It has to be said that in Qingping County, the title of "Leopard Master" is far more useful than the title of "County Magistrate." Ever since Chen Ping spread the word that Leopard Master was protecting Yun Duo's family, no one dared to lift a finger, no matter how envious they were of Yun Duo's family's wealth.
The Yun family never bothered them again. They would always take a detour when they saw them, and Zhang Juhua never spoke ill of the Yun family again.
Lu Laogen, on the other hand, would occasionally help Yun Dazheng with some heavy work. It wasn't for free; since they were on a tight budget, Yun Dazheng and the others were willing to help. They would either buy meat, cook it, and send a bowl to Lu Laogen's house, or give him a few cents. Although it wasn't much, farmers already struggled to earn money, and a few cents each time added up to several dollars ten times, providing extra income. This made Zhang Juhua's face truly beam with joy whenever she saw them.
However, Yun Duo has been a little worried lately because Xiao Jiu suddenly disappeared without a word. No matter how she searched or called, there was no response. As a result, she hasn't been able to eat or sleep well.
Yun Qi piled several pieces of meat into Yun Duo's bowl, then urged her with a worried expression, "Duo'er, eat more. Look at you, you've lost all the flesh on your face, you're so thin. It breaks our hearts to see you like this. Xiao Jiu will definitely be alright, maybe it'll come back anytime. Even if it really... doesn't come back, it's just because it's playing somewhere else, or maybe it's helping someone else. With our current situation and more than ten hives of bees, we can make a good living. We should be content, okay?"
Since Yun Qishi didn't know the true relationship between Yun Duo and Xiao Jiu, there was naturally nothing wrong with her saying this.
For Yun Duo, Xiao Jiu was the only connection between her and the world she had lived in for over twenty years… To put it bluntly, she could have nothing, but she couldn't live without Xiao Jiu. She also knew that Xiao Jiu would never leave her, would never disappear without a trace… unless…
Therefore, Yun Qi's words not only failed to comfort Yun Duo, but also made her more upset and worried. She held back her emotions and tried to keep them from showing too much, but stubbornly and defiantly said, "Xiao Jiu will come back!" After saying that, she bit her lip so hard that it almost bled.
Yun Qishi and Yun Dazheng were heartbroken and quickly comforted her, "Yes, yes, Duo'er is right. Xiao Jiu is a member of our family. It will definitely come back. Don't worry. Sweet Duo'er, stop biting your lip. It's going to bleed. Eat your food. Maybe Xiao Jiu will come back after you finish eating."
"Mmm!" Yun Duo nodded vigorously, shoveled a couple of mouthfuls of rice into her mouth, and said, "Grandma, let's leave more meat for Xiao Jiu. It's been outside for so many days, even if it can find meat to eat on its own, it must be craving it."
Yun Qi nodded quickly and coaxed Yun Duo, saying, "It's being kept. Grandma saved it for Xiao Jiu. When it was done cooking, she scooped out more than half a bowl and put it in the kitchen. It's all meat, so Xiao Jiu will definitely be happy when she comes back."
"Mmm." Yun Duo nodded again and said, "Thank you, Grandma." Just then, she heard Xiao Jiu's slightly weak voice.
"Master, Master..."
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