Jiang Xiaoxiao turned around and saw that the speaker was an old man in plain clothes, leaning on a crutch.
The old man's gaze was piercing cold as he stared at her.
Not just staring? She could do that too!
Jiang Xiaoxiao widened her almond-shaped eyes and glared back at the old man.
The old man: "..."
Next to him was a younger man.
When the young man saw Jiang Xiaoxiao, he seemed slightly distracted for a moment.
Then, realizing his lack of composure, he cleared his throat and asked Yang Wei, "What's going on?"
As soon as Yang Wei saw the two men, it was as if he had found a lifeline. With tears in his eyes, he cried out, "Waaah! Village Chief, this wild girl has gone too far and wronged me! You must stand up for me!"
The old man with the crutch was indeed the Village Chief.
The younger man was the Village Chief's son, Yang Dashun.
Upon hearing Yang Wei's complaint, Yang Dashun frowned, "Get to the point!"
After wailing for a while, Yang Wei finally got to the point.
"Early this morning, I was on my way to take the exam at the Luming Academy when this wild girl sabotaged me, causing the ox-cart to overturn halfway through the journey."
"I went to confront them, but they wouldn't open the door. And this vicious girl even poured water all over me!"
Yang Wei's drenched and mud-stained appearance certainly didn't seem like he was lying.
Not only was Yang Wei from the prestigious Yang clan, but he was also the only educated person in the village.
If he succeeded, the entire Shi Mo Village would bask in his glory.
Naturally, the Old Village Chief had high expectations for him.
Seeing him mistreated like this, the old Village Chief frowned, his wrinkled face darkening as he looked at Jiang Xiaoxiao with displeasure, "Who are you?"
Shi Mo Village wasn't very large, with only about thirty households.
The Old Village Chief Yang had managed Shi Mo Village for many years and knew every household and its members like the back of his hand.
The only one he hadn't seen before was this wild girl.
Yesterday, his wife had mentioned seeing a girl following Xie Xun into the village.
Xie Xun wasn't from Shi Mo Village, and he lived far away from the other villagers.
As long as he didn't cause any trouble, the Old Village Chief didn't care who he brought back home.
But if the person Xie Xun brought back was bullying the villagers, then he couldn't turn a blind eye anymore.
"I'm Xie Xun's fiancée," Jiang Xiaoxiao said as she squatted on the ground, drawing circles and feeling annoyed.
Why did everyone want to interrogate her? Wouldn't it be better to just have a fight?
Yang Dashun hesitated for a moment, looking puzzled, "Miss, are you lost or have you been kidnapped?"
Jiang Xiaoxiao was currently at Xie Xun's house.
It was obvious who had "kidnapped" her.
Although Yang Dashun didn't have much interaction with Xie Xun, he knew that Xie Xun was an orphan with no relatives.
For a person whom even dogs disliked to suddenly have a beautiful young fiancée seemed unbelievable.
Yang Dashun grew increasingly concerned, "Miss, don't be afraid. My father is the Village Chief here. If you have any difficulties, you can tell us."
Jiang Xiaoxiao nodded and pointed at Yang Wei, telling Yang Dashun, "I do have a difficulty now. I want to beat him up."
Yang Dashun: "..."
"Father, this girl seems to have some mental issues," Yang Dashun said, looking at his father.
Although the Old Village Chief was annoyed, he was still an elderly man. It didn't seem right for him to point fingers and accuse a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl.
He turned towards Jiang Xiaoxiao and called out loudly, "Is Xie Xun there?"
Footsteps approached from behind Jiang Xiaoxiao.
She turned around and saw Xie Xun coming out.
He stood at the gate, his features calm and elegant, his tall figure imposing. His recently washed hands were still damp, with water droplets sliding down his slender, well-defined fingers and dripping onto the ground.
The corner of his clean blue robe was slightly wet from washing the vegetables.
Jiang Xiaoxiao had never had a strong concept of beauty or ugliness.
But at this moment, she somehow felt that Xie Xun was remarkably good-looking.
Standing next to Yang Dashun and Yang Wei, Xie Xun's noble and graceful demeanor, inherited from his royal bloodline, was something the other two lacked.
The difference in quality was evident.
"What's the matter?" Xie Xun's voice was calm and unruffled as he glanced at Jiang Xiaoxiao, who was squatting on the ground.
His attitude only caused the Old Village Chief to frown repeatedly.
"Xie Xun, I don't care who you bring into your home, but since you're living in Shi Mo Village, you must abide by the village rules. The person you brought has bullied one of our villagers. What do you have to say for yourself?"
Xie Xun looked at Yang Wei with a hint of a mocking smile, "Who do you say bullied you?"
Yang Wei was intimidated by Xie Xun's gaze and unconsciously took half a step back, "You... you dare deny that this wild girl sabotaged the ox-cart?"
Xie Xun laughed lightly, "Do you dare deny that you were trying to avoid the exam by framing Xiaoxiao?"
Upon hearing this, Yang Wei jumped up, "Xie Xun, how dare you slander me!"
Xie Xun calmly continued, "The Luming Academy had an exam this morning. You should have been in the dormitory last night, but you only set out this morning to catch the cart. Was it because you were too confident?"
"Xie Xun, shut up!" Yang Wei clenched his fists.
Then he looked anxiously at the Old Village Chief, "Village Chief, don't listen to his nonsense. I didn't!"
Initially, when Yang Wei was admitted to the prestigious Luming Academy, the Old Village Chief was overjoyed and even sponsored him with ten taels of silver.
Whenever Yang Wei came back for holidays, the Old Village Chief would visit and inquire about his studies.
Of course, Yang Wei couldn't let the Old Village Chief down, so he always said he was doing well.
The Old Village Chief rarely went to the county, so he had no idea about the actual situation at the Luming Academy.
He only knew that students admitted to the renowned Luming Academy would have a promising future, and Yang Wei was the hope of the entire Shi Mo Village.
Little did he know that even at the most prestigious academies with the most esteemed teachers, there were still students who couldn't be taught.
Yang Wei was one of them.
The Old Village Chief Yang had pinned all his hopes on Yang Wei alone.
Now, hearing Xie Xun say that Yang Wei deliberately made himself look like this to avoid the exam, the old man's frail body swayed.
Yang Dashun was alarmed and quickly held his father steady, "Father!"
Yang Wei's face turned pale.
Initially, he didn't intend to skip the exam, but after the ox-cart overturned, preventing him from going to the county, he felt relieved.
Compared to facing the disdainful looks of the teachers and classmates for failing, he preferred to be absent.
But he needed someone to take the blame for his absence.
That vicious girl was the perfect scapegoat!
However, he never expected that Xie Xun would expose him in front of the Old Village Chief.
"Village Chief, if there's nothing else, we'll head inside now," Xie Xun said, bending down to pull Jiang Xiaoxiao up from the ground where she was drawing circles to vent her frustration.
"Wait!" The Old Village Chief suddenly spoke up.
Xie Xun paused.
The Old Village Chief looked at him with uncertainty, "Are you familiar with the Luming Academy?"
"You're mistaken," Xie Xun replied without turning around, leading Jiang Xiaoxiao into the courtyard and closing the gate behind them.
Rather than questioning Jiang Xiaoxiao and Xie Xun further, the Old Village Chief was more concerned about Yang Wei's performance at the academy.
He didn't know much about Xie Xun, but his impression was that this was a quiet outsider.
Since there was no vested interest involved, Xie Xun had no reason to slander Yang Wei without cause.
What puzzled the Old Village Chief even more was why Xie Xun seemed so familiar with the exam schedule of the Luming Academy...
The Old Village Chief pondered over this for the entire afternoon and decided to visit the county city in the afternoon to inquire about the situation at the Luming Academy.
Initially, Yang Wei was only admitted to the academy because he had saved the life of the principal.
The Old Village Chief couldn't believe that a person like Yang Wei hadn't learned anything substantial at the academy.
Seeing through his father's thoughts, Yang Dashun accompanied him to the county city after lunch.
Upon inquiring at the Luming Academy, they discovered that even the gatekeeper recognized Yang Wei.
The Old Village Chief Yang finally felt he had regained some face, and stroked his goatee. "It seems you all know about him saving the Principal's life."
"What do you mean by saving the Principal's life?"
The gatekeeper was stunned, with a look of bewilderment on his face, gazing at the Old Village Chief as if he were a fool daydreaming.
The Old Village Chief squinted his old eyes. "How..."
The gatekeeper asked, "Aren't you looking for that student Yang Wei who often skips classes, submits blank exams, scores at the bottom, and missed today's exam? What does he have to do with the Principal?"
Skipping classes!
Submitting blank exams!
Scoring at the bottom!
Missing exams!
Each phrase was like a heavy slap across the Old Village Chief's face.
The muscles at the corner of his lips twitched.
Yang Dashun was afraid his father might have difficulty breathing, so he hurriedly said, "Father, don't get angry. Calm down, or it will be bad for your health."
The Village Chief carefully recalled the situation when Luming Academy came to their village last year.
"Dashun, how did those people from the academy describe it when they came to our village last year?"
Yang Dashun said, "Father, those people said that Yang Wei had saved the Principal's life, and the Principal, with his discerning eye, saw that he was a promising seedling, so the academy made an exception and admitted him."
"That's right," the Old Village Chief remembered those people describing Yang Wei as a promising seedling.
But how could a promising seedling skip classes, submit blank exams, and miss exams for no reason?
The more the Old Village Chief thought about it, the more it didn't add up. Without saving face any longer, he called his son and returned to the village, immediately summoning Yang Wei.
After the commotion with Xie Xun in the morning, Yang Wei noticed that the Village Chief had shifted his attention to him, so he had been sitting at home anxiously.
Now, being summoned to the Village Chief's house, Yang Wei stood there, not daring to breathe a word.
The Village Chief said, "Don't just stand there, have a seat."
Yang Wei dared not. "Village Chief, I'll stand."
"Wei, don't be nervous," the Village Chief said. "I called you here because I have something to ask you."
At this point, how could Yang Wei not be nervous? His fingers clenched tightly. "Village Chief, please ask."
"After you arrived at Luming Academy, did you meet the Principal?"
Yang Wei swallowed hard and said, "I did."
In fact, not just him, but many of his classmates had never seen the Principal since enrolling until now.
It was said that the Principal was rarely at the academy, and even the teachers had to be lucky to catch a glimpse of him.
"Did he ever give you any guidance on your studies?"
As his life-saving benefactor, the Principal should have treated him differently from others.
"Uh..." Yang Wei hesitated. "The Principal is very busy."
It was understandable for the head of an academy to be busy.
But the Old Village Chief still felt something was off.
He squinted at Yang Wei, recalling what the gatekeeper had said at the academy earlier, and felt a fire burning within him.
"How have your grades been lately?"
As Yang Wei was about to open his mouth, Yang Dashun reminded him, "Yang Wei, my father has already personally inquired about it at the academy. It's best for you to confess honestly, or else if you lie, you'll face the consequences!"
Upon hearing this, Yang Wei's legs went weak, and he immediately knelt before the Old Village Chief, tears streaming down his face. "Village Chief, I made a mistake. I swear I will work hard from now on."
The Village Chief looked at him, feeling that the Yang Wei before him seemed different from the one described by the academy when they came to find him.
"How did you originally save the Principal's life?" the Old Village Chief asked the question that had been bothering him.
"This..." Yang Wei had no memory of such an event, so how could he know?
"It's been too long, I can't remember clearly," Yang Wei could only respond vaguely.
The Old Village Chief frowned and exchanged a glance with his son.
Yang Dashun said, "Try to think harder?"
Yang Wei shook his head. "Big Brother Dashun, I really can't remember."
"Forget it," the Old Village Chief waved his hand.
Although he had doubts in his mind, Yang Wei was the only scholar in the village, and he had invested all his hopes and efforts in him.
If he told him now that Luming Academy had gotten the wrong person, he feared he might not be able to bear it.
"I went to the academy today to inquire, and your performance has been unsatisfactory," the Old Village Chief said sternly. "If your grades are poor, we can work hard to catch up, but skipping classes, submitting blank exams, and missing exams, what's the meaning of this?"
Yang Wei had nothing to say, for these were indeed his own misdeeds. "Village Chief, I swear I will never do it again!"
The Village Chief felt helpless. "Pack your things quickly. I'll have Dashun send you back to the academy."
After Yang Wei left, the Old Village Chief's youngest son, Yang Ershun, peeked from outside the door, peering curiously into the room.
The Old Village Chief noticed him and frowned. "You little brat, what are you doing?"
Yang Ershun's eyes darted around, and he scampered off towards the east of Shi Mo Village.
The gate of the Xie family's courtyard was closed.
Yang Ershun propped up a rock to climb onto the wall, and soon found himself face-to-face with Jiang Xiaoxiao inside the courtyard.
Yang Ershun was so startled that he nearly fell off the wall. He widened his eyes. "Who are you? How did you end up in Xie Xun's house?"
Another one inquiring about her identity, and just a little brat, so Jiang Xiaoxiao ignored him.
Yang Ershun, straddling the wall, scanned around and shouted again, "Xie Xun, Xie Xun..."
Xie Xun had been taking an afternoon nap and was awakened by the commotion outside. Recognizing the voice, he chose to ignore it and closed his eyes again.
Yang Ershun shouted again, "If you don't come out, I won't be able to keep it a secret!"
After shouting, he noticed Jiang Xiaoxiao sitting by the well, sharpening a kitchen knife that gleamed brightly, looking unsettlingly intimidating.
Yang Ershun felt a chill down his spine, and his unsteady bottom slipped off the wall, causing him to tumble down with a loud thud.
"Ow ow ow!" his cries of pain echoed through the small courtyard.
Xie Xun got up and opened the door, seeing the chubby lump lying in the corner of the wall. "What are you here for?" he asked.
The chubby Yang Ershun eventually picked himself up, dusting off the dirt from his body, and muttered, "I came to give you a secret message!"
Xie Xun: "..."
"Oh yes," Yang Ershun continued with his half-baked idioms, "Yang Wei was just taken away by my father, and he's in a difficult situation now."
Jiang Xiaoxiao: "..."
