Chapter 215: The whole family is killed
The woman, mother and her two children seemed unaware of the foul smell.
But Wen Yan didn't smell that smell.
She subconsciously covered her mouth and nose and leaned back.
Wen Yan wrapped the two cakes in oil paper again and threw them in front of the woman: "We are not buying people. There are two cakes in here. Take them and leave quickly."
Wen Yan's tone was cold, and it was impossible to tell whether he was happy or angry.
To outsiders, it seems very cold-blooded.
The woman stared at the oil-paper bag, her eyes full of desire and greed, her throat gurgling as she swallowed hard.
The same is true for her two children.
The three of them wanted to swallow the oil paper together.
But they never did.
The woman simply held up the oil-paper bag, her joy rising above her head, and pleaded in a trembling voice, "Savior, please accept my two children.
They can do everything from washing clothes and cooking to plowing the fields.”
Not only did she pray herself, she also asked her two children to pray together.
The two children began to kowtow.
Pei'er looked reluctant, and knew that Wen Yan was more than capable of supporting two more people, but she did not plead for them.
Wen Yan looked at Meng Xiyan.
He frowned and shook his head at her.
Wen Yan instantly understood what he meant and turned to the woman, "Isn't there a place in your county where you can buy locusts? You can exchange them for money or bread.
If you had put in some effort, you wouldn't have starved to death. Why would you have to sell your children?"
The woman kowtowed again and then told the whole story of her experience.
turn out to be.
She was an ordinary woman from a village under the jurisdiction of this county.
After eleven years of marriage, she gave birth to four children, all girls.
Because she was unable to give birth to a son to carry on the family line, she was never liked by her husband's family.
She gets up earlier than the rooster and sleeps later than the dog. She works very hard but never gets a single favorable look from her.
Until the drought hit.
Her husband's family sold her eldest daughter and now they are targeting the second and third daughters.
Seeing that she could not protect her child, the imperial court began to provide disaster relief, offering dried locusts in exchange for life-saving bread.
She saw hope and escaped from her husband's house with her child.
At first, they hid from place to place and caught locusts everywhere, and they did manage to have enough food and clothing.
But gradually.
As they caught more locusts, not only did the number of locusts decrease, but many people also deliberately targeted them, stealing their locusts and the cakes they had exchanged for them.
They were forced to live...
Pei'er asked curiously, "You said you had three children, but you were only holding two."
The woman was startled. She turned her head to look at a small bundle on her back.
Her eyes turned red instantly, but she couldn't shed tears due to lack of water.
"My youngest was only one year old. We didn't stop, and she got sick and didn't... make it!"
So, she carried the child's body on her back.
The smell on them comes from their bags.
The woman took two steps back and said, "My dear gentlemen, as long as you are willing to accept my two daughters, I will not bother you."
Wen Yan looked at Meng Xiyan and whispered, "Brother Meng, what do you think?"
Meng Xiyan nodded at her.
"Okay, we'll take your daughter in..."
Before Wen Yan finished speaking, the woman burst into tears of joy. She kowtowed three times to Wen Yan and the others, then hugged her two daughters and told them, "They will be your masters from now on. You must serve them wholeheartedly. Mother... Mother is leaving now."
After saying that, she stood up and walked out.
"Wait." Wen Yan called her, "Where are you going next?"
The woman wiped away her tears and smiled: "All three money-losing goods are gone. I want to go back to my husband's family and continue to give birth to sons for my husband.
As long as I give birth to a son, they will treat me well."
After saying that, she hugged the two oil-paper bags and ran away like the wind.
Wen Yan wanted to call her, but she was gone.
Wen Yan always felt that the woman's behavior was strange.
He looked at the two little girls and asked, "Do you know where your mother went?"
The two girls looked about five or six years old, and three or four years old.
In fact, the older child is already eight and a half years old, and the younger one is over six years old.
The elder sister blinked and replied to Wen Yan: "I'm going back to find Daddy."
Afterwards, Wen Yan asked some more questions, but did not find anything suspicious in their words. Only then did Wen Yan feel relieved.
Meng Xiyan gave each of the two children half a pancake. After they ate and took a short rest, they went into the city.
They walked the rest of the way without riding horses.
Wen Yan took the opportunity to ask Meng Xiyan about the situation in the county.
Meng Xiyan tells everything he knows.
Life in this county town is relatively good because it is not far from Jinyang Prefecture and is located on a major transportation route.
The local county magistrate was not satisfied with the result, so Meng Xiyan set up a workshop to make locust cakes here.
Wen Yan hooked a strand of hair around her ear, twisted it around her fingertips and spun it in circles: "So, the conditions in this county are not at the point where people would starve to death.
That woman has fallen into this state, most likely because she was unable to continue the family line!"
Wen Yan felt very uncomfortable.
After entering the city, Wen Yan and his friends did not go to the county government office, but went directly to the workshop where locust cakes were made.
The production of locust cakes is exactly the same as Wen Yan's requirements.
After the locusts are dried, they are fried and then ground into powder. Then they are mixed with grain powder, a little salt and water to make firm and dry cakes.
Wen Yan picked up a piece, put it to her mouth and took a bite, but only a small piece was bitten off.
She tasted it carefully and found it tasty and fragrant.
The pancakes are pressed tightly and are dry, making them easier to store.
The quality of the pancakes was much better than Wen Yan had expected.
They have just finished their tour of the workshop.
The county magistrate rushed over with the county magistrate, the chief clerk and others.
Wen Yan and Pei'er retreated.
No words were spoken that night.
The next day, they prepared to go to the county and visit several locust collection sites.
Until they came to the third locust collection site.
Outside the purchasing store, there was a long queue of people, all carrying bags, coming to sell locusts.
As they lined up, they whispered to each other, "Hey, have you heard? A murder happened in Niugouzi Village last night.
A family of more than ten people were burned to death inside."
"Why did I hear that two of their daughters escaped?"
"What kind of grudges and hatreds are there? To kill an entire family, what a vicious heart!"
"You say, that fire couldn't have been started by their daughter, could it?"
"That's impossible. Those two girls, one is only eight years old, the other is only six years old, how could they set such a fire..."
Everyone was talking and sighing.
The more Wen Yan listened, the more suspicious he felt.
For no reason, she thought of the two girls she had taken in yesterday.
Their mother...
Wen Yan suddenly trotted forward and grabbed Meng Xiyan's arm: "Brother Xiyan, something might have happened."
"What happened?" Meng Xiyan was still looking at the latest account book and was suddenly caught by her and was startled.
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