The village chief bought a roast chicken and a jar of strong liquor. They returned to the village and then went up the mountain, perhaps to report to their deceased comrade.
The entire Li family, young and old, were overjoyed upon seeing the contract.
Everyone went up to look and touch, and then became even more excited and enthusiastic about cleaning their new home.
Old Mrs. Li and Jiayin lived in the east room of the main house, while Jiaren and his brothers lived in the west room.
Then the south room of the east wing was given to Li Lao Er and his wife, and the north room was given to Li Lao San.
The south room of the west wing was given to Li Laosi and Tao Hongying, while the north room was locked up and temporarily used as a storeroom.
The two side rooms are conveniently located for men and women to use as washrooms and shower rooms, and can also be used to dry underwear and other items.
To avoid any awkwardness from so many people living together.
Kyoto isn't exactly warm in winter, so every room has a heated floor (ondo), which made the Li family even more satisfied.
Li Lao Er followed behind his mother, busily making a list.
Mats for the heated brick bed, new window paper, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, rice, flour, cooking oil, earthenware basins and jars—almost everything needed to be added.
Grandma Li received the good news, gave the silver to Tao Hongying and Li Yuru, and Li Laosi and Jiayi followed, and hurriedly went into the city to make purchases.
Jiayin couldn't help, so she tried not to cause any trouble. She would whimper when she needed to pee or was hungry, and if she was really bored, she would just go to sleep.
Her well-behaved nature made Grandma Li and her family even happier, and everyone who came over wanted to kiss her little face.
The Li family was so busy and making quite a commotion that the villagers naturally heard about it.
Three women returned from the fields and gathered at the village entrance to chat.
“I heard from the village chief’s wife that someone has moved into that big courtyard at the foot of the mountain.”
One of the women, who lived next door to the village chief, quickly shared her newfound topic of conversation with the others.
"That courtyard was bought? How much did it cost? They're really bold. Don't they know how Zhang Laokui died?" someone exclaimed.
"I heard it was one hundred taels, and that family paid the money without even blinking."
The woman gestured excitedly, as if she had been there when she saw Old Lady Li hand over the money.
"This family is really rich! Although their courtyard is a bit out of place, it's a truly nice place. I heard that it cost over a hundred taels of silver when Zhang Laokui built it, and now they've added ten acres of land for only a hundred taels. The newcomers are really getting a good deal!"
"Who says otherwise? The village chief said that family came to our village yesterday to stay with relatives, but the relatives wouldn't take them in, so they wanted to buy a place to stay. I don't know which family was so blinded by greed that they could turn away such wealthy relatives."
Liu Tiezhu's wife, who was standing not far away, turned pale and red as she listened, filled with regret.
She turned and ran towards the courtyard at the foot of the mountain...
The Li family was busy inside, washing the bluestone floor with water until it looked clean and tidy.
Liu Tiezhu's wife stared for a long time, feeling completely disoriented, and didn't even know how she got home.
Guo was cooking when she heard that the Li family had bought a courtyard for one hundred taels of silver.
She immediately jumped up from her chair, exclaiming, "Impossible! When did the Li family become so rich?!"
If they had known it would be like this, they should have treated the Li family like royalty yesterday. Even if they wanted to drive them away, they should have at least tricked them out of their money first!
"Let's go take a look over there!"
Guo was unwilling to accept it. Old Mrs. Li was the children's aunt. Now that she had become successful, how could she let her nephew suffer?
She had to get the money out of Old Lady Li!
Liu Tiezhu and Liu Laifu shared the same idea, and the whole family headed to the foot of the mountain.
"Oh dear, sister, you guys are really something. Why didn't you say goodbye before leaving? I even had my daughter-in-law cook for you this morning, but when I opened the door, you were nowhere to be found."
As soon as they entered the courtyard, Guo approached Old Lady Li, her attitude many times more enthusiastic than yesterday.
Old Mrs. Li glanced at her, then coldly replied, "Aren't you afraid we'll stay at your house?"
Guo was embarrassed, but still shamelessly tried to explain.
"Sister, you've misunderstood. As you can see, our family is so poor that we only have a few rooms. We're just afraid you'll look down on us."
After saying that, she greedily looked around the large courtyard and asked.
"Big sister, I heard you bought this yard? Oh dear, it's a mess here, everything needs to be cleaned up from scratch. I'll ask Zhuzi and the others to help."
Liu Tiezhu and the others pretended to roll up their sleeves to help, but their eyes were actually fixed on the Li family's luggage.
Just then, Li Laosi and Tao Hongying returned from outside. When they saw the Liu family members there, they all looked unhappy.
Li Laosi directly told them to get out of there, "We don't need your help, you should leave now!"
Liu Laifu already disliked Li Laosi, and upon hearing his words, his jealousy and resentment flared up like fire.
"It's just a yard you bought, what's there to be proud of? Let me tell you, my family has lived in this village for over ten years. If you dare offend my family, you'll never be able to survive in this village!"
Jiayin was still a little groggy from being picked up by Tao Hongying. Hearing the Liu family's clamor only made her more annoyed.
She rarely lets out a loud cry, but she burst into tears!
This stirred up a hornet's nest; the Li family dropped what they were doing and rushed over.
"What's wrong with Fu Niu'er? Are you scared?"
"He must have been scared; he just woke up and heard the dog barking!"
Old Mrs. Li was also heartbroken. Any lingering sympathy she had for the Liu family vanished instantly.
She held her granddaughter, coaxing her while pointing to the gate to shoo people away.
"Get out of here now and don't come back. I already said last night that Liu Gen'er is dead, and our two families are no longer related."
"You old hag, who do you think you are to chase away!"
Liu Laifu had a bad temper and raised his hand to hit Li Laotai, but Li Laosi grabbed his arm.
Liu Laifu screamed in pain, and a layer of cold sweat instantly appeared on his forehead.
Guo wanted to step forward to help her son, but was so frightened by a look from Li Laosi that she dared not move.
Liu Laifu was in so much pain that he almost fainted. In his daze, he felt as if his arm was broken when Li Laosi suddenly threw him away.
"Get out! Don't let me see you again!"
The Liu family rushed forward to help Liu Laifu, and they stumbled and ran out.
Jiayin felt very relieved and spat at their backs.
Unfortunately, she had no strength left, and the saliva that dripped from the corner of her mouth ended up on her own neck.
Just then, Old Lady Li and Old Man Li saw this scene and burst into laughter.
"Wow, my Fu Niu'er is so clever! She even knows how to spit now!" "Don't underestimate Fu Niu'er just because she's young; she can tell right from wrong!"
Everyone laughed and teased Jiayin, making her blush.
Grandma Li waved her hand and gave instructions to her children and grandchildren.
"Our family has finally settled down. There will probably be good and bad things in the future. But we must have ambition and work together to make a good life for ourselves!"
The Li family members responded in unison, "Don't worry, Mother, we will definitely work hard."
"Grandma, we'll behave too."
By sunset, the new house was finally ready to live in.
Tao Hongying cooked a large pot of porridge, added wild vegetables, and tore apart a roast chicken she had bought in the city. The first meal in her new home was ready.
The family sat together, ignoring the disgusting sight of Wu Cuihua and Wu Ergou frantically fighting over the roast chicken, and felt incredibly comfortable.
After nearly two months of running for my life, I finally have a home.
With autumn fast approaching, the Li family had no time for sentimentality and got up early the next morning to continue their busy work.
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