Setting down her teacup, Yu Niang stood up, supporting herself on the table, and bowed slightly to Lin Yinan.
"Third Madam, there's still some work to finish in the kitchen. If there's nothing else, I'll go and get back to it."
Lin Yinan looked at her gently and said, "Go ahead."
Yu Niang turned and left the county government office. She lifted the little one on her back with her hand. Hmm, her son had gotten a bit heavier.
She and her son had never had enough to eat, even though they worked themselves to the bone.
My son was born weak, and because he was often hungry, he still walked unsteadily at the age of five.
Now, although it's tiring here, no one beats or scolds her and her daughter. They can eat three full meals a day, and even have meat every other day.
Although she had only been working there a short time, she had already received two hundred coins a month.
This was the first time in her life she had received so much money. She didn't have to hand it over to anyone; she could use it however she wanted.
She left behind 100 coins and used them to buy some food from the kitchen to nourish Gou Dan.
If Gou Dan eats more meat, he'll recover faster and be able to go to school like the other children next year.
She believes things will get better in the future!
Lin Yinan sat in the courtyard, staring blankly at Yu Niang's departing figure.
Yun Mo came out from behind and sat down next to her, glancing outside and then at her expression. "What are you thinking about?"
Lin Yinan snapped out of her daze and turned to look at him. "That Cui Gensheng is still kneeling outside the city gate. If all else fails, just have him thrown out. It's better not to use someone like that."
"No, the horse farm is short-staffed. I'll ask him later and see if he's willing to go," Yun Mo said.
"Then you can arrange it as you see fit."
Yun Mo stood up and helped her up. "Go back and rest. I just saw that your mother made you something delicious."
Outside Longtan County.
Under the blazing sun, Cui Gensheng knelt upright outside the city gate, his clothes tattered and barely covering his body.
Yun Mo emerged from inside with his guards, his sharp gaze fixed on the cowardly and incompetent man who couldn't even protect his own wife and children.
Standing in front of him, Yun Mo said coldly, "Yu Niang said she has divorced you and has no further relationship with you. Don't bother her anymore."
The last glimmer of hope in his heart shattered instantly, and Cui Gensheng swayed.
His mother died, his elder brother and sister-in-law abandoned him, and now even Yu Niang refuses to see him. He doesn't know what the point of living is anymore.
Yun Mo continued, "Now I'll give you two choices: either leave Longtan County before we make a move, or sign a contract with us and go to the horse farm to raise horses."
Upon hearing this, Cui Gensheng raised his head and his eyes lit up.
"I'll go raise horses. I'll do my job well. Please, sir, don't send me away."
After saying that, he kowtowed heavily to Yun Mo.
"Then go with him now."
Yun Mo gave a few instructions to the guards beside him, and the guards then took Cui Gensheng away.
Cui Gensheng kept turning back to look at Yu Niang, a renewed hope rising in his heart. He believed that if he stayed, he would eventually see Yu Niang again.
The horse ranch was built in a large mountain behind the county town. The terrain there was secluded, and even the training camp for the secret guards was built there.
Yunzhou Prefecture.
Yu Xunmei regained consciousness five days later.
Looking at the familiar tent top, the tension in her heart eased.
Struggling to sit up, but the slightest movement caused excruciating pain all over his body.
She could only lie on the bed, covered in wounds and unable to move. She opened her mouth, her voice hoarse and rough.
"Someone come here!"
A maid carrying a tray pushed open the door and entered. Seeing that she was awake, she put down the tray and walked forward with a joyful expression.
"Miss, you're awake!"
The maid helped her sit up with difficulty and placed a soft pillow under her lower back.
Yu Xunmei grabbed the maid's hand, staring intently at her, "Who brought me back?"
The maid lowered her eyes and whispered, "It is the master of the house."
"What about the guards who went out with me?"
The maid shrank back slightly. "She didn't come back. That day, Miss was wrapped in the head of the family's cloak and was personally escorted back by the head of the family."
Yu Xunmei breathed a sigh of relief, her murderous intent vanishing. "So, they were killed by Father."
The maid nodded nervously, served her the meal, and then left.
The news of Yu Xunmei's awakening quickly reached the head of the family, who hurriedly brought his wife to Yu Xunmei's room.
"Xunmei, my child, you're finally awake!" Madam Yu rushed forward and hugged Yu Xunmei tightly. "Tell your mother, who did this to you?"
"Shut up! It's clearly her shamelessness that's causing her trouble, who would harm her?" the Yu family head roared.
If we hadn't seen our own carriage on the official road that day and followed the carriage tracks to that dilapidated temple, this good-for-nothing daughter would have died out there long ago.
Tears streamed down Yu Xunmei's pale face as she looked up at her father, who had always doted on her. "Father, it was that servant from the Yun family who harmed me. He drugged me and then threw me into a pile of beggars."
The head of the Yu family knew her nature well, and seeing her so stubborn and unyielding, lacking any of the modesty a girl should have, he was filled with rage.
"This matter should not be discussed any further. From now on, you will be confined to the courtyard and are not allowed to step out again."
After saying this, he turned and left.
Yu Xunmei threw herself into Madam Yu's arms and burst into tears, crying bitterly, "Mother, look at Father, he doesn't care about me anymore!"
Madam Yu patted her back tenderly, her voice choked with emotion, "Xunmei, your father is only doing this for your own good. You went too far this time and lost your composure. If your father hadn't arrived in time and killed those beggars and guards, I'm afraid this matter would have spread throughout the city, and your reputation would have been ruined."
"Mother, I..."
Yu Xunmei wanted to defend herself, but Madam Yu interrupted her, "The doctor said you've damaged your health and it will be difficult for you to conceive in the future. You should take good care of yourself during this time. Your father is looking for a good family for you. Once you marry into that family, he will take a concubine for you, and the children born to the concubine will be registered in your name."
Madam Yu's words sounded like comfort, but Yu Xunmei could hear the unquestionable tone in her voice.
After Madam Yu left, Yu Xunmei threw a huge tantrum, struggling to get up and smashing the furnishings in the room.
Yu Qiutao slipped past the servants and sneaked into Yu Xunmei's room, only to be startled by the messy state of the room.
Seeing Yu Xunmei lying on the bed silently shedding tears, she quietly walked over and asked in a low voice, "Miss, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Hearing her voice, Yu Xunmei turned around and glared at her fiercely, "What are you doing here?"
Yu Qiutao was startled by her gaze, clutched her chest, and then stepped forward with a worried expression.
"I was just worried about you, so I came to check on you."
Yu Xunmei, who had grown up in aristocratic families, rolled her eyes at her clumsy acting and said coldly, "You said you knew that servant of the Yun family, so tell me, where is he now?"
In order to please her, Yu Qiutao had no choice but to tell Yu Xunmei everything she had experienced on her journey to escape famine.
"You mean they went to Longtan County in the Southern Barbarian Prefecture?"
A murderous glint flashed in Yu Xunmei's sinister eyes. How dare he frame her like this? She would make him pay a price worse than death.
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