The wounded soldier glanced at the group and said with a sneer, "These are all lazybones who used to eat and drink. Last night they even plotted to steal relief grain to sell. Everyone was furious, so the lord tied them up and threw them out."
Li Laosi nodded and was about to lead his wife and daughter inside.
Unexpectedly, Jiayin turned around and ran back to the back of the car. Using the car as cover, she took out a new straw hat from her storage space and handed it to the veteran.
"Uncle, you're wearing this hat because your wound hasn't fully healed yet. You need to breathe, you can't cover it up."
"Thank you, Princess!" The old soldier said gratefully, accepting the straw hat with both hands, his nose tingling with emotion.
Jiayin smiled, waved her hand, and led her father into the courtyard.
Li Lao Er was talking to several scholars.
It turns out that the courtyard that had been vacated in the past few days had been renovated and was temporarily rented out to these scholars for a short stay.
The price wasn't high; the only requirement was that they take turns helping the Relief and Relief Department organize the accounts.
The relief bureau's accounts were nothing more than records of the money and grain allocated by the imperial court, showing how much came in and how much was spent on a given day.
Furthermore, the amount of money, grain, and supplies donated by kind-hearted people in the city should also be recorded in the accounts.
Actually, these tasks are not difficult. Any two young men from the village could handle them, and Li Lao Er, being a former accountant, would find it extremely easy.
But he still insisted on using these scholars.
Because making the accounts public to these people is making them public to the entire Xindu and the entire Tianwu!
Everyone knew it, so no one suspected him of embezzling.
The scholars happily agreed, after all, paying half a day's work a month would save them half the rent, which was a great deal.
Moreover, helping the relief agency is also a virtuous act.
When Li Lao Er saw his younger brother's family arrive, he quickly saw the scholars off and then took his brother's family on a tour of various places.
Something seemed wrong in the kitchen; a burnt smell was coming from inside.
Tao Hongying rushed to help, and Jiayin, carrying the little fox, also ran to see what was going on.
Taking advantage of this moment, Li Lao Er told his younger brother about his plans.
In the past few days, he has taken over all the street urchins that his elder brother had previously recruited.
The troublemakers at the Relief Office were all tied up outside.
After observing for a while, we will select suitable personnel to start cleaning the streets and spread eyeliner all over Kyoto.
At that time, whether it's the Wang family or the Wu family, even if they can't directly confront them for the time being, they will at least be able to clearly grasp their movements.
As the saying goes, "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated."
At any time, passivity only leads to being attacked; only by seizing the initiative can the scales of victory be tipped in your favor.
At noon, Zheng Feng went to the scallop restaurant to pick up a food box, and everyone stayed at the relief office for lunch.
Li Lao Er had no good way to deal with those human-shaped rice dumplings outside.
If they were handed over to the government office, they hadn't committed any serious crimes, and would probably be released after three to five days.
At that point, whether they secretly plot against the relief agency or wander around the city, it won't be a good outcome.
Finally, Li Laosi came up with a good idea: "The docks need people to work. Why not send them there to do hard labor? After a year or two of hard work, all their laziness will be cured."
Li Lao Er's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he laughed, "That's a good idea! I've settled a few veterans here, which will also provide some strong laborers at the dock!"
Everyone laughed. After the meal, Li Laosi called two veterans and asked them to take his badge and escort people to the dock.
The "human-shaped rice dumplings" initially thought they were going to the government office and didn't take it seriously, since they had been there before and were repeat customers.
But to their surprise, the carriage left the city and went further and further away, which frightened them...
Unfortunately, whether they were afraid or regretful, it was too late.
If one could stay at the Relief and Relief Agency with peace of mind, having work and food to eat would be a wonderful thing.
They just wanted something for nothing, and they thought Li Lao Er was an easy target. In the end, they ran into a brick wall!
Li Laosi, along with his wife and children, pulled a cart half-load of incense, candles, and paper money, and a well-fed and soundly sleeping fox, left the city and soon saw his family's memorial archway in the distance.
Not far inside the archway, the foundation of the second village has been dug, and it is taking shape.
The villagers are working up a great deal of activity!
The village chief, with his hands behind his back and a pipe in hand, walked around, occasionally calling out to the villagers, full of energy.
It is said that the older people are afraid of being idle, because being idle makes them more prone to illness.
Having something to do or worry about is actually a good thing.
After all, if you have something to hold onto in your heart, you won't want to leave, and if you don't want to leave, you can live a few more years!
According to the Li family and the villagers, they wished the village chief would live to be a hundred years old.
Li Laosi stopped his car, ran over to give the village chief a packet of good tobacco leaves, chatted and laughed with the villagers for a few more minutes, and then continued walking home.
Old Mrs. Li was looking out the gate when she saw the carriage return, and her smile stretched from ear to ear.
Before the carriage had even come to a complete stop, Jiayin jumped down from her mother's arms and rushed into her grandmother's arms like a little leopard. "Grandma, I missed you so much! I promise I'll never go out to play again; I'll stay home with you."
Grandma Li, holding her chubby granddaughter, finally felt at ease after a day and night of worry.
She knew perfectly well that her granddaughter was with her son and daughter-in-law and wouldn't be thirsty or hungry, but she still couldn't help worrying about her.
This is a precious treasure that she raised in the palm of her hand and cherished in her eyes!
She was overjoyed, but said aloud, "Hmph, you finally came back! Grandma thought you couldn't find your way home!"
Jiayin smiled and wiggled in her grandmother's arms, kissing her grandmother's left cheek and then her right cheek, making Grandma Li laugh uncontrollably.
He Mama, Shui Ling, and Shui Yun came out to greet them when they heard the commotion.
Granny He smiled and said, "The princess has finally returned. The old lady got up early this morning and ran to the door to look for you. If you hadn't come back, the door would probably have been torn down."
"Nonsense! I just heard magpies calling outside the door and thought I'd check it out." Old Mrs. Li denied it and picked up her granddaughter to walk into the yard.
Unfortunately, her granddaughter was quite heavy, and it was a bit difficult for her to carry her.
In the end, it was Li Laosi who took his daughter in, and Tao Hongying helped her mother-in-law into the house.
The little fox woke up and jumped around on Shui Ling and Shui Yun's shoulders.
Before everyone could even sit down, Hui Niang brought Xiao Cui over, and the two of them carried baskets filled with mushrooms.
"Auntie, we picked some mushrooms on the mountain. Here's a basket for you; we can make soup with them tonight." Hui Niang poured the mushrooms under the eaves, attracting everyone's attention.
Grandma Li exclaimed with delight, "I thought it would take a while before the mushrooms grew, I didn't expect them to grow so early."
Hui Niang laughed and said, "I don't know either. It was Xiao Cui who took me there. She knows a lot of mushrooms!"
Xiao Cui is a native farm girl who grew up here. Everyone in the new village came from the north, so naturally no one knows the local seasons and produce better than her.
At this moment, blushing, she whispered, "These mushrooms are delicious in soup. They're best eaten fresh. There are also some varieties that we can pick and dry, which are even better for stewing in winter."
"Okay, Xiao Cui, take us up the mountain often from now on! We'll be counting on you for the mushrooms to make stewed chicken in winter." Tao Hongying said with a smile, which made Xiao Cui nod repeatedly.
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