Chapter 45: An Unexpected Turn of Events

"How are you feeling? Can you move?" Zhou Qing looked at Shen Li with concern, touching his back. "It doesn't seem to be bleeding."

Shen Li...

He initially planned to continue pretending to be in pain, but Zhou Qing's hand kept touching his back, and he couldn't hold out any longer.

Though it was his back being touched, another part of him was reacting.

Gritting his teeth, he stood up. "It's nothing, I'm not that easily injured."

Seeing Shen Li stand up by himself, Zhou Qing breathed a sigh of relief. "Is your eye okay now? Huh, why are your ears so red? Were they pressed down?"

As he spoke, Zhou Qing moved closer to check Shen Li's ears. "Don't let them get hurt."

Shen Li...

He shuddered and instinctively dodged. "It's fine, they're not hurt. I'll go lift the cart."

To avoid Zhou Qing helping, Shen Li quickly lifted the cart, leaving Zhou Qing stunned. "You're really strong!"

It was a perfectly normal remark, but Shen Li's ears turned red again.

...

With the cart pulled out of the mud, the two continued on their way. Entering the town, Shen Li, adhering to the spirit of Yu the Great,^[1] passed by the Calligraphy Shop without stopping.

Zhong...

Sure enough, a man forgets his mother when he gets a wife!

But, his lord looked quite good in the simple farmer clothes, much better than in the dark robe.

Seeing Shen Li pass by the Calligraphy Shop without stopping, Zhou Qing asked, "It's Mid-Autumn Festival, aren't you going home?"

Shen Li laughed, "My parents aren't home. They've gone to my uncle's house for dinner. It's just Uncle Zhong at the shop, and if I go, he'll be busy hosting me, so I'm not going."

Since that was the case, Zhou Qing didn't ask further, and they headed straight to Yunhai Bookstore.

This time, the purpose of going to town was partly to buy household necessities, but more importantly, Zhou Qing needed to finalize Zhou Huaishan's exam registration.

She had already inquired about it. For someone like Zhou Huaishan, getting into the academy was possible, but he wouldn't be immediately recommended for the exams, that would take at least another year.

The recommendation directly impacted the academy's pass rate, and unless the student was exceptionally talented, the academy wouldn't take the risk.

After all, the higher the pass rate, the better the academy's reputation.

Besides that, another way to register for the exam was to get a recommendation from a reputable local person.

The shopkeeper of Yunhai Bookstore had the power to recommend.

These days, Zhou Qing often came to exchange words for books for Zhou Huaishan and had become quite familiar with the shopkeeper. Zhou Qing planned to leverage this connection.

When they entered the bookstore, the shopkeeper was talking to someone.

"Miss Zhou, you're just in time." Before Zhou Qing could speak, the manager smiled wryly at her. "You must be here to ask for a spot for your father, right?"

As he spoke, the shopkeeper glanced at Shen Li.

Zhou Qing didn't expect the manager to be so straightforward and quickly laughed. "You guessed it right! So, what do you think..."

Standing beside the shopkeeper was a man in a dark blue robe, looking about thirty years old. It was him the shopkeeper was talking to.

As soon as the shopkeeper finished speaking, the man glared fiercely at Zhou Qing.

"Your father? Who is he to take the exam?"

His eyes critically scanned Zhou Qing, and he snorted mockingly. "A country bumpkin, dreaming big."

He pulled out a piece of silver from his robe. "This is ten taels of silver. You've never seen this much, have you? Take it and get lost, stay away from my spot!"

His attitude was more domineering than a rich woman throwing a check to drive away the female lead.

He lightly tossed the silver towards Zhou Qing, as if throwing a bone to a dog.

Shen Li, his hand lowered, formed a circle with his thumb and forefinger, ready to flick the silver back to its original path.

Zhou Qing, however, raised an eyebrow and caught it.

Who would refuse silver?

With the silver secure, Zhou Qing coldly looked at the man. "So, you're here for the spot too? With so much money, why don't you buy a spot? Why beg so humbly, how pitiful!"

To get a spot, another way was to buy one from the county government, which sold five spots at a high price before each exam.

Of course, they only sold the registration spot; passing the exam depended on the student's ability.

But the price was too high for Zhou Qing to consider.

The man immediately spat, "You think I don't want to buy? If I hadn't been delayed by catching crickets, I'd have bought it in time!"

Zhou Qing...

Huh?

She didn't expect him to say that!

She glanced at the shopkeeper: What kind of person is this!

The shopkeeper sighed. "He's my brother-in-law."

Zhou Qing...

Damn!

With this relationship, do I even stand a chance?

"How about this: you both want my recommendation, but I only have one left. How about a competition? Fair and open, the winner gets it."

Zhou Qing...

The man frowned at the shopkeeper. "Compete? With our relationship, even if we compete, it's rigged. Just give it to me!"

Zhou Qing...

The man then pointed at Zhou Qing. "Take the silver and get lost! Don't add to my trouble here."

The shopkeeper slapped down the man's raised finger. "If you want the spot, compete. Otherwise, forfeit. Your choice."

"Brother!"

"Don't call me brother!"

"Big brother!"

Zhou Qing...

Shen Li...

The shopkeeper ignored him and smiled at Zhou Qing. "Miss Zhou, what do you think? If you're okay with it, let's set a time."

Zhou Qing didn't hesitate. "Fine, let's compete tomorrow."

The man irritably pushed Zhou Qing. "What competition? Just get lost! Don't you see the relationship here? Even if you compete, you won't win!"

Shen Li stepped forward, standing between Zhou Qing and the man, blocking his push.

The man didn't care, a push is a push.

But despite a strong push, Shen Li didn't budge.

"Alright, tomorrow morning at the bookstore. If your father wins, he gets the spot."

The shopkeeper pulled the man behind him and smiled at Zhou Qing. "How about it?"

Shen Li...

He looked down at Zhou Qing. "Is that okay?"

Zhou Qing smiled at the shopkeeper. "Thank you. See you tomorrow. Here's a little gift, homegrown."

She pushed a basket of vegetables grown by Zhao towards the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper's brother-in-law rolled his eyes. "Country bumpkin, just get lost."

Zhou Qing ignored him, chatted with the shopkeeper for a bit, and left.

Outside Yunhai Bookstore, Zhou Qing asked Shen Li, "What's going on? Do you know that guy?"

_____

Footnotes:

[1] It means that Shen Li adhered to the principle of dedication to duty (resolve, loyalty, and commitment).