As autumn had set in, the rice in the fields had all been harvested.
On top of that, a drought had dried up the paddies.
On Fang Yue's Family's land, more than half was planted with wheat, while the rest was sown with sweet potato vines and adzuki beans.
The crops were now growing and only needed to be watered every few days.
It was a rare chance to snatch some leisure from their busy lives.
But while it seemed like there was finally some free time...
...for the farmers at the very bottom of society, it just meant they had to find other work to earn what they needed to live.
Whether it was digging for wild vegetables or mending farm tools, they could never truly be idle.
Farmers were born to be beasts of burden, never to know rest.
Busy from birth until death.
By the great willow tree, at the village's threshing ground, several peasant women were at work.
"Have you heard? Fang Mu's eldest son, Fang Cheng, was in marriage talks with Zhou Xiaohua from the neighboring Zhou Family Village. They were about to exchange betrothal gifts, but who would've thought the Fang Family would suddenly call it off?"
"No way. The Fang Family has always been honest and decent. They wouldn't do something like that."
"I've heard about this. Fang Mu's eldest was indeed in talks with a girl from the next village. I can't believe it turned into such a mess."
"It just goes to show, you can know a person's face but not their heart. This is the absolute truth! I have a relative in Zhou Family Village who told me herself. How could it be fake?"
"So, it's true then?"
"Of course it's true! Because the Fang Family broke off the engagement, I heard that Zhou Xiaohua has been refusing to eat or drink. She's wasted away to nothing. It's such a tragedy! To have your engagement broken off like that... how will she ever show her face in public again?"
The peasant women gossiped with great earnestness as they sorted through rice seeds.
This is how village women were. They couldn't be idle. The moment they had free time, they'd start wagging their tongues, gossiping about this family's business and that family's secrets.
Besides, it's human nature to not want to see others do well.
They fear you'll do poorly and come to borrow money, yet they also fear you'll strike it rich and surpass them.
Now, based on a mere rumor that hadn't been verified or confirmed, they were already spreading it as if it were fact.
These villagers had perhaps never left the land they tilled. They were illiterate and uneducated; what concept did they have of distinguishing truth from falsehood?
Or perhaps, they simply didn't want to.
After all, with these sorts of domestic trifles,
'Hm? These people are gossiping again.'
Just then, Widow Yu happened to pass by the group. She normally looked down on such gossip.
But when she vaguely overheard them talking about Fang Yue's Family, she couldn't help but listen in.
Hearing them slander Fang Yue's Family for breaking an engagement and causing the girl to starve herself was bad enough. Such a rumor might not seem like much now, but she knew that in a place like the countryside, even good news could be twisted into something outrageous as it spread.
She had once read a story in a book. It was from the reign of the late emperor, about a minister named Pang Cong who told Emperor Wei the tale of "three people create a monster."
The story went that a beautiful woman arrived in a frontier market one day. One person claimed she was a demon in disguise, but no one believed him. Then a second person said the same, and some people began to have doubts. When a third person also claimed she was a demon...
...at that point, all the onlookers came to believe the woman was truly a demon.
The ignorant mob burned her to death, only to discover afterward that she was a human, not a demon at all.
This is what "three people create a monster" means—the danger of being credulous and listening to only one side of a story.
This is how rumors are born. When no one bothers to distinguish truth from lies, disaster is the inevitable result.
Just like now, this was only the beginning.
If it was allowed to spread for a few more days, all sorts of tales about secret vows and being abandoned after a fling would surely surface.
By then, the Fang Family wouldn't be able to clear their name even if they had a hundred mouths.
At this thought, Widow Yu immediately took note of the gossips and hurried away.
~~~~~~
Widow Yu walked quickly and soon arrived at the gate of Fang Yue's Family home.
She had just come to a stop when she saw the courtyard gate was ajar. She knocked once, then pushed it open and walked right in.
The next moment, she couldn't help but let out a shriek.
Then, she quickly spun around and covered her eyes.
"Hurry up and put on your clothes!" Widow Yu said hastily.
It turned out that Fang Yue had just finished his practice and was washing up in the courtyard.
A quick rinse wouldn't take long, so he hadn't bothered to close the gate.
Besides, no one would come to his house at this time of day.
So, he hadn't closed the gate.
Unexpectedly, Widow Yu had come at this exact moment. And she had pushed the gate open and come right in, thus seeing Fang Yue's bare-chested appearance.
"Hm? Widow Yu? What is it? Is Miss Zhang causing trouble again?"
Seeing Widow Yu, Fang Yue felt no shame, nor did any thoughts of propriety between men and women cross his mind. He pulled on a short tunic before asking his question.
Widow Yu rarely interacted with the other villagers on a daily basis, preferring to live a quiet life alone with her daughter.
Seeing her now, it was clear she had come specifically to see him, so it had to be something important.
Naturally, he assumed it had to be related to Zhang Shu, the person lodging at his house.
"It's not about Miss Zhang."
Widow Yu heard Fang Yue get dressed and only then dared to turn around. In truth, she had only caught a hurried glimpse and hadn't seen much.
She only remembered that Fang Yue's body was strong, his bronze skin looked very healthy, and he was filled with Yang Energy.
It was enough to make her breath quicken.
Her chest heaved up and down, her bosom bouncing along with it, as she began to recount what she had just heard.
Meanwhile, Fang Yue's gaze fell forward, and he could only praise it in his heart. 'They really are huge!'
However, as he listened to what Widow Yu said next, Fang Yue averted his gaze.
His expression couldn't help but turn cold.
"Widow Yu, I understand."
"Good, as long as you know. I'll be going now." After speaking, Widow Yu glanced around, and only after confirming no one was watching did she quickly turn and leave.
But on the way, she could feel her face burning.
'Why did I just barge in like that? And I saw Fang Yue's body...'
'He's only sixteen this year, isn't he?'
How did he get so built? The aura from his body had made her feel a little dizzy. In the end, she didn't even know how she made it back home.
~~~~~~
"These people... they really know how to stir up trouble!"
In the Fang Family courtyard, Fang Yue thought about Widow Yu's words and couldn't help but sigh.
He didn't believe that nonsense about "rumors stop with the Wise One."
If he let these rumors continue to spread, his older brother would probably have a hard time finding a wife in the future, and even their family's reputation would plummet.
There's so much drama in a small farming village.
Fang Yue thought for a moment, then went out.
Since people were spreading gossip, he would naturally have to find them and get the story straight.
Walking into the village, he indeed saw several peasant women chattering away.