Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

"Why did you suddenly decide to buy a house?" Madam Liu asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Our cellar isn't big enough to store grain. I'm thinking of getting a special place to store it," Xia Yu explained to Liu Shi.

"Okay, have Uncle Ma come over in a bit. Tell me what your requirements are, and I'll have Uncle Ma take care of them!" Madam Liu didn't say much more. After all, the house was hers no matter what she used it for.

After the meal, Madam Liu had someone summon Uncle Ma, and Xia Yu explained her request. Uncle Ma immediately finished arranging his work and drove the carriage out the door.

In the afternoon, Zhang Youtie and Changyun arrived home, bringing back news that Changyun was going to accompany Li Taifu's delegation to the Russian country and the border of their own country.

"Brother, you're so lucky to be able to go to such a faraway place. I really want to go too!" Xia Yu said enviously to Chang Yun.

"How about we talk to the teacher and ask them to take you along?" Changyun suggested, not to tease Xia Yu, but because he thought it was a really feasible idea.

"Don't be ridiculous. Xiaxia is a girl. How can she go to such a far place?" Liu Shi said, trying to stop her.

However, Xia Yu was genuinely tempted by his suggestion; she wanted to go out and see the world. Having been here for several years, the farthest she had ever been was Ming'an County. She felt that what she had done over the years was a disgrace to transmigrators.

“Mother, there are quite a few attendants, doctors, and guards in this delegation, and the teacher is the official historian of the delegation, so it should be enough to bring a few more people. Besides, Xiaxia knows martial arts, so she might be able to help the delegation.” Changyun tried to persuade Liu Shi.

"Xiaxia, do you want to go?" Madam Liu turned her gaze to her daughter.

Xia Yu knew that Liu didn't want her to go so far away; she was worried about her safety. But after thinking about it, she decided to express her true feelings.

"Mother, I want to go out and see the world. There are too many restrictions on women in this era. They get married in their teens, have children, and then manage the household. I want to take this opportunity to see the world and add more happy memories to my otherwise mundane life. Mother, I am quite good at light-footed skills, and with Nineteen and Daniu protecting me, no one can hurt me."

Xia Yu's words reminded Liu of her daughter's uniqueness and the other world that her daughter had once told her about.

Girls there can go to school, travel alone, drink with friends, achieve great things, and do many, many things. Thinking of this, she suddenly felt a pang of heartache for her daughter.

If you don't know that women have another kind of life, that's fine, but once you've seen, experienced, and had it, it must be very difficult to leave that free place and go back to the cage.

"Alright, since you want to go, have your brother talk to Grand Tutor Li. If the Grand Tutor doesn't agree, have your father accompany us to the provincial capital for a few days. We bought the house there two years ago, but we haven't lived there yet." Madam Liu had figured it out herself, but whether or not they could go depended on what Grand Tutor Li said.

Zhang Youtie never objected to things that Liu agreed to, and knowing his daughter's abilities, he tacitly approved of Xia Yu traveling with him.

So, Changyun, who had just entered the house, had Uncle Zhao drive the carriage and take him back to Li Taifu's garden.

"Huh? Young Master Changyun, why are you back again?" Uncle Li, the gatekeeper, asked curiously when he saw Changyun return.

"Uncle Li, is the teacher home? I have something to tell him."

"He's here. He just woke up from his afternoon nap and went to the fields. Go find him there," Uncle Li said, pointing towards the wheat field.

"Okay, thank you, Uncle Li."

Walking briskly to the edge of the wheat field, they indeed saw Li Taifu wielding a sickle to harvest wheat.

"Teacher!" Changyun shouted loudly at Li Taifu's back.

"Changyun? Why are you back again? Is something the matter?" Grand Tutor Li turned his head and saw Changyun standing by the ground. He stood up and asked him.

"Teacher, I have something I want to tell you."

Upon hearing this, Grand Tutor Li put down the handful of wheat he had just harvested and walked towards the Changyun River to ask him.

"What's going on?"

In an instant, Changyun realized he had been a bit rash. He was only able to go along because of his teacher, and bringing his younger sister along now seemed a bit excessive. But since he was the one who brought it up, and thinking of Xia Yu waiting for him at home, Changyun had no choice but to bite the bullet and speak up.

"Teacher, it's like this. Um... after I got home, I told my mother about going to the border. Um... actually, it was because I didn't think it through..."

"When did you develop this stuttering problem? Was it because your mother wouldn't let you go?" His speech was so slurred that Li Taifu couldn't bear it any longer and interrupted him directly. He couldn't think of anything else that could make his student so speechless.

"No, it wasn't my mother. My mother is very supportive of me going. It was Xiaxia." Seeing the puzzled look on Li Taifu's face, Changyun continued.

"It's Xiaxia who wants to go with us." His words caused Li Taifu to spit out the herbal tea he had just drunk.

"Cough cough...cough cough...what did you say? Where does Xiaxia want to go?" Grand Tutor Li asked, somewhat incredulously.

Xiaxia wants to go see the Russians.

"You said Xiaxia wants to go to the border with our delegation?" Grand Tutor Li asked again.

"Yes, Xiaxia wants to come to the border with us," Changyun nodded in response.

“Teacher, Xiaxia knows martial arts herself, and the two maids who serve her are also highly skilled in martial arts. They certainly won’t hold the delegation back.” Changyun wanted to advocate for his sister.

"Let me think about it." Grand Tutor Li stroked his goatee, considering the feasibility of the matter. After all, this was a matter of state, and all members of the delegation were appointed by the court. Now, with the addition of three maids, he needed to carefully devise a way to explain it to the outside world.

Changyun secretly regretted his hasty actions; he should have asked the teacher's opinion first before telling his sister. If this didn't work out, Xiaxia would be so disappointed!

The waiting was agonizing; it felt like an eternity, but in reality, it was only two minutes before Grand Tutor Li finally spoke.

“Alright, just say Xiaxia is my goddaughter, and those two girls will come along too. I’ll tell Lord Shen about this and have him add their names to the list of accompanying personnel.”

Changyun was overjoyed upon hearing his words.

"Thank you so much, teacher. I'll go back and tell Xiaxia right away. She'll be ecstatic."

"Go on, and make sure you all prepare your travel items well. Bring plenty of warm clothes." Li Taifu knew that Xia Yu must be anxiously waiting at home, so he waved for Changyun to go back quickly, but couldn't help but give him a few more instructions.

Shen Luo wasn't worried at all; he had no shortage of thick woolen clothing. However, although the Changyun family was well-off, they dressed very simply on a daily basis, and might not have large woolen garments like fox fur coats. Now that they were about to depart, the Zhang family might not be able to prepare properly.