Jing Xingzhi’s Daily Life in Ancient Times

Fang Yaojun observed his expression carefully and replied in a very low voice, “Brother, I… I have something to discuss with you.”

After saying this, she raised her little face, glanced up briefly, and quickly looked away as if trying to hide.

Wu Mingrui took in all these nuances, nodded, and said, “Then go ahead and speak.”

It seemed like a simple sentence, just a permission to talk. However, the disappearance of the unhappy look on his face transformed it into a sign of approval in Fang Yaojun’s eyes.

Thinking about what she wanted to ask, Fang Yaojun felt her heart racing like a jumping rabbit, making her breathe quickly and feel inexplicably nervous.

“Well,” Fang Yaojun paused, “What does Senior Brother Wu think of me?”

A few days ago, Fang Yaojun had mentioned to Jing Xingzhi and Fang Qichen that she wanted to give it a try—revisit the previous topic and focus on asking Wu Mingrui if he was interested. After reconsidering, Fang Yaojun felt it might be a bit presumptuous, but asking the question shouldn’t hurt.

After posing the question, Fang Yaojun immediately bit her lower lip, lowered her head, and didn’t dare to look at Wu Mingrui again.

Wu Mingrui was stunned.

He hadn’t expected such a direct question from the girl.

What did he think of her?

Wu Mingrui’s initial impression was that of a cute little girl. Her eyes would turn red when she was a bit unhappy, but in an instant, the sadness would transform into a smile.

They had met once before, and Wu Mingrui had pondered it over and over, never realizing that he had been noticed.

Though not outstanding in appearance, he had a fair and upright demeanor, earning him the reputation of ‘seemingly a upright person’ in the academy. In terms of literary talent, he believed he lagged behind the little girl’s senior brother.

Anything else? Had he behaved improperly?

Wu Mingrui thought deeply, but the waiting girl grew anxious.

Fang Yaojun gathered the courage to raise her eyes and glance at Senior Brother Wu, only to find him in a daze, as if wandering in another world.

Embarrassed and frustrated, Fang Yaojun reached out and tugged on Wu Mingrui’s sleeve, almost on the verge of tears. “Please say something!”

Her soft and plaintive voice snapped Wu Mingrui back to reality.

Looking down, Wu Mingrui’s attention was drawn to the little girl whose eyes had turned red again.

AWu Mingrui collected his thoughts, afraid of causing tears. He immediately said, “Miss Fang, you are very nice. In my eyes, you are still young and not familiar with me. I think it’s a misunderstanding.”

Fang Yaojun felt aggrieved; she liked him a lot, but she couldn’t express it. So, she nodded quietly and muttered a soft “hmm.”

“It’s getting late. Miss Fang, where is your maid? It’s better to have someone with you,” Wu Mingrui suggested, looking at Fang Yaojun alone.

Pursing her lips, Fang Yaojun glanced at the still bright sky and muttered, “It’s obviously still early, the sky is still bright.”

Wu Mingrui inwardly shook his head. The focus of his words wasn’t on the sky but on the maid. Yet, he understood it was the little girl being upset, scanning the distance to see if the maids were eavesdropping.

Normally, a maid serving someone wouldn’t dare to leave her master’s side. Fang Yaojun grew angrier at his behavior, clearly upset rather than aggrieved at this moment.

She groaned, widened her eyes, and took a step towards Wu Mingrui. “Senior Brother Wu, if we’re on good terms, you can call me Yaojun.”

Wu Mingrui took a step back, saying with a headache, “Miss Fang…”

Fang Yaojun stomped her feet in frustration and glanced at Wu Mingrui with burning eyes. “Do you know the origin of my name? If you tell me, I’ll leave!”

When Wu Mingrui heard that the little girl agreed to leave, he thought for a moment and answered, “From ‘The Book of Songs,’ Guan Ju, a graceful lady and the gentleman is very kind.”

Finishing the answer, Wu Mingrui felt something was wrong, and a blush slowly spread on his face. He explained, “You tricked me; it doesn’t count.”

Fang Yaojun, despite not looking at him much, boldly asked about the name’s origin, her face rosier than Wu Mingrui’s. She hesitated and said, “Senior Brother Wu has answered. I’ll leave right now.”

Saying that, she turned around and walked away briskly.

Wu Mingrui followed her silently with the book in hand, waiting until he saw Fang Yaojun and the maid walking together before turning around and leaving.

.

Disturbed, Wu Mingrui couldn’t focus on his book. He strolled to the outer courtyard to find Jing Xingzhi.

Arriving at Jing Xingzhi’s house, Wu Mingrui laid down softly in the study, resting his head on his arms, and asked casually, “Xingzhi, where is my sister-in-law? He doesn’t seem to be at home.” He saw no one when he came in.

Jing Xingzhi moved a chair, turned around, and replied, “Liu Fang is doing accounting in the county shop today. He won’t come back to sleep.

He raised his foot and kicked Wu Mingrui’s foot. “Brother Mingrui, you came here for something. Your face says it all.”

“You still asked! I was harmed by you!” Wu Mingrui stood up upon hearing this. “Miss Fang just came to see me.”

“My little junior sister is quite cute, except for being a crybaby. I didn’t harm you; you had a lot of fun that day when you flew the kite.” Jing Xingzhi’s tone was helpless. He never expected his junior sister to have a crush on Wu Mingrui.

‘Although Brother Mingrui is a good person, don’t girls usually prefer young men who appear more powerful?’

Wu Mingrui ignored him and recounted what happened just now: “Miss Fang asked me what I thought of her, and I excused her by saying she was young. By the way, she didn’t bring her maid when she came over and left her alone elsewhere. This is not good; we need to be cautious.”

“Alright, I’ll remember that. I appreciate Brother Mingrui for this!” Jing Xingzhi and Wu Mingrui shook hands.

Wu Mingrui smiled, patted him, and urged, “Be careful.”

After repeated warnings, Jing Xingzhi suddenly focused on him and asked, “Why do I feel that Brother Mingrui is acting a bit off today?”

Wu Mingrui looked away, glanced at him, then looked away and snorted. “I think there’s something off with you.”

After saying that, Wu Mingrui laid down again and asked Jing Xingzhi, “By the way, when will you have a wedding banquet? Your wife was only a few years old when he was brought into the family. Although both of you are registered in the household, but the family usually hold an engagement banquet first to inform relatives and friends of the new addition. When the children grow up, they can organize a wedding banquet. It’s not far from a normal wedding.”

Wu Mingrui considered changing the topic but then thought that Liu Fang was not young, so he brought it up.

Jing Xingzhi paused; a bit dizzy about why the topic of getting married came up suddenly. But as Wu Mingrui talked about it, those customs came to mind, and there was indeed such a thing as a wedding banquet.

However, he and Liu Fang were brothers, so it felt strange to discuss getting married.

Wu Mingrui said directly, “My sister-in-law is getting old. This is not the right. Are you thinking about something else?”

Wu Mingrui’s face became serious as he stared at Jing Xingzhi.

Not wanting to host a wedding banquet generally wasn’t a good sign. Moreover, when Wu Mingrui considered the relationship between Xingzhi and his sister-in-law, it was clear that there was no problem; they just seemed a little close.

Thinking that Jing Xingzhi was reliable, Wu Mingrui slowly relaxed and said with a smile, “If you wait until then, you may regret it too late. But to be honest, it’s not good to delay this matter.”

“I… let me think about it.” Jing Xingzhi nodded, lost in thought. A few words were running through his mind, “I, Liu Fang, get married…”

.

In the backyard of Jing’s Department Store in County, Hua Amu and Xiu Amu were sitting together chatting. Liu Fang was sitting on the side, fiddling with the abacus, making crackling sounds.

Xiu Amu mentioned the situation in his family: “Erniu is really a fool. He wasn’t happy when I asked him to find someone to exchange goods. This time, it’ll be better thank moving all over the country.”

In the department store business, there were also shops in the county. However, Liu Fang chose the place carefully, and the goods were complete.

Jingjia Village could also produce new items from time to time to attract tourists, gaining fame in just one month.

Liu Fang, the department store owner, wanted to repay the village by allowing the village to collectively held more shares than he did individually. This way, Liu Fang could also free up time to run on both sides. Completing the task alone would take a lot of time. Although he earned less money now, he gained prestige in the village and could free up a lot of time. This shop was Liu Fang’s most satisfying achievement.

Soon, Liu Fang finished his work, and while packing his things, he listened to Hua Amu and Xiu Amu talking about their families. Both of them were married, so the conversation inevitably turned to their children, family, livelihood, etc.

While Hua Amu responded to Xiu Amu’s words, he looked up and saw Fang Ge’er looking at them with a smile, his eyes kind like those of an elder. Hua Amu smiled and pinched Fang Ge’er’s face: “This face is much smoother; it looks like it’s been well taken care of.”

Xiu Amu also smiled: “Let me touch it too.”

Liu Fang allowed Xiu Amu to touch him and then pulled back his face: “I haven’t done much lately, so I’m getting better.”

Although Fang Ge’er was malnourished, he had a good appearance, looking pretty and handsome. After a month passed, Liu Fang ate well and slept well; his complexion became rosy, and he looked like he had gained weight.

Hua Amu looked him up and down, feeling very happy. He held Liu Fang’s hand and said, “You’ve finally made it through! There will definitely be good times in the future!”

Xiu Amu covered his mouth and smiled: “I’m afraid the good times are not far away; the little scholar is almost sixteen. What if people get anxious and organize wedding banquets on the 15th!”

Xiu Amu’s mention of the wedding banquet was not a sudden thought. Liu Fang moved to live near the academy to take care of Jing Xingzhi conveniently. Now that the young couple’s life seemed to be getting better, and they had nothing to worry about, the elders in the village were thinking that the young couple should take care of things in advance to avoid a rush after having a child.

Hua Amu smiled and glanced at Xiu Amu, thinking it was a good idea. The two looked at each other, then looked at Liu Fang with a smile, waiting to see the young shuanger blush. But Liu Fang frowned and said, “Don’t worry.”

He was skilled in business, but emotionally… there was no progress! Ahhhh!!