Jiayi, Jiaxi, and Jia'an are used to this way of life at home, but Lige and Maoge are seeing it for the first time.
There were about a hundred people bustling around inside and outside the courtyard, and laughter filled the air.
The kitchen was steaming with heat, and people were shouting every now and then, making it even more lively than during the Chinese New Year.
Cat Brother followed Jia An and Jia Xi everywhere. Some villagers found pig bladders, blew them into round shapes, and threw them to the children to play with.
This caused quite a stir among the children, who all rushed to the front of the yard, chasing each other and creating a huge commotion.
The usually fair-skinned and thin Cat was covered in sweat from running. He was so thirsty that he returned to the eaves, gulped down a bowl of warm water, and then, with his face flushed, rejoined the soccer team.
Li Zhensheng had never seen his youngest son like this before; he was both worried and happy.
Li Ge, however, sat next to his father, smiling and whispering to him, "Dad, it's so good to be home."
Li Zhensheng almost shed tears. If he said that he had gone to great lengths to ruin the Wang family's reputation and send Wang E to do hard labor, he would not regret it at all.
The only thing she was worried about was her two sons, after all, it was the Wang family they grew up in, and Wang E was their biological mother.
But now that his son has said this, he can finally rest assured that bringing them back to the Li family was the right thing to do.
At this moment, Liu, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), returned with Li Laosan's family and Jiaren.
It was clear that they had set off last night, waited at the city gate, and rushed back as soon as the gate opened.
They all had dark circles under their eyes and looked haggard.
But as soon as Li Laosan entered the courtyard, he went straight to the eaves, hugged his elder brother's leg, and burst into tears.
"Big brother, big brother! Waaah, you've suffered so much, why didn't you tell us! Waaah, big brother, those people are heartless, how could they bear to bully you like this!"
His repeated calls of "elder brother" brought tears to everyone's eyes.
Zhao Yuru stood to the side wiping away tears, while Jiaren and Jiahuan knelt on either side of Li Zhensheng, saying, "Uncle, you've suffered so much!"
Li Zhensheng patted his younger brother and nephews, and couldn't help but choke up, "Don't cry, I'm back now. Those things are all in the past. From now on, our family will live a good life together!"
"Brother, I want to kill them! I want to dig up the Wang family's ancestral graves!" Li Laosan was an honest man, so for him to say such a thing meant he was absolutely filled with hatred.
Li Laosi quickly stepped forward and joined his elder brother in persuading, "Third brother, Mother cried a lot yesterday and isn't feeling well. We can't upset her any further! We can talk about this privately among us brothers. Today is a joyous day for our family reunion."
Li Laosan quickly looked up and saw that his mother, who was busy picking vegetables, was wiping away tears again. He quickly got up and wiped away his tears.
Zhao Yuru also ran to take over the chores from her mother-in-law, saying, "Mother, you just stay and talk to my eldest brother. I'll do these chores. Madam Cui and the others will be here soon, right? You need to entertain the guests!"
As luck would have it, before the words had even finished, a carriage arrived outside the door.
Mrs. Cui, Mr. Wen, and Liu Zhiheng all came, and as always, they never came empty-handed.
The carriage was filled with several large baskets of ingredients such as chicken, fish, meat, and eggs, as well as several boxes of snacks and treats for the children.
The villagers came forward to greet him and helped him carry his things. The children clapped and cheered, and the courtyard became lively again.
Mr. Wen and others were also outside the government office yesterday, but they didn't want to show their faces. When they saw Li Zhensheng today, the first thing they asked him was about his condition.
They heard that there was no danger to their lives, but they would need to recuperate for a year or two before they could feel at ease.
Jiayin was held in Mrs. Cui's arms for a while, then sat on Mr. Wen's lap, and then Liu Zhiheng fed her snacks. She was so happy that she was dizzy.
Finally, she cradled her bulging belly, nestled against Young Master Ye's legs, and yawned.
With the village so lively, it's no wonder that people are eager to join in and get involved.
Moreover, Jia'an and Jiaxi had taken leave, so the manpower in the valley was not as sufficient as usual.
When customers ordered tea or similar drinks but didn't receive them for a while, they couldn't help but complain, "What's going on? Where did everyone go?"
Someone replied, "I heard there's a banquet in the village today, so I guess everyone's gone."
"Yes, when I passed by this morning, the noise sounded like they were slaughtering pigs and sheep."
As people chatted amongst themselves, they noticed the young waiter approaching and pulled him aside to ask him a few questions.
The young man replied with a smile, "Grandma Li's eldest uncle, who has been missing for over ten years, has returned safely. Grandma Li said she's going to hold a banquet to celebrate the family reunion. At noon, food from the valley will be delivered from the village. It's free; Grandma Li said she wants everyone to eat together and share in the joy, so that Grandma Li's eldest uncle can recover soon."
Among the guests were those who had witnessed the commotion the day before. Remembering Li Zhensheng vomiting blood, they were concerned and tentatively asked, "Has the family found a doctor to examine Master Li?"
Before the waiter could respond, the other customers said, "Don't you know? There's a miracle doctor here at Broken Gold Beach. He must have seen him, but we don't know what the result was."
The young man then said, "Dr. Zhang said that Uncle Li's illness has been dragging on for too long and is difficult to cure completely, but with proper medication and care, he should be fine for another year or two."
A year and a half?
Everyone sighed secretly. Although the result was better than they had imagined, it was still a pity that such a good man as Master Li only had a year and a half left to live.
"God is blind."
"Yes, but Master Li has finally returned home and found his mother. With a year and a half of companionship, he must be happy."
"Yes, I'm afraid they'll die of illness before they can find their family members, that would be so pitiful."
The crowd was abuzz with discussion. Some people, who were not quite aware of what had happened yesterday, listened to the whole story again and couldn't help but join in cursing the Wang family as despicable.
In Xinduli, Li Lao Er, along with Wang Fu, successfully sold the Wang family's courtyard by reducing the price by 20%.
When he went to the government office to exchange the deed, he took the opportunity to change the names of his elder brother and his two sons, and added them to the Li family's household register.
The people in the yamen naturally recognized Li Lao Er, and they didn't make things difficult for him at all. Instead, they kept asking about Li Yuanwai's condition.
Li Lao Er also brought up the "one year and a half" excuse, which made everyone sigh.
Before leaving, Li Lao Er gave them ten taels of silver as a reward for their trouble, but no one was willing to accept it.
Having no other choice, Li Lao Er bought a lot of snacks and fruits and sent them back.
After finishing all that, Ye Shan actually came looking for him. Upon seeing Li Lao Er, he said, "Second Master, we have some matters to attend to at the Marquis's residence. I need to go to the village to see the Marquis. Would you mind taking me back with you?"
"That would be great, of course." Li Lao Er led Wang Fu to get into the carriage, but Wang Fu waved his hand. "Second Master, I'm going back to the small courtyard in the west of the city first. Your things are all there, and I need to guard them. If you have any instructions, please send someone to the small courtyard in the west of the city to find me."
"Okay, thank you for your hard work." Li Lao Er said goodbye to Wang Fu and then took a car with Ye Shan to head back.
Worried that something urgent might have happened at the Marquis's residence, he asked, "The Marquis's injuries haven't fully healed yet, so we shouldn't trouble him. If there's anything we can do to help, please let us know."
"Don't worry, Second Master, it's just a small matter." Ye Shan replied with a smile, reaching out to touch the bulging envelope in his chest, unable to help but feel a little envious of the Li family.
Serving you at midnight~~~?
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