A leisurely life in the world of cultivation

Chapter 33 Farewell (Please add to your favorites and vote with monthly tickets!)
While the south was still bathed in sunshine, Qingzhou City, near the northern border, was already covered in snow.

It was the snow-covered city that truly amazed Li Weizhou.

It turns out that the antique charm can only be seen after the winter snow.

Spring, summer, and autumn are all unsuitable; they're too dirty...

Of course, once you get on the road, this feeling will almost disappear, and you'll feel annoyed.

Because the first snow doesn't last, it quickly melts on the ground, making it even muddier.

Since there were no rain boots available at the moment, all the pedestrians became dirty and cold...

Li Weizhou was much smarter; his shoes were a size too big because he also wore a pair of cotton-padded leather shoes inside.

Seeing the disheveled state of pedestrians on the street, a sense of happiness arises from the heart...

Today was another day to deliver soap to Zuixianglou. Li Weizhou carried a basket woven from willow branches into Zuixianglou.

But strangely... the atmosphere at Zuixianglou became odd again, and the old woman scrubbing the floor gave him a very strange look.

No, come again?

That shouldn't be the case. Song Shi was peacefully wiping horsehair at the door, though he barely paid any attention to him...

Fortunately, laughter soon came from inside, which put Li Weizhou at ease.

He glanced at the old woman, puzzled as to why she had looked at him like that just now.

The old woman looked even more sympathetic. Li Weizhou was speechless for a moment, then turned around the large screen and went into the main hall to see what was going on.

He saw Qi Erniang chatting and laughing with a middle-aged woman who seemed even more beautiful. When she saw him come in, Qi Erniang waved for him to come closer and said to the beautiful woman, "This is Li Weizhou. He is like a younger brother to me. I will have to trouble you to take care of him in the future."

Li Weizhou looked at the lacquered platform and saw the middle-aged woman leaning lazily against the vermilion carved chair, seemingly unafraid of the cold, wearing only a moon-white gauze dress.

A kingfisher feather hairpin with pearls dangling from her temple swayed gently as she talked and laughed.

Beneath her willow-leaf eyebrows were a pair of phoenix eyes, with slightly upturned corners.

You can still see some lines at the corners of her eyes, but they only add to her charm, which comes with the passage of time.

The rouge on her lips was three times more intense than that of ordinary women, a fiery crimson that contrasted sharply with her snow-white skin.

Her every move exuded a captivating charm that rivaled even that of Qi Erniang.

However, Li Weizhou did not like her.

Liking someone is actually about first impressions, especially at first sight.

When Qi Erniang first looked at the down-on-his-luck Li Weizhou, her eyes were filled with kindness, whether it was pity or sympathy, it was all goodwill.

This woman was not only aloof and superior, but also carried a mocking contempt.

It's the kind of contempt that comes from stepping on ants at any moment.

She probably treated Li Weizhou like Qi Erniang's plaything...

That's why Li Weizhou disliked this slutty woman from the very first glance.

Having seen countless people, Qi Erniang naturally noticed Li Weizhou's dislike for this person. She raised her eyebrows slightly and smiled, "Little Zhouzi, this is Feng Biwu, the lady in charge of the inner affairs of the Eastern Palace. She is also famous in the martial arts world and is known as Lady Biwu."

Without waiting for Li Weizhou to call for help, she pulled him upstairs and turned back to Feng Biwu, saying, "We'll be right back!"

Feng Biwu chuckled lightly, not even glancing at it, and raised his cup to drink.

Once they reached the boudoir on the third floor, Qi Erniang looked at Li Weizhou with gentle eyes and said, "You dislike her so much? Don't you know her well... In terms of martial arts, she's far superior to me. Although we're both at the sixth level, she's only a hair's breadth away from breaking through to the upper three levels. She could enter the upper three levels at any time, and then she'll be able to leap over the dragon gate. My nickname in the martial arts world is Bamboo Leaf Green, and everyone calls me a poisonous woman. Listen to her, she's called Biwu Jun. She's also a lady-in-waiting who manages the imperial shops and estates for the Crown Prince."

Li Weizhou didn't care that the royal family was running such a shameless business as brothels. After all, he knew that the ancestor of brothels was the famous prime minister Guan Zhong. He sneered, "If you want me to name her, I'll call her Biwu Wet Nurse!"

"Pfft!"

Qi Erniang covered her mouth and laughed so hard her shoulders trembled. She glared at Li Weizhou with her beautiful eyes, because Feng Biwu's front was indeed quite substantial.

In this era, small yet elegant is the most beautiful...

However, Qi Erniang quickly suppressed her smile and warned, "Never say these things to my face. Feng Biwu is far more ruthless than me. Her husband's family was one of the pillar families of Jinghong Valley. Later, when her husband took her on a sea voyage, they were attacked and killed by experts from the Japanese Fusang Sword Sect. The man's arm and leg were crippled, and she was also stabbed and has been unable to conceive since then."

Her husband's family considered her a source of trouble and divorced her, sending her home. However, her family was also punished, and if it weren't for her sect protecting her, she probably would have... In short, from then on, she hated unfaithful men the most and became extremely ruthless. Among the officials in the Eastern Palace, her position was higher than mine.

She probably misunderstood our relationship just now, don't take it to heart.

Li Weizhou said indifferently, "It has nothing to do with me... well, it's not exactly unrelated. Sister, when is she leaving? I'll talk to you after she leaves."

Qi Erniang's expression changed slightly, and she said softly, "Zhou'er, if she's not leaving, I'm leaving."

"..."

Li Weizhou quietly looked at Qi Erniang, waiting for her to continue speaking.

Qi Erniang seemed to feel guilty, her voice lowering slightly as she whispered, "The Ye family is also one of the pillar families of the Shangqing Palace, with a history spanning hundreds of years, and several members have passed through the Three Passes. The Ye family's two dragons have both fallen in just a few days. They were their promising juniors, how could they let this go? I suspect that the Ye family even secretly hopes that Ye Yun can master the evil arts, so that the Ye family can become one of the most noble families in the world."

Ye Yun's disappearance is one thing, but Ye Wangchen's death will definitely cause trouble for them. If I stay here, not only will I be unable to protect myself, but it will also implicate you. So I took the initiative to ask my superiors to let me return to the capital. Zhou'er, you must continue to keep a low profile and try your best to maintain a good relationship with Feng Biwu..."

Li Weizhou didn't care about that and asked, "Will everything be alright once you go back?"

Li Weizhou's first words were full of concern, which moved Qi Erniang even more. She nodded and said, "I'm not made of clay. After all, the Crown Prince is the heir apparent. He only dared to make a move in the capital because he was tired of living in the Shangqing Palace. Don't worry." Then, she snapped back to reality and scolded, "I'm talking to you!"

Li Weizhou smiled indifferently, "It's unlikely we'll become good friends... It's not like I can just befriend someone whenever I want. Let's just wish each other well. However, we can't do this business anymore. Consider these fifty bars of scented soap a farewell gift for my sister."

Qi Erniang said apologetically, "Let's continue when I get back."

Li Weizhou shook his head and said, "Don't come back. I will go to Shendu sooner or later, and it won't be too late."

If someone else said that, Qi Erniang would probably be annoyed and disgusted. What a load of nonsense.
But Qi Erniang found it believable that Li Weizhou, who was clearly only sixteen years old, could say it so calmly!
It wasn't that she was bewitched; it was simply that this younger brother was truly extraordinary.

Qi Erniang looked at Li Weizhou with soft eyes, reached out and touched his forehead, leaving Li Weizhou speechless.

They still treat him like a child...

Qi Erniang chuckled, then suddenly leaned closer and gently pressed her pearly lips to Li Weizhou's forehead. Then, with a look of reluctance in her eyes, she said, "Little Zhou'er, take care."

For someone like her, finding a truly kindred spirit is an incredibly precious thing...

……

Ten days later.

"Son..."

Lu Zhiren, the manager of Zuixianlou, who was also one of the two accountants Li Weizhou had bought, walked briskly into the courtyard wearing a dog-skin hat and a gray cotton robe and greeted them.

On a rare sunny day after the snow, Li Weizhou basked in the sun in the courtyard.

The winter sun wasn't glaring; you could squint and look directly at it. Its gentle warmth was very comforting...

Upon seeing Manager Lu approach, he nodded slightly and asked, "What is it?"

Lu Zhiren's face was very ugly. He nodded and said, "The Zhou family of Xinyihao has really gone too far. They have taken control of the beef tallow and mutton tallow business in Qingzhou City because of their connections. The Zhou family has also opened a restaurant... Before, they kept saying that the restaurant business could be done anywhere in the world and that they would not shortchange us on beef tallow and mutton tallow. How come they have turned their backs on us in the blink of an eye?"

Li Weizhou chuckled and said, "He probably heard something... but it's alright, we were prepared for this. There are still twelve barrels of tallow in the warehouse. Take some men and take them there; that should last a few more days. I'll figure something out."

Upon hearing this, Lu Zhiren was overjoyed and asked, "Young master, your wisdom is truly astounding!" He then asked curiously, "Where did you buy this from, young master...?"

Li Weizhou glanced at him but didn't speak. Lu Zhiren realized his mistake and quickly apologized, "It was my fault for being so talkative. I'll take care of it right away." However, he remembered something else: "By the way, young master, the number of disaster victims outside the city is increasing. The county government has sent people to various shops and stores to inform them that they hope everyone can donate some money and grain to help the disaster victims. However, the magistrate sent someone to say that he has already negotiated with the county magistrate, and Zuixianlou only needs to buy fifty disaster victims."

Li Weizhou didn't quite understand and asked, "Why not just donate some money? Buying so many will cost a lot of money."

Lu Zhiren almost burst out laughing upon hearing this, and explained, "Young master, you've only read the classics, so you don't know the intricacies involved... In every year of famine, it's the common people who suffer, while the powerful clans become rich. People like this old servant, and the other servants in the house, are all servants sold by the government, and you have to spend money to pay taxes, such as poll tax and corvée tax."

Of course, if we wanted to redeem ourselves, we had to return the money to our master. But in years of famine, even brokers couldn't buy that many servants. They bought and stockpiled them, incurring significant daily expenses, and the government couldn't do anything about it. At this time, they could only tacitly allow powerful clans to privately acquire slaves. These slaves were exempt from the poll tax. They were essentially considered hidden population.

Of course, such servants became unregistered residents, destined to depend on their masters for their entire lives. Because they weren't on the official register and hadn't paid the poll tax, if they escaped and were caught by the authorities, they would not only have to pay the outstanding taxes but also face severe punishment.

Upon hearing this, Li Weizhou suddenly understood, but there were still some things he didn't understand: "Doesn't the imperial court know about such drawbacks? Wouldn't it be better to make an exception and not punish these disaster victims?"

Lu Zhiren laughed this time and said, "Young master, those standing in the court are all gentlemen. Which of them doesn't need servants to serve them? If it weren't for the threat of the law behind them, wouldn't all those private slaves have run away? In that case, it would be the gentlemen who would suffer losses! No one in history has ever dared to do that."

Li Weizhou chuckled upon hearing this, saying they were all pretty much the same, and said, "Let's go take a look."

……

(End of this chapter)