strictlysupreme Chapter 175 What a heartless, extravagant spendthrift!
Chapter 175 What a heartless, extravagant spendthrift!
She never considered herself a good person; she simply reciprocated kindness. If someone treated her well, she would repay them sevenfold.
If anyone bullies or insults her, she will retaliate in kind.
Whether in her later life or after arriving here, her principles of conduct remained consistent.
Wu Qingfeng turned his head and saw that she seemed to understand something. He knew she understood the reasoning and that she would never trap herself, so he didn't say anything more.
They slowly led her a little further, and the donkey cart that had fallen behind caught up.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, they arrived at Xiahe Village.
The messenger had arrived long ago, and was now being waited for at the village entrance by the village head.
The muddy road was narrow, so the donkey cart and horses were tied to a big tree, and the group was led by the village head to the girl's house.
The girl's name was Chunhua. She was 8 years old when she was abducted and could already remember things. Although seven years have passed, Xiahe Village has not changed much in these years.
After entering the village, I slowly remembered the way home.
Perhaps because she was about to see her family, Chunhua became more lively.
Walking at the front, he pointed to the mountain ahead and said, "That's the back mountain. My home is on a small hillside at the foot of the mountain."
“When I was little, my brother often took me to pick wild fruits and hunt sparrows. He would point to the stream that went down around the village. It’s called Shuangxi. I used to catch clams and fish in it.”
The village head smiled and nodded, "These are two treasure troves in our village. All the children in the village grew up here."
Chunhua's smile widened, and Lin Chang'er was also infected by it, smiling along with her.
Wu Qingfeng grew up in a grand mansion and had never experienced this kind of fun. He just thought that if it were like this, it would be nice.
He turned his head and saw Lin Chang'er smiling, so he smiled back.
Even Xiaomei had an envious smile on her face.
Chatting and laughing, we walked along the small slope towards the back of the mountain for a while, and then we came to a small, secluded courtyard with the gate half-closed.
As you get closer, you can hear the crowing of roosters, the sound of axes chopping wood, and the grumbling of women.
"All I ever do is cause trouble. I just changed the sheets this morning, and now they've soiled them again. All I do is wash your sheets all day long."
"He Chunshan, let me tell you, if you keep doing this, we might as well give up on living together."
"Give Da Mao and Xiao Mao away as soon as possible, or they'll starve to death drinking cold water at home."
Then they heard a man say in a deep voice, "Which daughter-in-law hasn't gone through this? Going up mountains and down rivers, you're not really going to starve to death."
"Mom didn't mean it, can't you keep your voice down?"
"He Chunshan!" The woman slammed the bed sheet into the basin. "So you married me just to be your servant?"
"You're paying two taels of silver to buy a maid! Did your betrothal gifts when you came to propose marriage even amount to two taels?"
"You think I'm too loud? Who am I doing this for? I'm just trying to make your mother more at ease so I can have some time to sew shoe soles to sell in town and get money for food. Is it just me, Da Mao, and Xiao Mao in this family? Doesn't anyone in your family need to eat, drink, or relieve themselves?"
The man swung the axe heavily onto the wooden stake, and the axe sank into the stake.
The man turned and walked into the house.
"Where are you going?" the woman shouted, bending over slightly.
The man didn't say a word, leaving only his back view.
Chunhua, who had been leading the way, had stopped and dared not move forward.
She turned her head to look at Lin Chang'er with innocent eyes.
Lin Chang'er frowned, at a loss for what to do.
The woman washing clothes in the courtyard noticed them and approached the gate, looking at them warily. "Who are you?"
Seeing the constables behind them, they became even more nervous, "Heaven have mercy, we are all law-abiding citizens..."
The village head shook his head and stepped forward, "Chunshan's wife, don't be nervous. The constable isn't here to arrest anyone; he's here to deliver someone."
The woman's tension dissipated, replaced by confusion. "Give her away? Give her away to whom?"
The village head smiled and called into the house, "Chunshan, your Chunhua is back! Come out and recognize her!"
As soon as the words were spoken, a heavy thud was heard from inside the house, followed by the indistinct cries of "Chunhua, Chunhua."
The woman didn't even have time to say hello before rushing into the house.
Before long, a tall, strong man helped an elderly woman with a full head of silver hair out, followed by two boys of similar age.
The old woman was in tears, her eyes were cloudy, and her legs were weak. She looked around blankly, searching for something in the air.
The little girl named Chunhua stood there stunned and called out "Mother," then burst into tears. She rushed over, and the whole family hugged each other and wept bitterly.
The two boys following behind clearly didn't know what was happening, but they were terrified by the scene before them and started crying too.
For a moment, the entire courtyard was filled only with deafening cries.
The village head explained, "On the way here, Chunhua was in a good mood, so I was too embarrassed to say anything."
"Back then, when her father took her to the market, he bought her a string of candied hawthorns, and then he had her sold to a flower seller."
"Her father was filled with remorse and went to town to look for her every day, but then he disappeared without a trace, and to this day there is no certainty as to whether he is dead or alive."
"Her mother's eyes are ruined from crying. Her father used to be a hunter, the best hunter in the whole village. Every few days, their family could eat meat. They were considered a well-off family in the village. Now, oh, beggars can kill people..."
Lin Chang'er felt a deep sense of sympathy upon hearing this. It wasn't that there weren't parents in later generations who were determined to find their children; there were even movies about it.
The profession of human trafficker has been universally condemned since ancient times.
In fact, the punishment for human traffickers in this era was actually more severe than in later generations. Driven by profit, there were still many people who defied the law and committed crimes.
Lin Chang'er sighed; there was no point in saying anything more now.
Chunhua has been found, and there are still people in the family. If the whole family works hard, they can keep going.
He glanced at Wu Qingfeng, who nodded and said to the village head, "Now that the person has been delivered, I will return first."
"If there are any rumors in the village, please ask the village head to help explain. After Chunhua was abducted, she worked as a maid in a wealthy family for seven years. That's all."
The village head bowed and said, "This humble subject understands."
Wu Qingfeng nodded to Lin Chang'er, indicating that they could leave.
Lin Chang'er turned around, then suddenly remembered something.
He took a silver ingot out of his purse and quietly placed it next to the axe.
He then smiled at everyone and left.
Wu Qingfeng watched her entire behavior and thought to himself: What a heartless, extravagant spendthrift!
After walking a short distance, the village head warmly invited Wu Qingfeng and his companions to his home for a meal.
Wu Qingfeng believed he would not eat a single grain of rice from the common people. When his sister went out, he resolutely refused, saying, "No need to be polite. We have other matters to attend to, so we will take our leave now."
Seeing that he couldn't refuse, the village head had no choice but to escort them to the big tree at the village entrance.
As usual, Lin Chang'er boarded the donkey cart, Wu Qingfeng rode ahead on horseback, and the yamen runners helped drive the cart.
They had walked about a mile when they suddenly heard someone shout "Wait a minute!" from behind. Lin Chang'er lifted the carriage curtain and saw Chunhua and her brother Chunshan running after them...