Another important thing was to choose a very nice house as the place where Li Guang's family would stay when they returned to Beijing.

The accommodation was quickly chosen, and everyone pitched in to clean the house thoroughly.

At this moment, the red lanterns, couplets, and New Year pictures that Li Xue had ordered were delivered.

The group then began hanging lanterns, posting New Year pictures and couplets. Everyone worked for a whole day to decorate the Marquis's mansion.

After being decorated, the Marquis's mansion immediately presented a festive atmosphere, giving people a strong sense of the New Year.

It seems that a day's hard work has paid off, and Li Xue is very satisfied with her masterpiece.

The Lunar New Year is just two or three days away, and the weather has been particularly nice these past few days. Although it's the dead of winter, the warm sunshine makes it feel less cold, although there's still a biting chill at night.

In Shuixian Village, people were in high spirits, and the market was bustling more than ever before, making Shuixian Village the market center for the surrounding villages.

Even people from the town are going to great lengths to come here to buy New Year's goods.

At this time, Zhao Xian and Qin Yuanwai were extremely busy. All the inventory in the warehouse had been sold out, and they could only rely on the workshops and factories to work overtime to produce goods for customers from all over the country.

In comparison, Wufang Academy, which is far from the market, is much quieter.

Early in the morning, several elderly gentlemen went to the market to sell couplets. They wouldn't be back until noon for lunch. After resting for a while, they began preparing to sell couplets on the street the next day.

There are people in charge of cooking at the academy, and Ruan Fang has a rare period of leisure during this time, which she can use to read some books.

Just then, the sound of horses neighing came from outside the academy, and a carriage drove into the academy. Ruan Fang, who was reading a book, was taken aback. Who had come to the academy at this time?

"Mr. Du, didn't you go home for the Chinese New Year? Why are you back?"

"A couple of days ago, our house collapsed and it was difficult to repair in time, so we had to take my mother and wife back to the academy to celebrate the New Year first."

This was the sound of Du Yi talking to the old gatekeeper. Ruan Fang understood what was going on, so she quickly put down her book and went into the courtyard.

At this moment, Du Yi was helping an old lady off a carriage with a young woman. Needless to say, this woman was Du Yi's wife, and the old lady was his mother.

Seeing Ruan Fang approach, Du Yi smiled awkwardly and introduced her to his family.

Upon seeing that the woman before her was the headmaster of the academy, Du Yi's wife quickly stepped forward and performed a curtsy.

Ruan Fang sized up the woman. She was thin and about the same age as Du Yi. Judging from her situation, she was not doing well.

"Sister-in-law, there's no need for such formalities. It's very cold outside, come inside and warm up."

"Thank you, Headmaster Ruan. My mother has suffered from leg problems for many years and has difficulty walking. When the weather gets cold, she can hardly walk at all."

After Du Yi finished speaking, he and his wife helped the old lady into the room.

Once the driver had delivered the passenger, he turned his horse around and drove away.

The old lady was being supported by two people as she walked forward. It was clear that she was unable to move her legs, indicating that her condition was quite serious.

Ruan Fang quickly stepped forward and opened Du Yi's door, and the old lady was helped into the room.

The house has been uninhabited for the past few days and feels very cold and damp.

Ruan Fang immediately lit a brazier and placed it next to the old lady, and the family thanked her repeatedly.

After warming herself by the fire for a while, the old lady felt much warmer and was able to get out of bed and walk around. Du Yi breathed a sigh of relief when he saw this.

Next, Du Yi began to make the bed for the old lady, after Ruan Fang had previously prepared quilts for the teachers at the academy.

Du Yi thought the quilt was excellent and very warm, so he wanted to buy one for the old lady.

Seeing this, Ruan Fang spoke up:

"Because of the cold weather this year, cotton quilts are sold out in the market and cannot be bought at all. If we want to buy a cotton quilt for the old lady, we can only ask Marquis Zhengyang."

Du Yi nodded, preparing to go find Zhao Xian, but then looked hesitant.

Du Yi didn't want to trouble Marquis Zhengyang with such a trivial matter, but for his mother's sake, he had no choice but to go.

Seeing this, Ruan Fang spoke up:

"Marquis Zhengyang has been very busy these past few days, so he may not be home. I'll go with you to find him."

"Thank you, Headmaster Ruan."

Ruan Fang offered to accompany him to find Zhao Xian, for which Du Yi was very grateful.

The two quickly arrived at Zhao Xian's old residence. The family soldiers, seeing them arrive, went to greet them and said:

"Master Ruan, Mr. Du, you've come to see our patriarch, haven't you?"

"Yes, is Marquis Zhengyang at home?" Ruan Fang asked.

“The head of the family is not home. He just went to the textile workshop. You can go there to find him, Chief Ruan.”

"Okay, thank you. Let's go to the textile workshop."

After Ruan Fang finished speaking, she led Du Yi to the textile workshop.

Zhao Xian's textile workshop is famous far and wide; everyone knows it. Ruan Fang even brought the children from the academy to visit it before, so that the children could see how to spin yarn, weave cloth, and make clothes.

Although most families had spinning wheels and were familiar with spinning and weaving at that time, the sight of so many people spinning and weaving at the same time in the textile workshop was spectacular and broadened the children's horizons.

In the textile workshop, Ruan Fang quickly found Zhao Xian, who invited the two to sit down in a room.

Ruan Fang explained her purpose: Du Yi wanted to buy a warm quilt for his mother.

"Since it's for the old lady, and she has trouble walking, let's have one custom-made for her."

"Making a large, warm quilt will be good for her legs. I'll have someone deliver the finished quilt to the academy before dark."

"Thank you, Marquis Zhengyang." Du Yi stood up and bowed to Zhao Xian.

"No need for formalities. According to Mr. Du's description, the old lady is suffering from a very serious case of rheumatism. I will get some medicine for her later to treat her leg ailment."

Upon hearing this, Du Yi was overjoyed. His mother had suffered from a leg ailment for many years and had sought medical treatment in many places, but her condition had not improved.

Because the family was destitute, and since the leg ailment was difficult to cure, they simply gave up on treatment, and the old lady was unwilling to spend any more money on her leg.

If Marquis Zhengyang can cure my mother's leg ailment, then he will be my great benefactor, and I must repay him properly.

Seeing that Zhao Xian was very busy, the two decided not to disturb him any longer and got up to say goodbye.

The accommodations at Wufang Academy were quite good. Du Yi's residence had two rooms and a study, enough to comfortably house three people.

Because there was a dining hall in the academy, the teachers could eat together, so there was no kitchen in their living quarters.

This put Du Yi in a bit of a dilemma. As a teacher at the academy, it was perfectly fine for him to eat in the restaurant, but it would be inappropriate for him to bring his mother and wife to eat there.

Du Yi began to consider whether he could renovate his residence and build a kitchen to solve the cooking problem.

Just then, Ruan Fang brought over a large bowl of steaming dumplings and handed it to the old lady. She had asked the chef to make them.