The aroma of sweet potatoes grew increasingly enticing in the air. Zhao Ping'an and Xiao Le both swallowed hard, but they knew they were destined to go to bed hungry again tonight.
He hugged Xiao Le and whispered, "Xiao Le, be good, let's go to sleep. You won't be hungry when you're asleep."
Xiao Le blinked, her grape-like eyes welling up with tears. She clutched her tummy and said pitifully, "Brother, I'm hungry... I want to be full..."
Zhao Ping'an felt a sense of helplessness. No matter how strong he was, he was still just a child and couldn't provide his younger sister with enough to eat and wear.
A mix of emotions—bitterness, self-blame, guilt—settled in Zhao Ping'an's heart. He clenched his fists, a dark glint in his eyes. Just as he was about to say something, his peripheral vision suddenly dimmed, and when he looked up, he saw Jiang Bai standing in front of him.
She glanced at the two of them, then casually handed them over the freshly roasted sweet potatoes. "Eat up."
Zhao Ping'an's eyes suddenly became wary. How could this woman be so kind? There might be some kind of poison in these sweet potatoes.
He was still thinking about how to refuse when Xiao Le suddenly reached out, took the sweet potato, and stuffed it into her mouth.
"Xiao Le!"
"Don't move!"
Two voices rang out at the same time. In his panic, Zhao Ping'an's resentment towards Jiang Bai intensified. He knew that this woman would not give them anything to eat; there must be something wrong with her!
He stopped Xiao Le from putting something in his mouth, but before he could do anything else, Jiang Bai carried Xiao Le away. Zhao Ping'an's pupils shrank: "What are you doing?"
Jiang Bai casually blocked his lunge and said indifferently, "If I wanted to harm you, there's no need to waste food. I'd just lock you up at home and let you go hungry for a couple of meals. If you can eat, eat; if you can't, just stay in the corner."
After she finished speaking, her gaze swept across the room, and the chill emanating from it made Zhao Ping'an's whole body stiffen.
Before he could react, Jiang Bai had already broken open the sweet potato, blew on it, and put it in Xiao Le's mouth.
Zhao Ping'an's eyes were bloodshot, and his heart was filled with despair. It was all over. He had failed to protect his sister, and Xiao Le was going to be killed by this vicious woman.
Thinking about what was about to happen, tears welled up in his eyes instantly.
However, Xiao Le was unaware of her brother's complicated emotions. She got to eat the sweet and sticky sweet potato as she wished, and her eyes crinkled with joy.
The little guy was quite considerate; he turned around, pointed to the sweet potato by the bed, and said to his older brother, "Eat...brother, eat..."
Zhao Ping'an glared at her irritably. "Eat, eat, all you do is eat. You're almost dead already!" he thought. In despair, he grabbed a sweet potato and stuffed it into his mouth.
Let him die then. He's had enough of this wretched life anyway. He can at least accompany his sister on his journey.
He ate while thinking, his eyes slightly red.
Jiang Bai caught a glimpse of his righteous and awe-inspiring demeanor out of the corner of her eye. She was both annoyed and amused. He was treating her like a viper. But then she thought about it and realized that the impression he had made over time was not so easy to change, so she just went along with it.
The palm-sized sweet potato was quickly eaten, and Xiao Le's stomach was full. Her fear of Jiang Bai lessened considerably. She cautiously looked up, hesitated for a long time, and then quietly reached out and grabbed Jiang Bai's little finger.
But he only held it loosely, as if ready to leave at any moment.
Jiang Bai's heart softened. She hugged Xiao Le and asked, "Do you want to eat meat?"
Xiao Le's eyes lit up instantly, and he nodded vigorously: "Eat!"
Jiang Bai went through the original owner's memories in his mind and vaguely knew that the village was quite poor and it would be difficult to get meat unless... he went up the mountain to take a look.
After a moment's thought, Jiang Bai put her on the bed, raised an eyebrow and said, "Alright, then you stay home and wait patiently, I... Mom will go up the mountain to catch some for you..."
"You son of a bitch, get out here right now!"
Before she could finish speaking, a shout came from outside the door. Jiang Bai didn't react at first, but when the door started banging, she realized what was happening, got up, and went out.
Just as she stood still, the door was slammed open, and a figure rushed in from outside. Upon seeing Jiang Bai standing by the door, the figure rushed over and reached out to grab her hair.
"You little bitch, do you think I can't do anything to you just because you're hiding inside and keeping quiet?" she yelled at the top of her lungs.
Jiang Bai's eyes turned cold. He turned his head to avoid the attack, and at the same time, he stood up and kicked, tripping the aggressive man and sending him sprawling face-first into the mud.
"Ouch."
A scream rang out, and Jiang Bai looked closely and saw a middle-aged woman dressed in gray-black clothes. She was thin, had a mean face, and didn't look like someone to be trifled with.
Jiang Bai searched through his mind for a moment, barely managing to match her with the person in his memory. Then, his heart skipped a beat again, and he couldn't help but curse the original owner for courting death.
She had only briefly reviewed the plot before, completely forgetting that the original owner actually had a lover who claimed to be her true love. The truth was that he only came because he saw that she had money, and later he was also severely punished by the original owner's husband.
The only thing to be thankful for now is that the original owner had just gotten involved with the other party and hadn't had time to do anything yet.
As for the woman in front of him, she is the mistress's wife, named Li Chunhua.
"What do you want to do?" Jiang Bai asked.
Li Chunhua cried out twice, then, remembering the important matter, she scrambled to her feet and pointed at Jiang Bai, cursing, "You little slut with a loose belt, daring to seduce my man! I'll beat you to death today!"
As she spoke, she looked around, rushed to a corner, grabbed a broom, and charged at Jiang Bai, yelling, "I'll teach you to seduce men! I'll teach you to be shameless!"
Jiang Bai snapped out of his daze, seized the opportunity, stepped forward, snatched the broom with a backhand, then turned it around and swept it directly in front of Li Chunhua, his tone icy: "Try talking nonsense again?"
She lowered her gaze, and the resulting look was like a knife, slicing towards Li Chunhua. The usually shrewish woman, whom everyone in the village had to give way to, was actually frozen in fear.
Just then, intermittent conversations began to come from outside the gate; they were the neighbors who had been led there by Li Chunhua.
"What's going on?"
"Oh dear, I heard that Old Master Zhao's wife is quite the troublemaker, seducing men."
"My God, how shameless!"
Li Chunhua realized what was happening, glared at Jiang Bai hatefully, then suddenly slapped her thigh and cried out, "Heavens above! Is this some kind of living hell? You shameless little slut, not only did you seduce my man, but you also tried to beat me! Captain, village chief, you have to stand up for me..."
These words were practically pushing Jiang Bai to his doom.
If the charges are proven true, how will she have any chance to survive in this village?
In front of everyone, Jiang Bai suddenly threw down the broom, her eyes reddened, and she burst into tears: "Even if you don't go to look for me today, I have to go!"
“I know you usually don’t like us orphans and widows, but I never expected you to be so vicious as to accuse me of seducing your man. Your man is so ugly, I wouldn’t even look at him. Don’t try to smear me with your baseless accusations.”
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