Farming in the Chief Counselor's Inner Courtyard

Yuan Asong died suddenly after staying up all night to finish a project. When he opened his eyes again, he had become a newly arrived male concubine in the household of the chief minister of the Great Yan Dynasty. A chief minister, huh? Anyone who rose to that position had to be an old man with sparse hair and missing teeth. Asong pinched his own tender skin and grimaced in disgust. “Pah! What a shameless old geezer!” Fortunately, the old man had ordered that Asong not be allowed to disturb him in the front courtyard, and Asong was the only one in the household. He was more than happy to enjoy his freedom. He could grow vegetables, raise pigs, and fire up a little barbecue when he got bored... Then there was the stunningly handsome man who spent all day holding tea by the little pond where Asong fished. Maybe he could flirt with him a little, too. What a perfect life! * Gu Kejue, chief minister of Great Yan and tutor to the young emperor, was both talented and handsome. But he was a stiff, dull man, and everyone he had ever tutored called him “Teacher.” That was because he loved making people copy books. People said, “He’s only twenty-five, but he looks fifty-two. Something must not be working right.” As the rumors grew more and more convincing, the Gu family searched all over the capital and eventually chose a lesser son from the obscure Yuan family to bring into their home. Gu Kejue carried on with his usual routine, except that he started going to the lakeside for tea more often. “The old geezer has some unusual tastes!” “He’s so old and has no children. Something’s got to be wrong with him!” “When will the old geezer kick the bucket? Then I can spend the rest of my life, hehehe...” Gu Kejue stopped drinking his tea and drew the person wandering in front of him into his arms. “Want to copy some books?” “You think you’re some decrepit old geezer?” Gu Kejue fell silent. “Who exactly told you I was old?” Coming soon: "The Fishmonger’s Husband and His Tutor" Please add it to your favorites! Tao Qingyu transmigrated to the Great Li Dynasty and became a young man. His household was large, and they barely made ends meet by raising fish in a pond. One day, an accident left his family in urgent need of money. Just as Tao Qingyu was about to sell the fishpond to raise funds, someone suddenly showed up to propose a marriage. “The Fang family only has him, and he’s a tutor at the academy. If you marry him, you won’t have parents-in-law to serve, and your husband is a successful candidate in the imperial examinations, which will bring you honor...” Tao Qingyu: “How much is honor worth?” The matchmaker grinned. “Ten taels of betrothal money.” Tao Qingyu turned and walked away. He’d lived this long without ever seeing a pie fall from the sky. Matchmaker: “A hundred taels.” Tao Qingyu stopped, turned around, and raised his hand, all in one smooth motion. “Money in one hand, the groom in the other!” As if a hundred taels were just some worthless scrap of paper, given away so casually... And so casually, it landed in his hand. The young tutor wore a long robe. Through the banknotes, the warmth of his fingers reached Tao Qingyu’s palm. “I’ve paid. Will you come with me, Little Fish Boss?” * Fang Wenli didn’t like eating fish. But whenever he heard the call of the fishmonger outside, he couldn’t help hurrying over to buy the biggest fish. The young man would laugh and call him a fish fanatic. Once, someone overheard him accidentally reveal his preferences, twisted his words into a rumor, and spread it to Tao Qingyu. With red-rimmed eyes, the young man angrily said: “If you don’t like fish, then don’t eat it.” “If you don’t like me, you don’t have to marry me!” Fang Wenli’s heart clenched. He pulled him into a tight embrace. Long ago, in this courtyard filled with arguments, the young man’s cheerful cries had kept him company through his lonely, oppressive youth. Even after the courtyard was left with no one but him and life settled into a dull routine, he still took advantage of Tao Qingyu’s predicament, using those hundred taels to clumsily claim the rest of the young man’s life for himself. “I don’t like eating fish, but I had to marry you.” *A clever, spirited beauty who thinks there’s no point turning down money. The fishmonger protagonist vs. a tutor love interest who seems refined but is actually cold and ruthless, with an intense possessive streak. Theme: Strive forward and rise to great heights