Chapter 13. From now on, please call me Wen Qingshi. ...
At noon, the wooden platforms in the official market were filled with people with blank expressions.
Buyers below the stage pointed and gestured, and the sounds of bargaining rose and fell.
Lin Huijun hurriedly pushed through the crowd, searching for her daughter Lin Lan among the faces listed for sale.
Many comments flashed by in front of Wen Yu's eyes.
[Sigh, this scene is suffocating. It's the 21st century, and they're still selling people like livestock?]
[Haven't you been following the updates? This livestream is clearly set in ancient times, wake up!]
[Yeah, filming this kind of scene with a camera like this, and nobody around seemed to find it strange. It must be scripted after all.]
[If this were truly ancient times, our scientists would be incredibly busy. What kind of time travel device would they need? How could an actor like Wen Yu possibly get one?]
[Praying that everything in this live stream is just for the sake of the story, and that no one is actually harmed...]
As they chatted, they filled in the blanks in their own minds, without even questioning the authenticity of the scene.
At this moment, Wen Yu only noticed that the number of online users was continuously increasing.
49,800, 49,850, 49,900... Just one step away from 50,000!
Wen Yu held her breath and mentally typed to the system: "System, you said there would be a reward for reaching 50,000 users, so what exactly is the reward?"
The system replied calmly: [When the live stream reaches 50,000 viewers, a new feature will be unlocked for the host: View the character's basic panel.]
Character panel?
Wen Yu perked up.
This feature may seem useless, but if you can see the information directly, it will be much easier to find Lin Lan in this sea of people.
After searching around twice without success, they finally found the person in charge and asked him.
The manager impatiently flipped through the thick roster, his finger tracing the names page by page, before finally shaking his head: "There's no one named Lin Lan here."
Lin Huijun's face paled slightly.
The steward, as if remembering something, stroked his beard and added, "Oh, last night we caught a few escaped slaves who tried to run away in the chaos. We crossed them out from here and moved them to the east market to be sold with the families of those convicted officials. The price is higher there."
He spoke in a flat tone, as if he were talking about something ordinary.
"A runaway slave?" Lin Huijun was struck dumb.
She swayed, gripping Wen Yu's arm tightly, almost tearing her sleeve with her strength, her voice trembling with tears: "Wen girl, what are we going to do? How could Lan'er..."
Wen Yu's eyes were fixed on the floating numbers in the upper right corner of the live stream.
49998, 49999, 50000!
The system notified you in real time: [Ding! Congratulations, host, the number of viewers has reached 50,000. New feature unlocked: View the character's basic panel.]
It's done!
Without making a sound, Wen Yu immediately activated the new function with her mind.
In my field of vision, a semi-transparent, simple information box instantly appeared above the crowd in front of me.
She quickly scanned the area and, sure enough, there was no name "Lin Lan".
"Go east!" Wen Yu decisively supported Lin Huijun, who was almost unable to stand. "Quickly!"
----
The atmosphere in the eastern part of the store was even more oppressive.
The people being sold here are mostly former "masters" or personal servants, and the prices have more than doubled.
Some people huddled in a corner crying, while others cursed those who approached them wanting to buy, the noise mingling together.
Just like the rumors overheard at the teahouse, several well-dressed wealthy merchants speaking with a Jiangnan accent were weaving through the crowd, scrutinizing the people as if they were selecting merchandise.
Without delay, Wen Yu opened the panel again and quickly scanned the faces in front of him.
Found it!
Lin Lan, 12 years old, female, a maid in the Shen household (a runaway slave)...
She huddled in an inconspicuous corner, next to a girl with an ordinary appearance who also wore a "runaway slave" sign.
The wealthy businessmen hurried past, clearly showing little interest in the petite Lin Lan.
Wen Yugang breathed a sigh of relief and tugged at Lin Huijun's sleeve: "Found it..."
Suddenly, an unexpected change occurred!
A woman wearing a plain veil and exuding a calm demeanor walked straight up to the steward, accompanied by two maids, and pointed precisely at Lin Lan: "I want this girl."
"Lan'er!" Lin Huijun cried out in shock when she saw Lin Lan's face, rushing forward without thinking. "Madam! Madam, please have mercy! This is my daughter, my own daughter!"
The steward, interrupted, frowned and opened the register: "What's all the noise about! She's a registered runaway slave, worth six taels of silver. The rule is the highest bidder wins, first come, first served!"
He glanced coldly at Lin Huijun, who was dressed in shabby clothes, and said, "You want to buy it? Let's talk money."
Six taels! Lin Huijun and Wen Yu's faces turned pale instantly.
Wen Yu only had five taels of silver, which might be enough to redeem an ordinary person, but if they wanted to redeem Lin Lan now, even if they pooled all their money together, it wouldn't be enough.
Lin Lan looked at them, but instead of begging them to save only her, she pleaded in a low voice, "Mother, could you redeem her too..."
Wen Yu subconsciously glanced at the girl next to Lin Lan, and the panel information popped up instantly:
Shen Huaiyu, 15 years old, female, Miss Shen (her identity is deceased)...
The brief biographical account below deeply shocked Wen Yu.
Shen Huaiyu faked her death at the wedding to escape, then used herself to expose the darkness of her family. After bringing down everything, she risked returning to the mansion to save Lin Lan, but was implicated by Shen Huaijing, and her efforts were in vain as she was captured and turned into a runaway slave...
She then looked at the veiled woman, and the panel on her face surprised her even more.
Cui Ling, 35 years old, female, former Mrs. Shen...
She is Shen Huaiyu's biological mother!
But she clearly did not recognize the disguised daughter.
"Wen girl, money, where are we going to get the money..." Lin Huijun was so anxious that she was at a loss, her lips trembling.
Uncle Li also leaned in, his voice heavy: "How about I sell that donkey? Maybe we can raise some money..."
But everyone knew that without the donkey cart, they simply couldn't walk back.
Wen Yu was extremely anxious and turned to Cui Ling to explain the truth and ask for her help, but found that the figure in plain clothes had quietly disappeared into the crowd.
Her heart sank.
Is it over? Are we just going to watch helplessly...?
“Young lady,” a gentle voice rang out.
Wen Yu turned around and saw that a blue-clad maid who had been serving Cui Ling had somehow squeezed over and stuffed a heavy cloth bag into Wen Yu's hands.
“My lay Buddhist asked me to give this to you,” the maid whispered, quickly curtsied, and turned to leave.
Wen Yu froze, then subconsciously opened the cloth bag.
Inside were twelve taels of snowflake silver, neatly arranged!
----
Cui Ling, who had become a monk and was known as the Hermit of Jingyun, did not know why he had inexplicably come to this filthy place again.
Her daughter, Huaiyu, has passed away; she should be at peace with herself.
But when she heard that Lin Lan had been beaten into a runaway slave, and remembering the special concern her daughter had for her before her death, Jingyun couldn't bear it.
Well then, if she's still alive, let's buy it. That way, we can fulfill our daughter's wish and keep her by our side as a companion.
But when she saw the poor woman who rushed out without hesitation, shouting "This is my daughter," Jingyun stopped in her tracks.
The despair and pleading in the woman's eyes were so familiar, just like my own back then.
We're both mothers, why fight each other?
She silently turned and left, only instructing her maid: "Take the twelve taels of silver I prepared and secretly send it to the girl in the gray cloth shirt."
That was the money she originally intended to use to redeem Lin Lan and buy her things.
As for the unfamiliar little girl beside Lin Lan… Jingyun’s heart inexplicably ached.
The child had his head down and his face was unfamiliar, but why did his figure resemble Huaiyu's?
She squeezed her eyes shut, suppressing the lingering hope in her heart, and hurried away, not daring to look back.
That day, when she dressed Huaiyu in her burial clothes, she held her daughter for the last time.
She longed so much to hold her living daughter one more time.
Having received the money, Wen Yu no longer hesitated and decisively placed twelve taels of silver in front of the steward.
"Six taels for Lin Lan, six taels for the maidservant beside her, hand over the indenture!"
The weight of the silver made the manager's expression soften slightly, and he quickly completed the formalities for them.
This place is not safe to stay for long.
Wen Yu led the group away from the market quickly, found an inconspicuous little restaurant on a street corner, asked for a quiet private room, and ordered some simple food.
The tense atmosphere only eased slightly when the food was served.
Lin Lan pulled the girl beside her who had been keeping her head down and solemnly thanked Wen Yu and Lin Huijun.
Lin Huijun hugged her daughter tightly and burst into tears.
Lin Lan comforted her mother, then hesitated before looking at her companion beside her: "And this is...?"
She didn't even know how to introduce the young lady.
Before the words were finished, the girl who had been silent raised her head, revealing a delicate face that was different from her previous ordinary appearance.
She removed her disguise at some point.
Although she wore coarse cloth clothes, her calm demeanor was something that no ordinary maid possessed.
Everyone was surprised and suspicious. Uncle Li and A Yue exchanged a glance, but neither of them asked.
In this chaotic world, everyone has a past they'd rather not talk about.
It's fate that we were able to escape together.
The girl walked up to Wen Yu, bowed deeply, and said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Your kindness in rescuing me is like giving me a second life. My name has been lost to the past, and now I am all alone, like a rootless duckweed. I beg you to take me in."
"Just call me Wen Yu." Wen Yu didn't want her to call him "benefactor," so he helped the girl up.
The girl raised her head, her eyes clear. "Then... I'll take the surname Wen, my benefactor. From now on, call me Wen Qingshi."
After exchanging names, the atmosphere gradually eased.
A-Yue, who had been eating quietly, put down her chopsticks, tugged at Wen Yu's sleeve, and asked softly, "Sister, can I...can I take your surname, Wen?"
Wen Yu paused for a moment, then smiled and ruffled A Yue's hair: "Of course you can, what's there to ask?"
A-Yue's lips immediately curled up, and her eyes brightened as she looked at Wen Qingshi: "Sister Qingshi, my name is Wen Yue!"
Lin Huijun, who was standing next to her, put down her chopsticks and looked at the three children in front of her, feeling deeply moved.
When Wen's parents passed away, leaving behind their orphaned daughter Wen Yu, the villagers secretly sighed, thinking that the family was doomed.
Who would have thought that Wen Yatou not only stood on her own two feet, but also sheltered A Yue, her mother and daughter, and even this seemingly extraordinary "Qing Shi" girl under her wings like a big tree.
The land in the village has been planted, and it should be ready for harvest in a few days.
Seeing the group laughing and joking, Lin Huijun suddenly felt a glimmer of hope.
If everyone follows Wen Yatou, perhaps they can truly forge a different path in this chaotic and famine-stricken world.
A note from the author:
----------------------
The main story is temporarily over; it's time to get back to everyday life. Writing this has completely drained my brain. [pats head]
Thank you to everyone who's been following along!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com