Yunling blinked. She felt like she'd been lectured, but luckily she wasn't the type to hold back, so she immediately retorted.

"You're overacting. We're here to buy things; we're the customers you need to serve, not to listen to your nonsense."

Shopkeeper Chen nodded. The south is rich in bamboo, so making paper from bamboo is incredibly cheap. Even if it's transported here to sell, it'll only cost two or three coins more. In the past, he always recommended this bamboo paper to scholars, and they all agreed and praised it highly.

Moreover, they had just bought a mixed-hair brush, so they couldn't be so poor they couldn't even afford to lift a pot lid. He hadn't paid much attention and had said those words without thinking. Now, thinking back, he realized he had been negligent, so he apologized:

“I misspoke. If we’re not considering bamboo paper, then we’re left with straw paper. It’s fifteen coins a ream, which is twenty-five sheets. But this straw paper isn’t very strong and doesn’t absorb ink well, so you’ll have to be careful not to get ink on your wrist when you use it.”

"Then I'll trouble the shopkeeper to give me a cut."

Yun Chu quickly counted out fifteen copper coins and handed them to the shopkeeper, her brows gradually relaxing.

Yunling initially wanted to pay with her own money, but she knew that Yun Chu was somewhat competitive, and if she paid for the paper as well, Yun Chu probably wouldn't be happy.

Yun Chu did indeed think that way. Having witnessed the prices of goods, and knowing that she didn't have Yun Ling's ability to make money, she naturally had to be frugal.

She didn't dare to think about calligraphy practice books for the time being, let alone ink or inkstones. She was thinking of going home and having Yun Shenghua teach her a few characters. If she could learn with patience, then she would continue. If she found it boring, she would give up early and go back to embroidering her handkerchiefs.

The three of them stared intently at Chen, the shopkeeper, as he cut the paper, even more intently than when they were watching someone cut cake outside, afraid that he might cut too little or make a mistake and lose money.

After leaving Yunxiang Bookstore, they went to Yun Shenghua's business and waited for about fifteen minutes before taking a donkey cart back to the village together.

The four chatted and laughed all the way. After Yun Chu learned that Yun Shenghua had no objection to her learning to write and even offered some encouragement, she immediately became much more cheerful, just like a flower bud swaying in the wind.

Just as they drove into the entrance of Dongtou Village, a series of wails came from inside, as if someone had died and was crying. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be Liu.

It turns out that of the three hundred strings of cash that the Liu family had initially given to Song Zhiping, one hundred strings were borrowed from underground banks and another hundred strings were borrowed from temples. In the past few months, the family had been working like crazy, skipping meals and drinks, and only had forty-two strings left.

The money owed to the underground banks had ballooned from one hundred strings of cash to two hundred strings; where would they find the money to repay it?

When the creditors couldn't collect their money, they came knocking on the door. But all the valuables in Liu's house had been sold off before, and the walls and roof hadn't even been repaired yet. In a fit of anger, they grabbed Yun Xiaowu and Yun Xiaoliu as payment for their debts.

They outnumbered the villagers, each with a ferocious and menacing appearance. The men of the eldest son's family were not present, leaving only Liu Shi and her three daughters-in-law. Upon seeing this scene, the villagers kept their distance and dared not approach. Thus, Yun Xiaowu and Yun Xiaoliu were easily taken away.

Liu usually couldn't bear to see her precious children get hurt, but now that they'd been taken away, it felt like two knives had been plunged into her heart. How could she not be heartbroken?

When the second and third sons' wives saw their sons being taken away, they were so anxious and angry that they choked on their phlegm and immediately fainted.

When Lian Shi, who had recovered, saw her two sisters-in-law lying unconscious on the ground, she could only cry as she dragged them home.

Passersby who saw this were filled with pity. Even children abducted by human traffickers could not be safe, let alone those who fell into the hands of such ruthless killers. They would most likely not have a good end.

After Yunling and her group learned the whole story, the atmosphere in the car became somewhat heavy.

Are Yun Xiaowu and Yun Xiaoliu innocent and pitiful?

Innocent and pitiful.

Was this situation caused by the third wife?

No, it's the Liu family reaping what they sowed.

Will it help the first wife's family get through this crisis?

Won't!

If Yunling and Yunchu were arrested, the eldest branch of the family would definitely stand idly by. Besides, the underground banks are places that even the county government rarely touches. What ability do they have to reach there? Are they going to ask Yun Shenghua's boss again, or trouble the Lu family business?

They've already owed someone a favor once; owing them another would only annoy people, so what good would it do them?

Furthermore, are they really so magnanimous as to save someone who has repeatedly harmed them?

I'm sorry, they can't do that!

Yun Shenghua simply parked the donkey cart at the village entrance, leaving Liu Shi inside to wail and scream.

Liu had originally planned to wait for Yun Shenghua to return, then kneel and kowtow repeatedly to beg him to use his connections for help. She had meticulously planned what to say, what tone to use, and how to deal with their cold words. However, she waited in vain and heard that he had returned but was standing at the village entrance, refusing to enter. She was so angry that she fainted.

After finally settling her two sisters-in-law in peace, Lian went outside and saw that Liu had also collapsed. She wished she could faint too and end it all.

**

Yunling didn't get a very restful sleep. Last night, when Yun Da and the others came back and learned that Yun Xiaowu and Yun Xiaoliu had been arrested, they cursed and cried, making a scene like a funeral. The villagers, who had initially felt sorry for them because of this, have now completely disappeared.

Yunling yawned and saw that dried fish were hanging in the yard, with Xiaobai walking back and forth below, its head constantly looking up and its nose twitching.

"You little rascal, don't you dare get any funny ideas. If you lose one of these, I'll kill you."

Grandma Yun smiled and brought in a small basket of pork. Little White immediately ran forward to greet it, its tail spiraling into a spiral.

"Mom's back! Why did you buy so much?"

"This is hardly a lot. If you chop it up and dry it, it'll only amount to ten pieces."

"No, add some shiitake mushrooms, and it'll probably cost around twelve yuan."

Grandma Yun laughed even harder, quickly handed the small winnowing basket to Zhang Shi, and went to the mushroom room.

Yunling rubbed her sleepy eyes and followed her mother's footsteps to see Yun Chu sitting on the veranda. She was carefully holding a brush and writing on a piece of scrap paper. She was writing her name, Yun Chu. The two characters Yun Chu quickly filled the entire scrap paper. She was obviously not quite done, but when she was about to start a new piece of paper, she stopped.

The ink from the pen tip quickly dripped onto the clean paper. She nervously put down the pen and hurriedly used her sleeve to dab the drop of ink. Only after dabbing did she realize that she didn't know if the ink could be washed off.

She then picked up the pen again, wiping off all the ink from the tip with her fingertips to save for later use. Her two fingers were stained black with ink, but she couldn't stop being happy.

Yunling, resting her chin on her hand, observed Yun Chu's subtle movements. An idea popped into her mind, so she opened the window halfway and called out to Yun Chu:

"Sister, let's go up the mountain."