Chapter 63

"Hey? Lady Bai, are you waiting for me?"

Li Qi rode his donkey to Bai Qian's carriage and asked with a grin.

Just as he had left the city gate, Bai Qian's carriage had already disappeared. She hadn't told him where she was going, but fortunately, carriages in the Northern Song Dynasty were few and far between, so Li Qi followed the tracks all the way here.

"Since you already guessed, why ask such a superfluous question?" Bai Qian said coldly.

Li Qi didn't dare to offend this Lady Bai again, so he chuckled and asked, "By the way, you haven't told me where we're going yet."

"You'll know when we get there."

Bai Qian snorted and said, "Xing'er, let's go."

"Wait—wait a moment."

Li Qi was now terrified by this phrase and hurriedly stopped her.

"Do you have something else?"

Li Qi said awkwardly, "Uh... it's like this, my donkey brother had insomnia last night and is quite listless today. I hope Lady Bai can accommodate my donkey brother and go a bit slower."

Bai Qian chuckled and said, "They say laziness and excuses are an inseparable couple. Now I see it's true."

Sweat! This woman really holds grudges.

Li Qi looked down at the little donkey and thought, if you could help me save face, would she dare to tease us like this?

Since he couldn't match her, Li Qi had no choice but to remain silent.

Bai Qian, having vented her frustration, felt much better and said to Xing'er, "Xing'er, let's go."

This time, the driver didn't keep whipping the horses but drove the carriage slowly.

Li Qi felt relieved. He was not familiar with the area, and if no one led the way, he would likely get lost.

The donkey and the carriage traveled west for about ten miles, arriving at a secluded place with few people.

Strange, why did she bring me here?

Li Qi looked around and found no trace of refugees, feeling very puzzled. But he didn't ask, knowing it would be in vain.

After about another mile, Li Qi saw a house in the distance. Though it was much smaller than the Qin residence, it had at least five or six rooms, far beyond what the local villagers could afford.

Could this be her home?

Li Qi finally couldn't contain his curiosity and asked, "Lady Bai, why did you bring me to your home?"

"Who said it's my home? It's a house left by my wet nurse before she passed away."

Damn! Rich people! Even the wet nurse lives so well.

Li Qi was inwardly surprised and suddenly became serious, "You're not planning to settle the refugees here, are you?"

"What? Is there a problem with that?"

"Uh... not really, but the rent must be quite expensive, right?" Li Qi wiped his sweat, feeling uneasy.

He had originally thought Bai Qian would just find a decent place and set up a few tents. They wouldn't stay long anyway, and once Zui Xianju opened, he would move the selected refugees there.

But he never expected Bai Qian to arrange a whole house, which caught Li Qi off guard.

"Oh—so you're worried about the cost. Don't worry, I, Bai Qian, don't care about your stinky money."

Li Qi's face lit up, "So you're not charging?"

"I wouldn't bother if it weren't for helping Sister Wang."

Her words made it clear that she didn't intend to charge a single coin.

Whoever you're helping, as long as I don't have to pay.

Li Qi laughed, "Then I'll thank Lady Bai on behalf of the lady and the refugees for your generous assistance."

Bai Qian snorted and ignored him.

As they spoke, they arrived at the gate of the house.

Before they entered, Li Qi heard a cacophony of voices inside, like a bustling market.

How many people are in there?

Li Qi frowned. He had only asked Bai Qian to select twenty people, but from the sounds, there were at least thirty inside.

At this moment, Bai Qian finally got out of the carriage.

Li Qi also jumped off the donkey in a very stylish manner, but he accidentally stepped on a branch and stumbled, almost falling, looking extremely embarrassed.

Damn! This is just too unlucky.

Li Qi finally stabilized himself and heard a "pfft" laugh from the side.

Turning his head, he saw it was Xing'er again, and even Lady Bai was trying to suppress a laugh.

Damn! I've made a fool of myself.

Fortunately, Li Qi had a thick skin and pretended nothing had happened, bowing and smiling at Lady Bai, "Lady Bai, it's been a while."

Bai Qian naturally knew he was referring to her staying in the carriage, so she smiled without a word and signaled Xing'er to knock on the door.

Knock, knock, knock!

Xing'er knocked on the door.

Soon, the door opened, and an elderly woman appeared.

Seeing Lady Bai, the woman was so excited that she danced and shouted, "Lady Bai is here, Lady Bai is here, everyone come out quickly."

Bang, bang! Thud, thud!

With a chaotic and noisy sound of footsteps, about thirty to forty people emerged from the yard.

Among them were uncles and aunts.

Seeing Lady Bai, they hurriedly bowed and thanked her, calling her a living bodhisattva, a great benefactor, and a great benefactor.

Lady Bai's face showed a hint of helplessness, and she quickly said, "Everyone, please stand up. I'm just doing this on someone's behalf. The real benefactor is that Li gentleman." She pointed at Li Qi, who was already stunned.

The refugees immediately shifted their gaze to Li Qi.

Damn! Is this a joke?

Li Qi suddenly came to his senses and shouted, "Wait."

Everyone was startled by Li Qi's shout and stared at him in a daze.

Li Qi's face turned serious, and he said to Bai Qian, "Lady Bai, can we talk in private?"

Bai Qian's eyes flashed with a cunning smile, and she nodded, following Li Qi to a tree.

Li Qi frowned and asked, "Lady Bai, I clearly remember that I only asked you to find ten men and ten women, and their age should not exceed thirty."

Bai Qian smiled, "Yes, and I did find them for you. Are you not satisfied?"

Not just unsatisfied, I want to terminate the contract.

Li Qi said irritably, "What about these uncles and aunts? Don't tell me they are all Tian Shan Tongmu, actually teenagers."

"What Tian Shan Tongmu, that sounds strange."

Bai Qian rolled her eyes and explained, "They are the parents of the twenty people I selected."

Li Qi said dejectedly, "I didn't ask you to bring their parents as well."

Bai Qian's lips curled, "That's funny."

Li Qi said irritably, "What's so funny?"

Bai Qian glanced at him, "If someone orders a plate of mutton at your restaurant, would you just give them the mutton without any condiments?"

Li Qi rolled his eyes, "How can you compare this? I don't care, you must get rid of these uncles and aunts."

"That's even funnier. If someone eats the mutton, can they return the condiments? That's not how business is done."

Bai Qian smiled and shook her head, "I've already selected the people for you. What you do with them is up to you. I won't be the one to separate families."

"Damn—!"

Li Qi was speechless, feeling extremely regretful. He hadn't thought about the fact that these children all came from their mothers' wombs. Looking at Bai Qian, he saw her smiling, knowing she had anticipated this. He laughed bitterly, "To be honest, I really hate doing business with smart people."

"That's a coincidence. I also hate doing business with smart people, so when you asked me to do business with you, I agreed without hesitation." Bai Qian laughed triumphantly, having waited a long time for this moment. Pulling a few feathers from Li Qi, the iron rooster, was more satisfying than anything else.

Li Qi was stunned and said with a bitter face, "Sigh, who would have thought I'm just a simple man. Well, Zui Xianju and the Qin residence still need a few more dishwashers and cleaners."

Bai Qian's triumphant expression froze.