Chapter 21 Song Xiaoxiao Runs Away from Home
The matchmaker followed Song Xiaoxiao.
Meanwhile, at home, Song Li suddenly realized that Song Xiaoxiao was missing and was frantically searching for her everywhere.
As soon as I opened the door, I accidentally bumped into the matchmaker.
Seeing her so eager, the matchmaker assumed she had come out specifically to greet her, and immediately grinned, revealing an "I understand" smile.
—In the past, Song Daya was eager to get married, and people would look at her with such fervor, like a starving cat seeing a plate of fish.
Why only a plate for holding fish? It's because Madam He repeatedly obstructed the marriage, and the engagement could never be finalized.
Seeing that Song Daya was anxious, the matchmaker simply got straight to the point.
"Don't worry, young lady, I have a good man here." She spoke frankly.
There weren't many unmarried girls over fifteen years old in the surrounding area, and she couldn't wait to marry off Song Daya as soon as possible to complete her mission.
Song Li didn't react for a moment, "Huh?"
However, she breathed a sigh of relief when Song Xiaoxiao was found.
Seeing that her expression changed from anxious to relaxed, the matchmaker assumed that she had hit the nail on the head, so she continued cheerfully, waving her handkerchief:
"Don't worry, girl. There are plenty of men out there. Leave it to me, and I guarantee I'll bring you good news soon."
Although the war in the north is currently intense and the court wants to conscript able-bodied men, making it difficult to find young and strong men for marriage, it is still easy to find living old widowers.
The matchmaker, having been in the industry for decades, is a shrewd and experienced woman who has long since mastered the art of smooth talk, only saying pleasant things and refusing to utter the unpleasant truth.
Song Li felt that the matchmaker had misunderstood, and quickly said, "I don't want to get married yet."
Although her time travel was purely accidental and she couldn't blame anyone, she had a very bad impression of the people here.
Under such circumstances, she would not consider marriage.
Besides, in ancient times, women had to serve their husband's entire family after marriage. Given her background, how could she possibly find a good husband? Nine times out of ten, they were just after her and wanted her to be treated like a slave after marriage.
Why would she choose to be someone else's maid when she could have a peaceful life with her sister?
The matchmaker looked at her in surprise, unable to understand why the girl had suddenly changed her personality.
"If you don't want to get married, what do you want?"
She asked blankly.
Song Li chuckled and said, "Just live like this, things will get better eventually."
However, she also considered the matchmaker's difficulties and said gently, "I am over the age of marriage and have caused you trouble. If you don't mind, please recognize me as your goddaughter. I will give you one hundred coins every month as my filial piety."
If a woman is over fifteen and still unmarried, the official matchmaker in her place of residence is considered negligent and will have 100 coins deducted from her monthly salary, no more, since she only needs to pay the fine for herself.
The matchmaker was taken aback again upon hearing this.
This method isn't entirely impossible, but... does Song Daya have any money?
If they had money, would they have been bullied so badly by the He family before?
Seeing the matchmaker's hesitation, Song Li smiled, counted out two hundred coins from her purse and handed them over—although she wouldn't be sixteen until after the New Year, it wouldn't hurt to be on good terms with the official matchmaker first.
In the world of gangsters, you need to cultivate relationships if you don't have many connections.
"This is our first time meeting, so this is a small gift from me. Please don't find it offensive, godmother."
The matchmaker, greedy for money, accepted the money but said with a forced smile, "How could I possibly accept this?"
Song Li saw through it but didn't say anything, and smiled, "Thank you, godmother."
"I can make rouge and face powder, and I'm also good at needlework. I'll often set up a stall in town to sell things, and my godmother can come and visit when she has time."
By the way, let me do a little advertising.
The matchmaker left satisfied.
Song Xiaoxiao was dejected, not only because she saw her sister give the matchmaker money in advance, but also because she overheard the villagers' gossip through her keen hearing.
"Hey? The official matchmaker is here again to arrange a marriage for Song Daya. Do you think it will work out this time?" Aunt Liu asked.
"It's hard to say," Fifth Aunt sighed.
"That's for sure. Even without He's interference, with Song Daya's reputation and family background, she wouldn't even have a dowry when she got married, and she'd be dragging along a younger sister. What decent man would want her? She could only marry an old widower."
"Looking at it this way, it wasn't really a bad thing for Mrs. He to sell her to Mr. Wang."
"I think Song Daya's life is going to be tough. Women have to rely on men. If they have a father, they rely on him; if not, they rely on their husbands. Only after giving birth to a son do they have any hope. If they really have no one to rely on, they can raise their younger brother. But Song Daya doesn't even have a younger brother, only a younger sister. Not only will she be useless after she grows up, but she'll also have to pay for her dowry..."
As everyone chattered away, Song Xiaoxiao felt increasingly disheartened.
It's all her fault; she was so useless that she was born a girl.
She had to leave so that her sister could get married smoothly and live a good life.
Her face was pale as she quietly went inside to pack her things...
Song Li was unaware that Song Xiaoxiao's special ability from drinking the spiritual spring water was to hear things clearly. After seeing off the matchmaker, he continued to bury himself in cutting fabric.
At noon, she felt hungry and was about to ask Song Xiaoxiao if she wanted to eat braised chicken with mushrooms or braised beef when she found that the house was empty.
Despite having only spent a few days together, Song Li understood Song Xiaoxiao and knew that she wouldn't run away.
After searching the other two rooms, they found nothing.
Did he go out to find a matchmaker again?
Song Li went out to search.
They searched the village but couldn't find Song Xiaoxiao.
The sky grew increasingly gloomy, and light snow had been falling for a while. Several gossipy women at the village entrance had all gone home, and the surrounding area was deserted with not a soul in sight.
In this cold weather, little Song Xiaoxiao is bound to catch a cold.
Where did they go?
As the snow fell heavier, Song Li's heart sank.
Just as he was getting anxious, he suddenly saw a series of small footprints on the ground—the soles of Song Xiaoxiao's tattered shoes. Overjoyed, he quickly followed the footprints.
There was only a thin layer of snow on the ground, and the footprints were not obvious. With the continuous accumulation of new snow, the footprints quickly became blurred, and Song Li practically ran to track them.
But to her surprise, the chase led directly to Niuma Village. Song Li frowned, immediately sensing something was wrong, and her heart sank even further.
Wang Laocai was a local tyrant in the surrounding area, and his stronghold was in Niuma Village!
Song Li subconsciously touched her face, which had been painted with fake scars. She had escaped from that hellhole by threatening Wang Laocai with a lie about disfigurement and by using trickery. If Wang Laocai's men found out about her now...
She wasn't sure if she could escape unscathed again.
By this time, the footprints had been completely covered by snow, and Song Li anxiously scanned her surroundings.
The north wind howled, snowflakes fell softly, all was silent, and there was not a soul on the village road.
But from behind the large rock in the distance, there seemed to be a rustling sound.
Song Li ran over quickly.
Then a lewd-looking man said, "The little girl is quite pretty. Take her back, and the master will surely be satisfied."
Another person retorted, "Are you stupid? The master prefers virgins. What use is a young girl you've captured? And she's so skinny!"
"Oh, so what if he's skinny? We can just take him back and feed him a few good meals, right? Besides, are you stupid? Don't you know that after the master was beaten up by that crazy girl from Qingliu Village, he changed his tastes? He likes younger ones now, and he likes to hear those kitten-like screams..."
The voice was obscene and offensive.
Song Li didn't care about anything else and hurriedly caught up. Sure enough, she saw two shady-looking men walking over, one of whom was carrying the unconscious Song Xiaoxiao on his shoulder!
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