Going to Town Alone

"No, no, that's not what I meant, old man. I just didn't expect ice cubes to be made so easily. It's a bit beyond my imagination." Shopkeeper Tong explained.

"Yes, many things are so simple, but no one would think of them." The old man said.

At the next dinner table, shopkeeper Tong toasted everyone in the Xu family a glass of wine to express his gratitude.

When everyone had eaten and drunk enough, there was only a table of bowls and dishes filled only with vegetable soup left, and it was probably the Xu family that had such a good appetite in the summer.

Shopkeeper Tong rushed towards the town with the jam prepared by the Xu family.

After shopkeeper Tong left, Qibao expressed her thoughts. The old man also felt that Qibao's consideration was right, so he said: "That's right, I'll talk to the guys tomorrow, but whose house should they build first?"

Qibao said: "Just let them decide for themselves, and we won't make the decision."

The old man nodded.

Qibao said: "Grandpa, there is still a very serious problem that we need to pay attention to. It may be related to the safety of our family."

The old man's face immediately became serious and he asked: "Qibao, Tell me, because of what?"

Qibao replied: "It's about the fruit wine. Although our family is protected by Su Chenyu and Jing Chen, they are far away in the capital now, and many things are out of their reach. The reputation of this fruit wine has been established. If someone is really looking for it, they will definitely be able to find out. To be able to stand firm in the capital, these two must be extraordinary, and it is estimated that they have offended a lot of people who are not to be messed with, perhaps these people can't do anything with Su Chenyu and his family, and if they go around to the back row and target our family, then what should we do?"

The old man also felt that Qibao's statement made sense. This was indeed a very important issue. Although his family had some wealth now, they did not have much status or influence. What would they do if powerful people targeted their family? 

Mrs. Wang also asked worriedly: "Then what should we do now?"

Qibao said: "I want to form a force that belongs to our Xu family and train a group of masters. Not only can we protect everyone, but outsiders will not dare to offend us easily."

Xu Dabu asked: "Then, Qibao, where are we going to find people to train, that's not going to be easy, is it?"

Qibao replied: "I already have some ideas. It's better to practice martial arts as young as possible, so I plan to find some carefree orphans to train them. I have the ability to prevent them from betraying. Is this okay with Grandpa?"

The old man asked: "Where can we find so many orphans?"

Qibao replied: "If you are willing, you will always find it. I will go around the town in the next few days to find some suitable people. Grandpa, you can rest at home and build wooden houses with the villagers. Our home is still safe at the moment. You don't have to worry about me."

"Qibao, I don't feel comfortable with you going alone, why don't you let your father accompany you, so that he can still take care of you more." Mrs. Wang said worriedly.

"No, grandma, I can take care of myself. It's easier for me to do things alone. I'll be back soon, so don't worry." Qibao said.

Although her family was still worried, Qibao decided that she would leave tomorrow, and long-term planning was the top priority.

The next day, Qibao set out towards the town under the worried eyes of her family.

After Qibao was completely out of sight, Mrs. Wang almost collapsed to the ground. Fortunately, the two Ms. Zhang and Ms. Li next to her caught her and prevented her from sitting on the ground.

The three Xu brothers hurriedly surrounded with worry, and Mrs. Wang wiped the corners of her eyes and said: "I'm fine, I'm useless. Qibao is still so young. We all rely on her to survive today. Now Qibao has to go out alone for our safety. I'm sorry for Qibao! I can't help at all!" Woohoo..."

Her emotions infected the other female relatives in the family, and the three sisters-in-law all had red eyes. Uncle Xu gritted his teeth and said: "Mother, I don't blame you, it's your son who's useless, as the eldest brother of my younger brothers and the eldest uncle of Qibao, I'm relying on my niece to get where I am today. I didn't carry the burden of the family, it's your son who's wronged everyone in the family, and even more so, I'm wronging Qibao!" After saying that, he cried silently.

Xu Laoer and Xu Laosan quickly supported their eldest brother and said: "Big brother, you mustn't say this about yourself, you have always been my most respected big brother, you have taken care of me and my third brother since we were young, you can't afford to eat anything, the first thing you think of when there's something good to eat is us, you are the best big brother in the world."

The old man's eyes were a little red, but he still said in the tone of the head of the family: "Hurry and help your mother go back to the house and sit down."

The family all returned to the house with red eyes and listless spirits.

The old man looked around at everyone and said: "If you guys feel sorry for Qibao, why wouldn't I! It's true that Qibao is stronger than everyone in the family, but we just need to make something Qibao loves to eat when she's hungry, and when she's cold. We can always take out warm cotton clothes for her to wear, as long as we make Qibao believe that all she's given us is worth it, that's the most important thing we should do."

"Yes, father, Wenwu he has a high aptitude for reading, as long as Wenwu can win the honor of the Imperial Examination in the future, then Qibao's status will naturally be raised, and in the future, no one would want to bully Qibao. We have to think carefully about it. Wenwu also knows that all this is hard-won, and he has never let us down. He will not let down Qibao, who has paid so much for him." Uncle Xu said.

"Qibao doesn't want a high status. What she wants is that our family can live a better life and not be looked down upon by others in the future. Don't put too much pressure on the boys. Qibao doesn't want to see this either."

"The most important thing for us now is to protect everything Qibao has given us. You all know Qibao's plan. This is what Qibao wants to do, so as her family, we must be the first executors. At present, what we have to do is to keep the resort completed smoothly, so next, each of us must take action, we can't let Qibao worry about this matter anymore, do you understand?" The old man said solemnly.

"Yes, Father!" The three Xu brothers and the three Zhang sisters-in-law all nodded their heads fiercely in agreement.

The old man nodded and said: "Eldest, please help your mother go to the house and rest for a while."

Mrs. Zhang and Mrs. Chunlan, the maid next to Mrs. Wang, each held one side and walked towards Mrs. Wang's bedroom.

The servants at home, who have been standing aside and not daring to express their anger, also heard something from the conversation. It turns out that everything in the house is the result of the young lady. In their hearts, they were also becoming more and more admiring of Qibao, and not a single one of them would mention anything about today's events.

Qibao didn't know the situation at home. At this time, she had already arrived in the town. She had only been to a few lively streets in the town before, and there were some places she had never been to, so she planned to look around.

But considering that she was young and might be worried by some people, in order to reduce unnecessary trouble, she did something.

She went to the ready-to-wear store, bought a set of children's clothes that would fit her, and went to the shopkeeper and offered two sets of the fattest and biggest men's clothes in the store. Although the shopkeeper does not understand how this family adults will let a little girl come to buy clothes, but entering the door is a customer. He could get whatever clothes the customers wanted, and it's not like she didn't give money.