Chapter 56: Changed His Mind, Erniu Gets Ready to Go Into Business!

Li Feng walked through Huaiyang County with his two young sons.

Big Dog and Erniu were like country bumpkins who had never seen the world; entering the city, they felt that everything around them was fresh and novel.

"Dad, the shops here are so big and tall! They're much better than the house we live in!"

Erniu pointed at a shop not far away, a look of yearning in his eyes.

How wonderful it would be if their family could also own a shop like this!

"You like it?" Li Feng asked.

"Mm!" Erniu nodded vigorously.

"Well then, in the future, Dad will rent a shop for you and you can be the proprietor. How does that sound?" Li Feng said.

Through spending time together over this period, Li Feng had already figured out the habits and personalities of the children in his family.

Erniu was very smart, but he was already sixteen and had yet to start his formal education. If he wanted to study now, his achievements would likely be limited.

Sanniu was quick-witted and only twelve, a good age. With a bit of extra money, hiring a junior scholar as an introductory tutor was still feasible. Once he caught up with the progress, the rest would be easy to handle!

Although he had no intention of taking the imperial examinations himself, he still had some understanding of these matters.

Huaiyang County was the seat of the Qinghe Prefecture prefectural government and was extremely bustling. As the facade of Qinghe Prefecture, Huaiyang County was magnificent and resplendent!

Not only was there the Prefect himself here, but there was also the County Magistrate!

It was extremely prosperous!

Erniu was sharp; once he learned to read, Li Feng would teach him arithmetic, and he would definitely be able to understand account books.

Then, he could bring out the business online courses he used to watch on the internet and impart them all at once. Whether they could comprehend them depended entirely on their talent!

Anyway, his only job was to make money. The trials and errors, the running around—leave those matters to his sons!

"Really?"

Erniu's eyes lit up!

He stared fixedly at Li Feng without blinking!

As time passed during this period, what he felt in his heart was mostly a poignant ache!

Dad... turned out to be so talented.

Just by learning a few characters from his eldest uncle and third uncle, he was able to know so much. If grandpa and grandma hadn't suppressed him, Dad probably would have become a government official by now!

Upon discovering his father's capabilities, Erniu suddenly changed his original motivation for wanting to study!

Because he had asked around and found out!

According to the family of Li Jiabao, the thatched school in Xihe Village did not accept students as old as him.

He was sixteen. In ordinary families, people at this age were already married and had children!

Because his family was poor, coupled with the fact that the second branch held a very low status in the old Li family, and Li Village was a large village where certain matters could simply not be kept hidden, neither he nor his eldest brother had anyone coming to their door to propose marriage up to this day.

Big Dog looked at his second brother with an inscrutable expression.

He knew that his second brother was extremely enthusiastic about studying.

When they were little, his second brother's favorite thing to do was to squat outside the eldest cousin's room and listen to the eldest cousin recite books.

Although he didn't know what the characters looked like, those essays sounded just like the beating of drums in the village to their ears—very melodious.

Yet why had his second brother, who always loved reading, suddenly become interested in running a shop?

"Come, come, come, gentlemen! Our Peace Gambling House is the largest gambling den in Huaiyang County, and we guarantee no rigged games. Would you gentlemen like to come in and take a look?"

On the bustling street, in front of a place with a pair of dice hanging as a sign, a man wearing a dark brown short tunic was smiling all over his face, soliciting customers to step inside.

This man was extremely eloquent, talking with exaggerated enthusiasm, and actually managed to entice a few people to go in.

"Bang!"

Only a second later, a man was thrown out!

Following right behind him came a shower of clubs and beatings.

"Do you know what kind of place this is? Daring to cheat at a rigged table here—are you tired of living?!"

A club smashed down onto the forehead of the person on the ground.

Blood flowed freely!

Beating the man to within an inch of his life, the thug beckoned to the door-greeter: "Drag him away, don't affect the business!"

"Right away!" The person who had just been smiling moments ago now wore a gloomy face, stepped forward, and delivered a kick!

"Useless piece of trash!"

This sudden turn of events left Big Dog and Erniu dumbfounded.

What kind of business was this?

Seeing this, Li Feng decided to let them gain some real-world experience.

"Follow me inside!"

To make them unshakeable, they had to learn to resist temptation.

In the future, they would surely travel far. Along the way, there would be numerous sinister plots, and people might even set traps specifically for them.

Those sophisticated traps could catch people off guard, and in the end, you could die without even knowing how it happened.

Today, he wanted them to understand what greed truly meant!

"Come, come, come, all bets are down!"

Along with the dealer's voice and the rattling of dice, a group of people rushed toward the gaming table frantically as if possessed by demons!

"Big! Big! Big!"

"Small! Come on, small!"

"No! How can it be small again?!"

"Give me one more chance, I still have silver!"

"Out of silver? How can that be?!"

As the dealer opened the dice cup, the expression on everyone's face was completely different.

Some were wild with joy, quickly throwing themselves into the next round.

Some slumped to the ground, utterly dejected!

Some even began to mortgage their wives and children, stopping at nothing!

Big Dog and Erniu watched with trembling hearts.

The people in this place had all gone mad!

They were all people from the county town, possessing houses, land, wives, and children—why didn't they cherish them?

Now they were actually resorting to pawning their own families!

How many young men in Li Village couldn't even find a wife, yet these people...

They had entered with high spirits, but when they came out, both of their faces were pale!

Just a moment ago, as they were heading out, a miserable scream suddenly echoed from inside the gambling house; rumor had it that someone had bet one of his own arms!

That man's clothes had been stripped off, all his valuables taken, and he was thrown out completely naked just like that.

Someone was waiting outside; the moment the person came out, someone immediately stepped forward, hoisted the man up, and sprinted toward the Hebi Medical Clinic at an unbelievable speed!

"Dad, have they all gone mad?"

Big Dog asked.

Erniu remained silent, deep in thought about certain matters.

Strange occurrences were not uncommon in the village. For instance, the place they were in right now—if he guessed correctly, it must be what other people called a gambling house!

A few years ago, someone in the village was addicted to gambling and ran up a huge debt he couldn't repay. The people from the gambling house tracked him down and, right in front of everyone, chopped off that man's arm.

Ever since that incident, the word "gambling" became a taboo in Li Village. People like Lazy Li and Li Goudan's father were indeed fond of gambling.

Yet they still knew their limits; at least they wouldn't rack up massive debts or bring the matter before the village chief.

Otherwise, they wouldn't meet a good end either.

"This is a gambling house," Erniu said.

"Ah?"

Big Dog wore a terrified expression. "It's that scary?!"

Li Feng nodded. "Did you see that man who had his hand chopped off just now?"

Big Dog and Erniu nodded!

They saw it, and it had scared the wits out of them.

Covered in blood, how could it not be terrifying?!

"That man had fair skin and a rounded figure; at a glance, he came from a well-to-do family. Yet once he stepped in here, not only were his wife and children gone, but even his own arm was lost!"

"I brought you inside just to let you see how cruel it is here. No matter how much silver you have, as long as you step in here, or get trapped by someone's scheme, it is hard to escape with your life!"

"Ruining your family and losing your fortune is the mildest outcome; destruction of the family and death is the norm. In the future, whenever anything is even remotely related to the word 'gambling', don't you ever touch it, understand?"

Li Feng turned serious for once.

How dared Big Dog and Erniu say anything more? They nodded repeatedly, "Dad, we understand!"

The beggar outside, seeing the departing back of Li Feng, scratched his head in puzzlement!

"Country folk, the moment they enter the city they head straight for a gambling house. Could they be a family of habitual gamblers?!"

"Is a person like this even worth the noble patron keeping an eye on?"

The beggar was puzzled, the beggar was baffled, and the beggar continued to follow along!