Chapter 77 Settling in Liujiatun
After enjoying another free meal of rice porridge at the inn, Li Shiyue and his companions followed the constables towards the Black Mountain they had seen earlier the next day.
Qingsong Town is located at the foot of Daheishan Mountain, but in reality, it's about 30 li away from Daheishan Mountain.
This time, we didn't have to walk. For some reason, two donkey-drawn carts arrived at the entrance of the post station.
“The magistrate is considerate of you all, which is why he specially sent a donkey cart. Come on, everyone, please make your own arrangements. Let those who are not feeling well ride first. It will take about two hours to travel there, so you can take turns riding.”
Li's mother helped Zheng Meiniang onto the donkey cart. Li's mother was embarrassed to sit in the cart, but Li Shiyue pressed her down, saying, "It's just Mother sitting in our house, it won't be a problem."
After looking back at Zhou Lanhua carrying Xiaozhuang onto the cart, Li's mother nodded to Li Shiyue and obediently sat down on the donkey cart.
The Li family's only two remaining baskets were put on the donkey cart, but the bundles they were carrying on their backs were not put on it. After all, these were personal items, and there was gold and silver hidden inside, so it was most reliable for them to carry them themselves.
Li Shiyue finally changed her clothes again. Her mother had specially found them for her to change into. It was an indigo blue dress.
"This dress is thicker, which is perfect for this time of year."
Little did I know, after crossing the sea, it already felt like autumn here in Andong, much colder than back home.
Although Li Shiyue didn't feel cold, she still had to heed her mother's concern, so she changed into these clothes as well.
Not only did she change Li Shiyue's clothes, but Li's mother also got up early to braid Li Shiyue's hair into two buns.
Li Shiyue understood somewhat about her mother's insistence on dressing her up like a proper young lady.
It's the kind of fear that one's own daughter might be criticized by outsiders for not acting like a proper daughter;
Just like how Zheng Meiniang forbade Li Qiutian from telling anyone about her strength, which was comparable to that of a man.
A mother's biggest fear is that her child will be criticized by outsiders.
Another thing, according to Li Shiyue's guess, is that her mother seems particularly afraid that others will find out that Li Shiyue killed someone on the way to escape famine in order to survive and protect her family.
Why was Li's mother afraid of others finding out?
Firstly, it's because most people praise the woman for her chastity and politeness, and would never praise a woman who kills by cutting off his testicles or beheading him for daring to kill, being able to kill, or knowing how to kill.
This is bad for Li Shiyue's reputation.
Why should a young girl in the prime of her life care about a good reputation?
Naturally, it was because Li's mother considered that Li Shiyue would eventually get married. Just as Zheng Meiniang was afraid that people would find out that Li Qiutian was stronger than a man, Zheng Meiniang was afraid that if Li Qiutian's strength was exposed, she would repeat the words that people used to ridicule her when she was young, saying that "she is like a man and will never get married."
Secondly, Li's mother did not want Li Shiyue to take on the role of the family protector at such a young age. It would have been fine if they had to rely on Li Shiyue during the escape from famine, but now that they had arrived in Andong and things had obviously settled down, they could no longer rely on Li Shiyue for everything.
It was Zheng Meiniang's words that awakened Li's mother.
"Yes, Shiyue was born after I carried her for ten months. Her brother is not smart, that's his problem. We can't let her carry this burden on her shoulders for the rest of her life just because of her brother's problem!"
"I gave birth to Stone, so I should take care of him for life. October shouldn't have."
Li's mother hoped that in this new home in Andong, Li Shiyue could once again be that innocent and carefree young girl.
But who could have known that the real young woman, in the prime of her life, was already gone at the very beginning of their escape from famine?
Li Shiyue followed the donkey cart along the official road. Although she was looking at the scenery on both sides of the road, she was actually refreshing the garbage system in her mind.
Since that night on the ship killing Japanese pirates, Li Shiyue hadn't had a chance to act alone. Even though the notification bell for the end of the previous mission had already rang in his mind, Li Shiyue didn't have a chance to click on the reward.
However, she felt that being able to complete the task and gain 52% of Liu Tan's favorability, which would grant her a chance to win a prize, was already an unexpected bonus.
After all, she didn't have time to think about the mission at the time; she was focused entirely on killing enemies and surviving.
Moreover, looking at the long-term task related to Qin Tao on the task list, she felt that if she successfully settled down, this long-term task should also be completed.
Along the way, I kept checking the system, enjoying the breeze, and gazing at the endless mountains in the distance. Finally, I arrived at Qingsong Town.
Li Shiyue thought they would enter the town, but little did she know that there were already county clerks waiting at the town gate.
They lined up and were asked one by one where they came from, their names, and their ancestral homes. The clerk implied that once they settled down, they would be allocated land immediately!
Each male can be allocated thirty mu, and each female can be allocated twenty mu.
A woman's land is taken back after she gets married, but if she is a widow, she can continue to cultivate it.
After these instructions were given, the clerk had someone come forward to sign and affix their seal.
If it is a single household, then all the household registration information is written in one place. When writing this household registration information, Li's mother set herself up as a female household!
She produced the divorce agreement written by Li Shiyang, witnessed by Li Youfu and the clan elders.
Although the document writer looked up at Li's mother with a strange expression, he still registered her as a female household and wrote down the names of both Shi Tou and Li Shiyue.
Li Shiyue took the document and read it. His Li family village and the twenty or so people from Wang family village were all assigned to Liujiatun under Qingsong Town!
Li Wangming hesitated, unsure of what to do. His mother pulled him aside and said, "You will eventually have to study, Wangming. You must carry on the Li family tradition."
Don't worry, your sister-in-law will only let you live on your own after she's found you a wife.
Therefore, Li Wangming set up his own household.
Although Li Wangming was only a student of the lowest level, he was still a scholar to some extent. The clerk wrote the household registration form in a friendly manner and stamped it directly.
Everything went smoothly for Li Shiyue's family, but a big problem arose with Li Shiyang's side.
Turning around, Li Shiyue saw Li Shiyang kneeling down in front of Li Youfu again by the roadside.
Li Youfu looked furious; he pointed a finger at Li Shiyang as if he had committed some grave error.
“Alas, the scholar wanted to establish his own household, but Uncle Youfu was unhappy about it, which is why he got angry.”
Zhou Lanhua carried Xiaozhuang to Li Shiyue's side and whispered this to her. Li Shiyue nodded, and Zhou Lanhua became even more enthusiastic. She shoved Xiaozhuang into Li Wangshui's hands and leaned close to Li Shiyue's ear: "I think Uncle Youfu just can't bear to let the scholar continue his studies."
I just heard the clerk say that the Prince of Zhenbei will definitely need to find scholars to work for him in the future. That scholar is already a scholar, and he is so good at reading. He might go to Xingzhong Prefecture to work for the Prince of Zhenbei in the future.
Uncle Youfu only has Xiucai Gong left in his family, so he doesn't want Xiucai Gong to move out alone.
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