Chapter 1383
Drawing a Pie in the Sky
Chapter 1383 Drawing a Pie in the Sky
His father, Li Hui, merely glanced at him and said, "It's nothing. You're wearing boots, so you won't get burned. It's just that the iron pot hit your foot."
He clutched his chest and said, "Eldest son, I've been traveling all day and my chest hurts. Your mother has fainted, and I have to take care of her. As the eldest son and the heir to the family business, you have to shoulder the responsibility."
I tried to pick them out, but I couldn't lift them all!
Li Wenhu wanted to cry, but now only his family of three and two servants were left. The servants had been conscripted by the clan to patrol and keep watch at night, so he had to do these chores.
"Father is right. I'll tidy up and continue cooking." Li Wenhu cheered up and continued working.
Li Hui was very satisfied and said, "That's right... Eldest brother, hang in there. Things will be fine once we get to Qingfang Prefecture. Our family has relatives in Qingfang Prefecture. Father asked our relatives there to help us acquire some family property, and that property will be handed over to you."
The cakes smelled so good that Li Wenhu said he could eat them all: "Father, I will definitely train myself well along the way. When we arrive at Qingfang Prefecture, you won't need to worry about me anymore. I will be able to make good friends with outsiders and build connections for the family."
Tsk, don't even dream about it. Your father is going to leave the Qingfang family business to your half-brothers.
Li Hui: "That's right, as expected of my eldest son, he's much more capable than your two younger brothers!"
"Haha, Father, you flatter me. I only did what a son should do." Li Wenhu said happily, wearing his soaking wet boots, setting up the iron pot and continuing to light the fire.
The fire is a bit rebellious; it just won't light.
“The grass and trees are wet and unusable. Remove them and I’ll give you some firewood to start a fire.” A member of the Li clan nearby couldn’t bear to see this and gave him three pieces of firewood to light, which helped him get the fire going.
After struggling for half an hour, I finally managed to cook a pot of noodle soup... I don't know how to roll out dough or make noodles, so all I can do is make ugly little dumplings.
"Dad, you eat first." Li Wenhu handed the noodle soup to Li Hui, looking at him expectantly, waiting for his praise.
"Yes, my son, you've worked hard." Li Hui took the porcelain bowl, ate a piece of dough, frowned, and looked down. The dough was undercooked: "It's not fully cooked inside. Put it back in the pot and cook it again."
Li Wenhu's eyes were lifeless, but he had to shoulder the burden of his family. So, dragging his tired body, he poured the dough back into the iron pot and continued cooking.
After some fiddling, it was finally cooked.
After serving his father his meal and setting up his bed in the clan's large tent, he was about to go eat when a member of the Li clan reminded him, "Go quickly and ask the Weng family doctor to come and see your mother. She hasn't woken up yet, don't delay!"
If this drags on any longer, your mother might die.
Being unfilial is a serious crime. Li Wenhu, who prided himself on being a filial son, hurriedly thanked his clansmen and went to the Weng clan to find the clan chief. After obtaining permission, he brought Doctor Weng over to treat his mother.
After Dr. Weng gave her a few acupuncture needles and administered medicine, Li Wenhu's mother finally woke up.
"Mother, you're finally awake!" Li Wenhu was overjoyed. While attending to his mother, he noticed that Doctor Weng was lingering and asked in confusion, "Does Doctor Weng have any medical instructions for my mother?"
Doctor Weng's face darkened: "The consultation fee and medicine cost are two taels of silver, which is what our clan wants."
"Two taels of silver!" Li Wenhu exclaimed in astonishment, "Is this some kind of elixir?!"
Doctor Weng said, "A medicine that can save lives can be called a miracle pill. Moreover, in the desolate wilderness, where there is a lack of doctors and medicine, anyone who has medicine that can heal people should be paid double. This is the rule for caravans escorting goods and long-distance merchants to seek medical treatment on the road. I didn't ask for more."
"And I have to hand over half of this money to the Weng clan." Li Wenhu was furious. The Li clan members hurriedly came to persuade him: "Brother Hui, you have to pay money now that your mother has been revived. Besides, Doctor Li is staying in the city. Our Li family doesn't have a doctor. We need Doctor Weng's help along the way. You can't be unreasonable."
This wicked doctor is clearly using this as an excuse to rob us!
Li Wenhu was furious, but he was still forced by his clansmen to hand over the money.
After serving his mother his meal, he hurriedly finished his cold noodle soup, put away the iron pot, and went back to the men's tent to sleep with his father. When he went to report the expenses to his father, his father ignored him.
Li Wenhu: "..." I suppose Dad is asleep.
The next day, just as dawn broke, the camp's gongs rang out loudly, and the village militia members from the major clans on night duty shouted: "Get up! We'll set off in 25 minutes. Don't wait up!"
Li Wenhu was forcibly woken up. Dragging his aching body, he packed his bedding and iron pot, then helped his parents onto the car. He was exhausted, but he finally made it to the departure time and wasn't left behind.
While on the road, Li Wenhu asked his father for money again.
Li Hui reprimanded him: "Don't you understand the principle of not flaunting your wealth? You are not allowed to talk about this on the road. When you enter the next prefecture and rest and make purchases, you can report the expenses to your father and he will give you the money back."
Li Wenhu: "...Father is right, I was just being too attached to appearances."
"Hmm, he knows his mistakes and can correct them. He truly deserves to be the eldest son of my family." Li Hui really is a master at taming people.
On the second day of the ninth lunar month, Li Wenhu and his men set off at a little past dawn and didn't stop until evening. But after calculating the distance, they realized, "We're moving too slowly. We've only covered thirty li (about 15 kilometers) at most. It's only the distance from one village to the county seat, and we're still traveling by carriage. We have to speed up! We must reach Daluo Town by tomorrow and Dongshui County the day after. Guan, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), is waiting for us there. The sooner we get there, the safer our search for survival will be with their protection!"
The clan elders, including Li Er, Weng, Tan Changyun, and Chen Bai, sent people to announce the order to the team seeking a way to survive.
Li Wenhu is going crazy. He was so exhausted today that he almost died. He has to travel even more tomorrow, and he's afraid he'll die on the road.
Sobbing, Li Wenhu wiped away his tears, starting to miss Li Liu Shi... Although this woman was wicked, some of the things she said seemed to be quite true.
Even if one dies while remaining in the city, it will be a relatively easy death.
If you go out of the city to find a way to survive, and you don't find one, then you'll have to go through a lot of trouble before you die, which would be a huge loss even if you die.
Seeing this, Li Hui's heart sank, and he hurriedly tried to convince him with a rosy picture: "Boss, the journey will always be a bit difficult, but as long as we get through this part of the road, once we reach Qingfang Prefecture, we can sell our properties there and move to Taizhou Prefecture."
"Tai Zhou Prefecture, an ancient capital. The sons of noble families and officials from all over the world study at Tai Zhou Academy. You can meet important people even when you walk on the street. With our family's wealth, you can definitely marry a noble lady. After the war is over, you can take your noble wife back home. That will be a triumphant return."
Ah this?
Li Wenhu perked up a bit and asked, "Father, is there really a noble lady who would want to be with her son?"
His parents said, "Our son is a talented man, how could he not be interested in him? Besides, there are many noble people in the Tai Zhou Mansion, and noble people love to take concubines and have children. Every household has countless illegitimate daughters who are worried about getting married. If our son goes to the Tai Zhou Mansion, they will fight over him!"
His father was just fooling him, but his mother really thought so... So even though Li Liushi brought a small dowry into the family, his mother still felt that Li Liushi was not good enough for Li Wenhu. She thought he should marry a daughter of an official, preferably a daughter of an official with a generous dowry!
People love to hear nice things, and Li Wenhu was smug again: "Heaven will entrust great responsibilities to those who are destined for them, and will first test their strength and bones. I can endure this hardship, so please rest assured, Father and Mother. I will escort you two safely to Qingfang Prefecture, and then to Taizhou Prefecture, where we will settle down, become people of the Central Plains, and live a good life! I will make that blind Li Liu regret it!"