The two blond-haired girls stared wide-eyed at the white steamed buns.
Lin Cuiying broke the steamed bun in half, giving each of them one half.
"Mother..." Daya looked at her, holding the steamed bun, at a loss.
"Eat up." Lin Cuiying put her arms around her two daughters. "With your mother here, you won't go hungry."
The aroma of steamed buns filled their nostrils, and Daya and Xiaoya exchanged a glance, tears welling in their eyes.
They had never eaten anything so delicious in their entire lives.
After eating and drinking her fill, Lin Cuiying settled her two daughters in before leaving the house.
Granny Wang was still wailing in the courtyard, while Liu was gasping for breath, clutching her neck.
Lin Cuiying ignored them and walked straight over.
When Granny Wang saw Lin Cuiying come out, she immediately shut her mouth and stared intently at her with her slanted eyes.
Liu was so angry that she was panting heavily, like a bellows.
Lin Cuiying glanced at them, walked up to Granny Wang, and looked down at her: "When are the Zhang family from the next village coming over?"
Granny Wang was surprised that Lin Cuiying would ask about this matter on her own initiative. Her triangular eyes flickered, and it was unclear what she was thinking.
"Hmph, you've finally come to your senses? Let me tell you, the Zhang family in the next village is a well-known and good family around here. Marrying into their family will be a blessing for you!"
Wang Pozi thought that Lin Cuiying had come to her senses and wanted to marry into the Zhang family, so she snorted and said in a sarcastic tone.
Upon hearing what Granny Wang said, Lin Cuiying couldn't help but sneer.
She certainly knew about the Zhang family in the next village.
The original owner had heard the village women say behind the Zhang family's back more than once that they were no good family.
I heard that Zhang Ergou, the son of the Zhang family, is a lazy, greedy, and lecherous good-for-nothing.
He's in his thirties, and he does nothing all day but go out drinking and gambling with a bunch of frivolous friends.
Zhang Ergou had married two wives before, but he beat them to death shortly after they entered the family.
I heard that when those two wives died, there wasn't a single piece of good flesh left on their bodies, which shows how ruthless Zhang Ergou was.
It was only because the Zhang family had some money and spent some silver that they managed to suppress the matter.
Even so, everyone in the surrounding villages knew about the Zhang family, and no one was willing to marry their daughter into the Zhang family.
Granny Wang is selling her to the Zhang family for the five taels of silver dowry; she's utterly heartless!
Lin Cuiying looked at Wang Pozi's hypocritical face with a chillingly cold gaze: "What kind of good family is the Zhang family in the next village? Don't you have any idea?"
Granny Wang was startled by Lin Cuiying's gaze and involuntarily shrank back.
However, the thought of the five taels of silver betrothal money gave her confidence again.
She puffed out her chest and said, feigning composure, "What's wrong with the Zhang family in the next village? They're rich and own land. If you marry into their family, you'll enjoy a life of luxury. What's wrong with that?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Cuiying couldn't help but scoff: "Enjoying a life of luxury? More like going to your death! Do you think I don't know what kind of person Zhang Ergou is?"
Granny Wang was taken aback when she realized that Lin Cuiying knew about Zhang Ergou.
However, she quickly recovered and said coldly, "Stop talking nonsense! Zhang Ergou is an honest man. He won't mistreat you if you marry him."
Lin Cuiying looked at the ugly faces of Granny Wang and Liu Shi and sneered inwardly.
Do they think she's stupid?
"An honest man? If Zhang Ergou is an honest man, then there are no bad people in the world!" Lin Cuiying's tone was icy, devoid of any emotion.
Granny Wang was taken aback by Lin Cuiying's retort, and her face turned somewhat unpleasant.
Liu, who was standing nearby, also spoke up for Wang Pozi: "Sister-in-law, what are you saying? How is Zhang Ergou not a good person? He offered five taels of silver as a bride price to marry you, don't be ungrateful!"
As Liu spoke, she glanced at Lin Cuiying out of the corner of her eye, trying to see a hint of wavering on her face.
However, to her disappointment, Lin Cuiying's face showed no sign of wavering, but rather an icy coldness.
"Sister-in-law, if you're so biased towards the Zhang family, why don't you marry into their family?"
Upon hearing this, Liu was stunned.
She hadn't expected Lin Cuiying to say that, and for a moment she didn't know how to refute it.
When Granny Wang saw that Liu was being humiliated, she immediately became unhappy.
She pointed at Lin Cuiying's nose and cursed, "You bitch! How dare you talk like that? Let me tell you, you have to agree to this marriage whether you like it or not! Otherwise, I'll kick you out of the Wang family and make you beg for food outside!"
As soon as Granny Wang finished speaking, Lin Cuiying slapped her across the face.
With a "smack," Granny Wang was stunned by the blow.
She covered her face, looking at Lin Cuiying in disbelief: "You...you dare to hit me?"
Lin Cuiying looked coldly at Granny Wang and said in an icy tone, "So what if I hit you? If you say another word, I'll hit you again!"
Granny Wang was intimidated by Lin Cuiying's imposing manner. She shrank back and dared not utter another word.
Seeing this, Liu, who was standing nearby, was so frightened that she fell silent and dared not say another word.
Lin Cuiying glanced at them, and just as she was about to say something, a noise came from outside the courtyard.
Several dark figures flashed past outside the wall. A man kicked open the half-rotten wooden door, which slammed against the earthen wall with a loud crash, causing bits of grass to fall from the eaves.
Behind him followed three men with their shirts open, each with a three-finger-wide machete tucked into their waistband.
"Aunt Wang—" the leading man drawled, a crooked smile revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth, "My mother said, while the sun is shining..."
The conversation abruptly ended.
The man's beady eyes suddenly lit up as he stared intently at Lin Cuiying not far away.
"Is this the bride?" The man raised his hand and wiped his mouth, the sticky saliva forming silvery strands in the sunlight.
The three henchmen let out lewd laughter, and the shortest one tiptoed to peek into Lin Cuiying's collar.
Lin Cuiying now knew that the person who came was Zhang Ergou. She had just been asking Granny Wang when the Zhang family would arrive, but she didn't expect them to come so quickly.
"You want to marry me?"
Zhang Ergou rubbed his calloused hands and took two steps forward, his shoes making a teeth-grinding crunching sound as they rolled over the threshold.
The machete at his waist swayed with his movements, its blade stained with dark red dirt.
Lin Cuiying glanced at the axe lying in the basket under the eaves, and without making a sound, took a half step back with her left foot.
"Little lady—" Zhang Ergou suddenly reached out to grab her wrist, but before he could finish speaking, his voice turned into a scream.
Lin Cuiying grabbed the axe handle from the basket and smashed it hard against his hand, then held the rusty axe blade against his neck.
The three henchmen were about to draw their swords when she swept them away with her cold, sharp gaze, and they all froze on the spot.
Wang Pozi tried to slip away, but Lin Cuiying kicked her in the shin and she fell to the ground.
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