But Maiya absolutely refused to go, and Cuihua dragged and pulled her, even holding onto her arm tightly, as if to say, "If you don't go, I'll drag you away."
The main problem is communication; it's hard to explain clearly. How can I explain it?
If you were mute, it would be fine, but this person is deaf. How can they communicate? They don't know any sign language either, and they just keep making "ah ah" sounds, which she can't explain!
In the end, Cuihua took out the money and asked her, "Do you have money? If you don't have money, where will you live? What will you eat? What will you wear?"
Maiya took the colorful money and looked it over from left to right. It seemed that she had just remembered that things in this world could not only be bartered, but also bought with this item. She had no money. Moreover, she seemed to have really hit the nail on the head. She didn't know where to go or where to stay.
The girl in front of me is so enthusiastic, fine, I'll reluctantly go with her. If the accommodations aren't good, she can always find a way to leave.
Soon after Cuihua put on her clothes, she started sneezing. She knew that she had most likely caught a cold. Worried that her younger sisters would be anxious, she quickly pulled Maiya towards home.
This river has nurtured the people of the surrounding villages. They grew up here and know it very well. Once they leave the woods, they can tell where they are just by looking at the general direction.
The distance was quite far. By the time we were almost at Taoyuan Village, it was already midday. From afar, we could see Cuiju and Cuilian anxiously looking around.
When they saw her, the two sisters broke down in tears. "Sister, big sister! Thank goodness you're alright. Thank God! Xiaolian, quick, quick, run to Xihe Village and tell Grandpa and Grandma that she's back."
They've been searching since last night, and although the villagers have tried their best to help, it's still not as dedicated as the Tao family.
It's understandable, since it was New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. The two sisters were exhausted, but neither of them wanted to go home and wait. So they walked back and forth in the direction of the village entrance. Fortunately, their efforts paid off, and they actually waited for the person to come back.
Cuilian was in a hurry to inform the Tao family, so she only greeted Cuihua, glanced curiously at the dark and thin girl next to her sister, and left without saying anything more.
When Cuihua returned to the village, she was inevitably questioned again, and she explained.
“I accidentally fell into the river and was rescued by this girl. She happened to be homeless, so I brought her back.”
This was an excuse she had prepared long ago. After all, Maiya didn't look much like them, and it wouldn't be appropriate for her to claim that she was their younger sister right away.
People say that the dragon has nine sons, each of whom is different. Even if they are not dragons, their appearances are indeed very different.
The four sisters, including Xiao Jiu, all look very alike, resembling Cao Amei more, while their noses and mouths resemble Tang Youtian's.
The fourth sister, Maiya, was dark-skinned and thin. You wouldn't call her ugly, but her dark complexion made her look less energetic.
Especially her facial features, which didn't match Cao Amei or Tang Youtian at all. It wasn't until Cuihua saw her own grandmother in the crowd that her lips twitched involuntarily.
Good heavens, this malt really doesn't know how to grow! How can it be like this old woman?
The more she looked at it, the more it resembled Cuihua. She was afraid that the damned old woman would find out something else. After all, she had almost thrown the fourth son into the pigsty back then. How dare that black-hearted old woman come to watch the show?
"You're a grown woman, what were you doing on New Year's Eve instead of going home? You may be shameless, but we still have ours! You've caused so many people to look for you. How can you be so troublesome? Tell me, where did you go last night? You're not leaving until you explain yourself. It's one thing to mess with your own home, but you've also caused others to gossip about us. See this? Cuihua is standing right here, perfectly fine. Which heartless person said we sold her? Get out here right now, or I'll tear her mouth apart!"
Is this what her own grandmother said? Is she afraid her reputation isn't good enough, and she has to explain to her in front of so many people where she went last night?
Cuihua scoffed, "Do I need to report to you where I go? You're afraid of being gossiped about behind my back, but aren't you afraid of me being plagued by rumors? Is this how a wet nurse acts? Look at the question you just asked. You've lived most of your life, if you can't speak properly, then don't speak at all, lest you make a fool of yourself!"
Cuihua ignored the old woman's instantly cracked expression and instead spoke to the surrounding villagers.
"I, Tang Cuihua, have long lost my reputation and don't care what you say. Anyway, I have done nothing wrong and have not committed any of the baseless slanders. Considering that everyone has worked hard, I am too lazy to talk to people like you who like to gossip behind people's backs."
She then turned around and bowed to thank those who genuinely cared about her.
"Thank you to all the grandparents, uncles, aunts and grandpas who went to the trouble of looking for me last night. On behalf of my sisters, Cuihua would like to express our gratitude to everyone. Achoo, achoo, I'm sorry, I think I've caught a cold. I need to go home and warm up quickly, so I won't talk to you anymore."
Not only Cuihua started sneezing, but Maiya also sneezed repeatedly. Although their clothes were dry, they were visibly wrinkled, and one of them even reached out to touch them, only nodding to the people around them after feeling the dampness.
"These clothes really do look like they've been in water, and I don't think they're faking their sneezes."
'If you fell into the water, why are you only coming back now?'
'Where did you fall into the water? Why didn't you call for help?'
Cuihua ignored them and dragged Maiya home.
Cui Mei, her face covered, was tending the fire at home. She had already heard from the villagers that her older sister had returned, so she quickly boiled water for them.
As soon as she entered, she noticed that both of their faces were flushed, and she instinctively reached out to touch them.
"This is about to catch fire. Quick, come inside and change your clothes. I'm brewing some ginger and scallion water. I'll find you some medicine to take in a bit."
Cui Mei didn't ask any further questions about the origin of the malt. In their view, the most important thing now was to recover from the illness. They would ask about the rest after the onlookers had left, behind closed doors.
Cuihua and Maiya's pale faces were unmistakable. After entering the house, Cuiju closed the front door with an apologetic expression.
"I'm so sorry everyone, my sister and the others need to change their clothes and drink ginger and scallion water to sweat it out. Once they're better, they'll come to thank you all in person!"
Cuiju wrote down the names of everyone who helped her search. Since it was the Lunar New Year and she had some things at home, she took this opportunity to wish them a happy new year and express her gratitude, which was also a basic principle of conduct for the sisters.
"It's good that they've found her. Cuiju, hurry back and let your sister and the others rest. We won't keep you any longer."
Knowing that these sisters had a habit of visiting the main gate, and also knowing that the old family couldn't stand to see them doing well, those who understood left. Only those who couldn't stand to see them doing well would stand at the door whispering and gossiping.
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