They wasted a lot of time on the 3,000-mile journey and were already half a year behind schedule.
Lord Li was about to turn back. Wei Che and Su Huaiyue bowed and said, "Lord Li, take care on your journey."
"I know that Young Master Wei is not interested in this. After returning to the court, I will do my utmost to inform the Emperor of the sacrifices made by the Wei family along the way, so that you can escape the suffering of exile as soon as possible."
Wei Che was not in a hurry, as he knew all the forces in the court.
It would be nice to gain some experience in this remote Youzhou.
"Thank you, Lord Li. We will meet again later." Wei Che bowed.
Afterwards, Lord Li swiftly mounted his horse and led a group of soldiers away in a cloud of dust.
The dust raised by the horses' hooves filled the air and slowly dissipated after a long time, as if solemnly announcing the complete end of their old life and the beginning of a new life full of unknowns and challenges.
Wei Che stared at Lord Li's receding back, took a deep breath, calmed himself down, turned to look at Su Huaiyue and the Wei family, young and old, his eyes full of determination.
"No matter how difficult the days ahead are, we must persevere and live on in Youzhou."
Although his voice was not loud, it contained a reassuring power, like a ray of light that penetrated the haze in the darkness, instantly igniting the fire of hope in everyone's hearts.
Su Huaiyue nodded slightly and looked around. What caught her eye was an extremely dilapidated house.
Most of the courtyard wall collapsed, and the ruins were shaking in the cold wind, as if they would collapse completely in the next second.
The tiles on the roof were incomplete, with dark holes in many places. Through the holes, one could see that the house was covered with dense spider webs, and the air was filled with a pungent smell of dampness and decay.
But Su Huaiyue's eyes didn't show any disdain. Instead, they sparkled with a gleam of light. She said with confidence, "Don't be discouraged, everyone. Although this house is dilapidated, as long as we work together, we can definitely repair it and make it look brand new."
Mrs. Wei curled her lips, "How can we renovate this shabby house? Wei Che is the only male in the family. What can we do?"
Her voice was sharp, especially harsh in the cold wind. Her face was full of frustration and dissatisfaction, and her eyes revealed despair about the future.
Su Huaiyue was not affected by Wei Ersao's complaints. "Although this house looks shabby, we have strength in numbers. We women and children are not idle either. If we work together, we can definitely fix this house."
Wei Zhi and Wei Li stood aside, their originally excited faces becoming a little disappointed because of Wei Ersao's words.
Wei Li pulled Su Huaiyue's clothes and whispered, "Mother, can this house really be repaired?"
Su Huaiyue squatted down, gently touched Wei Li's head, and said softly, "Of course you can, Li'er. Look, we pull out the weeds in the yard and pick up the stones on the ground. Aren't we all helping? When the house is repaired, we can also plant flowers in the yard. How nice."
After hearing this, hope rekindled in Wei Li's eyes and he nodded vigorously.
After hearing Su Huaiyue's words, the other female members of the Wei family also began to whisper to each other.
Wei San's wife said softly, "Sister-in-law is right. We can't just complain. We have to work together to find a solution. Although I'm not very strong, I can still clean the house and organize the clutter."
Mrs. Wei Si also agreed: "Yes, I can sew and mend. I can pick up all the tattered curtains and old quilts in this room."
Mrs. Wei looked at everyone's reactions, a hint of embarrassment on her face. She stammered, "I...it's not that I don't want to help, I just think this is too difficult."
"Well, Wei Che and I will go look on the street first to see if we can find some craftsmen. We can all do what we can here. It's getting late, and repairs are a long-term project. Let's clear out a place to sleep first."
Immediately afterwards, she and Wei Che went to Youzhou City to look for carpenters, stonemasons and blacksmiths.
The market was bustling with people.
The vendors' shouting voices could be heard one after another, and the stalls were filled with a wide variety of goods.
However, when they asked passers-by about the craftsmen's residence, many people's originally enthusiastic faces turned extremely cold when they heard that they were from the Wei family who were exiled here, and their eyes were full of vigilance and alienation.
Some people hurriedly shook their heads, while others simply pretended not to hear and left quickly, as if the Wei family members were carrying some kind of terrible plague and they were afraid to avoid it.
Su Huaiyue felt a little disappointed, but she quickly cheered up, thinking that this setback was nothing and there would always be someone willing to help.
Finally, in a remote corner of the market, they found an old carpenter who was concentrating on organizing his tools.
The old carpenter was wearing a tattered cotton jacket covered with patches, and his hands were covered with thick calluses and crisscrossing scars. It was obvious that he was a man who had experienced many hardships in life.
At this moment, he was concentrating on wiping the axe in his hand.
Su Huaiyue stepped forward and politely bowed, saying, "Old man, we are the Wei family who just arrived from the west of the city. We are new to Youzhou and would like to ask for your help in repairing our house. Are you free?"
Her voice was soft and sincere, her eyes full of anticipation.
The old carpenter raised his head and looked at them carefully with his cloudy eyes. When he heard the word "Wei family", a hint of hesitation flashed across his face, and then he slowly said, "Girl, it's not that I don't want to help you, but you are exiled criminals. If I help you, I'm afraid I will get into big trouble. I really can't do this business."
After saying that, he lowered his head and continued to organize his tools, no longer paying attention to them.
The tone was full of helplessness and fear, as if disaster would befall him if he offended the Wei family.
Su Huaiyue felt a sense of loss in her heart again, but she still forced herself to cheer up and said with a smile: "Old man, I understand your concerns. If you change your mind, you can come to the dilapidated house in the west of the city to find us."
Her smile was still as warm as before, without any complaint or dissatisfaction.
After leaving the carpenter, they went on to find the stonemason and blacksmith one after another, but the responses they received were exactly the same: everyone was afraid of getting into trouble and refused to help.
The sky gradually darkened, and the afterglow of the setting sun shone on them, stretching their shadows out and making them look particularly lonely.
Su Huaiyue looked at the blood-red setting sun, feeling a bitterness well up in her heart. "Just because we're exiles, should we be despised like this? Even something as simple as repairing our house is so difficult?"
After spending this long time with her, Wei Che actually became more optimistic than before. "It's okay. Youzhou City is so big, how can we find a few craftsmen?"
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