TSWPF -Chapter 345 Distress

“Madam, the front gate is piled up with things again.” As soon as Li Qingling got up, Nian Xia ran over to inform her.

Over the past couple of days, all sorts of edible items had been stacked at the front gate—vegetables, fruits, old hens…

It went without saying that these must have been gifts from the villagers.

Although she was pleased that Liu Zhimou was so loved by the people, their way of giving gifts was causing them some distress.

After all, the villagers’ own lives weren’t easy, and what they had given had been saved from their own mouths.

How could they accept it with a clear conscience?

Li Qingling let out a small sigh and told Nian Xia to have someone bring the things inside and take inventory.

The gifts couldn’t just be left outside, and since they didn’t know who had sent them, returning them was impossible.

Apart from sharing some with the Ma family, the rest had to be dealt with quickly; otherwise, all the villagers’ good intentions would go to waste.

“Madam, those people keep sending things. Won’t it affect the official’s reputation?” Nian Xia asked anxiously, worried that it might negatively impact their lord.

If something happened to him, Madam would also be affected.

Li Qingling frowned. She too was concerned about this issue and realized they needed to find a way to completely prevent this situation.

She scratched her head in mild frustration, having no idea what to do at the moment.

The villagers’ enthusiasm was… quite a headache!

“First, tell the others to bring the things in and take inventory. I’ll think of a solution for the rest.”

Nian Xia quickly nodded and hurried off to give orders.

After finishing breakfast, Li Qingling went to find Master Luo to discuss how to prevent this from happening.

Master Luo had heard about it too. He smiled, corner of his mouth lifting, thinking, “No wonder my little apprentice won over the villagers in such a short time. With this solid foundation, it’ll be much easier to implement the terrace field plan.”

“Master, don’t just smile! What should we do?”

Master Luo clasped his fists to his mouth, cleared his throat, and hid the smile tugging at his lips. He looked at Li Qingling. “Xiao Ling, if you let us go up the mountain to play, I’ll give you a solution.”

He and the children had been wanting to go up the mountain again, but Li Qingling hadn’t allowed it.

Since she was in charge, they didn’t dare to act against her; otherwise, they wouldn’t get to enjoy her delicious cooking in the future.

To keep eating good meals, they had to follow her instructions.

“…Master, are you really doing this?” negotiating like a child.

Li Qingling rolled her eyes at Master Luo helplessly but nodded in agreement.

Seeing her consent, Master Luo grinned like a child and eagerly shared his idea.

“Will this work?” Li Qingling asked, doubtful.

“How could it not?” Master Luo replied confidently. “The villagers are attached to Mo’er. It’s better to have Mo’er handle it personally.”

Li Qingling raised an eyebrow. Handle it personally—does that mean Liu Zhimou should quietly stand at the gate and stop villagers himself? She suspected this old child might be messing with him.

Seeing her skepticism, Master Luo puffed up in indignation. “Then what solution do you have?”

“….”

Li Qingling quickly smiled and reassured him that his idea was excellent. She would tell Liu Zhimou to follow through.

Pleased, Master Luo nodded and then asked when they would go up the mountain.

Master Luo really…

Li Qingling shook her head helplessly. She thought the people in the capital should see the fall of their “immortal” image of Master Luo.

“Hey hey, girl, what’s with the head-shaking? You don’t agree?” he asked eagerly. After waiting so long, he finally had a chance to go up the mountain and wouldn’t let it slip.

“Don’t worry. I always keep my promises,” Li Qingling said softly, standing up. “Wait here. I’ll tell Ah Huang to take us up the mountain.” With Ah Huang, it would be much safer.

“All right, all right, go quickly!”

“….” Li Qingling shook her head in speechless resignation and went to the backyard to find Ah Huang.

As soon as she left, Master Luo chuckled and hurried to change into clothes suitable for mountain climbing. Once dressed, he went to find Li Qingning and the others.

The children would definitely be excited when they heard the news.

Master Luo walked into the vegetable garden, hands behind his back, and cleared his throat loudly.

Li Qingning turned, saw Master Luo, stood up, waved energetically, and shouted, “Master!”

The others greeted him as well.

Smiling, Master Luo stroked his beard and asked what they were doing.

“Master, we want to expand the vegetable garden and plant more,” Li Qingning said with a grin.

“Plant more? What if you can’t eat it all?”

Li Qingning responded matter-of-factly, “We’ll give it away to those in need.”

Hearing this, Master Luo’s eyes curved in amusement. The children had good hearts.

“Master, why are you dressed like that? Are you planning to work in the fields too?” Liu Zhiyan asked, noticing the mountain-climbing clothes Li Qingling had made last time. His eyes lit up at the thought of going up the mountain.

Master Luo laughed proudly. “Do you want to go up the mountain to play?”

Hearing this, Liu Zhiyan and the others shouted, “Yes!”

Li Qingning climbed up, hugged Master Luo’s leg, and asked excitedly, “Did sister agree to let us go?”

“Yes, I successfully persuaded her. She agreed to let us go.”

“Wow, Master, you’re amazing!” Li Qingning cheered loudly.

The others praised him too, making Master Luo beam with pride.

“Come on, let’s change clothes and get ready to go.” Liu Zhiyan waved and hurriedly climbed up from the vegetable garden to change into their mountain clothes.

To make it easier to climb, they had asked their sister-in-law to make them special clothes for the trip, and now it was time to wear them.

Hearing their chatter, the four brothers—Zhishu Dali—looked bewildered. They… were going up the mountain?

“Hey hey, Xiao Feng,” Ma Zhi grabbed Li Qingfeng’s hand. “You’re going up the mountain?”

Li Qingfeng nodded.

After waiting so long, their sister finally agreed—they were thrilled.

“There… there are wolves on the mountain,” Ma Zhi said, horrified. “It’s dangerous!” Last time, when their mother said Madam and the others went up the mountain, he hadn’t fully believed it. This time…

How could they be so brave, not afraid of being taken by wolves?

Seeing the four brothers scared, Li Qingfeng patted Ma Zhi’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. There are guards to protect us. If you’re too scared, you don’t have to go. We’ll go, pick things, and bring them back for you to eat.”

Good things?

Hearing there might be delicious food, little foodie Ma Li couldn’t resist. He tugged on Li Qingfeng’s robe and asked, salivating, “Is there a lot of good food on the mountain?”

Li Qingfeng nodded.

Last time they didn’t go far and didn’t collect much. This time they could go a little farther and see if there were other good things to pick.

“I want to go, Xiao Feng, take me!”

Li Qingfeng tapped Ma Li on the forehead, smiling. “I’ll take you, but you must behave and not wander off.”

Ma Li nodded obediently. “I will, I won’t wander off.”

“All right, let’s go.”

“Thank you, Xiao Feng!”

Seeing the youngest going, the older brothers insisted on going too.

Li Qingfeng nodded and asked them to wait a moment while he changed clothes.

When Li Qingling returned from the backyard, she saw the pile of baskets in front of Master Luo and twitched at the corner of her mouth.

Master Luo was planning to bring all of Ninghua Mountain home, wasn’t he?

She cleared her throat and said helplessly, “Master, are you really taking this many baskets?” Isn’t this a bit much?

Master Luo nodded decisively.

Last time he only brought a few baskets, which quickly filled up. This time, he was fully prepared—he would take as many as he could.

“Master, how will you carry so many baskets?”

Master Luo looked at her disdainfully and pointed at the guards. “Aren’t they people? Have them help carry!”

Li Qingling: “….”

Master Luo was impressive—turning the guards into porters.

The guards: “….”

They braced themselves mentally.

Seeing the children ready in their clothes, Master Luo raised his hand and cheered. “Children, take a basket each. We’re ready to depart.”

The children cheered and ran over, each picking up a basket and slinging it onto their backs.

Li Qingling sighed and adjusted her forehead. “Rou Rou, Ning Ning, Ma Li, can you really carry such big baskets? Pick a smaller one.” How could such small kids carry such huge baskets? Really…

The three children smiled foolishly, put down their baskets, and chose slightly smaller ones.

Ma Da ran over and said, “Madam, the four of us want to come too. Don’t worry, we won’t run off.”

Li Qingling patted his head and smiled. “All right.”

Ma Da grinned and ran back.

Madam was really kind, really gentle—he liked her.

Seeing everyone ready, Li Qingling announced, “Let’s go.”

The group walked toward the backyard. As they approached, Li Qingling suddenly turned to the Zhishu Dali brothers. She weighed her words carefully. “Zhishu Dali, you need to be mentally prepared. No matter what you see, don’t panic, understand?” She had nearly forgotten Ah Huang and Ah Bai were in the backyard.

The Zhishu Dali brothers, seeing Li Qingling’s serious expression, nodded nervously, unsure why Madam would say this.

Liu Zhiyan and the others exchanged glances, pressing their lips together to suppress smiles. They wanted to see the Zhishu Dali brothers’ reactions when they saw Ah Huang and Ah Bai.

“Xiao Feng, Madam… why did she say that? Is there something scary at your house?” Ma Zhi swallowed nervously and asked Li Qingfeng softly.

Li Qingfeng smiled at him. “You’ll see soon enough.”