When Dalang was young, he loved to travel and was most fond of landscapes. He once told Guicheng that if he could have a piece of land in the wilderness, nestled between mountains and rivers, living in contentment, it would be akin to the life of an immortal.
Alas, every time he returned home, his father would only care about the wages he earned and constantly nitpick about his wife. Once he retreated to his room, his mother would curse incessantly in the courtyard. Frustrated, he would leave home again, abandoning his wife whom he had barely spent half a day with. After several years of marriage, his wife had not conceived, and his parents used this as a reason to pressure him into divorcing her.
Dalang laughed bitterly to himself. How could there be a pregnancy when he was never home and never shared a bed with his wife? His wife had suffered so much because of him in the past, and now she was being uprooted from her homeland because of him. He silently vowed to dedicate the rest of his life to her, never to leave or abandon her again.
During his travels, Dalang had once taken a liking to a stretch of land—a vast, flat plot bordering a river, with a low mountain nearby, free of wild beasts. It somewhat resembled the village where Li Cuilan lived, though it was farther from any town and had long been left untended. When he mentioned it to Guicheng, the latter still remembered the place. Lin Zhongsi, upon hearing about it, reassured Dalang to focus on recovering from his illness while he and Guicheng went to inspect the land.
Lin Wu fought daily at school. The teacher, having once served as an official, understood the underlying dynamics and, with Guo Mian defending Lin Wu, the fights were never recorded in his file. Still, the teacher no longer intervened. The day Dalang discovered his son’s injuries, he stopped sending Lin Wu to school and began teaching him at home instead, while Li Cuimei handled all the preparations for their departure.
The household servants had mostly been chosen for their lack of family ties. Even those who later married were matched by their masters, ensuring no external attachments. They could all be taken along without worry. Only the Zhou family, who fished, had been purchased as a whole. Zhou Daxiao had already learned all of Zhou Yu’s skills, so he and his wife, Erya, were left to manage the fishery, while Zhou Yu and the rest of his family were brought along.
Of Liu Ma’s family, her two sons and their wives were left to manage the land that had been Li Cuimei’s dowry. Liu Gen, Liu Ma, and the two young couples, Xiao Qin and Xiao Geng, would follow. Liu Ma’s three granddaughters stayed with their parents, their future duties to be arranged by Lady Tong.
The tailoring and knitting workshops remained unchanged. Guo Siniang volunteered to follow Li Cuimei. Two elderly women were left in charge of the workshops, with Lady Tong to be consulted for major decisions. Those bound by contracts in the workshops were all locals. Taking them along would cause too many complications, and there was no guarantee they would keep secrets.
All the shops in Liangping Town and the surrounding areas were entrusted to Lady Tong’s management, except for the grain shop in Jile Town, which would accompany them. Before Lin Zhongsi and Guicheng left, Dalang and his wife had instructed them to purchase a suitable shop in a nearby town if the land proved viable, so they would have a temporary place to stay.
Shopkeeper Dong in Jile Town had also been ordered to prepare for relocation. The original shop and its staff were left to Li Cuihong. Whether she turned it into a restaurant or reopened it as a grain shop was entirely up to her.
With all arrangements made, Lin Zhongsi and Guicheng had yet to return. It was already winter, and even if the land was suitable, building a house would have to wait until spring. There was no rush for the time being.
With external matters settled, they began sorting through their household belongings. While going through their clothes, Li Cuimei found wool yarn and a half-knitted woolen sweater in the wardrobe, stirring mixed emotions in her heart. Since returning from her elder sister’s home to town, she had been preoccupied with countless tasks, and later, frequent incidents had pushed the sweater completely out of her mind.
As she knitted, she recalled how her aunt had once boasted everywhere that the knitting workshop would soon produce woolen clothing. Li Cuimei felt a pang of sadness. In Liangping Town, this was the first woolen sweater—and likely the last.
Noticing her mother’s distraction, Lin Fang comforted her, “Mother, don’t be sad. When we reach our new home, you can open a woolen clothing workshop and send the products back to the shops in Liangping Town.”
Li Cuimei snapped out of her thoughts, stroking her daughter’s braids with a smile. “You little clever one, how did you know that’s what I was thinking?”
Lin Fang pointed at the sweater and then touched her mother’s face, saying innocently, “Because it’s written all over your face.”
Li Cuimei chuckled bitterly. Indeed, looking at her hands on the woolen sweater, she felt a deep sorrow. Her daughter was so bright, yet she had to suffer because of the family’s troubles. At such a young age, she had to leave her hometown, and even so, she might face difficulties in marriage when she grew up.
Her daughter gazed at her with big, beautiful eyes—just like her father’s—unblinking. Li Cuimei set the sweater aside, lifted Lin Fang onto her lap, and asked softly, “Fang’er, do you know why we’re moving?”
“So no one can bully Fifth Brother anymore.”
“Do you know why those people bullied your Fifth Brother?”
“They can’t tell right from wrong.”
“Are you willing to move?”
“Wherever Father and Mother are, that’s where I’ll be.”
“At our new home, everything will be unfamiliar. It might be much harder. Are you afraid?”
“Mother, you underestimate me. I do everything myself and fall every day—have I ever cried?”
Li Cuimei fell silent. Fang’er was clever and sensible, but no matter how mature she seemed, she was not yet six and didn’t fully understand the situation. If she learned the truth when she grew up, would she suffer if her marriage didn’t go smoothly?
As mother and daughter chatted, Xiao Qin’s wife came to report that Madam Wang had come to visit.
This Madam Wang was none other than the Wang family who had come to propose marriage to Lin Cui’e. After Lin Bosi’s death, Lin Cui’e had to observe a three-year mourning period, and the marriage talks had been dropped. Now, Madam Wang’s sudden visit left Li Cuimei wondering about her purpose.
The Wang family were relatives of Li Cuimei’s maternal uncle. Li Cuimei had frequent interactions with them, and Madam Wang was considered her elder. She personally went to the courtyard gate to welcome her. “Auntie, please come in and sit. With all the family matters lately, I haven’t had the chance to visit you. I’m sorry to have you come all this way.”
Madam Wang was straightforward. Waving her hand, she said, “I’ve been meaning to visit, but knowing how busy you’ve been, I didn’t want to disturb you. Yesterday, Hongwen hurried back from Shengcheng after hearing from Lin Wen that your family plans to move far away. He urged me to revive the marriage proposal. That’s why I’m here—to ask if your Cui’e is willing.”
“You came personally to propose?” Li Cuimei was surprised.
“Yes,” Madam Wang replied, downing her tea in one gulp, clearly having rushed over.
Li Cuimei probed cautiously, “Then, was it Hongwen who proposed the last time as well?”
“Oh, come now, between our families, there’s no need for such caution,” Madam Wang said bluntly. “My Hongwen likes Cui’e. He’s average in looks and learning, and with our family’s circumstances, he can’t offer her the wealth she enjoys here. He’s afraid she’d look down on him and has been hesitant. After the talent competition, even more suitors came for Cui’e, which made him anxious. When he confided in me, I knew you weren’t the type to care only about wealth, so I sent a matchmaker. Who knew your father-in-law would pass away then?”
So that was how it was. Li Cuimei sighed. “Cui’e has to observe mourning for three years. Other families have stopped pursuing her. Aren’t you worried about delaying Hongwen?”
Madam Wang smiled. “I’ve always liked your Cui’e, and Hongwen is willing. What do I have to fear?”
Still uneasy, Li Cuimei asked, “Traditionally, marriages are arranged by parents and matchmakers. Are you really letting Hongwen choose for himself?”
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