IDWBE -Chapter 77 Too Much or Too Little

But the little girl clung to her father’s leg and cried, heart-wrenchingly, as if he were about to die at any moment.

“Born into privilege and yet ungrateful, this damn fool.”

Lin Yi both hated and envied the man.

He waved his hand, and Liu San stopped swinging the whip.

“Your Highness, what are your orders?”

Liu San bowed repeatedly.

“If you have no ability, don’t vent your anger on women and children,” Lin Yi said to the beaten man. “A man should strengthen himself.”

Seeing the fleeting look of resentment in the man’s eyes, Lin Yi knew his words were in vain.

But for the sake of the terrified little girl, he could only punish him this far.

If he actually died, there’d be no one to care for the little girl.

Take her away?

A father’s murder would be unforgivable.

It would be like placing a ticking time bomb beside oneself.

The Tian family’s evening banquet was even more lavish than lunch. Besides Tian Shiyou’s wives, two women sat on either side of Lin Yi, serving wine and dishes.

Before he could enjoy it, Mingyue and Wen Zhaoyi gave him a cold, expressionless look, and Lin Yi, in righteous tone, told them it was improper and had them step back.

After a few rounds of wine, Tian Shiyou cupped his hands. “Your Highness, I wish to send my son and the children of Shangshui Bay to Baiyun City to study. I hope Your Highness approves.”

Lin Yi, blurry-eyed from the wine, nodded. “Fine, just make sure they pay tuition.”

For such a wealthy family, he had no reason to subsidize them.

Tian Shiyou was delighted. “Thank you, Your Highness.”

For a moment, host and guests were in high spirits.

After escorting Lin Yi to his room, Tian Shiyou staggered off to his favorite concubine’s room.

The third concubine’s eyes were filled with tears, which puzzled Tian Shiyou.

“Why are you crying? I’m still alive.”

“My child is only seven. How can I bear to send him to Baiyun City?”

The third concubine harshly pushed him away.

“I was wondering what the matter was,” Tian Shiyou said, grabbing a teapot and chugging a full pot of water, then continued, “I’ve seen Baiyun City. The children can learn real knowledge there. Relying on the few old masters here won’t suffice.”

The concubine replied, “But if one day you anger Your Highness, our children could become hostages. Isn’t that dangerous?”

Tian Shiyou belched and snorted. “You underestimate this lord too much. No matter how angry he gets, he won’t harm children. You haven’t seen Baiyun City—he runs schools that don’t require tuition, and even set up an orphanage for fatherless or motherless children. This lord, everything else aside, has a heart even softer than women’s—always fussing and nagging.”

The concubine hesitated. “I just heard the matriarch say that elite fighters are usually trained from childhood. Aren’t you worried Your Highness might have that idea?”

Tian Shiyou waved his hand, annoyed. “If we hadn’t let you women watch all that nonsense, you wouldn’t be thinking like this. If I really wanted fighters, not just Your Highness but I could recruit plenty at any time. Feed them well, and they’d be loyal to the death. Why waste time training them from childhood? Stop with these women’s fears, or I won’t be polite with you.”

The concubine dared not say more.

Lin Yi stayed there for seven or eight days, enjoying the breathtaking sea, fine food, and wine. But the coastal humidity left him sticky every day, which was unpleasant and tedious.

Tian Shiyou, applying the same method used to remove salt impurities, tried it on boiling sugarcane. The resulting sugar was pure white and glossy, but before he could boast, Lin Yi decided to leave.

Tian Shiyou could only personally escort him back to Pingfeng Ao.

Upon returning to Baiyun City, the bauhinia flowers in the palace courtyard were still in full bloom.

“Ah, Sanhe’s winter really has no dignity.”

Lin Yi picked several kapok flowers, steeped them in a teacup, and found it tasted quite good.

Xie Zan approached. “Your Highness, the offerings to the Emperor have been arranged. Once entering the southern provinces, sea transport will be much faster. They should arrive before the New Year. Any further instructions, Your Highness?”

Lin Yi replied calmly, “Next time I return, I’ll also go by sea. Mr. Bian, how is the road construction progressing?”

Now that he had a fleet, traveling by sea would be much easier in the future.

Bian Jing cupped his hands. “Your Highness, as you instructed, I recruited twenty more blacksmiths. We have enough chisels and axes. Besides, the closer the road is to the southern provinces, the easier it is to acquire materials. I expect it will be completed by March next year.”

Lin Yi said, “Once the road to the southern provinces is done, don’t forget to extend it to Yuezhou.”

Bian Jing responded, “Yes.”

Lin Yi asked, “Any news from Mr. He’s anti-bandit mission?”

Wang Qingbang said, “He has sent messages via carrier pigeon. Everything is going smoothly. But he is under a sentence, so he cannot appear publicly. Commander Shen leads the attacks instead.”

“Hopefully he returns before the New Year,” Lin Yi said. “Prepare, and let’s have a good year together.”

The elders all cupped their hands in agreement.

Thanks to Lin Yi’s persistent efforts, Baiyun City’s residents gradually adopted hygienic habits—washing hands frequently, avoiding unboiled water, and eating only cooked food.

Even the city’s foul smell lessened, though the sting from lime application grew worse.

Seeing lime’s effectiveness, the people threw it into marshes to kill leeches, preparing fields for rice planting next year.

They even sprinkled it in the West River. Lin Yi didn’t know if the leeches were killed, but fishing became impossible.

Excess of anything is as bad as a deficiency.

Lin Yi had to instruct people to curb this indiscriminate lime-spreading trend.

The newly built school playground was finally in use. Despite a thousand palace guards away on campaign, it was lively.

In fact, the crowd had grown—men, women, young, old, all full of vigor.

Even elderly women moved more skillfully than the young.

It was completely unexpected; this world was truly chaotic.

“Your Highness, what do you think?”

Shan Yin grinned at Lin Yi.

After He Jixiang and Shen Chu left, Shan Yin became chief instructor, issuing commands to over a thousand people in the square, feeling as if he were commanding an army—proud as can be.

Lin Yi said, “Focus on the school children. Don’t waste time with outsiders.”

Shan Yin smiled. “Yes, Your Highness.”

Most school lessons were led by the elders, Mingyue, Hong Ying, and others. Shan Yin merely followed orders, feeling no real sense of accomplishment.

Just as Lin Yi was about to speak, a sharp scream pierced the air.

He turned to see Fang Pi fall from a tree, followed by Hong An.

“An, I’m sorry! Okay?”

Fang Pi scrambled up another coconut tree in fright, Hong An followed, and Fang Pi jumped down again.

The two chased each other and quickly disappeared.

Lin Yi asked Cui Gengren, “What happened?”

Cui said, “Fang Pi threw the yellow dog into the water.”

Lin Yi scowled. “That deserves a beating.”

Yu Xiaoshi grinned, agreeing, “Definitely!”

Lin Yi curiously asked, “You won’t help your brother?”

“I like Hong An!”

Yu Xiaoshi shouted at the top of his lungs.

Lin Yi patted his shoulder. “From now on, anyone who calls you stupid—that’s the real fool.”