"Aunt Wu, we can't just sit here and wait to die."
Hearing the barely audible voice beside her, Old Mrs. Wu looked at Ma Xiaoyan through the black cloth.
Not hearing a response from Old Mrs. Wu, Ma Xiaoyan became anxious. "Aunt Wu, I don't want to be sold. I am an educated youth sent to the countryside by the call to work. I absolutely cannot be confined to an unknown little mountain village and become the shared wife of a few old bachelors. That would not only be an insult to me, but also an insult to all the education I have received over the past ten years!"
"What do you want to do?"
Upon hearing the response, Ma Xiaoyan's voice became somewhat excited, even distorted. After a slight pause, she heard nothing unusual. Although she couldn't see, she still tried her best to look in front of her.
She moistened her dry throat with saliva and tried to say, "I am the daughter of the Party Secretary of Yunhai City. As long as I can send a message to my father, he will definitely come to save me, and then all these girls will be saved."
Old Mrs. Wu was startled. Yunhai City!
Isn't this an important heavy industrial city in Northeast China?
I never imagined that the daughter of the municipal party secretary would be abducted to such a small place.
Seemingly anticipating what Old Mrs. Wu was about to say, Ma Xiaoyan blushed slightly, a rare occurrence for her. "I sneaked out and used my classmate's name to cut in line, so..."
So even if her father wanted to find her, he couldn't.
Grandma Wu was speechless for once. If you said she was sensible, she would sneak out of the house; if you said she was willful and reckless, she would also have a patriotic heart and respond to the call to go to the countryside to work.
"I have a jade pendant around my neck, a gift from my father for my one-month celebration and birthday. He knows him. Please help me, take my jade pendant to him, and tell him about this place!"
"We must wipe out this whole human trafficking ring!"
Ma Xiaoyan had already given up hope and was just waiting for someone to dare touch her so she could commit suicide!
Unexpectedly, Grandma Wu suddenly appeared today and even helped bandage my wound. She showed no panic or fear whatsoever.
It seemed as if everything was under her control, and whether or not she could escape was entirely up to her.
She had a leg injury and couldn't run very far, but Old Lady Wu was different. She was healthy and had just arrived, so she had plenty of strength.
"Aunt Wu, can you help me, please help these girls?"
Grandma Wu pondered for a while, still thinking about what to do, but she never expected that the solution was right beside her.
"Sure, I can help you, but what will you do? What if... what if they do something to you..."
Ma Xiaoyan smiled brightly, "Aunt Wu, I have legs, I can run, and if all else fails, I can... die..."
Ma Xiaoyan was startled when she suddenly felt warmth on her cold hands.
"I'll take you away!"
Ma Xiaoyan wanted to tell her not to act rashly. It would be fine if she were alone, but with her, how could the two of them possibly escape?
"Listen to me."
Grandma Wu squeezed her hand. "I don't know your house. Besides, how can a mere commoner like me just meet a municipal party secretary? Without you, I wouldn't even be able to find the edge of your front door."
"But!"
Grandma Wu took out a pill and put it in her mouth, saying quickly, "Don't talk, just get some sleep."
Just as Ma Xiaoyan was about to open her mouth, a slightly bitter and cool pill melted in her mouth, and she finally realized the strangeness she had just ignored.
"Aunt Wu, your hand..."
Before he could even finish speaking, he collapsed to the ground, his eyes wide open.
With a 'thud,' it landed on the thick pile of sheep dung. The sound wasn't loud, but it still caused a stir among the hungry crowd.
"What's wrong? What's wrong?"
Grandma Wu quickly swallowed the pills in her mouth and collapsed to the ground.
After two people had accidents in succession, Sister Wang came out with a sullen face after hearing the commotion.
The two women, Wu Laotai and Ma Xiaoyan, who were carried out, were pale and had their eyes closed.
What's wrong with them?
"It's dead."
“Dead?!”
Sister Wang reached out and slashed the necks of the two people, her face turning as black as if it could drip water. Suppressing her anger, she asked, "How could they have died out of the blue!"
She was about to ship the goods and receive payment when she inexplicably lost two items. How could she not be angry!
His subordinates pursed their lips.
Staring at their ashen faces, he jumped up and waved his hand, "Get this sorted out of here! This batch of goods can't wait any longer, get it out of here!"
At his command, the people behind him quickly took action, and Old Lady Wu and Ma Xiaoyan were thrown into a damp cave behind the mountain.
After an unknown amount of time, Old Mrs. Wu suddenly opened her eyes. After a brief moment of confusion, she quickly got up and fed Ma Xiaoyan another pill before she realized that Ma Xiaoyan had woken up.
"Aunt Wu...where are we?"
"I don't know, let's get out of here quickly." Old Mrs. Wu helped her to her feet. "Can you walk?"
Ma Xiaoyan gritted her teeth and said, "I can!" After taking only a few steps, she suddenly fell to the ground. Old Mrs. Wu grabbed her and put her on her back.
"Let me carry you on my back."
Before she could speak, Old Lady Wu emerged from the cave, roughly determined the direction, and ran straight off.
As Ma Xiaoyan saw the dawn breaking on the horizon, her eyes gradually brightened as well.
Whether it was the scent of soapberry on Old Lady Wu or the warmth emanating from her cotton-padded coat, Ma Xiaoyan's eyelids drooped heavily.
When he regained consciousness, he realized he was lying on a truck.
The sound of rushing past filled my ears, and a biting cold wind blew in through the open door.
"Aunt Wu, are we in a car?"
Grandma Wu nodded and handed her a large meat pie and a bottle of hot water. "Yes, we met a kind person who realized we weren't locals. I just went along with what he said, explaining that we got lost while visiting relatives because of the heavy snow on the way."
In the south, the first crop can be planted now, but in the northeast, it still snows occasionally.
"Don't worry, this train is going to Yunhai, we'll get off when we get there."
Ma Xiaoyan nodded, her tense heart immediately relaxing.
When a person relaxes, a flood of pathogens invades the body. Normally, Ma Xiaoyan would fall ill and develop a high fever.
Grandma Wu rummaged through the mirror space, took out a dusty gray pill, dissolved it in water, and fed it to Ma Xiaoyan.
After just one bowl, the high fever gradually subsided.
The effect is surprisingly good, but unfortunately, each one used is one less available.
Grandma Wu clutched her arm tightly, a hint of regret flashing across her eyes from time to time.
The truck traveled for a full day and night before finally stopping.
"Auntie, we have to stop here."
Grandma Wu responded loudly, "I understand, thank you, young man."
A gust of cold wind blew by, and Grandma Wu helped Ma Xiaoyan stand on the curb, waving her arm as she watched the truck drive away.
Grandma Wu put the hat that had been blown off back on Ma Xiaoyan's head, and asked, "Which way do we go now?"
“It’s right in the municipal party committee compound. My dad should be working there now. The uncles and aunts there all watched me grow up, and they know me.”
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