Chapter 48: Selling Himself as a Servant

  Lin Er Lang's matter was successfully resolved. After Zhao Da took Lin Er Lang and Lin Da Zhuang out of the county government, Lin Er Lang deceived Lin Da Zhuang into going to the border with him. Shi Wen sent someone to follow them for a few days, and when they saw that they had indeed left Yu Xiang Town, they were finally at ease.

  Lin Chunhe and Anhe bid farewell to Shi Wen and Madam Shi after Lin Erlang and Lin Dabao left, preparing to return to Linjia Village.

  Shi Qi got a little dog, and then prepared a pile of gifts to give to Lin Chun. Knowing that Lin Chun and her mother had agreed to come to the county every month after their appointment, she was very happy.

  "Big brother, shall we go back to Linjia village directly by carriage or take a stroll around the county first?" An He asked, following Lin Chun.

  "Let's take a stroll, I want to buy some pastries for Da Tou and Er Ya to bring back, the pastries in the county are delicious, let's buy more so everyone can have a taste. By the way, let's also buy a few bolts of fabric, I saw that Da Tou's pants were too short again yesterday." Nowadays, life at home is good, Da Tou and Er Ya are growing taller rapidly, and I've also grown quite a bit myself, clothes and all are changed frequently, buying a few bolts of fabric to bring back will keep An Popo busy when she has nothing to do, just in case.

  "Okay, let's take a look at the sky, it's still early, we can stroll around for a while longer."

  Lin Chuan looked around at the small stalls on the street, and bought some cute little things to bring back for Xiao Shan. He also went to a bookstore and bought several books to give to Mr. Yu. At the clothing store, Lin Chuan saw that many thick cotton fabrics were on sale at low prices. Since it was getting hot, these winter clothing materials were all discounted. Without hesitation, Lin Chuan bought a set for each of his family members. An He followed behind him, naturally doing the work of carrying things.

  Lin Ching usually didn't have any specific requirements for clothing and accessories, so she simply bought a few pieces of plain fabric. Er Ya's was a light red color, while Da Tou's was a dark blue color. They weren't very expensive materials, but they felt comfortable to the touch.

  Dashi's family was also indispensable, after buying the fabric, Lin Chun went to Su Xin Zhai and swept away several large bags of pastries. The pastries at Su Xin Zhai were very famous in Yuxiang Town, Dashou and Er Ya had eaten them once at Shi's house, Lin Chun saw that they liked them, so he remembered it in his heart.

  "An Ge, let's go back, the sooner we return, the less our family will worry. In two days, we'll be building a house behind the big iron gate. I reckon when we get home, Da Shan Bo Bo will have some things to discuss with us." Lin Chun said, turning his head to speak to An He behind him.

  "Alright, I'll go find the carriage," said An He. "Da Ya, you just wait for me at the entrance of Su Xin Zhai for a moment, I'll be right back." An He said, holding a bunch of things in his arms, and hurriedly went to look for the carriage.

  Lin Chun stood at the entrance of Su Xin Zhai with his head down, thinking about the future development of his family, silently making plans in his heart. Suddenly, he heard people passing by discussing and gossiping.

  "Poor thing, so young and already sold into servitude. The adults at home don't even know where they've gone, what if they were kidnapped by human traffickers?"

  "Yes, she's still a young girl, if she gets cheated and loses her way, she'll suffer for the rest of her life, it's really..."

  "It's also because the woman from the Niu family is kind, I heard that her husband's older brother and sister-in-law died early, leaving behind only a young daughter. A few days ago, she herself gave birth to a boy, and at home there is also a girl, altogether three children, all relying on Old Niu alone to support them, and their family doesn't even have much good land..."

  "It's said that after the cow's wife gave birth to a child, her body didn't recover well. The old cow in their family has almost sold all of their belongings and land. It's pitiful for their own daughter, who even ran to the county to sell herself. If it were a heartless family, they wouldn't care about the children of their brother and sister-in-law. This girl is also kind-hearted..."

  "Yes, let's hurry back to the village and tell Old Cow. If his daughter is deceived by someone and runs away, it would be a pity. Poor Old Cow, he has cultivated good land, and now he has spent all his savings to support his wife and children. If he loses his daughter too, I'm afraid he will die of heartbreak..."

  "Yes, yes, let's hurry back to the village and tell Old Cow, come on..."

  Lin Chuan didn't hear anything, only remembering that the land was good and the words were good. Several phrases later, An He happened to arrive with a horse-drawn carriage. Lin Chuan handed over what he had in his hand to An He, said a few words, and headed towards the street.

  From a distance, Lin Chun saw a thin and bony little girl, about six or seven years old, kneeling on the ground, shouting at people passing by on the street, asking if they wanted slaves or servants.

  Lin Chun looked at her with a tinge of bitterness and quickly walked up to ask: "Little girl, what can you do?"

  The little girl kneeling on the ground was a bit surprised, not expecting someone to suddenly come up and ask her, stunned for a while, came back to herself, staring at Lin Chun with both eyes and said loudly: "Hello miss, my name is Er Niu, I'm seven years old, I can do all kinds of trivial things at home and simple farm work in the field, as long as your family can give me and my brother a full meal."

  Lin Chun was very satisfied with Er Niu's answer, which covered all the basic information she wanted to know. However, after listening, Lin Chun found it a bit strange - didn't that gossiping old woman just say that Er Niu's younger brother had just been born a few days ago? Had her mother been injured and couldn't breastfeed?

  "Your younger brother? Who is it?......"

  "Yes, it's my brother. My brother was just born and when my mother gave birth to him, she hurt her body. All the money in our house has been spent, the fields have been sold, and there is not much rice left at home. Father, mother, sister all need to eat, I can do a lot of work for Miss's family, as long as you give me two more bowls of rice porridge every day, it will be enough to feed my brother." Er Niu said with a smile on her pale and thin face, which clearly showed malnutrition.

  Lin Chun's heart was moved, and she thought that the sister Er Niu mentioned must be the daughter of her late uncle's family. She didn't expect Er Niu to be so kind and sensible. Lin Chun thought for a while and had an idea in mind.

  "Your sister, since you have a sister, why didn't she come, but instead you came?" Lin Chunming asked knowingly, and the onlookers around also chimed in with questions.

  "My sister has been in poor health since childhood, often fainting and unable to do any work. The doctor said she was born with a congenital illness... But don't worry, miss, I'm very capable and will listen obediently. Does your household need a maid? I..." Er Niya explained her own abilities, trying to move Lin Chunxin's heart and buy herself out.

  "What about your parents, do they know you came to the county town today to sell yourself as a servant? If your family elders don't know, I wouldn't dare bring you home casually. What if your family elders come looking for you?"