Translator: 549690339
Another villager kindly said, âDashan, I think itâs better to sell your wife for seventeen taels. You and your brothers could save money for a few more years, add some more to it, and even if you could only afford someone with a missing arm or leg, it would be better than your mute and ugly wife. Sheâs so skinny like a bamboo pole, I doubt she could bear a sonâ¦â
Someone else chimed in, âChuan refused to sell her for seventeen taels; heâs probably thinking about the eight taels she had stolen from them before. He must want to sell her for twenty-five.â
âTwenty-five taels? How is that even possible?â Another villager exclaimed. âI heard old lady Liu say that she might change her mind about offering such a high price. Chuan must be crazy for money!â
âExactly. With twenty-five taels, plus another five, they could buy a normal person. Chuan really thinks that Su Qingyue, the mute girl, could sell for the price of a normal personâ¦â
Everyone started talking, and Wang Qigu bluntly said, âDashan, donât be foolish. If old lady Liu regrets offering her price, you should hurry and go beg her to still buy her for seventeen taels⦠Huh? Whereâs Dashan?â
Everyone was enjoying their discussion, but Xiao Yishan had disappeared.
Villager Qian Youfa pointed to the path ahead, âDashan left long ago. He walked away so quickly; I guess heâs rushing to find old lady Liu to sell his wife.â
âI canât believe that after buying a mute and ugly wife, the Xiao Family could still make a profit of one taelâ¦â Another villager said enviously.
âWhat profit? Didnât you forget about the eight taels that ugly woman stole from them? Theyâre still losing moneyâ¦â
âRightâ¦â
Everyone talked about it for a while, with their nosiness exceeding even that of their own concerns.
Inside the Xiao Familyâs courtyard, Su Qingyue looked up at the sun again.
She had been waiting for half an hour, it must be around half-past one in the afternoon. She was even hungrier than before, and it seemed like the benefactorâs younger brother had no intention of cooking lunch. Was he trying to starve her?
She glanced at him, still focused on his embroidery. He was quite fast, having done a lot in half an hour.
When she remembered his sour face after she asked to borrow a mirror, she thought he was petty; he was probably unhappy about her freeloading on him.
It wasnât easy living in someone elseâs house: she could barely eat and had to watch their expressions, but as an outsider, she couldnât say anything. However, she hated having to walk on eggshells around people.
Forget it. Even with her injuries, she wouldnât starve to death with her abilities. It was better not to stay and ask for trouble.
She stood up, ready to leave.
Xiao Yuchuan looked up at the sky and glanced at his wifeâs frail figure. He decided it was better to cook another meal at noon in the future.
Extremely poor families, like his, could only afford to eat two meals a day, skipping lunch. The Xiao family didnât have any fields, Fourth Brotherâs medicine was expensive, and he and Second Brother ate a lot. They couldnât afford to cook lunch; however, he could at least cook for his wife every day.
With these thoughts in mind, he set down his embroidery work, stood up, and headed to the kitchen to wash the rice.
Xiao Yishan, tall and sturdy, entered the yard, throwing down the prey and hunting tools he carried. Without saying a word, he rushed over and punched Xiao Yuchuan.
Blood from the prey smeared on his hands, the huge fist was still stained with blood.
Xiao Yuchuan didnât have enough time to cry out in pain before more punches followed, landings with a heavy, dull thud on his flesh and bones..