Jun Jiuli opened her eyes on a desolate slope, with a neatly bundled pile of firewood beside her. Having received the memories, she immediately rushed home.
"Mom, I'm not going, I'm not going. I want to stay home, wuwuwu~ Mom, save me, Mom, I don't want to be sold. Brother... Brother, save me."
From a distance, she could hear the heart-wrenching cries of a little girl. A stout, broad-shouldered old woman was trying to lift her onto a cow cart made of rough wooden planks.
"Stop, you're not allowed to touch her."
"Brother, brother, brother, please beg them for me. Chun'er will be obedient from now on. Ask Grandpa and Grandma not to sell me. I won't fight with Auntie over things anymore. Brother, I'm so scared."
Jun Jiuli strode forward, and before the old woman could react, she snatched the little girl from her grasp, shielding the child behind her.
"My goodness, what's going on at your house? Are you selling her or not? I have to go to other villages, don't waste my time."
Xu Dahua: "Xiao Wei, quickly put Xiao Chun down and let her go with Aunt Liu. Your Grandma has already taken the money. Mother has no choice, don't blame Mother for being heartless."
"Mom, Xiao Chun is your own daughter, don't you feel heartbroken?"
Xu Dahua began to wipe away tears incessantly. "How can Mother not be heartbroken? But the family can barely afford to eat. This is also a last resort. If Xiao Chun goes to a rich family as a maid, her life might be better than it is now."
"Alright, are we doing this business or not? I don't have time to listen to you mother and son chatting."
"Aunt Liu, how much did you pay? I'll return the money now. I will not agree to sell my sister."
"You kid have some backbone. Old Madam Zhao took one tael of silver from me. It depends on whether you can get her to spit it out, otherwise I must take this little girl away today."
Old Madam Zhao: "You little brat, when did it become your turn to speak in this house? Where did you go to collect firewood? You only know how to slack off every day, you won't have dinner today."
Xu Dahua: "Mother, please don't be angry. Xiao Wei didn't mean to talk back to you. Just take the money out and don't sell Xiao Chun. If we family members work together, we will surely be able to live well."
"Hmph, a bunch of debt-collectors. What's the use of keeping a girl? Selling her for some money to help the family is her greatest use. None of you know the cost of living, Liu Pozi, hurry up and take her away. This family is not for you to make decisions."
Her voice was sharp and shrill. Zhao Xiaochun, hiding behind Jun Jiuli, couldn't help but flinch, her grip on Jun Jiuli's hand tightening unconsciously.
"Mom, hold Chun tightly and don't let go, understand?"
Xu Dahua nodded blankly and hugged her daughter tightly. Her son seemed to have grown up a lot, and she felt like she had support in this family again. If she had a choice, how could she be willing to sell her own child.
"You little brat, your wings have grown strong, haven't they? Xu Dahua, hurry up and put Chun on the cow cart."
As Old Madam Zhao spoke, she tried to snatch the child. Xu Dahua, holding the child, ran towards the courtyard exit.
Jun Jiuli stuck out her foot, and Old Madam Zhao fell flat on her face. She lay on the ground, groaning in pain and cursing incessantly.
Jun Jiuli ran directly into Old Madam Zhao's bedroom. Zhao Jiaojiao, who was napping on the bed, was startled awake. She sat up on the bed, staring blankly at Jun Jiuli.
"Xiao Wei, how could you come in here?"
Jun Jiuli ignored her and walked to the large wooden chest at the foot of the bed. She pushed the chest open, revealing a hole beneath the dirt floor.
A piece of blue cloth wrapped all of Old Madam Zhao's money. Jun Jiuli took out one tael of silver and also put the remaining dozens of copper coins into her space.
Zhao Jiaojiao hurriedly got off the bed and put on her shoes. "Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing, Zhao Xiaowei? How can you take the family's money? I'm going to tell Mother, and she'll teach you a lesson."
Zhao Jiaojiao was already 7 years old. The day she was born, the trees and grasses in the village that could bloom all bloomed simultaneously. Red light also shone in Old Madam Zhao's delivery room, and Old Madam Zhao kept smelling a pleasant fragrance.
Old Madam Zhao had given birth to three sons before, and at the age of 60, she gave birth to Zhao Jiaojiao. Coupled with these unusual signs, the old couple doted on this youngest daughter immensely.
They all believed that this daughter was extraordinary and would surely achieve great things in the future. To ensure she could marry well and not be looked down upon, they had paid someone to bind her feet when Zhao Jiaojiao was five years old.
Therefore, before she could take two steps, Jun Jiuli had already reached the outside and handed the money to Liu Pozi. Liu Pozi was also very straightforward. She took out the deed of sale and tore it into pieces in front of Jun Jiuli.
"Your mother and your two younger sisters will depend on you from now on."
Liu Pozi said this meaningfully, patted Jun Jiuli on the shoulder, and then drove away. Only then did Xu Dahua dare to come over with Zhao Xiaochun.
"Xiao Wei, what will happen now? We've offended your Grandma, and we certainly won't have good days ahead."
"Did you have good days before you offended her?"
Xu Dahua awkwardly tugged at her clothes. She truly hadn't had a single good day. But if Old Madam Zhao were to drive them away now, how could she support three children alone?
Jun Jiuli glanced and knew what she was thinking. "Don't worry, she's too reluctant to lose so much labor."
"Yes, Xiao Wei, you're right. Mother will work hard and eat less from now on. She will definitely change Grandma's mind."
Zhao Jiaojiao: "What are you whispering about over there? Didn't you see Mother fall? Why aren't you coming to help her?"
Xu Dahua was about to go over, but Zhao Xiaochun, still stunned, clung tightly to her clothes.
Jun Jiuli spoke directly, "That's your mother, why don't you help her yourself? Mother, take Chun back to the room to rest. You can come out when I call you."
"Will… will this work?"
"Why not? Will she die from a fall?"
Xu Dahua, holding Zhao Xiaochun, hurried into her room, not looking back. Whatever her son said, she would listen to him.
Zhao Jiaojiao stomped her feet angrily. "Zhao Xiaowei, how can you be like this? This is unfilial. The person lying on the ground is your Grandma."
"You are the closest to her. We are separated by a generation. If it's unfilial, it's you who is most unfilial, not even helping your own mother lying on the ground. Tsk tsk tsk, at over sixty years old, she still has to suffer like this. If this reputation of great unfilial piety spreads, I wonder who would dare to marry you then."
"I'm so young, how can I possibly help her?"
"I'm not as young as you. Ugly people are so bothersome."
"Ugly? You dare to call me ugly! There isn't a girl in this village more beautiful than me. Today, I will teach you a lesson on behalf of my deceased elder brother, so you know to respect your elders."
As she spoke, she charged towards them. Shui Wa had long been eager and ready.
*Slap, slap, slap.* She fiercely slapped Zhao Jiaojiao's face, leaving her stunned. Her hair was disheveled, and her face was swollen like a pig's head.
When she realized what was happening, she ran into the house in panic, shouting, "Ghost ah... ghost ah, there's a ghost~ Help me, someone save me. Wuwuwu~"
She even lost one shoe. After entering the house, she quickly closed the door and blocked it tightly with her back, never once looking back at Old Madam Zhao lying on the ground.