Chongzhou.
"Brother Cheng, I'm entrusting this matter to you. Go to Liangcheng first to find An Niangzi's youngest daughter. I already have some general clues about her. Take a group of brothers and go there first. I'll meet up with you after I bring my family over."
"Brother Zhong, don't worry, we will definitely get there as soon as possible!"
Zhongheng bid farewell to his brothers, then, carrying a pile of gifts, walked towards a house with blue bricks and tiles. "Father, Mother, I'm back!"
"So it's the second son who's back! Come in and have a seat!" The old woman opened the door with a big smile.
"Oh, so Second Brother finally knows to come back. You haven't come home to visit in all these years. Don't you even care about our parents?" the younger brother of the Zhong family said sarcastically.
"You child, your elder brother has finally come back once in a while, it's not easy for him! Let's all talk nicely!" the old woman scolded.
Zhong Xiaodi curled his lip: "You've been away from home for so many years, haven't sent any money home, and haven't helped with any chores. You expect me to talk nicely?"
"Eldest brother and sister-in-law, you've taken care of everything in this family, which is why we were able to buy a house in the county town and settle down here. We've only been living here for a short time, and second brother came as soon as he heard the news. Isn't that amazing?"
He stood up abruptly and shouted.
“How could I not have sent you any money?” Zhongheng was taken aback.
Could it be that all the money he's sent back through intermediaries over the years has been embezzled by the other party? That's impossible; that's his best brother!
"Little brother, let's not talk about that now. Where is Yan Yan? I heard people on the way that Yan Yan is sick. Please take me to see her. I bought some medicine for my sister!"
Zhongheng was extremely anxious.
Before he arrived, he had received a warning from the Mountain Goddess that his sister was likely in trouble, so he returned home immediately.
“Yanyan, she’s already married off. What kind of daughter is she to come back for a meal after she’s married off?” The old woman’s eyes flickered.
"What? Yan Yan is already married? Why didn't you write to tell me? Who did Yan Yan marry? What is her character like? What is her family like? Does she have any shady habits? Did you find out anything?"
Zhongheng had spent some time in the desolate mountains, so he naturally knew about how Xiang Niangzi had almost been beaten to death by Lin Genzhu.
He was so worried when he heard this that he vowed to find a good husband for his sister, or simply leave her at home and not let her get married!
Before he could even get home, his younger sister had already been married off by their parents!
"Second son! Why are you making such a fuss? Don't you know our family's status? We're almost starving. It's a miracle that Yan Yan can even get married!" the old man scolded from the side.
"Can't even afford to eat?" Zhongheng felt a little ironic when he saw his nephews each gnawing on a big chicken leg and his younger brother wearing well-fitting new clothes.
From a young age, he knew that his parents didn't like him or his sister, so Zhongheng preferred to go out and work hard, and even had his good brother send the money back, rather than return to this home.
Now that he's home, seeing his parents, older brother, and younger brother all acting this way, he's not surprised. He doesn't care about their attitude; he won't be staying here anyway.
But my sister is different. In this world, if she marries the wrong person, her life will be ruined!
"I'll go see for myself which family Yan Yan is marrying into. If her bridal sedan chair is still on its way, maybe we can still salvage the situation!"
Even without a guarantee from the Mountain Goddess, Zhongheng still intended to take his sister with him. How could he just stand by and watch his sister jump into the fire?
"We don't know!" The elderly couple's faces immediately fell. "In a family like ours, there's no such thing as a bridal sedan chair for a wedding. We carried her there wrapped in a quilt three days ago!"
"Wrapped in a blanket and carried over? You must have forced me! Fine, if you won't tell me, I'll go ask myself and find out myself!" Zhong Heng hurriedly threw down what he was holding and rushed out into the heavy snow.
"Second Brother!" Brother Zhong called out.
"Big brother, don't worry about him, he's just here to freeload!" Zhong Xiaodi pouted again.
Zhongheng knocked on the doors of several neighbors before he learned that his sister had been married off to the Li family in the east of the city.
The Li family's son broke both legs and has been unconscious for some time. Li's parents wanted to find someone to marry him to bring good luck, so they chose the Zhong family's daughter.
The younger sister didn't want to go at first and resisted at home for three days, refusing to eat or drink. In the end, she couldn't defy her parents. The Zhong family parents just hired someone to wrap Zhong Yan in a quilt and carry her over.
Upon hearing this, Zhongheng slammed his fist against the wall in front of him.
"Brother Zhong, don't get agitated, don't get agitated! Your sister has been carried there, but she might not have arrived yet, after all, the east side of the city is very far!" The neighbor saw his red eyes and quickly took a step back.
"Thank you for telling me all this." Zhongheng finally breathed a sigh of relief.
What followed was boundless anger. He had thought his parents just disliked his sister, but who knew they would do something like this.
He forced his sister into marriage, and even the wedding procession consisted of her wrapped in a quilt and carried there by someone! No matter what, he had to take his sister away and leave this place!
He took two taels of silver from his purse and gave it to his neighbor, then hurriedly ran away, saying, "Don't tell my parents about what I did to you today!"
“Brother Zhong, this place is very far from the Li family in the east of the city, you can’t catch up with them…” The neighbor took a bite of the silver in his hand, looked up and found that the person in front of him had disappeared.
"Wait, is Zhong Erlang really that fast?"
It felt like a gust of wind blew by and he was gone. Was he dreaming last night?
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