Chapter 041 Zhao Di gives cakes
"How could it be a deception?" Xu Zhenying naturally understood Miao's thoughts. There was nothing wrong with her thoughts; they reflected the thoughts of most law-abiding people. So she patiently explained, "I'm not trying to deceive Mr. Li. I'm trying to buy time. I want to make those escorts vomit out everything they've eaten within five days."
"But..." Miao thought about it and couldn't find any fault, but she still felt that this was wrong. After racking her brains, she said, "But those things are already in their pockets, how can they give them back to us? What if we don't get the things and still owe twenty taels?"
"Then we'll talk about it when the time comes. There's always a way out. Grandmother's health is the most important thing. Grandmother is old. If something happens to her, what's the point of all the money we have? Besides, filial piety is the most important virtue. Even if we deceived Mr. Li, we did it for Grandmother's life. As children, is our reputation more important than our parents' lives?"
These words confused Miao again.
She looked conflicted and wanted to use all her life's knowledge to oppose it, but after thinking about it, she felt that what Xu Zhenying said made some sense.
Fourth Aunt pursed her lips slightly, seeing Miao's tangled expression, she found it a little funny. She quietly patted Xu Zhenying, "You are a little devil, how can you have so many thoughts, you have made your mother confused——"
Xu Zhenying actually liked this Fourth Aunt. She was quiet but clear-headed. Because her family was in business, she was more flexible in her words and actions than the Xu family.
Therefore, Xu Zhenying subconsciously believed that Fourth Aunt was the only person in the family who could provide her with help.
She told the truth, "There's no other way. I'll just have to fool my mother first to save her from having to fight with me. This is it for now. I have to find a way to get the things back later."
Zhao Zhenlan's eyes lit up, "Sixth girl, do you have a solution?"
Xu Zhenying didn't want to say too much, so he said vaguely, "As for solutions, people always come up with them. I'm still thinking about it—"
Zhao Zhenlan was so perceptive that she saw through it without saying anything. She just said, "Alright, I won't ask any more questions. You're a very clever girl. If you need any help, just come to me."
In the evening, the Xu family had finished eating the daily ration of food.
My grandmother asked the children to find some foxtail grass, and cooked the grass seeds and half-dried grass roots into porridge. Each person had half a bowl, which was barely enough to fill their stomachs.
During this period, the eldest wife and others complained about why Xu Zhenying didn't ask the Fang family for some wo wo, then complained that the people who were exiled with him refused to lend them food, and then complained that the second uncle lost his official position and caused the whole family to be exiled. They didn't calm down until Huang got angry.
Xu Zhenying knew that this kind of grass seeds would harden in the stomach, so he didn't dare to eat it. He had to endure the hunger and rely only on his strong willpower to survive.
She sat under a tree, closed her eyes and smelled the fragrance coming from the camp from time to time.
Xu Zhenying felt that she must have gone crazy. She actually found the aroma of rice so tempting that her saliva was flowing uncontrollably.
When you're hungry, your mind becomes drowsy and you start to lose the ability to think. Your stomach feels like it's twisted together, and you can't tell if it's hunger or pain, just a recurring cramping pain.
Xu Zhenying knew that he couldn't go on any longer.
She must find a way to take back what Liu Jieshi had taken away! Otherwise, she really couldn't guarantee that she wouldn't rebel.
"Miss Xu, are you starving?" Suddenly, a head popped out from behind a tree. Li Zhaodi cautiously approached her and checked around. After confirming that no one was around, she shyly opened her thin clothes, took out half a pancake from her bosom, and stuffed it into Xu Zhenying's hand. "Eat it quickly, it's still hot."
Xu Zhenying was stunned. The sweet aroma of the pancake made her stomach hurt even more.
Li Zhaodi was afraid that Xu Zhenying would dislike her, so she quickly said in a flattering tone, "I...I...my mother is watching closely, so I can only keep it close to my chest. It's clean...not dirty..."
Xu Zhenying felt warm in his heart, but for some reason, he felt a little sore in his eyes.
She had lived for more than 30 years in her previous life and thought she was invulnerable to swords and guns. She also thought she could quickly adjust her emotions after traveling to ancient times. But at this moment, looking at Li Zhaodi's clear eyes, she suddenly missed home and Old Man Xu.
"Eat it, why don't you eat it? Are you starving?" Li Zhaodi handed the pancake to Xu Zhenying's mouth. Xu Zhenying couldn't help but took a bite. He felt that the pancake was a rare delicacy in the world.
Xu Zhenying ate slowly. She had been hungry for several days and had not had any oil or water. She could only chew slowly, for fear that if she ate too much, her stomach would feel worse tomorrow.
"Why are your hands so cold?" Xu Zhenying said weakly, pretending to take off her coat and give it to her. Li Zhaodi refused, and instead smiled and comforted her, "I'm not cold at all. I've been working all the time, so I'm warm."
Xu Zhenying finished eating the half piece of pancake with great difficulty. After finishing it, he remembered that Li Zhaodi's family was almost out of food. Li's concubine thought the journey was too long and refused to go. She insisted that Li Zhaodi's mother buy a donkey cart. Now these people were living frugally and waiting for her twenty taels to be put into the pot.
Thinking of this, Xu Zhenying felt a little guilty.
She didn't feel anything when she plotted against Li Xiucai, but Li Zhaodi always treated her as her best friend.
She cheated Li Xiucai, which was equivalent to cheating Li Zhaodi in disguise.
"Have you... eaten?" Xu Zhenying asked, looking up.
"Of course I ate. I ate a lot. My parents love me so much. They gave me several pieces of cake. I almost ate too much." Li Zhaodi laughed exaggeratedly, but as soon as she finished speaking, her stomach growled.
She subconsciously covered her stomach, her pretty face flushed with embarrassment, "I... I just drank too much water, and my stomach is growling——"
Xu Zhenying felt very uncomfortable.
She was a bit cold-hearted, but she couldn't stand being treated so unreservedly.
The Li family only had one or two bags of flour left, so there was no extra food for her. I'm afraid Li Zhaodi was also starving.
Xu Zhenying patted her shoulder and tried his best to control his emotions. "In two days at most, I'll treat you to pancakes until you vomit."
Hearing this, Li Zhaodi cautiously looked into Xu Zhenying's eyes, then smiled shyly, her eyes narrowed into a line, "Miss Xu, I believe you, you won't lie."
Xu Zhenying's heart was also warm, but he couldn't say anything else. He just said, "Be smarter. If there are some jobs you really don't want to do, let your little mother do them."
Li Zhaodi smiled innocently and scratched her head. "My mother said that I gave birth to a younger brother for the Li family, ensuring that the Li family would not be extinct. I am our Li family's great benefactor. If it weren't for you, my sister and I would have been kicked out by my father long ago. So she told me and my sister to listen to you in everything and take good care of you. Besides, you were injured when you gave birth to my brother and you can't do heavy work. I have plenty of strength and can take good care of them."
Xu Zhenying looked at Li Zhaodi's skinny body, slightly yellow hair, and thin eyes, and was speechless for a moment.
She suddenly felt suffocated. She really wanted to tell Li Zhaodi that her mother was pretending to be sick and miserable, but when she thought about the fact that this was the Zhou Dynasty and it was a woman's duty to continue the family line, as long as this ignorant and feudal concept was not eliminated, there would be more than one Li Zhaodi in the world.
If she cannot completely help Li Zhaodi become independent both spiritually and materially, then exposing these illusions will only make Li Zhaodi more miserable.
Why should we drag someone who was born in darkness into the sunlight?
After seeing the sun, can she still endure the darkness?
Seeing Xu Zhenying remained silent for a long time, Li Zhaodi grabbed her hand and smiled kindly and honestly, "I know you treat me well. Are you afraid that I will be bullied by my little girl?"
Xu Zhenying nodded.
"But I don't feel I'm being bullied. The harvests have been poor in recent years, and many families in our village have thrown their daughters into the river to drown them. Or their parents sell them off. Selling them to wealthy families as maids is considered a good option. There used to be a girl named Dongmei who lived next door to my grandmother. I still remember her. She was very beautiful and a good housemaid, but her father sold her to a brothel when she was twelve."
At this point, Li Zhaodi's face revealed a confused yet relieved expression. "At least I... I have a father, a mother, and younger brothers and sisters. It's just a matter of doing a little more work on weekdays. What's the big deal? If I make my mother unhappy and my father kicks the three of us out, that would be really not worth it—"
Xu Zhenying felt very uncomfortable.
She didn't know what to say, but she deeply felt the misfortune of the lives of the lower classes in ancient times.
In the previous life, no matter how unfortunate a person was, he could at least have enough food and warm clothes.
But here, the lower class people are so hardworking by nature, yet their lives are so difficult.
This is not fair.
A child's cry was heard in the distance, followed by someone cursing from the camp: "Li Zhaodi, where have you been going crazy again? Your brother has been crying for a long time, where is he? I'll break your dog legs--"
Li Zhaodi's face showed a look of fear, and her body tensed instantly. She looked at Xu Zhenying reluctantly and said, "Miss Xu, I should go back."
"Go quickly. Remember, if you can't beat him, run away. If you can't run away, protect your face. If he hits you, cry. If he scolds you, beg for mercy—"
Li Zhaodi actually laughed out loud, but then she felt that she shouldn't laugh in this situation. Thinking of her father's furious expression, her smile disappeared and she just nodded, "I can save myself from that."
After Zhaodi left, Xu Zhenying was still thinking about this question.
She never knew why she traveled through time, nor did she know what she would do after traveling through time. Would she overthrow the rule of the Zhou Dynasty and change the whole world?
She doesn't have such big ambitions and just wants to take things as they come and be a free and idle rich man. However, if there is no stable administrative system, then your freedom and wealth may be taken away at any time.
Thinking of this, Xu Zhenying couldn't help but sigh.
"You're here." Lian Qiuzhi searched everywhere for her and finally found her under a tree not far from the crowd. "It was so hard for me to find her, why don't you go in?"
"There's a strange smell in the inn, it's really suffocating. I'd rather sleep in the hammock on the tree trunk outside."
"That hammock is exposed to the wind and sun. It would be troublesome if it rained in the middle of the night." Lian Qiuzhi saw that she was weak and knew that she was not full. After hesitating for a while, she gave her half a steamed bun and said, "Eat it. With the high price of food, life is simply unbearable."
Xu Zhenying was slightly taken aback, but he took it anyway. Seeing that Lian Qiuzhi's face was still red and she seemed to be in a bad mood, he asked, "Second Aunt, have you found out everything?"
Lian Qiuzhi gritted her teeth and said, "I've found out. Liu Jieshi is from Yu County. Ten years ago, when Xu Deyuan was the magistrate of Yu County, he judged a case. Liu Jieshi had a widowed mother who was guarding the several hundred guan of wealth left by his father. Unexpectedly, he was sued by relatives for having an affair..."
After all, she was facing the thirteen-year-old Xu Qingying, so Lian Qiuzhi was unable to speak. Xu Zhenying interrupted and asked, "Is Liu's mother having an affair outside?"
Lian Qiuzhi glared at her, seemingly displeased with a young girl blurting out such words. However, she was still somewhat afraid of Xu Zhenying's current state, so she didn't want to say much. She only said, "That's probably what happened. Anyway, the Liu family insisted that Liu Jieshi wasn't a Liu family member, and they also called in several witnesses. Later, Xu Deyuan sentenced him to remove him from the family tree and return his property. I heard that his mother hanged herself a few days after returning home. Later, Liu Jieshi said that he went to Bianjing City to seek refuge with relatives—"
Xu Zhenying pondered over it, but couldn't figure out what it meant. He just asked, "Did Second Uncle say all this?"
"At first he said he couldn't remember. I knew he was evasive and lying the moment I asked him. Later, under my questioning, he admitted that Liu Jieshi had contacted him privately a long time ago and threatened to retaliate against our family. Your second uncle was afraid that if he told us, we would all resent him even more, so he kept it a secret. I was so stupid! How could I have ever fallen for a man like him in the first place—"
"It's too late to say more." Xu Zhenying raised his hand to interrupt Lian Qiuzhi. "I have an idea that can make them spit out all our stuff, but I need Second Aunt's cooperation."
Lian Qiuzhi's heart skipped a beat. She had been half-believing and half-doubting Xu Zhenying before, but now, seeing her calm and composed voice, she was already mostly convinced. "Tell me, how do you want me to cooperate?"
Xu Zhenying shook her head and smiled slightly, "Second Aunt, go and comfort Second Uncle first, and don't let him get upset."
Lian Qiuzhi was still furious and said angrily, "What else does he want to do?!"
"I used his name to buy a donkey cart worth twenty taels of silver from Li Xiucai on credit. Li Xiucai is probably going to find my second uncle to sign the contract right now."
Apparently, Lian Qiuzhi had heard from somewhere that Xu Zhenying had used twenty taels of silver to buy her grandmother a donkey cart ride. She didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with Xu Zhenying's actions, and had even unknowingly followed his instructions. "Okay, I'll go calm him down first and stop him from making a scene. You have to think of a solution quickly. If this continues, I'm afraid the women in the first wife's family won't be able to hold back much longer and will rise up in rebellion."
"Come to me as soon as you've dealt with this matter," Xu Zhenying leaned in closer and whispered. Lian Qiuzhi frowned, as if wanting to argue, but Xu Zhenying seemed to see through her thoughts and directly interrupted, "There's no other way at the moment."
Lian Qiuzhi was a straightforward person. After only a moment's hesitation, she figured it out. "That's true. There's no other way. We can only try our best."
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