After leaving the government office, Zhu Qiuyu originally wanted to go for a stroll, but then she thought that the Zhou family really needed manpower right now. Yesterday, she had heard Zhou Laoda and his wife discussing buying people. Aunt Zhao was a kind-hearted person.
On the way back to Nanyang Prefecture, she did take good care of those children. Perhaps she really wanted to take them in. Those dozen or so were indeed clever. Knowing that the Zhou family was kind, they offered to sell themselves to the Zhou family and even asked the prefect to act as their intermediary.
While wandering around, Zhu Qiuyu didn't expect to find herself at Zhou Family Restaurant. Zhou Laoda and Zhao Guihua were busy inside. Zhu Qiuyu went straight in.
"Oh, Senior Brother, what brings you here today? Come and sit down, I'll go to the kitchen and boil some water for you," Zhao Guihua greeted him warmly.
This was her sons' teacher, who not only taught Fu Ge and his friends martial arts but also guided them in their studies. Naturally, Zhao Guihua felt grateful and became very enthusiastic.
Although Fu Ge and the others called the senior brothers and sisters "Master," Xingxing followed Zhu Lin's example and called them senior brothers and sisters. Therefore, Zhu Qiuyu and the other six followed Xingxing's seniority and called Zhou Laoda "Uncle Zhou" and Zhao Guihua "Aunt Zhao."
As for how to address each other, Zhou Laoda and his wife were very casual and had no objections; the senior students could address them however they wanted.
"Aunt Zhao, there's no need to bother. I've come here to tell you something..." Zhu Qiuyu roughly relayed what she had just said to the prefect.
"Have all those children's parents passed away?" Zhao Guihua wondered. "But how old are those children? If they're too young, they can't do any work, and we'll have to take care of them."
Although she wanted to help those children, to be honest, she wasn't that great. She wouldn't take in such tiny children, but she was reluctant to take in four or five-year-olds who could barely walk.
She already has enough children; Xingxing is enough for her. She doesn't want to adopt any more. Helping them for ten days or half a month is fine, but raising them long-term is not an option.
Zhu Qiuyu looked embarrassed for a moment, but quickly recovered. "I had forgotten about that. But if you're interested, you can go and see them for yourselves. If they're too small, don't buy them. Buy the ones that can work."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Guihua hesitated for a moment, "If we see the person, it will be difficult to refuse. We can't be that hard-hearted."
"Why don't we let my brother-in-law go and take a look? Let him pick out the ones who can do the work, and then we won't show our faces," Zhou Laoda suggested.
So they called Li Qian over and took him to the government office. Zhou Laoda and Zhao Guihua waited in the backyard while Li Qian went to choose the child.
After seeing the children, Li Qian was also in a dilemma. He couldn't make up his mind, so he could only go out and discuss it with Zhou Laoda and his wife.
"There are sixteen children in total. The oldest is a girl of fifteen, and the youngest is only five. The others are in between. They are all still children. However, they are not alone. The younger children are the brothers and sisters of the older children, so they are taken care of together."
According to the older children, they were capable of doing the work, and the younger children didn't need their help; all they needed was a place to live, and they would support themselves.
Old Zhou pondered for a moment, "Since someone is bringing her, it's not that we can't accept her, but we need to meet her first. What do you say, wife?"
Zhao Guihua was also soft-hearted. After hearing this, she felt she couldn't be too heartless. She bought the older children but didn't want the younger ones. She guessed that these children were thinking of selling themselves because they had younger children with them, fearing they wouldn't be able to survive.
"Then let's meet and talk things out," Zhao Guihua said.
Once inside, it was clear that the children knew each other well. Apart from four children who were alone, the rest were older sisters with younger brothers or younger sisters. The little boys were all quite young.
Those who steal children are truly heartless. They kidnapped two children at once, leaving two children missing. I wonder how the children's parents felt at that time.
But it's pointless to talk about this now. These children's parents are all gone, and no one will grieve for them. They will have to rely on themselves from now on.
"Our Zhou family isn't a wealthy one; we're just farmers with many children, as you all know. If you were to sell yourself into our family, you'd definitely have to help with the work. There won't be any monthly wages for now; they'll only come next year."
However, you don't need to worry about your food, lodging, and clothing; we'll take care of that... Once you get home, you must behave. You can't all stay together; you have to split up. Some of you will help out in the prefectural city, while others will stay in the county town or other towns. If you dare to cause trouble, you'll be sold off, understand?" Zhao Guihua said sternly.
The children looked at each other, feeling lost. They had wanted to stay together. They had been captured in a cave for almost a year and had taken care of each other. After they escaped, they continued to encourage and support each other. Now that they had to separate, they felt helpless.
The older children huddled together and discussed it for a few minutes before making a decision. The oldest girl said, "We trust Uncle Zhou and Aunt Zhao. You are good people. Since we have already sold ourselves, we will naturally follow your arrangements."
He was indeed sensible, and both Zhou Laoda and Zhao Guihua were very satisfied. They looked at Zhu Qiuyu together, wanting him to share his thoughts.
Zhu Qiuyu paused for a moment, then smiled gently again, "I don't see any of them being unreasonable; they're all obedient. Let's buy them then."
So the formalities were completed directly at the government office. When they came out, they were leading a group of children. Suddenly there were more than a dozen more people, and the house was no longer big enough to accommodate them. The house, which was not big to begin with, was already a bit crowded. There was nowhere to put these people back.
Fortunately, there were residential buildings behind the restaurant, with a courtyard and a few rooms. Most of the children were little girls, and there were only four boys, so they could squeeze in and stay.
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