Chapter 12

When Li Kuan arrived in the Tang Dynasty, it was early autumn. Now, more than two months have passed, and the harsh winter is about to arrive. The weather has become colder day by day, and Li Kuan is not used to the winter in the Tang Dynasty. This is not the future world with global warming; in this early winter, the temperature is already frighteningly low.

Li Kuan tightened the quilt around his body and looked out at the gray sky: "It's going to snow, I guess! I didn't expect it to start snowing so early in winter. I wonder how cold it will be in another month or so!" A stove was lit in the room, but it could not stop the north wind from penetrating everywhere, taking away all the heat and leaving only the cold air to mock those shivering by the stove.

"Damn low productivity! Why don't they have cotton quilts?" Li Kuan complained about the era! In modern times, there are all kinds of warm clothes like cotton jackets, down jackets, and wool sweaters. But now, even with a silk quilt, he still shivers in the cold wind. No wonder the poet岑参 (Cen Shen) wrote the poem line '狐裘不暖锦衾薄' (The fox fur is not warm, and the silk quilt is thin).

When he first arrived, Li Kuan thought the Tang Dynasty was quite nice. The autumn was pleasant and not too hot. And unlike modern times, where he breathed all kinds of toxic gases and ate pure, natural green vegetables and drank clear, sweet mountain spring water instead of filtered tap water. But he never expected that after just two months, he would be deeply hurt by the Tang Dynasty he once loved so much.

"Cotton, this thing is produced in Gaochang, a very small country. It seems to have been destroyed by Hou Junji. Was it during the Zhenguan period?" Li Kuan thought, wondering if he should go to this small country to get some cotton to get through the winter.

In fact, when the first cold wave of winter hit, Li Kuan regretted it. He should have exchanged for a cotton quilt first. Who knew that the winter in the Tang Dynasty would be so hard to endure! Thinking about how he had spent the remaining energy points a few days ago, he really felt like banging his head against the wall.

"I need to get some more coal and exchange for a cotton quilt, or I'll freeze to death!" Li Kuan thought, wrapping himself in the silk quilt and getting up. He planned to take the monthly allowance he had saved over the past two months. Although he spent a lot on the herbs needed to improve his health, he still had about half left. Fifteen taels of silver could buy 100 kilograms of coal, and he had ten energy points to absorb. This should be enough to exchange for a cotton quilt, right?

But as Li Kuan reached out to pick up the box containing the silver, a thought rose in his mind: what if someone found out? This was a bad habit he had developed since coming to the Tang Dynasty, always fearing that he would be discovered as different. Because his foundation was shallow, if he stood out too much, he would be considered an oddity. As the old saying goes: being half a step ahead of people makes you a genius, but being a whole step ahead makes you a madman. If Li Kuan really showed that he was 1500 years ahead, he would be the biggest madman of this era!

Because of his fear, Li Kuan's two months of practicing boxing and improving his health were not very effective. He was still the same sickly physique, so he couldn't stand the north wind.

"No, this might be an opportunity! Li Er is coming back, and this could be a breakthrough!" Li Kuan thought, a flash of inspiration crossing his mind: 'Yes, I must buy it, I must exchange it! Ha ha... I'm a genius!'

"Someone! Someone!" Li Kuan shouted loudly, knowing that there were always people ready to serve him. This was the right of a royal offspring, but also a tragedy! Because he never knew who these people were truly loyal to, and whether they would turn around and sell him!

"Prince, is there anything you need?" Li Kuan's personal maid peeked her head out from the door. This was another bad habit Li Kuan brought from the modern world. He didn't know how his predecessor handled this beautiful maid, who could be rated 85 out of 100, but after he arrived, he made her sleep in the next room. There were plenty of empty rooms, and he didn't want his dreams or words to be overheard. The maid was initially very sad, thinking that Li Kuan was distancing himself from her.

"Go and call a servant for me! I need to buy something!" Li Kuan ordered.

"Prince, what do you need me to do?" A servant quickly appeared before Li Kuan.

"Go and buy coal for me! Hurry up, use all this money to buy coal!" Li Kuan pushed the box into the servant's hands and commanded.

"I'll go right away!" The servant responded respectfully.

That afternoon, before it got dark, the servant returned with two other servants, carrying two burlap bags into Li Kuan's courtyard.

"Bring the things in!" Li Kuan ordered after receiving the maid's report.

The two servants immediately carried the bags into Li Kuan's room. The maid used to share the same room with Li Kuan, separated by a screen. Now that she slept in the next room, there was a large space in the room, perfect for storing the coal.

"Go out! Don't disturb me!" Li Kuan gave a strict order. In the past two months, several people had been punished for disobeying such orders, so no one dared to disturb him now.

"Low energy carrier detected! Absorb?" The system promptly gave a prompt.

"Absorb!"

"Absorbing low energy carrier—coal, 100 kilograms. Gained 10 energy points!"

"Can 10 energy points exchange for a cotton quilt?" Li Kuan asked directly.

"Cotton quilt, searching... Can be exchanged, current productivity can manufacture! 5 energy points per quilt." The system gave the price.

"Looks like I can get more than one! I'll exchange for two, and I can keep one for myself!" Li Kuan was delighted. He had been worried that he could only get one, which would leave him without a quilt if he implemented his plan. But the cotton quilt was so cheap that he could get two, keep one for himself, and use the other for his plan.

As the sky grew dark, snowflakes began to fall from the sky, descending onto the Guanzhong region. The howling north wind carried them across the entire area, turning the world into a snow kingdom overnight.

This was a rare heavy snowfall. By the next morning, the roofs were covered with a thick layer of snow, and icicles hung from the eaves like sharp spears. Li Kuan had a good night's sleep, feeling very comfortable. The cotton quilt kept him warm, and it was the most peaceful night he had slept since winter began.

However, his good mood from a good night's sleep was shattered by an event.

Li Lizhi, the little girl, was sick. The sudden snowfall and rapid drop in temperature had made her, who was already in poor health, fall ill from the cold.

Li Kuan, upon hearing the news, rushed to Li Lizhi's residence. Since she was a girl, she did not have her own courtyard but a small building of her own. The servants and maids lived downstairs, and the little girl lived on the second floor. Around this small building were several other small buildings for Xiangcheng, Nanping, and others. These buildings surrounded Li Lizhi's building, like stars circling the moon, clearly showing that Li Lizhi was the most beloved daughter of Changsun and Li Er.

Li Kuan stepped on the wooden stairs, the creaking sound making him very uncomfortable, reminding him of the cement stairs in the modern world!

Entering Li Lizhi's room, Li Kuan felt a suffocating atmosphere. The windows and doors were tightly closed, and two stoves were burning fiercely. Li Kuan's face immediately changed.

"Who did this stupid thing? Is this how you do it?" Li Kuan looked at the maid adding charcoal to the stove and scolded her harshly.

"Second Brother, why are you scolding them?" The little girl heard Li Kuan's voice and poked her head out from the bed, speaking weakly.

Seeing the little girl's flushed, sickly face, Li Kuan's anger intensified. He turned and opened the door, then quickly went to the window and opened it, letting a strong gust of cold air rush into the small room.

"Are you trying to kill Lizhi? The windows and doors are tightly closed, and you have the stoves burning! Don't you know that stoves consume oxygen in the air? The carbon dioxide produced by burning can suffocate people! Get out of here!" Li Kuan looked at the maids, who were already cowering, and found them all unpleasant.

"Second Brother, don't be angry! Lizhi feels so uncomfortable! Is Lizhi going to die?" The little girl's voice brought Li Kuan back to his senses.

"No, with Second Brother here, Second Brother will make sure Lizhi is fine!" Li Kuan quickly went to the bed and held the little girl's small hand.

Her already thin hand was now icy cold. Li Kuan held it, feeling as if he was holding a block of ice: "Lizhi, why did you fall ill? Has Mother not called for a royal physician?"

"Mother came to see Lizhi this morning, but Father is coming back soon, and there are many things to take care of in the mansion. Lizhi let her go!" The little girl looked at Li Kuan blowing warm air on her hand, feeling a warmth in her heart: Is this what a brother is like? Why does the eldest brother never do these things?

Li Kuan said nothing more. He knew that Changsun was very busy and tired. With Li Er's return, the Crown Prince was stepping up pressure on the Qin王府 (Qin Mansion), hoping to force Changsun to give up some interests before Li Er returned to Chang'an.

Li Kuan felt a sense of sorrow for the first time about his identity. The imperial family has no kin. Even though Li Lizhi was the most beloved daughter of Changsun and Li Er, she still had to yield in the face of the vast interests.

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(End of the chapter)