Qin Yue's eyes sparkled as she saw Gu Qingcheng, her face filled with admiration. "Young Master Gu, I heard about what happened last night. Those bandits from Wushan Village were inhuman. Fortunately, our Phoenix Village was brave and annihilated them all. It's truly safe to live here. All thanks to Young Master Gu's decisive action!"
"Heh, stop flattering me. You've worked hard too. How was the reception of supplies last night?"
At Gu Qingcheng's question, Qin Yue produced a registration form for him to see.
Gu Qingcheng looked at it. The form recorded 20 cotton-padded jackets, ten sets of quilts, 2000 jin of rice, 300 jin of dried meat, 1000 jin of flour, 500 jin of oil, 200 jin of pickled vegetables, and 239 pieces of gold and silver jewelry.
"A good harvest. The most important thing is that we had no casualties."
Gu Qingcheng was very satisfied.
After instructing Qin Yue to properly store the supplies, Gu Qingcheng went to check on the rescued women.
In a guest house near the public hall, Fu Dadi and a few other young men from the hunting team were patrolling outside, preventing any outsiders from entering.
As soon as Gu Qingcheng arrived, Fu Dadi quickly reported, "Young Master Gu, as per your instructions, no one has entered to disturb these women. Auntie Hehua brought meat buns and noodle soup this morning, and they've had breakfast."
"Good, thank you for your hard work. I'll go in and see."
Gu Qingcheng strode into the house.
Since Phoenix Village sometimes had visitors or refugees seeking refuge, Gu Qingcheng had specially kept a house for guest accommodation. The guest house was large, with over 20 beds, which were just enough to accommodate these women.
As Gu Qingcheng entered the house, he saw the women sitting together, weeping silently, with only sounds of sorrow filling the air.
Upon seeing Gu Qingcheng enter, they were startled at first. Then, they recognized the graceful young man as the one who had rescued them from peril the previous night. They immediately rose to bow.
Gu Qingcheng waved his hand. "You don't need to thank me so much. We were just doing something on the side. We went to suppress bandits last night and didn't expect to rescue you. Have you considered what I said last night? Are there any family members you need us to notify to pick you up? Or do you wish to return home on your own? If you wish to go back, we will provide travel expenses."
"Young Master Gu, we don't want to go back. Can we stay here?" a middle-aged woman boldly asked.
They had inquired about the situation here earlier that morning when Hehua brought breakfast. Hehua had naturally praised the place to the skies. In reality, given their current circumstances, being able to stay here, having a place that would accept them, was indeed unprecedented in the Great Zhou Dynasty.
Gu Qingcheng did not expect them to say this and hesitated.
Seeing his hesitation, the women thought Gu Qingcheng did not want to take them in and said with tears, "Young Master Gu, we are all damaged goods. If you are worried about us dirtying the village, we will work in the breeding farm and will not contact anyone outside. No matter how bitter, dirty, or tiring the work, we will do it with all our might. Please take us in. If we go back, it's a death sentence! It's not that we have no families, but if we return, they will lose face and will surely find us dirty. They will also drown us! We are women who have lost our virtue, and the government will not help us! Please, let us stay?"
Death by starvation is a minor matter, but loss of virtue is a grave one. This was the common notion at the time, especially among the feudal purists. Clan elders and village chiefs would consider it a shame if women who had lost their virtue appeared in their village. Not to mention their husbands and relatives; if they returned home, being given three feet of white silk would be considered a merciful act. Some crueler individuals, as they had mentioned, would publicly drown them. No wonder none of them wanted to go home.
The women wept as they knelt, kowtowing for refuge. For a time, the room was filled with a mournful wind and bitter rain, a scene of utter sorrow.
Gu Qingcheng said, "Get up, don't kneel. Everyone says that a man's knees are made of gold, and aren't women the same? Women kneel to heaven, earth, and their parents, but don't fall to their knees at the slightest provocation. Get up and speak properly."
Hearing Gu Qingcheng's words, the women tearfully rose. Gu Qingcheng took a breath and said, "Don't cry yet. It's not that I'm unwilling to take you in. Originally, I considered that you would surely care about your families and children, which is why I suggested notifying your families to pick you up. My consideration was insufficient, as I thought your families would surely be happy to reunite with you. Now, I think if you are truly in hardship and unwilling to return, then stay in our village. Our village will not discriminate against you, nor look down on you, and there will be no such thing as drowning. Here, you will be reborn, clean, and no one will dare to speak ill of you. As long as you are willing to stay, I will accept you. You will have the same treatment as the villagers, with housing, land, supplies, and work, all on equal terms."
"Thank you, Young Master Gu. I am willing to stay."
"I want to stay too!" The women declared one by one.
Seeing this, Gu Qingcheng said, "Alright, as long as you are willing, I will accept you. Rest here well for two days, and stop crying. Adjust your emotions. Later, I will ask Gui Xiang, our village teacher, to register your identity information and then arrange work for you based on your skills. During your stay here, the village will provide free food and lodging. If you feel unwell anywhere, a doctor will be here to see you."
"Young Master Gu, my leg has been swollen and red, can a doctor take a look?" a woman boldly said. She was in unbearable pain. Her leg had been burned by the bandits who had bullied her. Large patches of skin had peeled off, and she felt cold all over, as if she were dying. She had held on until now, and upon hearing Gu Qingcheng's words, she immediately spoke up.
"Is anyone else feeling unwell? I'll ask Zhu Liang to come and treat each of you accordingly," Gu Qingcheng said.
More women reported their ailments. They were all injured, most of them due to the atrocities committed by the bandits. Some had their chests bitten off, others had festering lower limbs, and some had scratch marks all over their backs.
Hearing their descriptions of their injuries, Gu Qingcheng's brow furrowed. "I'll arrange it immediately."
Soon, Zhu Liang arrived with the pharmacy assistants. There were no female doctors on the mountain, but thankfully, medicine knows no gender. As Zhu Liang examined these female patients, his brow also furrowed. "This is too tragic. How could they be beaten like this?" This was the first time Zhu Liang had witnessed such a harrowing scene.
"Apply the medicine properly and cure them all, regardless of the cost." Gu Qingcheng, having experienced it himself, now knew that some people did not deserve to be called human. He even praised himself for killing them.
The women did not expect that, as women who had lost their virtue, they would still be treated with such "gentleness and tolerance," and they wept again.