The others turned their gazes to Little Zhang, somewhat confused by her words, and asked curiously, "Wasn't it robbed by bandits?"
Little Zhang nodded and shook her head, and seeing the doubt in everyone's eyes, she said, "Being robbed by bandits is a small matter. You don't know, I heard that the bandits killed a lot of people in several villages. Many girls and women who didn't go to escape the famine were kidnapped, and some young men became bandits. I heard that they were all taken away by the government."
"What happened to those girls and women who were abducted?" someone asked curiously.
"What can happen? They've been sent back by the government. Some of them are okay because the men in their families have died or their uncles and elders are not around. They can continue to live in the village."
Some families without male heirs were driven away by their uncles and elders, who said it would ruin the family's reputation. It's infuriating! These people were innocent; not only were they kidnapped by bandits, but they also faced this upon their return.
"Yes, I've heard about it too. But I know someone in Dahe Village who is doing alright. Those women and girls who were kidnapped weren't driven away. Everyone was tormented by the famine and banditry. They finally settled down and are now thinking about farming properly this year!"
"Only those old geezers saw how easy it was for them to bully and drove them out of the village. If they're so powerful, why don't they go and deal with those mountain bandits?"
"That's right. They barely survived in the mountain stronghold, but when they came back, these uncles forced them to die. It was the widow Cheng from the neighboring Willow Village who was really fierce. She chased those uncles for two miles with a kitchen knife and scared them so much that they dared not come to her door."
Those on the oxcart who knew the story also chimed in, all filled with righteous indignation.
Zhao Dashu and the others were also furious, their brows furrowed and their fists clenched.
Zhao Dashu muttered to himself, "These uncles are really despicable. If I ran into them, I would definitely beat them up."
Gou Sheng and Liu Dayong nodded repeatedly.
Women's status in this era was not particularly low. Women could come and go freely and could also do small business outside. Compared to those completely patriarchal societies, it was not bad.
Those uncles who drove people away weren't really after people; they probably wanted money and food.
Having just experienced famine, although the government distributed grain, each household received very little. When these abducted girls returned, they wanted to share the food, which the people naturally refused. That's why they drove them away on the grounds that the girls had lost their chastity.
Jiang Yimian glanced at the direction of the village a few more times before quickly looking away.
The oxcart swayed and rattled along the road for almost an hour, and finally arrived at Qinghe Town just as Jiang Yimian was getting a little drowsy.
After handing Yang Er six copper coins, Jiang Yimian and the others prepared to leave.
Yang Er felt a little embarrassed and quickly handed over two copper coins, saying, "Four copper coins will do. I don't usually accept copper coins from villagers who bring things to reserve a spot, so how could I accept yours?"
If word gets out, people will say that Qing Shi Village is bullying people.
Jiang Yimian simply said, "We took the seats, so we should give them to us."
Although most of them were carried on their laps, the width of those baskets was still more than the space a person would take up. Add to that the three buckets outside, and two copper coins wouldn't be a problem.
Seeing that Jiang Yimian and the others were unwilling to accept the gifts, Yang Er quickly said, "Then I'll help you deliver these things over there. It's too much trouble to carry so many things."
As he spoke, he hurriedly drove the carriage and followed the group toward the street on the side.
Seeing that the other party insisted, Jiang Yimian did not refuse again.
The group soon arrived at the place where they had sold things last time. When the elderly couple who sold wontons saw the group coming to borrow a table, they simply told them to take it themselves.
They were busy serving customers at the wonton stall.
Yang Er helped the group set up their stall before driving the oxcart away.
As Gou Sheng took the things out of his basket, he said, "Grandpa Yang is such a kind man; he even helped us set up our stall."
Liu Dayong nodded as well.
Knowing they were going to the market today, Wang Fengqin, Zhao Dashu, and the others specially made a lot of konjac tofu, weighing over 60 jin (30 kg), which took three buckets to hold.
In addition to some baskets made by Chen Tiezhu, straw sandals woven by Old Liu and Zhao Xing'er, and coarse cloth, the small table couldn't hold them all.
Gou Sheng quickly placed the baskets on the open ground to the side and put them together with the eggs to sell.
As for straw sandals and cloth, Liu Dayong put them in his backpack.
Before the Lunar New Year, Zhao Xing'er wove a lot of cloth, originally intending for everyone to make clothes for themselves. However, there was still quite a bit left, and since she could still weave some in her spare time and there would be many expenses in the future, she decided to sell it all together today.
As soon as the stall was set up, a lot of people gathered around.
A young woman said, "Oh my, you've finally come! I was thinking you wouldn't come. You didn't come to the market last time, and my child has been asking for this stuff every day."
Zhao Dashu was taken aback, and quickly said, "I was delayed by something last time and couldn't come."
The woman didn't say anything more, and handed Zhao Dashu six coins, saying, "Give me two portions quickly."
Gou Sheng quickly and efficiently took two portions from the bucket, wrapped them in dried bamboo leaves, and handed them over.
The others quickly added, "Give me one too."
"I want two servings."
Zhao Dashu collected the money, and Gou Sheng packed the items. The two worked together seamlessly. Occasionally, when there were too many people and they couldn't keep an eye on everything, Liu Dayong would also come to help. When there were fewer people, he would look at the eggs and other items on the table and ask others if they wanted to buy them.
Although all three were busy, they were organized and not flustered at all.
Jiang Yimian was relieved, said something, and left with her basket on her back.
She first went to a secluded alley, took out a lot of medicinal herbs from her spatial storage and put them into her basket before heading towards Huichuntang.
There were quite a few people at Huichuntang today. Several shop assistants were busy in the shop, and a small partitioned room had been set up on the side of the shop. There was a queue outside the partition, presumably for people to see a doctor.
Jiang Yimian glanced at it a few times and then looked away, bypassing the line of patients and coming to the counter.
One unfamiliar waiter was dispensing medicine, while another was calculating the bill for a customer; it was the same young waiter as last time.
Jiang Yimian waited for a while, and the familiar shopkeeper finished calculating the money before saying to the customer, "These two doses of medicine cost a total of one hundred and forty coins."
The man responded, rummaged in his sleeve for a while, and took out a string of copper coins strung together. He counted them carefully in his hand, but it seemed not enough, so he took out a few more from his sleeve and handed them to the waiter.
The man counted, said hello, gave the other person some instructions on how to take the medicine, and then left.
Jiang Yimian sighed from the side, "Sure enough, seeing a doctor and taking medicine is expensive no matter when you go."
Modern society has medical insurance, but it was really difficult in ancient times.
"Miss, are you here for a medical checkup? Today is the 23rd, and the doctors at Huichuntang are seeing patients without charging a penny. You can go and have a look." The waiter said with a smile, pointing to a small cubicle next to him.
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