As soon as Chen Ermao and the others entered, Qiao'er immediately hid behind Cui Hongyu in fear, "Sister-in-law, they are all bad people. They want to snatch me away and sell me."
Seeing Chen Ermao and the others, Cui Hongyu was also very panicked. Who in the surrounding villages didn't know the reputations of Chen Ermao and her gang?
Hearing Chen Qiao'er say this, Cui Hongyu felt an infinite surge of strength. Protecting the weak had always been a human instinct.
"Chen Ermao, you are not welcome here. Get out."
Chen Ermao chuckled, "Cui Hongyu, don't glare at me. You are just a weak woman with a burden. If I really wanted to act, you would have no power to fight back."
Cui Hongyu showed no weakness, "So what? At worst, we'll trade one life for another."
Just then, Xiu Mei, who heard the commotion from the adjacent courtyard, immediately shouted, "Da Chun, go quickly and see if some scoundrels are bullying Hongyu again."
Upon hearing the shout for Da Chun, Chen Ermao's heart immediately panicked. He gave a look to Hou Zi and the others, and they all bolted.
Seeing them run away, Cui Hongyu let out a long sigh of relief and turned to pick up Qiao'er.
"Don't be scared, Qiao'er, the bad people are gone."
At this moment, Xiu Mei leaned over the wall and peered over. She couldn't help but burst into laughter, "These scoundrels are as timid as mice. The moment I called Da Chun's name, they got scared and ran."
Xiu Mei was happy, but Cui Hongyu's heart was still in turmoil. She waited anxiously and uneasily for a good half an hour before Chen Xiaobei returned, each hand carrying a large, heavy bundle of wild eggs.
Nearly two hundred wild eggs were extremely precious to this family. Su Dan Xiaoshuo Wang.
However, Chen Xiaobei understood in his heart that so many wild eggs would spoil quickly in the height of summer. So, he remembered his experience of pickling salted duck eggs in his hometown in his previous life.
Yes, he would go to the county town tomorrow to buy some salt. Pickling these wild eggs would allow them to be preserved for a long time.
After dinner.
Cui Hongyu cleared the table and began to tidy the bedding.
There were two beds in one room: one for Chen Qiao'er and one for Chen Xiaobei.
Chen Qiao'er, being young, tugged at Cui Hongyu's hand and pleaded with a hint of entreaty, "Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, can you sleep with me tonight? Qiao'er is scared."
Upon hearing this, Chen Xiaobei desperately wanted to step forward and explain to his sister properly, "Your sister-in-law is mine, how can she sleep with you?"
Cui Hongyu smiled, patted Chen Qiao'er's head, and agreed. Then, she found an opportunity to whisper to Chen Xiaobei, "Husband, please forgive me. Hongyu is experiencing her monthly cycle these few days, which makes it inconvenient. After I wash myself, we can consummate our marriage."
Alright.
Chen Xiaobei could only agree with a sigh. He didn't want to fight to the bitter end either.
That night, Chen Xiaobei couldn't sleep. He stared at the ceiling, unmoving, with thousands of mythical beasts galloping back and forth in his heart.
What kind of transmigration did I get into? My wife was delivered to my doorstep, and I can't even touch her.
In so many transmigration novels, the protagonists are either princes or kings. This time, I'm a young master of a landlord family, surrounded by concubines.
Is it because I've read too many of these novels that heaven wants to give me a different experience?
But soon, he thought of another possibility: Cui Hongyu didn't want to marry him; she was forced.
With this thought, he became more at ease. A forcibly twisted melon doesn't taste sweet. It would be better to be upfront with Cui Hongyu and tell her the situation, letting her pursue her own happiness.
At this moment, Cui Hongyu was also not asleep.
Her heart was in turmoil.
If it weren't for the three accidents that happened before, she would at least be married into a moderately prosperous family by now, living a peaceful life with a husband and children, and having enough to eat and wear.
But now? Chen Xiaobei's family was poor and white, and that was just the beginning. Today, Chen Ermao barged in, and his words left her with lingering fear.
Why did Chen Ermao dare to be so brazen? Wasn't it because he knew her maternal family couldn't be relied upon, and Chen Xiaobei was an orphan with no one to depend on?
In a daze, she turned over, and the bed creaked.
The sound startled Chen Xiaobei. He hesitated for a moment and then softly asked, "Hongyu, you're not asleep?"
Cui Hongyu softly hummed, "Husband, you're not asleep either?"
"I can't sleep. I want to tell you about my family's real situation."
Chen Xiaobei slowly sat up. "I won't hide it from you. My family only has two mu of land, and it's rented out to others. We only receive two hundred jin of grain a year."
"This is all the income my family has. Even eating these two hundred jin of grain, my sister and I might not have enough."
"Oh, and I've planted some rapeseed on the barren land behind our house. If luck is good, I can sell it in the city for some copper coins to subsidize our household expenses."
"So, you need to think carefully. If you stay with my family, you might not even have enough to eat in the future, and we'll have to live frugally."
"Of course, I'll go to the mountains to find some wild chickens or something. I can exchange them for some money in the city, but it's uncertain how much that will be in a year."
Chen Xiaobei poured out the family's situation in one breath, and the stone in his heart was lifted.
The stone was lifted from his heart, but Cui Hongyu felt so wronged that she wanted to cry.
I, Cui Hongyu, am considered a woman of standing in the surrounding villages. I can do housework and field work, and I also know my father's medical skills.
But what good does knowing so much do?
I married the destitute Chen Xiaobei, and now he's complaining that I've come and will eat his food, making him hungry.
However, if not with Chen Xiaobei, where else can she go? Thinking of her father's delighted expression when she left, Cui Hongyu knew that home no longer belonged to her.
Although she brought so much silk and satin as her dowry, this was all earned through her hard work helping her father with his work and medical practice over the years.
In other words, her father kicked her out and didn't care if she lived or died.
Therefore, she had no other choice now but to stay with Chen Xiaobei for the time being.
Thinking this, she could only change her tone to a pleading one, "Husband, you don't need to worry. My family sent a lot of silk and satin when I came. I'll take it to the county town to sell for grain. Don't worry, with me here, I guarantee you and Qiao'er won't go hungry."
Hearing Cui Hongyu's words, Chen Xiaobei felt very uncomfortable.
He didn't mean to drive her away; he just wanted to explain the family's situation to her, but he didn't expect Cui Hongyu to misunderstand.
He quickly changed his tone, "I didn't mean to ask you to leave; I just wanted to tell you about our family's situation."
However, this sudden change in his tone made Cui Hongyu mistakenly believe that Chen Xiaobei only decided to keep her after hearing that she would use her dowry to buy grain.
Cui Hongyu felt an immense sense of loss, and her affection for Chen Xiaobei plummeted.
Chen Xiaobei had no idea that he had unknowingly become a scumbag in Cui Hongyu's heart.