On the Eve of Chapter 857
After tossing and turning in bed for half the night, Li Ersao finally fell asleep at dawn, but her sleep was far from restful.
As soon as Li Erxiong got up in the morning, he woke her up as well.
"Go back to sleep. I heard you tossing and turning all night; you probably didn't sleep well."
Li Erxiong's words immediately brought Li Ersao to her senses. She sat on the bed with her hair down, watching Li Erxiong getting dressed. After a few moments of hesitation, she spoke: "...It's about this. I didn't want to tell you, but we live in the same village after all, and I really watched Yue Niang grow up. She's a good girl."
After hearing this, Li Erxiong paused for a moment before continuing to tie the belt of his outer robe.
Is it the third to last household at the end of the village?
I vaguely remember that when I was collecting medicinal herbs in the past, that family seemed to have a skillful young woman named Yue Niang who came to collect them.
"Erlang remembers clearly, yes, it's this place."
This month wasn't easy for her either. When she was five years old, her mother's health deteriorated after giving birth to her younger brother, and she passed away within two years.
Although her father's second wife was not a bad person, she and her father had another child together.
Her younger brother was at least a man, and her father still took notice of him.
She was a young girl without a mother. If it weren't for Granny Sun's kind heart and her caring attitude towards her granddaughter, she wouldn't have been able to learn to gather medicinal herbs with me.
After saying this, Li Ersao looked up at Li Erlang and said, "Erlang, why don't you go and talk to Sanniang and ask her to give one of the apprentice slots to Yueniang?"
"Moon Lady will definitely study hard; at least it gives her a way out."
Now that he was dressed, Brother Li straightened the hem of his clothes and looked at Sister-in-law Li, saying, "Lan Niang, we can't help with this."
Even if Third Sister agrees to this because of me, what will the other households in the village think after Yue Niang's example?
If other people come to us for help with their daughter's sake, how can we help them?
Third Sister's maternity ward is recruiting apprentices, which is a good thing. But if we try to pull strings behind the scenes and things don't go well, Third Sister will be in trouble.
"Lan Niang, Third Sister is an official. If an official doesn't perform well, it's not just a matter of being fined or demoted; in serious cases, it can cost someone their life."
After refusing Li Ersao's request, Li Erxiong took a breath and then said, "Tell Granny Sun to just let Yueniang register for the exam."
The Moon Maiden is skillful. This apprenticeship isn't based on literacy, just like the assessment you did when you helped Third Sister find a midwife. It's about character and talent.
Those who are qualified will be taught to read once they enter the school.
Even if the young women from the city have an advantage, that advantage isn't everything.
After saying this, Brother Li turned and walked towards the door. After opening the door, before leaving, Brother Li turned back and reminded Sister-in-law Li again: "Lan Niang, don't go to Third Sister about this matter."
Listen to me, let whichever girl wants to go just sign up.
Brother Li's words made perfect sense, but Sister-in-law Li still felt uncomfortable listening to them.
The people in Chang'an City had already begun their busy day, while the post stations on the official road outside Chang'an City were also bustling with activity.
At this time, the post station, which was used by both officials and civilians, was crowded with people inside and outside, and the livestock sheds had all kinds of animals, including cattle, horses, pigs, sheep, and camels.
Tang Mingguang (Tang Mingyue's elder brother, who appears in Chapter 850) was a light sleeper. He was awakened at the fourth watch of the night by the noise of the caravan moving goods in the post station.
When he got up and walked to the window, he saw that the courtyard of the post station was brightly lit, and the managers of various caravans were directing people to carefully move the cargo boxes outside.
He wasn't surprised, because when he arrived at the post station yesterday afternoon, the postmaster said, "You seem to have some wealth, why don't you book the three rooms on the second floor by the side?"
It's not that I want to make more money, but several merchant caravans are staying at this post station. They have to move their goods outside in the middle of the night so they can head to Chang'an before dawn and make it in time for the city gates to open early the next day.
That way, you can stay further inside, making less noise and getting more sleep.
Tang Mingguang took the opportunity to chat with the postmaster for a while. He not only followed the postmaster's advice and chose a room on the second floor further inside, but also gave the postmaster a few extra taels of silver so that the postmaster could find someone to boil a few buckets of hot water.
"Father?"
Tang Mingguang's eldest son, Tang Heping, sat up halfway in bed, still half-asleep. He saw Tang Mingguang standing by the window and called out to him.
"Was I woken up?"
"There's a caravan transporting goods outside; it's not time for us to get up yet. Ping-ge, lie down and sleep a little longer."
Even though the Tang family wanted to sleep a little longer, the noisy inn made it impossible for them to get a good night's sleep.
Thus, the Tang family members all got up, washed, and began packing their luggage, preparing to check out and follow the caravan to Chang'an.
"Father, I wonder if my younger brother De (Tang Mingyue's son) still recognizes me?"
"Haha, Dege'er definitely won't recognize you. He was just a little boy when he left."
After daybreak, the first caravan set off, heading towards Chang'an City on the official road.
Tang Mingxing (Tang Mingyue's second brother) counted the number of his own carriages and the number of people with the stewards of the other families who came with him before he came to find Tang Mingguang.
"Brother, everyone's here. Shall we set off?"
Tang Mingguang stroked his beard, nodded, and then asked the postman standing to the side, "Excuse me, sir, how far is this post station from Chang'an City?"
I wonder if we'll be able to enter the city before noon?
"That's a good question, sir. You can just follow behind that caravan. Chang'an is a big city, and it has been expanded in recent years. The outer three cities are only thirty li away from our post station."
There have been so many people coming to Chang'an these past few years; you guys are lucky to even get into the city before the gates close.”
Even though he had made a mental estimate beforehand, Tang Mingguang was still somewhat surprised when he heard the courier say that it would be good if he could enter the city before dark.
"It seems I still don't fully understand the prosperity of Chang'an."
The courier noticed the surprise and confusion on Tang Mingguang's face and casually explained, "Young master, it must have been a long time since you've been to Chang'an. Chang'an has truly prospered in recent years."
"It's not just you from the south, there are people from even further south, and from the west too," the courier pointed to the dozen or so camels to the side, "There are many more people going west to trade, not just our people, but also people from there coming."
You'd better hurry, or you'll be stuck outside the city gates and have to find a place to stay in the outer three cities.
The three outer cities are not as spacious as our post station, and the prices are much higher. So, there's bound to be some petty theft.
Tang Mingguang bowed to the postman to thank him for his advice and suggestions, then waved his hand to tell the coachman to quickly steer the horse toward the official road.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com