Jiang Bai searched in the mountains until dawn, finally giving up hope and confirming that what the woman at the village entrance had said was a rumor.
She turned and walked back, ignoring the man who had been following her.
Without needing to look around for anyone, the return journey was instantly twice as fast. Jiang Bai rallied his spirits and made it down the mountain before noon.
This was not a road she often took. After descending the mountain, she saw a small river. Jiang Bai washed her face first and then walked along the river towards the village.
She hadn't walked more than a few miles when she suddenly heard a familiar little girl crying. On a whim, she quickly ran toward the sound.
It really is Zhao Xile!
Jiang Cheng never expected the little girl to be so difficult to raise. He thought other people's little girls were all soft, cute, and quiet, and he assumed Zhao Xile would be the same. Who would have thought that she was a high-pitched queen whose cries could penetrate walls and affect people within a hundred meters.
This was the first time Jiang Cheng had encountered such a situation. He was staying at an inn when the waiter returned his money and told him to leave.
The two, one big and one small, squatted outside a dilapidated temple in the county town all night. After Zhao Xile cried himself to sleep and called it a day, he led his men to the broker and asked, only to find that the little girl was worth no money at all.
These days, which family doesn't have a few daughters? Daughters are worthless; only sons are valuable.
A young boy can be sold to a family unable to have children, or to a wealthy merchant as a servant or bodyguard, and can fetch a high price.
At Zhao Xile's age, let alone being a maid, no one would want her even as a child bride!
Why? Because this age is too awkward.
Three years old is not too young, she can already remember things, and if we buy her a new home, she might still miss her old home; but she's not too old either, other families don't want children this age, too many die young, and it takes too long for her to learn to do things and earn money.
The broker said, "Actually, girls who are eight or nine years old are easier to sell. Why don't you take her back and raise her some more?"
Will I be able to get it back if I take it back?
Jiang Cheng's eyes widened.
He refused to leave, squatting there sullenly, complaining, "I need the money urgently."
Tired of his nagging, the man with the teeth rolled his eyes and said, "Why don't you sell yourself?"
Jiang Cheng was shocked to learn that he was worth more than Zhao Xile.
But selling myself is impossible; I would never sell myself in this lifetime.
He led Zhao Xile back, and when they got hungry halfway there, he bought himself a steamed bun to eat.
When Zhao Xile saw that he had it but she didn't, she panicked and started crying again. The two of them dragged and wrestled all the way to the riverbank.
—Jiang Bai caught him red-handed.
Seeing Jiang Cheng's useless state, Jiang Bai immediately shifted his anger from the man beside him, strode forward, kicked his younger brother into the river, picked up Zhao Xile who was crying so hard her veins were bulging, and gently comforted her.
Upon smelling the familiar sweet scent, Zhao Xile let out a sob, opened her eyes, tightly hugged Jiang Bai's neck, and cried out, "Mother!"
Jiang Bai's eyes welled up with tears.
Ignoring Jiang Cheng's struggle in the water, she picked up Zhao Xile and turned to head home.
The man following behind stared wide-eyed in disbelief upon hearing Zhao Xile's address.
Zhao Xile didn't sleep all night, and before she even got home, she fell asleep in Jiang Bai's arms.
Jiang Bai carried Zhao Xile to the bed, took off her muddy little shoes, covered her with a blanket, and then turned to Zhao Ping'an, who was full of worry, to briefly summarize the process of looking for her. He added, "If your sister wakes up later, you should go to Grandma Wang's house for dinner, understand?"
The moment Zhao Ping'an nodded, Jiang Bai relaxed his tense nerves, and with a burst of energy, he fainted.
She didn't forget to aim in the direction where she fainted and lay down directly on the bed to avoid a close encounter with the hard ground.
Zhao Ping'an was terrified.
His sister was dizzy (actually, she was asleep), and Jiang Bai was also dizzy. He almost thought that the two of them had been poisoned.
He stood there for a few seconds, trying to clear his mind, then swung his arms and rushed out the door, wanting to find Aunt Wang for help.
The impact struck the man who had just saved Jiang Bai's life on the mountain. Zhao Ping'an, clutching his sore nose, looked up and his eyes immediately lit up: "Father!"
This person was Zhao Yi.
Zhao Ping'an was overjoyed. Jiang Bai hadn't lied; his father really was back!
Jiang Bai's words had only fooled Wang Xiufen and Jiang Cheng, but they turned out to be prophetic. Zhao Yi heard from his fellow villagers about the evil deeds Jiang Bai had committed, and he was so worried that he stopped his business and rushed back on horseback.
Unexpectedly, he witnessed Jiang Bai in imminent danger, and unable to bear it, he saved her life.
This rescue, ironically, sparked his interest. Seeing that Jiang Bai was going the same way as him, he followed behind her, half-jokingly and half-protectively.
The moment Zhao Yi saw Zhao Xile, he realized Jiang Bai's true identity.
Xiao Le was so close to and trusted Jiang Bai, and Jiang Bai also took great care of Xiao Le, which greatly surprised him. This scene was completely different from what others had described to him.
Curiosity drove him back to the village, where he even had to hide in a disheveled state, afraid of running into villagers who knew him.
He had only been lingering at his own doorstep for a short while when Zhao Ping'an rushed out and bumped into his arms.
Zhao Ping'an, oblivious to his own agitation, pointed directly at the house and said, "Dad, that woman has fainted, and Xiao Le has fainted too. What should we do?"
Zhao Yi strode into the house, briefly checked on Jiang Bai, and saw that she just seemed to be too tired and exhausted, so he breathed a slight sigh of relief.
He didn't realize that when he heard the news that Jiang Bai had fainted, he felt a tightness in his chest. He had never been so nervous when handling business worth tens of thousands of taels of silver in the past.
After confirming that Jiang Bai was alright, he went to check on Zhao Xile and found that the child was sleeping soundly, even snoring softly.
He turned to Zhao Ping'an and said, "It's nothing. You stay here and take care of them. Dad will go to the city to buy some medicine. They'll be fine after taking it."
Zhao Ping'an nodded with eyes full of trust: "Okay."
Zhao Yi found a horse-drawn carriage, rushed to the county town to buy medicine, and then drove back as fast as he could, sneaking into the village.
This person was perfect. After brewing the medicine, he brought it into the house and said to Zhao Ping'an, "Wake her up later and have her drink the medicine."
Zhao Ping'an listened attentively.
“Dad has some things to attend to and needs to leave for a while. You and her live well together,” Zhao Yi glanced at his son, “Don’t tell anyone I was here.”
Zhao Ping'an asked reluctantly, "Father, why are you leaving again?"
Zhao Yi cleared his throat, not wanting to admit that he planned to secretly stay and observe Jiang Bai, and changed the subject: "Is Jiang Bai good to you?"
Zhao Pingan turned to look at Jiang Bai, recalling the difficult days at the beginning, and then thinking of the care and love Jiang Bai had shown him recently. He gritted his teeth and said, "Okay."
"Dad, come back. Let's live a good life together with Mom."
This was the first time he had called Jiang Bai "mother".
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