Back in the rouge shop, in order to avoid Wu Shi, Liu Yu spoke in hushed tones with the shopkeeper, mentioning that she was being followed by a ruffian. She asked for the shopkeeper’s help and requested to leave through the back door to escape.
She went out through the back door of the shop.
The female shopkeeper had no doubt that there was some falsehood in Liu Yu’s words after seeing her complexion,. Being a kind-hearted person, she pointed to a young assistant and had him lead Liu Yu out through the back door.
Wu Shi searched the town in circles but couldn’t find a trace of Liu Yu. Frustrated, she returned home almost at noon. Upon reaching home, she found Liu Yu had already arrived. Wu Shi smirked and confronted her in front of her father-in-law, Liu Kangsheng, during lunch.
“Little sister, it’s quite a coincidence. I had some business in town and passed by the embroidery shop. Why didn’t I see you learning any skills in any of those embroidery shops?”
Liu Yu looked surprised, “Sister-in-law also went to the embroidery shop? I did visit the embroidery shop this morning, but I went to the fabric store afterward. I used the money I earned from selling the hair accessories these past few days to buy some fabric. I’m planning to try embroidering a few handkerchiefs to sell. Did I miss anything?”
Wu Shi hadn’t reacted yet when Wang Shi and Wen Shi, along with everyone else, became excited. They all looked at Liu Yu, “You can embroider handkerchiefs to sell?”
Even Liu Kangsheng and Lin Shi had turned their attention towards her.
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Nkw Zw pxkzle yde pyke, “R’zz tkhl kv y vau. Fll kq R nyd lxcaskela vbl pkxrzlpv jkde. R eswcv kv okzz qlvnb xwnb xsdlu.”
Fbl prsjl xselpvzu, cwv Eydt Fbk yde Eld Fbk nswzed’v nsdvykd vblka fsu. Nkd Fbk’p lmralppksd oyp psxlobyv nsxrzlm, yde lhld Nkw Iydtpbldt, vbswtb dsv pxkzkdt, pbsole y vaynl sq yrrashyz kd bkp lmralppksd.
Ew Fbk pdllale; pbl eked’v clzklhl kv oyp fwpv y nskdnkeldnl. Fbl oyp nsdhkdnle vbyv Nkw Zw’p zklp bye clld lmrsple, yde pbl pyanypvknyzzu pyke, “Nkvvzl pkpvla, usw cswtbv psxl qycakn? Fbso xl obyv tsse xyvlakyz usw tsv.”
Rv oyp vbl xspv nsxxsd alynvksd qsa saekdyau osxld wrsd blyakdt ycswv psxlsdl cwukdt qycakn.
Nkw Zw pxkzle yde pyke, “Fwal.” Fbl tsv wr yde oldv cynj vs bla assx. Rd y pbsav obkzl, pbl caswtbv swv dlyvzu pvynjle rklnlp sq qycakn: psqv obkvl nsvvsd, rlaqlnv qsa xyjkdt bydejlanbklqp.
Nkw Zw bye ydvknkryvle Ew Fbk’p pjlrvknkpx yqvla zlyhkdt vbl cynj essa sq vbl nspxlvknp pbsr. Ekvb vbl qycakn kd byde, ydu eswcvp Nkw Iydtpbldt xktbv byhl bye, cyple sd bkp eywtbvla-kd-zyo’p osaep, olal nsxrzlvlzu ekprlzzle.
Ew Fbk byed’v lmrlnvle Nkw Zw vs tldwkdlzu hkpkv y qycakn pvsal. Gzvbswtb vblal oyp pvkzz eswcv kd bla lulp, pbl alyzkgle kv oypd’v y tsse kely vs ralpp qwavbla. Wszzsokdt Eydt Fbk yde Eld Fbk, pbl zssjle yv vbl qycakn. Wsankdt y eau pxkzl, pbl pyke, “Ebyv y nskdnkeldnl.”
Gqvla vbyv, pbl qlzz pkzldv.
Liu Yu just smiled. She answered Wang Shi and Wen Shi’s questions about embroidering handkerchiefs and then took the fabric back to her room, seemingly oblivious to Wu Shi’s almost interrogative behavior.
Only Liu Yan felt that Liu Yu had really grown bold. She dared to make money by selling embroidery without even informing the family. The others in the family didn’t seem to think there was anything wrong; their eyes were fixed on the silver that could be earned from embroidering handkerchiefs, without a single word about Liu Yu.
Lately, Liu Yan had become more clever. Since Liu Yu started this embroidery venture, she hadn’t asked her for anything, acting as if she hadn’t seen it.
After the family had lunch, Liu Dalang pulled Wu Shi back into the room and spoke in a low voice, “What happened just now? How could you lose your composure? Aren’t you afraid that the girl will notice?”
Wu Shi pulled her hand away from Liu Dalang’s grip and sat down by the table, her face a bit dark. “I always feel that girl is not right. I feel a bit uneasy.”
“Why do you say that?”
Wu Shi recounted what happened when she went to town today and said, “I circled those two embroidery shops a few times, but there was no sign of her at all. Do you really think it’s a coincidence that she went to buy fabric?”
Liu Dalang said, “Maybe. Otherwise, where did she learn embroidery? I see our third sister is learning quite skillfully now; it doesn’t seem fake.”
Wu Shi nodded but shook her head at the same time. She said, “It’s not right. Although I can’t pinpoint why, I still feel something is off about her. Don’t you think her temperament has changed a bit recently compared to before?”
Hearing Wu Shi say this, Liu Dalang also felt a vague sense of something different, but he couldn’t express it clearly, so he hesitated.
Wu Shi continued, “Do we have to wait for that Zhou Yapo? Dad doesn’t know what’s going on either. He insisted on not allowing her to become a concubine in a wealthy household in the county. All we can do is sell her. In my opinion, if we’re going to sell her, it’s better to do it sooner rather than later. You should go talk to my brother and ask him to check if there are other slave traders in the county with higher bids. If there are, we don’t need to wait for Zhou Yapo. The longer we wait, the more variables there will be.”
Mr. Wu shook his head, “It’s not that simple. Do you think I and your elder brother didn’t inquire about it in detail? Zhou Yapo specializes in dealing with high-value goods around Yangzhou. She can afford high prices. If we go to a Slave trader in the county, we’ll get at least twenty taels less. Can you bear that?”
Wu Shi gritted her teeth; naturally, she couldn’t bear it.
Liu Dalang patted her, “Alright, there are only a few days left. From the information I inquired last time, Zhou Yapo should arrive in about ten days to half a month at most. In this short time, can that young girl come up with a plan? Relax.”
Both of them had calculated and understood the value of Liu Yu clearly. However, they failed to notice that by the window outside their room, Liu Yu was standing against the wall, listening to their conversation, which they thought was discreet and secretive.
Liu Yu clenched her fists tightly by her sides to suppress the surging resentment in her heart. It turned out that selling her was orchestrated by Wu Shi, even involving her natal family.
Moreover, she had no idea that the Liu family had even considered the idea of sending her to become a concubine for a wealthy household in the county. Liu Dalang, however, was well aware that Zhou Yapo’s trade was sending girls to the brothels in Yangzhou.
Trembling slightly, Liu Yu, who had been in the Liu family since shortly after birth and called Mr. Wu her elder brother for fifteen years, realized that he was so ruthlessly cunning.
The fear, humiliation, and despair from her previous life, the torment of every day and night in hell, ultimately led her to seek death for a semblance of preservation. The suffering from her past life and the hardships in this life were all bestowed upon her by this couple.
Wang Shi’s involvement in how this transpired remains unknown to Liu Yu. The second and third bedrooms are currently unaware of the situation. Therefore, the only confirmed parties involved are Liu Kangsheng, Liu Dalang and his wife, as well as Wu Shi’s elder brother.
Liu Yu looked in the direction where Liu Dalang and Wu Shi were located. Through the thick and coarse earthen wall, she imprinted her deep-seated resentment on them. Sooner or later, Wu Shi, Liu Dalang, and Liu Kangsheng would all have to pay for what they had done to her.
In the town of Changfeng, Lin Huaigeng and Liu Zhang, who hastily returned from the county, waited until dusk to meet with Lu Chengxiao.
Lu Chengxiao had returned to Changfeng town suddenly before dawn. Lin Huaigeng couldn’t sleep anymore, and any drowsiness or alcohol-induced stupor had dissipated. After some thought, the only thing he could associate with Lu Chengxiao’s actions was the matter Liu Zhang mentioned yesterday.
As Lu Chengxiao had anticipated, Lin Huaigeng covered up the matter for him in front of his father, Lu Xun. Subsequently, he sought out Liu Zhang, and the two hired a donkey carriage to return to Changfeng town.
Arriving around noon, they inquired at the Lu residence, only to learn that Lu Chengxiao had not returned home at all.
Lin Huaigeng dared not say much, only chuckled and said they would come back another time. After leaving the Lu residence, he and Liu Zhang waited for Lu Chengxiao along the route he would take to return home. They waited the whole afternoon before Lu Chengxiao finally came back.
Upon seeing Lin Huaigeng and Liu Zhang from a distance, Lu Chengxiao understood their purpose for coming. Without saying much, he went directly to a tavern in town.
Lin Huaigeng ordered the dishes, but Lu Chengxiao remained silent, drinking quietly. Although he appeared calm, the deep-seated unrest beneath the surface was palpable.
As two large jars of wine were emptied, Lin Huaigeng couldn’t bear to see it anymore and took away the new wine, refusing to serve more. He asked Lu Chengxiao, “What’s going on? Is it because of that girl?”
Lu Chengxiao was already seven parts drunk, half-leaning on the table. Lin Huaigeng’s face had become a blurred double image in his eyes.
He vaguely heard Lin Huaigeng mentioning Liu Yu, and the image of Liu Yu and Chen Sheng standing together flashed before his eyes.
He had once thought that pushing someone away with his own hands was painful enough, and yearning for someone he shouldn’t yearn for was the ultimate torment. Until today, Lu Chengxiao realized that it wasn’t the case.
The most unbearable pain was that he still couldn’t forget her, even though she had decisively left, ready to embrace someone else.
And he didn’t even have the qualification to feel sad, because he had pushed her away with his own hands.
In moments of sobriety, reason prevailed. But in drunkenness, Lu Chengxiao dared to admit—he regretted it.
Regret had already set in when Liu Yu decisively left.
But as morning broke, would Lu Chengxiao still remember his regret at this moment?
Lu Chengxiao was helped back by Lin Huaigeng at the beginning of the hai shi 1Not sure if this is accurate, 21:00-22:59 is called Hai Shi (亥时). He should have returned home at this hour, but instead, he ended up in this state. Chen Shi suddenly became busy.
Asking Lin Huaigeng and the others what happened, who dared to speak? They vaguely passed it off, afraid that Chen Shi would ask for details. They hurriedly took their leave.
Chen Shi busied herself preparing sobering soup and attended to Lu Chengxiao, who had already lain down on the bed, wiping his face and removing his boots. She overheard him muttering something continuously. When she leaned closer to listen, it was disjointed, flipping back and forth, all about the name Liu Yu.
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