There was a school in the county, and the tuition was only fifty cents a month, which was cheap. Many families in the villages who had extra money would send their sons and daughters to study there.

But this does not include the Huo family.

The family was too poor. Huo Duan had never been to school until he was 19 years old. How could he learn to read?

More and more details appeared in Gu Fengyan's mind layer by layer, one after another... He always felt that Huo Duan was not stupid, he just seemed to be pretending to be stupid!

Just when he was about to ask him more questions, he saw Huo Duan entering the store with a bag of wheat.

Gu Fengyan was afraid that something might go wrong and he might suffer a loss, so he hurried to follow.

After bargaining with the shop owner for a long time, I finally exchanged the wheat. I headed back as the sun set, and I had to get Father Huo's medicine at the village entrance.

When he got home, Gu Fengyan was tired and hungry, and had long forgotten the doubts in his mind.

…

The next day was a very cloudy day, with thick gray rain clouds piling up on the horizon.

The first spring rain is about to fall.

As usual, the Huo family's father and son got up early. Huo's father swept the yard with a broom made of thin bamboo strips, while Huo sat on the edge of the yard to eat breakfast - wheat porridge mixed with chopped wild vegetables.

Gu Fengyan was very tired yesterday. He rubbed his eyes and got up only after hearing the sound of sweeping the floor outside the window.

While sweeping the floor, Father Huo was nagging Huo Duan about his plans. "It's going to rain soon, so finish your meal quickly and plant the crops in the field. Only when they are watered thoroughly can you get a good harvest. The two plots of corn at the door are tender and easy to pick to make corn pancakes in the summer. Let Brother Yan have some to taste..."

"The land near the ditch is close to the water, so plant wheat there. The seeds are in the main room... I told your brother Dashan yesterday, and I think he will come to help after dinner."

Huo Duan had never worked before. After walking around the county, he felt exhausted. He also had trouble eating and sleeping, so he just nodded dejectedly.

Not happy to see him like this, Father Huo frowned and started to scold him, "You kid—"

"Father." Gu Fengyan spoke at the right time.

"Brother Yan, why don't you sleep a little longer? It's still early." Seeing him, Father Huo smiled and said, "It's good that you're awake. The kitchen is making rice porridge for you with yesterday's pheasant soup. Wash your face and go eat it."

Huo Duan looked at his bowl of black and green rice and fell silent.

Gu Fengyan smiled and said, "I'm not hungry yet. Give the porridge to Brother Erdan. He has to go to plant crops in the spring, which is very strenuous. He should eat more."

Huo Duan didn't say a word. He finished the "rice" in the bowl in a few mouthfuls and went to the main room to get seeds.

The rice porridge in the pot was untouched.

He didn't have the habit of competing for food with weaklings. Gu Fengyan was tired after walking two steps, so it was only right for him to eat something slightly better.

…

Gu Fengyan didn't get to talk to Huo Duan and felt a little disappointed. He quickly washed his face and ate half of the rice porridge.

Since Ye Shan was helping Chun Zhong, he naturally had to stay for dinner.

Gu Fengyan took the initiative to take on the task of cooking, and Huo's father helped him.

The small river shrimps in the basin had spit out all the mud and sand, and were stir-fried with wild onions to make a full bowl of soup. The remaining half pheasant was also stewed.

The family had no way to make money for the time being, so they had to save food. Gu Fengyan cooked a pot of wheat porridge without adding any wild vegetables. He only put some salt when it was served. It was a good meal when paired with fried river shrimps and stewed pheasant.

There was a rumble of thunder outside the window, and it was about to rain. Father Huo limped into the house carrying a bundle of dry firewood, mumbling, "The rain came suddenly. We need to get some dry firewood into the house before it starts to rain... I wonder if Erdan and the others have planted the wheat yet."

"Father, let me do it." Gu Fengyan covered the dishes and warmed them on the stove. He wiped his hands and took the firewood that Father Huo was holding. "Your legs hurt when it rains. Take a rest."

Father Huo took a look at the neatly tidied chopping board and stove, and said with a satisfied smile:

"The meal is ready, you can go and rest. I have an old problem, and I have to move around to get through the pain. Don't fight with me."

"Yes." Gu Fengyan nodded and went to see if there was anything that needed to be collected and put away in the yard.

The dark clouds in the sky all ran to the top of the mountain and piled up into a thick layer. The branches of the peach trees in the yard were crackling, and people carrying baskets on their backs on the road on the other side of the river were running home quickly.

It seemed that Huo Duan did not bring any protection from the rain.

Gu Fengyan was thinking, and happened to see two straw raincoats and bamboo hats hanging at the door of the main hall, so he took them and gave them to Huo Duan and the others.

Several plots of land under the embankment have been planted with corn as instructed by Huo's father, and they will sprout after the rain. Huo Duan and his team are planting wheat in the ditch, which is quite a ways away from here.

As a result, as soon as Gu Fengyan reached the ditch, it started raining on the mountainside.

"Brother Dashan." Ye Shan and Huo Duan were collecting things in the rain. Gu Feng went down to the edge of the field and called for help.

Ye Shan didn't have a good impression of his brother-in-law. He glanced at him and said "hmm" lightly.

Huo Duan, on the other hand, was surprised and asked, "Why are you here?"

He also lent a hand to hold the man steady... It was not that he wanted to help, but the ground was slippery after the rain, and if the man fell, he would be the one who would be scolded and suffered.

But then again, why did this guy suddenly become so kind? In the past, he wouldn't have any reaction even if he died outside.

It’s strange that today someone would be so kind as to send them rain gear.

Gu Fengyan handed a raincoat to Ye Shan and said, "The meal is ready. I saw it was going to rain, so I thought of bringing you a raincoat."

"I'm afraid the rain is still stopping. Erdan, you take him back first and leave the backpack to me. If you get caught in the cold spring rain, you'll get sick and your uncle will scold you again..." Ye Shan is a good farmer and he can tell what the weather will be like just by looking up.

Huo Duan thought about it and felt that what his brother said was right, so he jumped onto the edge of the field first and pulled Gu Fengyan up, "Watch your step, don't fall, otherwise my father will definitely scold me."

The rain was getting heavier and heavier. Gu Fengyan had never walked on the mountain road before, and his feet kept slipping.

"We'll have to walk until dark if we keep doing this." Huo Duan put on his bamboo hat and raincoat, squatted down and said, "Come on, I'll carry you on my back."

Gu Fengyan was not used to close contact with others, "No, I'll go by myself."

"Come up. My father often carried me on his back when I was a child." Huo Duan looked at him without saying anything.

Most of the boys in this world are weak and difficult to raise. If they get gonorrhea, it will only make the already poor family even worse off... He also doesn't like to see Huo's father's dark face.

Gu Fengyan thought about it and decided, whatever.

Obediently, she lay on Huo Duan's back and said, "Thank you."

Huo Duan staggered home carrying someone on his back... This was the first time he carried someone on his back.

Fortunately, the original owner had a good physical foundation.

The two didn't talk much. Gu Fengyan listened to Huo Duan's slightly heavy breathing and suddenly felt that this fool was quite reliable.

He is a very nice person. Even though the original owner had been secretly bullying him, he never bore a grudge.

After dinner, Ye Shan hurried home.

The rain didn't stop at night, and there was no entertainment activity. It was a rainy day, so Father Huo took medicine and went to bed early.

I have to say that my brother's body is really weak. Gu Fengyan just got caught in the rain, but now he feels very cold and uncomfortable all over.

"Dad said it's cold at night when it rains, so he asked me to bring you a quilt." Gu Fengyan was folding his wet clothes, planning to wash them when the weather got better, when Huo Duan walked in holding a quilt.

After washing up, Huo Duan put on his slippers and only wore a coarse cloth shirt, looking like he was going to sleep.

The Huo family's house was small. Apart from the kitchen and the living room, there were only two bedrooms, one where Huo's father slept, and one for the couple.

After the original owner did not allow Huo Duan to enter the house, he had been sleeping in a thatched shed next to the kitchen where sundries were stored. It was fine when the weather was fine, but when it rained, the shed leaked and it rained heavily outside and drizzled inside.

Watching Huo Duan carefully spread out the quilt for him, Gu Fengyan thought, gritted his teeth, and said, "Why don't you move into the room and sleep tonight?"

Huo Duan turned around and said, "But... you didn't allow me to come in before."

The original owner didn't like Huo Duan, and since he was a boy, she was always worried that Huo Duan would do something inappropriate, so she drove him out.

Gu Fengyan moved his pillow towards the inside of the bed and said, "I've seen the room you live in. It's leaking and I can't sleep there. Please move in."

After spending these few days together, he felt that Huo Duan was not that kind of person.

Gu Fengyan got on the bed first, taking up the inner seat against the wall, leaving most of the outer half empty, "Go to bed early."

Huo Duan stood there for a while, completely bewildered. He felt that Gu Fengyan was no longer "Gu Fengyan", always doing things that went against common sense, as if he had been possessed by another spirit.

Could it be that this guy has come up with some new tricks to annoy people?

But what Gu Fengyan said was right. The thatched hut was now completely uninhabitable. He could still endure it when the weather was fine, but it was completely unbearable when it rained.

Although this house is not very strong, it can at least shelter us from wind and rain.

Soon, Huo Duan was defeated, took the pillow and carefully lay down next to Gu Fengyan.

If you don’t take advantage of a good opportunity, you’re a bastard!

Anyway, he let me sleep in the room...

Huo Duan slept well that night, but Gu Fengyan slept poorly.

His head felt the same heavy as when he woke up last time, and his eyelids were heavy, but sleepiness was as fragile as the thin ice on the surface of a spring lake.

I felt both cold and hot all over, and I couldn't breathe through my nose.

Gu Fengyan knew what was going on—he had a fever.

Because it rained yesterday.

The sunlight shone on his eyelids. Someone's chickens crowed on the other side of the river. Father Huo's cough came from the main room...

Huo Dian, who was beside him, seemed to sense that something was wrong with him and tested the temperature of his forehead with his palm. "It's so hot, do you have a fever?!"

Gu Fengyan was so confused by the fever that he could only see a shadow, "I want to drink some water..."

He said "It's so cold" again.

Huo Duan quickly wrapped the quilt around him and hurried out to pour some water.

After hearing the noise, Huo's father also came in. Looking at Gu Fengyan's flushed face, he anxiously scolded Huo Duan, "You were living well over there, why did you move back?!" Huo's father did not want to interfere too much in the affairs between the couple. He just glared at Huo Duan and sighed repeatedly.

Gu Fengyan heard everything clearly and wanted to say a few words to comfort Father Huo, but he didn't even have the strength to lift his eyelids, and he kept shouting "It's hot" with a weak breath.

Huo Duan thought to himself, what an unlucky guy he is.

He hurriedly pulled the quilt open a little bit, half-held the person in his arms and fed him water.

"Father, let me go to the village entrance and invite Doctor Liang." After finally drinking a few sips of the water, Huo Duan felt a little pity for the boy, as if he was holding a cooked sweet potato in his arms.

He got a fever because he wanted to buy himself some rain gear.

Father Huo sighed, "Alas! Doctor Liang went back to her parents' home with her husband yesterday. I'm afraid he won't be back until the afternoon... I need to ask the doctor to go to the county."

Gu Fengyan listened and thought...was he going to die again?

"What should I do..." Huo Duan put Gu Fengyan down and covered him with a quilt, "How about Dad, I'll go to the county!"

Father Huo frowned so hard that a fly could be killed. "It's too late! Not to mention the long distance to the county, it's raining and the oxcarts can't get through. The herbs are scarce and expensive, so we can't get them all together in a short time."

"I still have a prescription for Brother Yan'er's fever. I'll boil it for him. You watch him and wipe him with cold water. Don't expose him to the wind. The rest depends on luck."

Huo Duan immediately went out to fetch water in a wooden basin, but he was also very anxious... The last time this man had a fever, he was cured by the special medicine he got for free from the system.

There is no guarantee that Huo's medicine will work.

You can't gamble with human lives, right?

The best case scenario is to get some antipyretic medicine.

But the system may not give it to him.

Thinking about this, Huo Duan called out to the system that he had almost forgotten, "System, can you give me some more of the antipyretic medicine you gave me last time? I can use it to save my life."

drop--

"No." The system replied with three cold words without further explanation.

Huo Duan knew very well that there is no free lunch in the world, so he was not angry. He just chuckled and said, "You don't want to complete the task? You don't want to have performance? Your system is not kind enough to provide people with the opportunity to travel through time for free."

"Uh..." There was deathly silence on the system side.

Huo Duan continued: "I can choose whether to accept your mission or not. Anyway, I can live well here. But if I can get what I want... that's not certain."

Huo Duan is a businessman after all, and he understands the minds of businessmen best - exchanging interests.

"Uh..." After a while, the system finally spoke again, "The medicine has been delivered, and the task has been sent to your inbox. Please pick it up as soon as possible."

Huo Duan suddenly had a box of medicine in his hand, and the negotiation was very successful.

But he sold himself.

…

Gu Fengyan lay there in a daze, feeling extremely uncomfortable.

Sure enough, in this era, colds and fevers are serious illnesses that can be fatal.

The medical level is too backward.

Huo Duan came back and put a wet handkerchief on his forehead.

Gu Fengyan felt a little more comfortable and could hear what Huo Duan was chattering about.

"I sold myself to save you..." Huo Duan took out a capsule from the box, and picked up Gu Fengyan with the water in the bowl. "What do you call this? Selling yourself to bury your husband? No, it should be selling yourself to save your husband."

Gu Fengyan wanted to laugh, but felt strange.

What is he doing? What has he done?

A capsule was stuffed into his mouth. Huo Duan fed him a sip of water. Seeing that he resisted instinctively, he quickly said:

"Don't vomit, this is medicine for reducing fever, you will be fine after taking it."

Medicine to reduce fever...capsules.

Antipyretic capsules?

Where did Huo Duan get this thing?

Were there fever-reducing capsules in ancient times?

Countless questions lingered in Gu Fengyan's mind. As the medicine slid down his throat, Gu Fengyan suddenly became enlightened and came up with an incredible answer.

…

The medicine Huo Duan gave him was very effective. The next day, Gu Fengyan felt so relaxed that he was able to get up.

But Huo's father didn't let him get out of bed. He cooked some rice porridge and asked Huo Duan to feed him.

Huo Duan obediently took on this tough job, not daring to complain. He fed Gu Fengyan spoonfuls of porridge, and Gu Fengyan ate it slowly and leisurely.

After he finished eating, Huo Duan walked out with the empty bowl. Gu Fengyan struggled for a long time in his heart, and finally asked tentatively with trepidation, "What's the price of the shirt?"

Huo Duan turned around suddenly, his eyes full of shock, and said the correct answer word for word, "Nine pounds and fifteen pence!"