Exile with Storage Space: Family Fortunes in the Barren Lands-Chapter 496 - 0470: Choose Reliable People (1)
The engagement was settled, and the Second Princess no longer made pastries, spending her days at home receiving etiquette lessons from the Princess Consort Luling.
Learning how to get along with sisters-in-law, how to meet guests when going out, how to interact with in-laws, and how to host guests as a hostess.
The Princess Consort Luling explained in great detail, while the Second Princess yawned as she listened.
The Princess Consort almost cried out of frustration.
She struck the table leg fiercely with a feather duster, startling the Second Princess, "If you don’t learn now, you’ll be in tears later."
The feather duster broke, scaring the Second Princess into sitting still and listening attentively.
But still, the words went in one ear and out the other.
The Princess Consort was so angry her head hurt.
Although the Second Princess had stopped making pastries, there were still some unsold pastries left in the market stalls. The pastries, once baked, dried out the moisture in the dough and could last ten days to half a month in summer and a month in winter. Li Xingsheng went to the market street alone and sold all the remaining pastries.
After selling the pastries, he closed the shop and stayed at home, awaiting his parents’ instructions for work.
When Li Yuzhu came to his place, she found Li Xingsheng playing with two children.
"Second Brother," Li Yuzhu entered the room with a smile, "Father and Mother have something to discuss with you."
Li Xingsheng patted the children’s heads, telling them to go play on their own. He looked up and asked, "What’s the matter, Third Sister?"
"Someone from the Lou Family came and requested that Second Sister live in the Zhen An Prefecture after marriage, but it’s too far from home. Father and Mother are worried, so I suggested we look around the village to see if there are any young girls or lads who would be willing to accompany Second Sister and help her there."
In large, affluent families, when a girl is about to marry, they promptly arrange for a dowry.
Families with many servants would transfer some reliable ones, while those with fewer would temporarily buy some and train them.
And as for the purchased maids and servants, some come from poor families, sold by their parents to become lifelong servants. Some come from disgraced officials’ families, whom regular folks dare not buy for fear of trouble.
Now, they wanted to find children from respectable village families, opting to hire rather than buy.
Li Xingsheng said, "This is a good idea. I’ll go see Father and Mother now."
He knew that his second sister was a simple-hearted girl, and without anyone to accompany her on a long journey, she wouldn’t know if she was being taken advantage of.
Li Xingsheng went to the North Courtyard Main House, where Prince Luling and his wife immediately informed him of the Lou Family’s request and their concerns for the Second Princess.
Li Xingsheng proposed, "We can host the wedding banquet at our home and accompany her there until the marriage is completed. At that point, I’ll go with Eldest Brother to take her there. After arriving, we won’t rush back home; we’ll stay there until after the New Year. How does that sound, Father, Mother?"
Prince Luling stroked his beard, pondered for a moment, and nodded, "Rent a house to stay in over there so that Yu En feels like she has a family to visit regularly."
The Princess Consort also supported their second son’s suggestion, "After the spring planting, there won’t be much to tend to. You can stay until spring and return then, while the eldest needs to return early to take care of E Ying."
Li Xingsheng nodded, "Alright, I’ll go visit the village to find someone now."
With the plan agreed upon, Prince Luling and his wife felt somewhat reassured.
Li Xingsheng returned to his room to fetch an outdoor cloak, while Li Yuzhu smiled and pointed to Guoguo and Li Jing, "Second Brother, they want to go play too."
Li Xingsheng frowned, "I’m going on business, not for fun. I’ll take you to play another day."
"No!"
"I want to go!"
The two kids clung to his legs from either side.
Li Xingsheng sighed, "..."
Li Yuzhu laughed, "Second Brother, since I’m not busy either, I’ll take them along in the carriage to find people in the village. What do you think?"
This idea seemed feasible.
Li Xingsheng picked up the two kids, one on each side, "Alright then, but remember not to cry or make a fuss, or I’ll leave you halfway through."
Guoguo chirped, "I’ll behave."
Li Jing said even louder, "I’ll behave too."
Li Yuzhu smiled as she rescued them from Li Xingsheng’s hands, "Alright, let’s go."
They went to the front yard, where Li Xingsheng had harnessed the horse to the carriage, and Li Yuzhu led the little ones inside.
Uncle Gui asked, "Where are you going, and why are you taking the kids?"
"To play," Guoguo said.
"Yeah, to play," Li Jing echoed.
Guoguo, nearly one and a half years old, could speak many words; she followed and imitated whatever Li Jing did or said before.
Nowadays, things have flipped; it’s like she’s the older sister, and Li Jing is the younger brother. Guoguo speaks and acts first, and Li Jing follows her lead.
Uncle Gui chuckled, "You need to listen when you go out."
"Hmm, we’ll listen." Guoguo nodded.
"I will listen too." Li Jing glanced at Guoguo and nodded along.
It made Uncle Gui laugh.
The carriage ran along the main road in front of the house. Since there were little ones in the carriage, it couldn’t go fast, so Li Xingsheng had the horse trot along.
At the village entrance, Li Xingsheng saw a young woman with a big belly, waddling as she walked, carrying a basket in her hand.
The basket held a few radishes and a large cabbage.
Radishes and cabbage are heavy vegetables, and the pregnant young woman was struggling to carry them.
Li Xingsheng said to the people in the carriage behind him, "Third Sister, that woman in front seems like Liu Da Niu. Should we give her a lift?"
Li Yuzhu lifted the curtain to take a look outside, and sure enough, it was Liu Da Niu.
Liu Da Niu heard the rumbling of carriage wheels behind her and stopped to wait by the roadside for the carriage to pass.
Li Yuzhu said, "Second Brother, stop the carriage. Let’s give her a ride."
This is the village entrance, and it’s three miles to get to Liu Da Niu’s house. For an ordinary person, three miles isn’t much; you can get there in a fleeting moment with a quick run.
But for a heavily pregnant woman carrying something heavy, it’s not just laborious; it’s also dangerous.
"Alright." Li Xingsheng called out to Liu Da Niu, "Da Niu, my third sister says we should give you a ride."
He stopped the carriage beside Liu Da Niu, and Li Yuzhu lifted the curtain and called out to her, "Da Niu, why are you out here alone? And carrying such heavy items?"
Li Yuzhu stepped down from the carriage and took the basket from Liu Da Niu’s hands, placing it inside the carriage.
"I dug some vegetables from the field; everyone at home is busy, and I’m just idle, so I went out." Liu Da Niu said with a smile.
"In your condition, you shouldn’t go out alone. You’ll give birth in half a month. You’re running around here and there; aren’t you scared? I’m scared for you." Li Yuzhu scolded her.
Liu Da Niu smiled but didn’t respond to Li Yuzhu’s words, only asking, "Miss Li, where are you all headed?"
They were familiar people, so Liu Da Niu wasn’t formal, grabbing Li Yuzhu’s hand and climbing into the carriage.
Seeing the two little kids inside the carriage, she smiled and stroked their heads, "Are you out playing too? It’s quite cold outside."
"We’re not cold." Guoguo said, "I’m wearing a lot."
Li Jing nodded, "Yep, I’m wearing a lot too."
The carriage slowly continued onward.
Li Yuzhu said, "We’re going to the village to find some people. My second sister is getting married in a few days. Her husband’s family is from Zhen An Prefecture, and they’re a big family. My mother is worried about her marrying far away and wants to find some capable and lively girls and lads to accompany her. That’s why I’m here with Second Brother to inquire in the village."
Liu Da Niu said, "Miss Li, if your family doesn’t mind, how about my second sister and third and fourth sisters?"
"Her sisters?" Li Yuzhu blinked, "If they go, it’s not impossible..."
Liu Er Niu is fifteen this year, San Niu is twelve, and Si Niu is eight.
Er Niu, about the same age as the Second Princess, is not very talkative but works diligently and swiftly. After Da Niu got married, Er Niu took care of everything inside and outside the house. San Niu, slightly younger, has a very sharp tongue, which has earned her quite a few beatings from Liu Laoda.
Si Niu isn’t suitable; she’s young, clueless, and can’t read the room.
When an adult was scolding, and the broom fell with nobody to pick it up, Si Niu still foolishly stepped over it without picking it up, resulting in her getting beaten most frequently at home.
Si Niu once followed the Second Princess to the market to sell pastries, but later Liu’s house got busy with the autumn harvest, so Si Niu was called back.
Afterwards, Liu Laoda mentioned finding jobs for the three sisters in the village, so Si Niu didn’t follow the Second Princess to the market.
"They’re all idle at home; my dad often scolds them for freeloading." Liu Da Niu sighed.
Li Yuzhu said, "Er Niu is already fifteen. The girls accompanying my second sister will go away for three years before coming back. Is your family willing?"
Liu Da Niu understood that being a companion isn’t unpaid; there must be money to earn. As long as there’s money, her father would agree.
Come winter, there’s no harvest in the fields. After paying the family’s grain tax, there’s almost no money left.
Her mother is not in good health and needs to spend money on medicine every few days.
The house is dilapidated and needs repairing before the rainy season in spring next year. Even though her dad is a bricklayer and can fix the house himself, the repairs will take time away from earning money.
If the Li family offers enough money, her dad would agree without hesitation.
