service.”
Although the Yan Kingdom was about to be defeated in the war against Ling Kingdom, if it dragged on for a few years and Ling Kingdom wanted to recruit more soldiers, Chu Tianbao might be pulled away.
With such an opportunity, Bai Wutong naturally had to ensure that nothing went wrong.
Yang Gongbing hurriedly nodded. “Don’t worry, Madam Bai. I will do our best to achieve that and not disappoint you.”
They all nodded, satisfied.
They returned to the courtyard again. Yang Gongbing watched curiously as Auntie Yang and the others shed the wild boar’s fur. Yang Quanzi went up to Bai Wutong and asked softly, “Madam Bai, can I ask for something else for my disciple?”
Bai Wutong froze. “What is it?”
Yang Quanzi looked at his backview and said with a smile, “My disciple’s wife is afraid of the cold. He is very interested in your floor heating design. If you agree, I’m willing to exchange the ‘Scholar Record’ that I’ve painstakingly written with you.”