Seeing that Jiang Yuwei's insults were really nasty, Wang Ma, although she also looked down on the young master's behavior, was still her master after all. Now that she was being insulted so harshly, she couldn't just stand by and watch. Just as she was about to speak up to stop her, Ning Zixuan, who came out of the carriage, glared at her.
As a servant in a wealthy household, how could Wang Ma not understand her master's gaze? Seeing that even the young master forbade her to get involved in this matter, Wang Ma had no choice but to shut her mouth and stand silently to the side.
Although Ning Chunlin was scolded by Jiang Yuwei, he didn't dare to argue back. He didn't know what was wrong with him. It was as if he had been tamed by Jiang Yuwei deep down. He didn't dare to go against her at all, so he could only sit back in the carriage in a huff.
Ever since Jiang Yuwei learned of Ning Chunlin's identity as the young master of the Prince's Mansion, she had tried her best not to provoke Ning Chunlin, but Ning Chunlin just wouldn't do anything right.
If I hadn't been so fed up with his master-like attitude towards Tiezhu tonight, I wouldn't have cursed him like that. After all, my family and Aunt Zhou's family were new to the capital and were hoping to rely on the powerful Prince Jing's mansion.
Ning Zixuan looked at Jiang Yuwei and said:
"It's getting dark now, so it's not a good time to go into the village to look for people. Plus, we're carrying so much luggage. If we act rashly, we might just be playing into the thieves' hands."
Jiang Yuwei nodded and said:
“Yes, our group includes men, women, young and old. Let’s get some rest for now and head to Xiaogouzi Village early tomorrow morning to look for people and things. I’m afraid they won’t have enough after taking what they’ve taken and will come back later. Let Uncle Youcai and Ningwu keep watch for the rest of the night.”
After hearing Jiang Yuwei's arrangement, everyone went back to sleep.
By this time, Granny He and her two children had already run back to the village with their belongings and people. Granny He, fearing that Xu Qianqian would make a commotion and be overheard by the neighbors, quickly whispered to Zhang Da:
"Quickly take this woman home and tie her up, lest you alert the neighbors!"
Zhang Da's mind was entirely on Xu Qianqian at this moment, so he naturally had no intention of refuting Granny He. He nodded impatiently and said:
"I see."
After saying that, he picked up Xu Qianqian and went into his room without looking back. Seeing this, Granny He didn't dare to delay. She quickly pushed the cart into the yard, unloaded everything from the cart by herself, and then secretly delivered the cart to her neighbor's house.
Then he returned to his own yard and carefully moved all the food into the kitchen and hid it away.
Zhang Da carried Xu Qianqian back into the house, afraid she would run away, so he had Zhang Er find a rope. They hurriedly tied Xu Qianqian up and threw her onto the kang (heated brick bed). Then they ripped the gag from her mouth and said viciously to her:
"You better not yell, or I'll beat you to death tonight!"
Hearing this, Xu Qianqian naturally didn't dare to make a fuss, so she could only purse her lips and nod repeatedly. Zhang Da was very satisfied to see that Xu Qianqian was obedient, so he took a candle and carefully examined Xu Qianqian's face and figure. After just one glance, Zhang Da felt unbearably hot all over.
Zhang Er, who had followed Zhang Da into the room, also felt a strong urge to join in. He then climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed) and said with a smile:
"Brother, is this woman sleeping with us tonight?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Da kicked Zhang Er in the stomach and cursed:
"Get lost, this is my woman. You stay out of the way, you're sleeping on the floor tonight!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Er pouted in grievance, silently took his bedding, and went to make a makeshift bed on the floor, muttering to himself all the while:
"It's just a woman. Didn't we agree to share happiness and good fortune? Now that she has a wife, she's forgotten her brother. Humph, I'll go kidnap a woman to be my wife too, and I'll find one even prettier than this one!"
Zhang Da had been lustfully preparing to make a move on Xu Qianqian, but Xu Qianqian only retreated repeatedly until she could retreat no further, before stammering out:
"Um, what's your name?"
Seeing that she was talking to him, Zhang Da regained his composure and plopped down opposite Xu Qianqian, laughing as he said:
"My name is Zhang Da. From now on, you will be my wife. Once you are with me and become my woman, I will not let you go hungry. Tonight we brought back a lot of food, enough for us to eat for a long time."
Xu Qianqian barely suppressed the urge to roll her eyes upon hearing this. This food was originally prepared by Wang Ma for her to eat on the road. If he hadn't kidnapped her tonight, she could have smoothly followed Ning Chunlin to the capital and become a happy young master and his wife. Now, her future has been completely ruined by this scoundrel in front of her.
With this thought in mind, Xu Qianqian's hatred had surpassed her fear. Now, all she could think about was how to kill this man. Now that she had been kidnapped to this unfamiliar place, she had to find out something so that she would have a chance to escape and find Ning Chunlin.
Thinking this, Xu Qianqian smiled and said to Zhang Da:
"You want to marry me?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Da's eyes lit up, and he nodded with a smile, saying:
"Yes, yes, you'll be my wife from now on!"
Xu Qianqian looked aggrieved after hearing this and said:
"You're really taking me for granted. I'm still a virgin. If you're going to let me follow you around without any status or identity, I might as well be dead."
As she spoke, Xu Qianqian turned and was about to bang her head against the wall when Zhang Da saw this and quickly stopped her, anxiously saying:
"Stop, stop banging your head against the wall! What do you want? Just tell me!"
Xu Qianqian, with red eyes, looked at Zhang Da and said:
"Since I've come back with you today, perhaps this is fate. If you want to marry me, you must marry me properly. I am an innocent girl, how can I follow you in such an ambiguous way? If I walk around the village in the future, won't people gossip about me? I feel like I can't live just thinking about it!"
As she spoke, Xu Qianqian began wiping away her tears with her sleeve.
Seeing this, Zhang Da felt a pang of heartache. After thinking for a moment, he slapped his thigh and said:
"Since you're so determined to follow me, I, Zhang Da, can't treat you badly. How about this, since we brought back a lot of food tonight, I'll go to the village tomorrow and invite people to come and watch our wedding. What do you say?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Qianqian thought that if the villagers came tomorrow, she could take advantage of the chaos to run away. Even if she couldn't escape, she could still ask the villagers to rescue her. Surely not everyone in the village was a bandit.
Thinking this, Xu Qianqian gave Zhang Da a shy smile.
"Alright, my husband, I'll do whatever you say. But I'd like to save our wedding night for tomorrow, so that people won't say we're not properly married."
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