191 The County Magistrateâs Wife Who Defends Justice
At this moment, a mean-looking old woman with thin eyes and thin lips walked toward the man.
The old woman covered her mouth and nose with her hand and walked to the mother and daughter, who were hugging each other and crying. She looked at the man with disgust and said in a sharp voice, âIâve been waiting for you for half a day. Are you selling her or not?â
The man looked at the mother and daughter with red eyes, then at the old woman. He gritted his teeth and nodded. The old woman smiled and went over to pull the little girl who was holding on to the woman. âThatâs more like it. I came from Qingzhou. If you sell her to me, youâll enter a big family to enjoy life.â
The woman hugged her daughter tightly and raised her head. She looked at the old woman hatefully and said, âNo, sheâs my daughter. If I donât agree to sell her, no one can take her away.â
The little girl widened her deer-like eyes and looked at the old woman fearfully. The old womanâs eyes lit up. Her looks are good. If I bring her back and train her, I wonât have to worry about money in the future!
âYo! This child is so lively.â The old woman reached out to touch the little girlâs face. The little girl was so frightened that she buried her head in her motherâs back. The old woman straightened up and said to the man, âYour wife canât bear to part with the two older ones. Iâm soft-hearted and canât bear to see others sad. Sell the younger one to me and Iâll give you ten taels of silver.â
The man glanced at the old woman and walked up to the mother and children. He said to the woman, âXiuqing, you know that Mother is sick. I really have no choice. My daughter is also my flesh and blood. I canât bear to sell her but I have no choice! The broker said that she only wants San Ya. Ten taels of silver should be enough for Motherâs treatment.â
The woman looked up at the man. âYe Guozhi, youâre nothing. Your mother doesnât belong to you alone. Why are you selling my daughter?â
âSay it again and Iâll hit you.â The man threatened and pulled the little girl who was pouncing on the woman. The girl grabbed her motherâs arm tightly, and the woman and her two sisters also grabbed her tightly. The woman said to the man hatefully, âIf you want to sell us, sell us together. Donât even think about taking my child away unless I die.â
âIâm the head of this family,â the man shouted. He picked up the little girl and was about to give her to the old woman. The mother and daughter turned around and hugged the manâs legs, refusing to let go. The old woman took the deed and silver and walked towards the man.
Li Yu couldnât stand it anymore. She walked over and blocked the old womanâs way. She reached out and took the contract from the old womanâs hand. She turned around and pointed at the man. âAre you still human? Even a vicious tiger wonât eat its cubs! Youâre willing to sell your own flesh and blood? Youâre worse than an animal!â
The man was stunned by Li Yuâs aura and didnât dare to reply.
The old woman walked in front of Li Yu and sneered. âYo! Where did this beauty come from? If you want to sell yourself, I can help you find a good place. If you want to cause trouble, donât blame me for being impolite!â
Li Yu pointed at the mother and daughter and said, âOld woman, I want to see how rude you are! Didnât you hear that they were unwilling? Do you have a conscience?â
The female broker narrowed her eyes and smiled bitterly. âItâs none of your business if the father wants to sell his daughter to me. Do you have anything to worry about?â
Li Yu looked at the contract in her hand and said to the man, âThis is a death contract. Do you know? This old woman just saw that the child is good-looking and bought her to sell her to a brothel. Is there a father like you?â
The man looked at the broker with a red face and said, âOld broker, are you really going to sell the child to a brothel? Didnât you say that you came specially to buy little girls for rich families?â
âDonât listen to this bitchâs nonsense. The girls I buy are all sent to rich families as personal servants to enjoy life.â
Li Yu kicked the broker and pointed at her as she shouted, âOld woman! Do you dare to swear that if you sell the little girl to a brothel, you will have no descendants and go to hell after death!â
The broker got up and shouted at the two burly men guarding the mule cart, âAre you two dead? Get rid of this bitch!â
Two thugs walked toward Li Yu. A few men and women surrounded the old woman and pointed at her. âBroker, itâs not this girlâs fault. Tell me! Are you helping a rich family buy little girls? If you sell them to a brothel, I wonât sell my daughter.â
The thugs and the broker looked at the villagers surrounding them and took two steps back. They spread their hands and said, âNot selling anymore? Sure! Give me the silver and Iâll return your daughters to you.â
A man handed the deed and a silver ingot to the broker and said, âIâll return it to you. My daughter is not for sale anymore.â
The granny looked at the deed and silver in the manâs hand and said with a strange laugh, âFive taels of silver and you want to redeem her back? Dream on. Give me ten taels of silver and Iâll let you redeem her back.â
The man said angrily, âYouâre too evil! Itâs only been a while, and sheâs still in the village. Why should I add five taels? If my family has five taels of silver, I wouldnât sell my daughter! Do you want it or not?!â The man stuffed the silver and body contract into the brokerâs hand and went to hold a girl who had gotten out of the mule cart.
The broker said to the two thugs, âYouâve already sold them, and you still want them back? Thereâs no such thing as a cheap price! Chase them away.â
The thug pointed at the man and said, âGet lost. If you come forward again, I wonât be polite.â
âMy daughter isnât going to that dirty land. Return my daughter to me.â The man reached out and tried to push the thug away.
âYouâre courting death!â The thug pushed the man to the ground and raised his foot to stomp on the manâs calf. Li Yu jumped up and swept her leg across, kicking two thugs away. She turned around and pointed at the broker. âGive them the contracts, or Iâll teach you a lesson!â
The broker didnât dare to play any more tricks. She let the other villagers stuff their deeds and money into her hands and watched as the villagers led their daughters down from the mule cart.
The woman muttered apologetically, âGirl, I thought she really bought you to be a girl in a rich family. I wanted you to eat well for two years, but who knew?â
The little girl lowered her head and kept sobbing. Seeing that the girls had been taken away, the granny pointed at Li Yu and said fiercely, âStupid bitch! Just wait.â
Li Yu walked over and slapped the brokerâs face. She shouted, âOld woman, watch your mouth. If you want to find trouble, Iâll wait for you at the Qingchuan County office! Fellow villagers, if she dares to come back and find trouble with you, look for me at the Qingchuan County office. Iâll seek justice for you!â
âYou, you,â the granny mumbled and suddenly covered her mouth. She opened her palm and saw two teeth. It turned out that Li Yuâs force had caused to them drop off. The granny didnât dare to talk anymore and climbed into the mule cart to escape in a sorry state.
The villagers looked at Li Yu. Would the county magistrateâs wife help them? A woman boldly asked Li Yu, âMadam, are you the wife of the county magistrate?â
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