Interstellar to 80s: A Scientist's Farming Mission

An Ning nodded under Yu the Elder’s expectant yet nervous gaze.

”Good, good, I’ll go make the arrangements right away...”

Yu the Elder excitedly stood up, but An Ning stopped him.

”Sit.”

THUD. Yu the Elder sat ramrod straight, his hands placed on his knees, palms down.

The perfect posture of a primary school student.

An Ning saw this but didn’t say anything.

If he was truly to become her disciple, then respecting one’s master was the most basic requirement.

”I still need to visit other cities and can’t return home for now. I’ll call you when I get back.”

Hearing this, Yu the Elder immediately understood. He raised his right hand slightly, signaling that he had a question.

”Go ahead.”

An Ning had dropped the honorifics, which suddenly put Yu the Elder’s heart at ease.

”Teacher An, I’ll write down my number for you. If you don’t mind, could you leave me your address?”

An Ning had no objection and wrote down her address and the village office’s phone number.

As she wrote, An Ning asked curiously, ”How much would it cost if I wanted to have a telephone installed?”

Yu the Elder presented his own address with both hands. He thought about An Ning’s question, not answering rashly.

”Teacher An, as far as I know, only officials in the government can get private phones installed. Under the current circumstances, it’s not a matter of money, but of eligibility.”

”However, I will make detailed inquiries for you. I’ll tell you the specifics when we next meet, Teacher An.”

An Ning took the piece of paper from Yu the Elder and said, ”Alright.”

With their matter settled for the time being, An Ning continued to answer Yu the Elder’s questions.

A little over ten minutes later, Yu the Elder’s eldest son and An Guoming finally returned to the courtyard.

”Father, the meal is ready.”

Yu the Elder had been listening with rapt attention, but he still stopped.

”Eldest, please escort your Grandma Master first.”

The eldest son, waiting by the side, didn’t move.

’Grandma Master? Who’s that?’

’Since when did I have a Grandma Master?’

Seeing his eldest son remain motionless, Yu the Elder’s expression soured. ”There are only four people here. Are your eyes just for decoration?”

”Don’t be hasty.”

An Ning’s calm and steady ”Don’t be hasty” made Yu the Elder immediately stand, bow, and say, ”Teacher An’s lesson is correct. I was too impatient.”

”Let me introduce you. This is my eldest son, Yu Zheng.”

”Yu Zheng, this is the master I will be studying under in the future, Teacher An Ning.”

Yu Zheng was dumbfounded.

Truly and utterly dumbfounded.

It wasn’t just Yu Zheng; An Guoming was flabbergasted too.

’What kind of plot twist is this?’

’My little sister has become Yu the Elder’s master?’

The two men glanced at each other, as if to confirm something, and saw the exact same disbelief in each other’s eyes.

An earth-shattering change in the span of a single meal... this was it.

”You have no manners! Kneel and kowtow to your future Grandma Master.”

Yu Zheng was apparently very obedient. Before his brain could even process Yu the Elder’s command, his knees had already reacted.

THUD! The sound of his knees hitting the ground made An Ning’s eyelids twitch.

If one were to point out a difference between Ancient Earth and the interstellar era, it would be this business of kneeling.

However, since arriving, An Ning had already knelt several times herself, so she was more or less used to it.

”Kneeling is fine, but don’t do it so forcefully next time.”

Hearing this, Yu the Elder immediately shot Yu Zheng a glare and said, ”Did you hear that!”

With his hands on the floor and arms held straight, Yu Zheng said, ”I’ll remember. Grandma Master.”

An Ning found the title ”Grandma Master” rather amusing.

After Yu Zheng kowtowed, An Ning told him to rise. Only then did the four of them move to the dining room to eat.

The dining room was spacious, with bright, clean windows, and the entire house was well-maintained.

As they had walked over, the matter of the house was also decided.

Yu the Elder truly did want to sell it. It wasn’t a difficult decision, nor was it for the money; he simply had no use for it.

His whole family was moving to Beijing, and their ancestral home was also in Beijing. This place had only ever been a temporary residence.

In the end, An Guoming stepped forward and bought the house.

As for An Ning, she did not participate in this transaction.

After the sale was negotiated, Yu the Elder said to An Guoming, ”Thank you, Second Uncle.”

That single ”Second Uncle” made An Guoming’s knees go weak, almost sending him to the ground.

But his little sister was the man’s master, so addressing him like that didn’t seem wrong.

He could only force an unnatural smile and accompany them to the dining room.

The meal was a pleasant one, enjoyed by host and guests alike.

After eating, Yu the Elder briskly went with An Guoming to handle the paperwork.

Once the paperwork was done, he learned that the siblings still wanted to buy more property and enthusiastically volunteered to act as their agent.

The kind of agent who didn’t charge a fee and worked especially hard.

Relying on Yu the Elder’s connections, his keen eye, and most importantly, his network...

Yu the Elder told An Ning about many privately listed properties, allowing An Ning and An Guoming to score quite a bargain.

However, both buyers and sellers were very satisfied. Especially after learning that An Ning was Yu the Elder’s master, they went from disbelief to surprise, then to shock, and finally to curiosity.

The series of emotional shifts was more entertaining than watching a movie.

An Ning and An Guoming stayed in the provincial capital for three days. After buying three houses, An Ning prepared to leave for Beijing to have a look.

Yu the Elder decided to accompany her directly, leaving Yu Zheng in charge of the house, luggage, and everything else.

Over these past few days, An Ning had also come to understand Yu the Elder’s family situation.

Yu the Elder’s wife had passed away early. They had two sons and one daughter. The younger son worked in Beijing and had his own family, while the daughter worked in Sea City and also had her own family.

Unless it was a holiday or a major event, it was difficult for the relatives to see each other.

As for his eldest son, Yu Zheng, his family should have been the happiest. But tragedy struck when their thirteen-year-old child drowned. His wife had been unstable ever since, and ultimately unable to accept the loss, she committed suicide three months later.

Since then, Yu Zheng had never remarried and was kept by Yu the Elder’s side.

The father and son relied on each other, forming a small, stable family unit.

Accompanied by Yu the Elder, An Ning arrived in Beijing.

After arriving in Beijing, An Guoming’s influence was clearly not enough. At times, he couldn’t even get a single lead on a property for sale.

They could only inquire around the alleyways and among the neighbors, trying to find some bargain properties.

Meanwhile, Yu the Elder had also just returned to Beijing. Besides asking his second son to make inquiries, he transformed himself into an elderly social butterfly, personally gathering information for his future master.

Through their combined efforts, they actually managed to find two houses that met their expectations. But upon hearing the prices, An Ning found herself a bit short on funds.

These past few days of buying houses had been all expenses and no income. An Ning’s little private savings were dwindling, and she was running out of money.

As for An Guoming, he couldn’t afford to buy anything at all.

However, An Ning had another way.

They arranged with the sellers to view the houses and negotiate the prices tomorrow.

But today, An Ning took her interstellar private savings and went to one of Beijing’s oldest streets.

She went alone, without Yu the Elder or An Guoming.

After transferring between two buses, An Ning arrived at the antique street.

She had expected it to be deserted, but to her surprise, it was bustling with activity.