Chapter 88
88 Seeing Off
After Zhou Jia waited for the doctor to rest, he found Li Yu and gave her the lotus seeds and the title deed. Li Yu saw that there were two title deeds with her name written on them and was extremely touched. “You bought these lands and ponds!”
Zhou Jia nodded and looked at Li Yu dotingly. “As long as you like it, I’ll buy it for you.” Li Yu smiled at Zhou Jia. “Aren’t you afraid of spoiling me?”
Zhou Jia walked over and hugged Li Yu. “Yu’er, as long as you’re willing, I’m willing to dote on you forever.”
Li Yu nodded and thought to herself, As long as you treat me sincerely, I’m also willing to dote on you.
Doctor Wen stayed in Phoenix Village for a few days. Every day, he went up the mountain with Li Yu to pick herbs. He also made a few antidotes for the two of them. He taught Li Yu the herbs to treat colds and coughs, as well as the herbs to treat snake and insect bites. He also taught Zhou Jia to make Golden Creation Medicine.
After a few days of gathering, Doctor Wen was about to leave again. Li Yu made some dried meat and spicy sauce for Doctor Wen and packed a set of raincoats for him. Before leaving, Doctor Wen called Li Yu to the side and instructed, “Xiaoyu, Xiao Xi is very bitter. You have to persuade him to let go of those grudges in the capital. The two of you should have a good life.”
Li Yu agreed solemnly. “Alright, sir. We’ll live well.”
Zhou Jia sent Doctor Wen to Tongzhou. When he came out of the General’s Mansion, he reluctantly sent him out of Tongzhou City. Doctor Wen said to Zhou Jia, “Little Xi’er, live well with your wife. When I have played for a few more years, I’ll come back and take care of your children.”
Zhou Jia knelt down and kowtowed. “Got it. Come back early.”
“Why are you crying? I’m leaving.” Doctor Wen got into the carriage and slowly walked away.
Zhou Jia returned to Phoenix Village. After dinner, Li Yu looked at Zhou Jia. “Xiao Xi, I’m too full. Accompany me for a walk to digest my food.”
“Okay.” Zhou Jia put down the things in his hand and followed Li Yu up the field. Seeing Li Yu walking forward with her head lowered, Zhou Jia pulled Li Yu’s hand. “Xiaoyu, do you have anything to tell me?”
“Follow me.” Li Yu pulled Zhou Jia to the side of the mountain stream and turned to look at him worriedly. “Xiao Xi, Sir said that you’re feeling very bitter and asked me to counsel you. I don’t think I’ve cared enough about you to know why you’re feeling bitter. Can you tell me the reason?”
Seeing Li Yu’s worried expression, Zhou Jia lowered his head and thought for a long time before looking up at Li Yu. “Xiaoyu, I told you that the people who want to kill me are my family, but I didn’t tell you who they are and why they want to kill me.”
Li Yu looked at Zhou Jia. “Do you want to tell me now?”
Zhou Jia nodded. “After my grandfather and grandmother gave birth to my father, for some reason, their relationship deteriorated to the point that they ignored each other. Once, my grandfather was injured when he went out and was saved by my maternal grandfather. My grandfather and my maternal grandfather became friends and in-laws. When my grandfather returned to the capital, he found out that my grandmother had arranged a marriage with her uncle’s family.
The two of them refused to give in to each other, so they put things aside. After a few years, when my maternal grandfather fell ill, he asked someone to invite my grandfather over. After entrusting my mother to my grandfather, he fell ill and died. The result of the two of them fighting was that my grandfather made the decision to have my parents marry The marriage in the capital was secured by my grandmother. My grandmother hated my mother and me to the core.
My mother, grandfather, and I had always lived in the village. We only moved back to the capital when I was ten years old. We lived on a farm outside the capital. My father sometimes came to live on the farm.
These days lasted until I passed the county-level examination and my grandfather died. My father brought me and my mother back to the city. I was unworthy of being a son. I couldn’t even protect my own mother, and I still had to let them bully me. I agreed to be adopted.” After Zhou Jia finished speaking, his eyes were red and he clenched his fists angrily.
Li Yu held Zhou Jia’s hand and comforted him gently. “This isn’t your fault. What’s wrong is that those two vicious women are also in this cannibalistic world.”
Zhou Jia looked at Li Yu with red eyes. “Yu’er, there are only a few engraving shops left in the Zhou family’s assets. I’ve never taken them seriously. For that little bit of assets, they used sinister methods to harm my mother. I won’t forget the hatred of them humiliating my mother and killing her. When I have the strength, I’ll seek revenge on them for the injustice my mother suffered.”
Li Yu looked at him and said, “I’ll accompany you to seek justice from them. Don’t they care about the engraving workshop the most? When the time comes, we’ll tear down the engraving workshop and burn it as firewood to anger them.”
Zhou Jia laughed when he heard that. “Yu’er, your thoughts are really strange.”
Li Yu patted Zhou Jia. “Alright, don’t suffer any more in the future. Let’s face it together. Didn’t you say that you wanted to learn some martial arts? When we move into our new house, I’ll teach you.”
“Okay, whatever you say.” They smiled at each other and walked back hand in hand.
The next morning, Zhou Jia went to Tongzhou City to look at the shops and buy cloth to start making bags.
At home, Li Yu brought the long-term workers to clean up the pond and cut the cattails for weaving. Then, she dug out the weeds in the pond and cleaned up the mud. After spring, she would raise fish to plant lotus roots and cattails.
In late September, both Li Yu’s house and the Zhou family’s house were finally completed. Xu Chun and the woodcutter brought Zhou Jia and Li Yu to see the new house after it was completed.
Li Yu saw that the walls on the bottom level had been painted with lime and the roof had been secured. After trying the milling bed and stove, she felt very satisfied.
Xu Chun smiled at Zhou Jia and said, “Mr. Zhou, I’m most satisfied with the bathroom and toilet tank you designed. It’s clean and convenient. Also, the wooden chair set that Master Lin just made is really comfortable.”
Zhou Jia smiled. “I’m also satisfied with Master Xu’s skills. I still have to build a manor after spring. I’ll invite you back then.”
Xu Chun was even happier to have a business. “Alright, thank you for your care.” Zhou Jia handed the silver to Xu Chun.
After Xu Chun left, the wood craftsman discussed with Zhou Jia, “Mr. Zhou, I’ll use those blueprints to make furniture and give you 20% of the profits. What do you think?”
“Give me a moment. I’ll discuss it with my fiancée before coming back to you.”
The wood craftsman felt that it would work and nodded happily. “Please.”
Zhou Jia found Li Yu, who was looking at the cupboard and dining table in the kitchen and told her about the woodcutter’s suggestion. Li Yu nodded. “If you don’t agree, you won’t know even if he does. You might as well agree generously.”
“Okay, then I’ll go talk to him and agree to his request.”
Zhou Jia and the woodcutter agreed to ask the village chief, Chen Yaohui, to be a witness. The two of them signed the contract.
Zhou Jia and Li Yu went upstairs. Li Yu saw that the floors were pieced together tightly. Even the corners were polished to a smooth and thornless state. There were also some simple patterns carved on the doors and windows. The entire place looked simple and elegant.
The furniture in the room upstairs was crafted according to Li Yu’s drawing. There was a Chinese-style shelf bed, two bedside tables, a dressing table, a round stool, and two chairs. There were three modern wardrobes facing each other against the wall. Li Yu looked at everything in front of her and couldn’t help but feel dazed.
Zhou Jia looked at Li Yu’s dazed expression when she looked at the furniture and pulled Li Yu’s hand worriedly. “Let’s go down and move things first. It’s windy upstairs. We’ll move upstairs in the summer.”
Li Yu nodded and went downstairs with Zhou Jia.