Having been away from home for a month, Li Laosi and his two sons were eager to return. The carriage traveled on the main road, which was safe and flat, so they only rested for two hours at night.
The rest of the time, they were on the move.
Jiayin slept when she was tired and ate when she was hungry, so she didn't feel too tired.
When the sun was high in the sky, the carriage finally turned onto the path leading to Broken Gold Beach.
Previously, the family had received a message from Young Master Ye informing them that Li Laosi and the children were safe and sound, but everyone still couldn't help but worry about them.
Tao Hongying figured it was about time, so she decided to delegate some of the kitchen chores and then waited at the valley entrance.
She finally caught sight of the carriage and immediately ran towards it.
Li Laosi jumped down from the cart shaft, grinning foolishly as he went to greet her, "Hey, Hongying, I'm back."
Tao Hongying was so angry she wanted to pinch him a couple of times, but seeing her mother-in-law carrying her daughter out of the car, she could only glare at him fiercely, saying, "I'll settle the score with you tonight."
After saying that, she hugged her daughter and helped her mother-in-law up.
"Mom, Fu Niu misses you! Fu Niu brought you something delicious!"
Jiayin hugged her mother, kissing her left and right, overjoyed. Tao Hongying scolded her daughter, "You, you're all talk and no action! You always say you miss me and can't bear to part with me, but when it's time to go out and play, you never miss me!"
"Hehe!" Jiayin felt guilty, so she hugged her mother's neck, grinned, and showed off her little white teeth, pretending to be stupid to the end, which made everyone laugh.
The old lady asked, "How is things at home? Is everything alright?"
"No, Mother, everything is fine, it's just that everyone is worried about you." Tao Hongying replied, and at this moment Jiayi and Liu Yang had already run into the valley.
After being away for a month, the two boys are really homesick.
Sister Liu pulled her son aside, her eyes also reddening, but she didn't utter a single word of blame.
She married a镖头 (bodyguard/escort), and her livelihood was tied to the martial arts world. She was used to separation and safe return, and had more resilience and patience than others.
Liu, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), patted his son and apprentice on the shoulder, and after hearing that they were not injured, he went to greet Li Laosi.
The villagers had gathered around the carriage. Old Lady Li didn't say much, but pointed to the twenty-odd bolts of fine cloth inside and laughed, "The Marquis has gone on another expedition. Before he left, he remembered the village and bought so much cloth for us to bring back. He said he wanted to make summer clothes for the old people and children in the village. I advised him to keep the money for when he gets married, but the Marquis refused."
Everyone laughed, "When the Marquis gets married in the future, we'll all help out by contributing some money."
The village chief happened to be passing by and, upon hearing this, laughed and scolded, "You all think you've made a fortune selling cold melons, and you've all started to brag."
The villagers chuckled; they had indeed become a bit arrogant lately.
During this period, the cold melons and fragrant melons in the melon field were hauled away by truckloads, and then picked one by one and sent to the valley.
Although they couldn't calculate how much silver they had earned, they remembered clearly that each melon cost three taels of silver.
Even if each family doesn't get too much, they'll still get ten cold melons, which is thirty taels of silver!
Money gives people confidence, so nowadays everyone walks with a spring in their step, head held high and chest out.
Helpless, the village chief told them to leave.
"The fourth brother and the two boys are back safely, so everyone can stop worrying about them and go about their business. Tonight, after the second master settles the accounts, he will pay everyone's wages again."
"Great! We're getting more money!" The villagers cheered happily.
The village chief glared at them. "Shut your mouths, all of you. Don't go around spouting nonsense and making others jealous. Keep your own meat in your own pot, understand?"
"Got it!" Everyone smiled and then went about their business.
The village chief urged the Li family, "Hurry back. Mr. Wen arrived last night and has been waiting. Mrs. Cui hasn't gone back either; she's worried about you."
The twenty guards took this opportunity to bid farewell to the others, intending to head to the capital.
The group couldn't just let them go, so they pulled them to sit in the shade of a tree, where they ate a simple meal to fill their stomachs, and then opened a large cold melon.
Its emerald green skin, bright red flesh, and sweet taste drew praise and excitement from all the soldiers.
This is a cold melon, I heard it's a precious thing named by the emperor.
Even the nobles in Kyoto probably haven't had the chance to eat this before, yet they were holding it in their hands and taking big bites!
The village chief greeted them with a smile, "Don't swallow the melon seeds, spit them out and save them for planting. This stuff is too precious this year, so just enjoy it for the novelty. Next year, the village will plant all the riverbank land with winter melons, and then we'll take you to the fields to eat as many as you like."
"Alright, village chief, we've got it! Next year I'm going to eat one by myself, and I'll just hold it and gnaw on it!"
A soldier who wasn't very old shouted with a grin, which made everyone laugh.
The village chief waved his hand and generously promised, "Next year, I'll set aside a day at the hot spring so you can soak in it while munching on a cold melon!"
The thought of that scene made everyone laugh even harder.
Twenty people sharing one cold melon, each person only gets one piece.
After spitting out a bowl of seeds, the group got up and continued on their way.
The Li family also returned to the village. Madam Cui and Mr. Wen were sitting under the shade of a tree in front of the Li family's house, enjoying the cool air. When they saw the carriage, they both stood up.
Li Laosi jumped off the cart, strode forward, bowed, and said, "Mr. Wen, all the books have been brought back without missing a single one."
"That's wonderful!" Mr. Wen patted Li Laosi on the shoulder and laughed, "You guys have suffered, haven't you? Are you hurt?"
"No, I encountered a small problem, but I solved it."
Li Laosi casually agreed and began moving the books downstairs.
Soon, all the books and other items that Young Master Ye had purchased were moved into the house.
Jiayin hugged Madam Cui's neck and showed off her new treasures, making Madam Cui laugh non-stop.
Mr. Wen turned around and saw it, his heart filled with mixed feelings, and his eyes also showed a hint of eagerness.
Grandma Li, concerned for her grandson, asked, "Sir, there are so many books. How long will it take Jiaren to copy them all by himself? Should we ask someone for help?"
Mr. Wen smiled and said, "I went to the Guo family again a few days ago. Mr. Guo heard that the fourth brother and the others had been in the mountains for a month and hadn't come out yet, so he was very worried about them. I took the opportunity to mention it, and he agreed."
“I will send these books to the academy and tell Mr. Peng to ask Jiaren and the other thirty-odd students in his class to copy them together. These handwritten copies will also be kept at the academy for a year, so that the students there can read them, as a way of repaying the students for their hard work!”
The Li family members were momentarily stunned, feeling that this was a bit of a hassle.
But Jia Yin understood that Mr. Wen was building momentum for Jia Ren.
These days, books are more precious than gold.
Moreover, the Guo family used to run an academy, so the books that the Guo family members carried with them when they fled for their lives were extremely precious and rare.
Even if Jiaren and his classmates helped with copying, it was equivalent to reading through the text once, and they definitely benefited a lot.
These handwritten copies, even if they can only be viewed and not copied, will still broaden the students' horizons and increase their reading volume if they remain at the academy for a year.
If it happens to be a bright student, the kind who can memorize it after reading it a few times, it might even leave behind dozens of copies for the academy.
Most importantly, a year later, these books will be returned to the Li family, and Jiaren will become a highly sought-after member of the academy.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com