Chapter 3

Baiminghe jumped up and shouted, "What?"

Sun Yuanjun, upon hearing this, thought Baiminghe was questioning her. Just as she was about to apologize and explain, Baiminghe asked again, "What is a County Lady?"

Sun Yuanjun felt a bit dizzy, wondering if her husband had really been struck silly by a rock. But since he asked, she had to answer: "A County Lady is the daughter of a Duke, a Princess is the daughter of a Prince, and a Princess is of the imperial family!"

"Really unambitious, I'll remember that. I, Baiminghe of Guanzhong, will only take a princess as a concubine." Baiminghe spoke sincerely. Every穿越客 (time traveler) would marry a princess, and marrying one wasn't impressive; you had to marry a pair. Thinking of himself, starting from scratch, battling in the business world, achieving some success by the age of thirty, marrying a princess was normal, marrying a pair was an achievement, and marrying a dozen would be something to be proud of.

Sun Yuanjun laughed, laughing very happily.

The Baiminghe in front of her was different from the one in her memory, but he had become more interesting.

After venting her frustration and laughing, Sun Yuanjun suddenly wiped the smile off her face and said very seriously to Baiminghe, "Old Uncle said, since you are a scholar, we can follow the滕礼 (Teng Li) during our grand ceremony!"

"Can you explain this in a way that an illiterate person can understand?" Baiminghe wasn't joking; his brain seemed to remember the Four Books and Five Classics, but it was like an unorganized hard drive, and he couldn't use it now.

Sun Yuanjun glared at Baiminghe angrily, "It means a cousin from the clan will marry me and become your concubine."

"Nonsense!" Baiminghe really thought this was nonsense. One Sun Yuanjun could be a duty, a responsibility. But another one, whom he had never met and didn't know, was too dangerous. But seeing Sun Yuanjun about to cry, he immediately said very seriously, "Remember, if the Bai family takes a concubine, it must be a princess!"

Was this a joke?

It seemed more like the promise from ten years ago, and Sun Yuanjun felt warm inside.

Sun Yuanjun's gaze toward Baiminghe had changed, but Baiminghe was a bit afraid and didn't know what to say. The atmosphere in the room became awkward.

Just then, the noise outside the door grew louder, and someone seemed to be shouting about the scholar. Baiminghe took the opportunity to say, "I'll go check it out." He straightened his clothes, pushed the door open, and walked out slowly.

Seeing Baiminghe appear, everyone outside instantly fell silent. Baiminghe glanced at all the people gathered in front of the courtyard. The young men were all red-faced, while the elders seemed to be speaking calmly. At that moment, all eyes were on Baiminghe.

The young men stepped aside, and the elders came forward.

"Scholar Sir, we from Changmu Village, Shangquan Village, and Beihexi Village borrowed forty-seven shi of grain from Xianquan Village last autumn. Our Changmu Village alone contributed twenty shi. We originally agreed to repay it before the summer harvest, but a few days ago, a fire broke out in the village and burned down the clan granary. So we are here to discuss whether we can repay a part first!"

According to what the elder said, this was a debt collection.

Baiminghe lowered his head and said nothing. He didn't understand the rules of the Ming Dynasty and didn't know if it was reasonable to repay a part early. He also didn't know what to say.

He had fled the awkwardness inside the house, but who would have thought it would be even more awkward outside.

"Scholar Sir, Xianquan Village is not refusing to repay, but Xianquan Village cannot afford to repay. The grain for planting cannot be moved," said Old Uncle Sun, the clan leader of Xianquan Village.

The elder who spoke earlier also said, "Our Changmu Village has no grain for planting."

Hearing this, the people from Xianquan Village fell silent. It could be said that Changmu Village was already in a desperate situation; otherwise, they would not have come to demand early repayment. It wouldn't be right for the creditor to starve while the debtor lived comfortably.

Baiminghe didn't dare to respond. This matter was not just troublesome; it was a life-or-death issue.

Sun Yuanjun, wearing a veil, stood behind Baiminghe: "Husband, you must take charge; you cannot ignore this. This concerns the lives of seventy households, nearly four hundred people. Only with you can the two villages have a peaceful New Year."

Where did this confidence come from? Did she really think a scholar was a god?

Baiminghe weighed his options. Not helping would make him seem heartless and unrighteous, but helping would be truly difficult. He didn't know much about history, let alone the Ming Dynasty. However, Baiminghe understood that in the Ming Dynasty, scholars valued their reputation more than their lives.

Sun Yuanjun had a birthmark on her face, making her ugly! But even if she were beautiful, Baiminghe wouldn't dare to break the engagement. This would be a stain on his life in the Ming Dynasty, and it might make it harder for him to advance in his career and harder for him to find cooperation.

After weighing his options, Baiminghe slowly raised his head.

This action drew everyone's attention, all waiting to hear what the scholar would say.

Baiminghe looked serious and said, word by word, "I, Baiminghe of Guanzhong, well-read and loyal, value righteousness above all! I will take charge of this matter. There are three days until the New Year, and I, Baiminghe, will ensure everyone has a good New Year!"

"Great!" The young men cheered loudly.

The elders also bowed and shouted, "Scholar Sir is righteous; we are in awe!"

The crowd dispersed, and Baiminghe returned to the house. Before he even sat down, he asked, "What is a scholar? Does a scholar never fail to accomplish anything?"

"A scholar can borrow official grain!" Sun Yuanjun directly helped Baiminghe come up with a plan.

Borrow! Would there be no interest? Borrow! Would it not need to be repaid? Baiminghe shook his head lightly and asked, "How much do we need to borrow?"

Sun Yuanjun had clearly calculated it, and the amount needed was forty shi.

Baiminghe was puzzled, and Sun Yuanjun explained, "Actually, I have been borrowing from Xianquan Village for three years. Each year, we can repay a part, but the debt keeps increasing. It's also because the people of the villages are kind; otherwise, Xianquan Village would have sold their children and land last autumn."

"Why?"

"Wild boars caused a disaster, destroying the crops. Last year, the damage was the worst. If it weren't for the kindness of Changmu Village, which led the way in lending us grain, there would be no Xianquan Village." Sun Yuanjun explained again.

Baiminghe was even more puzzled. Were people in ancient times really that kind? He couldn't ask this, so he asked, "Changmu Village is kind, but what connection do the two villages have?"

Sun Yuanjun answered, "We compete for water every year, and our Xianquan Village is the main force!"

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