Mrs. Xu held onto the woman beside her, Mrs. Gu Jiu, and asked with great confusion, "Sister-in-law, I don't quite understand our customs here. At this age, can she still become a child bride? She's old enough to have her own child bride!"
Mrs. Xu almost burst out laughing. That comment really hit home.
Holding back her laughter, she answered seriously, "Of course not, that's not possible."
Their voices were audible to everyone around them.
Wu Sanniang glared fiercely at Gu Jiu through her tearful eyes, then continued to beg Mrs. Gao piteously, "Auntie, auntie, let me be a maid in your house, a servant girl doing chores. I'll take any food you give me, please just take me in!"
Mrs. Gao frowned. "Sanniang, your parents are still here. How can I, an outsider, become your master? You're neglecting your parents and wanting to be my beast of burden. That's so unfilial. We can't do such an indecent thing. Go back home."
Not too far away, Wu Laowu angrily shouted, "You ungrateful wretch, so eager to saddle someone else with you, is that it? Fine, don't come back! Oldest Xie, we don't want this worthless girl anymore. Take her away, sell her off or use her as livestock, it's up to you. At least we'll save some food."
Mrs. Zhang muttered from the side, "I've never seen such people. One girl sets her eyes on someone else's son and stubbornly tries to impose herself. The other despises her own flesh and blood, wasting the family's food, and seizes the chance to foist her off on others. What kind of people are they?"
Mrs. Zhang pulled Oldest Xie toward her, shielding him behind her back. She instructed Mrs. Xu and Mrs. Sun, "You two from the second and third families, look after my mother-in-law and go on ahead."
Then she turned and berated Wu Sanniang, "Can't you understand plain speech? You think you can pull this stunt just because my mother-in-law is kindhearted? Do you think we don't know what you're scheming? First, you want to impose yourself on our family. Next, you'll latch onto our Fourth Son. Finally, you want our Fourth Son to marry you? You must be dreaming! There's a line of girls from the county town waiting to marry our Fourth Son, and you think you're worthy? What a joke, get lost!"
Wu Sanniang's face turned pale, then red, her eyes flashing with resentful defiance. Her expression twisted as tears streamed down, and she protested miserably, "I didn't... Sister-in-law, let me explain..."
But Mrs. Zhang didn't let her finish. Hands on hips, she shouted at the villagers, "All of you, get moving! Do you want to lose your lives gawking?"
Mrs. Zhang's ferocity was well-known far and wide. At her roar, young and old dared not linger, urging each other, "Let's go, let's go."
From afar, Wu Laowu cursed at Wu Sanniang, "You shameless thing, why don't you just chase after them?"
His tone suggested he wished Wu Sanniang would really disregard everything and follow the Xie family.
Unfortunately, after hesitating for a while, Wu Sanniang didn't dare gamble that the Xie family would take her in, so she trudged back dejectedly.
Mrs. Xu reached out and patted the small bundle on Gu Jiu's head, worried she might misunderstand Mrs. Zhang's harsh demeanor as being callous. She explained with a smile, "Our Fourth Son is so handsome that all the young ladies in the village like him. Whenever they hear Fourth Son has returned from school in the county town, they invent excuses to come to our house, especially this Wu Sanniang. She tries every trick in the book and just won't leave, pestering Fourth Son and not letting him study in peace."
"Our mother-in-law is well-read and sensible, so she doesn't do that shrewish scolding thing. My brother's wife and I are not very eloquent, so we rely on the elder sister-in-law's sharp tongue to take control of the situation."
"It's also because our Fourth Son is too attractive. Not only is he of good character, but he's also a fine scholar. His future wife will definitely need to be carefully chosen - it can't be just any random person."
As Mrs. Xu explained, she naturally took Gu Jiu's little hand in hers.
Oh, this little hand was soft and tender. Young girls were just more endearing than boys. The grandmother couldn't have a daughter, and the three sisters-in-law also failed to have a little cotton-padded jacket. Now the family had suddenly gained a young girl, which was truly delightful and precious.
Gu Jiu looked at Mrs. Xu. "Sister-in-law, you don't need to scold me. I understand." She was just being mischievous, that's all.
Mrs. Xu was taken aback. She was just making casual conversation and had no intention of scolding Gu Jiu. She had never seriously considered Gu Jiu becoming a child bride for the Xie family, dismissing it as a child's mischief. She certainly had no thought of deliberately scolding her.
Realizing her misspoken words, she smiled and tried to explain, "You little rascal, where did you get that idea? Sister-in-law wasn't saying you..."
But no matter how she phrased it, it didn't sound quite right. So she simply ruffled Gu Jiu's hair instead.
...
Led by the Xie family, the villagers hurried forward, none knowing when the hanging sword might fall. They were in a race against death itself.
The mood was rather somber, with no one in the mood for idle chatter. Everyone pressed on in silence.
They had set out around noon, their lunch consisting of dry rations.
They rushed until nightfall, yet hadn't covered much ground. Burdened with food, water, pots, bedrolls, and other heavy loads, their progress was sluggish.
Although Huaishu Village was less than three days' journey from Immortal Dwelling Mountain, at this pace, they might not make it in time.
So even when the children cried out from exhaustion, no one dared suggest stopping to rest. They plodded on until it became too dark to see, lit torches, and continued for half a shichen before Oldest Xie finally called for everyone to rest.
Born into poverty and hardened by farm labor, the villagers found the trek grueling yet not unbearable.
But for Gu Jiu, it was sheer torment. Her feet felt as if they didn't belong to her, and she plopped down, unwilling to move another step.
Although the original owner had also wandered as a beggar for over a month, she didn't rush, able to walk and rest. This frantic pace was akin to a forced march.
From the donkey cart, Mrs. Gao laughed and asked, "Never walked such a long distance before? Tired?"
Gu Jiu nodded, too miserable to speak. This era was too backward.
The relatively well-off Xie family owned a donkey cart loaded with grains, sweet potatoes, pots, basins, jars of pickled vegetables, and other supplies, leaving just enough space for the ailing Mrs. Gao to sit.
Mrs. Gao was helped off the cart by Third Xie and comforted Gu Jiu, "Bear with it a little longer. It'll be better once we reach the mountain."
Gu Jiu nodded obediently. What else could she do but endure?
On this journey accompanying the Xie family, she had come to know them all.
The Xie family was large and thriving, clearly dominated by male offspring. Oldest Xie had five brothers in total, and the younger generation had produced four sons: Xie Daji, Xie Erqing, Xie Sanyou, and Xie Siyu, all boys without exception.
Adding Oldest Xie, Third Xie, and their three wives, as well as the matriarch Mrs. Gao and the adopted Gu Jiu, their party numbered fifteen in total, a sizable crowd of young and old.
Having many men was advantageous in this era, the main benefit being none dared provoke them.
The downside was the lack of daughters in the family, which made them dote on Gu Jiu. Even six-year-old Xie Siyu insisted on carrying her bundle, worried she might overexert herself, stubbornly refusing to let her bear any burden.
Even so, Gu Jiu felt more exhausted than Xie Siyu.
Mrs. Gao stretched her stiff body and remarked, "Your feet must have blisters. You'll need to lance them, or they'll be more painful once they rupture tomorrow."
Gu Jiu understood, giving an affirmative reply. She hauled herself up and approached Mrs. Zhang, the eldest sister-in-law. "Elder Sister, do you have a needle?"
Mrs. Zhang was distributing dry rations and glanced at Gu Jiu, muttering under her breath, "Poor child, so much trouble."
She stuffed the ration bag into Mrs. Xu's hands. "Wait a moment."
Mrs. Xu smiled reassuringly at Gu Jiu, "Jiu Niang, don't mind her. The elder sister-in-law is actually quite kind. You'll understand once you've been around her longer."
"I know, a harsh tongue but a tender heart. I get it," Gu Jiu replied with a smile.
Mrs. Sun laughed, "Oh my, Jiu Niang is so perceptive. The elder sister-in-law is like a paper tiger, seeming fierce but truly soft-hearted."
Mrs. Zhang approached with a needle, scowling without warmth, "Who said that? I have a harsh tongue and an equally harsh heart, harder than iron."
"Mmm," Gu Jiu took the needle, continuing, "Smelted iron."
The Xie family members all laughed, the atmosphere becoming relaxed for the moment.
