Chapter 25 A Perfect Match
Da Ya turned around, and the short peddler by the wall was calling to her.
The short peddler only started working as a peddler in the last two years. He often sells rouge and hair accessories at the entrance of the embroidery shop. His family is poor, and his parents passed away after a bout of illness. He has been short since childhood, so people call him "Shorty".
"Is there something you need?" Daya asked, standing still.
"I have some hair ornaments from the county town, absolutely unique in the town, come and take a look." The short peddler looked at Daya with a smile.
"Thank you, but I don't like this." Da Ya had just received her monthly allowance, which totaled only thirty coins, and her family still needed to make ends meet.
She's already cut her hair, why would she wear a hair accessory? Once she finds work again and earns money, she can buy one for Er Ya, who loves to look pretty.
The short peddler walked over with a red velvet flower in his hand. He was a head shorter than Daya and looked up at her.
"You don't need to spend money to buy it. I specially saved it for you. Lower your head and I'll put it on for you."
Daya took a step back. "No, you keep it. I'm going home."
Thinking that she could go to the market entrance now and help Ye Wan, she decided to do so.
The short peddler followed Daya, saying, "Daya, Daya, this is for you. I come to the embroidery room every day just to see you. You should know how I feel about you, so please accept it. I'll marry you later."
Daya frowned. "I don't want to. You should leave. We're not a good match."
The short peddler lowered his head, and Da Ya was wondering if she had gone too far with her tone when her wrist was suddenly grabbed.
The short, smiling peddler, who had been fawning over him, suddenly changed his expression. "What are you pretending for? You've already cut your hair, and you're still acting all high and mighty. You've been seducing some man, haven't you? It's your good fortune that I've taken a liking to you! You're coming with me today!"
"Let go of me! I'm calling for help!"
Da Ya never expected that this short peddler would dare to do this in broad daylight.
The short peddler grinned lewdly, "Go ahead and yell, if you yell I'll say you seduced me, and see if anyone believes you or me!"
Daya struggled, but she was too weak to win. She bit the peddler's wrist and was slapped in the face by the peddler.
"You shameless bitch, you don't know what's good for you!"
The short peddler glanced at the small shack next to him, piled with firewood, and decided to drag the man inside first, and then deal with the rest later.
"You're lucky I'm sleeping with you! Ah—"
Just as they were about to knock him down, a rock hit him, causing him to scream in pain.
He turned around and saw a woman with a child staring at him. He immediately said fiercely, "Get lost. This is my woman. Mind your own business."
Ye Wan, her eyes icy, pulled Sanya along. "This is my daughter. Do you think I'm meddling in other people's business?"
She was feeling uneasy today, so she thought she would come to see Daya. She didn't expect to run into her like this. She just happened to be there at the right time.
"mother!"
Da Ya's face turned pale, and taking advantage of the moment, she hurriedly ran behind Ye Wan.
"Oh my, I was blind to your greatness! You're my mother-in-law! Daya and I are in love. Please give him to me, and I'll make sure she has a good life." The short peddler immediately smiled and kept glancing at Ye Wan.
This mother-in-law is so young! If only…
Ye Wan was disgusted. "You're not even as tall as three donkey dung balls stacked up when you stand up. Why don't you take a piss and look at yourself in the mirror? You don't even deserve to be called one!"
"Your mother-in-law is right. To tell you the truth, Daya and I have already been intimate. Anyway, she's in a bad state and it'll be hard for her to get married. She can only stay with me!" The short peddler said with a smile, but his eyes were vicious.
Ye Wan picked up the carrying pole next to her and smashed it down. The short man who was standing just a second ago was now bleeding from a head wound.
Daya was stunned and hurriedly covered Sanya's eyes.
"Walk."
Ye Wan was furious, but a slap on the carrying pole calmed her down a bit. She then grabbed Da Ya and San Ya and left.
Once they reached a populated area, he looked at Daya and asked, "Why didn't you call for help? You just let him bully you?"
"It's no use, nobody's going to bother with this." Daya said, her head down, her voice barely louder than a mosquito's buzz.
In the past, people might have been more interested, but now, when they see her hair, they don't want to meddle.
Ye Wan said seriously, "How would you know if you didn't call? You should never give up on yourself. You still have your father, you still have me, and even if things go wrong, your two younger sisters will still care about you."
As she spoke, she braided Daya's hair, which was tied up with strips of cloth, with a hair tie adorned with beads.
"Let's go, I still need to set up my stall."
Daya touched her braid, the ends of which were still adorned with beads, and smiled as she looked at Ye Wan walking ahead. She felt a little less sad now.
"Hey, I've finally waited for you. If the vegetable vendor next to me hadn't told me you were here, I would have been so angry that I would have cursed him out."
When we arrived at the stall, there were already several people waiting, most of whom had eaten there yesterday.
"Uncle, thank you. I'll add extra noodles for you today." Ye Wan apologized as she worked quickly and efficiently.
"And what about us? We've been waiting for ages. You can't leave us out, my wife."
"Add them all, add them all."
Da Ya was standing to the side, and Ye Wan asked her to help collect the money. They made a lot today, and it sold out even faster than yesterday. Those who didn't get any left after smelling the aroma.
Having finally caught her breath, Ye Wan took a sip of water and spoke to Daya, who was tidying up the things.
"Starting tomorrow, you don't need to go to the embroidery room anymore. You can see I'm quite busy. I'll pay you your wages."
It's not safe for Da Ya, a young woman, to be out alone, and with what happened yesterday, it's even more dangerous.
An eleven-year-old girl was almost...
Ye Wanyi felt that the blow she received with the carrying pole was too light; it shouldn't have been aimed at her head, but rather at her crotch.
Daya nodded. "Thank you, Mother."
"puff!"
Ye Wan almost spat out her water. This is what calling someone "mother" means?
San Ya is just a little girl, so it's fine for her to call me "mother." But Daya is already so big. Could it be because I saved her just now?
"Mother, are you alright?" A hint of unease flashed in Daya's eyes as she stepped forward to pat Ye Wan's back.
Originally, her father wanted them to call her "mother," but she could never bring herself to say it. Now that she had, it wasn't so difficult.
Just as Ye Wan was about to say there was no need to force herself, guests arrived.
"What do you sell? I'll have a bowl."
Chu Xiujie tugged at his clothes and sat down on the tiny stool that was barely bigger than his bottom.
Ye Wan hurriedly said, "Brother, we're sold out of hot and sour noodles and cold noodles. If you want some, come back tomorrow."
"That's all. Can you make me a fresh bowl?" He was passing by when he smelled the delicious aroma.
"It's really all gone, not a drop left." Ye Wan lifted the lid of her pot, revealing only the broth inside.
Chu Xiujie stood up, still feeling hungry, and pointed to the vegetable stall next to him, "Wash those vegetables over there and cook me a bowl, I'll pay extra."
"Please wait a moment, guest."
Daya quickly paid the vegetable vendor and bought a bunch of bok choy and a few other items.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com