Wei Yuyan was worried that Wu Lei would get up very early again tomorrow morning, and she would definitely have to sleep in.
"Okay, I'll get up a little later tomorrow too."
Wu Lei nodded to indicate that he understood.
That evening, Wei Yuyan boiled a large pot of water and washed the clothes twice before they were clean.
I fell asleep as soon as I got into bed.
The next morning, Wei Yuyan slept until late morning before remembering that Qianqian hadn't eaten breakfast.
"Qianqian, you haven't eaten yet, are you hungry?"
Wei Yuyan came out to wash up.
"I've eaten, sister-in-law, I've had pastries, I'm not hungry."
When Qianqian saw that her brother and sister-in-law hadn't gotten up yet, she took some pastries from the cupboard and ate them.
"Sister-in-law, I'm steaming buns."
Wu Lei popped his head out of the kitchen.
"OK".
Wei Yuyan started fetching water to wash up.
"Qianqian and Xiaolei, this is our lunch. If you get hungry in the afternoon, you can have some pastries, okay?"
Wei Yuyan noticed it was already past 9 AM, and she was quite full after eating the steamed buns.
"Yes, sister-in-law, we are all full."
Wu Lei ate the steamed buns with big bites, and Wu Qian nodded with her lips puffed out.
After they finished eating, Wei Yuyan took Qianqian to the river to wash clothes, while Wu Lei cooked chicken feed at home.
Qianqian hadn't left the house all day yesterday and was really bored. Unexpectedly, she ran into her good friend Xiaohua by the river.
"Sister Xiaohua, what a coincidence! What's wrong? Are you crying?"
Qianqian leaned closer to Xiaohua and found that Xiaohua was silently shedding tears.
"Qianqian is here. I'm fine. I'm just..."
Xiao Hua had no words to express her suffering.
"What's wrong, Xiaohua? Why are you crying?"
Wei Yuyan, her clothes soaked, heard Xiaohua crying and couldn't help but ask what was wrong.
"Sister-in-law, my parents want to arrange a marriage for me."
Xiaohua had been keeping it all bottled up inside for the past few days, with no one to confide in. Now that she's finally spoken out, she feels a little better.
"Engaged? So early? Then, are you not satisfied with him?"
Wei Yuyan patiently patted her head.
"He's an idiot, but his family is rich. They'll give him eight taels of silver, humph."
After Xiaohua finished speaking, she burst into tears, completely despairing about her future.
"Don't cry~ Don't cry~, Xiaohua, this matter hasn't been settled yet, maybe there's still room for maneuver?"
Wei Yuyan's mind raced. How could she help this poor little girl, whose fate was not in her own hands?
But her parents didn't care about their daughter's life or death. What's the difference between that and selling their daughter? They were practically selling her to a brothel.
Looking at it this way, the original owner's parents weren't too bad; at least they married her off to a normal person.
"There's no room for negotiation. They're already looking for an auspicious date, and once they find one, they'll finalize the deal."
Xiaohua calmed down, wiped away her tears, as if she was about to accept this unfair fate.
"Xiaohua, don't just give up like this. Your sister-in-law will try to think of a way to help you."
Wei Yuyan thought that if she hadn't met him, it would have been fine, but now that she had, she couldn't just sit idly by.
It's a pity I don't have any money right now, otherwise I would buy Xiaohua.
"Really, sister-in-law? Is there still hope for me?"
A glimmer of hope rekindled in Xiaohua's eyes as she looked at Wei Yuyan.
"It will happen, don't be too sad. Your sister-in-law will think of a way to help you."
Wei Yuyan comforted Xiaohua, feeling a pang of pity in her heart.
"Sister-in-law, let's help Sister Xiaohua."
Qianqian didn't quite understand why her sister Xiaohua was crying so sadly; she only knew that Xiaohua had encountered difficulties.
"Yes, sister-in-law, try your best. Be good. During this time, you can also chat with Xiaohua more and comfort her."
Wei Yuyan carried a large basin of clothes and slowly went home with Qianqian.
After hanging up the clothes, Wei Yuyan lay on the bed to read, but found she couldn't concentrate because she was still thinking about Xiaohua.
But what could she do? If she found ten taels of silver right now, Wei Yuyan would definitely buy Xiaohua.
Unable to come up with a solution, Wei Yuyan told Xiao Lei a few words and then went to Sister-in-law Xiuhua's house.
These things are not something the children would understand if I talked to them about; it's better to chat with Sister Xiuhua about them.
"Sister-in-law Xiuhua, did you take a nap?"
Wei Yuyan was worried that her sister-in-law Xiuhua might be taking a nap, so she gently knocked on the door.
"Welcome! It's your sister-in-law. Come in, I'm doing laundry."
When Sister-in-law Xiuhua opened the door and found Wei Yuyan, she invited her in and went to do the laundry.
"I just finished washing my clothes; I went to the river to wash them too."
Wei Yuyan walked straight in and sat down.
"Really? I'm too lazy to go. I slept in pretty late today too."
Sister-in-law Xiuhua sat by the well, slowly beating the clothes.
"Sigh~".
Wei Yuyan sighed.
"What's wrong? Why are you sighing like that? The rice planting is all done, what are you worried about?"
Xiuhua's sister-in-law was puzzled.
"This isn't our family's business. Do you know that little flower at the edge of the village?"
Wei Yuyan didn't know if Sister-in-law Xiuhua knew Xiaohua.
"I know her, but we're not that close. I only know that her parents are lazy and good-for-nothing, while she, the only child, is always busy at home and outside. What's wrong with her?"
Sister-in-law Xiuhua is familiar with all the women in the village, and knows some of the children but not others.
"Qianqian loves playing with her, but when she met her today, she cried and said that her father was going to marry her off to a fool."
They're getting engaged soon, and the girl's eyes are all swollen from crying. I want to help her, but I'm powerless to do so.
If only I had money, I would buy her and take her home.
Wei Yuyan and Sister-in-law Xiuhua spoke the truth.
"Oh dear, this child is so pitiful. I heard that he sometimes doesn't have enough to eat at home and saves food for his younger siblings."
Her parents completely neglected their duties, and in the end, they even married her off to a mentally challenged man. Such people will surely face retribution.
Xiuhua's sister-in-law was also somewhat surprised when she heard about this.
"Well, Sister-in-law Xiuhua, you're a few years older than me, so tell me, what's the best way to help her escape this misery?"
Wei Yuyan sought help from her sister-in-law, Xiuhua.
"Sister-in-law, it's not that I'm heartless, but this is something you can't help me with."
This is, after all, his family matter. I know you're soft-hearted, but it will be difficult to help her in this matter.
Sister-in-law Xiuhua believed that outsiders had no right to interfere in this matter, as the saying goes, marriage is arranged by parents and matchmakers.
Before Sister Xiuhua got married, she had a good friend in the village who was also forced by her parents to marry a mute man.
The sisters refused to comply, even to the point of banging their heads against the wall.
As a result, her heartless parents simply bandaged her wound and sent her directly to the man's house.
"You're right. I was married into this family in the same way. I had no choice."
Wei Yuyan listened to Xiuhua's words and became lost in thought. Was she really going to just stand by and watch Xiaohua fall into the abyss?
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