"Divorce?"
Li Xuchang's heart ached from those two words. He and Qi Wan were childhood sweethearts. His father and Qi Wan's father were close friends. They had known each other since they were young. After growing up, Qi Wan married him. The two had never argued. He had never thought that the word "divorce" could be applied to them.
"Yes. If we want to save ourselves, we are changing the future step by step. Since the future has already changed, Mother really can't be sure whether Wan'er will encounter danger on the road."
"Mom, I understand, let me think about it."
"Foolish! Time is of the essence, how can you hesitate any longer! With the family in peril, you are still so indecisive. No wonder you would be such an unfilial and heartless beast and choose to end your own life!"
Pan Jinhua's sharp words and harsh tone were like invisible slaps to Li Xuchang's face. His mother's face was full of disappointment and frustration, which pierced his heart and made it hard for him to breathe.
Li Xuchang knelt on the ground the moment Pan Jinhua uttered those words.
He was unfilial and unkind. He had been well-read since childhood, so how could he bear being pressured by these two?
Pan Jinhua remained indifferent. Couldn't he bear it? Even if he couldn't bear it, he had to. He was incompetent for not being able to protect his pregnant wife; he was unfilial and unkind for choosing to end his life without regard for his elderly mother and young child.
Was she wrong? Not at all!
“Since you can’t protect your wife and children, send her back to her parents’ home. I don’t know what she will encounter after being exiled. Once we are settled, we will send someone to pick her up, so that she will not suffer.”
"Yes, I am ashamed. I have troubled you with so many worries in this situation."
"Seeing your silly face is really annoying, go back now."
Li Xuchang kowtowed three times before getting up and leaving.
July 13th is considered an auspicious day. It is suitable for going out and for paying respects to ancestors.
The entire Li family is out today. Liu Yun has arranged six horse-drawn carriages and an oxcart carrying grain. Today they are not only going to the temple to perform religious rites, but also to distribute porridge. The schedule is quite tight. Servants are driving the oxcart ahead to prepare at the porridge distribution site so that they can distribute porridge directly when the master arrives.
After breakfast, the whole family went to Tianhua Garden to invite Pan Jinhua. A group of people escorted her out the door and she got directly into the first carriage.
Li Qingtong and Li Qingjun also got in with Pan Jinhua, pressing themselves against her and curiously peering through the car window at the street scenery.
Liu Yun, the eldest son, brought his two daughters, Li Qingfei and Li Qingzhi, in one car, while Li Xuming brought Li Qingzhang and Li Qingjing in another car.
Li Xushi, the second son of Li Xushi, along with his wife Mo Qiaoniang and eldest daughter Li Qingruo, rode in a carriage. Li Qingduan and Li Qingyi, both active, followed along on horseback.
The carriage behind belonged to the third branch of the Li family; Li Xuchang was with his pregnant wife. The last carriage was empty, containing a change of clothes and snacks.
Once everyone was seated, Li Xuming ordered his men to set off.
The streets were quite lively. Pan Jinhua, who had been staying at the Li family's house all this time, was coming out for the first time, so she couldn't help but become interested and followed the two children, looking left and right.
"Grandma, that's candied hawthorn!" Li Qingtong's eyes lit up when she saw the candied hawthorn vendor, and she immediately pointed at the vendor and shouted to Pan Jinhua.
"Lian'er, buy a string of these for each of the children in the family."
The maids and servants followed the carriage at a brisk pace. The carriage was traveling slowly within the city. Lian'er was sitting on the carriage shaft. Upon hearing the old lady's instructions, she nimbly jumped off the side of the carriage.
Not long after, he brought back a string of candied hawthorns for Li Qingtong and Li Qingjun.
"The other young ladies and gentlemen have already been sent to their respective cars."
"Wow, thank you, Grandma! Thank you, Sister Lian'er!" Li Qingtong and Li Qingjun were overjoyed to receive the candied hawthorns.
"It's so sweet, Grandma." Li Qingjun only tentatively licked the sugar coating, but was already overwhelmed by the sweetness. His eyes narrowed happily, like a soft little kitten.
This skewer isn't cheap, since it contains sugar.
"Grandmother, you should eat too." Li Qingtong didn't eat any herself, but first handed the candied hawthorn to Pan Jinhua's mouth.
Pan Jinhua happily embraced Li Qingtong and touched his little face.
"Good boy, Grandma's teeth are too old to eat sweets."
This isn't meant to fool children. In ancient times, there were no dentures. If her teeth were decayed due to her age, it would be excruciating for her. It's better for her to eat a light diet on a daily basis.
"Do teeth get old too?" Li Qingjun asked curiously. "Do they fall out like my third sister's when she gets old?"
The third sister Li Qingjun mentioned is Li Qingzhi, the youngest daughter of the eldest son's family. She is eight years old and is currently losing her baby teeth.
"That's right. When we're little, everyone loses teeth. We call it losing teeth. Before long, your third sister will grow new, nice teeth."
"Everyone can do it, my brother can too, can I?" Li Qingjun asked curiously.
Li Qingtong, who was crunching on a candied hawthorn, joined in after hearing this.
"I've recently noticed that one of my teeth is loose..."
Before she could finish speaking, Li Qingtong's face froze.
"Grandma...grandmother."
Li Qingtong cried...
The situation was so absurd that Pan Jinhua and Liu Yun's daughters-in-law burst into laughter.
"I was just talking to Xiao Liu when Xiao Wu just lost a tooth."
Qi Wan's own mother laughed heartily, "Mother, don't say that in front of Xiao Wu. He didn't say a word just now. He's so young, yet he's already so concerned about his image."
The Li family had already arrived at the temple. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law gathered together, and Pan Jinhua told everyone about Li Qingtong losing his baby teeth, which made everyone smile. Hearing about children always brings a smile to people's faces.
“The child is strong-willed. We can talk about it behind her back, but we can’t say it in front of her. Qingzhi is losing her baby teeth too, and young girls care about that even more,” Pan Jinhua chimed in.
"And you know what? Qingzhi cried to me several times. She was so scared back then. She's only just recovered after growing a little bit recently." Liu Yun glanced at his youngest daughter trailing behind, and couldn't help but force a smile.
Qi Wan listened with envy. She had already given birth to two sons and was hoping that this pregnancy would result in a delicate and sweet daughter. Today, she was determined to pray to the Bodhisattva.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law walked ahead, chatting and laughing, while the men of the Li family followed behind with the children.
Looking at the scene before him, Li Xuming felt a pang of gloom. If only things could stay this way forever. But now that a storm was brewing, he had no choice but to use every means at his disposal to find a way out for his Li family!
The Li family members crowded together, the men leading a few boys to pay respects to Old Master Li, the women lighting eternal lamps, and inviting monks from the temple to perform rituals. After the rituals, they went to worship the Bodhisattvas and were free to do as they pleased. This took up another morning. At noon, they ate a vegetarian meal at the temple, rested for a while, and then went home or distributed porridge.
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