Chapter 99 Ancient World: Stepmother (16)
Will Evergreen Club come knocking on our door?
That's impossible.
If you can live comfortably on rent, why would you need to work for someone else and suffer mistreatment?
The original owner was thin and short, and he really planned to recuperate for two years to get his body back in shape.
Moreover, he has no intention of moving away.
It's quite interesting to watch the lively atmosphere at the Li family's house in the village.
However, although he himself doesn't want to improve, his younger sister can.
He looked at Li Huanxi, who was sitting to the side mending clothes, and suddenly asked, "Little sister, would you like to learn embroidery?"
Li Huanxi blinked. "What?"
Changqing laughed and said, "I think you're quite skillful. Anyway, we have some money, so why don't you learn embroidery? That way you'll have a skill to rely on in the future."
"ah?"
Li Huanxi was stunned. It wasn't that she didn't want to learn, it was just—
Changqing knew her concerns and immediately added, "Embroidery doesn't cost much, much less than studying. We have enough money. Once you've learned a bit, you can take on some jobs to earn money."
Li Huanxi couldn't help but be moved.
It would be a lie to say I don't envy Li Xiangling for being able to learn embroidery. Now, I can learn it myself too.
"I....."
“It’s settled then. In the future, when you make a lot of money, I’ll need your help.” Changqing waved his hand. “And you don’t need to worry about what will happen to Li Xiangling. Right now, her family doesn’t have the money to rent land, and we don’t have any work to do, so they might not be able to afford to send her to learn those things.”
That's how it was settled.
Changqing was even more anxious than his sister. The next day, he took her to town and found the old embroiderer who was supposedly retired from the palace. He spent some money to get her to work for him.
After learning which village they came from, the old embroiderer asked about Li Xiangling, saying that she thought the girl was quite talented and she hadn't seen her for many days.
Changqing just smiled slightly, "It's probably because the family is short of money. After all, her brother still needs to study for the imperial examinations."
The old embroiderer nodded and said nothing more. No money? What's the point of learning if you have no money? At her age, she only takes on a few apprentices to make a living. She wouldn't do charity if she didn't have money.
"Alright, Huanxi, you'll be learning from me from now on. I treat all my disciples the same. Whether you can learn anything depends on your own abilities and comprehension."
Li Huanxi nodded emphatically.
After Changqing returned home, he spread the word about his sister going to learn embroidery. Of course, everyone should know about such a good thing.
Some people remarked on the good relationship between the siblings.
Some people envied them for having money to spend as they pleased.
Of course, some people advised him to save the money for his own wedding. To this, he shook his head and said, "My father told me in a dream that I am destined to marry into a family, so I don't need to save money for my own wedding." This statement caused another uproar. However, many people also expressed their understanding, saying that without elders to help out, being a live-in son-in-law is a good option.
The news naturally reached Li Fusheng's family as well.
Li Xiangling, who had just returned from cutting grass, almost gritted her teeth to pieces.
Why should I?
Li Huanxi was ugly and dark-skinned, yet she also learned embroidery?
And she, so pretty and clean-cut, actually has to stay home and mow the lawn and do housework? That's outrageous!
No, she's gotten much darker now, and her hands are much rougher.
Bang!
She slammed her basket on the ground with a fierce expression, her face full of resentment; even ghosts would probably avoid her.
what to do?
Li Xiangling was extremely anxious; if things continued like this, she would turn into a dark-skinned village girl.
But her father was the one who made all the decisions at home. Once he gave the order, she had no choice but to accept it. Even if she tried to slack off, she would get scolded.
Could it be—
The only option is to get married?
But she can only get married with her parents' consent.
I'm really starting to feel hopeless.
Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.
That shouldn't be the case.
She shouldn't have driven Li Changqing and his sister away in the first place. Thinking back to how smug she was at the time, she can't help but slap herself twice.
Whose fault is it?!
It's all that woman Zhao Lianhua's fault!
She knew the situation, but neither reminded him nor stopped him.
It was her who ruined her life!
Li Xiangling's disgust for Zhao Lianhua rose to a new level.
Zhao Lianhua, who was so tired from working in the fields that she could barely stand up straight, suddenly sneezed. Was someone cursing me?
Li Fusheng returned, but Zhao Lianhua did not feel relieved at all. Because Li Fusheng was weak from his corvée labor, he would be out of breath after working for a short while. At the same time, he was also very anxious and wanted to rush everything.
"Our son is about to go on a scientific expedition, so we need to work harder and save more money."
These are his exact words.
Zhao Lianhua agreed, but why was she so much more tired than before? Moreover, when she got home, Li Xiangling still needed her to finish up many things. That daughter of hers was no match for Huanxi in terms of work skills; she was too much of a worry.
She couldn't help but miss the old days.
If Changqing and Huanxi were still at home, that would be wonderful.
Just then, Aunt Dongzhi passed by carrying a large jug of water. Upon seeing the two of them, she smiled.
"Fusheng's family, congratulations! Your daughter Huanxi has been sent by her brother to learn embroidery. She might become a great embroiderer in the future."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Lianhua was taken aback again and subconsciously replied with a sentence.
“Huanxi does manual labor, how could she learn that?”
"That's not necessarily true. No one is born to do manual labor. Your Xiangling is doing manual labor now, isn't she?"
"Get out! Get out!" Li Fusheng's face darkened. This was just too much to bear.
Aunt Dongzhi was quite happy, and she wasn't angry at being chased away; instead, she laughed.
"Hey, I just saw Changqing. Tsk tsk, he's gotten quite a bit taller. Looks like your family's feng shui is bad; it doesn't nurture people at all."
After saying that, she swayed her hips and quickly left.
Behind them, Li Fusheng and Zhao Lianhua both had ashen faces.
When the two finished their work and returned home, they found Li Xiangling sitting there crying, without having cooked a meal.
Normally, Li Fusheng would have been furious, but today, he was surprisingly silent.
"Lianhua, go and cook the meal. I'll comfort the child."
Zhao Lianhua: ? ?
Why is it that she's the one who got hurt again?
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