After walking for an unknown amount of time, Zhou's illness worsened.
Chen Dadan drove the oxcart to the outside of a dilapidated temple. He squinted at Ali, who was guarding Zhou's house, and then said, "Go, go outside and find some water. I'll start a fire. We'll stay here tonight."
Ali nodded blankly. Along the way, Chen Dadan had asked Ali to do a lot of things.
When Ali returned with the water, Chen Dadan was holding Zhou Shi and crying. His crying was very fake, and he wailed, "My poor wife, why couldn't you have held on for a couple more days? We would have been home soon."
Ah Li held the water steadily in her hands as she slowly walked towards Chen Dadan and asked, "Why so suddenly?"
Chen Dadan paused slightly in his wailing, wiping his tearless eyes with his sleeve, and said, "Your mother just said she couldn't breathe. I was thinking of going to find you and tell you to hurry up and bring back some water, but who knew, who knew, she couldn't wait any longer..."
On the back of Chen Dadan's hand, there were several nail marks, all of which were bleeding.
There were also messy, withered grasses at Zhou's feet and traces of tears in the corners of her eyes; she had been smothered to death by Chen Dadan.
Chen Dadan suddenly looked at Ah Li and roared, "You heartless bastard! Your mother is dead, aren't you going to cry?"
Ahri lowered her head. There was nothing she could do. She was trapped in this body and couldn't control it.
Tears slid down Ahri's face, falling onto her clothes and leaving a dark stain.
It's started raining outside.
Chen Dadan made Ali kneel in front of Zhou and cry. He tugged at the corner of his lips and said, "It's good that you're crying. In a couple of days, we'll find a deserted mountain, bury her, and then we'll go back."
"Aren't you taking your mother back with you?"
"Why take it back? Do you know how far it is? By the time it gets back to the village, it'll probably be rotten and smelly."
Chen Dadan touched the money pouch on his body. With this money, he could marry another beautiful woman, build two more houses, and have several more big, fat sons.
When Chen Dadan thought about how he had just covered Zhou's mouth and nose, and how Zhou struggled and tried to pry his hands off, until he said, "If you die now, I can still take my daughter back. But if you keep dragging this on, I can't guarantee that I can take my daughter back safely too."
“It will cost a lot of money to see a doctor for your illness. If we run out of money, I will sell my daughter. So, you can go in peace.”
Zhou gradually stopped struggling. She thought of her daughter and knew she couldn't drag her down with her.
Chen Dadan sized up Ali, who, like her mother, was a beauty. He thought that if she became a concubine for some wealthy man, she could help support her family.
After the rain stopped, Chen Dadan bought a hoe, found a deserted mountain, and buried Zhou Shi.
Ahri couldn't help but kneel on the ground, crying her heart out. This was what the original owner had experienced, and she couldn't change it.
Later, Ah Li went back with Chen Dadan.
Not long after, Chen Dadan married a woman and had Ali do embroidery to supplement the family income.
That woman knew Chen Dadan was rich, but he was very stingy and wouldn't let her touch the money.
After a while, she decided to go all the way and poisoned Chen Dadan to death. She also found a man and brought him back.
The man had shifty eyes and set his sights on Ahri as soon as he arrived.
Two years later...
That day, the woman went out, leaving only Ah Li and the man at home.
The man looked Ah Li up and down and said, "Hey girl, where did your mother put my clothes? Come in and help me find them."
Ah Li knew this person was wicked, but she still walked towards the house behind him.
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