After that, she pulled over a gray-haired woman next to her, pointed at her and said, "Look at her. She's not even thirty years old this year, but she's been plagued by illnesses caused by abuse and is extremely weak."

"And her, because she always wanted to run, her husband broke her leg, and he wouldn't let her see a doctor. Now her leg bones are all dislocated. Not only does she walk with a limp, but whenever it's cloudy or rainy, the joints between her bones hurt like crazy."

The women all looked sad, and Lin Yi's expression became more solemn.

The scalded woman continued, "Later, they wanted to send my seven-year-old Ni'er away to marry her younger uncle. When I heard about this, I accidentally hit my mother-in-law with the pickle jar and knocked her unconscious. I knew that when their family came back, my mother and I would definitely not be treated well.

I took my three daughters and fled to the back mountains. I thought we would all die together, but unexpectedly I met my sister Ye Zi. She brought us to this valley and often stole food and farm tools from our family to bring to us. That’s how the four of us managed to survive in this valley.”

The scalded woman was filled with gratitude towards Qiao Sanye, and her voice was choked with sobs as she spoke.

The gray-haired woman took over her words with a sad face and continued, "I was already engaged, but on the way to the county supply and marketing cooperative to buy something, they knocked me unconscious and brought me here.

They beat me every day, and made me wash the family's clothes, feed the chickens and pigs from morning till night, and only let me eat a bowl of sweet potato porridge a day. Later, I was so tired that I had a miscarriage. The village witch doctor said I would never get pregnant again, so they beat me even harder.

One day I fainted in the fields, and when I woke up I found out…I found out I had been bullied…by a village slacker. Instead of settling the score with him, they came after me, scolding me for being unruly. They beat me half to death, then put me in a bamboo cage they usually used to raise chickens, and drowned me in the river at the east end of the village…”

The gray-haired woman cried breathlessly when she said this, and her emotions were completely out of control.

The others gathered around her and patted her back gently, trying to calm her down as soon as possible.

Qiao Sanye said in a deep voice, "I was washing clothes by the river that day when I saw them put Sister Xiaohua in a cage and sink it into the pond. When they saw the cage disappear under the water, they left. I dove in, pulled Sister Xiaohua out of the cage, and then brought her to this valley."

The playful smile on Lin Yi's face had completely disappeared. The look in his eyes was a little dim. He opened his mouth but didn't know what to say.

Qiao Sanye pointed at the other women and continued, "Their situations are similar. They are all pitiful people. I don't necessarily want to go against the villagers in the village, but I can't just watch them die. I brought them all from the village secretly.

The people in the village thought they had run down the mountain, so they sent many people after them. They hadn't expected them to go into the mountains, so naturally, they couldn't be found. The village also stepped up its security, with guards at the entrance around the clock. I didn't even have the chance to send a message home for them, alas.

The reason why she didn't agree to go with Tie Niu this time was not because she was attached to the thin family affection between Qiao's parents, but because she felt that this was an opportunity to help everyone in the valley escape.

She thought that with so many people running away from the village at once, there would definitely be a few people who would be so angry that they would call the police. When the police arrived, she would quietly bring them to the valley, pick them up, and let them go home to reunite with their families.

This is her secret base. She regards the safety of everyone in the valley as her own responsibility. Because she does not trust Lin Yi and Ling Shuang, and is afraid that telling them will delay the chances of escape for the dozens of abducted women in the village, she did not say anything yesterday.

"I'll go back and take a look soon. Please stay here for a while. When the police come, I will ask them to take you and your sisters away." Qiao Sanye said to Lin Yi with a stern face.

"No need to wait for the police, I'll take you out!" Lin Yi exerted force on his abdomen, folded in the air with his waist as the center of gravity, took out a dagger from his boot, cut the vine rope wrapped around his ankle in one go, then rolled in the air and stood neatly in front of Qiao Sanye.