Wang Erlang was immediately taken aback. "Da Wa, what's wrong with you? Did you get into trouble too?"
Wang Erlang never imagined that his nephew could freely enter and leave the county government office, and was even preparing to rescue him!
For ordinary people like them, the only reason they were ever seen entering or leaving the county government office was because they were in trouble! In their haste, they failed to notice how radiant the eldest son looked.
Big Brother: "..."
After so long, his uncle is still as unreliable as ever. The eldest son calmed down.
"Uncle, your mother and I have come to rescue you. She pleaded with the constables and they released you."
What? What? Wang Erlang felt his brain couldn't keep up. What mother? His sister-in-law? What pleading? They actually managed to talk to that fierce bailiff?
At that time, Wang Erlang couldn't even imagine it. And it's not his fault; who could have imagined that Qin Sanniang had actually changed her soul?!
Even after Wang Erlang followed the mother and son out of the county government office, the shock in his heart had not completely subsided. Was this really his sister-in-law? Although she was the same person, she seemed completely different! It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that she was a completely different person.
What shocked him the most was that when he passed by the yamen gate, the fierce-looking yamen runner who had arrested him grinned at him. Wow, that was terrifying!
Wang Erlang was puzzled the whole way. He was just a poor peasant who was neither good enough for a high-ranking job nor good enough for a low-ranking one. He was arrested by the government. How could he get out without money?
He had planned to spend the year in the yamen (government office), but his sister-in-law was willing to come and save him. Otherwise, he would have been beaten at least once, and with his small frame, he would have been beaten to death or even half-dead!
If Qin San Niang could hear his thoughts, she would definitely say, "The yamen's beating really won't kill you. You're overthinking it!"
Along the way, Qin San Niang's mind raced, recalling many things about Wang Erlang.
When this child came to the Wang family, he was only about sixteen or seventeen years old, just a teenager. Although he was mischievous, he wasn't a bad person. He was just the kind of teenager who was a bit of a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome)!
At the time, what she couldn't understand was why Qin Shi, who only had one son, had to develop such a... personality?
The original owner was a meticulous person and had observed for a period of time. Qin Shi was really not that good to Wang Erlang, only slightly better than she was to them. Just imagine, a woman could treat her own son like this, which shows that she was ruthless.
There was another point that puzzled her: why was Wang Erlang, a boy, able to be taken out by Qin Shi after their divorce? You see, nowadays, boys have a very high status in the family. Even after a divorce, unless the husband's entire family is dead, it is impossible for the bloodline to be allowed to flow outside, let alone change the surname!
In order to make Old Man Wang completely believe them, Qin changed her son's surname to Wang.
However, all of this existed only in the original owner's mind. Looking at the original owner's memories, Qin San Niang had to admit that she was a woman who was both patient and meticulous. She even admired her somewhat. It was just that due to her status as a woman and the deeply ingrained feudal ideas in her mind, her thinking was not divergent enough and her actions were not free enough!
In short, later on, the original owner learned a huge scoop: Wang Erlang was not Qin's biological son at all!
As luck would have it, late that night, the original owner had a stomachache and needed to get up to use the restroom. She noticed a fire in the backyard and, feeling suspicious, went to investigate. To her surprise, it turned out to be her stepmother burning paper money.
Why burn paper money when it's neither a festival nor a holiday? Besides, paper money is very expensive! The original owner was suspicious, so he hid by the wall and eavesdropped.
After listening for a while, I didn't find anything. I thought to myself that the stepmother must be thinking about her deceased family members. Married women can't easily return to their parents' home, so their parents might tell them about their hardships in a dream. The children would then burn paper money in the dark of night to comfort them.
But just as she turned around, she suddenly heard her stepmother let out a sinister laugh, "Heh heh, your son is in my hands too. You want to fight me for him? Do you think you can win?"
The original owner paused, wondering if they were talking about her husband? But upon closer listening, she realized it wasn't him.
Then the stepmother's sinister voice rang out again, "Erlang is already sixteen years old. Back then, I risked my life to steal him away, and you couldn't take it, so you fell ill and never recovered! Is that all you've got? I was hoping you could experience more of that excruciating pain! But you just died like that?!"
These past few years, I've been poor, but my child has been obedient; he saves every last bite of food for his mother! Oh, don't worry, I love him dearly. He'll grow up to be a complete good-for-nothing! Aren't you so high and mighty? Don't you think everything you have is the best? Hmph, your child still has to serve me, doesn't he? Bring me water to wash my feet? Haha…”
The original owner silently pressed his chest and quietly retreated back into the courtyard. He didn't even bother to go to the outhouse and hurriedly went into the house. His legs went numb and he sat down on the ground.
What did she hear?!
Wang Erlang was not Qin's biological son, but rather someone she stole! So this stepmother was not only harsh, but also vicious.
She wanted to tell her husband, but he had already gone off to do business, so she decided to wait for him to return.
Later, the man died, and all of this was buried in her heart. However, from then on, the original owner still genuinely cared for Wang Erlang, which caused a ripple in the heart of the chuunibyou (delusional) young Wang Erlang.
What followed became a jumbled mess in the original owner's memory. Her husband's early death was like the sky falling, her younger brother's disappearance filled her with fear and unease, and coupled with her deep-seated dread of Qin Shi, these factors combined to overwhelm the frail woman. Even without the hardships of fleeing, this woman didn't have many years left to live…
In front of a soup noodle shop, Qin San Niang paused, turned around and glanced at the down-and-out young man in front of her. Wang Erlang's sneaky appearance was no longer so annoying. Upon closer inspection, the man was actually quite good-looking, even handsome, with a hint of unruliness between his brows and eyes.
Qin San Niang sighed inwardly. If Wang Erlang hadn't been stolen by that wicked woman Qin, he might be living a good life right now! At the very least, he would be the one his parents doted on, and wouldn't have turned out to be such a carefree and irresponsible person.
The carefree Wang Erlang noticed a look in his sister-in-law's eyes that he couldn't understand. Uh, that's really scary!
"Um... Sister-in-law, well, I need to go back and tell my parents first, so they can be mentally prepared. Also, are you still planning to go back?" Wang Erlang asked timidly.
Even he knew that his parents had done a terrible job back then, abandoning a widow and her child.
However, others have little influence and no say in their own homes.
Of course, he was also open-minded. If his sister-in-law and children followed them, wouldn't they be tormented to death by his wife and mother's behavior?
So, Wang Erlang secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that if his sister-in-law went with her family, they might be taken care of.
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