Chapter 15 Chapter 15 The old woman asking for directions.
Song Jiaoniang and Lin Sen had complicated feelings towards Shen Yan. At first, after receiving the news about Shen Yan, they had no expectations for him and even prepared for the worst.
After the conclusion of the initial investigation came out, and after seeing his attitude towards marriage, the couple became excited again, thinking that this might be a good marriage sent by God.
But after two and a half days of traveling with the caravan, the couple discovered another problem.
During the previous investigation, both Lin Sen and Manager Huang thought that Chen Yan was just an ordinary escort.
But when the family entered the caravan, they found that the investigation results were completely wrong. Chen Yan was not an ordinary porter at all. He was clearly a close confidant of the caravan owner, or perhaps a relative or friend?
When the matter was brought up today, Song Jiaoniang pulled Lin Sen and her daughter aside to whisper a few words, intent on finding a chance to confess the truth. "I think we should talk about this before we get to the Yangtze River ferry. If he's not interested in marriage, we can return the betrothal gifts and go our separate ways at the ferry."
"By the way, we have to pay them for the ride to the ferry. We can't just take advantage of them for nothing."
"Mother is right, but..." Lin Zhi agreed with Song Jiaoniang, then shook her head and said, "I think we should wait until we get across the river before discussing this."
"Oh? But wouldn't that be taking advantage of them again?" Song Jiaoniang felt embarrassed. Not only did the caravan not charge any travel expenses, but they also paid for the food for the family of three.
"It's not that I want to take advantage of them, but I'm worried that it will take some time for us to find a boat," Lin Zhi explained. "Why don't we first find out the money needed to cross the river and pay it to the caravan later?"
Lin Sen also agreed with his daughter's idea. He also had an additional safety consideration: "There are many pirates on the river, and we are strangers. If we hire a boat on the spur of the moment, we might be targeted by criminals and not even realize we have entered a den of thieves."
"A den of thieves!?"
"Yes, there are quite a few pirates on this river."
"There are still pirates?" Song Jiaonian was shocked.
"There are plenty of them. Those pirates rely on their good sailing skills and the extensive waterways, so they even dare to rob official ships." Lin Sen told the mother and daughter what he knew. "We still have to be careful when we go out. Otherwise, if something goes wrong, it will be too late to regret it."
Song Jiaoniang was immediately filled with fear upon hearing this. She no longer mentioned leaving early, and even after the caravan arrived at the Hezhou ferry, she didn't dare go out. It was only after Lin Sen and Lin Zhi persuaded her that she agreed to go out and take a look.
The family of three had just walked out the door when they bumped into Chen Yan, who was also pushing the door open. Chen Yan took a half step back, bowed and greeted the three of them, and then asked, "Uncle Lin, Aunt Song, are you going to take Miss Lin out?"
"Well, let's just go for a walk around the area."
"The ferry crossing is a mixed crowd, and kidnappers often roam around. Please be careful and don't go too far." Chen Yan looked at Song Jiaoniang and Lin Zhi who had changed into bright clothes and reminded them.
Lin Sen nodded: "Thank you, Brother Yan, for the reminder."
After watching Chen Yan turn around and enter the house of Tao Lang, the head of the caravan, Song Jiaoniang could no longer hold back her expression. She grabbed Lin Zhi's hand and muttered, "Let's not go out. Let's go back to the house."
"...Mother." Lin Zhi didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Since we're unlucky, let's just take a walk around and come back, okay?" Lin Sen looked at the timid Song Jiaoniang with a smile in his eyes, pushing her forward. "Didn't you say a few days ago that you wanted to check out the clothing stores and silk shops to see the prices outside?"
Lin Sen discussed with Song Jiaoniang and planned to open a garment shop or a silk and satin shop in Bian Jing to save up dowry for his daughter.
However, opening a shop is not easy. Although Lin Sen has some experience, he was working for the Xi family at that time. He knew his own ways of dealing with goods and did not need to do everything by himself.
But opening your own shop is different.
Therefore, the couple planned to visit more shops along the way and inquire about the latest market prices so that they would have some idea after arriving in Bian Jing and would not be deceived.
After hearing the serious business, Song Jiaoniang also perked up and followed the father and daughter out.
After just a few steps, they arrived at the bustling shopping street.
Although Hezhou Ferry is not one of the most important ferry crossings on the Yangtze River, it is still densely populated with merchant ships, and local merchants have set up storefronts on both sides of the ferry to facilitate the transportation of goods.
As merchants gathered, a large number of people looking for work and vendors also poured in, gradually forming an extremely lively commercial street.
Looking around Nyingchi, you will see streets extending in all directions, filled with all kinds of shops, from those renting carriages and boats, to those selling cloth and clothing, spices and medicinal herbs, pots and pans, and even all kinds of fruits, vegetables, and snacks. It is so dazzling that one doesn't know where to start.
"I didn't expect the commercial street in Hezhou to be so prosperous." Lin Sen took a look around and couldn't help but sigh. Whether it was the local specialties of Hezhou or the specialties of other areas along the Yangtze River, they could all be found here.
"Shall we go to that silk shop first?"
"Well, there happen to be two clothing stores next door. Let's go take a look."
Linzhi followed behind, her eyes unconsciously attracted by the many food shops.
In addition to the numerous shops on both sides of the commercial street, there are countless stalls selling everything from local fried sparrows and cloud cakes, sesame cakes, to fried red sausages, sticky bean cakes, pickled pork head, honey-fried yam and dates, four-color dumplings, meat buns, bamboo shoots and pork noodles, and shredded chicken cold noodles.
Linzhi was itching to try some, so she finally managed to patiently accompany her parents to the silk shop. However, she had little interest in fabrics and clothing; after a brief glance, she wandered to the shop entrance, gazing eagerly at Zhique'er's stall.
"Zhi" means roasting in the present moment.
The so-called roasted sparrows are made by removing the feathers and internal organs of the sparrows, marinating them with sauce, and then roasting them over low heat until the skin is golden brown and has a strong roasted aroma. Finally, brush them with a layer of sauce and sprinkle with a handful of sesame seeds.
Linzhi couldn't help smelling the fragrance, so he simply went forward to queue up and spent a few dozen coins to buy a roasted sparrow.
The roasted sparrow just taken off the grill has golden skin and emits a burnt aroma. When you tear open the crispy skin, you will find the juicy meat inside, which is extremely delicious.
Linzhi ate one but was still not satisfied, so she bought another fried sparrow from the stall. This time the sparrow had a different taste. Every inch of meat was marinated and even the bones were fried until they were crispy and soft, leaving no residue at all.
She swallowed the last bite with reluctance. Just as she was thinking about whether to buy two more for her parents to try, a strange voice suddenly came to her ears: "Young lady, young lady."
Linzhi turned around and saw an old woman wearing a faded blue cloth on her head, an indigo linen skirt, and a white apron tied around her waist. She was about forty or fifty years old, with a round face, slightly protruding cheekbones, and a very kind smile.
Linzhi remembered her own character, so she didn't say anything, but just tilted her head to look at her, looking confused.
"Do you know where the Jia family butcher shop is?" The old woman held a piece of paper in her hand, which seemed to have words written on it. With a look of helplessness on her face, she handed the paper to Lin Zhi and sighed, "My brother works there and told me to look for him here, but I can't read or understand maps, and I haven't found him yet..."
The old woman was muttering to herself, but before she could finish, she saw another person in front of her. It was Song Jiaoniang who came out of the shop.
Song Jiaoniang was feeling very anxious because of what Chen Yan mentioned, and she kept looking at her daughter in the shop.
When she noticed a woman talking to her daughter, she immediately rushed out like a cat with its fur standing on end, glaring at the woman and saying, "Where did you come from, woman? Why are you talking to my daughter?"
The old woman was startled and took a step back before she said awkwardly, "I just wanted to ask for directions..."
"Ask for directions?" Song Jiaoniang didn't wait for the old woman to finish her words. She raised her eyebrows, rolled up her sleeves, and stared at her with a fierce look: "The streets are full of men, and you don't ask? There's a government office over there, and there were patrol officers just passing by. You don't ask them, but only ask my girl who is standing alone? You are either a liar or a kidnapper--"
In an instant, many people around looked over.
Lin Sen, who had followed his wife out of the shop, suddenly looked gloomy when he heard this. Without thinking, he went forward to catch the old woman.
Upon seeing this, the old woman immediately dove into the crowd like a swimming fish and disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye.
Her reaction only confirmed Song Jiaoniang's suspicions and caused an uproar among the people around her. Some shouted "kidnapper," some called for the police, and some tried to stop the woman, but she fled so quickly that she disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Song Jiaoniang spat, "You thief!"
Lin Sen's face turned pale. He hurried forward and held his wife and daughter's hands tightly. He was terrified: "How dare you come out and cheat people in broad daylight?"
Seeing that people were about to gather around them, Lin Zhi quickly pulled her parents aside. When no one was paying attention to her, she smiled and said, "I had no intention of paying any attention to her at all."
"We're at a ferry port, and most of the people walking on the street are passengers who have just disembarked from the ferry. How could they know the way around?"
"This person keeps saying he's looking for the Jia family butcher shop. If he's looking for a shop, he can just go to the intersection and ask the city magistrate and the market supervisor. There's no need to go door to door asking."
Business was booming, so each market had its own mayor responsible for managing it, and supervisors responsible for patrolling the market. They kept a register of the market shops, making it easy to find merchants.
Therefore, as soon as the old woman opened her mouth, Linzhi knew that she was most likely a kidnapper/swindler, and was prepared for this person to go into the shop as soon as she came forward.
After a pause, she smiled and said, "The rest is just as mother said."
Not to mention this era, even in the future when surveillance is not yet perfect, human traffickers will still be rampant. Linzhi has heard a lot about the various methods used by human traffickers, such as asking for directions and tricking kind-hearted female students into leading the way, taking people directly to the thieves' den, or finding a secluded place and letting accomplices stuff people into a van and take them away.
Not to mention the present, in my previous life's memory, there were several incidents caused by gossip between mothers-in-law.
For example, an old man took his half-grown granddaughter to the night market to watch the lanterns, but he lost his granddaughter when he turned around. Or, a child was tricked away by someone using fruit, and when his parents got the news and rushed over, the child had disappeared without a trace.
After this incident, the three of them never dared to separate again. In Lin Sen's words, this place is a ferry, with ships coming and going. If they were tied up, gagged and sent into the cabin with the cargo, they would be helpless.
Lin Zhi, carrying some food in her hands, followed her parents back home. But after only a few steps, she smelled an enticing aroma.
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