Xiao Jingnan squatted beside the large basin and washed clothes for a full half an hour.
By the end, his legs went numb, his head spun, and his hands were red and swollen. He felt as if he was on the verge of collapse...
It was only because Sister Liu and Aunt Song couldn't bear to watch and secretly helped him with some of the laundry that he managed to finish. Otherwise, he would have been washing until morning.
Li Wanming just sat by and watched him coldly. She even told Chuntao to hold back Caiwei and Qinglan, and not let them lift a finger from beginning to end.
Didn't they not want to do the laundry?
Then let their cousin wash to his heart's content!
Li Wanming knew very well that when the in - laws made trouble for a woman, the one who really needed to be disciplined was the man!
In her husband's family, a woman's only enemy and the only ally was the man beside her.
If a man wanted to protect his wife, he would surely come up with ten thousand ways to do so.
If he didn't, even if the wife turned the whole family upside down, it would be of no use.
It was stupid to confront the in - laws directly. She would never do such a thing.
When the last ray of the setting sun faded, Xiao Jingnan finally finished washing.
He couldn't even stand up. He could only sit half - way on the ground, rubbing his sore thighs and knees.
Caiwei and Qinglan were crying with their faces all wet - scared out of their wits.
When Chuntao let them go, their knees went weak and they almost knelt down.
"Brother - in - law... We didn't mean it... We'll never dare again..."
Li Wanming raised her eyebrows: "I'm afraid the two young ladies have the wrong person to apologize to?"
"Sister Liu and Aunt Song were humiliated by you. You show no sign of remorse but instead apologize to an outsider. Why?"
Caiwei and Qinglan stammered and turned to Sister Liu and Aunt Song: "... It's our fault for being naive. Please don't take it to heart..."
Xiao Jingnan rubbed his legs and sighed softly: "Doing laundry is something that ordinary children can do. There's no distinction between the upper and lower classes."
"Although your branch of the family had wealthy ancestors, times have changed. Now that you're vegetable growers, you should learn to manage household chores. Relying on the family fortune will not last forever."
"Moreover, it's not something to be proud of for the younger generations to live off selling the family's ancestral property."
"Remember, being diligent and thrifty in running the household, living in harmony, valuing knowledge, and being honest are the foundation for a family's prosperity."
His voice was soft, but he spoke very seriously.
Caiwei and Qinglan curtsied: "Yes, we remember."
Then they left, crying.
After their figures disappeared, Sister Liu and Aunt Song walked awkwardly to the kitchen to cook. Xiao Jingnan stretched out an arm towards Li Wanming: "I played a big part in today's show for my lady. Won't my lady praise me?"
Li Wanming put away the cold look on her face and quickly helped him up: "You knew I did it on purpose?"
Xiao Jingnan rubbed his waist and groaned: "You were warning others by punishing one. I didn't expect my lady to know military tactics... It's a pity that I was the tiger on display. But who was the chicken?"
Li Wanming felt a bit guilty and whispered: "I didn't mean to use you as an example..."
"I know. I'm just the most useful one."
He knew that when a woman was bullied by her in - laws, the best way was to tell them that if they dared to bully her, she would take all her anger out on her husband!
Throughout history, the conflict between a daughter - in - law and her mother - in - law was, in essence, because the husband didn't take action.
If the in - laws knew that all the harm would ultimately fall on the man, they would behave themselves.
Li Wanming's goal was to make them realize this.
No way for this man to stay out of it!
However, her man had done a great job today.
Xiao Jingnan had squatted on the ground to wash clothes for half an hour, clearly sending a signal: In our family, my wife is the most important. If you bully her, you're bullying me!
Only when a husband firmly protects his wife and stands by her side without hesitation at all times can the wife have the greatest support in the family.
"Actually, I didn't really intend for you to wash for real..."
She originally just wanted to make a show of it to crush Caiwei and Qinglan's arrogance. She planned to let the two girls do the laundry when Chuntao couldn't hold them back.
Who knew that Chuntao was so honest and actually held them back for half an hour...
Xiao Jingnan smiled and suddenly asked: "Have you calmed down?"
Li Wanming had come back in a fit of anger. He knew it was his sarcasm at Muyun Pavilion that had upset her, so he wanted to be more compliant and make her happy.
"Now, have you calmed down?" he asked again.
Li Wanming put on a stern face: "No, I'm still very angry."
"What should I do then?"
Xiao Jingnan pretended to be in a difficult situation: "I've already washed clothes for half a day. I can't kneel on the washboard anymore."
Li Wanming burst out laughing: "Then I'll punish you to drink three big bowls of bitter tonic!"
Just now, she had told Chuntao to go to the kitchen to make the tonic.
Xiao Jingnan had been squatting for so long, and his hands had been soaking in cold water. She was afraid his body couldn't take it.
In return for his protection, she naturally cared about him.
For a moment, Li Wanming thought that maybe getting married wasn't so bad...
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After the Flower - viewing Festival, Li Wanming's wine - brewing business would be put on the agenda.
When she was in Fujian before, she had used fresh lychees to make wine. The wine she brewed had a fragrant smell and a sweet aftertaste. The aroma of the lychees combined with the crispness of Fujian wine was rich and long - lasting, and it was very well - received.
However, at that time, she had used fresh lychees.
Now, far away in the capital, fresh lychees definitely couldn't be transported here. She could only try to use dried lychees.
She had never used dried lychees before and didn't know how the wine would taste. So she had to start all over again, try bit by bit, and adjust slowly.
Li Wanming told Chuntao to buy ten jars of different sizes, wash them clean, and put them in the yard to dry.
Then, she took Chuntao out.
She had an appointment with Pei Yanqi at Hongbin Restaurant today.
The policy for selling wine in the capital was different from that in Fujian. One needed a liquor license issued by the government. Otherwise, it would be regarded as illegal liquor, violating the imperial law, and the offender would be arrested.
Li Wanming originally thought of relying on her father's connections to get a liquor license.
But Li Rusong was a military general and wasn't familiar with the civil officials in the capital. Moreover, if Li Rusong knew about it, Madam Yuan would surely find out, and then she would be in big trouble.
So Li Wanming had never mentioned this to her father.
But now it was different. Pei Yanqi had become the top scholar!
A newly - crowned top scholar was the emperor's student.
The entire civil - official system of the Dacheng Dynasty would give him some face!
It would be a piece of cake for him to get a liquor license for her.
Li Wanming came to Hongbin Restaurant and smoothly went up to the private room on the second floor.
As soon as she entered, she saw Pei Yanqi glaring at her angrily: "Li Wanming, how dare you come?"