There were still 15 minutes before the academy's lunch break, so they went to the end of the street to buy sticky rice cakes, then sat in front of their shop, eating them while waiting for the academy to open.

As soon as Jiaren and his younger brothers stepped out of the gate, they saw their grandmother and sister waiting on the other side. They were overjoyed and rushed forward to surround their grandmother and sister.

Cat Brother, in particular, jumped and danced with joy, attracting the attention of the other students.

The old lady called to her grandsons, "Come on, let's go home for dinner. Don't delay the shop's business."

The grandmother and her grandchildren quickly turned back into the alley behind the building, where Zhao Yuru was already peering out from the doorway.

The whole family washed their hands, divided the bowls and chopsticks, and sat down to eat.

The old lady was busy serving rice to one grandson and soup to another, having a great time.

Even though I haven't eaten a single grain of rice, I feel fuller than anyone else.

Life should be lived in such a lively and bustling way!

Hearing that Grandma and her sister would be staying a few more days, the boys weren't in a hurry anymore. After eating, they sat with Grandma for a while, ate a piece of sticky rice cake, and then skipped back to the academy.

Jiayin lay down for a nap, and while she was at it, she went to her online space to do some work, and also finished up the plagiarism work...

Not to mention that Jiayin and her grandmother are staying in Luo'an for a while, enjoying a leisurely and carefree life every day.

Speaking of Suijintan alone, with the whole village working together, Li Yong's courtyard had already taken shape in just three or four days.

The village chief had lost half an arm, and Uncle Zhao had lost half a leg. They were both too weak to do such heavy work, so they sat on the pile of stones, chatting and watching the commotion.

Occasionally, if a villager is clumsy and makes a noise, they will loudly remind them.

Li Lao Er turned around from his house and sat down next to the two old men.

The two old men had long been concerned about his attendance at court, and now that they had the chance, they asked him about it carefully.

Li Lao Er actually found attending court quite novel, and he recounted the whole thing from beginning to end, including some of his own doubts and curiosity.

The two old men listened and made wild guesses and analyses, and when they received praise from Li Lao Er, they laughed heartily.

Their white beards fluttered in the autumn wind, adding to the festive atmosphere.

The villagers who were working couldn't help but turn around to look when they heard this, only to be yelled at by the village chief, "Be careful while you're working! There are stones and wooden planks everywhere, be careful not to knock out your front teeth!"

Li Lao Er found it amusing. After thinking for a moment, he decided to tell him about how his colleagues had coaxed him into going out to dinner.

The two old men, like wolves in the forest, immediately sensed that something was wrong.

The village chief slapped his thigh and said angrily, "Second brother, these people are definitely up to no good!"

Uncle Zhao nodded vigorously, "Yes, Second Master, nobody's money grows on trees. Why would they invite you to dinner? And to a place they know well, and even arrange for women to seduce you. They're definitely not good people!"

Li Lao Er was afraid they might do something rash in their anxiety, so he quickly replied, "Uncle Village Chief, Uncle Zhao, don't worry. I only told you because I knew they had ill intentions."

"I suspect it's because our family has been doing too well lately, which has attracted someone's attention. Perhaps someone is testing us, trying to find an opening and cause us some trouble."

The village chief frowned and sighed, "That's how life is. Too many people are like that, envying those who have and laughing at those who don't. When you're poor and destitute, you're safe, but everyone will come and kick you while you're down. When you finally manage to get rich and powerful, everyone is jealous and wants to drag you down and kick you while you're down!"

Uncle Zhao spat fiercely, "Who cares about the Heavenly King or the Emperor! The good life we ​​have now is all earned through risking our lives, none of it was just picked up off the ground! Anyone who's jealous, let them risk their lives! What kind of skill is it to be envious of others!"

Li Lao Er laughed and comforted the two old men.

“These are all my guesses, and they may not be true. But I can be more vigilant here in my own home. As for the village, it’s up to you gentlemen. Be careful that no one takes any action that could disrupt the unity and peace of the village.”

"Don't worry, I've got the village covered!" The village chief waved his pipe. "As long as I live, our village is as solid as an iron barrel! I can beat it shut with my pipe and make sure not a drop of water leaks out."

Uncle Zhao nodded, "Don't worry, we old folks may not have many other skills, but we can still keep an eye on small things like this in the village."

As they talked, the two old people began to discuss their ideas.

It just so happens that the village is going to pay wages tomorrow, so while everyone is here, I'll definitely give them a good talking-to.

Life has improved, and we have money in our hands.

They can eat, drink, wear clothes, and have more people in their family, but they can't get cocky!

If anyone dares to cause trouble for the village and ruin the good situation of the whole village, then they will have to bear the wrath of the whole village!

Originally, Li Lao Er only talked to the two old men about this matter to give them a heads-up.

If outsiders want to deal with the Li family, the best way is of course to start by targeting the Li family members themselves.

However, we cannot rule out the possibility that they infiltrated the villagers first.

Unexpectedly, the next evening, when the village was dividing up the work money, they actually found out what had happened.

According to the old custom in the village, the monthly wages are paid in installments of five coins per work point.

You should know that the grain was distributed to each family according to the number of people, so there was no worry about going hungry.

Each month, as long as there are three able-bodied people in the family, they can basically get more than three taels of silver, which is enough for the family to improve their meals and buy some cloth or daily necessities.

The remaining wages and dividends will be settled in a lump sum at the end of the year, amounting to at least one or two hundred taels.

When the time comes, it will be enough to marry off a wife, a daughter, or even just add some gold bracelets.

Of course, those who live frugally will continue to save, thinking about how to use the money for their children's education or to acquire property in the future.

To give the village children some experience, the children were the ones who organized the last two paychecks.

Men, women, and children sat in the Li family courtyard, watching the children register, calculate, and pay, and they were even happier than when they received the money themselves.

After finally distributing wages, the village chief would give the villagers a few words of advice and also talk about the big projects that had recently taken place in the village.

But before the old man could speak, a commotion broke out in the crowd.

"Waaah, honey, you can't take the money away! Waaah, I need to save it for Gou Dan's education!"

"Father, Father! Stop it!"

The village chief got angry and slammed his pipe on the stool, yelling, "What are you all shouting about? Come up here and say what you have to say!"

The villagers immediately made way for the noisy family.

This is a woman in her thirties with two children, a boy of seven or eight years old and a girl of about ten years old.

The mother and her two children were all crying uncontrollably, and the woman's arm was hanging limply, clearly indicating that she was injured.

Behind them followed a man with his head hunched over. He was rather thin and occasionally glanced at the crowd, his expression revealing a hint of guilt.

The village chief, his face dark, asked, "Wei Dajun, tell me, what exactly happened to your family?"

Before the man could speak, the woman and children had already knelt down and started crying.

"Village Chief, you have to stand up for us! Dajun is a scoundrel; he's going to ruin our family!"

"Waaah, Grandpa Village Chief, my dad beat my mom! My dad stole all the money from our house!"

Assault? Theft?

The village chief and several old men straightened their backs and shouted, "Hold back your tears! Who can explain this clearly? Tell us in detail now!"