The matter was truly full of twists and turns. Hua Zan squandered his mother's dowry, and all the money he had gathered was used to redeem Chen Yuexin. When Master Hua learned that Hua Zan had squandered his ex-wife's dowry just to redeem a courtesan, he was so angry that he chased him for three streets with the family law and vowed to break his legs.
But Hua Zan wasn't about to let him hit him. Taking advantage of his youth and height, he ran away in a flash.
"You unfilial son, you ran away today. Don't even think about stepping into the Hua family's gate again for the rest of your life. And that brothel girl you redeemed can forget about entering the Hua family. If she dares to show her face, hmph." Master Hua made a harsh statement. Although he didn't explicitly say what he would do to Chen Yuexin, you could tell from his tone that he wanted to kill her.
The last thing the secret guard found out was that Hua Zan had been kicked out of the Hua family, and Master Hua had severed his father-son relationship with him. Hua Zan didn't get a single tael of silver, and not long after, he left Hua'an County with Chen Yuexin.
They have no choice but to leave; Master Hua won't let them go. They must leave.
Everyone was at their wits' end. They had searched two places, only to find that the person had disappeared again. This time, they really didn't know where to look for them. The two teenagers were in a state of chaos with many refugees everywhere. They really didn't know if they could take good care of themselves.
The people sent out to inquire didn't find any useful information, because Hua Zan didn't return to his maternal grandparents' home, and his maternal grandparents' side didn't know where he went either. They guessed that he himself didn't know where he would end up.
"Alright, everyone has done their best. Now that I know Xin'er went with that young master Hua, I feel a little more at ease. Let's not look for Xin'er for now, let's go south to find Ruru. We can inquire about Xin'er's whereabouts while we travel. If we really can't find her, then that's fate." Bai Yushuang calmed down this time.
Perhaps due to the stress she has experienced recently, her emotions have been fluctuating wildly. At first, she thought that her eldest daughter had been sold to a brothel and abused by countless men. Later, she learned that Chen Yuexin had not only never taken any customers, but had also abducted a young man to help her redeem herself, and the two eventually eloped.
Regardless, although they ultimately failed to find the person, the news kept getting better. Right now, Bai Yushuang felt that the young master Hua was not a steady person and was very unreliable. He actually dared to squander all of her deceased mother's dowry.
But then she thought, if he weren't so unreliable, where would he get the money to redeem her daughter from the brothel? So after thinking it over, Bai Yushuang was still grateful to Hua Zan.
"I just hope they both stay safe on the road and can hold on until we find them." Bai Yushuang was already exhausted.
Aside from knowing that their youngest daughter is alright, there's no good news for anyone else. There's still no news about Chen Tu and his son, and it's unknown whether the people Zhou Xiaoniangzi and Zhu Xiaogongzi sent out will be able to find them.
"The people we sent out found out that Hua Zan's maternal grandfather lived in Tong'an City. It is said that he once served as the magistrate of Hua'an County. Hua Zan's mother married into the Hua family at that time. After Hua Zan's maternal grandfather retired, he returned to his ancestral home in Tong'an City. The current prefect of Tong'an City is a student of Hua Zan's maternal grandfather," Zhu Lin explained in a flat tone.
"No wonder that madam gave Hua Zan some face; it turns out he brought up his maternal grandfather's student. But why doesn't he go and rely on his maternal grandfather?" Zhang Xiantao wondered.
Zhu Lin ignored Zhang Xiantao, but glanced at Xingxing. Seeing that Xingxing was listening to his story with shining eyes, he continued, "Huazan's maternal grandfather is very old and is said to be a little confused. He doesn't recognize people very well, and he can't even recognize Huazan. Huazan's uncles don't like him very much, so it's impossible for him to go and rely on his uncles."
“That makes sense. If his uncles valued him, he wouldn’t have been bullied by Master Hua.” Zhang Xiantao nodded knowingly.
Xingxing listened attentively. After a while, when no one spoke and there were no more stories to hear, she clicked her tongue and said, "I'm done. Let's go eat."
The next day, the group left Hua'an County and headed south. It took them twenty days to finally reach a small village.
"This journey of eating and sleeping in the open has been exhausting. Finally, we can find a place to stay and get a good night's rest. I think we should stay here for a couple more days before continuing our journey."
Zhang Xiantao was listless and spoke weakly. A few days ago, she suddenly caught a cold for some unknown reason. She felt very unwell, but in order not to delay her journey, she endured it without saying anything. Later, she developed a fever and couldn't hold on any longer, so she fainted.
Given the circumstances, it would have been best to find a place for her to stay and rest for a few days. However, after leaving Hua'an County, we didn't see a single dilapidated temple and had to keep going until we finally saw a village.
“Let’s stay in this village for a couple more days until you’re better. Don’t talk or walk by yourself. Let Zhao Mingyue carry you.” Zhu Changge comforted her gently.
"Mingyue." Zhang Xiantao looked at Zhao Mingyue pitifully. Zhao Mingyue pursed her lips, somewhat confused. Why did he have to carry so many people? Couldn't the Zhang family's secret guards carry them?
Despite her inner grumbling, Zhao Mingyue didn't show it on her face. She still squatted down in front of Zhang Xiantao and made her lie on top of her, then carried her into the village.
Upon entering the village, everyone discovered that there were only five households in total, with just over thirty people. The villagers all lived in thatched huts, and there were no extra rooms available.
"What should we do? We don't know if there are any villages or towns ahead. If not, Xiantao's body won't be able to hold on." Zhu Changge was very worried.
"The scouts we sent out came back and said there are no other villages or towns ahead. We can only stay here temporarily. We can stay in the carriage if necessary. The journey is too bumpy. Let's rest here for a while. Everyone is tired," Zhu Qiuyu said.
“Yes, let’s rest for a couple of days. I’m afraid the child won’t be able to handle traveling any further.” Bai Yue’e rarely spoke. Her son had never stayed in one place properly since he was born. He was either fleeing or searching for people with everyone else. It pained her to see such a young child suffer so much.
"I'll go ask the villagers here again to see if there are any abandoned houses or anything like that." Bai Yushuang also felt sorry for the child. The child was already four months old, but it seemed like he hadn't grown much and was pitifully thin.
"I'll go with you." Zhu Changge was worried that Bai Yushuang, a weak woman unfamiliar with the area, would be bullied.
The two quickly found out the news and returned shortly afterward.
Bai Yushuang's face lit up with joy. "I just heard some news from an old lady. She said there's a dilapidated temple a few miles from this village. It's quite big inside. We can rest there, but..."
"Just say what it is," Zhu Qiuyu said.
"But that old woman said that the dilapidated temple was haunted. I thought to myself, where in the world are there ghosts? Back when we were fleeing, so many people died on the road, but we never saw anyone become a ghost. When you die, you have nothing left."
If Bai Yushuang used to believe in ghosts and gods, after experiencing so much, she realized that ghosts and gods are just fleeting clouds. Only the living have hope. After death, one becomes dust. Those who died unjustly must be avenged by the living, otherwise they died in vain. What ghosts are there?
"I don't believe in any of this. Let's go to the ruined temple. Even if there really is a ghost, I can catch it." Zhu Qiuyu opened his folding fan and waved it, his tone nonchalant.
Suddenly, Xingxing became excited, "If there really is a ghost, Senior Brother, you must catch it! Xingxing wants to see it."
Everyone burst into laughter.
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