In a small mountain village thousands of miles away from Kyoto.
In March, the weather gradually becomes warmer.
"Miss Awan, your legs are much better now. You can even walk around by yourself now." A group of women in cloth clothes were picking vegetables down from the mountain, and someone said with a smile.
The young girl who was walking slowly along the road and seemed to be not very good at walking raised her head, revealing a beautiful face. It was Li Wan. When she saw the group of people, she smiled and said, "Yes, I feel better now, so I came out for a walk. Did the aunts go to pick vegetables?"
She was wearing a crimson-purple cloth dress, and her hair was simply tied up with a wooden hairpin, which was no different from the way unmarried girls in the village dressed. However, it was obvious at first glance that her temperament was not something that could be produced in such a small village.
At this moment, she had a bright smile on her face and her eyes were clear and bright, which made people feel good about her at first sight.
Several aunts talked to her for a few words, then took out the freshly picked vegetables from their baskets and piled them into her arms, asking her to take them back and eat.
From a distance, I saw a young boy walking towards me.
One of the women called out quickly, "Hey! Xiaozhi! Come over here and help your sister take the food home!"
The young boy in the blue cloth shirt glanced over here, paused for a moment, and then walked over here. He looked to be about fourteen or fifteen years old, but was half a head taller than Li Wan. He had a handsome face and wheat-colored skin. His sleeves were rolled up to the middle of his forearms. He walked over with a cold face.
"Xiao Zhi." Li Wan called him with a smile.
He didn't respond, nor did he look at Li Wan. He just took the food in her hand into his arms and went home without saying goodbye.
The woman asked curiously, "What happened? Did you have a fight with Xiaozhi?"
The young boy who usually sticks to her was acting out of character, and the women were a little curious.
Li Wan smiled helplessly: "Then I'll go back first."
The women hurriedly said, "Go, go."
Li Wan nodded to them and slowly followed the young boy in front.
The women looked at Li Wan's back and exclaimed, "He is truly a god-like figure."
…
Li Wan had difficulty walking and felt some pain when he walked, so he walked very slowly.
The young boy holding the vegetables in front of her was always five steps away from her.
She accidentally used a little too much force and felt a piercing pain in her leg bones. She stopped immediately, sweat on her forehead and her face a little pale.
Lin Zhi stopped when he heard the footsteps behind him. He walked a few steps forward and stopped again. Turning his head, he saw Li Wan standing there with a frown on her face and a pale face. He immediately turned back, holding the vegetables in one hand and holding her arm with his free hand. His handsome face showed tension and worry uncontrollably: "What's wrong? Does your leg hurt?"
Li Wan looked up at him, blinked, and said softly, "Are you not angry with me anymore?"
Last night she asked Lin Zhi's mother, who went to town to buy medicine for her, to help her find out about Kyoto.
When Lin Zhi heard this, he became angry with her and stopped talking to her. He stormed out early this morning.
Lin Zhi's face froze instantly, and he glared at her angrily, and the hand that was holding her arm tightened unconsciously.
Li Wan immediately cried out: "It hurts——"
"It hurts so much that it kills you." Lin Zhi said, but his hand relaxed immediately.
Li Wan held his hand in her backhand and coaxed him, "Good Xiaozhi, don't be angry with me."
Lin Zhi still had a stern face: "The doctor said that your leg injury is serious. You have to take good care of it and don't get out of bed... Do you really want to leave?" At the end, he became annoyed again.
Li Wan didn't want to lie to him, so she said softly, "There are people in Kyoto waiting for me to return."
She was rescued by Lin Zhi, who took her to the town's clinic on a small cart, and then took her from the town to this small mountain village on his small cart.
Her injuries were so serious that she was like paralyzed at the beginning, with wounds all over her body. Her throat was also sore and she couldn't speak. She had to lie in bed for three months before she could get up. Her throat gradually healed. Lin Zhi's family was very kind and rescued her from the shore. In order to hire a doctor for her, they borrowed a lot of money and took care of her meticulously during her recovery period.
Her leg was broken and she has been recovering for nearly half a year. Now she can only walk with difficulty and the slightest exertion will cause her unbearable pain.
This small mountain village is located in a remote area. Even if you want to go to the town, it takes half a day to walk there.
After asking Lin Zhi's parents, she found out that this place was thousands of miles away from Kyoto. She floated in the water for several days before she was washed ashore and found by Lin Zhi.
When Lin Zhi heard her say that, his face turned cold again, his hands loosened, and he turned around and continued walking while holding the vegetables without looking at her or saying a word.
This time he didn't wait for her. He walked forward with big strides and soon walked away.
Li Wan sighed helplessly, wondering inwardly if all teenagers of this age were so difficult to deal with, and then he slowly walked back.
Li Wan slowly returned home. The little sister of the Lin family also returned from school. She stood by the water tank, scooped a spoonful of water with a ladle and drank a big gulp. Then she wiped her mouth and said, "Sister Wan, what's wrong with my brother? He ignored me when I called him."
The youngest sister of the Lin family is only twelve years old. She is thin and small. Because she often runs in the mountains, she has a wheat-colored complexion and looks very sunny. Both the brother and sister of the Lin family are good-looking, Lin Zhi is handsome and Lin Yu is pretty.
Lin Yu blinked her eyes and said, "Brother, are you still angry with you, Sister Wan?"
Li Wan smiled helplessly, patted her head, and changed the subject: "How was your time in school today?"
Lin Yu frowned and said angrily, "Sister Wan, why can't we women study? Is studying just for the purpose of becoming an official? I just like studying, isn't that okay?"
The school in the town did not accept female students, but Lin Yu liked going to school and reading, so she brought books to attend classes every day.
At first, the teacher chased her away several times, but later, moved by her sincerity in learning, he tacitly allowed her to sit in on classes outside the classroom. Sometimes she would sneak into the classroom, and the teacher would just turn a blind eye.
She complained like this and was obviously laughed at by the boys in the school again.
"Of course." Li Wan patted her head and smiled, "Do whatever you like. Don't worry about what others say. Those who say that about you are just afraid that you, as a woman, have more knowledge than them and that they will lose face."
Lin Yu nodded vigorously: "Sister Wan, you are so right! Those students who paid to sit in the classroom are not as good as me! They are just angry that they can't compare to me."
Li Wan smiled and said, "Yes, you are the most studious girl I have ever met."
Lin Yu blushed a little at her praise, and then said with some longing: "It would be great if I could go to the city to study. I heard that in the city, girls can go to school." As she spoke, she looked at Li Wan curiously: "Sister Wan, you are from Kyoto. In Kyoto, can every girl go to school?"
Li Wan thought for a moment and said, "Both men and women can attend the school, but in Kyoto, the tuition is expensive. Not only girls from ordinary families, but also many men cannot afford to go to school."
Lin Yu said with some disappointment: "Then my family definitely can't afford it."
Li Wan saw Lin Yu's disappointed face, and her heart moved slightly, then she asked, "Are you willing to live with me in Kyoto?"
Lin Yu opened her eyes wide and stared at her blankly.
Li Wan said: "You can go to school openly there."
Lin Yu struggled a lot on her face: "But I don't have any money."
Li Wan pinched her little face and said, "Sister Wan has it, and your sister Wan is not just ordinary rich."
The gold that the emperor gave her alone was enough for ordinary people to spend for several lifetimes.
Lin Yu's eyes suddenly lit up, and then she hesitated and asked, "But what about my father, mother, and brother?"
Li Wan said softly: "If they are willing, your whole family can go to Kyoto with me."
Lin Yu's eyes sparkled: "Really?"
Li Wan smiled and patted her head: "Of course it's true, you are like my family."
Lin Yu immediately hugged her happily: "Sister Wan, I am willing to go to Kyoto with you!"
Li Wan thought for a moment and said, "Don't tell me about this for now. Let me go tell your father, mother and brother."
Lin Yu nodded repeatedly, her eyes sparkling.
…
Lin Zhi's mother didn't come back until dark.
Lin Zhi prepared food and was waiting for her.
In order to earn more money, Lin Zhi's father went to the city to work. Because it was far away, he only came back once every two weeks.
The lights are warm and the family sits together for dinner.
Lin Zhi's mother was a very gentle woman, and she spoke very gently. She put a piece of meat into Li Wan's bowl, and then said, "I went to the post office and checked, but there is no reply yet. This place is a long way from Kyoto, and the post office only delivers letters once every two weeks. It may take at least two weeks or as long as a month on the road. Don't worry, take good care of your injuries, and when your family receives the letter, they will come to pick you up. Who knows, they may already be on the way now."
Li Wan nodded and said gratefully, "Thank you for your hard work, Auntie."
Lin Zhi's mother smiled and said, "It's not that hard. If your family knew that you were safe and sound, they would be so happy."
Li Wan smiled.
It's been almost half a year now, and those people in Kyoto must have thought she was dead.
She had heard about it.
The Queen Mother has been executed, and more than thirty members of the Li family have been killed.
Those in the Li family who were unaware of the incident were not beheaded, but were just implicated. No matter what it was, it was better than losing their lives.
As soon as Li Wan was able to speak and write, she immediately wrote a letter and asked Lin Zhi's mother to send it to Kyoto for her.
What she was most worried about was her little emperor.
Although the parents at home suffered the pain of losing their daughter, they still had older brothers and sisters to rely on.
But she is the only little emperor.
It’s just that it’s inconvenient to send letters here because the journey is too long and it’s normal to take two months to go back and forth.
Her leg injury has not healed yet, and the Lin family has gone into debt in order to save her. They cannot afford the money for her to return to Kyoto, and she has no valuables to sell.
She could only wait anxiously for Kyoto to receive her reply and send someone to pick her up.
At this moment, Lin Zhi's mother suddenly asked with a smile: "Ayu, why are you so happy today?"
Li Wan turned to look at Lin Yu and found that she was laughing secretly.
When Lin Yu heard her mother ask this, she immediately looked at Li Wan, a little flustered, not knowing how to respond.
At this moment, Lin Zhi, who had been concentrating on eating, put his chopsticks and bowl on the table and said, "I'm full." Then he pulled out a chair and got up to leave.
Lin Zhi's mother was a little surprised and asked Lin Yu, "What happened to your brother?"
Lin Yu said: "I don't know, he was unhappy when I came back today."
Lin Zhi's mother was just surprised for a moment, but she didn't think too much about it, and then asked: "Your brother is unhappy, so why are you so happy?"
Lin Yu looked at Li Wan again.
Lin Zhi's mother also looked at Li Wan with curiosity in her eyes.
Li Wan put down his chopsticks, looked at her and said, "Aunt, I want you to go back to Kyoto with me."
Lin Zhi's mother was stunned for a moment, then looked at her in surprise.
Li Wan continued, "Ayu is so studious, she should go to school openly. Aunt and uncle are not the kind of pedantic people who think that it is useless for girls to study. They should also hope that she can go to school openly. Xiaozhi is also smart. He has the best teachers and the broadest world in Kyoto. He should not be trapped here."
Lin Zhi's mother looked stunned: "But our ancestors have been here for generations, and Kyoto is so far away..."
Lin Yu suddenly became anxious: "Mother! Do you want my brother to stay here forever? Just like my father, after getting married, he will go to the city to work for others and can only go home once every ten days or half a month."
Lin Zhi's mother was shocked and hesitated. She said with some embarrassment: "Kyoto is so far away, and we have no relatives or friends..."
Li Wan interrupted her: "How can I be unrelated?" She smiled gently and said: "I am your relative, and my relatives are naturally your relatives as well."
Lin Zhi's mother was stunned.
Li Wan continued, "Aunt, if you are just worried about not being able to gain a foothold in Kyoto, then don't worry. Although my family is not considered a noble family in Kyoto, my father is also a fifth-rank official, and my family has a small business. It will not be a problem for you to settle down in Kyoto." Li Wan paused and said, "You just need to consider whether you are willing or not."
Lin Yu looked at her mother expectantly.
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