Chapter 56 Risks and Benefits
Before the Li family had their dinner, the Gao family sent another gift, saying they were thanking Li San Niang for kindly reminding Gao Da Sao of her pregnancy at the restaurant earlier that day.
With a helpless expression, Li's mother opened the box. Inside were six dazzling hairpins worn by women, even more beautiful and more expensive than the gifts the Gao family had sent that morning, which they had counted in the storeroom earlier that day.
This time, the hairpins were for the women. Li's mother decided to give two hairpins each to Li's eldest sister-in-law, Li's second sister-in-law, and Li's third sister-in-law. She also decided to change the fine gold hairpin originally intended for Li's third sister-in-law to this gold hairpin inlaid with gemstones.
Brother Li finished his shift early today and had dinner with everyone.
After dinner, Chen Qiuniang took Luzhu back to her room. Li Ersao, who was trying to coax Xiao Wulang, was not there. After sending Li Sanlang and Li Silang away, everyone held a meeting in Li's parents' room.
The main topic of discussion was the box of gold ingots that the Gao family had sent today, which was actually ten thousand taels of silver.
This is no small sum of money. Last time, the Qian family sent a gift of gratitude of two thousand taels of silver, which was already a considerable amount. I didn't expect the Gao family to be even more generous.
"This is because the person that Third Sister saved was of great importance, and by chance she also helped the Gao family clear their name of suspicion, which is why she sent such a generous gift."
“Brother is right, that’s what I was thinking too. Accepting this money is a statement to the Gao family that we won’t use it to blackmail them into doing anything. I also subtly conveyed this idea to Gao Dalang at the restaurant today, so I’m sure the Gao family understands what we mean.”
After listening to what Li's eldest and second eldest brothers said, Li's mother nodded, glanced at Li's father, and received his nod in return. She continued, "Now, what should we do with this money?"
Li Da Xiong and Li Er Xiong exchanged glances, and Li Da Xiong took the lead. After carefully considering his words, he said, "Father, Mother, this money is a gift from the Gao family to thank Third Sister for her gratitude. It should naturally be given to Third Sister."
Li Erxiong chimed in, "Eldest brother is right. It was originally meant for Third Sister, so she should keep it herself."
Upon hearing this, Li San Niang was about to speak when her mother raised her hand, signaling her to remain silent.
Actually, Li San Niang thought to herself that although this was indeed a gift to express her gratitude, she had asked the four little ones to accompany her out to help Lu Zhu'er relax.
She stepped up when this happened, and not only did she take on the risks herself, but the four little ones also shared them.
This is because she was saved; if the daughter of the Duke of Liang had not been saved, things would have been very different.
If they follow Li San Niang into this mess, the entire Li family will be implicated, from Li's parents to the four children.
It's unfair that Li San Niang enjoys all the benefits when nothing goes wrong, but then her whole family has to pay with their lives when something does happen.
Not to mention, Li San Niang, a divorced woman who brought her daughter home, is inextricably linked to the entire Li family, including Lu Zhu'er's future, in addition to blood ties. Naturally, there are also interests involved.
Therefore, Li San Niang thought that it would be better for everyone to share the money.
Father Li cleared his throat, looked around, and said, “That’s true, but I’ve raised Third Sister to be a bit too upright. Apart from her troubled marriage, she hasn’t suffered much hardship. Your mother and I had her late in life, so we naturally can’t bear to see her suffer. But this family shouldn’t have to bear all the burdens just because of her kindness and righteousness.”
"Father, we..."
Father Li raised his hand to stop his eldest brother from speaking, took a sip of tea, and continued, "I know you all love her as much as I do, but loving her means you shouldn't suffer with her. I already told her off before that she acted impulsively when saving someone. This time, she's lucky; she even got some money."
Li Erlang stood behind his elder brother Li and whispered, "This isn't just some money, this is a lot of money!"
Hearing him muttering, Li Dalang quickly nudged him with his elbow, telling him to take it easy and not provoke his brother Li into beating him up.
Li Erlang, still unable to extract the Poison Doctor's inheritance from his grandfather, suppressed his urge to complain and pursed his lips, saying nothing.
"Your mother and I intend to divide this money into four parts. Third Sister will receive half, and the remaining half will be divided equally into three parts. Your mother and I will each receive one part, and the remaining half will be given to Eldest Brother and Second Brother each. Is that alright?"
Li San Niang finally found an opportunity to interject, "Of course I agree. I can't let my eldest and second brothers share the risks with me but not the benefits."
"This is still too much. Doesn't that mean we're taking advantage of Third Sister?"
"How could you say that, Second Brother? Lu Zhu'er and I will have to rely on our family in the future because we are few in number and weak. Not to mention the future, just recently when I wanted to join the Medical Alliance, didn't you help me enough? Are you saying you won't help me in the future?"
"Helping you and this are two different things, how can you confuse them?"
Li San Niang wanted to say something more, but her mother spoke up, "Alright, there's no need to argue. If something like this happens again, whether it's San Niang, Da Lang, or Er Lang, we should settle things clearly beyond the bonds of family ties, so that we can get along well in the future. For example, your eldest brother joined the Imperial Guard, didn't our family benefit from that? Er Lang joined the Alliance long ago, didn't he contribute less to San Niang's entry into the Alliance? Even Da Lang's wife and Er Lang's wife, which one of them didn't help San Niang? I believe there's affection between you siblings and your sister-in-law, but we really have to consider reality."
Since things had come to this point, Brother Li and Brother Li Er couldn't say anything more.
So, in the end, following the distribution method suggested by Li's mother, the box of gold ingots was divided up directly.
There were fifty gold ingots in total, and one was left over after the distribution. To divide it, it had to be split in half. Father Li laid out the ingot and put it in the public account first to cover the family's expenses. In the end, he gave it to Sister-in-law Li to keep in the public account.
After the gold ingots were distributed, everyone returned to their rooms and dispersed.
When Brother Li and Sister-in-law Li lay down on the bed, Sister-in-law Li whispered to Brother Li, "In the end, we got the better deal from Third Sister. Now, our house is the one that costs the most money. It will be easier for Brother Li to find a wife next year. Although we have a house, there are still many things that need to be spent."
Erlang is only three years younger than Dalang, and he's growing up quickly. He's a good student, and if your official position gets promoted, he might be able to make his way in the officialdom. Not to mention the gold ingots that went into the public accounts for me tonight. Dalang and Erlang are the oldest in the family, and this is when money is most needed, so we're the ones who benefit the most.
I think Third Sister is just deliberately giving our family an excuse to send money. With this thousand taels, we'll have more options in everything we do.
"Then you should pay more attention to Third Sister and Dewdrop's affairs from now on. I have my own ideas about Eldest Brother and Second Brother's affairs."
"You don't need to say more. I've been raising Third Sister since I married you. From that little girl to her coming-of-age ceremony, how could I not love her? Dewdrop is the only female in the family, and people have to wait in line to love her."
Inside Li Erxiong's house, Li Ersao, holding the gold ingot, didn't have as many thoughts as Li Dasao. Li Ersao's ideas were still limited by her life in the countryside. "Erlang, this gold ingot is really heavy. This is the first time I've ever seen a gold ingot in my life. Our Sanniang is really capable."
Li Erxiong was lost in thought while scalding his feet and didn't reply for a moment. "Erlang, Erlang, I'm talking to you."
After regaining his senses, Li Erxiong smiled and said, "Of course, San Niang has been more talented than me since she was a child. She can memorize what Father taught her after hearing it once or twice, unlike me, who has to memorize it ten or eight times before I can barely remember it."
"Erlang, you're doing very well. I think you're no worse than the others. How about we let Xiao Wu learn medicine from his aunt in the future?"
After hearing this, Li Ersao thought about it more and more and felt it was good. She turned her head and looked at Xiao Wulang in the basket. Upon hearing this, Li Erxiong also couldn't help but look at his third son.
Li Erxiong thought to himself that Li Sanlang was too simple-minded. To put it nicely, he was wise but foolish; to put it bluntly, he was stupid. Li Silang was spoiled because of his childhood and was the youngest, so he was a bit reckless. He was still young and it was hard to tell yet, but Li Silang's temperament was indeed not suitable for studying medicine.
Thinking about it that way, Kogoro really is the most suitable candidate.
Kogoro, lying obediently in the basket beside him, was oblivious to the burning gazes from his father and mother, and continued to sleep soundly.
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