Disaster Apocalypse: Farming, Family, and My Hidden Secret Space-Chapter 32. Classmates

"Awake?" Feeling the movement in her arms, Mrs. Qi gently sat her daughter up and spoke softly. freewebnσvel.cѳm

"Mhm," Hua Jin nodded, "Mother, how long did I sleep?"

"Not long, you probably started sleeping when we got on the carriage. Sister, you’re almost as good as the god of sleep."

It was Little Fourth’s voice, and after speaking, this cheeky little one even clicked his tongue.

How could Little Fourth miss such a good opportunity to tease his sister? He spoke up before his mother.

Being mocked by her brother, could Hua Jin just sit still?

As soon as she sat upright, her hand flicked towards her brother’s head in a playful act of retaliation. "Calling yourself a man, yet with such little tolerance. If you’re jealous that I can sleep in mother’s arms all the way, just say so. As your sister, I won’t stoop to your level."

"Jealous... Sis, you must be joking. How could a manly man like me be jealous?" Little Fourth stood up abruptly, pointing at himself.

To say the least, his face turning red and neck thickening did seem like someone protesting too much, causing laughter among everyone in the carriage.

Granny Hua even directly hugged her little grandson, laughing, "So Little Fourth also wants to be held, huh? Don’t worry, grandma’s arms are warm too."

"Grandma..." Little Fourth objected. Even if he were foolish, he could tell that grandma was teasing him, so he blushed, broke free from her embrace, and hid by his grandfather’s side.

He was a man and wouldn’t argue with women who have long hair and short knowledge.

Amidst the laughter and teasing, the ox cart entered the town, and Hua Jin’s attention began to shift.

At this early hour, the sun was barely rising, yet the stalls on both sides of the street were already set up. Apparently, they weren’t the only ones up this early, observed Hua Jin as she looked at the vendors setting up.

The town was not as small as Hua Jin had imagined. The street seemed long, stretching endlessly. The buildings on either side weren’t very tall, mostly single-story structures. Overall, it wasn’t disappointing, much better than the village environment.

Though not paved with cobblestone, the street was covered with gravel. The buildings on both sides were mostly brick or a mix of stone and wood, indicating a higher standard of living compared to the village, with people dressed in better and more colorful clothing.

The street was already bustling with people at this early hour, living up to the excitement of this bi-monthly gathering.

Sitting in the ox cart, Hua Jin watched with great interest.

Since they weren’t too late, the family quickly found a stall. On either side were vendors selling fish and mountain goods, and their faces appeared kind with smiles.

With many people in the family, the things on the cart were quickly unloaded, leaving grandparents and mother to look after the stall. Hua Jin and her brother then got back on the cart to accompany Father in taking their two older brothers to the academy.

Hua Jin was very curious about the ancient academy, having come to town, she definitely had to take a look.

Just half a cup of tea’s time later, the ox cart stopped in a quieter area compared to the bustling market. The space in front was much more spacious than the shop fronts on the street, and the structure of the house appeared more grand and emitted a sense of tranquility.

Hua Jin raised her eyes to the academy’s entrance, where four gold-embossed characters read "Bai Chuan Academy."

"Embracing all the rivers, there is great capacity"—a very apt name.

The characters were strong and vigorous, strokes fluid like a dragon’s dance. Although Hua Jin didn’t understand much, she could tell that the person’s calligraphy skills who wrote this must be quite good.

At this moment, students in threes and twos were walking towards the academy.

"Yun Ao..."

Following the voice Hua Jin saw a boy dressed in a gentle scholar’s attire, walking towards them with a gentle smile.

"Luo Song," said Hua Yunao, jumping off the ox cart with good spirits to greet him, then introduced his siblings, whose eyes shone with curiosity.

"This is an elder brother’s good friend, call him Brother Luo Song."

"Hello, Brother Luo Song," Hua Jin’s eyes lit up as she obediently called out, secretly marveling at what a handsome young man he was.

This Brother Luo Song was indeed very talented-looking, with a long and slender frame that, within a few years, would surely become an eye-catching handsome man. Hua Jin couldn’t help but glance a few more times for he was quite pleasing to the eye.

With the eldest sister speaking up, the competitive Little Fourth quickly called out too.

Luo Song nodded, indicating with his head, but it was clear that his smile deepened slightly, then he looked at the people behind him, took a paper-wrapped parcel, and said softly, "Hello to you too, this is something Brother brought for you to eat."

Just by looking at the packaging, one could tell it must be some expensive kind of pastry. The siblings didn’t dare to take it and quickly shook their heads.

"Thank you, Brother Luo Song. We have eaten our breakfast."

Never mind that they had already eaten; even if they hadn’t, they mustn’t take others’ things carelessly.

Even when relatives exchange gifts, sometimes it’s nothing more than a few eggs, so a package of pastries was already quite a generous gesture.

Eldest Brother Hua proudly touched his sister’s soft hair. As expected of his sister, not a shallow girl with short sights.

He smiled at Song Luo, "No need to be polite, we’ve already eaten at home."

But Luo Song directly pushed the paper-wrapped parcel into Little Fourth’s hand. "If you’ve eaten, save it for noon, it’s for my little brother and sister. Quickly go, the time is almost up."

Then, without giving Hua Chengtian and the others a chance to refuse, he nodded at Hua Chengtian and walked towards the academy first.

"..."

Glancing at the things in their hands, Hua Jin and Little Fourth looked at their older brothers, especially Little Fourth, suddenly having the package in his hand, he hadn’t even had time to push it back, now felt a bit uncertain.

Touching the little brother’s head, Eldest Brother Hua smiled gently, "It’s alright, since it was given to you, just take it. Brother Luo Song doesn’t lack these things."

The main point is that this young master never takes back anything he gives out.

Well! At worst, just help him with a few more homework assignments.

Song Luo’s looks are really deceiving, appearing gentle and elegant, but that’s only when he’s not annoyed. In fact, he doesn’t show much kindness to anyone except a few he likes.

He’s obviously very smart, understanding anything with just a point, but the problem is... he’s too lazy.

Too lazy to read, too lazy to do homework, mostly outsourcing it to classmates, though with pretty decent rewards, making the academy’s teacher both love and hate him.

Eldest Brother Hua thought about how he often advised Song Luo to do his homework himself, yet in the end, he has to help him with homework.

"..."

A bit of a headache, Eldest Brother Hua even suspected that this guy was doing it on purpose.

With Elder Brother saying so, the slightly uneasy Little Fourth immediately relaxed.

"But... Brother, will it... cause any trouble for you?"

Hua Jin wasn’t really a child, so she thought a little more.

Taking things from others makes one indebted! After all, school life isn’t always as good as imagined.

The caring eyes from his sister warmed Eldest Brother’s heart, "Don’t worry, little girls shouldn’t worry so much, or they won’t be pretty." Then he looked at Father, "Father, it’s time for us to go."

"Go ahead," Hua Chengtian nodded, having not expressed any opinion on the paper-wrapped package from start to finish, trusting that his son could handle this matter.

"Father, about this package?" Hua Jin pointed at the paper-wrapped parcel in her brother’s hand.

"Since your elder brother’s classmate gave it, it’s fine, just keep it."

Seeing her father’s natural gaze, Hua Jin really felt relieved.

Moreover, for her elder brother to say such things, it indicated a good relationship with this classmate.

In that brief moment of distraction, Little Fourth had already opened the paper-wrapped parcel. "These pastries are beautiful," the little guy exclaimed.