When I got home, I found the place in complete disarray.
It was very different from when I got home the day before.
At that time, only the two sisters-in-law, Qiao Manman and He Miaomiao, were missing; their belongings were still there. In just one day and one night, the doors and windows of the house were broken, and all the furniture and items in the house, big and small, were either moved or smashed. Not to mention the grain in the warehouse and the chickens and ducks in the mulberry garden, they were treated as if they had been attacked by ruthless bandits.
Only Pengshu, an elderly servant, remained in the house. His leg had been broken by the thieves, and he was hiding in a corner.
Uncle Peng's hunched back was tightly protecting a low table.
This situation is truly tragic.
Qiao Er thought of He Miaomiao again.
"Big sister, you don't know how chaotic things have been since you disappeared! My brothers were with Father defending the city when we received a letter from Manman saying that you and Manman were both in Sun Ce's hands, so we had to rush home. As soon as we got home, we found that Miaomiao was missing! Before we could even properly look for her, Prefect Lu wrote to Father, and we went back to the city walls to defend the city... Ah... Miaomiao, my Miaomiao, I'm afraid something bad has happened to her."
Qiao Er cried so hard he could barely breathe.
Qiao Manman developed a misconception during Qiao Er's tearful outburst.
It was as if the upheaval in the Qiao family was all because of her. If she hadn't rushed into Prefect Lu's stable that day, she wouldn't have met the masked Sun Ce.
None of these things would have happened then.
Sun Ce broke through his city.
Lu Kang remained in his position as prefect.
Qiao Jingjing only needs to stay at home, close the door, sit around the stove, brew tea, and be a well-mannered bystander.
result!
"We're destitute! Eldest sister, we're destitute again. Second sister-in-law is gone, and second brother is heartbroken. But at least second brother and sister-in-law were once together. But what about me? I haven't even gotten married yet... I'm the one who's pitiful!"
Qiao San also cried.
Qiao Jingjing's initial sense of guilt was completely washed away by the crying.
She composed herself:
"Qiao San, look around and find something usable. We'll make do with this for the next couple of days!"
"Manman, I'm a little hungry and my body aches. Can you take a look at me and boil some hot water to wash my wounds?"
"Qiao Er, why don't you go around and find a doctor? You might also be able to find out where Miao Miao is."
Be quiet!
They're all still able-bodied and capable of working, so what's with the mourning? Does crying, making a scene, and wailing really bring good days?
In the half hour that was taken.
Qiao Manman gathered firewood, drew water from the well, boiled the water, and cooked millet porridge on the stove. Then she brought hot water to Qiao Jingjing to wipe her face and body.
This is quite something.
The wound on Qiao Jingjing's face was alright, just a broken skin, but the bloody welt on her back was very deep. The whip marks, deep and shallow, had even seeped into the flesh, leaving behind bits of clothing.
No wonder Qiao Jingjing was in pain.
"Manman, add some salt to the hot water, let it cool down a bit, and then wash the blood off my body. Remember, don't add cold water."
Fortunately, there was still a pinch of coarse salt in a large piece of broken salt shaker on the kitchen floor.
Qiao Manman did as Qiao Jingjing suggested.
She used diluted salt water to clean Qiao Jingjing's wound. Qiao Jingjing was in excruciating pain, but she endured it without making a sound.
"Prefect Lu! Forget it, he's no longer Prefect Lu. It's only because Father used to be on good terms with him. Sister, you even arranged a marriage with them. How could he turn on you so quickly and so ruthlessly?"
"Prefect Lu actually used you to threaten that Sun Ce!"
"But he doesn't even consider that you, sister, only met Sun Ce by chance, and only had a few encounters with him."
"If Sun Ce is a ruthless killer, no matter how he threatens you, it will be to no avail."
"If Sun Ce doesn't accept this threat, wouldn't his family become enraged and leave my sister hanging on the city wall, not caring whether she lives or dies?"
Qiao Manman washed the wounds on Qiao Jingjing's back.
Qiao Jingjing was in so much pain that her face turned pale and large beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.
"Manman, find some coarse cloth, boil it in hot water, hang it by the stove to dry, and then apply some wiregrass to your back. You have to find wiregrass in the mulberry garden; it's the kind that's thin and long with pointed leaves. It can reduce inflammation, relieve pain, and stop bleeding."
Qiao Manman still had to go find the iron wire grass alone.
Qiao Jingjing was lying on a broken couch; if she wasn't careful, she would roll onto it.
The curtains and canopies were torn.
A charcoal fire was lit beside the bed. Since she hadn't applied the medicine yet, Qiao Jingjing didn't even cover herself with the tattered quilt, only pulling down half of the curtain.
While waiting for the doctor and Qiao Manman to find the iron wire grass.
To alleviate the pain, Qiao Jingjing tried to distract herself by thinking about other things.
For her, a time traveler, time had finally come to this point: Sun Ce had conquered Lujiang City.
Perhaps, in the real world, Sun Ce had many trivial matters to attend to.
Having just conquered a new territory, Sun Ce needed to establish a firm foothold, and he didn't have much time to care whether Qiao Jingjing lived or died.
Perhaps, just as Zhang Zhao had planned, his family disappeared from Sun Ce's sight, and Sun Ce, busy with his own affairs, eventually forgot about them.
fine!
That just so happens, Qiao Jingjing also has a lot of things to do right now.
The chickens and ducks in the mulberry orchard were all looted, but fortunately the mulberry seedlings were still there. They would bloom in spring and bear fruit in summer, and the mulberry leaves could be used to feed silkworms, so earning enough food for the family wouldn't be difficult.
As long as the family is still alive and together, they can always create a future with their own hands.
Although Lujiang City has changed hands, the foundation of its people remains.
Sun Ce is not Dong Zhuo.
Although he was busy eliminating those who opposed him, he was not as brutal and tyrannical as Dong Zhuo was when he entered Luoyang, leaving nine out of ten houses empty.
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