HELPING AT YULIANG VILLAGE

Yuliang Village was located not too far from Sisheng Peak. It was a small village with a lot of old people and not many young people who could help with the harvest. The village thus regularly asked for help from everywhere, including Sisheng Peak. Most cultivation sects would refuse this kind of request because it had nothing to do with cultivation. Even those who originated from farmer families refused to come back to help because they felt that farming was beneath them. Thankfully, Xue Zhengyong did not think that way.

Xue Zhengyong and his brother used to roll in poverty. It was by the grace of heaven that the two brothers manage to build Sisheng Peak from scratch. Sect Leader Xue would always remember that he too once was only a common person with neither cultivation nor riches. Although he knew that helping with the harvest season contributed neither to prestige nor cultivation progress, he still sent disciples over every year to help the elders at Yuliang Village.

As soon as Chu Wanning and Mo Ran arrived at the village, the villagers gathered to greet Mo Ran like an old friend. Apparently, it was not his first time helping out at Yuliang Village. On the other side, when the villagers caught a glimpse of this white-robed, pristine grandmaster who came with Mo Ran, they immediately straightened their backs in anxiety.

Why would Sect Leader Xue send this prestigious-looking cultivator to help them? He was dressed in pure white clothes and pure white shoes. He looked like a deity who just descended from heaven! Absolutely not suitable for field work!

Mo Ran, dressed properly in black and simple attire, smiled at the Village Head and introduced his shizun.

"Village Head, this year my shizun is also coming to help. Please take care of us."

A long "Ooooooh" made its round among the villagers. After Mo Ran introduced him as his own shizun, Chu Wanning suddenly became an even greater object of interest in the eyes of the villagers.

"I see, I see!!"

"So it is Young Master Mo's shizun!"

"No wonder he looks so dignified! A grandmaster indeed!"

Chu Wanning was not used to being at the center of attention. He felt uncomfortable when being showered by praise and admiration like that. Unfortunately, there was no place to hide. Except for Mo Ran's broad shoulders and strong back.

Mo Ran stepped in front of Chu Wanning as if trying to hide him away from the world and protect him from pairs of curious eyes.

"Everyone is too kind. Let us help with some work before the sun sets."

"Oh, sure! Sure!"

The Village Head almost forgot why the two cultivators from Sisheng Peak were even there. "Over here, both cultivators..."

He led Chu Wanning and Mo Ran toward the fields. More than thirty farmers were already busy at work, cutting the golden rice stalks off the paddies with scythes and stacking them at the edge of the paddy fields. A beautiful girl sat at the edge of a wooden hut some distance away while swinging her legs playfully. She was singing a farm song with a pleasant voice to entertain the working farmers.

"The sun is setting and the red flowers are shining.

Red flowers from four mountains sing love songs against the peony.

Oh red fan, ask your lover about hydrangea.

I am pulling on my husband's belt..."

The young woman immediately stopped singing when she caught sight of Mo Ran.

"Mo-Gege!" she excitedly waved at Mo Ran. "You came!"

Mo Ran beamed at the girl. Chu Wanning's face darkened.

Was Mo Ran flirting with another woman while Ye Wangxi was nursing her injuries back at Sisheng Peak?

Chu Wanning could not believe it.

The young woman ran along the rice paddies while laughing out loud. She then threw herself into Mo Ran's arms and let Mo Ran swing her around like a little child. "Mo-Gege! I miss you so much!"

Chu Wanning almost snapped then and there. Mo Ran and the young woman were too busy hugging each other. Neither of them noticed the dangerous golden light that crackled around Chu Wanning's right wrist.

Mo Ran released the young woman and rubbed at her head affectionately. "Ling'er, you have grown up."

The young woman who Mo Ran just addressed with "Ling'er" beamed at him. "Mo-Gege has become even more handsome too!"

Chu Wanning could not stand the flirting anymore. He wanted to admonish the shameless couple then and there, but it was not Sisheng Peak. They came there to help with harvesting so they should just start working. If Mo Ran was not going to work, then he could just stand there and continue flirting with "Ling'er". Chu Wanning could not care less. Angrily, Yuheng Elder, who never liked to see a public display of affection between couples, turned to the Village Chief and asked, "What should I do?"

The Village Chief was dumbfounded. What should he do? Of course cutting rice off the field. What else was there to do?

Nevertheless, he showed Chu Wanning the farming tools. He was glad to see Chu Wanning pick a scythe and stomp off to an unattended rice field.

Mo Ran gazed at Chu Wanning's back. For some reason, his shizun was displeased again. He quickly let Ling'er go and followed Chu Wanning after picking another scythe.

"Shizun, don't you know how to harvest? I can teach you..."

The rest of his words were stuck in his throat when he saw the burning glare in Chu Wanning's eyes. Why was his shizun suddenly so angry? And he was angry at him too!

"Teach me? You are a hundred years too early to teach me!" the shizun snapped. He then humphed and walked to the other end of the rice field, leaving Mo Ran baffled with a scythe in his hand.

Now, the problem was that Chu Wanning really did not know how to cut rice. He had expected to learn from Mo Ran, but Mo Ran behaved lecherously in front of him. He would rather embarrass himself than ask Mo Ran for help!

He did end up embarrassing himself because his clumsy movements invited ridicule from especially small children who had no filters in front of their mouths.

"Hahahahah, the immortal Gege in white is so stupid!" they mocked openly.

"..."

In his whole life, Chu Wanning had always been the best in his field. The word stupid was never put in the same sentence with his name. Now this small child who had not even completed his tenth year of life dared to call Yuheng Elder stupid. Chu Wanning was so angry that he almost vomited blood. At the same time, he was ashamed of himself. Why did he not know how to cut rice? Was this not a basic life skill? If Mo Ran that idiot could do it, so could he!

Chu Wanning squinted at the other farmers to see how they did it, but they were all too far away. Besides, they were seasoned farmers. It was impossible to look at their swift movements. The farmer and the scythe seemed to have melted into one, working effectively from one corner of the rice field to another.

Was it because he was not used to using a scythe?

if Chu Wanning did not know better, he would summon Huaisha to see whether he had better compatibility with Huaisha in terms of farm work.

Lacking better options, Chu Wanning stole glances at Mo Ran who was working at the opposite end of the field diligently. The hard labor messed the man's clothes up. The collar that was properly closed at the beginning is now open, revealing an expanse of the honey-brown, muscular chest that moved up and down with Mo Ran's heavy breathing. Chu Wanning swallowed hard. And then he quickly admonished himself. What was he getting worked up for? If anything, Mo Ran was dressed indecently again! He must be showing off to that Ling'er. How inappropriate! Lecherous! Outrageous!

Chu Wanning could not believe that he almost asked Mo Ran to teach him. Hmph! He would rather drown in shame than ask for Mo Ran's help.

On the other side, if he could not openly ask for help, he could always observe.

Yes.

That's it.

Chu Wanning thought that he was pretty smart. He only needed to watch Mo Ran work for some time, and then he would surely know how to do it by himself.

The shizun thus approached Mo Ran from behind and observed him secretly. Then again it was difficult to watch from behind. Chu Wanning got closer. No, it was still too far. He did not quite catch Mo Ran's movements. A little bit closer...

Mo Ran was focused on his work. He was thinking of finishing the work as fast as possible so that his shizun did not have to work too hard that day. The sun was shining so brightly. What if Chu Wanning could not stand the bright sun? His complexion was so pale. He originally never worked under the sun for a long time, even prior to his five-year seclusion.

Sigh. Mo Ran had originally wanted Chu Wanning to just sit back, relax, and enjoy the farm scenery while he did the work for the both of them. Who would know that Chu Wanning was so devoted to his mission that he could not sit still even for a second? While Mo Ran was grumbling to himself about Chu Wanning's unreasonable behavior, he suddenly noticed that someone was looming behind him. Shocked, he turned around right away to see who it was.

Chu Wanning on the other side was busy looking at Mo Ran's hands and scythe. When Mo Ran suddenly turned around, Chu Wanning was so surprised that he misplaced his weight. To make matters worse, he went into the field in his white shoes. They were not meant to be used for field work at all. The icy cold water numbed his feet and the slippery, wet mud caused him to lose balance.

Chu Wanning's lips parted in surprise when he fell backward. Mo Ran was so shocked that he immediately threw his scythe aside to catch Chu Wanning. Unfortunately, in his haste, he failed to grab Chu Wanning's waist. He grabbed at his shizun's belt instead...