Chapter 608 Going to the Manor
After the night passes, another night will come.
With Gu Shuyan's help, Niao Cui was able to leave the Marquis's mansion, which felt like a cage to her.
In Master Gu's eyes, this was nothing more than the death of a concubine; there would be another one, so he never took it to heart.
However, Master Gu never imagined that the woman, whom he considered worthless and whom he never even visited after her death, would become the beginning of his long and desperate life.
Braving the heavy rain, Niao Cui walked for a whole day before arriving at the town closest to the capital. She exchanged her silver hairpin for clean and neat clothes, and exchanged the silver notes given to her by Gu Shuyan for cash and small denomination notes. Niao Cui then found a house to stay in this small town.
The sudden appearance of a beautiful young woman in town inevitably drew crowds who came to see her and inquire about her background.
Ke Niaocui rarely goes out and has been seen in public for several days, except when she goes out to buy vegetables and fruits.
That day, as usual, Niao Cui returned from buying groceries, only to be blocked by two thugs before she even reached the door. These two men were notorious hooligans in the town, idle and unemployed all day. Upon hearing that a young and beautiful woman like Niao Cui had come to town, they immediately harbored lewd thoughts.
Just as Niao Cui was about to be bullied by the two men, a young man living next door happened to witness the scene. What followed was just like in the opera: the young man saved Niao Cui, and Niao Cui was grateful and developed feelings for the young man.
Before they knew it, it was August 14th. Niao Cui went to the street early to buy things she needed for the festival. Looking at the large and small bags that Niao Cui brought back, the young man scratched his head somewhat sheepishly.
"Why did you buy so much food? Can the two of us finish it all?"
The young man was an honest man, Niao Cui knew that when she arrived in this town, otherwise she wouldn't have sought him out.
Yes, Niao Cui had inquired about it the day she arrived in the town. The young man's parents had passed away a few years ago, and he had never been able to get married because he was too honest.
She deliberately moved in next door to the young man, hoping to get closer to him, but who knew he was actually so honest. Left with no other choice, Niao Cui gave the two thugs a tael of silver to put on a show.
"It's not all for the two of us. I'm going out tomorrow and I need to take some with me." Niao Cui didn't look up at the young man when he asked her question. She just took the things she had bought into the kitchen.
Tomorrow is the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The young man didn't ask where Niao Cui had gone, afraid he would be disappointed. He had heard from outsiders that Niao Cui didn't seem like a girl from a poor family, and that she was quite old; she might be a mistress kept by a wealthy family.
Although the young man argued with those people, saying that Niao Cui was a good girl, he still couldn't help but worry.
"Yes, I know." Niao Cui looked over with a guilty expression. "I'm going to see an acquaintance tomorrow and won't be back until dark, so I probably won't be able to spend the Mid-Autumn Festival with you."
"It's okay, I can manage on my own. I've always spent Mid-Autumn Festival alone before."
The young man looked confident, but it wasn't hard to see the disappointment in his eyes.
I thought I wouldn't have to spend this Mid-Autumn Festival alone, but I never expected that I would still have to spend it alone in the end.
After helping Niao Cui with her work until evening, the young man finally couldn't hold back any longer when he saw her carefully packing the pastries she had made that day into boxes, along with that jar of fine wine.
Can I go with you tomorrow?
The young man lowered his head, his voice tinged with a hint of probing. He was afraid that Niao Cui would be angry with him because of this, and he even considered that Niao Cui might kick him out because of it.
To the young man's surprise, Niao Cui actually nodded in agreement.
"Okay, then you'll have to carry my things for me tomorrow."
Niao Cui turned around and smiled at the young man, which momentarily stunned him. Looking at the gentle appearance of the woman in front of him, the young man's heart clenched painfully.
The feeling of his heart racing made him want to take deep breaths, but he was too embarrassed in front of Niao Cui, and finally ran out with his face flushed red.
Watching the young man's departing figure, Niao Cui's smiling face gradually calmed down.
The next day, Niao Cui led the young man onto the oxcart early in the morning. When the oxcart reached the official road ten miles away from the town, the sun was already high in the sky.
"Erwa, we need to hurry and get going."
After glancing at the village on the mountain, Niao Cui said to the young man.
"Don't worry, we'll definitely be there before lunch." Erwa said, following behind Niaocui as they quickly went up the mountain. When they arrived outside the village, sure enough, it was lunchtime.
The Marquis's estate has many properties, but this one is the smallest. Because it is located on a mountain with little farmland, only a few families cultivate the land here.
Upon entering the village's territory, the first person to arrive was an old woman. When she heard Niao Cui say that she was Aunt Qiao's distant cousin, the old woman clearly showed some disdain.
"What cousin? We're all farmers here. How could a concubine from the Marquis's mansion possibly come here? Let's get out of here."
The old woman rudely chased them away. Seeing this, Niao Cui quickly smiled and handed two taels of silver to the old woman, saying, "Please do us a favor, Auntie. My husband and I just haven't seen our cousin for a long time, so we'd like to visit her. We'll leave after we've seen her, and we won't cause you any trouble."
“Yes, Auntie, please let the sisters meet us! We definitely won’t stay long,” Erwa quickly chimed in.
"What do you mean, 'see'? Can't you understand human language? I've already told you, we don't have any concubines here. You'd better leave now."
The old woman put the two taels of silver back into Niao Cui's hand, picked up the broom beside her, and was about to chase her away.
Before Niao Cui could persuade her, Erwa suddenly knelt down. "Auntie, my husband and I have been traveling all day, just to hear that my cousin is here. Please, Auntie, have mercy and let the sisters meet!"
"Please, Auntie, make an exception for me." Niao Cui then handed back the two taels of silver.
Seeing that the two were very polite in their request, the old woman weighed the two taels of silver in her hand, and after looking at Niao Cui and Erwa, who both seemed honest and simple, she reluctantly nodded in agreement.
"Don't blame me for being blunt, but once you leave this room today, you'd better forget about Auntie being here. Also, once you've come in, only you and I can know; no fourth person can be told. Do you understand?"
The old woman carefully led the two inside, giving them a haughty warning as she went.
The two nodded respectfully upon hearing this, and after walking around the perimeter of the manor, they were led into a small hut. Seeing the hut's dilapidated state, Niao Cui couldn't help but take another look.
"Don't think this place is too simple. It can shelter you from the wind and rain, which is already quite good."
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