Chapter 88 Stone

People in the market gathered around to watch the fun and pointed at them.

Chen Ling's anger suddenly rose. She put the small bamboo basket on the ground, put her hands on her hips, and stood in front of Chef Wang.

"Chef Wang, what do you mean by this? Are you trying to make things difficult for me?"

Seeing that she had finally lost her temper, Chef Wang showed a smug smile on his face: "Little girl, don't say such harsh words. The things in this market don't have your name on them. Whoever has more money can buy it. It's only natural."

"You!" Chen Ling's face turned red with anger.

"But..." Chef Wang changed the subject, stroking his greasy chin and looking Chen Ling up and down. "If you really want to buy these things, it's not impossible. I can show you a way."

"What clear path?"

"You must become my disciple." Chef Wang raised his head and said in a condescending tone, "I see you have some talent in cooking, but you're just a bit unsophisticated and can't really be considered a chef. If you kowtow and become my disciple, and learn from me, I promise that not only will I give you all the ingredients, but you'll also have free access to the kitchen of the Yingke Building!"

He thought that the conditions he offered were extremely generous and that ordinary people would have knelt down in gratitude long ago.

Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Chen Ling burst out laughing as if he had heard a huge joke.

"Chef Wang, are you still wide awake in the middle of the day, talking in your sleep? You want me to be your disciple? Do you deserve it?" She curled her lips and retorted bluntly, "Who lost the last competition? Have you forgotten so quickly? If anyone wants to be a disciple, it should be me!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the people around burst into laughter.

Chef Wang's face instantly turned the color of liver, and he trembled with anger. "You...you ungrateful little girl! You're shameless even when I give you face! I'm telling you, from today on, at the Pingjiang County market, if I, Wang, set my sights on any ingredient, you won't be able to buy even a single onion!"

Just when the two were on the verge of a fight, a young man dressed in silk and with a slicked-back hair and powdered face squeezed out of the crowd and walked up to Chef Wang.

"Dad, why are you getting angry with this country girl? It's just a loss of your status."

This man was none other than Chef Wang's only son, Wang Baocai. His lecherous eyes hadn't left Chen Ling since they'd been born. He wasn't attracted to Chen Ling's cooking skills, but rather her charming face, which only grew more charming with anger, and her fiery spirit.

Wang Baocai leaned close to his father's ear and whispered, "Dad, this girl has a fierce temper, like a little wild cat, she's interesting. If hard tactics don't work, let's try soft tactics. Aren't you worried that my courtyard is still short of servants? I think she's a good match. Let's find a matchmaker and go to her house to propose marriage, saying that we want her to be my concubine. Once she's married into our Wang family, her little cooking skills will be at our disposal. Then, whether we beat her, scold her, make her cook, or let her serve, won't it all depend on your words?"

When Chef Wang heard this, his eyes suddenly lit up.

Yes! That's a great idea! It's a relief, and I can get her recipe at the same time. It's like killing two birds with one stone!

"Good son, you are still smart!" He patted Wang Baocai on the shoulder. The father and son looked at each other and showed a tacit and obscene smile.

Chen Ling naturally had no idea what this shameless father and son were up to. She only knew that she would not be able to buy what she wanted at the market today.

But Chen Ling is not so easily defeated.

"Hmph, if I'm not welcome here, I'll find another place that will welcome me! If I can't find it at the market, I'll go to the village to get it!" She picked up her small bamboo basket, glared at Chef Wang, turned around and left.

She decided to go directly to the surrounding villages and ask door to door. She was sure to get the freshest ingredients, and they would be cheaper than at the market!

Chen Ling took a ox cart and first went to Zhangjia Village, which was the closest to the county town.

But after visiting several households, she found the situation bleak. Due to the severe drought, many fruit trees had lost their yields, and the villagers barely had enough to eat themselves, leaving them with nothing to sell.

Chen Ling was unwilling to give up, so she walked towards a more remote village.

When she reached the entrance of Xiaxi Village, she heard a commotion and cries. Curious, she went over to take a look and saw a group of people gathered under a large locust tree.

In the center of the crowd, a ragged woman was tightly hugging a little boy of seven or eight, crying heartbreakingly. A human trafficker with a face full of flesh, who looked like a bad guy, was trying hard to pull the child out of her arms.

"Let my son go! I won't sell him anymore! I won't sell him anymore!" the woman cried.

The child's father, an equally skinny man, knelt on the ground, kowtowed and wept: "Please, give us a few days! We really have no other choice!"

The trafficker kicked the man away and cursed him viciously, "Bullshit! It's all signed in black and white. Two taels of silver, and this kid is mine! You want to regret it now? It's too late! If you don't let go, believe it or not, I'll sell you to a brothel too!"

The surrounding villagers all looked reluctant, but no one dared to step forward to stop them.

Chen Ling stood outside the crowd, listening to bits and pieces of conversation until she finally understood what had happened. A family member had fallen seriously ill, and with no food left, they were desperate to survive. They'd decided to sell their youngest son to a trafficker in exchange for two taels of silver to pay for their eldest son's medical care and food. But when the time came to separate them, how could a mother bear to do so?

Chen Ling's heart seemed to be tugged at by something.

She looked at the little boy, who was clearly trembling with fear, but said nothing. He just stared at his parents with despair in his big, dark eyes. That look was like a knife, piercing Chen Ling's heart.

She thought of herself, and the love her parents had for her and her sisters. Just as there was no high or low in food, there was no high or low in people. Why should this child, simply because of poverty, be sold like merchandise?

A surge of blood rushed to my head.

Without a second thought, Chen Ling pushed through the crowd, rushed in, and shouted, "Stop!"

She opened her arms, protected the mother and child behind her, and glared at the human trafficker.

The trafficker was stunned for a moment, then looked her up and down with disdain: "Where did you come from, little girl? How dare you meddle in your grandfather's business? Get out of here!"

"I'll pay back their family's money!" Chen Ling pulled out her small money box from her bosom. It contained all her belongings, which she had saved up pennies on the coin. She stuffed the entire box into the trafficker's hands. The crisp sound of copper coins clashing together silenced everyone.

"There are more than two taels of silver in here. Now, can you let him go?" Chen Ling stared at the human trafficker and said word by word.

The trafficker weighed the money box in his hand. It was quite heavy. He greedily opened it and took a look. His eyes widened. He chuckled and released the boy's hand. "You're smart!" Then he turned around and walked away with the money in his pocket.

The crisis was over. The woman hugged her son and knelt down in front of Chen Ling, kowtowed repeatedly: "Thank you so much, young lady! Thank you so much for saving my life!"

Chen Ling quickly helped them up, feeling mixed emotions.

She looked at her empty bamboo basket and the little boy beside her who was timidly holding on to her clothes, and sighed.

I didn’t buy any ingredients, but I spent all my money.

She looked down at the little boy she had bought and asked, "What's your name?"

The boy raised his head, glanced at her timidly, and whispered two words, almost inaudibly, "Stone."