Chapter 1: Want Him
“Yaoguang, pay up quickly!” Aunt Li pushed the young girl who was standing there dumbfounded and urged her.
“Your father went to the battlefield with no news, and you orphan and widow have a hard life. You must have a man to stand firm. The human trafficker picked for a long time and finally picked such a good one for you. What are you hesitating about?” The auntie nearby chimed in.
“Exactly, don’t you like good-looking ones? Isn’t this one good-looking enough?”
Su Yaoguang was annoyed by these chattering voices.
She looked closely and saw that this was Anning Village, which she hadn’t returned to in many years.
She looked at these familiar faces in front of her, her head throbbing with pain as some memories flooded into her mind.
Had she gone back to the past?
She pinched herself, and the feeling of pain made her eyes well up with hot tears.
The time point she returned to was also crucial, because this was the beginning of her sufferings.
In front of her stood a human trafficker whose attire didn’t match the villagers nearby, and beside the human trafficker stood a tall and aloof figure.
Su Yaoguang looked at the teenage version of Xiao Yanci in front of her, who was skinny as skin and bones but still handsome, a flash of disgust in her eyes.
She pursed her lips and said spoiledly, “He’s so skinny and you want two taels of silver? Too expensive, do you think I’m a sucker?”
The human trafficker was unhappy and pulled open Xiao Yanci’s clothes, revealing his fair chest: “Young lady, look clearly. This little slave is skinny, but his build is very good. If you want cheap, I have a cheap one in my horse-drawn carriage, almost dead, ten copper coins for you. Do you want him?”
Xiao Yanci lowered his eyes, clenching his palms, trying his best to endure.
The beautiful man looked pitiful and fragile, and even the countryside village women felt a bit of pity for him. In her previous life, Su Yaoguang bought him after just a slight hesitation upon seeing this face. This time, she showed full disgust, opened the door of the horse-drawn carriage nearby, and peeked inside, as if she was really interested in that ‘cheap good’ for ten copper coins.
Inside the horse-drawn carriage, a bloodied and mangled young boy was curled up there. She glanced at him, saw his appearance clearly, and discovered that this boy was the one from her previous life who had been sold into a brothel.
She didn’t know his name and had only met him once. At that time, he escaped from the brothel, just one step away from leaving that alley. That unwilling look in his eyes hurt her heart every time she thought of it later, making her wish she could go back and pull him out to let him escape that den of tigers.
Her mother was ill and worried she had no support, insisting she buy a son-in-law who lives with the wife’s family. Since she had to buy one, she might as well save this boy and change his fate.
“I’ll take this one for ten copper coins.”
“What?” The auntie nearby was furious. “Yaoguang girl, are you stupid? That one’s almost dead. What use is bringing him back?”
“He’s not dead yet!” Su Yaoguang said. “Anyway, bought for ten copper coins, no loss. If lucky, maybe he’ll survive.”
“You girl are really stingy. How about this, I’ll give you a discount on this one, one and a half taels of silver.” The human trafficker pulled off all of Xiao Yanci’s upper clothes and patted his chest. “Su family girl, look at this body. Absolutely worth it.”
“No. Unless he’s also ten copper coins like the one inside.” Su Yaoguang looked disdainfully at Xiao Yanci in front of her.
Xiao Yanci raised his eyes, his deep eyes full of stubbornness.
In her previous life, Su Yaoguang feared seeing such a look in his eyes the most. Seeing it made her unwilling to wrong him and wish she could give him the best.
But now, all she saw was scheming and hypocrisy.
“I can read…” Xiao Yanci’s expression was somewhat humiliated.
The nearby village women were shocked.
“He can read too? One and a half taels is such a bargain. Yaoguang girl, take this one. Good-looking and scholarly.”
“Then I definitely won’t buy him. I want one who can work. What’s the use of just reading? Look at how frail and weak he is. If I buy him, do I have to support him?” Su Yaoguang said, taking out ten copper coins and stuffing them into the human trafficker’s hand. “Alright, it’s settled. No more nagging. That one inside is mine.”
Su Yaoguang didn’t want to see Xiao Yanci’s hypocritical face and didn’t want to continue nagging. She was eager to go back to see her mother, and the one in the horse-drawn carriage also needed proper treatment.
“What’s wrong with Yaoguang girl today? Is she still asleep? Otherwise, how would she pick such a half-dead person?”
“Injured like that, even if he doesn’t die, won’t it cost money to call a doctor and get medicine? That would be more expensive than buying a healthy one. This girl is usually quite shrewd, but today she left her brain at home.”
Su Yaoguang asked a man from the village to help carry the boy home on his back.
She took the boy’s deed of sale and quickly caught up with the people ahead, not even sparing Xiao Yanci a glance.
Xiao Yanci, in this life, who can save you?
“Mother…” Su Yaoguang ran excitedly through the door.
The familiar rundown courtyard, every furnishing here was already imprinted in her mind.
She spent five years supporting Xiao Yanci’s studies. In the second year after she followed him to the capital city, after Xiao Yanci became the top scholar, she sent people to pick up her mother, but her mother was killed by bandits on the way. She didn’t even see her one last time, which was always her greatest sorrow. Now her mother was still alive and well, and this time she wouldn’t let her die early.
“Call call call, calling for my soul? Old lady isn’t dead yet!” An impatient voice came from inside.
Immediately after, a somewhat plump middle-aged woman with a deathly pale face walked out.
“Did you buy the person?”
Su Yaoguang threw herself into Zhang Zhaodi’s arms.
Zhang Zhaodi was stunned for a moment, worry appearing on her usually harsh face: “What trouble did you get into this time?”
“None, I just missed you.”
“Pah, and you say it’s not trouble? Which time you caused trouble wasn’t your mouth sweet as honey afterward?” Zhang Zhaodi pinched her ear, using a bit of force. “Speak, what bad thing did you do again?”
“Ouch ouch ouch… Mother, pinch lighter, my ear’s going to fall off.” Su Yaoguang begged for mercy.
This feeling was really good.
Mother was still pinching her ear. Really good.
Seeing her like this, Zhang Zhaodi became even more worried.
At this time, Su Daniu carried the bloody boy into the courtyard.
“Auntie, your son-in-law who lives with the wife’s family is here.”
Zhang Zhaodi widened her eyes, looking at that mass of blood and flesh unsure if it was still breathing, then turned and glared at Su Yaoguang: “Stinky girl, explain what’s going on?”
“Big Cow brother, trouble you to take him to the wood shed.”
“Okay.” Su Daniu knew the mother and daughter were about to have a big fight, so he put the person on the temporary wooden plank bed in the wood shed and slipped away as fast as if oil was smeared on his feet.
As soon as Su Daniu exited the courtyard gate, he heard Zhang Zhaodi grabbing Su Yaoguang’s ear and cursing loudly.
“You stinky girl, old lady told you to buy a son-in-law who lives with the wife’s family, and you bring back such a half-dead thing. Return him to me right now.”
“He’s cheap, Mother.”
“Didn’t I give you three taels of silver?”
“Three taels of silver is all our family’s money. If we buy a man, what do we eat? I only know without a man we won’t die, but without food we’ll definitely starve. Ouch, Mother, pinch lighter… ouch ouch ouch…”
