"Third brother, you're wrong. A thousand catties of grain is no small amount. If they really took it, wouldn't the people in our village have seen it when they left?"
A normal person can only carry about 100 pounds when traveling.
The villagers aren't blind; how could they not see a dozen people carrying grain?
"Besides Han Qiang and his group, who else could it be?"
"Alright, if we can't find any evidence against them, we can't go and cause trouble. I'll go to that troublemaker first and see if I can get some food from him."
Old Mrs. Li thought that good days had begun, and that they would not starve to death for at least a year or two. Who would have thought that the food would be lost?
This time, not only did they lose that thousand catties of corn, but they also lost the corn they had grown themselves. It was as if God was forcing them to their deaths.
Because of what happened last time, the villagers held a great grudge against his family. Seeing that they had no food left, not a single person offered to help, and no one brought them any food to tide them over.
Old Mrs. Li arrived at Li Erhan's house with bound feet, and her sobbing could be heard from afar.
What happened?
Although the voice wasn't loud, she could still tell it was her daughter's voice.
Old Mrs. Li's eyes darted around. She had just been thinking about how to get some food, and now the opportunity had come to her.
She quickened her pace, and with a creak, pushed open the dilapidated gate of Li Erhan's house. The crying in the yard grew even louder.
"My dear daughter, why are you crying?"
Before they even saw anyone, Old Lady Li shouted in a loud voice.
Why are you here?
Hearing the noise, Li Erhan pulled up his trousers and came out. When he saw it was Li's wife, he looked annoyed that he had been suddenly interrupted.
"I've come to see my daughter."
"Didn't you say it would take a month? You've only been here a few days!"
Li Erhan looked extremely displeased and asked irritably.
"Can't I come to see my daughter? Why is she crying?"
Old Mrs. Li was in good health. She pushed aside Li Erhan, who was blocking her way, and quickly went into the room.
"Oh, my daughter?"
She had thought that her daughter wouldn't have a good time with Li Erhan, but when she actually saw it, the old woman from the Li family was still quite shocked.
At this moment, Li Aidi was curled up on the earthen bed whose color was indistinguishable. Her clothes were already torn and could barely cover her body.
You can also see dense, blue and purple marks all over his body, and some of them are even bleeding.
Li Aidi stared intently at the colorless roof above her, sobbing softly. She seemed oblivious to the sounds outside.
What have you done to my daughter?
This was the first time Old Lady Li had ever seen her daughter like this; she was so pitiful.
"What can I do to him? Didn't you say that the Li family's daughter is good at bearing children and can raise sons? I just want to give it a try."
Trying it is fine, but your actions were far too rough.
Old Mrs. Li thought to herself as she walked to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and plopped down. She reached out to grab Li Aidi's arm, but Li Aidi instinctively flinched, avoiding the woman's touch.
"Daughter, it's your mother..."
The people on the kang remained silent, but Old Lady Li's expression changed. She turned to look at Li Erhan and said, "My daughter was perfectly fine when she came here. She's only been with you for a short time, and you've already ruined her like this! How am I supposed to take her back in a month?"
Old Mrs. Li said angrily, hands on her hips.
"I... I'll be fine in a few days, all women are like this."
Li Erhan awkwardly scratched his head. He had finally gotten a wife, even though she was an old maid and had given birth to several children. But she was still a woman, so what was wrong with him liking her a little?
"If you keep torturing my daughter like this, ten pounds of sweet potatoes won't do."
The old woman from the Li family finally revealed her purpose for today's visit.
When she heard her mother coming over, Li Aidi's thoughts came back to her senses. She was about to tell her mother that she didn't want to stay here anymore and that she wanted to go home.
He thought that the old woman from the Li family would stand up for him, but Li Aidi never expected that when his mother saw his miserable state, she would only try to negotiate with Li Erhan and ask for more grain.
Yes, how can you expect someone who would switch her daughter with ten pounds of sweet potatoes to have a change of heart?
Li Aidi suddenly stopped crying, and tears fell silently down her face, running down her temples and onto the dark pillow.
“Where would I get so much grain? I had to squeeze out these ten pounds from between my teeth.”
Li Erhan was originally a bachelor, without parents, otherwise he wouldn't have been so old and still hadn't found a wife.
"No, you've already ruined my daughter like this. If you don't give her more food, she might die in less than a month. Who can I complain to then?"
"Let me tell you, Li Erhan, you only have two choices now. First, I'll take my daughter back, and our deal is off. Those ten pounds of sweet potatoes will be considered my daughter's payment for her hard work these past two days. Second, you give me another twenty pounds of sweet potatoes, and I can let my daughter stay with you for a few more years!"
Hearing her conditions, not only Li Erhan but also Li Aidi were stunned. His mother was really asking for an exorbitant amount.
But would Li Erhan agree to this?
"Heh, do you think I, Li Erhan, am easy to bully?"
Li Erhan was so angry at the terms that he laughed. He had never seen such a shameless person.
Thirty pounds of sweet potatoes, and he only slept with her daughter for a month. He's not mentally unstable.
These days, finding a beautiful young woman doesn't cost much more than a few kilograms of sweet potatoes.
Besides, judging from the old woman's behavior, even if we really buy her daughter, she'll probably come back to freeload later.
“Old woman Li, we made a deal back then. If you want to go back on your word, we’ll go talk to the village head.”
“We’re all from Lijiazhuang. I just don’t believe that you’d try to scam us after we’ve already paid.”
Li Erhan may seem like a simpleton, but he's actually quite shrewd.
Besides, he's in the right, so he's not afraid of going to the village head.
"You..." Old Mrs. Li's eyes darted around. She had come today to ask for grain, not to take this useless scourge back with her.
"Oh dear son-in-law, that's not what I meant. You see, you and my daughter Aidi get along quite well. You've tried it for a few days now, how does it feel? Having a woman to cuddle with at night is better than being all alone, right?"
Looking at her daughter, who looked unusually haggard and neither human nor ghost, Old Mrs. Li thought that it would be difficult for her to find a new husband in the future.
The key issue is that the time agreed upon with Li Erhan hasn't arrived yet, and his family has long since run out of food.
Now all we can do is squeeze some grain out of Li Erhan.
"How about you add a little more grain? I'll let my daughter Aidi stay with you for a year, and she'll give you a big, healthy son. What do you say?"
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