A life of two souls traveling through time

Ever since An Ge left the mansion and Master Li took away the management rights of his East Street shop, Li Yunye's ambition, which he had finally aroused, collapsed again. He locked himself in Qingyun Garden like a waste all day long until New Year's Eve, when he was urged by Madam Li to get up at the hour of Yin because he had to go to the ancestral temple to worship his ancestors.

The gate of the ancestral hall was opened the night before. The servants cleaned the hall inside and out. When the ancestor worship began, drums and music sounded, and candles were lit inside and outside the hall. Li Xingyuan walked in the front, followed by Li Yunye. The housekeeper and several servants were waiting at the door with wine and incense. Li Xingyuan knelt in front of several tablets to offer wine, and Li Yunye also knelt behind him at the suggestion of the housekeeper. After offering wine three times, Li Yunye took the three incense sticks that the housekeeper had lit and walked forward to worship. The silk in the servant's hand was taken by Li Xingyuan who had already stood up and thrown into the incinerator outside the main hall. Finally, everyone present knelt down and kowtowed together, and the ancestor worship was over.

After offering sacrifices to the ancestors, it was still dark at the hour of Mao. Li Yun was still sleepy, so he went back to his room to take a nap. However, he was woken up by An Yun again an hour later.

"What? Going to the government office to celebrate the Spring Festival? Why don't the master go? Why should I follow him?" Li Yunye couldn't open his eyes. He spoke in a daze and was about to lie down in the quilt again.

"Sir, are you dressed? The master is still waiting." The urging of Butler Fang outside finally woke Li Yunye up.

"It's almost done...it's almost done..." Li Yunye hurriedly changed into the new clothes and shoes prepared by An Yun.

On New Year's Eve, the Li Mansion had already begun to decorate with lanterns and colorful decorations, and the maids and servants were busy cleaning the courtyard, hanging cypress leaves in front of the door, pasting peach charms, changing the door gods, and pasting couplets. The housekeeper Fang who was in charge of the Li Mansion was extremely busy and had no time to urge the young master. Fortunately, Madam Li came to Qingyun Garden in time:

"What are you still dawdling about, kid? If you keep your father waiting any longer, you might get beaten again!"

"It's all An Yun's fault. She's so clumsy that she can't even tie her hair properly..." Li Yunye was so anxious that he was about to cry while sitting in front of the bronze mirror. He completely forgot that it was because of his staying in bed that the time was so tight.

"I'm sorry, sir..." An Yun had always been doing odd jobs in the outer room before and had never served the master. In addition, Li Yunye kept urging him, and now that Madam Li appeared again, he became even more flustered.

"Give me this useless thing!" Sister Lan snatched the white jade crown from An Yun's hand and came behind Li Yunye, and tied up her hair in three or five moves.

In front of the main gate, several servants were playing music and drums, wearing red and colorful clothes. Other merchants from Qile City also came one after another. Li Xingyuan, dressed in a brand new rich-style outfit, smiled and was easy-going in front of everyone, but secretly cursed his useless son who would be late for who knows how long. He didn't breathe a sigh of relief until Li Yunye ran towards him panting. Afterwards, Li Xingyuan led most of the merchants from Qile City to the government office.

Along the way, some small merchants still joined the team that was beating drums and music on several streets. The scattered team led by the Zhao family had just arrived outside the government office. They were extremely jealous when they saw the huge team slowly approaching from the other side. Zhao Changhe was already jealous to the point of gritting his teeth, but he still had a smile on his face:

"Brother Li, I haven't seen you for a long time and you are still as elegant as ever. You are worthy of being the head of the famous Li family in Jiangnan. Traveling with you will only make others look pale in comparison."

"You must be joking. Brother Zhao is still strong despite his old age. He has made Zhao's tea business bigger and stronger with his determination to rise to the top. This is the senior we should learn from and emulate!"

"Yes, yes, Master Zhao is still as skilled as ever. I admire him!"

As soon as Li Xingyuan finished speaking, the others following him echoed him. Zhao Changhe looked at the other party's huge momentum and then felt the coldness behind him. He was so angry that he was about to rise to his throat, but he had to continue with his superficial efforts.

Zhao Chu, who was standing aside, was young after all. Seeing Li Xingyuan's arrogant style, he immediately turned down his face and disliked him very much.

Li Xingyuan didn't care when he saw it. After all, in his eyes, Zhao Chu was already the sacrifice of the day.

Li Yunye, hiding in the crowd, looked at the heads of the Zhao and Li families, who appeared to be smiling at each other but whose eyes were full of murderous intent. He couldn't help but shudder in his heart. He secretly glanced at the murderer's face of Zhao Chu, and his legs began to go weak. Fortunately, An Yun was quietly supporting him.

At this time, the gate of the government office was opened, and the two groups of people began to play music and drums again. The Zhao and Li families entered the government office together with hypocritical humility.

In the lobby of the government office, the prefect You Zhiji and several officials, all dressed in neat and clean official uniforms, welcomed the merchants who came to congratulate Qingchun.

It was almost noon when the Li father and son returned home. The whole city was filled with the sound of firecrackers and cheers. Every household was filled with fragrance and people were laughing and bustling.

Just when the family was celebrating and reuniting, the sound of the drum for appealing against injustice outside the government office echoed throughout three or two streets.

After a stick of incense, the government office was in a state of chaos. The prefect, You Zhiji, looked very gloomy. He slammed the gavel down hard and asked in a stern voice, "Who is here? What grievance have you committed on this New Year's Day?"

"My lord, my last name is Liu and I live outside the city. I make a living by doing small business in the city every day. I shouldn't have brought bad luck to you this year, but Zhao Chu, the son of the Zhao family, is too bullying and wants to force my son to death!" An old man with a pale face, thin body, and a tattered jacket, who was kneeling in the hall, complained with tears in his eyes.

"Zhao Chu? What's going on?" You Zhiji was shocked. How come Mr. Zhao came to the government office to celebrate the new day, but he went to do evil right after?

"Your Excellency, my son was an apprentice in a pharmacy. Half a month ago, while delivering medicine, he accidentally bumped into the young master of the Zhao family. He was dragged into a dark alley by the Zhao family's servants and had his leg broken. Later, the young master of the Zhao family sent people to our house every now and then to threaten and humiliate my son. My son has been forced to the point where he doesn't want to live... I have no choice but to ask the judge for a way out..." At the end, the old man Liu had cried until he had no strength left and had to lie on the ground.

"Uncle Liu, do you have any evidence for your complaint?" You Zhiji was naturally furious after hearing this. Although the young master of the Zhao family was a well-known playboy, if he dared to be so lawless in Qile City, he would be slapping the face of him as the prefect.

"Your Excellency, there are witnesses to my son's crime, but the Zhao family is so rich that no one dares to offend them." Old Man Liu straightened up and shook his head helplessly, then took out a piece of paper from his arms and continued, "Your Excellency, today I am beating the drum to appeal not only for my son, but also for a poor father and daughter!"

You Zhiji frowned slightly, and then ordered someone to present the petition to him. After reading the petition, he slammed his palm on the table in anger:

"Uncle Liu, where did this petition come from? Where are the father and daughter surnamed Hong now?"

"Your Excellency, this is a distant cousin of mine. His surname is Hong, and he was originally a tenant of the Zhao family. I went to his house recently to visit relatives, only to find that the house was already empty. I only found this petition. After reading it, I realized that this father and daughter were also bullied by the young master of the Zhao family!" Old Man Liu said, wiping away tears in grief again.

"Someone, call Zhao Chu!"

"Wait a minute, my lord, wait a minute!"

Just as You Zhiji finished speaking, he raised the gavel, but was stopped by the chief constable Zhou Bing who came in from outside.