Chapter 124: You Li family members can do whatever you want, just don't bother me.
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That night, some families in Liujiatun were happy while others were sad, a true reflection of the myriad aspects of life.
Li Shiyue and the others had a good sleep, and they were still on the kang (a heated brick bed) when it was time for lunch the next day. The three sisters lay in bed, whispering to each other.
Without even knocking, Zheng Meiniang pushed open the door and entered the house carrying a tray of food.
"Hurry up, everyone get up and eat."
Li Shiyue was eating when she suddenly heard voices outside.
Sure enough, a few breaths later, Shi Tou entered the room and looked at Li Shiyue: "Sister, someone is looking for you."
Li Shiyue got off the kang (a heated brick bed), slipped on her shoes, and walked into the courtyard. There she saw a young girl standing outside, who was Yue Niang, the granddaughter of Li Youfu.
Zheng Meiniang and Li's mother, who were tending the fire in the kitchen, also came out. The group quickly pulled Yue Niang into the house. Yue Niang, a little nervous, called out to Li's mother and Zheng Meiniang, and then looked at Li Shiyue.
"Sister October, Grandpa said he wants you to come over."
"Good child, wait here for a moment, I'll get dressed and then we'll go together."
Although it's not snowing now, it must have snowed quite a bit last night.
The snow on the ground is now up to a person's calves high. I wonder how Yue Niang, with her small stature, managed to walk all this way to deliver this message.
Just as Li Shiyue led Yueniang out of their house, they ran into Li Wangming, who was returning with a shovel. Li Shiyue knew from his appearance that he had gone out to shovel snow.
Sure enough, when she looked towards the road at the entrance of the courtyard, she saw that a narrow path, passable by one person, had been cleared.
She knew it! With the snow falling so deep, it must have been incredibly difficult for Yue Niang with her short legs to waddle over here.
After telling Li Wangming that Li Youfu needed to see her, she suddenly picked up Yue Niang, who was standing next to her, startling Yue Niang into screaming.
"Come on, the road is hard to walk on. Shall I carry you across? Or, I'll carry you on my back?"
When Li Shiyue carried Yueniang to Li Youfu's house, they saw many footprints at the door, coming from all directions. The snow in the yard looked like it had been cleared.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, Yu Zhenniang, who was also Yue Niang's mother, came out of the kitchen wielding a spatula.
"Oh dear, why are you carrying her on your back in October? She can walk by herself."
Li Shiyue squatted down and put Yue Niang down on the ground. She looked at Yu Zhenniang and said, "Auntie, I wanted to carry her myself. I'm the youngest in my family, and I love having a little sister. I adore Yue Niang."
Is Grandpa Fu inside?
Yu Zhenniang, who was the only girl and did not know that Li Wangren, who was killed by the Japanese pirates, had once had an affair with Qin Tao, was overjoyed when she heard Li Shiyue say this. Her eyes lit up with a smile. She looked down at Yueniang and said, "Quickly, take your sister Shiyue to the house. Your grandfather and the others are waiting there."
Having been carried by Li Shiyue all the way, Yue Niang was already quite familiar with Li Shiyue. She led the way, and Li Shiyue was led into the main room.
As soon as you enter, a wave of heat hits you, because there are two charcoal braziers burning inside.
Among these people, Li Shiyue was quite surprised to see someone she hadn't seen for a while: Li Shiyang had returned.
Yes, how could Li Youfu bear to buy charcoal, a relatively expensive fuel for heating compared to firewood?
Of course, besides Li Shiyang, there were other people from Lijia Village in the main room, or rather, people from every family in Lijia Village who had settled down in Liujiatun came to visit.
Li Shiyue saw Li Wangshui, Ma Zi, Wei Zi, and Gou Laosan.
However, Li Shiyue first bowed to Li Youfu and her eighth uncle, who were sitting at the head of the table, and after exchanging greetings, she exclaimed with delight to Li Shiyang, who was sitting at the foot of the table, "Brother Shiyang, you're back!"
Li Shiyang looked at Li Shiyue and finally showed his first smile since returning to the village.
He nodded and gestured to Li Shiyue to sit down next to him.
Li Shiyue strode directly to Li Shiyang's side and plopped down in the empty seat.
As soon as Li Shiyue sat down, someone called out, "Uncle Youfu, everyone's here now, so just say what's on your mind."
After sitting for a quarter of an hour, Li Shiyue finally understood that Li Youfu had said two things:
The first thing is that now that everyone has settled down and the matter of the barbarians has been temporarily resolved, should we take the bodies of the Li family villagers who died at the hands of the Japanese pirates on the "Treading Waves" and were previously stored at the mortuary outside Sanshan County and bring them back before the New Year, when the weather is still cold, and give them a proper burial?
The second thing is that next spring, in addition to spring plowing, Li Youfu proposed to build an ancestral hall as well, hoping that each household would contribute some money.
These are just two things, but in Li Youfu's eyes, they are two very important things.
Li Shiyue recalled the original owner's memories of the ancestral hall in her mind, and she felt a chill, because in the original owner's memory, women were not allowed to enter the Li family ancestral hall to perform sacrifices.
However, cleaning the ancestral hall and preparing the sacrificial offerings became the work of the women in each household.
Li Shiyue looked up at the people in the main room. Sitting at the head of the table were Li Youfu and her eighth great-uncle, while sitting at the foot of the table were Li Shiyang and herself. The men around them, some sitting and some standing, were also men from their respective families.
In other words, apart from her, everyone in the room was a man.
Her first thought wasn't that anything was wrong, but rather why Li Youfu had Yue Niang call her over instead of Li Wangming.
After all, relatively speaking, Li Wangming is the one who can truly represent the Li family.
However, after a moment's thought, Li Shiyue realized that the first of the two things Li Youfu mentioned was that he probably wanted Li Shiyue to lead the villagers to Sanshan County to retrieve the body.
That's why they called her over, instead of Li Wangming.
Grandmother Li died in Henan Province and was also buried in Henan Province;
Li's father disappeared at sea and could not be found anywhere;
In other words, Li Wangming had no relatives left in the mortuary outside Sanshan County.
So calling Li Wangming over doesn't seem necessary.
While Li Shiyue was thinking about these things, she heard Li Wangshui stand up and say to Li Youfu at the head of the table, "My mother is buried in Henan Province, but I have a lot of strength. If anyone needs me, just say the word and I will come!"
Mozi's father and elder brother both died on the ship, and their bodies were taken to the mortuary. At this moment, the eldest brother had already raised his hand to cover his eyes. If it weren't for his old mother and nephew, Mozi would have wanted to die long ago.
The incessant chatter in the main room was quite a headache, a real torment for the sharp-eared and sharp-eyed Li Shiyue.
Suddenly, Li Shiyue stood up. She first looked around at everyone, and then said to Li Youfu, who was sitting at the head of the table, "Uncle Wangshui and I agree that if anyone needs me to step in, just say so."
We all come from the same village, and it hasn't been easy for any of us to survive this long journey of fleeing famine. If I can help, I, Li Shiyue, will definitely not refuse.
After saying this, Li Shiyue paused for two breaths before speaking again: "As for the matter of rebuilding the ancestral hall that Master Fu mentioned, since you have summoned me here, I would like to ask first whether women are allowed to enter the ancestral hall."
If I can't get a woman in, then I'm not going to get involved in this.
"You Li family members can do whatever you want, just leave me alone."
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