kingnovel Chapter 175 Spring and Autumn Sisters
Chapter 175 Spring and Autumn Sisters
Pei Heng laughed heartily and patted his chest, saying, "How can soldiers be so fragile? But you must have been freezing all the way. Come on, leave this to Qin Chuan and the others, I'll take you to the tent to warm up."
Su Li nodded. Turning around, he instructed Qian Da to lead the others to unload the goods and distribute the supplies with Qin Chuan and the others. He also instructed Song Zhi, Song Tao, and the maids in the mansion to quickly set up the pots and cook.
The people in the general's mansion and the soldiers in the barracks worked together, and everything went on in an orderly manner.
In the tent, Pei Heng lit a brazier, and the cold tent slowly warmed up.
Seeing that Su Li was still curled up in a ball, Pei Heng took out his cloak and put it on her.
The tent was very simple, with only cloth covering the four sides, a table, a chair and a brazier inside, nothing else.
Su Li looked around and said distressedly:
"Why is it so simple?"
"It's just a place to discuss things temporarily. It's not that complicated."
"I came out of the city and saw that everything was the same as before. But outside the city, I didn't expect the scene to be completely different. The rich are feasting and drinking, while the poor are freezing to death on the streets."
Su Li couldn't help but sigh as he looked at the tragic scene outside.
"The people live in misery. When I was young, Li Qian and I traveled across Daqi and witnessed countless such tragic scenes. Back then, he and I swore to ensure that every citizen had enough food and warm clothing! After all these years, nothing has changed. Looking at them, I feel so incompetent."
Is every citizen well fed and warmly clothed?
It is not easy to fulfill a seemingly ordinary wish!
Even in Su Li's era, it was only realized in the last few decades.
"Husband, I believe you can do it. I'll help you!"
Su Li covered Pei Heng's hand.
The couple looked at each other and smiled.
Pei Heng knew that his A'li had great love in his heart!
At this time, Qin Chuan brought in a thin boy of about twelve or thirteen years old from outside the tent. The boy was holding a little girl of about six or seven years old.
They were both so skinny that one could tell they had been malnourished for a long time. They were wearing thin, coarse cloth clothes that hadn't been worn for who knows how long, and their original color had long since faded.
The young man came in, without saying a word, pulled the girl to his knees in the mud and bowed down:
"Madam, please be so kind as to accept my sister as yours. I am willing to serve you like a slave in return for your kindness."
Qin Chuan explained beside him:
"Chunsheng and Qiumei's mother froze to death in this snowstorm. Their father also disappeared some time ago, leaving the two children with nowhere to go."
Upon hearing this, Pei Heng turned his head to look at Su Li.
He respected Su Li's decision; it was up to her to accept or not.
Su Li looked at the two children and felt really sorry for them.
"Your name is Chunsheng? Your name is Qiumei?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"How old are you this year?"
"I'm fourteen and my sister is eight."
Looking younger than his actual age, Su Li asked, "Where is your father?"
If she wanted to take someone into her house, she had to ask clearly to avoid any disputes in the future.
Chunsheng looked up, his eyes shining.
"My father was the village blacksmith. A few months ago, a woman came to the village and saw the work my father had made. She told him to go with her and earn a penny of silver a month. She also gave our family a tael of silver. But after he left, he never came back. I think he must have died."
"When did this happen?"
"July."
July? Madam? Blacksmith?
Su Li suddenly seemed to have grasped something. Her heart trembled and she looked up at Pei Heng, and saw that he also seemed to be thinking about something.
"My shop is short of servants. Would you like to work there?"
Hearing this, Chunsheng was overjoyed. He looked at Su Li with clear eyes and nodded repeatedly:
"willing!"
He and his sister had lost their parents, and it would be inconvenient for him to take care of his sister. Seeing that the general and his wife were kind, he thought that if he could ask the lady to take his sister in, it would also provide her with a way out. As for himself, begging or wandering around would not starve him to death.
But now the lady actually wanted to take him in. He was really overjoyed but also a little worried. He turned his head to look at his sister and asked:
"Then...what about my sister?"
Su Li smiled and said, "Sister Qiu, are you willing to come with me to the General's Mansion? Let me be frank, once you enter the General's Mansion you will have to sign a contract to sell yourself!"
Qiu Mei looked at her brother Chun Sheng, who nodded heavily at her. At her brother's glance, Qiu Mei said without hesitation:
"I am willing."
"Okay. Go outside and get two cotton-padded jackets to change into. Then follow my carriage back."
Chunsheng and Qiumei agreed immediately.
Being brave once, he won a chance for himself and his sister. Chunsheng secretly made up his mind to do a good job by his wife's side.
As soon as the two of them left, Pei Heng asked:
"Did you think of something?"
The couple had a tacit understanding. Su Li said, "That's right. Liu Xu needs craftsmen to make fire guns. Originally, our target was in the city, but we never found anything. I suspect that the lady Chunsheng mentioned is Liu Xu, and that Chunsheng's father was taken away by her."
"I think so too."
"If that's the case, my husband might as well take advantage of this opportunity to help the surrounding villagers repair their houses and secretly inquire about it. It shouldn't just be Chunsheng's father. If we follow this line of inquiry, we might find something."
Su Li's eyes lit up. She didn't expect that she would get such a reward after delivering supplies. It was really like searching for a needle in a haystack, but it turned out to be something she had found without any effort.
After having a simple meal with Pei Heng in the tent, Su Li took his men away.
Back at the mansion, Su Li asked someone to take Chunsheng and Qiumei to wash up. When the brother and sister changed their clothes and came out, they looked like different people.
During this period, Su Li had asked Songzhi to draw a portrait of Liu Xu.
The brother and sister knelt down in front of Su Li and kowtowed three times.
"Okay, get up."
Su Li asked Songzhi to show Chunsheng the portrait of Liu Xu, saying:
"Chunsheng, look, is this lady the one who came to the village to take your father away?"
Chunsheng carefully identified it and said:
"Madam, that lady was wearing a bonnet, so I couldn't see her face clearly. But I saw a jade pendant hanging on the hem of her skirt."
Su Li thought about it and picked up the pen to draw.
"But like this?"
This time, Chunsheng recognized it at a glance.
"Right, that is it."
Su Li looked at the jade pendant in the painting. She had seen Liu Xu wearing it at the Chrysanthemum Banquet hosted by Princess Heng. It was a prized item from the palace, the only one of its kind in the world. Liu Xu had even worn it to hold down her skirt, a way of flaunting her uniqueness.
After confirming that it was willow catkins, Su Li felt relieved.
Asked again:
"Chunsheng, do you know where your father went?"
Chunsheng thought for a moment and said, "Madam, that day I quietly followed them into the mountains. But after we circled around in the mountains, they disappeared. So I stopped following them."
"That mountain?"
Su Li took out the map and asked Chunsheng to point it out.
Chunsheng scratched his head and said, "Madam, I don't understand. But I know the place. I'll take you there someday!"
"it is good!"
In the evening, as soon as Pei Heng came back, Su Li told him everything she had asked.
Pei Heng said, "There is no time to lose. I will take Chunsheng into the mountains tomorrow."
Things have taken a turn for the better. Pei Heng was so excited that he couldn't wait to set off into the mountains.
Su Li held him down and said:
"Don't worry. The mountain has been blocked by heavy snow for the past two days. It's too dangerous to go in. Besides, with so much snow, it's hard to find any traces. Let's wait a few days until the snow melts a bit."
"Also, it's too dangerous for them to have muskets. I need to prepare something for you to defend yourself."