81 Uncle and Nephew
Third Master Zhou frowned. The hand holding the whip was about to strike.
But Li Xiao looked over and he stopped.
"Who else?" Lin Xiaoyue asked.
Sure enough, he sounded like a boss. Even the voice matches his figure.
She would definitely save the person he wanted to save.
Li Xiao was stunned. He didn't expect Lin Xiaoyue to agree so readily.
"Him." Then he pointed at an eleven or twelve-year-old boy.
The boy was skinny and sickly, which was a sharp contrast to Li Xiao.
The staff immediately looked at Third Master Zhou.
He frowned slightly and then nodded.
Sickly slaves couldn't be sold at a good price. It would be a loss if the slave was killed. If this girl wanted to buy him, it was fine.
The staff immediately walked towards the young child and brought him over.
Because he was being stared at by Li Xiao, he didn't dare to exert too much force on the boy and brought the person to Li Xiao's side.
Third Master Zhou sized up the boy from head to toe. "A twelve-year-old boy, you could…"
He wanted to say what the boy could be used for, but when he saw Lin Xiaoyue, he stopped speaking.
"15 taels!" Glancing at Li Xiao, Third Master Zhou said rudely.
In his opinion, it was probably too expensive. After all, if he bought this boy back, he would probably have to spend money to treat his illness.
But he was a businessman, so he wouldn't give him away for free.
Everyone discussed animatedly and unanimously felt that 15 taels wasn't worth it.
"Deal!" Unexpectedly, Lin Xiaoyue readily agreed.
The staff hurriedly knocked on the gong.
"Deal! Miss, please complete the procedure here!" Smiling, he said to Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled as she glanced at Li Xiao and hurriedly went to the side.
Li Xiao held the boy and also arrived at the place where the contract was signed.
Lin Xiaoyue handed over 40 taels of silver and then signed the contract.
Seeing that Lin Xiaoyue didn't mention to seal the slave stamp, the man didn't say anything anymore.
The slave stamps were free, so they wouldn't make any money by stamping them.
This big guy looked too scary to stamp on.
As for whether this little girl would get into trouble if she left with the slave without the stamp, that was none of their business.
"Carry him on your back and follow me." Lin Xiaoyue glanced at Li Xiao and the young man.
This was not the place to talk. They should leave first.
"Okay." Li Xiao responded, squatted down and carried the boy on his back, following Lin Xiaoyue.
The boy lay on Li Xiao's back and looked at Lin Xiaoyue, who was in a good mood. He was still a little confused.
What was going on? Did he and his uncle really become this girl's slaves?
"Rest. I'll take care of everything," Li Xiao suddenly said.
The boy instantly felt relieved.
He didn't think about anything else and leaned on Li Xiao's back.
Lin Xiaoyue found a place to sell horses and oxen.
When she heard that someone was bargaining with the owner of the shop for more than 50 taels of silver per horse, Lin Xiaoyue completely gave up the idea of buying a horse carriage.
Although she had thought about it before, the horse carriage was indeed too luxurious, and the ox-cart was enough.
But before coming to this street, she felt that she had enough money regardless.
Now, she had already spent 40 taels of silver to buy two people. The horse carriage was so expensive, so she no longer felt like buying it.
82 Buying an Ox-cart
Li Xiao was surprised to see Lin Xiaoyue looking at the oxen.
He was even more surprised when he saw Lin Xiaoyue tell the shop owner that she wanted to buy an ox that could pull the cart.
If he remembered correctly, this girl had just spent 40 taels of silver to buy him and Qing'er, and now she wanted to buy an ox cart?
The farmers in Qingshi Town were so rich?
"Boss, help me take a look. Which of these two oxen is better?" Li Xiao was still thinking when Lin Xiaoyue smiled at him not far away.
Boss? She called him boss?
Lin Xiaoyue saw Li Xiao frozen and instantly realized that there was something wrong with the way she addressed him.
"Uh..come here quickly," she said to Li Xiao.
Li Xiao walked toward Lin Xiaoyue.
"What's your name?" Lin Xiaoyue asked Li Xiao.
Of course, she knew that his name was Li Xiao. But they just met in this era. If she called his name, he would definitely be suspicious.
She was not ready to tell her boss that she had transmigrated.
Uh, well, it seemed that even if she did, he might not remember her. After all, in her previous life…she was like a wallflower.
"Li Xiao," Li Xiao said in a low voice.
"That's my nephew Xiao Qing on my back," he introduced the boy on his back.
Lin Xiaoyue paused.
Then she laughed, the kind of laughter that came from the bottom of her heart.
"Haha, so…Xiao Qing is a boy?" She could not help but say happily.
So, after the apocalypse, so many women were jealous of Xiao Qing, but they were completely wrong? Xiao Qing was actually a boy!
Xiao Qing, who was on Li Xiao's back, had a stiff expression.
What did she mean by "Xiao Qing is a boy?" Did he look like a woman?
Sensing that Li Xiao was looking at her with an expression that said "are you crazy?" and when Xiao Qing looked depressed, Lin Xiaoyue quickly stopped smiling.
"Hehe, I'm just too happy. My name is Lin Xiaoyue. You can call me Xiaoyue from now on," Lin Xiaoyue said cheerfully and reached out her hand to Li Xiao.
Li Xiao looked at Lin Xiaoyue's hand in confusion and frowned slightly.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue looked embarrassed again and quickly withdrew her hand.
Cough, she was so happy that she forgot herself.
"Cough… I actually came to town to buy a carriage. But because I spent money to buy you, the money for the carriage is not enough, so I can only buy an ox-cart. Do you know how to check the quality of an ox?" Lin Xiaoyue asked Li Xiao.
Of course, she said this on purpose.
She didn't have the money to buy a carriage because she wanted to buy him. So, you two must remember my kindness. Hehe, it's best…if the boss can give himself to me…
As she said this, Lin Xiaoyue couldn't help but look at Li Xiao again.
Li Xiao felt weird when he was looked at by Lin Xiaoyue's strange eyes.
"No," he said truthfully.
He knew how to look at the quality of horses, but he was indeed inexperienced when it came to oxen.
A hint of disappointment immediately flashed across Lin Xiaoyue's face, and then she turned to look at the two oxen in the cattle pen that she had set her eyes on.
She randomly picked one and said to the shop owner, "this one then."
Then, she bargained with the shop owner and bought the cart. In the end, the deal was settled at 28 taels of silver.
After Lin Xiaoyue paid the money, the shop owner brought out the ox that Lin Xiaoyue wanted. Then, he and the shop assistant helped Lin Xiaoyue set up the ox-cart.
Looking at the first ox-cart she owned, Lin Xiaoyue was a little excited.
After checking it out, she put the basket down.
83 A Burden
Then she leaned out of the cart and said to Li Xiao, "put Qing'er on the cart. Let's ride to town to buy some more things."
Li Xiao and Xiao Qing were both stunned.
Qing'er? She said it so naturally.
Looking at his uncle who was carrying him to the ox-cart, and then at Lin Xiaoyue who was staring at her uncle without blinking, Xiao Qing suddenly had some guesses.
Could it be that…
It was rare for farmers to buy people at the slave market, but more often than not, it was to buy…
The way she looked at his uncle…
She spent an extra 15 taels to buy him, and even affectionately called him "Qing'er".
It must be!
Thinking of some possibilities, Xiao Qing looked at his uncle in surprise.
Ever since his uncle injured his face on the battlefield at the age of 15, his fierce reputation had spread in the circle. Since then, his grandmother and mother had been worried about his marriage.
Now that their family was in trouble, they ran for their lives all the way to Qingshi Town. It would be a pleasant surprise if they actually helped his uncle find a wife.
At the thought of this, Xiao Qing looked at Lin Xiaoyue more inquisitively and intimately.
This girl didn't look much older than him, but she had a straightforward personality and was much more forthright than those well-to-do young ladies. She was also delicate and pretty. If she really dressed up, she would probably be a few times prettier than those people.
She didn't care about his uncle's tall and sturdy figure and his disfigured appearance. The most important thing was that she even took him in even though he was a burden. His uncle was probably lucky this time.
Li Xiao didn't know that his nephew was thinking so much about this.
After putting Xiao Qing into the ox-cart, he got out and rode the ox-cart with Lin Xiaoyue.
"Uh… I've never driven an ox-cart before." Lin Xiaoyue looked at Li Xiao who was sitting next to her and felt her heart beat rapidly. She even ignored the sour smell on Li Xiao's body.
"I'll do it," Li Xiao answered.
Riding an ox was much easier than riding a horse, and there wasn't much skill involved.
"Okay." Lin Xiaoyue was relieved to leave the work to Li Xiao, so she just showed Li Xiao the way.
Along the way, Li Xiao looked straight ahead, and he endured Lin Xiaoyue's gaze. Although he didn't show it on the surface, he was a little nervous and felt weird in his heart.
Why was she staring at him? Didn't she feel scared?
"Ahem…" Li Xiao held it in for a while and was about to say something when he heard Xiao Qing's cough coming from the back of the car.
His expression immediately changed.
"The clinic is in front. Ride there, and I'll go check on Qing'er," Lin Xiaoyue said.
Li Xiao was stunned. His hand that was holding the reins stiffened for a moment.
Before he could reply, Lin Xiaoyue had already left his side and entered the cart.
Then, Li Xiao no longer hesitated and continued to ride.
She…was taking Qing'er to see the doctor?
Well, he was just about to beg her and was prepared that she might not agree. But…
Thinking of her intention when she bought him, Li Xiao finally didn't mind being bought as a husband. Then, his face was a little red…
Lin Xiaoyue entered the cart and quickly went to help Xiao Qing.
Ignoring Xiao Qing's weak refusal, she reached out her hand to Xiao Qing's forehead.
"It's so hot!" Not only was his forehead hot, but his body too.
"I…ahem…I'm fine," Xiao Qing said quickly. He wanted to put on a brave front, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he started coughing again.
84 My Nephew
Lin Xiaoyue frowned.
"What do you mean you're fine? You have such a high fever! We will arrive at the clinic soon, don't worry."
She had the medicine, but she was not a doctor, so she did not know what illness he had, so it was best to get a doctor to take a look at him.
"We have arrived at the clinic!" Soon, she heard Li Xiao say from outside.
With a happy expression, Li Xiao pulled open the curtain and leaned in.
"Carry Qing'er," Lin Xiaoyue said and left the cart.
After Li Xiao carried Xiao Qing off the ox-cart, he went into the clinic.
When the doctor saw them, he quickly got up and put Qing'er on the bed.
He didn't care that Li Xiao and Xiao Qing were emitting a strange smell and started to check Xiao Qing's pulse.
Li Xiao and Lin Xiaoyue looked at the doctor worriedly, afraid that something bad would happen to Xiao Qing.
The doctor frowned from time to time. After checking Xiao Qing's pulse for two to three minutes, he checked his eyes and tongue. Finally, he sighed and looked at Lin Xiaoyue and Li Xiao.
"Why didn't you send him in earlier?!"
"Doctor, what's wrong with my nephew?" Lin Xiaoyue didn't care about the doctor's tone and quickly asked.
Hearing this, Li Xiao and Xiao Qing both looked at her.
Especially Xiao Qing. Although he was very sick, he couldn't help but smile and even looked at his uncle teasingly.
Li Xiao's face was a little red and embarrassed, but these emotions were covered up in just a moment. He was very anxious about the doctor's diagnosis.
The doctor glanced at Lin Xiaoyue and Li Xiao. Seeing that the two of them were anxious, he said, "his body is very weak. He is exhausted and malnourished…" The doctor looked at Xiao Qing and shook his head.
"If he was sent here earlier, he would only need to take some medicine and rest. But now his fever has developed into a serious illness…" The doctor shook his head.
"I'll give him a prescription. When you go home, make one bowl for him to drink every four hours. Then use cold water to wipe his forehead and upper body. If the high fever subsides by tomorrow morning, he will be fine."
Li Xiao frowned. He didn't expect Xiao Qing's illness to be so serious.
Lin Xiaoyue was relieved.
If it was just a cold, she had the fever medicine in her interspatial ring.
"Okay. Thank you, doctor. Please prescribe the medicine!" Lin Xiaoyue quickly said.
"Okay." The doctor smiled at Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue instructed Li Xiao to take care of Xiao Qing before she went with the doctor.
Then, she paid five taels for the consultation fee and medicine before Li Xiao carried Xiao Qing out of the clinic.
After getting on the ox-cart, Lin Xiaoyue guided Li Xiao to the city gate while she took care of Xiao Qing.
Seeing that Xiao Qing could barely open his eyes at this moment and was about to fall into a coma, she hesitated for a moment before pulling the basket over. Using the basket as a cover, she took out the mineral water and fever medicine from her interspatial ring.
Then, she supported Xiao Qing and began to feed him water and medicine.
Xiao Qing was in a daze. Due to his hunger, he ate whatever Lin Xiaoyue gave him.
The ox-cart soon left the city. Lin Xiaoyue simply rolled up the curtain and guided Li Xiao in the direction of Daishi Village.
Soon, the three of them were approaching Daishi Village.
Because they stayed too long at the slave market, it was already past twelve o'clock. They did not meet many people on the way to the village.
85 His Future mother-in-law is Afraid of Him
Some people heard the sound of the ox-cart and came out to take a look, but Lin Xiaoyue was in the cart, so those people did not see her. They just thought that the ox-cart from another village was here to send someone off.
After entering the village, Lin Xiaoyue began to feel a little anxious.
Before she left, she had told her mother that she would come back before noon, but it was already 12:30 pm. It must have made her worried.
In addition…
She looked at Li Xiao, who was driving the cart, and Xiao Qing, who had already fallen asleep after taking her medicine.
She had not told her mother about buying anyone beforehand. She was afraid that she would have a lot of explaining to do.
Liu family.
Liu Shi had already prepared the food. She waited for a long time with her son, but Lin Xiaoyue was still not back.
She was getting anxious and was about to go to the village to take a look, but she heard the sound of an ox-cart.
Then, she saw an ox-cart coming toward their house.
Liu Shi was delighted and went out.
When she saw that the driver was a big man, the joy on her face disappeared.
However, Liu Shi waited for the ox-cart to come over.
They were the only family at the foot of the mountain. The ox-cart must have come for them.
"Mom!" Then Liu Shi heard her daughter's voice.
Then, the ox-cart stopped not far from Liu Shi. Lin Xiaoyue jumped down from the ox-cart.
She did not walk directly to Liu Shi. Instead, she said to Li Xiao, "put the ox under the big tree. I have something to tell my mother."
Li Xiao looked at Liu Shi. Seeing this, Liu Shi was frightened and immediately avoided his gaze.
He realized that he seemed to have scared his future mother-in-law, so he quickly softened his expression.
However, Liu Shi did not dare to look at him again.
Li Xiao had no choice but to leave.
Seeing Li Xiao's expression, Lin Xiaoyue could not help but smile.
She quickly walked toward her mother.
"What's going on? The man…" Liu Shi hurriedly asked.
From the looks of it, her daughter wanted to ask that fierce-looking man to stay for a meal?
"Mom, let's go inside first. I'll tell you in detail." Lin Xiaoyue smiled as she glanced at Li Xiao's back and brought Liu Shi back to the house.
Then, she told her what happened.
When Liu Shi found out that her daughter had brazenly bought two people back, she was shocked.
Moreover, when she heard that her daughter bought the big man back to be her son-in-law, she was not happy.
"Nonsense! You bought slaves?!" Liu Shi looked at Lin Xiaoyue angrily, she lowered her voice and said angrily, "if they are obedient, we could easily control them, otherwise we are just inviting trouble!"
It was obvious that the big guy was not easy to control. What did her daughter see in that person?
If such a person stayed at their home and had evil intentions, what would happen to the three of them?
"Mom, don't worry. Li Xiao is not a bad person." Lin Xiaoyue quickly comforted Liu Shi.
Even if he was a bad person, she had a gun. If she had no other choice, she could just kill him.
Anyway, the slave contract between the two of them was in her hands. Even if she really killed him, no one would care.
She did have her own selfish motives in buying Li Xiao and Xiao Qing, in order to fulfill her dream she had in her previous life. Also, her family really needed a man, and a strong one to support them.
Such was life in the countryside. Whether it was ancient times or the 21st century, it was hard without a man in the family.
86 Persuading Liu Shi
In ancient times, a village was usually dominated by villagers from the same family. For example, in Daishi Village, the Li family was the biggest family.
This was also the reason why Grandpa Li was elected as the village chief, and his words were respected.
Although the Lin family had many men, and was very tyrannical, they did not dare to offend the village chief or those from the Li family.
Previously, the village chief had said that if Lin Dachui could not control his wife, he must leave the village. This was not just a threat, the village chief could really do it. It was also because of this reason that the Lin family was so afraid. They even agreed to give Lin Laosan's inheritance to his wife and children.
Their family name was not Li, so there was no one to support them. If there was no man in the family, what happened last night would happen again sooner or later. It might even be worse.
In that case, she might as well get a man to live there.
Coincidentally, Li Xiao appeared. Of course, she would not let him go.
As for Li Xiao's character, based on her observation during the apocalypse, although Li Xiao was not no saint, he was principled.
She bought him and Xiao Qing and paid for Xiao Qing's treatment. So she had done him a favor and he would not repay their kindness with enmity.
Of course, if this Li Xiao was not the one she knew in the 21st century, she would not be merciful. After all, nothing was more important than her family.
"How do you know that he is not a bad person?!" Liu Shi said angrily. She lowered her voice, afraid that they would hear her.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled. "Because dad said so." She lied.
Liu Shi was stunned.
She looked at Lin Xiaoyue suspiciously.
"It's true! Dad knows that we are a household with no man. There's no one in our family who can stand up for us. He's afraid that the three of us will be bullied, so he gave Li Xiao to me."
A hint of doubt flashed across Liu Shi's eyes.
"What kind of father would recommend such a…" Liu Shi did not say the rest of the sentence,
He looked too fierce. Did he do something bad to get that scar on his face?
"Mom." Lin Xiaoyue said coquettishly.
"Look at our situation. If dad recommended a soft man for your daughter, would he be able to stand up to her?"
"Look at how good Li Xiao is. He's big and strong. In the future, you can assign all the hard work to him. We'll relax." Lin Xiaoyue smiled brightly.
"Also, with Li Xiao around, who dares to come and bully us? Li Xiao can beat those bugs down with one punch!"
Liu Shi was silent.
Thinking about it, it seemed to make sense.
Lin Xiaoyue noticed her mother's reaction. Seeing that Liu Shi was more relaxed, she quickly said, "next, we are going to build a house. It's not easy for us to not have a man at home to take charge, is it?"
Liu Shi pursed her lips and stayed quiet.
But when she thought about how she had such a great daughter, but she was matched with a man who was disfigured, she still felt a little uncomfortable. So, she did not look happy.
How could Lin Xiaoyue not see through her mother's thoughts? She smiled and shook Liu Shi's arm.
"Dad said that Li Xiao is a good person. Hwis quite pitiful. Look at him. If he was really a bad person, how could he have fallen into the hands of a human trafficker? Moreover, when I bought him, he wanted to bring his nephew along."
"That child is very sick. Isn't he dragging himself down by bringing him along?"
87 Use Warm Water to Wipe Him Down
"I suspect that Li Xiao probably sold himself as a slave to a human traffickers because of his nephew."
Liu Shi's eyes finally softened when she heard this.
"Fine. You and your father have already decided." After saying that, she stood up.
"Thank you, mom!" Lin Xiaoyue hurriedly grabbed her mother's arm.
Then her eyes moved and she quickly took out all the things she needed from her interspatial ring.
Since there were others at home now, she couldn't use it as frequently anymore.
Liu Shi was moved when she saw this.
She looked at Lin Xiaoyue and took out more than half of the remaining rice, flour, and oil from her interspatial ring.
"Okay, isn't the boy sick? Go and bring them in. There's not enough food. I'll make some egg pancakes," Liu Shi said.
"Alright! You're the most understanding mother!" Lin Xiaoyue said with a smile, turned around and ran out of the door.
Under the big tree by the courtyard, Li Xiao was still sitting on the ox-cart.
Seeing Lin Xiaoyue running towards him with a smile, his heart beat faster for no reason.
Although the mother and daughter spoke in a low voice in the room, it didn't prevent him from being able to hear clearly.
This girl had actually bought him on the spur of the moment and had not discussed it with her mother beforehand.
In order to let him and Qing'er stay, she even used her dead father to fabricate a lie. She had really put in a lot of effort.
She trusted him so much? Did she not mind…the Scar on his face?
Li Xiao's heart suddenly felt a little hot.
"Quickly bring Qing'er into the room and lie down. Mom will make us food," Lin Xiaoyue said with a smile.
"Okay." Li Xiao didn't want to think anymore and quickly got into the cart to get Xiao Qing.
Carrying Xiao Qing on his back, he walked into the house following Lin Xiaoyue.
After entering the house, he didn't look at Liu Shi. After hesitating for two seconds, he put Xiao Qing on the only bed in the house.
At this time, Xiao Qing was also woken up. He was a little confused, but because of his dizziness, he didn't ask.
"There's a stream by the side. Go wash up first. Then get a bucket of water and help Qing'er wipe his body," Lin Xiaoyue said.
She took a bucket and handed it to Li Xiao.
"Okay," Li Xiao responded and left with the bucket.
When he reached the door, he smelled the aroma of food and pancakes, and hie stopped for a moment.
Liu Shi didn't dare to look at Li Xiao at all.
When Li Xiao left the house, she looked at her daughter.
"How can you use cold water to wipe his body? Wait for the water to boil first," she said.
Li Xiao, who had not gone far outside, could not help but smile when he heard this.
"Okay, mom." Lin Xiaoyue quickly smiled and replied, then she went to the corner of the room to get a piece of cloth.
Liu Shi quickly made the pancakes and then boiled some water.
Then, Li Xiao came back.
After washing up, he didn't look as scary as before. Although the clothes on his body still had some smell, they were not as pungent as before.
Seeing Li Xiao, Lin Xiaoyue was stunned for a moment.
Then, she hurriedly said, "mom has heated the water. You can use the hot water to wipe down Qing'er later."
Li Xiao looked at Liu Shi and his mouth moved, but he didn't say anything.
"Okay."
This expression made Liu Shi feel a little more relaxed.
Seeing Li Xiao filling the water bucket with water, Liu Shi felt a lot more relaxed.
"Let's eat." After saying this, she put the dishes on the table.
Li Xiao looked at Lin Xiaoyue, not daring to move.
88 Mom Feels Sorry for You
Lin Xiaoyue was amused. She walked to Li Xiao's side and pulled him to the table.
"Mom asked us to eat, didn't you hear?"
Li Xiao didn't reply.
When they reached the table, Lin Xiaoyue asked Li Xiao to sit next to her.
With Li Xiao there, the table seemed to have shrunk in size in an instant.
Lin Xiaozhi secretly sized up Li Xiao. She was a little afraid, but more curious.
He heard the conversation between his mother and sister. This person was his future brother-in-law, so he was not so afraid of him.
But he looked really fierce. There was such a long scar on his face. Was it caused by a fight? Did It hurt?
Li Xiao knew that the little boy was looking at him, but he did not look at him.
Because he had scared a child to tears before, so he did not want to scare him.
"Let's eat," Liu Shi said.
Lin Xiaoyue quickly asked Li Xiao to eat.
Li Xiao did not move, but looked in the direction of the bed.
"Don't worry, mom left food for Qing'er. You can feed him after you finish eating," Lin Xiaoyue said.
Li Xiao's eyes moved. He quickly stood up, cupped his fists and bowed to Liu Shi.
"Thank you, madam!" He kept his head down.
Liu Shi instantly stiffened.
Seeing her daughter winking at him, she said, "we…we're all family. You're welcome."
Li Xiao froze.
"Sit down and eat. After that, go take care of your nephew." Liu Shi added, "and, in the future… call me aunty."
"Yes, aunty," Li Xiao immediately replied.
Then, he sat down and began to eat.
Lin Xiaoyue thought that Li Xiao had not eaten for a long time and would definitely wolf down his food. She did not expect him to be courteous.
Seeing that the number of omelets on the table was decreasing, Liu Shi and Lin Xiaozhi quickly put down their bowls.
One of them felt that it was rude if the food prepared was not enough.
The other one felt that his future brother-in-law must be starving. He should leave more for him.
"Ahem…I'll make some more pancakes," Liu Shi stood up and said.
Li Xiao, who was eating, instantly realized that he was being rude. He immediately wanted to turn around and stop her.
However, he was stopped by Lin Xiaoyue.
"It's fine. I know you're hungry. Eat more if you want. Mom feels sorry for you," Lin Xiaoyue said with a smile.
Liu Shi stopped in her tracks.
Li Xiao's face became stiff, and then red.
"Thank you, aunty." Li Xiao turned to Liu Shi and said.
Liu Shi couldn't help but smile.
Then she went to the stove.
Li Xiao wasn't as reserved as before and continued to eat with Lin Xiaoyue.
As he ate, he looked at Lin Xiaoyue picking up food for him from time to time. Li Xiao suddenly felt that this was the most delicious meal he had ever eaten in his life.
After the meal, Liu Shi refused Li Xiao's request to wash the dishes and let him feed Xiao Qing.
Xiao Qing was also very hungry. He ate a big bowl of porridge and two big pancakes.
After eating, he looked much more energetic.
Then, Li Xiao wiped Xiao Qing's body with warm water and then fed him medicine.
"I'll do it. Mom wants to talk to you." Lin Xiaoyue suddenly walked to Li Xiao's side and said helplessly.
Li Xiao was stunned.
"Okay." He answered and gave his seat to Lin Xiaoyue.
Then, he walked to Liu Shi, who was sitting at the table.
Then, before Liu Shi could say anything, he knelt in front of her,
She was shocked.
"What are you doing?" She subconsciously wanted to pull him up.
89 House Building is Confirmed
"Then, Uncle Jiang, do you know anyone who makes bricks?" Lin Xiaoyue quickly asked.
"Yes. I'll introduce you to them, and if you buy more, the price will be a little lower." Jiang Dahe said. "However, bricks are expensive. Even if there's a discount, it's still expensive. In addition, you'd better get an ox-cart to transport the bricks back. This way, it will be cheaper for you."
"How many ox-carts do I need? Do you know of any that can transport materials?" Lin Xiaoyue asked again.
"It depends on the progress of the building. At least two ox-carts to transport the materials six times a day. It's better to start the transportation earlier. If you can't find anyone, I can introduce someone to you," Jiang Dahe said.
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes lit up.
"Deal! When can you start? How long will it take to complete it?"
"We'll finish up the house in Shangyang Village in two days. If you're okay with that, we'll come after that."
Jiang Dahe thought for a while and said, "I can start in 5 days. It's just that the schedule is a bit tight."
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes lit up.
"Then 5 days it is. The earlier we start, the earlier we can move into a new house."
Jiang Dahe nodded with a smile.
"In terms of manpower, other than my men, I'll have to hire some people to do odd jobs. It's best to ask people from your village."
"No problem. I'll go to the village chief and ask him for help." Lin Xiaoyue said.
Jiang Dahe pinched his chin again.
"If we have enough manpower, we should be able to finish it in 20 days." He said.
His men were quick at work. As long as the materials were transported on time, it was not a big problem to finish the work in 20 days.
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes lit up.
She immediately communicated with Jiang Dahe about more details.
Then, she brought Li Xiao and Jiang Dahe to where the new house would be built.
Jiang Dahe had seen it before and had a basic understanding.
Then, he returned to the house with Lin Xiaoyue and Li Xiao.
After discussing the specific details, both parties signed the contract.
Then, Jiang Dahe left after telling Lin Xiaoyue what were the next steps.
After leaving the Liu family, Jiang Dahe didn't return to Huangshan Village immediately. Instead, he went to Carpenter Sun's house.
When Mrs. Sun learned that the Liu family was going to build a large brick house with more than a dozen rooms, she was so shocked that her jaw almost dropped.
"My goodness, the Liu family just separated from the Lin family. Where did they get their money from? Could it be…"
"What? Didn't you hear Dahe say that the Liu family had to spend more than 240 taels of silver to build this house? If her late father was earning so much, would he have to go to town to build houses for others?"
Mrs. Sun paused.
"But where did the Liu family get so much money? Yesterday, when they came to buy the tables and chairs, you only charged them 120 taels!" Thinking of this, Mrs. Sun was a little upset
"Weren't you the one who told me to charge less?" Carpenter Sun said to his wife in annoyance.
"Besides, last night, Xiaoyue sent a pheasant over. The restaurants in town charge more than 10 taels per catty, and that pheasant was worth 50 to 60 taels! Are you so jealous that you don't want to see others doing well?"
Mrs. Sun retreated in shame.
90 Aunt Sun's Visit
He was right.
If the pheasant was exchanged for money, it would be more expensive than buying furniture in town. At the end of the day, they still profited.
But even so, Mrs. Sun still felt a little upset. She felt as if she had been deceived.
Jiang Dahe, who was watching the interaction between his sister and brother-in-law, was amused.
"Alright. I came over to tell you that the Liu family is going to build such a big house, and they will definitely need a lot of furniture. You're from the same village as the Liu family, so you should go talk to them."
This time, Mrs. Sun felt better. She liked them very much at the moment.
"Sure! Then I'll pack up and go to the Liu family!"
Seeing that his wife was about to take action, Carpenter Sun quickly pulled her back.
"Be polite later!" He warned.
Mrs. Sun smiled.
"Alright! When have I ever caused you any trouble?" She pushed Carpenter Sun's hand away and walked into the house.
Seeing Carpenter Sun's worried face, Jiang Dahe smiled and said, "don't worry. She knows what she's doing."
Carpenter Sun sighed and looked away from his wife.
Then, he chatted with Jiang Dahe for a while before he sent him off.
Not long after Jiang Dahe left, Mrs. Sun went to Liu Shi's house with 20 eggs.
At this time, Lin Xiaoyue had gone to the stream to wash the food ingredients.
Li Xiao had already entered the mountain to chop wood that could be used to build a shed.
When Mrs. Sun arrived, there were only Liu Shi, Lin Xiaozhi, and Xiao Qing lying in bed.
When Liu Shi saw her, she quickly welcomed her in.
Then, Mrs. Sun found out what happened to the Liu family after asking around a little.
When he found out that the reason they became rich was because Lin Xiaoyue had found a hundred-year-old ginseng in the mountains the previous evening, she was very impressed.
Then, the little bit of unhappiness in her heart was completely gone.
The wild ginseng was only discovered yesterday evening, which meant that Yue'er really did not have money when she asked her husband to make the stools and table. She didn't pretend to be poor.
In addition, she also knew how to repay kindness. She even gave them such a fat pheasant last night.
Then, she thought about how no one in Daishi Village had discovered a hundred-year-old mountain ginseng for so many years, yet Xiaoyue found one. This meant that she was blessed.
"I'm not going to be polite with you. I'm here to ask if you want to make more furniture. We're from the same village, so you should be familiar with my husband's skills. Leave your furniture to us, and we'll be sure to give you a good price!"
"Of course. Yue'er mentioned this before, but I didn't expect you to come first." Liu Shi said with a smile.
Thinking of something, Liu Shi looked at Mrs. Sun.
"She went to the stream. I'll go get her." Then, she stood up.
She went out and shouted, "Yue'er, Aunt Sun is here. Come back quickly!"
"Coming!" A reply came from the distance.
Liu Shi smiled. She returned to the room and continued to chat with Mrs. Sun.
"I don't really know much about this, so I'm leaving everything to Yue'er and Xiao'er. You can talk to Yue'er about the furniture."
91 Settling the Carpentry Work
"Hehe, young people have more ideas. You're going to enjoy this." Mrs. Sun said with a smile.
The two of them exchanged a few more words before Lin Xiaoyue came back with a big wooden bucket.
Inside, there was a pig's offal, pig's liver, and a cleaned pig's head. Mrs. Sun praised Lin Xiaoyue for her diligence.
"I was planning to visit tomorrow. I didn't expect you to come today." Lin Xiaoyue smiled.
After entering the house, she placed the large wooden bucket on the stove and then walked to the table.
"Hehe, I should come and take a look. Uncle Sun asked me to return the favor after you gave me such a big pheasant yesterday."
"You're too polite," Liu Shi quickly said. "You even brought 20 eggs."
Lin Xiaoyue quickly thanked her.
Then, she told Aunt Sun about her plans for the furniture.
"I definitely need Uncle Sun's help with the furniture. It's just that the house hasn't been built yet, so we haven't decided on the exact furniture."
"That makes sense. We can talk about it after the house is built. However, your family also needs a lot of wood to build a house."
"It's expensive and costly to buy in town. Daishi Village is in front of a big mountain. When the time comes, you should get a few people to go up the mountain to get some wood. Then, ask Uncle Sun to process them, and the wood will be usable!"
Although selling furniture was profitable, there was not always business.
It was common for carpenters to work with the construction team. In the past, her husband had a lot of orders for furniture and he didn't like to take on such work.
But this time, he didn't have many orders recently, so he was motivated to do some extra work.
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes lit up.
"That's great. I wonder how much it would cost?" In order to save money, she had asked Jiang Dahe to contract the work, not the materials.
In other words, Jiang Dahe would only help her build the house, and she would take care of all the materials herself.
"It's 260 wen a day," Mrs. Sun said with a smile.
"Dahe said that it would take at least 20 days to build the house. If the carpentry work is done in advance, it would finish around the same time. The total would be 5 to 6 taels of silver."
"Deal! Then I'll go to your house and talk to Uncle Sun about it." Lin Xiaoyue said happily.
"Sure!" Mrs. Sun smiled.
Lin Xiaoyue ordered an ox-cart from Aunt Sun before sending her off.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue began to pack up the pig's head.
She was going to go to the herbal shop to get some marinade for making braised meat.
It was summer, and the pig's head meat could not be stored for long, so she cut it all up.
She also braised it with some potatoes.
The remaining pig liver and blood could be used to make another pot of blood curd.
There was so much food that their family definitely couldn't finish all of it. She had already planned to send some to the Wang family and the village chief's house.
It just so happened that she was going to ask them for a favor.
Liu Shi also stopped her embroidery work and helped Lin Xiaoyue light the fire for the stove.
Xiao Qing lay on the bed and smelled the fragrance coming from the stove. He looked at the stove from time to time.
Then, he heard Lin Xiaoyue teaching Lin Xiaozhi addition and subtraction while she was cooking. He listened and could not help but repeat after her.
Finally, after more than two hours, Lin Xiaoyue finished cooking all the dishes.
She had also mixed chili oil and some salad together.
"I'll leave the cooking to you, mom. I'll send the food to Aunt Wang's house first." Lin Xiaoyue said.
92 Building a Shed
It was already past 6 o'clock, so Uncle Wang and Shuanzi might have already returned.
"Go on." Liu Shi replied with a smile.
Lin Xiaoyue carried a bowl of duck blood curd and a bowl of mixed meat and went out.
She was surprised to find that a small thatched cottage had been set up outside her courtyard. Not only was Li Xiao there, but Uncle Wang and Wang Shuanzi were also there.
Li Xiao was the first to see Lin Xiaoyue, but he just looked at her without saying a word.
Wang Shuanzi was the second.
Seeing Lin Xiaoyue holding two bowls in her hands, he smiled and asked, "what kind of delicious food did you make? I can smell it from the entrance!"
This was, of course, an exaggeration. However, it indeed smelled good.
Uncle Wang also stopped what he was doing and looked at Lin Xiaoyue with a smile.
"Uncle, Shuanzi, why are you guys here?" Lin Xiaoyue walked towards them in surprise.
"Hehe, I got off work early today. When we came back, we heard that your…Li Xiao was building a shed, so we came to help." Uncle Wang said.
"I didn't help much. When I came, he was almost done!" Wang Shuanzi said cheerfully.
"Thank you!" Lin Xiaoyue quickly thanked them.
"Why are you being so polite? We're neighbors!" Uncle Wang said.
"Yue'er, where are you going?" He then looked at the two bowls of food in Lin Xiaoyue's hands.
Then, he quickly looked away and swallowed his saliva.
Uncle Wang actually guessed that Lin Xiaoyue was going to their house to deliver food. However, he was too embarrassed to say it directly, in case he guessed wrong.
"I made a lot of food and I'm going to send some to you." Lin Xiaoyue said with a smile.
Without waiting for Uncle Wang's polite refusal, she continued, "I also wanted to ask if you and Shuanzi could find some time to help me build a house in two days."
"Sure! We haven't had much work recently, so I'll just take a leave of absence in advance." Uncle Wang said immediately.
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes lit up.
"Alright. I'll bring the food to Aunt Wang first and talk to you when I come back."
"Alright." Uncle Wang responded with a smile.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue sent the food to Aunt Wang.
Aunt Wang originally wanted to ask Lin Xiaoyue to stay for dinner, but Lin Xiaoyue refused.
Lin Xiaoyue said that she was going to discuss the house building with Uncle Wang and Shuanzi , so Aunt Wang didn't insist.
After returning to the thatched shed, Lin Xiaoyue and Uncle Wang went to the side to chat.
After all, Uncle Wang was experienced. After listening to Lin Xiaoyue's plan and her conversation with Jiang Dahe, he guessed that the Liu family needed a lot of manpower to build the house.
"It's necessary to order bricks in advance. You'd better go to town with Li Xiao tomorrow and order a batch of bricks. I'll immediately arrange for an ox-cart to transport them."
"Yes, I think so too. Uncle Jiang asked me to order 4000 bricks first, and we'll add more later." Lin Xiaoyue said.
"I'm afraid that one ox-cart is not enough." Uncle Wang frowned.
"Uncle Jiang arranged for two ox-carts. My house has one, and Grandpa Shi from Shangyang Village agreed to come."
Uncle Wang nodded.
"This should work. What about manpower? Did Jiang Dahe say anything about that?" He asked again.
"He did. There are eight people in Uncle Jiang's construction team. He asked me to find another eight people in the village to help with the odd jobs. This way, the progress of building will be faster."
93 Helpers
"In addition, we have to get two more people to go into the mountains to cut some wood. Uncle Sun has already agreed to help with the carpentry work. This way, we can save on the money to buy wood."
"I've calculated it. With Li Xiao, you, and Shuanzi, we still need seven people from the village."
"This is easy. Now that there is no work in the field, there are many people in the village who are out to look for work. I'm sure everyone will be willing to come."
Lin Xiaoyue nodded. "I'm going to send some food to the village chief's house later. I'll see if I can ask him to help me find someone."
Uncle Wang paused.
"Good! With the village chief's help, it will be easier for your family to build the house!" He implied that this move could guard against the Lin family and some people in the village who might get jealous.
Yue'er was lucky enough to get the wild ginseng and sell it for a lot of money. Now, she wanted to build a big house. The Lin family would definitely be upset. There were also some people in the village who could not help but feel jealous.
If the village chief helped the Liu family with this, it would indeed be much easier.
He realized that he was starting to admire this girl. She was lucky and thought things through.
Many people in the village were waiting to see the Liu family make a fool of themselves. They felt that it was an unwise choice for Liu Shi to set up a female household and that she would regret it sooner or later.
However, he knew that with this girl around, the Liu family's future would only get better and better.
Lin Xiaoyue chatted with Uncle Wang for a while, then went to the village chief's house with duck blood curd and some pork
When she arrived, Lin Xiaoyue was a little excited as she looked at the bricks and large tiles in the courtyard, which was obviously different from other houses.
When their house was built, it would also be so beautiful!
After knocking on the door, it was Zhang Shi, the wife of the village chief's son, Li Gengtian, who opened the door.
Seeing that Lin Xiaoyue came with food and it was even a meat dish, Zhang Shi quickly invited Lin Xiaoyue into the courtyard.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue told her that she was here for her father-in-law and led Lin Xiaoyue into the house.
After seeing the village chief, Lin Xiaoyue told him her purpose for coming.
When he heard that the Liu family was going to build a house with bricks, he was very surprised.
He asked again and found out that Lin Xiaoyue had made a fortune by accident because she had dug up an old ginseng. His eyes then had a look of understanding.
"Haha, you little girl, you're a lucky one!" The village chief said with a smile.
Not only did he suddenly become smart, but she also learned how to hunt and even went into the mountains to dig up a hundred-year-old mountain ginseng. Could it be that her father had really blessed his eldest daughter so that she could support the Liu family?
"That's easy. I'll ask my son to inform all the families to come to my house to sign up. Tell me about the salary and the construction period."
"Yes." Lin Xiaoyue nodded.
"We'll start construction in five days. The construction period is at least twenty days. I can't guarantee that the whole process would require so many people, but they definitely will work for more than 15 days. Helping with building the house is 150 wen a day, and lunch and dinner are included. Those who go into the mountains need to start the day after tomorrow. Before the construction team arrived, it's 200 wen a day, not including meals. After that, it would be 180 wen a day, which includes lunch and dinner. I's not that hot to cut trees in the mountains, so the working hours will be longer."
"Okay. This price is very reasonable." The village chief said.
"Alright, I'll tell Gengtian. Tomorrow, after we've confirmed the people, we'll send someone to your house to let you know."
"Thank you, sir!" Lin Xiaoyue's face lit up and she quickly thanked him.
"Hehe, you're welcome. Your household registration has also been completed. Since you're here, I'll give it to you now. Wait a moment." The village chief stood up after he finished speaking.
94 Chili
Then, he went to get their household registration certificate and gave it to Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue left after thanking the village chief.
Back home, Liu Shi held the household registration certificate that Lin Xiaoyue had brought back, and her eyes were filled with excitement.
From today onwards, they would have nothing to do with the Lin family.
Lin Xiaoyue talked to her mother for a while before taking Lin Xiaozhi to see Li Xiao and the other two who were building the shed.
The first shed was completed, and the three of them were building the second one.
Lin Xiaoyue originally wanted to go and help, but she was stopped by Uncle Wang, who said that the three of them would be able to finish before dark.
Lin Xiaoyue could only help by the side, doing some work of delivering things.
Seeing that Li Xiao's movements were so swift that he worked as fast as Uncle Wang and Wang Shuanzi combined, she couldn't hide her admiration for him.
Even without his ability, his boss' strength is still extraordinary…
The sky gradually darkened, and the three of them managed to finish building the second shed before it got dark.
Uncle Wang and Wang Shuanzi refused Lin Xiaoyue's invitation for dinner and left after they finished their work.
Lin Xiaoyue and Li Xiao tidied up the thatched shed before taking Lin Xiaozhi home.
"Xiaozhi, do you want to ride a big horse?" Glancing at Li Xiao, who was silent, Lin Xiaoyue suddenly picked up Lin Xiaozhi.
"Yes!"
Then, his sister sent him into Li Xiao's arms.
Li Xiao caught the little boy. Seeing that he was not afraid of him, the sense of alienation in his heart inexplicably faded a little.
Then, he put him on his shoulder.
"Hehehe, let's ride! Thank you, brother Li Xiao!" The little boy was so happy that he started to giggle. He even thanked Li Xiao politely.
He could also ride a big horse and no longer have to envy the children in the village!
No one noticed that Li Xiao had a smile on his face at night.
In the Liu family's house.
Liu Shi lit up an oil lamp and took a portion of the food she had specially prepared for Xiao Qing. The rest of the people then gathered around the small table and began to eat.
On the table was a large pot of duck blood curd, a pot of braised offal with potatoes, a large plate of mixed pork, and then a bowl of rice.
Li Xiao had been busy the entire afternoon, and the food was unexpectedly delicious. He accidentally finished four bowls of rice.
The rest of the people also ate a lot. The pot of rice was quickly finished.
"I never thought that braised pork could be so delicious. It's a pity that we don't have chili seeds." Liu Shi put down her bowl and said, somewhat unsatisfied.
She had been cooking for a few days and knew that her daughter had cooked with chili today.
The potatoes tasted really good when they were cooked with pork.
Li Xiao looked at Lin Xiaoyue, his eyes filled with doubt.
Chili? Was that the red thing in the duck blood curd?
The taste of these dishes was very unique. They were delicious and went well with the rice. The more he ate, the more he wanted.
"We do." Lin Xiaoyue smiled and glanced at Li Xiao.
"The yellow grains in the chili are its seeds. We've been busy building houses recently, and we don't have enough land, so I didn't think about planting chilies. When the house is built, we'll buy the barren land nearby and plant chilies there."
"Next year, we can also plant potatoes and sweet potatoes."
"The chili could be planted all year round, and the sweet potato would grow in symbiosis with the chili."
95 Call me Yue'er
Most importantly, she had observed that the area around their house was all sandy land, which was most suitable for the growth of potatoes and sweet potatoes.
"Will it work? After the land is cleared, we have to pay a grain tax. What if we can't sell the chilies for money…" Liu Shi was a little worried.
This chili was good, but it wasn't a species of this world. When they grew it, they wouldn't be able to sell it if others didn't know the benefits of the chili.
As for the potatoes and sweet potatoes, she was confident in them. These two were obviously edible and good-looking, so they should be able to be sold.
"Don't worry, I am confident!" Lin Xiaoyue said with confidence.
Chili was popular all over the world in the 21st century, and she was completely confident that she could make a name for herself with chili condiments.
She didn't have enough chilies on hand. Otherwise, she would have asked Chef Liu of Ruyi restaurant if he wanted to work with her.
Even if it didn't work out, there was a market in town for her to sell them.
The potatoes and sweet potatoes were also her secret weapons. In ancient times, the production of food was low, but these two crops grow fast and are very filling.
Not only could potatoes be used as a staple food, but they could also be used to cook with other ingredients. There are so many ways to cook potatoes, like frying and roasting. Whether they were used as side dishes or main courses, they were deeply loved by the Chinese people.
If you cut the potatoes into thin slices and then deep-fried them, they could even turn into potato chips. Potato chips were a snack that had conquered almost all of mankind.
As for the sweet potatoes, both the vines and the roots were edible. Not only is it food for humans, but also livestock. Furthermore, sweet potatoes could also be made into snacks. In her previous life, when she was young, her grandmother made sweet potato strips for her, and they tasted very good.
The planting was simple, and the sweet potato vines grew close to the ground, which could coexist with many crops.
For example, one could grow beans, chilies, and even corn in the sweet potato field. This was because they did not need sunlight, while the sweet potato vines were the opposite. This way, two crops could be planted in one piece of land, saving land while not reducing production.
Just thinking about it made her want to buy land and start farming immediately.
She shouldn't rush it. She should take it step by step after the house was built.
After the meal, Liu Shi washed the dishes.
After the family finished washing up, Li Xiao carried Xiao Qing to the shed while the others rested in the house.
The next day.
Lin Xiaoyue called Li Xiao early in the morning and went out on an ox-cart.
"The main road is up ahead. Can you teach me how to ride an ox-cart?" Lin Xiaoyue looked at Li Xiao, who was beside her.
She realized that the man's side profile was also very charming.
"Yes." Li Xiao responded. Being stared at by Lin Xiaoyue, he felt a little uncomfortable.
"Did you like any girl before?" Suddenly, Lin Xiaoyue asked.
"No, I didn't."
"Were there many girls who liked you?"
Li Xiao paused.
"No," With such a face, those women would be afraid. Who would like him?
"Not a lot, or is there no one at all?"
"There's no one." Li Xiao replied. There was no fluctuation of emotion in his tone.
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes seemed to be glowing.
"How can there be no one? Am I not someone?" She was smiling brightly.
Li Xiao froze. His face began to heat up.
"Hehe, what color do you like, Li Xiao?"
"What do you like to eat, Li Xiao?"
"You've never called me by my name."
"X-Xiaoyue."
She acted coquettishly, "call me Yue'er…"
"Yue…Yue'er"
96 Ordering Bricks
Li Xiao only felt that the road to town was particularly long. When he saw the gate of Daishi Town, he finally heaved a sigh of relief.
After entering the city, the two of them first went to the brick kiln in the west of the city to order bricks.
When the manager heard that Lin Xiaoyue was introduced by Jiang Dahe from Huangshi village and that Lin Xiaoyue wanted a lot of bricks, he gave her a more favorable price.
Because there was still stock in the brick kiln, after paying the money, they could start transporting bricks the next day.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue brought Li Xiao out of the city and waited for Old Man Shi.
The two of them did not wait long under the tree before he came for the second time.
Seeing that Lin Xiaoyue had really bought an ox-cart, Old Man Shi was a little surprised.
"Tomorrow morning, you can go to the brick kiln in the west of the city. Ask them to give you the bricks ordered by Lin Xiaoyue and transport them to the Liu family's house in Daishi Village, which is the innermost part of the village. A hundred bricks per trip means that you'll need at least six trips a day. As for the price, I'll give 54 wen per trip." Lin Xiaoyue said directly.
"Alright! I'll do four trips in the morning, and two more in the afternoon when the sun is not as strong." Old Man Shi immediately responded.
This girl's offer was higher than the market price by 1 wen. She didn't take advantage of him.
Moreover, he might be able to pick up a few people on the way and earn more than 320 wen a day. According to Lin Xiaoyue, this task would take eight to nine days, and he could probably earn more than 3 taels of silver.
"Deal!"
Lin Xiaoyue gave Old Man Shi some more details, and then entered the city with Li Xiao again.
She didn't come to town today just to order bricks, but also to buy some things.
The two of them first went to the grocery store.
Lin Xiaoyue also bought some pots and pans to prepare for the meals for so many people in the family.
Li Xiao finally spoke, "there will only be more people during the construction period. I don't think we need so many bowls and chopsticks. Besides, two pots at home are basically enough."
"These things won't go bad anyway. In addition, after the house is built, I'm going to make a living with food. Everything can be used."
Hunting was indeed not a long-term solution. Especially in the winter, when her mother would not allow her to go hunting in the mountains. Cooking was the most likely way she could think of to make money.
"Sure." Li Xiao responded and didn't stop her.
Lin Xiaoyue picked an oil lamp, two small wooden buckets, and two wooden barrels with lids.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue brought Li Xiao to the boutique.
When he found out that Lin Xiaoyue wanted to buy clothes for him, Li Xiao immediately refused.
"Didn't Aunt Liu ask you buy some fabric to make clothes? Let's just go buy some fabric." He didn't think it was necessary when Aunt Liu asked him to watch over Lin Xiaoyue, but now he realized that she really spent money without blinking.
Even if she had made a fortune by selling the ginseng, building the house, buying the ox-cart, and buying him and Qing'er should have cost more than half of it. It would be a waste to buy clothes for him now.
Li Xiao didn't realize that he was already considering the Liu family and treating himself as a part of the Liu family.
"It'll take two days for mom to make the clothes. You and Qing'er's body are going to be exposed soon."
Although she didn't mind looking at his muscles from time to time, her heart ached for him because he didn't even have any clothes to cover his body.
"Quickly go and try it." Lin Xiaoyue urged again.
Li Xiao was silent.
Then, he nodded
He chose the largest size and went to try it on.
From tomorrow onwards, he would have to help transport bricks at the brick kiln, and it was indeed not good to have his body exposed.
97 Buying Clothes
After Li Xiao changed his clothes and came out, Lin Xiaoyue's eyes lit up.
After all, he was her boss. Even though he was wearing simple clothes, he looked good.
The shop owner also came forward and complimented him, and that he looked mighty.
Li Xiao looked down at the clothes he was wearing and didn't bother trying on other clothes.
There weren't many clothes suitable for his size in the store. This was the only one made of coarse cloth, so there was no need to try others.
Just as he was about to go to the changing room to change his clothes, he was pulled back by Lin Xiaoyue.
"Just wear this out."
She then looked at the clothes on the shelf, "pick one that's suitable for Qing'er."
Li Xiao paused and nodded.
Then, he thought about Xiao Qing's height and body shape and chose a set of coarse clothes for him.
The two sets of clothes cost Lin Xiaoyue a total of 8 taels.
After paying, they left.
"Ready-made clothes are indeed expensive. Later, I will buy more fabric and ask mom to make more. Let's try not to buy ready-made clothes in the future."
"Just a set of clothes to change into is enough." Li Xiao said hurriedly.
He had spent another 8 taels. He hadn't even done anything for the Liu family, but he already used more money.
"Hehe, it's not just you two who need clothes. We don't have enough clothes too."
Lin Xiaoyue mumbled, "also, embroidery hurts the eyes. I have to find something else for her to do so she doesn't have to think about embroidering pouches all day long."
Li Xiao could not refute her anymore.
Then, they went to the fabric shop.
The price of fabric was not cheap either. Considering the family's expenses and the busy work they had to do during the construction of the house, Lin Xiaoyue chose the cheapest coarse cloth.
After buying enough for five people, she asked the shop assistant to help send the cloth to the ox-cart.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue brought Li Xiao to the market.
She bought a rattan backpack, two wicker baskets, and a carrying pole.
After that, she bought steamed buns, vegetables, meat, and so on, until the ox-cart was almost full.
When Li Xiao asked if they could leave, Lin Xiaoyue looked at the watch in her interspatial ring before she got on the ox-cart.
"Let's go home." They hadn't done much in the morning, but it was almost 11 o'clock.
It was too early to go to Ruyi Restaurant at this time, and she felt that the weather was too hot to stroll on the streets.
Since it was only a half an hour's ride back to Daishi Village, she might as well go back with Li Xiao.
After lunch, she would come to town in the afternoon to teach Liang Chengcai.
"Yes." Li Xiao finally heaved a sigh of relief and quickly rode the cart towards the city gate.
On the way, Lin Xiaoyue broke some branches to cover her and Li Xiao's heads from the sun. She talked to Li Xiao like a chatterbox the whole journey.
When Liu Shi saw that her daughter had bought so many things, she muttered a few words. Seeing that the things were all useful, she did not say anything more.
Then, she listened to Lin Xiaoyue while she cooked.
Li Xiao unloaded the carriage and led the ox to the back to rest.
After that, she went to see Xiao Qing and helped him change his clothes.
Xiao Qing's condition was much better now. After changing, he asked Li Xiao to help him back to the house to have lunch with everyone.
Smelling the fragrant aroma of the dishes, Xiao Qing walked hurriedly.
But when he was eating, Lin Xiaoyue did not let him touch the chili and greasy meat.
Hence, he could only watch as everyone ate the meat while he ate his vegetable omelet.
Xiao Qing suddenly felt that perhaps he would feel better if he ate separately.
98 One Set of Clothes for Each Person
Li Xiao completely ignored Xiao Qing's gaze. He waited until he finished eating before he thanked Liu Shi and sent Xiao Qing back to the shed.
After the meal, Lin Xiaoyue gave all the cloth to Liu Shi and told her not to embroider pouches during this period of time. She should just make clothes for each of them.
"I don't need new clothes." Liu Shi said.
"I've bought all the materials for all of us." Lin Xiaoyue grabbed Liu Shi's arm.
"The old clothes that we got from the Lin family can't be patched up anymore. I should have thrown them away long ago. Mom, once you've finished making the clothes, our whole family will dress up more neatly. It'll be better to receive the workers, right?"
Liu Shi nodded.
"Alright, I'll do as you say." She thought to herself, "I can't embarrass my daughter."
Lin Xiaoyue smiled. "Also, check if Aunt Wang and Er Ya are coming later."
"If they don't, please go to them and ask if Aunt Wang and Er Ya can help us cook during the construction period. At that time, there will be so many people, and we won't be able to handle it. "
Liu Shi nodded.
"We'll start on the same day as the construction. We'll prepare two meals a day for them and pay them 70 wen a day." Lin Xiaoyue continued.
"Alright, I'll go talk to them. I think they'll agree."
70 wen a day and meals included. They didn't have to leave the village either. The pay was good.
Lin Xiaoyue was relieved and told Liu Shi that she would go to Ruyi Restaurant after talking to Li Xiao.
"Be careful." Liu Shi warned.
She wanted Li Xiao to go with her daughter, but there was still a lot of work at home, so Li Xiao had to stay.
"I know, mom." Only then did Lin Xiaoyue leave the room.
Then, she went to the shed to find Li Xiao.
At this moment, Li Xiao was building a stove outside the shed.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled and walked towards him.
"You've tidied up quite well. We just need to build a toilet and a small shower room in the back and we can move everything from the house."
"Yes I can finish it this afternoon." Li Xiao replied.
"There's no hurry. It's fine as long as we can move the things in the house before dark." Lin Xiaoyue smiled and looked at Li Xiao.
"Yes." Li Xiao responded, but his hands didn't stop.
Lin Xiaoyue felt a little bored.
"You'll be in charge of the house. I have to make a trip to town." She finally said to Li Xiao.
Li Xiao paused. He stopped what he was doing and looked at Lin Xiaoyue.
"I am going to Ruyi Restaurant to teach a class. Help me prepare the ox-cart." Lin Xiaoyue said with a smile.
Li Xiao's eyes flashed with a hint of doubt.
"I'll send you there," he said without asking.
"No need, I already know how to ride the cart. I can park it behind Ruyi Restaurant, and I'll be back after the lesson."
"Make sure Qing'er drinks the medicine this afternoon. Don't stop the medicine just because he's getting better."
"In addition, after you've tidied up this place, you and mom can move the things in the house over. From tonight onwards, we'll all be living here."
"Okay." Li Xiao responded.
Tomorrow, they would start transporting bricks, and the carpenters and workers who were going into the mountains to chop wood would also come. Although the construction team had not arrived yet, they had to start tomorrow.
"Alright, let's go," he said. Lin Xiaoyue took a deep breath and walked towards the tree.
Li Xiao quickly followed.
99 Addition and Subtraction
At the back of the Liu family's house, Li Xiao led the cow to the big tree, then strapped the cart on. He watched Lin Xiaoyue ride away.
At this time, the sun was scorching. Lin Xiaoyue broke a branch by the roadside to shade herself from the sun. As she rode to the main road, she felt a little sorry for the ox.
Fortunately, Daishi Village wasn't too far from town, and there wasn't anything else in the cart. Otherwise, the ox definitely wouldn't be able to stand such hot weather.
An hour later, Lin Xiaoyue arrived at Qingshi Town. Then, she rode the ox-cart all the way to Ruyi Restaurant.
The people in the kitchen all knew Lin Xiaoyue. The waiter even helped Lin Xiaoyue unload the ox-cart and parked it in the courtyard.
Lin Xiaoyue went to the accountant's room. When Liang Chengcai saw Lin Xiaoyue, he was so happy that he quickly got up to welcome her.
"I didn't see you come to sell wild animals in the morning. I thought that you would not come this afternoon." Liang Chengcai gave Lin Xiaoyue a bow.
She didn't teach him yesterday afternoon, and she didn't come to sell anything this morning. He almost suspected that he was being scammed.
Fortunately, he was just overthinking.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled and saw through Liang Chengcai's thoughts.
Liang Chengcai felt a little guilty.
"My family is busy with the house construction, so there are too many things that need to be taken care of these two days. I actually came to town in the morning, but it was almost noon by the time I finished my business. I was afraid that it would be inconvenient to come over, so I went back to have lunch before coming." Lin Xiaoyue explained.
"I see." Liang Chengcai's eyes flashed with understanding.
"Don't worry about it next time, you can come directly. I am quite free after 9 in the morning."
Lin Xiaoyue smiled, "sure!"
Then, she checked Liang Chengcai's homework.
"Yesterday, you learned how to write numbers with symbols. Today, I'll teach you how to calculate."
…
"One horizontal and one vertical is a plus sign, one horizontal is a minus sign, and two horizontal is the equal sign."
Liang Chengcai took a brush and practiced with Lin Xiaoyue on the paper. He thought it was interesting.
After Lin Xiaoyue demonstrated two examples to Liang Chengcai, she began to speak as he wrote.
Liang Chengcai didn't let Lin Xiaoyue down. He wrote quickly and accurately.
"Very good. Next, I'll give you some questions, and you'll list the equations." Lin Xiaoyue said again.
"Please go ahead." Liang Chengcai's eyes were full of expectation.
"The first question. Xiaoming had 10 wens, and he spent 6 wens on candied gourd. How much money is left?"
"10-6=4." Liang Chengcai said. At the same time, he wrote down the equation on the paper and calculated the result.
"Yes." Lin Xiaoyue nodded.
"The second question. Xiaoming had two wens, and his mother gave him three wens. How much does Xiaoming have now?"
"2+3=5!" Liang Chengcai responded with ease.
"Not bad." Lin Xiaoyue nodded.
"These are the simplest calculations. Next, we'll talk about the more complicated ones."
"Before you start, memorize the combination of the numbers that add up to 10. Also, do some addition and subtraction with numbers under 20."
Liang Chengcai smiled and bowed to her.
"I have already mastered all of these. Please test me."
Lin Xiaoyue glanced at Liang Chengcai. He was an accountant after all, so these basic things might really be no problem. Hence, she began to test him.
"8+7,"
"15."
"6+6."
"12."
"18-9."
"9."
…
Lin Xiaoyue tested a few addition and subtraction questions and found that Liang Chengcai was indeed able to answer them correctly.
100 Chilies from a Foreign Land
She could gauge Liang Chengcai's knowledge.
"Very good, you got the basics down. Then we can learn the vertical form today."
Then, Lin Xiaoyue taught the vertical method of addition and subtraction to Liang Chengcai.
Liang Chengcai was very surprised. He didn't expect that he could calculate the addition or subtraction of two big numbers so quickly without using an abacus.
"Well, now that you've learned addition and subtraction, let's learn compound addition and subtraction using brackets."
Lin Xiaoyue wrote down an equation and began to talk about the calculation method and the use of brackets.
Liang Chengcai was pleasantly surprised again.
"The emergence of compound addition and subtraction allows us to use simple methods to find the sum or the difference." Lin Xiaoyue said.
"For example, for this question, 123 minus 99, it would be more complicated to write it down vertically. We can turn 99 into 100 minus 1 inside a bracket. Then, it becomes 123 minus 100 plus 1. You don't need to write it down vertically to quickly get the answer, which is 24."
Liang Chengcai's eyes lit up.
"It's so elegant!" He sighed.
Lin Xiaoyue was proud. She thought to herself, "this is just the beginning."
"Another example is 38 plus 54 plus 22. Since 8 and 2 make 10, you can put 22 in front and add 38 to get 60, then use 60 plus 54 to get 114."
"Yes!" Liang Chengcai looked at Lin Xiaoyue's formula, and his heart was full of admiration.
Lin Xiaoyue saw that Liang Chengcai had more or less mastered it, so she took out the practice questions she had prepared in advance.
"I'm afraid you won't be able to absorb it if I say too much in a day, so that's all for today. This is today's homework. Take it and copy it down. I'll come to class tomorrow to check."
"Yes!" Liang Chengcai quickly saluted Lin Xiaoyue, almost treating her as a teacher of the academy.
"Also, I'll leave you another question."
"Yes." Liang Chengcai was still bowing.
"Calculate what's the sum of adding every number from 1 to 100." She would teach him multiplication tomorrow. She would tell him the solution after he learnt some simple multiplication.
Liang Chengcai paused.
"Okay."
"Also, starting tomorrow, I will come to teach you after half past noon. Each class will last for two hours at most."
From tomorrow onwards, Li Xiao would be going to the west of the city to transport bricks, and she could take the ox-cart back with him.
The weather in the afternoon was too hot, and it was not good to be out on the road.
"Yes." Liang Chengcai agreed again.
Only then did Lin Xiaoyue bid farewell to Liang Chengcai and drove the ox-cart out of Ruyi Restaurant.
Then, she left the town and returned to Daishi Village.
When she got home, she saw that her family was moving the things to the shed.
Not only were Li Xiao and Liu Shi working, but Aunt Wang and Wang Erya were also helping.
Lin Xiaoyue rode the ox-cart to the big tree and quickly went to help.
After a while, all the things in the house were moved to the straw shed.
Li Xiao went to unload the ox-cart, and Lin Xiaoyue, Liu Shi, and the others sat in the shade outside the straw shed and chatted.
"What kind of seasoning did you put in the dishes you gave me yesterday? Shuanzi and his father almost couldn't stop eating!" Aunt Wang asked Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue glanced at her mother. When their eyes met, she knew that her mother did not tell her about the chili.
She then smiled at Aunt Wang, "it's called chili, it's a type of spice."