When Yun Ruoxia saw this, her heart nearly jumped to the sky. She had never seen anything like it before.
In the village, her uncle's family was the most notorious for their dissolute behavior, but the two families were relatives after all, and besides, her older sister Yun Ruochun was there to protect her. Who would dare to lay a finger on her?
These people seem to be seasoned gangsters. She's all talk and no action, and she has no real strength. Besides, there's Yunling, who's only half a child. How can she handle such a little kid? Oh well, if we don't have a donkey cart, we'll just buy another one. Otherwise, we'll end up getting ripped off and wasting our time.
"Ling-jie, let's run."
Yunling jumped up and knocked her unconscious. At least no one she knew was watching her, and she didn't have to pretend to be a child anymore.
Yunling stretched her arms and legs and looked at the curly-haired man wielding a dagger in front of her. "You guys sell mushrooms, right? What, you can't outsell us, so you're trying to steal our donkey cart to threaten us into leaving the county and going back to the village? If you find out, don't blame us for being impolite, is that it?"
"You...you...you've already said everything, what should I say?"
Yunling put her hands on her hips and said bluntly, "Then let's have a fight. If I win, you can get lost. If I lose—no, I won't lose.
Chen Jie was amused by her words. This little girl was a few years younger than him, but she was quite bold. Look at her, putting her hands on her hips and pretending to be fierce. It was quite strange, but also quite cute.
he,
he,
He got beaten up?!
Chen Jie snapped out of his daze, covered his slapped left cheek, and looked back. He saw that his brothers behind him had been swept away by a gust of wind, and in the blink of an eye, some were injured and others were crippled.
The culprit stood calmly to the side, casually wiping the blood from his hands onto the wall.
"Get lost! Otherwise, don't blame me for being impolite."
Chen Jie's legs went weak and he knelt down on the ground. "Grandma, from now on we'll follow you. If you tell us to go east, we'll never dare to go west."
This was somewhat different from what Yunling had imagined. Normally, shouldn't he have become furious and warned her fiercely, telling her to wait there while he went to call for reinforcements?
"Grandma?"
Yunling cleared her throat. "Where did you get your mushrooms from?"
These mushrooms can sell for two coins each, so they must be homegrown. They might even have a mushroom farm, which would be a good opportunity for her to visit and learn.
Who knew...
"It was stolen."
"Robbed? What about the victims? Does that mean they have to live?"
"Turbulent times produce heroes; one cannot be indecisive when undertaking great tasks."
Chen Jie's attitude instantly reminded Yun Ling of the group of thugs she encountered during the apocalypse, and other thoughts began to stir in her mind.
"You really want to follow me?"
Seeing that Yun Ling had agreed, Chen Jie quickly said, "Really? If I go against your word, I will be struck by lightning."
"Okay, let's go have a meal first, please, Grandma."
Yunling showed Chen Jie her purse, and Chen Jie was overjoyed. He quickly helped Yunling lift the unconscious Yun Ruoxia onto the donkey cart, and then he and his brothers followed Yunling to the brothel.
The madam was overjoyed to have such a big business opportunity. She arranged for all sorts of fine wines and delicacies, and even said she would arrange for several beautiful young women.
Yunling was a little unhappy. "How can Mom only care about them? What about me?"
The madam was quite frightened, but having seen many things, she simply assumed the wealthy were just playing around, and said with a forced smile, "The Nanfeng Pavilion across the street is also ours, and the actors inside..."
As she spoke, her gaze drifted to Chen Jie and his group. These guys were quite good-looking; if only…
Yunling noticed the madam's expression and simply told her to leave. Chen Jie was genuinely happy, poured himself a full cup, and was about to become sworn brothers with Yunling.
Yunling accepted the punches with a smile, and in the blink of an eye, she punched each of them once, and soon they were all down.
"I'll teach you to steal from others, I'll teach you to be a coward!"
Yunling kicked the tyrant twice, then packed up the chickens, ducks, and geese with a cloth, climbed out the window, and slipped away. She didn't care whether these vagrants were left at the brothel or the pleasure quarters; she was just playing the heroine, punishing evil and promoting good.
Little did she know that she was just a little kid who had forgotten to use her wood-type ability. After she left, Chen Jie and his brothers opened their eyes one after another.
"Boss, that woman tricked us. I'm going to go and bring her back right now."
Chen Jie didn't agree. He just touched his kicked foot, his face flushed with embarrassment. After a while, he scratched his ears and cheeks awkwardly, unable to stop himself from smiling.
Everyone else looked on in dismay, wondering if their leader had been possessed.
"Boss, are you crazy?"
"You're the one who's sick, your whole family is sick. Come on, let's go do something good."
"..."
After being shaken awake, Yun Ruoxia saw Yun Ling, and her unease lessened considerably. "Ling-jie, where are those people?"
"They were all scared away by the soldiers."
Yun Ruoxia, unsuspecting, rubbed her aching shoulders and neck and said, "I just dreamt that you hit me."
Yunling quickly lowered her head, "Where would I get the energy?"
“That’s what I thought too,” Yun Ruoxia’s gaze then fell on the wad of fabric. She didn’t dare to touch it, but could smell the aroma of chicken and goose wafting from it. “What is this?”
"Just now, an old man saw me crying and shaking you, and said that he had no money and could only give me this to comfort me."
Yun Ruoxia's lips trembled. Did they suspect she was dead? But she didn't think much of it and took it with her as she drove the donkey cart back to the village.
The autumn harvest was nearing its end, but the villagers were far from happy. The county yamen runners had come twice, and this year's land tax had increased significantly. Most of Yunling's family's grain had been taken away, not to mention the other villagers whose grain yields were not good. After the runners left, everyone cried and wailed, especially the Liu family, who sounded like they were at a funeral.
Judging from the village chief's tone, it was said that preparations were underway for war with a neighboring country, and the imperial court needed to prepare provisions in advance.
It turns out that the Great Jin Dynasty, where Yunling lived, had always had a bad relationship with the neighboring Lin State, and there had been constant warfare for years. However, after the new emperor ascended the throne, the new emperor of the Great Jin Dynasty paid tribute to the Lin State to ensure five years of peace. Now that three years have passed, the court needs to make preparations to stockpile grain and fodder.
Hearing the villagers' cries, it would be a lie to say that Yunling's heart was not moved. Although she had become accustomed to being cold-blooded in the apocalypse, she truly felt the affection of family here, and her heart was filled with a different kind of emotion.
But the increase in production depends entirely on her special ability, which is something that cannot be told to outsiders, and she cannot take the risk.
Teaching them to grow mushrooms is one way, but it's not an easy task, or even a good one. If the mushrooms don't grow well, she'll be the target of criticism and gossip.
If the mushrooms grow well, the market price will drop as the mushrooms become plentiful. Inevitably, some people will try to lower the market price and disrupt the market. Moreover, a small county town can't accommodate so many mushrooms, so they can only be sold outside. And she will inevitably be the one testing the waters. Whether she succeeds or fails, she will get herself into trouble, not to mention the issue of whether the mushrooms are fat or thin.
Besides, she was only a six-year-old girl. How could she understand such things? As the saying goes, "A common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime." What if someone couldn't stand her and regarded her as a witch, shouting that they wanted to burn her to death? How would she deal with that?
Yunling felt increasingly disheartened as she thought about it, and stopped trying to think about it further.
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