She quickly pointed to two small dogs on the dock and laughed as she teased her granddaughter.
"Fu Niu'er, when we finally settle down and have a home, Grandma will get you a puppy, okay?"
Jiayin quickly changed her mind and put on a smiling face, cooing and babbling to make her grandmother happy, affectionately smearing saliva all over Grandma Li's face.
Grandma Li was amused by her and the two were playing around when Wu Cuihua pulled Wu Er up on the boat, crying and sobbing.
"Mother! Look who I found!" Wu Cuihua pushed Wu Er in front of Old Lady Li.
Old Mrs. Li had sharp eyes and recognized Wu Er at a glance, and the smile on her face immediately disappeared.
"Auntie, it's me, Wu Er! Waaah, I've finally found my family!"
Wu Er pretended to wipe away tears, but secretly sized up Old Lady Li.
Seeing that she was also dressed cleanly and was holding a chubby baby in her arms, he became even more convinced that the Li family had made a fortune, and he was determined to stay with the Li family no matter what.
"What a coincidence, running into you here."
Old Mrs. Li spoke coldly; having been in-laws for over a decade, she had absolutely no goodwill towards the Wu family.
Wu Cuihua wasn't stupid. Seeing her mother-in-law's attitude, she knew her brother wasn't welcome. So she decided to go all out and knelt down to hug the old lady's legs.
"Mother, my father has been killed by bandits who stole our grain. My younger brother was begging at the dock and was just kicked half to death. Waaah, Mother, please spare my brother! He's my only remaining family!"
Jiayin nestled in the crook of Old Lady Li's neck, turned her head to look at Wu Er, and then disgustedly lay back down.
Her intuition told her that this person was definitely not someone to be trifled with, and that keeping him around would only cause trouble.
But she couldn't speak, so she could only whine and grumble to vent her displeasure.
"My in-law is dead?" Old Mrs. Li frowned. After all, they were of the same generation, and hearing the news of his death made her feel somewhat uncomfortable.
Wu Cuihua nodded, tears streaming down her face.
"Mother, let's take my brother with us. The Sun family's ship is so big, it won't make a difference if he's one more."
"What nonsense are you talking about? Just because someone's ship is big doesn't mean they have to carry more people. There are plenty of ships at the dock, have you seen any of them just randomly picking up disaster victims?"
Grandma Li disliked Wu Cuihua's matter-of-fact tone and retorted sharply.
"Mother, this is the only son in our Wu family. You can't just stand by and watch him die! Please go and plead with Madam Sun for me. Didn't our Fu Niu just save Miss Sun's life...?"
"Shut up!" Old Mrs. Li was even angrier when she saw Wu Cuihua becoming more and more unrestrained in her speech and even trying to take advantage of her kindness.
Wu Cuihua ignored all of this and shouted even louder, attracting several boatmen to watch, which made Old Lady Li's face even more unpleasant.
Fortunately, Li Lao Er chased her back and covered Wu Cuihua's mouth.
"Mother, this isn't working. Let's plead for them. We can always send them away when we get to Kyoto."
When her son spoke up, Old Lady Li couldn't ignore him.
Furthermore, if Wu Er really wasn't brought along, Wu Cuihua would make a scene that would turn the whole dock into a laughingstock.
"Tell him to go down first and wait patiently on the shore. I'll go ask him."
With a dark expression, Old Lady Li took Jiayin to see Madam Sun.
Since Madam Sun had nothing else to do, she listened to Old Lady Li explain the situation and did not refuse.
"Everyone has their troubles. If you want to bring one more person, that's fine, just don't cause any trouble on the boat."
"Don't worry, Madam. I will have my family keep a close watch on him and not allow him to leave the cabin. If he misbehaves in the slightest, I will throw him into the river without you even having to say a word."
Old Mrs. Li spoke so firmly that Mrs. Sun found it amusing, saying, "There's no need to do that, like chasing people away at the dock."
"The lady is kind-hearted; she will surely be rewarded."
After a few words of small talk, Old Mrs. Li put Jiayin down, coaxed Miss Sun to play, and then hurried off to deal with Wu Er.
Li Laosi carried several buckets of water, Wu Cuihua helped Wu Er wash up and change into a clean set of clothes, and Tao Hongying helped cook a large bowl of porridge.
After eating and drinking his fill, Wu Er decided to wander around the boat.
As a result, they were locked in their cabin and not allowed to step out.
Grandma Li pulled Wu Cuihua so that the two siblings could hear clearly.
"We'll be in Kyoto in a few days. If Wu Er dares to cause trouble and bring shame to our family, I'll have Lao Si throw you and your brother into the river! You dare to try!"
She glared fiercely at Wu Cuihua, "Rather than let you embarrass yourselves and cause trouble, dragging our Li family off the boat, it's better to drown you two troublemakers first!"
Wu Cuihua shrank back in fright, and Wu Er'er finally calmed down.
In less than an hour, the Sun family's large ship set sail again.
Two or three days passed in a flash, and Wu Er was occasionally allowed to walk around on the deck under the pretext of convenience.
He was envious, seeing the Sun family's wealth, and wanted to devise some wicked schemes.
But Old Lady Li arranged for Jiaxi and Jia'an to stay with him at all times.
He had bad intentions, but no opportunity.
And so, with smooth sailing all the way, the large ship finally arrived in Kyoto amidst everyone's eager anticipation.
The Kyoto pier was larger than any other pier I had ever been to. There was no war here, no refugees.
Although the people coming and going were not dressed in fine clothes, their living standards were significantly better than those at the Minnanling Wharf.
Jiayin, carried by Grandma Li, came out of the cabin and was greeted by a scene of prosperity and grandeur.
But she wasn't as excited as the Li family; instead, she secretly sighed.
Such prosperity probably only existed in Kyoto. In places plagued by famine and war, where starvation and lamentation were everywhere, the rulers enjoyed a life of peace and prosperity.
Isn't this just another example of "the rich feasting while the poor freeze to death on the streets"?
"Fu Niu'er, we've arrived in Kyoto!"
Grandma Li was very excited, bouncing her little granddaughter in her arms, "We don't have to be afraid of the barbarians anymore!"
Zhao Yuru and Tao Hongying also had tears in their eyes, and reached out to touch Jiayin's little face.
“Our lucky girl is so blessed. She won’t have to be afraid of anything living in Kyoto.”
Jiayin spit out a bubble as a response, which made the three women—mother-in-law and daughter-in-law—laugh again.
"Mother, everything is packed. Please tell Madam Sun that we should get off the boat quickly." Li Lao Er and his brothers, carrying large and small bags, came to Old Madam Li's side.
Grandma Li responded and carried Jiayin to Madam Sun's room.
Mrs. Sun was feeding her daughter when she saw Old Mrs. Li come in and invited her to sit down.
"Madam, thank you so much for your care these past few days. Now that we've arrived in Kyoto, it's not appropriate for our large family to trouble you any further. We'll be leaving as soon as the ship docks."
Grandma Li was very grateful and thanked her sincerely.
Mrs. Sun was a little reluctant to part with him and subconsciously asked, "Are you leaving already?"
Then, she took Old Lady Li's hand, sincerely trying to persuade her to stay.
“Aunt Li, your family fled from famine and must have no one to rely on in the capital. Why don’t you stay with our Sun family? We can’t guarantee you’ll be safe for life, but at least we can ensure you have enough to eat and wear.”
Madam Sun spoke frankly, but with good intentions.
But Old Lady Li immediately shook her head, because if they stayed in the Sun family, they could only be servants and be inferior to others for the rest of their lives.
This will affect the education and examinations of my children and grandchildren in the future.
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