Chapter 5: Arriving at Grandfather’s House

Both had set out early in the morning and met on the road.

This time, when they arrived at Zhengyang Village, it was only a little past nine in the morning.

“Dad, look who’s here?”

Even before Jiang Mingshan called out, it was impossible for anyone in the courtyard to miss the sight of such a large mule entering.

Jiang Fengshou watched as his eldest son lifted a plump little girl from the cart. With just one glance, he recognized who it was.

“Pang Ya? Is that really Pang Ya! What brings you here so suddenly?” As Jiang Fengshou spoke, his gaze shifted behind her. Seeing no other members of the Zhu family following, his expression immediately grew tense.

“Why are you alone? Where are the people who came with you?”

“Pang Ya, why have you come? Did you know we were leaving and came to see us one last time?” Her second uncle, Jiang Mingshui, seeing her arrival, asked urgently, his hair sticking out like straw.

Even her eldest aunt, Song Qiaolian, and second aunt, Li Hongju, who were busy in the kitchen cooking all the family’s grain, came out into the courtyard.

They all looked at Jiang Qingzhu with concern.

Under everyone’s worried gazes, Jiang Qingzhu’s little face immediately fell.

“Grandfather, uncles, aunts, I ran away on my own. Grandmother and Zhu Yanqing’s mother think I’m eating their food for free at home and want to sell me to the neighboring county for a ghost marriage with a dying man………………”

Before Jiang Qingzhu could finish speaking, Jiang Mingye was the first to jump out in a rage.

“Beasts! The entire Zhu family are beasts! Pang Ya is still my elder sister’s child, a descendant of the old Zhu family. How could they do something so heartless?”

“Poor child, how could your grandmother treat you like this!” Upon hearing that the Zhu family wanted Pang Ya for a ghost marriage, her eldest aunt, Song Qiaolian, hurried forward to hug Pang Ya, her eyes filled with pity.

This wasn’t a ghost marriage—it was a death sentence for Pang Ya!

“What happened next? What happened after that!” Jiang Fengshou asked.

Jiang Qingzhu continued, “I said I didn’t want to, so they locked me in the woodshed and didn’t give me any food. Early this morning, I sneaked out of the woodshed. By chance, I saw the Zhu family servants hitching up the mule cart, with half a bag of grain already loaded. I thought, since I’ve come this far, I might as well steal the mule cart and run. I had nowhere else to go, so I could only come to Grandfather.”

As she spoke, Jiang Qingzhu tried her best to appear uneasy, looking timidly at her grandfather as she asked, “Grandfather, I can’t go back to that home anymore. Can you take me in?”

While saying this, she fumbled around her body, then held out two silver ingots in her hand for everyone to see.

“Grandfather, I accidentally came across this silver and have kept it well hidden. All of this… can I give it to you?”

The silver in her hand weighed at least twenty taels. This was her way of testing her grandfather’s family—a stone thrown to test the waters.

It wasn’t the most honorable approach, but human hearts are the most fragile when tested, aren’t they?

“Third son, bring me my knife. My daughter is already gone, and those damned Zhu family members dare to bully my granddaughter like this! I’ll fight them to the death!”

As he spoke, Jiang Fengshou stood up and headed toward the house.

Immediately afterward, Jiang Qingzhu saw her eldest uncle go for a carrying pole, her second uncle grab a sickle, and her third uncle rush out of the kitchen clutching a kitchen knife, all of them looking fierce and ready to charge out.

Especially her third uncle, who cursed angrily, “If the heavens won’t give us a way to live, we accept it. But what right does the Zhu family have to deny my sister’s child a chance to live?”

“Fleeing famine is a desperate gamble with death. Before I die, I might as well vent my anger for Pang Ya. Then, even in death, I can face my elder sister with dignity.” Second Uncle Jiang Mingshui was also furious.

Jiang Qingzhu stared at the scene, somewhat dumbfounded. Had her grandfather and uncles really believed her half-truths? And from the looks of it, they seemed ready to confront the Zhu family head-on?

Next, she saw her grandfather emerge from the house, one hand gripping a pig-slaughtering knife and the other a bone-cleaver, his face fierce and menacing.

Without a second thought, Jiang Qingzhu rushed forward and clung to her grandfather’s leg.

“Grandfather, the Zhu family has many people and great influence. I don’t want to see any of you get hurt because of me. If you go, the Zhu family will know I’m here, and they’ll just come and take me back.”

“I’ll kill them all. Let’s see who dares bully my granddaughter then,” Jiang Fengshou growled.

“Grandfather, even if they all die, the authorities won’t let you go. By then, I’d be all alone. How could I possibly hold onto the Zhu family’s property? In the end, I’d still be bullied by their relatives. Grandfather, please, let’s not go to the Zhu family. I want to live with you.”

Jiang Qingzhu wore an expression of panic and unease, pleading earnestly.

Song Qiaolian watched the scene, pursing her chapped lips before stepping forward and speaking sincerely, “Father, I may not know much, but I think Pang Ya makes sense. We can’t possibly kill all the Zhu family members, and as a child, Pang Ya would still end up bullied by their relatives. What the Zhu family did was heartless, but thankfully Pang Ya arrived safely at our home. As long as Pang Ya is willing, let’s take her with us! Even if life is hard with us, it’s still better than being sent back to the Zhu family, where they treat her as less than human!”

After saying this, Song Qiaolian looked anxiously at her father-in-law.

Jiang Fengshou was impulsive, but he wasn’t foolish—after all, a fool couldn’t slaughter pigs.

He crouched down, looking at Jiang Qingzhu’s round face, and asked, “Pang Ya, you heard what your eldest aunt said. We plan to flee the famine. Are you willing to come with us? Your grandfather promises you this: as long as I have a mouthful of food, you won’t go hungry.”

Jiang Qingzhu nodded repeatedly. “Grandfather, I’m not afraid of hardship. I want to go with you. I even brought a mule cart—we can travel by cart.”

Jiang Fengshou laughed, his voice hearty and booming. “Well said! Pang Ya truly is my granddaughter, taking after me in spirit!”

After speaking, he noticed she was still clutching the silver and waved a hand dismissively. “Keep the silver you have. Your grandfather and uncles don’t need it. If you’re worried about keeping it safe, let your eldest aunt hold it for you.”

“As for the grain you brought, I won’t refuse it. With that half-sack of grain, we’ll have enough to eat for many days on the road. Second son, help your wife sort out the grain Pang Ya brought.”

The three brothers, seeing that they wouldn’t be confronting the Zhu family, set down their weapons and resumed packing.

Jiang Mingshui, following his father’s instructions, went to unload the grain from the cart and exclaimed in surprise, “Father, Pang Ya brought refined rice!”

At the mention of refined rice, the entire Jiang family gathered around.

For the past two years, they had survived on chaff, wild vegetables, roots, and tree bark. Now, faced with refined rice, their eyes gleamed with hunger.

Against the stark white of the refined rice, their faces appeared even more sallow and waxen.

Jiang Mingye even grabbed a handful, brought it to his nose, and inhaled deeply. “It smells so good! The rice is truly fragrant!”

“You fool, of course refined rice smells good!” Jiang Mingshui retorted.

She also grabbed a handful of rice and sniffed it hard.

As if taking a few more deep breaths could fill her stomach.

“Dad, since it’s refined rice, why don’t Hongju and I stir-fry most of it? No one knows what might happen on the road. If it’s hard to make a fire along the way, stir-fried grain can fill our stomachs. We can save the rest to cook rice soup when we have the chance.”

Household cooking matters were all handled by Song Qiaolian.

Now that she saw it was refined rice, she immediately thought of the best way to handle it.

“You decide how to prepare it!” With Jiang Fengshou’s approval, everyone started moving again.

And so, Jiang Qingzhu stayed behind.

Using the excuse that she couldn’t “keep it safe” herself, she gave ten taels to her eldest aunt and ten taels to her second aunt, asking them to keep it for her.

Li Hongju hurriedly declined, saying, “All the family’s money is managed by the eldest sister-in-law. Let her keep it for you.”

Because Jiang Fengshou had spoken earlier, Song Qiaolin was also worried that she was too young to keep the money safe, so she took the silver and assured her:

“Your aunt will keep this silver close to her. Whenever you need it, just ask your aunt for it.”

“Okay, thank you, Aunt!” Jiang Qingzhu nodded happily.

The Jiang family was much better than she had imagined—they didn’t covet the silver in her hands and were even willing to stand up for her.

Moreover, the concern shown by her three uncles and two aunts was genuine.

This simple, heartfelt care warmed Jiang Qingzhu’s heart.

Since she couldn’t help with anything else, she simply amused herself by playing with her eldest uncle’s three-year-old son, Jiang Changping. The two of them, one big and one small, started a staring contest.

 

Note:  Please comment if you want to continue reading this novel so we can update everyday. 🙂