All in all, it must have cost him at least ten taels of silver!
Fu Chunsheng choked on his words, momentarily at a loss for what to say.
As Zhu Ci walked out, he said to Xi Ya, "Just learn these for today. You can slowly consolidate them later; don't rush, take your time."
Fu Chunsheng asked curiously, "Learn what?"
Why was the Young Master giving the little mute one private lessons? Was the little mute one more trusted by the Young Master than the two of them?
For a moment, Fu Chunsheng actually felt somewhat indignant; how were he and his sister inferior to them?
Zhu Ci said casually, "It's sign language. Since he cannot speak, he uses gestures to express himself; otherwise, communication would be far too troublesome."
After saying that, he asked again, "Do you know that person's identity?"
Although Fu Chunsheng was still very curious about sign language, he answered honestly, "I asked him. He said his name is Xia Lei, he is from Suzhou Prefecture."
After Fu Chunsheng finished saying this, they had already arrived at the guest room.
At this time, Xia Lei was lying on the bed; although he was awake, he still looked somewhat dazed.
When he heard the sound of footsteps, Xia Lei turned his head. As he saw the exquisitely beautiful youth leading the way walking toward him, he couldn't help but freeze for a moment, a strange thought suddenly crossing his mind: Could his Marquis be so focused on the Crown Prince simply because the young Crown Prince is so good-looking?
After all, his Lord Marquis also judged people by their looks.
Despite the chaotic thoughts in his mind, Xia Lei did not let them stop him from struggling to get up and offer his salutations.
Zhu Ci hurried over and pressed down on his shoulder, saying, "Don't move, be careful not to reopen the wound."
“Thank you for saving my life, Young Master,” Xia Lei said with a face full of gratitude. “If it weren't for you, I'm afraid I would have met my end. I cannot repay this life-saving debt. If you do not find me unworthy, I possess some martial skills and am willing to stay on as a guard.”
Zhu Ci instantly looked at him with suspicion. "You're planning to recover from your injuries here for free, aren't you?"
Xia Lei choked on his words, this wasn't what they had agreed upon!
While he was still trying to organize his thoughts, the young prince before him had already begun settling the bill, listing how many doses of medicine he had taken, how much medicinal salve and powder he had used, how much cloth he had used for bandages, so on.
Stunned by what he heard, Xia Lei snapped back to his senses and hurriedly said, "You have spent too much, Young Master. I still have some silver left. If it is not enough.. if it is not enough.. I am afraid I can only repay you by working for you."
Zhu Ci glanced at him. "You aren't from Suzhou Prefecture? Judging by your clothing, you don't seem to come from a poor family."
Xia Lei fell silent for a long while before finally sighing and saying, "To tell the truth, I used to work in Suzhou Prefecture, but my ancestral home is Lishui Village in Qingwan. I used to earn quite a bit of money from my work, my family's circumstances were quite prosperous.. It's just.."
Xia Lei spoke of this, a faint glisten appearing in his eyes: "A while ago, my master met with disaster and was thrown into prison. Because I was not deeply involved, I managed to escape, but after this incident, finding work has become incredibly difficult. I had planned to return home and wait until after the New Year to figure things out, but unexpectedly, after I returned, our village was raided by Sea Bandits. The village was turned into a living hell; I was only able to escape because I knew a bit of martial arts."
“Sea Bandits?” Zhu Ci immediately became vigilant. “When did this happen?”
The seventeenth of the twelfth lunar month." Xia Lei wiped the corners of his eyes, took a deep breath, said, "Although I managed to escape, my injuries were too severe. In my panic, I didn't know where I had run to. If it weren't for the Young Master taking me in, I'm afraid I would have..
Zhu Ci suddenly asked, "The traces that appeared in the backyard during those previous few days were all from you, weren't they? Why didn't you come to my door to ask for help back then?"
Xia Lei lowered his head and said shamefully, "I was at my wits' end back then, I was so hungry I felt lightheaded. I only wanted to find something to eat, but I was also afraid the Sea Bandits would chase me, so I thought I'd just take what I could and leave. As it turned out, my injuries were too severe, so I could only hide nearby."
Fu Qiulu said with some confusion, "But there isn't anything missing from the kitchen."
Xia Lei said softly, "I took things that others from the village sent. They arrived early in the morning, once they had left, I went over to take some."
It was as if these people were terrified that the host wouldn't accept the gifts, so they all arrived quietly before dawn, leaving them and then hurrying away. Since the host was unaware, he naturally had no idea how much was here, which provided Xia Lei with an opportunity.
Zhu Ci..
Xia Lei saw that Zhu Ci was speechless and said somewhat guiltily, "Seeing how the villagers act, I knew the master must be a kind person."
He said shamefully, "Taking what one has not asked for is the act of a thief. If the Young Master is angry, then please hand me over to the authorities."
Zhu Ci fell silent for a moment before finally sighing and saying, "Forget it. You can consider this an act of necessity; I'll just take it as my good deed for the day. But do you truly have no other relatives?"
Xia Lei shook his head in silence, looking quite despondent.
Zhu Ci sighed and said, "Then you should recover from your injuries first; we'll talk more once you've healed."
Xia Lei was overjoyed. "Thank you for taking me in, Young Master. Rest assured, I know some martial arts and have even been a martial arts instructor; I will definitely be able to keep you safe."
Zhu Ci smiled slightly. "Then I've made a profit. Don't worry, once you've recovered, I'll pay you a monthly wage according to market rates. The cost of your medicine will be deducted from your wages, once it's paid off, I'll start paying you. Food, lodging, work clothes are all included."
Xia Lei nodded repeatedly. He had just tried to stand up to express his gratitude when he accidentally aggravated his wound.
Zhu Ci pressed down on his shoulders to make him lie back and said, "Alright, you rest first. We can discuss future matters later."
Zhu Ci glanced at Fu Chunsheng, Fu Chunsheng immediately took the initiative to say, "This lowly one will continue to look after him."
Zhu Ci nodded and turned to leave the guest room.
As soon as he stepped out of the guest room, the expression on his face faded.
This Xia Lei.. definitely has a problem.
-----------------------
Author's Note: Zhu Ci: There is something wrong with this person; otherwise, just stab him directly. Evil kitty glares with murderous intent while drawing a dagger. jpg
Next update at 12:00 PM~
Chapter 33
Zhu Ci returned to the study expressionless. After contemplating for a long while, he looked at Fu Qiulu, who had come over to wipe the bookshelves, asked, "Qiulu, if I need to enter the city, who would be best to stay behind?"
It would be inappropriate, both logically and emotionally, to leave no one to look after Xia Lei. In this freezing weather, was he expected to change his own bandages, cook, tend the stove? He might as well just be able to collect his corpse upon returning.
But if he left someone behind.. he wouldn't be at ease, fearing he would return to find a corpse just the same.
Fu Qiulu spoke as if she knew what he was thinking, "There is no need for you to make things difficult for yourself, Young Master. It would be better to let this servantess follow you, let Chunsheng and Xi Ya stay behind."
Zhu Ci shook his head. "That won't do. There might be some heavy lifting to do when we enter the city this time, I won't be able to manage it alone."
Fu Qiulu thought for a moment and said, "Then take Xi Ya with you, find a strong man in the village to keep watch. You don't need to be too anxious, Young Master. Master Xia's injuries haven't healed yet, you shouldn't be staying in the city for long, so nothing will happen."
Zhu Ci thought it made sense as well, so he simply stood up and said, "I'll go find the Baochang."
Fu Qiulu immediately said, "Let Xi Ya or Chunsheng follow you."
Zhu Ci waved his hand. "No need, they have their own matters. Rest assured, there is no danger in the village."
There was indeed no danger from villains in the village, but there was danger from nature.
Zhu Ci nearly tripped several times on his way to the Baochang's house; the road, where the snow had melted into water and then frozen into ice again, was far too difficult to traverse.
In the end, he could only choose to walk where the snow had accumulated, but he managed to arrive after all.
Xi Shan was sweeping the snow from the doorway. Upon seeing Zhu Ci, he immediately came over to support him and said, "Why has the Young Master come? If there is something, you need only send someone to tell us."
Zhu Ci said with a smile, "I have some matters to discuss with the Baochang."
Zhu Ci received the treatment of an honored guest in the Xi Family; previously, it was merely respectful, but now it was filled with warmth and enthusiasm.
After hearing the reason for Zhu Ci's visit, Xi Ping immediately asked, "Is that person's background reliable? Please don't blame this old man for meddling, Young Master, but this person is acting so suspiciously that he might not be a good man."
Zhu Ci frowned slightly. "That is also my concern, but I cannot just stand by and watch him die. That is why I came up with this idea. At least for now, he is incapable of harming anyone; I just want him to have someone else there to look out for him."
Then let Beige'er go," Xi Ping explained. "Beige'er is my nephew, he has quite a bit of strength.
Zhu Ci nodded readily and said, "Alright, I'll pay him his wages in a few days."
Young Master, you are being too polite; you have saved everyone in our village.
Zhu Ci shook his head and said, "That is all in the past. When helping with work, how could I not provide wages? It is settled then."
He finished speaking and immediately asked, "But.. did Lishui Village really encounter Sea Bandits?"
Xi Ping also said with some worry, "Indeed, they come like this every year, but this year is even more excessive; they actually slaughtered an entire village. However, Young Master need not worry, I have already organized the able-bodied men to patrol the surrounding areas every day."
Zhu Ci asked, "Do the able-bodied men have weapons?"
Xi Ping fell silent for a moment before saying, "They're just wooden sticks and things like that, but they're quite sturdy."
Where would they get weapons? Never mind weapons, they wouldn't even part with their farming tools; sometimes, farming tools might be even more precious than a human life, for without farming tools, they wouldn't be able to farm.
Zhu Ci..
The Sea Bandits carry swords, guns, clubs, axes, they spend all year killing, burning, looting. How can you lot, who only have wooden sticks, fight against them?
Zhu Ci sighed melancholy and stood up, saying, "I understand. Let's talk about this after I return from the county town."
After arranging things at home, Zhu Ci took Xi Ya and Fu Qiulu all the way to the county seat.
It had to be said that the official roads outside the village were much easier to travel on than the dirt paths in the village. If he truly made money, he would definitely have to have the roads in the village repaired; otherwise, they would be far too inconvenient.
When he was chatting with the Baochang earlier, he learned that the weather had been like this for recent years; he heard that it wasn't this cold dozens of years ago, but it has been getting colder and colder in recent years.
Zhu Ci's Little Ice Age seemed to have lasted until the Qing Dynasty, meaning that in the coming years, the temperature would drop year by year, with the humidity in the Jiangnan region, heavy snowfall would become a common occurrence.
If the roads are in poor condition, traveling will become extremely inconvenient.
He could stay home if he wanted, but eventually, there would be times when he needed to go out, especially if he truly started doing business with Magistrate Zhang and Zhu Ying.
Upon arriving at the county town, Zhu Ci returned to the small courtyard he had been renting before. Along the way, he saw that many households had hung white banners, even his neighbor was holding a funeral.
Zhu Ci had Fu Qiulu deliver a funeral offering. When Fu Qiulu returned, she said with deep concern, "Young Master, will this weather continue to get colder?"
Zhu Ci looked at the sky, which was turning gloomy again, shook his head, saying, "I don't know. It should get a bit better once the Start of Spring arrives."
Today was already the twentieth of the twelfth lunar month. With the Beginning of Spring arriving in the first lunar month, the weather should theoretically warm up, but there is also a phenomenon called a late spring cold snap, so Zhu Ci couldn't say for certain either.
Fu Qiulu said with concern, "I went to ask several places, it's all because the weather is too cold.. sigh.."
Zhu Ci fell silent for a moment. Although it was true that the colder the weather became, the easier it was to sell coal briquettes, he did not feel happy about it; instead, he began to wonder if he could drive the price of the coal briquettes down a little.
Since Zhu Ying stood up to reclaim lost territory during the massacre in Jiading, she must possess a certain degree of chivalrous spirit.
If all else fails, I'll just have to meet with the Suzhou Prefect. I imagine that whether it's the Magistrate or the Prefect, neither would want to see so many deaths occurring under their jurisdiction.
Zhu Ci thought about this and said to comfort Fu Qiulu, "Don't worry, things are fine at home. If you're uneasy, just buy more cloth and cotton when you wait. Don't worry about the money; your Young Master isn't that poor yet."
Fu Qiulu couldn't help but purse her lips and smile upon hearing this. For a brief moment, she felt a strange sensation in her heart, as if.. as if that residence in Xialiang truly was her home, this young master before her, who lacked any of the typical airs of a master, along with everyone else, were all one family.
After Zhu Ci settled the luggage, he did not rush to start a fire, but instead hurriedly took Xi Ya to the Blacksmith Shop.
While at the blacksmith shop, he also ordered custom-made honeycomb coal stoves, not just one.
When he arrived at the Blacksmith Shop, the old blacksmith clearly breathed a sigh of relief and said in the local dialect, "I thought you had run away."
Zhu Ci explained casually, "It has been snowing heavily these past few days, making the roads difficult to travel."
After finishing speaking, he carefully inspected the furnace. He had ordered ten in total; several were intended as gifts, the extras were to be kept just in case.