My Promotion Story Through Time Travel

Chapter 49 Reunion with Tao Ju'an

The group followed the village head, bypassing the road overflowing with excrement and urine, and headed towards the center of the village.

"Did the young master Tao get into some trouble at the academy?" the village head asked cautiously.

Lin Ziping replied, "No, Tao Ju'an has nothing to do. We just came to visit him."

"You call him Tao Ju'an?" the village chief asked, looking at Lin Ziping.

Lin Ziping's heart skipped a beat. Had he come to the wrong place? Was the person he was supposed to meet not Tao Ju'an?

Seeing that Lin Ziping did not speak, the village chief smiled and said, "We all call him Mangwa. Young master, please don't laugh at him. A humble name is easy to raise. He has never been very talkative since he was a child. There was an old scholar in the village at that time, and he followed the old scholar around all day. He learned two words, and his family sent him to the city to take the exam for some academy. Unexpectedly, he actually passed the exam."

"Village chief, is he his only child?" Fang Zhili asked.

“Mangwazi also has an older sister and a younger brother. The younger brother seems like a good student and is currently studying in the city. The older sister does embroidery to help support the family, and she's almost twenty and still unmarried.” The village head sighed, “We thought that if Mangwazi could pass the imperial examination and become a scholar, his family would be able to relax a bit, but who knew…”

The group remained silent and continued walking in the footsteps of the village chief.

"It's right here," the village chief said to the group, pointing to a fence made of trees on a hillside.

"Tao Lao Er, Tao Lao Er, is your Mangwa home? Someone is looking for him!" the village chief shouted from outside the fence.

A moment later, a voice came from inside saying, "Village chief, village chief, you're home, you're home."

The fence offered no concealment whatsoever; one could see several houses inside from the outside. Lin Ziping peered out and saw a woman dressed in coarse cloth with an apron tied around her waist, probing ahead with a stick as she walked towards the door.

"This is Mangwa's mother. She used to go blind from embroidering so much," the village head explained.

"Mangwa's mother, I've come looking for Mangwa. Is he home?" the village chief shouted into the house.

The woman walked to the door, opened it, and said to the village head, "Mangwa went up the mountain to carry firewood this morning; he should be back soon."

"Oh, these young masters are Mangwa's classmates. They've come to visit him today," the village chief said to his wife. "It's Tao Lao Er's house now. We can't have guests without someone in charge."

"My husband has gone to the fields to tend the crops. I'll go and call him back right now," the woman said hurriedly.

"Never mind, I'll send Shuisheng." The village chief waved his hand and shouted to the crowd behind him, "Shuisheng, go to the field and call your second uncle back."

"Okay, Grandpa," a child in the crowd behind him replied.

"Village Chief, gentlemen, please come in and have a seat," the woman said, stepping aside.

"Please come in, gentlemen." The village chief entered first and invited the group in.

Lin Ziping walked in. The courtyard was very tidy and clean. There was a tree in the courtyard, and several chairs were placed under the tree.

Several older women who had been with the crowd also came in, brought out some stools from inside the house, and invited Lin Ziping and the others to sit down. Then they followed Tao Ju'an's mother into the kitchen.

"The countryside is simple, please don't find it offensive, young masters," the village chief said apologetically.

Ji Xun bowed to the village chief and said, "We apologize for our sudden visit."

The village chief's smile deepened as he chatted with the others.

"Mangwazi is back! Mangwazi is back!" came the excited shouts of children outside.

Lin Ziping looked towards the door and saw Tao Ju'an, shirtless and with dark skin, carrying a pile of firewood taller than a person, walking towards them. He looked surprised when he saw Lin Ziping and the others.

The village chief frowned upon seeing this: "We have guests at home, what kind of behavior is this?"

Tao Ju'an placed the firewood at the door, put on his clothes, and walked in. His forehead was covered with sweat, and he looked somewhat ashamed. He bowed to the village head.

The village chief waved his hand: "Go wash up and come back later."

Tao Ju'an bowed to the group and then withdrew.

"Please forgive us," the village chief said.

Ji Xun smiled and shook his head, not taking it to heart.

Fang Zhili leaned close to Lin Ziping's ear and said, "Are you sure this is Tao Ju'an? How come he has changed so much in just a few days?"

Lin Ziping ignored Fang Zhili and was quite surprised. After not seeing Tao Ju'an for a few days, he had lost the image of a weak scholar. Perhaps labor really is the best way to train a person!

"This is spring water from the mountains, please don't find it too bad, young masters," the village head said apologetically as he handed out water to the group, brought out by a woman.

Lin Ziping took it and saw that it was a cup made of bamboo, with a few daisies soaking in the water.

"This water is sweet and has a faint bamboo fragrance. Ah, this water!" Ji Xun praised.

Upon hearing this, the group took a sip and repeatedly praised the village chief.

"If you like it, drink more," the village chief said with a smile.

At this moment, Tao Ju'an also finished washing up and came out, wearing the academy's clothes. Apart from being a bit dark-skinned, he looked like a frail scholar.

This might be what they mean by "muscular when naked, slim when clothed." Lin Ziping thought back to when he first met Tao Ju'an, how he looked being bullied while wearing his undergarments, and how it was quite different from how he looked now.

"Mangwa's here. Keep your classmate company. I'm leaving now." The village chief stood up to take his leave when he saw Tao Ju'an arrive, and the others also stood up and bowed.

Tao Ju'an wasn't familiar with Ji Xun, so he smiled politely and looked at Lin Ziping, saying, "Young Master Ziping, what brings you here?"

Seeing that the young man seemed unaffected by his poor performance in the prefectural examination, Lin Ziping said, "We've come to see you."

"Is it because of the prefectural examination? I'm so sorry to trouble you, Young Master Ziping," Tao Ju'an said with a smile.

Seeing this, Lin Ziping retracted his words of comfort and asked, "Brother Ju'an, what are your plans for the future? Will you take the exam again next year?"

Tao Ju'an shook his head and said, "I won't take the exam. I'll find something else to do. The academy taught me a lot of skills, so I can't starve to death."

Lin Ziping was about to say something when a middle-aged man who looked about five-tenths like Tao Ju'an entered.

“Father,” Tao Ju’an called out.

The man put down his hoe and smiled憨厚ly: "Mang... Ju'an, these are your classmates, right? You should keep them company. It's almost noon, so the young masters can have lunch at home."

Lin Ziping and the others looked at each other and declined, saying, "No need, seeing that Brother Ju'an is alright, we should go back too."

"You've only been here a short while, why are you leaving already? Ju... Ju'an, please invite your classmate to stay for a meal at your home." The man hurriedly said to Tao Ju'an upon hearing this.

"Several young masters have come from afar, and I, Ju'an, have prepared a simple feast to sincerely invite you all to join us," said Tao Ju'an.

Upon seeing this, the group bowed and said, "We are sorry to have troubled you."

Tao Ju'an's father waved his hand awkwardly and said, "Don't bother me, don't bother me, I'll go prepare right away."

After saying that, he quickly left.

Ji Xun gave a wink to the guards who had come with him, and soon the guards brought up the prepared snacks and meat.

Ji Xun took the snacks from the guard and handed them to Tao Ju'an: "Brother Ju'an, we came in a hurry, this is just a small gift, please accept it. Acheng, take the things inside."

Tao Ju'an waved his hands repeatedly: "Young Master Ji, this is unacceptable."

"Tao Ju'an, please don't refuse. We feel a little embarrassed to eat at your house for free," He Jinbao said with a smile.

"Brother Ju'an, please accept it," Lin Ziping said.

“Alas, then I shall respectfully comply,” Tao Ju’an said.

After the group put their things in the house, a young woman came in. Tao Ju'an introduced her, "This is my elder sister."

Tao Ju'an's sister curtsied and left.

Lin Ziping and his companions had a meal at Tao Ju'an's house before leaving. Lin Ziping wanted to ask Tao Ju'an his opinion on Jia Daneng's success in the prefectural examination, but he never had the chance. He thought he would ask him later. Little did he know that they would not see each other again for more than ten years. By then, everything had changed, and he could only sigh at the cruel twist of fate.