Song Liyun and her group passed directly through the town and were taken to the vicinity of the military camp.
There is a row of simple wooden sheds here, where migrant workers live separately by gender.
The construction of the barracks was urgent, so the laborers only had a short rest before starting work the next day.
What Song Zhenping and the other men had to do was to move gravel from the banks of the Huangsha River to the river pass ten miles outside the town.
Song Liyun, along with several other women, cooked three meals a day for the laborers.
Xiao An was a child who couldn't do any work, so the military camp didn't register him as a civilian worker, and he became an unregistered member of the workforce.
During the day, he stayed by Song Liyun's side, helping her cook in the kitchen.
That night, they went to Song Zhenping's flatbed and the two brothers slept together under one quilt.
Although Xiao An is small in stature and looks like a five or six-year-old child, he is serious, obedient and sensible.
The cooks in the kitchen were generally kind to him, and things went smoothly for several days.
Xiao An was able to eat and drink her fill every day, and no one beat or scolded her, but she still didn't talk much and would often sit in the corner lost in thought with a blank stare.
Xiao An's eyes only light up when he sees his brother Song Zhenping or when Song Liyun talks to him.
Song Liyun did not force him to change immediately. From the day he was born, all Xiao An could feel was hunger, cold, and beatings.
Hiding his thoughts was the only way he could protect himself.
The kindness shown by strangers around him is ultimately superficial, and it's something Xiao An earned through hard work. It's not enough to change a child's habits; it takes time.
Four days have passed since they arrived in Suijin Town. The three Song siblings have settled down for the time being, but Song Lao Er in Xiaoshi Village is in dire straits.
On the day of the incident, the villagers who were going to perform corvée labor were stopped just outside the county town and escorted back to Xiaoshi Village overnight by the county constables.
These country men were escorted without knowing anything, and they were immediately filled with shock and fear. They also had to walk a hundred miles back and forth, which would be unbearable for anyone.
Finally, he spent money to hire an oxcart and arrived home at dawn.
When they learned that Song Lao Er said Song Liyun had run away from her wedding and that her house had been burglarized, making them all suspects, they were all furious: What did Yun's elopement have to do with them?
But crying out for justice was useless; they could only reluctantly cooperate with the government's investigation.
After much fuss, the county constable questioned everyone and reached a conclusion.
This case involves Song Zhenping and his sister Song Liyun eloping, and the evidence is conclusive.
However, the three siblings went missing midway, and their fate will depend on Song Zhenping's capture.
The theft of Song Defu's property was too bizarre to be considered a case that could only be temporarily filed.
That was the end of the matter concerning the Song family. As soon as the officials left, the men of the village surrounded Song Lao Er.
These men weren't like the women who were playfully fighting with Granny Gu. They didn't care that they were exhausted after two days and two nights of hard work, so they grabbed Song Lao Er and gave him a good beating.
Song Lao Er was extremely unlucky. He had just been whipped by Master Xue, and now he was being beaten again. He had no power to fight back at all.
By the time Song Lizheng arrived, Song was already lying on the ground, bruised and swollen, groaning.
Granny Gu is old, and after a few days of this, she has lost all her former power.
Madam Gu was still sleeping on the kang (a heated brick bed) during her postpartum confinement period.
Fortunately, Song Shuirong was in bed that night, and Song Liyun didn't take it away, so now Xiao Gu Shi has bedding to use.
Hearing the commotion outside, she was helpless and could only wail in a hoarse voice.
"Alright, everyone stop fighting. Li Yun and the others haven't returned yet, and this wasn't done by anyone from the village. Don't overthink it. Anyway, there's already a criminal record, so we'll definitely catch the thief as soon as they show up."
Song Lizheng looked worried and had no mood to explain or comfort Song Lao Er.
He learned from people returning to the village that his son, Song Dekui, and his two siblings, Song Zhenping, had been taken away by government soldiers, supposedly to repair the border wall.
Those soldiers grabbed people and ran away; now there are no clues to find them.
Qingping Town is more than 200 miles from the border. Even if people were to be drawn from such a far distance to build the border wall, he was worried that he was being forcibly conscripted.
I just sent a letter to the town government office, asking my eldest son, Song Dequan, to find out about Dekui as soon as possible.
If someone is conscripted, we'll have to pay to get them back; that could be fatal.
As for Song Liyun and her two siblings, he could no longer take care of them.
Just thinking about it made Song Lizheng hate Song Lao Er so much he wanted to grind his teeth.
If he hadn't mistreated his nephew and forced Yun to elope, why would he have bothered sending his third son, who was doing a good job in town, to perform corvée labor?
Now he's completely out of touch with anyone, and he doesn't even dare let his wife know.
Song Lao Er was now convinced of his mistake. Even after being beaten, he dared not be arrogant anymore. He stood up listlessly and pleaded, "Uncle Village Head, I know I was wrong. Since we have to wait for the government to investigate the case, I will wait."
But we have nothing at home right now. Could the village give us some money so I can buy things and send my children to school?
Song Lizheng knew that Song Lao Er's house was empty and that Xiao Gu Shi was in confinement after giving birth. It was getting colder every day, so they really needed to buy bedding, clothes and food immediately.
In the past, all it would take was for Granny Gu to make a scene, and she might get some relief from the village.
But things are different now, and Song Lizheng no longer indulges him: "If your family wants to make a living, you need to buy some things."
Since a police report has already been filed, the village can act as witnesses to replace the lost house and land deeds.
Don't think I don't know that you have five taels of silver in your hand, enough to live on for a year even if you do nothing.
If you still think it's not enough, then sell some land!
When Song Lao Er heard what Song Lizheng said, he thought the village was going to give him money.
Upon hearing that he was to use the money from selling his daughter and also sell land, he immediately shouted, "No, we can't sell the land!"
This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com