Chapter 164 Steadfast
After a long silence, Li's father did not utter a word, giving Li San Niang ample time to think.
“Father, son, I’m willing to give it a try.”
Once those words were out, Li San Niang spoke smoothly afterward: "I understand, I know. I know everything Father said. And because of the assassination attempt, although I am still affected by that nightmare, I am willing to try."
When Li's father heard that Li San Niang was unwilling to give up and was still willing to try, he felt that he could breathe freely again.
Li's father thought to himself, "As expected of my third aunt, the plum blossoms are more beautiful after experiencing ice and snow."
“Father, I don’t know where the road ahead leads. But if there is no road here, I will make one there.”
If someone digs a hole on the road, fill it in; if someone blocks the way, use tricks, medicine, or knives to get through.
I don't know if I'll be able to reach the final destination; maybe I will, maybe I won't.
After pushing the plate of pastries back to Li's father, Li San Niang continued, "If not, then the path we walked before is a guide for future generations. One day, someone will reach the end. I believe that day will come."
After saying this, Li San Niang changed her tone and smiled ingratiatingly at her father: "Father, about Qiu Xiang, I'm thinking that once we're more familiar with each other, I'll officially take her as my apprentice. Then, I'll have Qiu Xiang serve you tea."
The child's master is her father, and her father is Qiu Xiang's grandmaster, so we should offer tea to her father.
However, for now, it's best to maintain the nominal master-disciple relationship. Once my son has thoroughly mastered the poison manual and successfully practiced making several poisons, he will be able to protect himself and naturally won't need anyone else's protection.
Father Li swallowed the pastry in his mouth, took a sip of tea to suppress the sweetness of the pastry, and glanced at Li San Niang sideways: "You wouldn't be pretending to take Qiu Xiang as your disciple and acknowledge me as your grandmaster, only to then pass on her early education to your father, would you?"
"Hehe, Father, don't bother two people at once. I remember you taught me very well when I was little. Why don't you teach Dewdrop and Little Silang together? Dewdrop is about to start her education, and it would be good for Little Silang to learn some things in this area too."
"Oh."
Father Li got up, flicked his sleeves, and walked towards the front hall without even glancing at Li San Niang, leaving Li San Niang alone in the main hall.
Haha, even my father gave me a hard time, haha.
It was because Li Dalang's early education was done by Li Daxiong himself, so Li's father didn't get to enjoy the pleasure of teaching his grandson. Therefore, when it came to Li Erlang and Li Sanlang's early education, Li's father said he would do it himself.
Who would have thought that Li Erlang was intelligent from a young age, quick to learn and apply his knowledge to new situations, and always asked his father strange and difficult questions with an innocent and naive face.
Li Sanlang, who was kind and honest from a young age, was just a normal child. He needed to be repeated three or four times, and sometimes five or six times, to remember something, but he was just average.
Of all the people Li's father had taught, his eldest brother and second brother, though not exceptionally intelligent, could remember things after being told once or twice, and at most after being told three times.
Li San Niang was even more remarkable; she could remember everything her father casually mentioned.
Oh, Mr. Li also taught Mrs. Li, but can Mrs. Li be the same as these children?
That's your bedmate, someone viewed through a filter, so naturally you're willing to dissect and recount their story again and again.
So, after teaching Li Erlang and Li Sanlang, Li's father was exhausted. He felt too tired and, after teaching them basic medical knowledge, he preferred to pay more to send all his children to the academy so that the teachers there could teach them, thus avoiding the trouble.
Therefore, Li San Niang suggested that Li's father give some medical education to Qiu Xiang, who was preparing to become the eldest disciple, Lu Zhu'er, who would be three years old next year, and Xiao Si Lang, who would soon be eight years old.
Li's father recalled how Li Erlang and Li Sanlang had "tortured" him to the point that several of his beard hairs had been pulled out, which is why he gave Li Sanniang such a sarcastic and strange look.
Li San Niang thought to herself that she really didn't want to give medical education to people who had absolutely no background in medicine.
Let alone Qiu Xiang, who is already a fifteen-year-old girl, even if it were her own daughter, Lu Zhu'er, she wouldn't be able to bear to part with her.
Moreover, Xiao Silang is usually a cheerful person with a clear mind, so Li Sanniang would never have the heart to force him to memorize those boring and tedious medicinal herbs and their properties.
Furthermore, since the three are of different ages, the content and pace of instruction must also differ. Initially, the content might be taught together, but later it would naturally have to be taught separately, which would be too time-consuming and troublesome.
Finally, Li San Niang thought, why not just hand it over to Li Er Xiong? After all, Li's father couldn't stand it anymore halfway through teaching him, so he used his father's authority to force Li Er Xiong to take over.
Although Li Erxiong originally wanted to teach Li Sanlang himself, it was Li's father who initially objected because he wanted to teach his grandson.
This is why the four children are most afraid of the second brother Li, who is usually the gentlest and most smiling, rather than their usually stern father and eldest brother Li.
The main reason is that they were taught by Brother Li from childhood, and the fear was ingrained in their bones.
Brother Li mainly led them to strengthen their muscles and bones, which mainly involved physical pain that they would forget about once they recovered.
But Brother Li doesn't hit or curse people. He just looks at you with a smile, babbles a string of words out of his mouth, and keeps watching you and staring at you. You just have to tell him if you're scared or not.
At three-quarters past Chen Shi (7:45 AM), Qiu Xiang indeed came in from the front hall, carrying a bundle on her back and a small wooden box in her hand, led in by the young waiter Li Gui.
"Third Miss, this is Qiu Xiang. The shopkeeper said she's a distant relative who came to seek refuge, and he asked me to bring her in for you."
"Okay, go ahead and get busy."
"Sigh, call me if you need anything, my wife."
Li San Niang was surprised that Qiu Xiang's timing was so accurate; she returned before 9:00 AM.
However, seeing the obvious dark circles under Qiu Xiang's eyes, Li San Niang guessed that she probably rushed back to her residence overnight, grabbed her luggage, and then rushed back overnight.
Sister-in-law Li also came over, carrying a wooden basin and a cloth. "Did you go out? Qiuxiang, don't mind. This basin is new, no one has used it, and the cloth is also new, it was only washed once. If you need anything else in the house, just say so, don't be shy."
"Thank you very much, Sister-in-law Li."
This was the first time Sister-in-law Li had been addressed in this way, and she didn't react for a moment. After hearing Li San Niang's laughter, she also laughed twice.
"Haha, Qiu Xiang, you're really something. Alright, you can call me that too, I'll call you sister-in-law."
After settling Qiu Xiang in and seeing her lie down, Sister-in-law Li and Third Sister Li left the room.
Sister-in-law Li also asked Li San Niang if she had been sleeping well these past few nights, saying that she had given Li Da Lang some money that morning, asking him to bring two roast geese home to eat when he came back from school.
"My sister-in-law still cares about me the most. She knew I didn't get to eat that roast goose and she was worried about it. Don't worry, sister-in-law, the medicine my father prescribed is working. I can sleep through the night now."
"That's good. No matter what, nothing is more important than your own health."
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