Chapter 237 Human Heart
The in-laws that Li's father mentioned were naturally the Wu family, the maternal family of Li's second sister-in-law.
After all, Sister-in-law Li's family, the Jiang family, had been riding horses since childhood, practiced martial arts, and were all going to join the army. Why would they need a donkey?
Only the Wu family, who still need to farm in the countryside, can afford to use such large livestock.
Having decided on the donkey's route, the Li family shifted their conversation to other topics.
That night, urged by Li's mother to rest early, the members of the Li family went back to their respective courtyards.
Li San Niang still had Qiu Xiang help her apply the medicated oil, and after rubbing her arms a few times, her two arms were still sore.
Sure enough, the medicated oil that Li's father gave her really worked. Li San Niang could clearly feel that she was feeling much better during the day.
In the courtyard of Li Erxiong and Li Ersao, Li Ersao had cleaned up Xiao Wulang, coaxed him to nurse, and just patted him to make him burp.
By the time Sister-in-law Li lay down next to Brother Li, it was already late at night.
After watching his sister-in-law get into bed, Li Erxiong glanced at Xiao Wulang, who was sleeping peacefully in the basket, and then blew out the candlestick.
In an instant, the only light in the room came from the sliver of moonlight coming in through the window.
Li Erxiong got into bed in the dark, lay down, closed his eyes, and blanked out his mind, ready to fall asleep.
Li Ersao turned to her brother Li Er and tentatively asked, "Erlang? Erlang? Erlang, are you asleep?"
Brother Li had just lain down; how could he have fallen asleep so quickly?
Li Erxiong turned his head and lay on his side, the two of them lying face to face. With the light streaming into the room, they could still vaguely see each other's eyes.
"What's wrong?"
"...You've thought about it? Just bear with it a little longer, I'll brew myself a bowl of medicine tomorrow."
Li Ersao was a little confused. What was Li Erxiong talking about?
When Li Erxiong saw that Li Ersao did not reply, he thought that she was unhappy, so he continued, "You are still breastfeeding Xiao Wu. If you get pregnant again, your body will not be fully recovered. How can you manage?"
"Let me take my medicine, then we'll get back to it."
Brother Li has put it so clearly, how could Sister-in-law Li not understand anything?
Li Ersao, feeling embarrassed and angry, punched Li Erxiong twice with her fists, then whispered angrily to him, "What did you say?"
What are you doing?
When did I ask that question?
"What medicine should I take? No need to take any!"
After being hit twice, Li Erxiong realized from listening to Li Ersao's words that he had misunderstood.
"Hehe, Lanniang, just say what you want to say."
"It's my fault, it's my fault, I misunderstood."
Li Ersao angrily turned over, then turned back to lie flat on her back, glancing sideways at the window, and whispered, "Erlang, I'm so flustered."
Xiao Si almost got captured last time. If Tiger Head (Li Dalang) and Leopard Head (Li Erlang) hadn't rushed after him, he probably would never have seen him again in this lifetime.
Brother Li knew that Sister-in-law Li was afraid. She had nowhere to confide her fears, so she could only say a few words to him in the middle of the night.
Brother Li did not answer Sister-in-law Li, but moved closer to her, put his arm around her, and listened carefully as she recounted her inner fears and anxieties.
After Li Ersao had said a lot and poured out her heart, Li Erxiong used his strength to turn Li Ersao's body over so that they could lie on their sides and see each other's eyes.
"Lan Niang, I know, I know, I know everything."
When Xiao Si was arrested, I was terrified. Now that Xiao Si is back, I'm even more afraid.
He suffered so much as a child, and it wasn't easy for him to grow up. If something were to happen to him again, he would be our own flesh and blood. How could I possibly feel good about it?
Brother Li put his arm around Sister-in-law Li's shoulder, patted her a few times, and then continued, "Lan Niang, don't be afraid, I'm here!"
Father, Mother, Elder Brother, Elder Sister-in-law, and Third Sister, including Tiger Head, are all here.
Our family is doing just fine, what can't we overcome?
I know you secretly feel that it's because of Third Aunt that things have gone wrong, that Third Aunt is the reason for our family's unrest.
"Erlang, I... didn't think that way."
Hearing that Brother Li had hit the nail on the head, Sister-in-law Li lowered her head and looked down.
"I... I just feel that our family's life is a bit unsettled now compared to when things were peaceful and uneventful."
I don't think it's all Third Sister's fault for causing trouble.
Although that's what Sister-in-law Li said, Brother Li understood perfectly well what was going on when he saw that she didn't dare to look him in the eye.
However, Brother Li also knew that this was only human nature. Sister-in-law Li was just a little narrow-minded because no one had explained things to her.
Brother Li didn't think Sister-in-law Li was narrow-minded. At least, Sister-in-law Li never spoke ill of Sister-in-law Li in front of others. Whenever Sister-in-law Li had any dissatisfaction or doubts, she would only tell Brother Li when the two of them were alone.
Brother Li was quite satisfied with Sister-in-law Li's behavior in this respect, feeling that it was not a bad thing that she knew the difference between close and distant relatives and left room for maneuver.
"Lan Niang, you can't just look at what's happening right now; you need to take a longer-term view."
You said that life used to be peaceful at home, but because we had to support four young men to go to school, we were always struggling to make ends meet.
Since Third Aunt got up, has life at home been much better than before?
As for the fact that each person gets a chicken every morning, let's not even talk about Chang'an City, but just on our street, how many families can afford to eat like that, and are willing to spend that much?
"Look, this time our family saved the young master of the Xing family. The Xing family came to thank us and gave us a thousand taels of silver as a token of gratitude. Mother said it would be put into the public fund. Doesn't that mean we, the young men, benefited?"
Li Ersao looked up at Li Erxiong: "Erlang, you mean?"
"What I mean is that in the next few years, from Tiger Head to Little Four, the money needed for each of their futures and to start a family will all come from this money."
Mother has saved us from this predicament.
Think about it again, is it really true that Xiao Si blamed San Niang for provoking someone this time?
Seeing that her brother Li Er didn't say anything, Li Er's sister-in-law knew that she hadn't quite grasped the situation yet.
"Have you forgotten that last time Third Sister took half of the thank-you money others gave her and shared it with us?"
Li Ersao thought of the silver ingots she had taken from Li's parents' house last time, shook her head, and thought, how could she forget such a large sum of money?
"Moreover, you were there when we were in that fabric shop. Did you realize that it was Third Sister who provoked us?"
It was just bad luck that we happened to run into him and that's how we saved the young man from the Xing family.
Afterwards, you see, wasn't it only because of Third Sister's influence that the Imperial Guards came to escort us?
"But, Erlang, wasn't Xiao Si kidnapped because we saved Xing's young master?"
Brother Li reached out and tapped Sister Li's forehead twice with his finger: "You, how could the cause and effect be like this?"
If you're really upset, you should blame those scoundrels at the Temple Gate.
If they hadn't kidnapped Xing's young master, we wouldn't have been so unlucky to run into them, and we wouldn't have ended up like that because they kidnapped the wrong person.
"If you want to complain or blame someone, you should point it at the temple gate, not the Xing family or Third Sister."
After being lectured by Brother Li, Sister-in-law Li suddenly realized, "Yes, it's all the fault of those wicked people from the Holy Temple Gate. If it weren't for them, everyone would be living a peaceful life."
Brother Li raised his hand and gently patted Sister-in-law Li's arm, saying softly, "Alright, don't think about it anymore, it's all in the past."
"I'll be there for you from now on, no matter what. Go to sleep, you have to get up early tomorrow."
After being comforted by her brother Li, Sister-in-law Li fell asleep without any worries. However, Brother Li kept his eyes closed and didn't sleep. He knew perfectly well who was to blame.
Brother Li also understood that the weak are most likely to resent those they know will not harm them, but rather fear the villain they absolutely cannot defeat.
Li Ersao harbored some resentment towards Li Sanniang for causing trouble. Wasn't it because she knew Li Sanniang felt guilty and that she felt she had put her family in danger, so she dared to show some resentment in front of Li Erxiong?
But when Li Ersao took the silver that Li Sanniang had allocated to her own house, she was very happy.
Sigh, they're just bullies who prey on the weak and fear the strong.
Fortunately, it's not hopeless. With some guidance, it should get better.
Hopefully, after Li San Niang's alliance is established, Li Er Sao will become busier, and after Xiao Wu Lang grows up, Li Er Sao will gain more experience and become more open-minded.
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