lcionline Chapter 254 My Aunt is Sick
Chapter 254 My Aunt is Sick
In the courtyard, A-Li and Meng-Ze stared at each other.
Mengze was torn between washing the bowl in her hand and not washing it.
He secretly glanced at Ah Li and could tell that Ah Li was angry.
"Ah Li... how about I sleep on the floor? No, I'll sleep on the roof."
Ah Li paused for a moment, then resignedly washed the dishes: "No, you're the guest. If anyone's going to sleep, it'll be me on the roof."
But sleeping on the roof was out of the question, since Da Niu got up early and that kid was very thoughtful.
If he sees this, I'll probably yell at him and he still won't be able to explain himself.
Suddenly changing the subject, she said, "Forget it, I'll just sleep on the floor!"
Upon hearing this, Mengze felt guilty: "Ali, this won't do, you're a lone man..."
"Shut up!"
Before Mengze could finish speaking, A Li covered his mouth with her foamy hand.
Ah Li glanced guiltily at Da Niu's study, and only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the curious child hadn't peeked out the window.
She glared at Mengze: "Don't say anything. If the master has arranged for us to live together, then we'll live together."
Upon hearing this, Mengze quickly nodded, and only then did A Li release his hand.
"By the way, Ah Li, is everyone in this county an unregistered resident? If so, I'd like to live here in the future!"
Ah Li listened to Meng Ze's lowered voice, completely bewildered: "What do you mean by 'unregistered residents'? The villagers are all legitimate families, registered with the county government, and have household registration documents."
When they were assassins, their identity cards were confiscated by their superiors. This was to prevent anyone from escaping; after all, without an identity card, one would be treated as an unregistered person anywhere.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them rats crossing the street.
Mengze frowned, indicating his disbelief: "Even if there are such discs, only a small number of them exist. I've searched several stores and haven't found any."
As Ah Li continued washing the dishes, she explained to Meng Ze, "If you search someone's house, you definitely won't find it!"
Ah Li wiped the bowl in her hand clean, put it down, turned to look at Meng Ze, and smiled:
“Previously, the villagers used their house deeds to pledge to the government office to borrow wasteland. Later, they came to our village and pledged their household registration documents to borrow some more wasteland to cultivate.”
So, in the entire Pingyao County, apart from our village, if you can find a household registration record for any other village, that would be a miracle.
Upon hearing A Li's explanation, Meng Ze looked astonished: "On...on credit?"
Ah Li nodded: "Yeah! Dou Weiyi gave the villagers the land reclamation on credit. He... I guess he's a good official."
Mengze frowned, looking hesitant: "But I've heard that Dou Weiyi is all-powerful in the city, and he does all sorts of evil deeds because of his family's military achievements."
Why would they kindly extend credit to the people? Ah Li, could there be some hidden story behind this?
Ah Li poured out the water from the basin, washed the wooden basin clean, and then looked up at Meng Ze: "My previous thoughts were exactly the same as yours, but those were just rumors."
Otherwise, how could the higher-ups "justifiably" embezzle military pay?
Mengze…:……
Rumors are not to be believed.
It turns out that, in order to allow them to complete the assassination mission without any burden, the higher-ups actually tampered with the information they had gathered during the investigation.
If he is a good official, then he should consider it carefully.
After all, he still has a family; he can't live in the deep mountains and forests forever without ever seeing the light of day.
Seeing him frown, Ah Li didn't disturb him.
She ran to her room, found some clean clothes, and handed them to Mengze: "Come with me, I'll take you to the bathroom."
Mengze snapped out of her daze, looked at the clothes that A Li handed her, and took them: "Thank you so much, A Li. You've really gone to a lot of trouble for me today."
Ah Li smiled and waved her hand: "Why are you being so polite with me? Let's talk about it after you take a shower."
Ah Li entered the bathroom, opened the wooden stopper on the wall connecting to the kitchen, and the flowing water emitted heat.
Mengze, intrigued, couldn't help but ask, "Ali, hot water is actually flowing out of this ceramic pipe?!"
As Ah Li adjusted the water temperature, he explained, "This is the lady's ingenious idea; the water tank is connected to the stove."
When cooking in the kitchen, the residual heat can heat the hot water tank, which is then piped through these ceramic pipes to the shower room. This saves coal and is very convenient.
Mengze's eyes were full of admiration: "This design is truly ingenious and practical. Your wife is exceptionally intelligent!"
Ah Li nodded: "Yes, that's what I think too!"
Mengze was about to put the clothes aside when she caught a glimpse of white inside.
He quickly took it out, only to find that it was getting longer and longer.
Ah Li turned around and was so shocked that he ran over in three steps and snatched the white cloth from Meng Ze's hands.
Then he threw the loofah sponge into the bathtub and hurriedly ran out.
Mengze stood there, full of doubts. Before he could ask, Ali rushed back and placed something in his hand.
"This is soap, for bathing."
After saying that, the figure vanished completely.
Mengze smiled, thinking, "Really, it's not like I haven't seen this before."
Da Niu came out of the study and saw A Li hurriedly running back into the room, scratching his head.
Suddenly, his face lit up with joy, and he ran inside as well.
"Uncle Li, what delicious food are you hiding in your arms? I want some too!"
A-Li: ...
Mengze in the bathtub: ...
night.
Mengze slept on the floor, feeling like everything was unreal.
This was the first time he had ever slept in a warm bed: "Ah Li, this blanket is so warm!"
Ah Li lay on her side on the bed, looking at the somewhat excited Meng Ze on the ground, and smiled slightly: "This is a down comforter made by the madam. It's warmer than a cotton comforter in winter."
Mengze gently stroked the quilt, her eyes filled with wonder.
"By the way, is your aunt still in Ling'an Prefecture?"
Mengze was taken aback, then turned to look at A Li: "How did you know my aunt was in Ling'an Prefecture?"
"When Dou Weiyi returned, he came to the courtyard house and told me about the assassination attempt... that he was saved by the couple who emptied the chamber pots..."
Ah Li nodded knowingly: "My aunt and uncle got the news from somewhere that my sister... might be in Ling'an Prefecture."
They had been doing odd jobs to earn money for their journey, and that night, by chance, they ran into each other while they were collecting night soil from Ling'an Prefecture on their way out of the city.
My aunt fell ill after a long and arduous journey. I left the money I had with my uncle so he could take her to the clinic…
Upon hearing this, A-Li sighed softly: "So your sister..."
"I couldn't find them... The two said they would sell them to a wealthy family as maids, but they wouldn't give me the specifics."
Over the years, my aunt has been going door-to-door, spending money to inquire with the head housekeeper, but she hasn't found out a single thing..."
As Mengze spoke, his eyes filled with hatred. Sadly, those two were dead.
Otherwise, he would have loved to chop them up and feed them to the dogs.
To give birth is desire, to nurture is virtue, and to support is true grace.
What his aunt and uncle did for him and his sister was an immense favor, one he could never repay in this lifetime…
Upon hearing this, A-Li reached out from under the covers and patted Meng-Ze's blanket with heartache: "Don't worry, as long as you're alive, you'll find her one day. As for your aunt's kindness, you can repay it slowly in the future..."
Mengze nodded, then turned to look at A Li: "Thank you, A Li."