Chapter 54: Sister
When Li Jinzhu knocked on the door, Li Wenliang had just finished his meal and returned home.
Li Wenliang let Li Jinzhu in, brought out a lamp, and they sat in the courtyard entrance passageway to talk.
“Look at this.” Li Jinzhu handed the small silver nugget she had confiscated from Li Xiaonan to Li Wenliang.
Li Wenliang took it, brought it closer to the lamp, and slowly turned it over to examine it carefully. When he reached the bottom, Li Wenliang squinted at the extremely small emblem at the bottom. Although the emblem was small, it was finely drawn, clear, and distinct.
“Where did this come from?” Li Wenliang asked, holding the silver nugget.
“Did Eldest Uncle figure something out?” Li Jinzhu asked back.
“Hmm, look at this emblem. This is the emblem of Prince Rui’s Mansion. When I was in Linhai Town, I did business for their villa a few times. Their carriages and the servants’ clothes all had such emblems.” Li Wenliang answered ten questions with one.
“It’s A Nan!” Li Jinzhu wiped her face and recounted everything she had just learned from Li Xiaonan and Li Yin Zhu, without hiding anything.
“…After eating, I came to find Eldest Uncle. What kind of place is Prince Rui’s Mansion? I have no idea.” Li Jinzhu’s face was slightly pale. By instinct, she felt that A Nan had gotten into serious trouble!
“Keep this for now.” Li Wenliang first handed the silver nugget back to Li Jinzhu. “Prince Rui’s Mansion is the second most esteemed place in the world; the most esteemed place is the Imperial Palace.”
Li Jinzhu’s eyes widened.
“I heard Old Master Hong say that the Heir of Prince Rui is currently in Pingjiang Prefecture. The Young Lord you mentioned who introduced himself is definitely that Heir. No one in Pingjiang City would dare impersonate the Heir,” Li Wenliang said, his eyes shining brightly.
Li Jinzhu’s face turned pale. “Then A Nan?”
“The Young Lord asked our A Nan to teach Investigation of Things, and paid one tael of silver per session. This is at least not a bad thing.” Li Wenliang paused, looked at Li Jinzhu, hesitated for a moment, and then smiled somewhat vaguely, “Our Xuedong’s Investigation of Things was also taught by our A Nan, wasn’t it?”
Li Jinzhu looked at Li Wenliang, and after a moment, nodded.
“Old Master Hong told me once that their family’s Mr. Shao, who is skilled in Investigation of Things, said that this subject requires great talent.
“Those who have great talent in Investigation of Things, it is said, can comprehend the creation of heaven and earth. When they interpret the I Ching, they can predict a hundred years into the past and a hundred years into the future. They are very powerful.” Li Wenliang said with a smile. “Our A Nan’s talent in Investigation of Things is probably not low. That Young Lord is knowledgeable and experienced, and must have recognized our A Nan’s talent, which is why he invited her to teach Investigation of Things for one tael of silver per session.
“This is at least not a bad thing, so don’t worry.”
Li Jinzhu’s face was pale, her lips tightly pressed together. After a while, she softly hummed, “I understand. Thank you, Eldest Uncle, for your guidance.”
“We are family, there’s no need for thanks. Don’t worry, nothing will happen,” Li Wenliang said with a smile.
“Yes, then I’ll be going back.” Li Jinzhu stood up.
“I’ll see you out.” Li Wenliang stood up and accompanied Li Jinzhu to the Cai Lian Lane entrance.
Li Jinzhu stood in the shadow of the courtyard entrance for a while before pushing the door open and going in.
Li Xiaonan was squatting beside Li Yin Zhu, watching her spin thread. Hearing the courtyard gate open, she sprang up, “Eldest Sister is back!”
Although she didn’t know where Eldest Sister had gone, Li Xiaonan was very sure that Eldest Sister had gone out because she, as a teacher, had earned silver and bought Crab Shell Yellow pastries. Her heart was in her mouth.
“Eldest Sister, you’re back! Eldest Sister, are you thirsty?” Li Xiaonan rushed forward, linking arms with Li Jinzhu, her face full of flattery.
“I’ll go get Eldest Sister a bowl of water.” Li Yin Zhu rushed to the kitchen.
Li Yuzhu stopped weaving and looked at Li Jinzhu. Li Xuedong quickly pushed a small bamboo chair towards Li Jinzhu.
“This silver nugget has the emblem of Prince Rui’s Mansion on it. Eldest Uncle recognized it. Eldest Uncle said that the Young Lord is definitely the Heir of Prince Rui’s Mansion.” Li Jinzhu took out the silver nugget, passed it over Li Xiaonan, and handed it to Li Yuzhu.
“See? We weren’t lying.” Li Xiaonan said with a smile.
Li Jinzhu’s expression was solemn. After a moment of silence, she looked at Li Yuzhu and said, “Eldest Uncle recognized the emblem of Prince Rui’s Mansion and was very happy.”
Li Yuzhu pursed her lips tightly and looked at Li Xiaonan.
“A Nan, your Second Sister and I don’t understand anything about academics, and neither does your brother. You should be clear about why that Young Lord is asking you for lessons,” Li Jinzhu said to Li Xiaonan, her expression serious.
“Eldest Sister, don’t overthink it. It’s really just for lessons. That Young Lord is very handsome. If you don’t believe me, ask Third Sister. Third Sister was stunned the first time she saw him. The maids around that Young Lord are also very beautiful. I’m not as pretty.” Li Xiaonan quickly explained.
“Eldest Uncle said that to learn Investigation of Things, one needs talent. You,” Li Jinzhu’s words caught in her throat. After a moment, she continued, “I don’t know how to explain it to you.
“Tang Weng Weng, Eldest Uncle, and the Hong Family, they all definitely want to get close to that Prince’s Estate. But us, you are our sister, our own flesh and blood sister. Including your brother, we only think of you. Do you understand?”
Li Jinzhu’s words were somewhat disorganized. She didn’t understand many things about this matter and didn’t know how to express her thoughts. She didn’t even know what she should be worried about or afraid of.
But she was very afraid, more afraid than when she watched A Nan take her first examination.
“I understand what you mean, Eldest Sister. Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing, and nothing will happen.” Li Xiaonan took two steps forward and leaned on Eldest Sister’s shoulder.
“Don’t think too much, and don’t aim too high. Your brother being a Xiucai scholar now is enough. Our family being like this now is enough. Don’t think about anything more.” Li Jinzhu turned her head to look at Li Xiaonan and instructed her with extreme worry.
“I know, I won’t think too much. Eldest Sister, don’t worry.” Li Xiaonan hugged Li Jinzhu’s neck and swayed back and forth, promising her.
Li Xuedong, Li Xiaonan, and Li Yin Zhu went back to their rooms to sleep. Li Jinzhu and Li Yuzhu checked everything one by one and then returned to the side room. Lying on the bed, Li Yuzhu looked at Li Jinzhu, who was tossing and turning on the adjacent bed, and said in a low voice, “A Nan is very sensible. Eldest Sister, try to be more optimistic.”
“I’m very scared.” Li Jinzhu turned over and said to Li Yuzhu, “I’m not afraid that they will value A Nan’s intelligence, I’m afraid that…”
Li Jinzhu’s words got stuck. After a moment, her voice dropped extremely low, “Ever since A Nan stopped breathing and came back that time, she’s been different from before. I’m afraid that’s what they value.”
“Eldest Sister, don’t talk nonsense! How can you tell? We haven’t dared to mention a single word! A Nan is just sensible now, she’s grown up, she should be sensible!” Li Yuzhu’s hair stood on end.
“When A Nan took her first examination, I had a knife tucked into my waist. I thought that if anything happened, I would fight to my death to save our A Nan.
“I wasn’t very scared then, but now, I’m very scared, Yuzhu. I always feel like we can’t protect A Nan anymore.” Li Jinzhu’s voice was low.
“We can protect her!” Li Yuzhu leaned over and patted Li Jinzhu’s shoulder hard. “We can protect her!”
“Yes.” After a while, Li Jinzhu hummed, “Let’s sleep.”
“From tomorrow onwards, let’s learn to read and write too.” Li Yuzhu looked at Li Jinzhu, who had turned over.
“Okay!”
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