Liu Xu and Miao Cuifang sat facing each other at the stone table. The lush leaves cast dark shadows on the ground, with dappled golden light filtering through them, some of which brushed against the two of them.
Hot tea was laid out on the table, and the bubbling water next to it indicated that it had boiled. The aroma of the tea was enticing. The Miao youth was not yet used to this kind of tea, and he only found that he couldn't sleep after drinking it.
"Drink less, or you won't be able to sleep tonight," the man said.
"If Master doesn't like it, you can have some fruit tea. I made it especially for Long'er. Try it."
Miao Cuifang picked up the teacup. The taste was sweet and sour, with only a faint aroma. The beauty mark at the corner of his eye twitched with his smile. The man's eyelashes were very long, longer than hers, and his smile was as alluring as a vixen's.
"It tastes good."
"If you like it, drink more. Also, don't worry about not being able to sleep at night."
Two or three children hung on the wall, their heads huddled together as they watched others work and chatted.
"Hey, the one cutting down trees over there, is he new here?"
"Yes! Look at his white hands, he's obviously never done any hard labor."
"You can't even swing the axe after just two swings? You're not even as strong as me."
Xu Ruizhong was the son of the steward of the Xu family. He was almost always the one who went to get the prescriptions. He was literate and good at using abacuses. He was practically the steward wherever he went.
His father said that the manager of the paper mill rarely showed his face. Where else could someone as perceptive and talented as him not be valued? But alas! The Hou family had him assigned to cut down trees.
Everyone says he's a scholar!
"Hey! Brother, how long are we going to keep chopping?" Xu Ruizhong, who was fair-skinned and slender, asked the person next to him.
The man who cut down trees with him was named Tian Liu. He was the most capable of the six men in his family. He was paid a lot at the paper mill and was also provided with meals. If he couldn't finish his food, he could take it home with him.
This was a highly sought-after job in their village, and the money for cutting down trees was calculated by the amount done; the more you did, the more you earned. Tian Liu was initially somewhat unhappy about Xu Ruizhong's arrival.
If there are more people, won't he earn less money? There are only so many trees, and Liu wasn't happy about dividing the land between two people. In the end, this kid was useless; he just swung the axe a couple of times and sat down. Only then did Xu Ruizhong give him a better look.
Tian Liu said
"You can cut as much as you want, or go back and rest if you don't want to. Anyway, the more you work here, the more you earn."
"Okay, I'll head back now, bro."
Xu Ruizhong got up and returned to the room where the paper mill was distributing paper. He took out paper from his bundle and wrote on it using a charred wooden stick taken from the stove.
"Father, they won't let us in anywhere. I didn't become the manager, so it's probably too late to get the prescription from inside. Let's try to find that person."
As the whistle blew, the carrier pigeon landed on the windowsill. He tied the letter to the pigeon's leg, fed it two kernels of corn, and released it.
"Hey! Carrier pigeon! Carrier pigeon!" Huo Xiaolong and the other two had been watching the man's movements from the wall, and they immediately called out when the carrier pigeon flew out of his room.
Miao Cuifang threw the peach pit in her hand towards the direction of the carrier pigeon. With a thud, the carrier pigeon fell from the sky and landed right next to the three children.
The little dumpling climbed down the wall, picked up the carrier pigeon, and handed it to Liu Xu. She and her friends then climbed up behind Liu Xu to read what was written on it.
Who is that?
Who is his father?
Liu Xu brought the paper close to her nose, smelled it, and said...
"We used paper from the Xu family, and so did the ink."
The little dumpling was speechless as she watched Liu Xu's actions. All she knew was that Liu Xu had been a well-bred young lady from a very wealthy family, someone who would have been a rich man in her previous life.
So this is what a well-informed girl is like. Unlike her, she doesn't know how to spend money.
"You can't close your mouth no matter what," the girl said, pushing Huo Xiaolong's chin up.
"Sis, you're amazing."
"Sister Liuxu, is your family richer than mine?" Hou Xiangxiang asked.
"I didn't know any of this."
Seeing the children's heartfelt praise, Liu Xu felt for the first time that her biological father had some use, at least he had given her the opportunity to be born into the Liu family and broaden her horizons.
“Right now, there are only three major paper businesses on the market, with the Xu family holding the largest share. Paper is mostly used by students and shops. Apart from wealthy families with deep pockets who can afford the paper from these three companies, everyone else has to think twice before buying it. Our paper is inexpensive to produce and we sell it cheaply, so those poor students and shops will definitely choose us. Long’er, guess which of these three companies has our family in their way?”
"The Xu family?" Huo Xiaolong interjected.
It's not hard to guess. Sister Liu Xu just said who owns the paper and ink, and the Xu family has the majority stake.
"Yes! My Long'er is so smart. So, what should I do, sister?"
"Kill them all." Da Ni'er listened intently until Liu Xu asked this question before speaking.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Long'er raised her hand and covered her friend's mouth, then turned to look at Hou Xiangxiang and winked at her.
"Da Ni'er didn't mean that."
“She’s wrong…” Miss Hou still couldn’t lie. The little dumpling was confident and self-assured, but her aura diminished considerably when she was in front of her.
“No, Ni’er.” Liu Xu patted Wang Dani’er’s head. Everyone in Fengyue Tower knew that something was wrong with this child. She usually didn’t like to talk, but that day she went up to the city wall with them.
For Huo Xiaolong, Da Ni'er was like himself in a past life, still harboring resentment and world-destroying thoughts, but she was lucky to have met the Wang family couple. So now, the chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) girl is also trying hard to be a normal person.
"Too many killings will bring retribution."
"What kind of retribution?"
Liu Xu looked at the mountain peaks reddened by the setting sun and said
"Karma will come back to those closest to you."
This child is a wild wolf; the rope around her neck is held tightly in Aunt Wang's hand. She only needs to tighten it a little to know how dangerous the wolf is. Recalling the busy figures of her parents in the Wang family's pancake shop, Wang Tianci thought for a moment and said...
"Thank you, Sister Liuxu. I won't do it again."
She not only has her parents, but now she also has Huo Xiaolong and Hou Xiangxiang, all of whom are close to her. She plans to go back and pay her respects to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva sometime.
Ya Lanqing should repay the sins she committed. The one who is alive now is Wang Tianci, Wang Dani'er of Wang's Pancakes.
The fifth princess, who was bloodthirsty and arrogant on the grassland, is dead. If there is any retribution, it will all come for her. The little girl turned her head to look at Huo Xiaolong and Hou Xiangxiang, who were enjoying their fruit tea.
She took off the Buddhist prayer beads from her wrist and twirled them in her hand.
This is the only thing her mother left her; perhaps she initially wanted to love herself too.
Having spent a long time by Huo Xiaolong's side, Da Ni'er began to understand why her mother had abandoned her and betrayed her father—no, betrayal is not the right word.
Her mother was already unhappy about it.
She was unwilling, reluctant; it was her father who forced her to marry him.
From the very beginning, she was unwilling.
Mother, I heard you, you don't want to.
In that case, I pray to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva to bless my family, to bless the Wang family with lifelong peace, to bless my friends with eternal happiness, and to bless my mother with a new life.
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