Dear, your purchase ratio hasn't reached the corresponding percentage ~ You'll have to wait to see the update. Muah
If a person wanted power,
They would usually achieve their goals through the imperial examination and entering the palace,
Those with more courage and courage could choose to rebel and stand directly at the top of the pyramid.
However, for Li Yue, who had a different worldview from the common people of this era, being an official or a concubine was not a suitable choice.
Rebellion was even more out of the question,
She could not do something that would mess up the world for her own selfish desires.
Then Li Yue had a choice,
There was only one option, "Money".
Li Yue still remembered that she had read an article called "Money Can Connect the Gods" a long time ago,
Especially when it said, "Money can connect the gods to one hundred thousand strings of cash,
There is nothing that cannot be returned. "She had a deep impression of it.
She understood that money was not omnipotent,
But in such a feudal society,
Money could solve most of the problems she might face in the future.
Being a rich woman was the current Li Yue,
On the contrary, it was the simplest and easiest thing to achieve, especially since she could still borrow the "power" of the Li family's veteran caravan.
However, she did not plan to completely rely on the Li family's shop to do business,
She wanted to have her own people and shop. Therefore, Li Yue set her sights on the Long Dragon, who was in the midst of internal strife.
The Long Dragon was one of the local gangs in Shuozhou City,
The headquarters was in the West City, so it was relatively more trustworthy,
It was also the most powerful one among the local gangs,
However, the gang members were all local ruffians, and there were no martial arts masters in charge.
One of the characteristics of the local ruffians was that they bullied the weak and feared the strong,
It was easier to pack up,
At the same time,
Their minds were more flexible than ordinary people, and they were more suitable for inquiring about information and expanding trade routes.
Li Yue had always been a person of action. On the day she integrated the Long Dragon and confirmed her position as the leader of the gang, she ordered people to go to the West City to buy raw materials for making soap.
When the peddlers in Xi City heard that the Long Dragon Gang was coming to buy things, they were very nervous. They didn't dare to sell, but they also didn't dare to not sell. When they really got the money from the Long Dragon Gang, they were all stunned. They kept thinking that they were dreaming. One of the peddlers even bit himself, leaving a bloody bite mark before letting go.
To make soap, there were only two main ingredients — oil and alkali.
Shuo Zhou City was located outside the Great Wall, and there were nomads selling cattle and sheep in the West City. Naturally, there was no shortage of oil.
However, when it came to alkali, Li Yue had a headache.
The most suitable base to make soap was sodium hydroxide. However, with the current industrial level, it was very difficult to buy this stuff. Li Yue could only settle for the next best thing. She bought all the alkali, halogen alkali, and other bases that could be bought on the market.
Now that all the materials had been prepared, all that was left was the actual operation.
In the courtyard of the Changlong Gang Headquarters, which was originally a place for the gang members to gamble and play, several large pots were set up. Following Li Yue's instructions, a dozen or so men dressed in burlap robes, hats on their heads, and masks on their faces, divided into several groups and surrounded the large pots.
Those who added firewood added firewood, those who added raw materials added raw materials, and those who stirred stirred. They silently and carefully tried to make soap.
The firewood under the pot was burning brightly. Inside the large pot, there was a lump of greasy paste that kept rolling along with the stirrer's movements. A strange and rich smell mixed with white fog permeated the air. The men's faces turned ashen as they secretly felt that their gang leader was deliberately looking for trouble.
For a moment, the atmosphere in the courtyard was extremely strange. Some of the more timid gang members had just returned from the West City. As soon as they opened the door, they were so frightened by the people and pots in the courtyard that they almost fainted.
The older gang members also didn't understand what their gang leader wanted to do. They touched the silver in their sleeves that was warmed by their bodies. They always felt that the Long Dragon was going to die soon. Should they spend some time looking for the next gang leader?
Recently, Li Yue didn't have the luxury of personally seeing her own gang's courtyard, which was like the scene of a Hogwarts potion class. Naturally, she couldn't understand the feelings of the gang members who were troubled by the strange smell.
These days, there was no winter or summer vacation. As the new gang leader of the underworld, after the seventh day of the New Year, she obediently carried her cloth bag and went to school.
The children in the school were still immersed in the New Year's atmosphere and hadn't recovered yet. Before the teacher appeared, they were chattering non-stop. The topics couldn't be separated from fireworks, new clothes, and New Year's money.
Li Yue was bored to death as she looked around the classroom. She found that a few people were no longer in their seats. Lu San Egg was one of them. She cast a questioning look at Zhu Er, but Zhu Er gently shook his head. Obviously, he didn't know where Lu San Egg went either.
The children didn't argue for long before the old teacher pushed the door open and entered the classroom.
Suppressing the doubts in her heart, Li Yue studied and wrote as usual. When it was time for lunch, the old teacher brought her to the study without warning and asked her a few questions about her studies with a pleasant expression. Then, he tactfully hinted that she could bring her parents with her the next time she went to school.
When she suddenly heard that her parents were called, Li Yue was a little worried for a while. She suspected that the things she did at school in the past had been exposed and the old teacher had discovered that she was one of the instigators. However, the old teacher's attitude was too amiable. It didn't seem like he was looking for trouble, so she couldn't make heads or tails of it.
When Li Yue told Li Xunhuan and Uncle Fu that her parents were called, Tanhua Lang put down the wine jug in his hand and was stunned for a while. Uncle Fu immediately reacted and even congratulated Big Li And Little Li with a smile.
"Little Miss has always been intelligent and eager to learn. She has always been the best in school. This old man reckons that the teacher wants to recommend Little Miss to Shuozhou Academy."
Li Xunhuan turned to Uncle Fu and asked, "The county schools outside the border also accept female students?"
"I haven't heard of it, but Little Miss has always been wearing men's clothes. The teacher at the school probably didn't think of this."
Tanhua Lang fell silent as he looked at the little girl in front of him who was dressed simply and had her hair tied up in a ponytail. Since he was born, he had come into contact with four types of women. The first type was a well-educated and well-mannered young lady like Lin Shiyin. The second type was an ordinary woman who worked hard for a living like a servant at home. The third type was a courtesan like Xiao Hong and Xiao Cui who used their beauty to serve people. The last type was a Jianghu woman with a different personality and style.
Faced with Li Yue, who was completely different from other children her age and was exceptionally intelligent and lively, Li Xunhuan knew that he couldn't treat her in the usual way. The education he had received since he was a child made him think of teaching Li Yue to be a traditional woman who didn't leave the house. However, the moment this thought appeared, a voice of objection rose in his heart.
He shouldn't and didn't have the qualifications to intervene in other people's lives. Therefore, if the little girl wanted to do something, even if it was something that was against the norm in the eyes of the world, he wouldn't oppose it. He only needed to watch quietly and reach out his hand at the appropriate time so that the little girl wouldn't fall.
Li Yue looked at Li Xunhuan and the light in her eyes changed several times before finally stabilizing. She knew that he had made a decision, but she spoke her own thoughts in front of him:
"Uncle Li, I don't plan to leave the school and go to Shuozhou Academy. I also don't want to take the imperial examination."
"Even if you don't mention the imperial examination, going to a county school to study is beneficial for ordinary people."
"But, has Shuozhou Academy ever produced a top grade scholar?
Not to mention a top grade scholar, since the founding of the country, the Shuozhou Academy and the Jinshi Academy have only produced a few.
Besides, there's still Tanhua Lang and Uncle Li at home. Do you have no confidence in me or in yourself? "
Li Yue patted her cheeks. Not long after, she began to ramble:
"Putting everything else aside, what if in a few years I pass the imperial examination and am taken in as a son-in-law?
Do you want to see me being hit with embroidered balls by all the noble ladies in the capital?
With my face, not to mention the noble ladies, maybe even the princess will take a fancy to me. If I don't pay attention and become the princess's son-in-law, then — "
"Nonsense — cough cough cough cough —"
"Uncle Li, are you okay?"
Li Xunhuan coughed for a while before stopping. Li Yue took the opportunity to change the wine pot in his hand into hot tea. He didn't say much and just waved his hand repeatedly to let Li Yue go back to her room to practice calligraphy.
Before the little girl left, Tanhua Lang's face was still suffused with an almost sickly pink color, which made Rio feel alarmed.
In the original work, when Li Xunhuan appeared, he looked like he was half dead from chronic illness. Li Yue couldn't remember whether he had a hereditary family disease or a lung disease caused by drinking too much. Since there were symptoms now, she should make plans early. She decided to tell Uncle Fu and Tie Chuanjia to have the family's kitchen make Tanhua Lang snow pear stew every day in the future.
Not long after Li Yue left the study, Tie Chuanjia pushed open the door and came in. Li Xunhuan looked at the smiling Uncle Fu and then looked at the bearded Tie Chuanjia. He coughed softly:
"Recently, did Xiao Yue … buy any storybooks from the bookstore?"
Uncle Fu and Tie Chuanjia shook their heads in unison. Tanhua Lang frowned:
"That's strange. There are very few storybooks in my study, and the teachers in the school wouldn't let them read books other than the Book of Songs. Where did Xiao Yue learn these strange words? Could it be … that child?"
Lu San Egg, who was practicing martial arts with his master in the suburbs, inexplicably sneezed loudly.
Before the Spring Lantern Festival, the young man gave Li Yue the impression that he was a little like a wolf cub who wandered outside the pack of wolves and was raised by a female wolf alone. He was stubborn and persistent. When he interacted with others, he was curious and vigilant. He was cautious and wanted to draw a clear line between himself and others. But most of all, he had a longing for everything beautiful and warm.
On the day of the Spring Lantern Festival, the young man who appeared in front of Li Yue had a face full of panic and uneasiness. He looked very much like a cub who was about to lose its mother. No matter what, he wanted to salvage something, but could only whimper and stay by his mother's side. He looked weak and helpless.