When the three returned to Tianxin Village, it was already noon.
Lu Qiqi thought that when she returned to the courtyard, she would be greeted with fragrant rice, but she never expected to be greeted by Zhou San's little pearl.
Lu Qiqi drove a horse-drawn carriage on Monday, while Li Changlong drove an oxcart, which was parked behind the two carriages.
"On Monday, Second Brother, let's unload the stuff first, and then return the oxcart to Zhao Xiaodong later."
As she spoke, Lu Qiqi picked up a bundle and carried it into the courtyard.
As soon as she stepped into the courtyard, she saw Zhou San holding something, sitting on the steps in front of the door, looking up at her with his little face.
The two looked at each other. Lu Qiqi originally wanted to call Zhou San to come and help.
But when Wednesday saw her, he suddenly stood up, holding a dark-colored bundle in his hands.
Lu Qiqi stood there, stunned, not knowing what Wednesday meant.
On Wednesday, when he saw Lu Qiqi return, he hastily wiped the water droplets off his face with his sleeve, took a deep breath, and ran to her.
"Sister Lu, you're back!"
Lu Qiqi looked at Zhou San, who was half a head shorter than her, his eyes were red and his face was covered in smears like a kitten.
It's obvious without even guessing that she had already cried.
"Where are you going with that bundle in your arms?" Lu Qiqi asked.
On Wednesday, he muttered, "I handed the account books over to the accountant today. When I came back, I saw that the carriage was gone. I thought you had left and didn't want to leave me behind, so I packed my bags to go after you."
Lu Qiqi had a headache listening to this. Luckily, they came back early, otherwise Zhou Sanzheng would have caught up with them and she would have had to set off for the border ahead of time.
Looking at his pitiful little face on Wednesday, Lu Qiqi pinched his right cheek and tugged it a couple of times, amused, and said, "The three-day period is not over yet, no rush to leave."
We bought a lot of things this morning, so I quickly washed my face and started helping to move them.
I bought you clothes and shoes; see if you like them.
After saying that, Lu Qiqi released the soft flesh on Zhou San's cheek.
Although she didn't use much force, red marks were still left on Wednesday's wheat-colored cheeks.
On Wednesday, upon hearing Lu Qiqi's words, he nodded happily, picked up his little bundle, and went back to his room.
Lu Qiqi watched Zhou San's retreating figure, pondering how to tell him that she would leave him in Tianxin Village on her way to the border.
On Wednesday, he quickly got ready, his collar still damp, and skipped happily outside.
Li Changlong and Zhou Yi unloaded everything from the oxcart.
The oxcart had already been taken by Li Changlong and returned to Zhao Xiaodong.
"Brother, why did you buy so much stuff?"
On Wednesday, I saw a huge pile of things at the foot of my feet, and my eyes widened in surprise.
With so much stuff to take to the border, it's like moving house!
Does this mean they're going to live on the border for the rest of their lives?
On Monday, looking at all the things scattered on the ground, he had a headache. With so much stuff to carry away in a horse-drawn carriage, it would be inconvenient to transport people.
On Monday, when he rarely looked worried, he said, "Let's move the things inside first."
On Wednesday, after learning that Lu Qiqi hadn't left, I was so happy that I practically flew away and happily carried my things into the courtyard.
It took the four of them most of the day to move all the things back into the house.
Since we needed to sort things out, we put them all in the yard. Anyway, we were leaving tomorrow for the border, and we'd have to move them onto the carriage.
After working for half a day, the four of them were starving.
Fortunately, Lu Qiqi had bought a lot of pastries in the city.
So she ate pastries and drank dendrobium tea to simply fill her stomach.
Li Changlong and Zhou Yi couldn't fill their stomachs with just pastries, so they each ate two more pancakes covered in sauce.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Lu Qiqi put down her teacup and said, "On Wednesday, we're heading to the border. The journey is long and the dangers are unpredictable. You should stay in Tianxin Village."
On Wednesday, after wiping the crumbs from her mouth and letting out a burp, she felt like spitting out all the pastries when she heard Lu Qiqi's words.
So these pastries were actually a trap set for him by Lu Qiqi.
He felt wronged at the thought. At least he should have eaten some meat at the Feast at Hongmen, but he was only given two pastries and cakes.
On Wednesday, I wanted to try again. "Sister Lu, I'm not afraid of hardship, please take me there."
I've been getting better at accounting lately. Once you open your clinic at the border, I'll start collecting money and settling accounts for you.
Seeing Lu Qiqi purse her lips and not respond to him, Zhou San became a little anxious, "I will never cause you any trouble, don't leave me here alone!"
"Brother, please put in a good word for me. I'll always be able to help and I'll never hold you back."
On Monday, he glanced at Lu Qiqi; there was no way he would plead for Wednesday.
In his view, Lu Qiqi had already made her decision, and she must have her reasons.
Sure enough, Lu Qiqi spoke up.
"Your staying in Tianxin Village is the greatest help you can give us."
"No one thinks you're a burden. Besides, I've hired bodyguards to escort us to the border, so our safety is guaranteed."
"The reason I didn't take you with me is that I can only go to the border with peace of mind if you are in Tianxin Village keeping an eye on the paper mill."
"After all, whether the three of us can return from the border soon depends on the paper mill's cost-saving management."
On Wednesday, I thought that not bringing him along meant I considered him a burden, but I didn't expect that he was the key.
Having figured this out, he took a deep breath and said, "I will definitely guard the paper mill well so that you can come back soon."
Lu Qiqi smiled and reached out to ruffle Zhou San's hair.
After they finished eating, Lu Qiqi asked Li Changlong to slice the pork into thin slices and marinate them with salt, soy sauce, and various other sauces for an hour.
By evening, the pork slices were taken to the lime kiln and dried into jerky for easy consumption on the road.
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