"They came just as the stove was lit, so they must have been gone for an hour or so." The old woman saw that the couple were dressed in rags, and thought that they were probably just like herself, working hard and earning a little money, but all of it went to their children.
Thinking that they were all in the same situation, the old woman said again: "Old sister, I'm not saying anything bad to you, but you have to make plans for the two of you. Don't be too lax. No one's money comes from the wind, so you have to use it frugally."
She wanted to return the half piece of silver to Jian Ning. It was enough to buy wontons for a month or so. This old lady seemed to be a generous person who didn't know how to live. She wanted to return it, but she couldn't bear to do it. So she gave her a few words of advice from the bottom of her heart to avoid feeling guilty.
"Old sister, you are right, thank you very much."
As soon as Jian Ning finished speaking, Huo Jincheng and others caught up with him. He looked at the basket of eggs covered with a floral blue cloth on the table and felt it was familiar. He reined in his horse and glanced into the main hall. Seeing Ding Youtian and Jian Ning inside, he dismounted, threw the reins to the guards, and strode in.
"What? Do you have any clues?" he asked before entering the house.
"Oh, this is your son, right?" The old woman looked Huo Jincheng up and down. Seeing that he was also dressed neatly, she became more and more certain of her guess. She couldn't help but pat Jian Ning, "You are really right. You have money but you don't dress up yourselves. Look at what your good son is wearing, and then look at yourselves."
"Ah, I'm just good at talking. I'm just like you. All parents in the world are the same. Who will care about us as children?"
Huo Jincheng's face fell. It had only been a short time, how did he become their son?
He was about to glare at Ding Youtian when Jian Ning pulled him aside and said, "Follow me."
"I'm going to greet the guests too." The old woman saw the guards outside and hurried out to greet them.
"Look over there." Jian Ning led Huo Jincheng to the backyard and nodded his chin at the wooden wall in the corner. "This is what Man'er left there. He's been gone for about an hour."
"Yes, it was left by Man'er!" Huo Jincheng's spirits lifted. "I'll take my men ahead." He walked out and then returned. "I'll leave a horse for you. I'll send one of them back, and the other two will come out."
"No, we are used to walking. But if you really care about us old people, you can give us some money and let us go to the market to buy a horse."
Huo Jincheng's eyes darkened and he turned around to leave with a sullen face. But after thinking about it, he took out two silver bars from his pocket and threw them to her. After all, she and Ding Youtian hadn't slept all night helping him look for the baby.
Jian Ning saw that it was two ingots of fifty taels of silver, enough to buy a good horse. However, she had Baicaojian and didn't need a horse at all. She had just been joking about the old woman's words. Now that he had given her the money, she decided to buy a horse. After all, it would be more convenient. With Qiu Ge away, their speed would inevitably arouse the suspicion of Huo Jincheng and others.
"After we finish eating, let's go pick a horse. Huo Jincheng will pay for it." Jian Ning came out and told Ding Youtian. He was unwilling to let two men ride on the same horse yesterday, so he had no objection to riding with Jian Ning.
After eating wontons, they picked out a horse at the market. Jane Ning rode with him forward, the wind brushing against their necks. He put his arm around Jane Ning's waist and whispered in her ear, "It's better not to ride this thing. It's so bumpy, it makes my heart pound, and it's cold in the wind."
Jane Ning slowed down her horse and asked, "Do you feel better now?"
"A little better."
What a yandere! He felt dizzy the first time he rode on Qiu Ge, he felt dizzy on a boat, he felt dizzy even when riding a horse, but he would get dizzy when he was awake in Baicaojian. Jian Ning still didn't understand why she could hold his hand and stay in Baicaojian while he was awake. Could it be related to the fact that they were husband and wife?
"Why don't you try to sleep for a while, and then I'll put you in. This is too slow."
He shook his head. "I don't want to fall again. Just ride faster. I can still bear it. I'll get used to it and it will be fine."
After a while, they arrived at Heze County. Jian Ning dismounted and helped Ding Youtian get off the horse. He saw that his face seemed to be red and a little swollen due to the wind. He thought it was caused by his lack of sleep all night and did not take it seriously.
After entering the city, they went directly to the Ding shop. The shopkeeper came out to greet them personally, saying respectfully, "Mr. Ding and Ms. Jian? Our master left a message. He's taking people to search the city for the young lady's whereabouts. He told you to rest up first. The rooms are ready for you. I'll send someone to take you there right away."
Seeing that Ding Youtian was not in good spirits, Jian Ning thought it would be a good idea to let him have some rest, so he followed Ding Youtian to the backyard behind a servant.
"I really feel a little unwell. I'll wash up and take a nap. Don't be too anxious. Anyway, Jincheng has taken people to search the whole city. Maybe there will be news soon. You can wash up and take a nap."
"I'm fine. I'll go walk around the city after you rest."
The waiter brought hot water, and Jian Ning helped him mix it. She waited until he had washed and gone to bed before she left. After greeting the shopkeeper, she went out to the street. Heze County had more large houses and shops than Jin County. She walked to a quiet and deserted place and slipped into Baicaojian.
Hidden in the grass, no one could see her, but she could sense everything outside, as if she were seeing it with her own eyes. She wandered around the city, searching carefully, and from time to time she found people in different attire also secretly investigating. It seemed that Huo Jincheng had quite a lot of subordinates.
Jian Ning walked around the city but didn't find anything. He thought that Huo Jincheng had some influence in the city. Yunniang had followed Huo Jincheng for so many years and there was no reason for her not to know this. It seemed that the chances of them staying in this city were slim.
"Daddy, Daddy, don't drive my mother away, please don't drive my mother away, wuwu..."
Just as Jian Ning was about to go back to Dingzihao, she heard a child crying coming from a courtyard. She followed the sound and saw a man dragging a woman with disheveled hair out of the courtyard.
"Go away, get away as far as you can, you shameless thing!"
"Mother! Mother! Let me out, I want to be with you!"
"Your mother has a heart disease. Do you want to die with her?" The man closed the gate, held the boy under his arm, and strode into the house.
The woman collapsed on the ground, covering her face and crying. Upon hearing what had happened, several neighbors came out, but they all stood far away, not daring to get close, and pointed at the woman.
Jian Ning took the medicine box and left the Baicaojian when no one was paying attention. She walked up to the woman with the medicine box on her shoulder and asked, "Sister, I'm a doctor. Can you please look up so I can see you?"
"Tsk, stay away from her! She's suffering from the Fire Pill. Be careful not to infect you."
The woman lowered her head even lower when she heard this, and her crying became louder. The sound of a child crying also came from the house in the yard. Hearing the child crying, the woman quickly raised her head, and in a quick glance, Jane Ning gasped.
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