Although he couldn't see anyone, Song Zhenping was already energized and kept walking, closely following the man who was holding Xiao An as he hurried forward.
The two walked too fast and bumped into several people, drawing complaints: "Hey De Kui, the road is so narrow, why are you running? You've bumped into people and made their backs hurt!"
"Daiping! What are you panicking for? You're stepping on my foot!"
Song Zhenping apologized as he ran forward.
As dawn broke and the outline of Qingping Town came into view, he still hadn't seen Song Liyun.
"Uncle Kui, you're lying to me!" Song Zhenping had already realized that Yun'er hadn't come.
The village headman said that his second sister would escape with the group, but he was lying to himself.
He dropped the bedding, turned around, and tried to run away; he wanted to go back to find Yun'er.
Song Zhenping knew this was his only chance.
During the daytime, the second uncle's family would keep a close watch on Yun'er, send her to the Xue family, and then torture her to death.
Seeing him turn back, Song Dekui jumped up and down in a panic, grabbed him and dragged him forward: "You stubborn mule, if you run back now and mess up the government's business, you'll get a beating."
Getting a beating is a small matter.
If that family's affairs fall apart, Yun'er won't be able to escape, and Song Zhenping won't fare well either. It's better to let one of them go first.
Ever since Song Dekui learned about the arrangements his father had made for him yesterday at noon, he had been thinking to himself: "Second Brother Defu is truly hopeless."
Not only did he receive the government's pension from Brother Deshan, but he also inherited the family's vast fortune.
The children haven't been eating for nothing all these years; they've worked and earned money just fine, yet they've never been treated well.
Everyone knows that when Song Lao Er renovated his house, he spent almost all of the money meant for the main house.
Now that the child is grown up, they actually want to sell Yun'er for money.
Yun's marriage is decided by her elders, and the villagers can't interfere. I wonder if Yun will be able to escape this time?
Song Zhenping was pulled back by him, his face flushed red with anxiety, and his internal organs felt like they were about to burst.
"Uncle Kui, Yun'er, what should we do about Yun'er?"
"What else can we do? Let's go to town first."
Song Dekui was speechless. Regardless of whether Yun Yatou had escaped or not, he could only take Song Zhenping to town first.
Just as the two were struggling, a voice came with a laugh: "Brother, where are you going? I've been waiting for you guys for ages!"
Yun'er!
Song Zhenping turned around abruptly and saw Song Liyun emerge from the bushes beside him, patting the grass off her head and yawning, as if she had been waiting for a long time.
Beside them, the tall, thin man holding Xiao An opened his mouth in surprise and said in shock, "Goodness, you really escaped. I thought my dad was lying."
"Tell me quickly, how did you escape the eyes of those two shrewish women?"
Song Liyun didn't recognize this person. Seeing his nagging, she turned her gaze to Song Zhenping.
Song Zhenping took Xiao An and whispered, "You don't recognize him? This is Uncle Kui from the village head's family."
Song Liyun suddenly realized that the tall, thin man was Song Lizheng's third son, whom Song Lizheng had told her about before.
The third son, Song Dekui, works as a castrator in town, specializing in castrating livestock. He also runs a cattle and horse trading business. He is 21 years old and still unmarried, a bachelor.
This time, Song Lizheng's family also needed to provide a laborer. Instead of paying him a wage, Song Lizheng called him back to help take care of the three Song siblings.
Upon hearing that it was someone from the village head's family, Song Liyun quickly and obediently greeted, "Uncle Kui!"
She originally thought that at the age of twenty-one, she could just call him Brother Kui.
Although they were both from Xiaoshi Village and shared the same surname, Song, they were from the same family, and he was a generation older than him, so naturally he had to call him uncle.
Song Dekui chuckled: "Yun girl, don't you remember me? I used to carry you on my back when we were little, but we ended up rolling down the edge of the paddy field and getting covered in mud!"
Song Liyun was extremely embarrassed: The original owner probably doesn't even remember this, so how would I know?
As the three were talking, others arrived one after another. Some of them were surprised to see Song Liyun: "Isn't this Liyun? The Xue family has already sent betrothal gifts. You should be waiting for your wedding at home. Why are you here?"
Faced with the villagers' questions, Song Dekui calmly explained, "Yun'er's wedding is still a long way off, so Song Lao Er arranged for her to cook for people at the construction site to earn some pocket money."
Oh, I see!
Song Dekui was the son of the village head, so his words carried some authority.
The villagers immediately believed it, then shook their heads and sighed.
Given the nature of Song Lao Er's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, Da Ping is constantly exploited at home and has no free time. Now, he even has to bring his mentally challenged younger brother to the construction site.
They certainly wouldn't let go of Song Liyun, this young lady. She could earn at least three or four hundred coins by cooking for people at the construction site.
The construction site was full of men, who were rude and disrespectful.
Aside from elderly women, even young wives wouldn't go, let alone a young woman who hasn't married yet.
Yun was definitely forced to do chores.
The villagers felt sorry for him, but there was nothing they could do to help. At most, they could only curse Song Lao Er for being heartless.
At this time, people from several other villages in the town, besides Xiaoshi Village, who were also required to perform corvée labor, gathered there.
The open space outside the town, where stalls were set up during the day, suddenly became crowded with people. People who knew each other greeted each other and ran around in a chaotic mess.
Among the crowd, several women stood together talking loudly; they were also from other villages going to the construction site to earn money.
With them around, Song Liyun, who was holding Xiao An's hand, no longer attracted attention.
Soon, the town's clerk came out with the roster and loudly announced the precautions, but the scene below was chaotic, and his words were drowned out by the chatter of the crowd.
Fortunately, the leaders of each village knew that this time they were going to serve in the county town.
After the clerk finished speaking, the villagers, amidst shouts and urging, followed the clerk's carriage and began to head towards the county town in a chaotic manner.
Despite not having slept all night, the three siblings were still full of energy, blending into the crowd like water droplets merging into a stream, or birds flying out of the forest, joyfully heading towards the vast world.
In Xiaoshi Village, Song Lao Er watched the people performing corvée labor gradually walk away until there was no sound left. After listening to a few people chatting for a while, he yawned out of boredom and staggered home.
Song Zhenping and the jinx are gone. Now all that's left is for Master Xue to pick them up. All the money will be in his pocket, and Song Liyun will have to send money home again.
There's not a single thing to worry about.
Wow! Life is getting better and better!
Song Lao Er was in a good mood, humming a little tune as he thought that it was still early and he would go back to the kang (heated brick bed) for another nap.
Before he even got home, he saw his own courtyard gate wide open, and he could faintly hear the wailing and howling of his mother and daughter-in-law coming from inside.
Song Lao Er frowned, feeling annoyed: What is this mother yelling about now? She never lets me have a moment's peace.
As soon as I entered the courtyard, I saw Granny Gu rolling around on the ground in the dim morning light, scratching at the ground with her hands, screaming in anguish, "Heavens! I can't live like this anymore!"
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