Chapter 252 - Chapter 252: 252. Making people anxious

Chapter 252: 252. Making people anxious

Translator: 549690339

The next day, as dawn broke, Su Liang got out of bed and ran around the yard, just as she used to do.

After the first lap around the backyard, she saw Gu Ling appear under the eaves.

“Great God, want to join?” Su Liang waved at Gu Ling.

Gu Ling shook his head and walked towards the kitchen. He had to heat up water for Su Liang to wash up after exercising.

After finishing her exercise, Su Liang heard a knock on the door and went to open it. She saw Aunt Bai holding two large bowls outside. Seeing Su Liang’s neat attire, Aunt Bai exclaimed, “No wonder Liang Miss could become the Martial Arts Champion. You practice every day. You are really tenacious.”

Su Liang smiled, “It smells so good!”

Aunt Bai laughed, saying that it was breakfast for her, a vegetable pie and brown sugar millet porridge.

Su Liang quickly took it and heard Aunt Bai praise the pumpkin pancake and crisp eggplant she made last night. She said it was very simple and that she would show Aunt Bai how to do it next time she visited her house.

“Your uncle, Little Tiger’s father, and his uncle went to tend to the graves before dawn. Xiao Qi also went. All the men in the village who could work went,” Aunt Bai said. “You don’t have to rush over. Lei Zheng is watching.” “Thank you so much to everyone.” Su Liang said seriously.

Aunt Bai’s rough hand gently patted Su Liang’s arm, and she went back. She said that Little Tiger would come to pick up the bowls later, so there was no need to hurry.

They heated up the leftover pumpkin pancakes from last night and didn’t make anything else.

After washing up, Su Liang and Gu Ling had breakfast together. They cleared away the weeds in the backyard, picked the only eggplant left, and harvested the old pumpkins as well.

Looking at the tidy backyard, Gu Ling said, “No matter where we live, we should grow our own vegetables.”

“Does Great God think our own vegetables taste better?” Su Liang laughed lightly.

Gu Ling nodded, “Yes.”

“What would happen if you said one more word?” Su Liang hummed. Gu Ling spoke several more words, “I want to eat sweet and sour ribs.”

Su Liang: … Why did she hear a hint of willfulness? It must be an illusion.

“We don’t have any ribs at home. If you want to eat them, go buy them yourself,” Su Liang said.

As soon as she said that, there was a knock on the door from the front yard. She went to open it, and Gu Ling started a fire to burn the dried weeds.

The visitor was Hu Er. Last night he heard that Su Liang had returned, so he came to the village early in the morning.

Hu Er, who used to run a gambling house and lend money at high interest rates, was now in good health and doing honest business. He looked younger and more energetic than in the past.

Su Liang wanted to offer him tea, but there wasn’t any hot water yet.

Hu Er laughed and said, “Miss Su, don’t be so formal with me. I never thought Miss Su would not even have a maid by her side to serve her now, and she would do everything herself. It’s really…” different, but very down-to-earth.

Su Liang thought to herself that it wasn’t as if she did everything herself; there was a certain Great God who was even more down-to-earth. Of course, life was all about doing one’s own things, and she still couldn’t and didn’t want to command anyone like a slave. Qi Jun was more of a hired assistant in her eyes, and she would never let him put himself in danger for her.

After chatting for a while, Hu Er got down to business, “Last time, Miss Su asked me to keep an eye on someone, and I finally have some news. I’m about to go and check it out.”

Su Liang was taken aback, “Are you talking about the missing brother of my friend?”

Hu Er nodded and quickly added, “I’m not sure yet. The age matches, and there’s a red birthmark on his neck.”

Su Liang had only mentioned the age and birthmark to Hu Er. She thought for a moment and said, “Would you please check it out first without alerting anyone? If it’s not him, it might cause trouble for someone.”

Hu Er said solemnly, “Miss Su, don’t worry, I understand.”

Su Liang knew that Hu Er now had a flourishing business with the Wan Family and did not lack money, so she didn’t bother with formalities. She said that whether it worked out or not, she would invite him for a drink afterwards. Hearing that, Hu Er nodded repeatedly, “I have a small matter to ask Miss Su.” Su Liang nodded, “Go ahead.”

“My family has two children who are of age to start learning. My older brother originally wanted to hire a tutor to teach them at home, but I thought of the school you founded. I was wondering if they could come here to study?” Hu Er asked.

“Do you plan to travel to the county every day? Won’t it be a bit far?” Su Liang asked.

Hu Er quickly waved his hands, “Not far, not far! The elders in the family like living in town, so they will all live in town!”

Su Liang smiled, “If you think that’s a good idea, of course you can. I’ll mention it to Lei Zheng, and you just send the children over.”

Hu Er’s face lit up with joy, and he thanked Su Liang.

In fact, Su Liang knew that Hu Er’s motives were to curry favor; perhaps he felt that she was now an important person with influence and would take care of any children coming from the village school. By sending his own children to the school, he was also trying to build connections.

But there was nothing wrong with that. It was normal for people to have personal motivations. Su Liang agreed to Hu Er, also out of self-interest.

Nowadays, the Hu Family was one of the top wealthy merchants in Bei’an County, with a good relationship with the government office. No one dared to provoke them easily. If Hu’s children came to study in the Su Family Village, the Hu Family would naturally ensure the peace of the village school, and even the entire village.

And that’s what Su Liang wanted, a win-win situation for all.

Hu Er asked Su Liang when she planned to return to the capital city, and said that he would confirm whether the person he found was Che Yun’s brother as soon as possible. If Su Liang had already left, he would send someone to deliver the news to the capital city.

After Hu Er left, Su Liang went to the backyard. Gu Ling was no longer in sight, and she thought he must have gone to town to buy meat, so she didn’t bother him.

After a while, Su Liang locked the door and went to the Bai Family’s house.

Aunt Bai had just taken out a batch of dried kidney beans that she had sun-dried last month. Seeing Su Liang, she greeted her with a smile and took the bowl from her hand, “Come in and sit down.”

“These dried kidney beans are good.” Su Liang eyed the Bai Family’s produce. It was already too cold in the north for fresh kidney beans this season.

“Whatever you want to eat, I’ll cook it for you!” Aunt Bai happily said.

“Can I have a bunch to take back?” Su Liang asked with a smile.

Aunt Bai nodded repeatedly, “Don’t be polite, just take them! They’re home-grown, not worth much, and they’re delicious when stewed with meat!”

Su Liang wanted Aunt Bai to take her to the Su Family’s ancestral grave since she didn’t know where it was.

Aunt Bai took off her apron and went out with Su Liang. The two children had gone to school and weren’t at home. Mrs. Liu had given birth to her third child, a chubby baby girl who was still in swaddling clothes.

“I heard from Little Tiger that Xiao Qi is really good at martial arts!” Aunt Bai asked.

Su Liang nodded, “Yes, he’s very good. I asked him to teach Little Tiger and

Zhuzi some martial arts for physical fitness and self-defense.”

“Yes, that’s really great!” Aunt Bai’s expression was grateful. “If it wasn’t for you saving Little Tiger this time, our family would have been in a really difficult situation.”

Yesterday, Su Bai specifically told Su Liang not to reveal too many details to the Bai family. Now that the people are safe and sound, everything is fine. Saying too much would only make them worry more and be scared in the future.

After this incident, Su Bai has already cautioned the school that no student should walk home alone from now on.

Even if kidnappers come to the village to snatch children, they would only dare to target those who are alone. Otherwise, as soon as one child is captured, the other would start shouting, and the kidnapper wouldn’t be able to escape.

Having listened to Su Bai, Su Liang didn’t say anything further to Bai’s family. Letting them know that she had enemies who would try to threaten her by harming the children wouldn’t necessarily distance them from her, but it would indeed make them worry every day.

When they arrived at the graveyard, they saw young and middle-aged people from the village working hard, as this time they were burying Su Yuanzhou’s entire family.

Su Bai came over and said, “It’ll be done after noon! We were planning to call you over after the graves were ready to be checked.”

“Thank you, Uncle Bai, and thanks to everyone. Please accept some extra money for your hard work,” Su Liang said.

Su Bai frowned, ‘What are you talking about? Whenever there’s an event in the village, everyone helps out. Who would take money? You’re treating us like outsiders.”

Su Liang was taken aback, “Oh, my bad, just forget what I said.”

Seeing Su Liang admit her mistake so obediently, Su Bai couldn’t help but rub his forehead, “You go back and rest if there’s nothing wrong, or you can go to the school and take a look. It’s all dust and dirt here.”

Qi Jun was working hard with other young men from the village and hadn’t noticed that Su Liang had arrived.

Su Liang only asked for directions before going to the school with Bai’s wife.

Standing outside the window, Su Liang saw Little Tiger, Zhuzi, and Erniu, all diligently writing.

Both people left quickly, with Bails wife looking content, “It’s different when you read books. They’re really blessed to have you.”

Su Liang had heard this many times and would always just smile in response.

After collecting some dry kidney beans and a jar of pickles made by Bai’s wife, Su Liang returned home.

Gu Ling returned home nearing noon, carrying a large basket of goods, including ribs and various other fresh ingredients.

“Do you have to eat sweet and sour ribs? Bai’s wife’s dry kidney beans are quite good, I brought some back. How about we make braised rolls with ribs and kidney beans today? You used to like it a lot.” Su Liang consulted with Gu Ling. “Dry kidney beans?” Gu Ling picked them up and took a look, “Still edible?” Su Liang nodded, “You’ll see.”

“What are those for?” Gu Ling pointed to the pumpkin flesh left over from yesterday.

Su Liang asked him to scoop out all the flesh from the cut pumpkin, wash it clean, leaving only the seeds, and then fry the pumpkin seeds for eating.

For lunch, they ate braised rolls with ribs and kidney beans. The dry kidney beans cooked with ribs had a unique taste that Gu Ling enjoyed very much, so he asked Su Liang to bring all the kidney beans from Bail s house.

After eating, Gu Ling washed the dishes while Su Liang dealt with the pumpkin seeds, “Shouldn’t we go back sooner? Otherwise, Little Nian will hate you.”

Gu Ling shook his head, “I don’t want to go back.”

Su Liang calmly nodded, “Anyway, he’s your brother. Yang Yu will definitely not blame me.”

“He listens to Yang Yu.” Gu Ling said.

“True.” Su Liang was also joking, Nian Jincheng wouldn’t really blame Gu Ling. It was hard for them to come back, and if they rushed back to the capital city, they didn’t know when they would be able to return again.

Gu Ling and Su Liang were willing to help their friends, but it wasn’t an urgent matter, and there was no need to sacrifice their hard-earned leisure time for the sake of their friends.

The next day, Su Liang wore mourning clothes and buried Su Yuanzhou’s family in the ancestral grave. Su Liang had originally brought back his own coffin and tombstone, but Su Bai firmly opposed his whimsical actions of arranging a grave for himself at such a young age, thinking it was very unlucky.

Of course, Su Bai meant well, but Su Liang’s original intention was to set up a tomb for the original master.

The night before, Su Liang had placed all the original master’s relics in Su

Yuanzhou’s coffin, as her grandfather had doted on her most since her parents

had died.

According to the rules, no money was given to the villagers for labor, and only a banquet was held on the day of the burial.

The stir-fried pumpkin seeds prepared by Su Liang became Gu Ling’s favorite snack. He wanted to scoop out all the pumpkin seeds at home but was stopped by Su Liang, who said they wouldn’t be able to store the pumpkins that way.

Afterward, Su Liang and Gu Ling lived in a small house in the village by the mountains and rivers, returning to the rural life. Except for Gu Ling not showing his face, everything else was the same as before.

There were too many children who wanted to learn martial arts from Qi Jun, so he taught the children in the school some basic moves.

This was a meaningful and interesting thing to do. Qi Jun enjoyed it and quickly became friends with the children. He joined them in catching rabbits, finding bird eggs, climbing mountains and rivers, and having a good time.

Ren Dong, who had been ordered by Su Liang to go to Yin Country to fetch Mu Ya’s head, arrived at his destination five days ago. He spent two days investigating Mu Ya’s daily whereabouts and found the right timing to strike, but he hesitated to do so.

Because Mu Ya was pregnant and her belly was already showing, it was obvious at a glance.

Ren Dong hesitated whether he should still take the shot in this unexpected situation. What if Su Liang didn’t want her to kill a pregnant woman?

After wandering in the capital city of Yin Country for several days, Ren Dong finally decided to give up the mission, report to Su Liang first and let him decide. If Su Liang still wanted to kill Mu Ya and didn’t care about taking two lives, Ren Dong would come back again to claim Mu Ya’s head.

But there were some gains. Before coming, Ren Dong knew that Qiu Jianren, Qiu Ming’s uncle, was Mu Ya’s pawn and one of the masterminds behind the poisoning of Gao Jiabao. Ren Dong had been secretly watching Mu Ya, and on the day she was preparing to leave, he finally caught Qiu Jianren.

Ren Dong turned to focus on Qiu Jianren, waiting for him to be alone before decisively taking his life. He chopped off his head, wrapped it up, threw the body into the chaotic burial mound and then hurried back to Qian Country day and night.

Qian Country’s capital city.

Yang Yu and Nian Jincheng had come to the capital city together, but at this point, the attendant beside Yang Yu had “left,” and the fact that she had a fiance was not widely known. Nian Jincheng had secretly followed her.

According to the original plan, upon arrival in the capital city, Nian Jincheng would find Gu Ling, set a date to restore their identities, and Gu Ling would become Marquis Chang Xin. Nian Jincheng might return to his original position, or perhaps not. Yang Yu would go to live with Su Liang, following Su Liang’s arrangements to meet Nian Jincheng again and bring them together.

However, it was only upon arriving in the capital city that they found out that Su Liang had gone back to Bei’an County. Without asking or checking, Gu Ling must have gone with her.

Nian Jincheng just grumbled a few words about his brother but not because Gu Ling didn’t care about him. Instead, he grumbled that Gu Ling still hadn’t captured Su Liang’s heart and insisted on being inseparable, not willing to part even for a moment. He didn’t understand what Gu Ling was thinking.

However, Nian Jincheng could only grumble silently because Yang Yu didn’t know that Gu Ling was the former Ning Jing. Nian Jincheng planned to find an opportunity to talk to Yang Yu about it but needed Su Liang’s approval first.

Although Su Liang wasn’t there, Yang Yu still moved into Su Mansion, as Su Liang had specifically asked Lin Xueqing to tell her before leaving.

It was also convenient for Nian Jincheng to hide there. The Su Mansion was large and empty, so they could be more comfortable living there.

At night, Yang Yu and Nian Jincheng walked hand in hand by the lake, admiring the moon.

“Why hasn’t Gu Ling appeared yet?” Yang Yu asked, “Will he not come back? If you restore your identity by yourself, will it be safe?”

Nian Jincheng smiled, “We’ll just wait for Su Liang to come back.” That certain person was Su Liang’s shadow and would naturally come back when she did. The next time they met, Nian Jincheng planned to have a good talk with Gu and discuss whether he intended to become a monk or hurry up and marry Su Liang.. It was really worrying!