Wu Cuihua quickly pleaded, "Mother, I'll watch him. I'll tie his hands. If he dares to make another mistake, I'll beat him. Mother, he's the only one left in our Wu family. Don't abandon him!"
Having said that, she didn't dare to plead with Li Lao Er, and instead went to pull her two sons.
Jiaren and Jiayi were reluctant to see their mother like this, but they also really disliked their uncle. Caught in the middle, they were very embarrassed, keeping their heads down and their faces flushed.
Grandma Li was naturally reluctant to part with her grandson, so she could only pick up Jiayin and turn to leave.
Everyone quickly shouldered their luggage and followed closely behind.
For once, Wu Cuihua was clever enough to pull her younger brother along, and they stumbled after him.
With Wu Ergou causing such a commotion, the Li family dared not linger there, fearing they might cause more trouble.
Old Lady Li called out to her second and fourth sons, but instead asked around for information about the caravan heading west to Junyang County.
Li Lao Er is eloquent, and Li Lao Si has superhuman strength for self-defense.
The two brothers first went into the teahouse, then to a large courtyard filled with carriages and horses, and finally ran back with happy faces.
"Mother, we've found them! There's a caravan from Junyang County. We've agreed on ten taels of silver to give our family a ride. We can stay with them in the communal room tonight and set off tomorrow morning. But we'll have to prepare our own food and water for the journey!"
"Really? That's going too smoothly! Now I'm worried about potential dangers on the road!"
Grandma Li happily kissed her sleeping granddaughter several times and laughed.
"With Fu Niu'er in our family, everything is going smoothly!"
Hiding behind the crowd, Wu Cuihua secretly pursed her lips. "A mere child who can't even speak properly."
Whenever something good happens, they try to attribute it to her, without even worrying about shortening their own lifespan!
The Li family ignored her grumbling and quickly gathered their things and went into the courtyard.
Old Mrs. Li was good at dealing with people. She divided the pastries given by Madam Sun into a box and had Li Lao Er deliver it to the head of the escort team.
The head镖师 (镖头, a type of镖师) was a middle-aged man with a robust build and a deep voice.
Sure enough, after receiving the snack box, they became much more polite and went up to chat with the family.
"You can just call me Lao Liu. Our escort agency is located in the county town. So, it's fate that we've been able to come all this way together."
"Brother, that's wonderful. I'll be troubling you these next few days."
Grandma Li was also polite, smiling as she pointed to her children and grandchildren.
“We’re just an ordinary family, visiting relatives. But the young man in my family is hardworking, and the daughter-in-law can cook. If you need any help along the way, just let us know.”
Liu, the镖头 (bodyguard), was also pleased to hear this. When traveling together, the worst thing is when someone doesn't listen to you. After all, you're a team, and any problem could delay the journey.
"Alright, big sister, I won't stand on ceremony when there's work to be done."
His eyes were sharp, and seeing that the Li family members were dressed fairly cleanly and had peaceful expressions, they certainly didn't seem like bad people, which reassured him even more.
Old Lady Li had silver notes given to her by Madam Sun, and her family had some savings before fleeing the famine.
But once we get to Junyang County, we'll need to rebuild our assets, so it's not good to waste them here.
So the family only bought thirty steamed buns made from two portions of flour, a few cabbages and radishes, and some millet and rice to supplement their diet.
I did buy twenty extra eggs for Tao Hongying, which she cooked on the way to help her recover. It would be even better if she could produce more breast milk.
Since there were no more dairy goats, Jiayin's food supply depended entirely on his mother.
At night, Jiayin slept in the dormitory bed with Tao Hongying in her arms.
Separated only by a coarse cloth curtain, on the other side were the bodyguards and the Li brothers with Jiaren and a few others.
Jiayin slept too much during the day, and the sound of Shanxiang snoring made it even harder for her to sleep.
She could only suck on her fingers, her mind wandering in the space, feeding the chickens, the pigs, the sheep…
The little lamb is unaware that its mother has been given away and is bleating everywhere. Fortunately, it is already able to eat grass.
Even a cabbage can make it swing its short tail with great joy.
In her past life, Jiayin was a homebody. She left the city and returned to her hometown with a desire to escape the world.
Therefore, the house and its surroundings are fully equipped with a lot of things.
Unless it's something major, I wish I could stay home for a whole month without going out.
Looking back now, she is actually very fortunate.
Putting aside everything else, there are 300 jin of vacuum-packed japonica rice, five or six bags of wheat flour, and a lot of millet, cornmeal and other miscellaneous grains.
There are two freezers. One is filled with meat and seafood, including beef, lamb, pork, ribs, large bones, ribbonfish, and prawns.
The other container contained frozen pasta, various instant fried foods, ice cream, and so on.
Not to mention the various green vegetables in the backyard, and the pigs, sheep, chickens and ducks raised there.
There are dozens of live fish in the pond in the corner of the yard, including carp and grass carp with three-scaled scales.
However, while these things may sound like a lot, they are probably still insufficient to help the Li family.
After all, there are more than a dozen people, especially the older brothers, each of them a big eater, half-grown boys, they could eat me to death...
But something is better than nothing. After settling down, we can plan how to help our family get rich, at least so we won't have to worry about food and clothing.
Jiayin didn't want to spend her precious childhood, which she had finally gotten a second chance at, in cold and hunger...
Her little head bore a burden far beyond what her age should have, and she quickly fell asleep…
The caravan set off early the next morning.
As usual, Jiayin was held in Old Lady Li's arms and sat on the shaft of a carriage.
Grandma Li was afraid that she would be blown by the morning breeze, so she carefully pulled her clothes to cover herself.
The bodyguards were all curious: why was the Li family letting their grandsons walk below, while showing such care for a granddaughter?
Even the Li family boys didn't feel the slightest bit aggrieved. Instead, they would pick wildflowers to tease their younger sister one minute, and ask their grandmother if she was thirsty the next.
Liu, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), was a generous and forthright person. Seeing that Li Laosi was strong, honest, and reliable, he took a liking to him and kept him by his side for gossip.
Liu, the镖头 (bodyguard), was a skilled archer. Upon discovering that Li Laosi also possessed a longbow, he naturally had to say a few more words.
He soon became sworn brothers with Li Laosi and they agreed to have a friendly chat.
The journey continued until dusk before the caravan finally stopped and set up camp.
Li Laosi and Liu Biaotou went into the woods and returned quickly, bringing two pheasants and a rabbit.
"Brother, your archery skills are amazing, you hit the bullseye every time, and you're so strong! Why don't you come work for us? Travel around for a few more years, and when I retire, you can definitely become a head镖师 (bodyguard/escort).
Liu, the镖头 (bodyguard), really liked Li Laosi, praising him highly and genuinely appreciating his talent.
Li Laosi was also tempted, but since his family hadn't settled down yet, he couldn't very well agree, so he said...
"You flatter me,镖头. We're going to Junyang County to stay with relatives. Once we're settled, and there's nothing to do at home, I might actually go and ask you for a meal."
Liu, the镖头 (bodyguard), didn't insist and ordered people to roast rabbits and pheasants.
Tao Hongying carried her daughter on her back to cook as usual, and Jiayin secretly added ingredients to the millet pot, feeding the Li family once again.
Actually, she didn't have much space left for Xiaomi, and she wanted to store more rice, but with the escort team around, it was better to be cautious.
Yesterday, Li Laosi bought his daughter a rattle drum at the dock. Now, as he plays with it, his bright white teeth gleam in his smile. Where is the valiant and ruthless figure who was so deadly in the mountains just moments before…?
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