He did not know that it was not his master who hung the men up but Warrior-Servant Two. He had never seen Warrior-Servant Two before.
…
The men who wanted to eat for free could forget about going home tonight.
After what happened with Old An and Wang Xing’er, An Jiuyue was no longer as easygoing. It would not be easy for other people to take these men from her clutches.
Their wives were worried at home.
None of the other men dared to tell their families that they had gone to steal An Jiuyue’s grains. Only Brother Dog’s wife knew.
Everyone in the village survived because of An Jiuyue. If they dared to tell their families that they had stolen food from An Jiuyue’s house, they would be beaten up so awfully their parents would fail to recognize them.
“Da Ya, go outside and take a look. Why isn’t your father back yet?”
Brother Dog’s wife had been listening for sounds outside the house but heard nothing. Almost four hours had passed. That should have been sufficient for Brother Dog even if he went back and forth to An Jiuyue’s house to move more things.
However, there were still no signs of his return. She was anxious and did not know what was happening.
An Jiuyue is not easy to get along with. If she discovers this, my husband may be the one who will suffer instead!
So what if An Jiuyue once saved me? She’s not the one who will provide for me for the rest of my life—my husband is!
Therefore, she had to side with her husband.
Besides, there was indeed no food at home. Since An Jiuyue was so capable she could hunt such a big wild boar, she would not die even if her food was stolen.
She was happy and at peace with herself as she waited for the food to be brought back so she could cook it for the children.
Da Ya was Brother Dog’s eldest daughter. The children in the countryside matured early. She was very sensible despite her young age.
Although Da Ya heard her mother’s instructions, she did not go out. Instead, she looked at her mother in confusion.
Aunt Jiuyue was the one who rescued us and brought us onto the bamboo raft after the floodwaters rushed into the village. Meanwhile, Father wanted to get onto the raft so badly that he ignored us.
He has even been talking about how he wants to sell one of us for money recently! How can a father like him be reliable? He’s worse than Aunt Jiuyue.
However, her mother was blind to all these. She felt she could only rely on him to survive. Since Da Ya was still young, she could not go against the adults despite having good judgment.
“Mother, Aunt Jiuyue saved our lives,” she could not help but remind her mother.
The woman frowned and glared at her in displeasure. “Do you think I don’t know that?”
She knew very well that An Jiuyue rescued everyone in An Clan Village.
So what?
“We are about to starve to death. Who cares if An Jiuyue saved our lives? Everybody is looking for ways to eat and survive.
“An Jiuyue has so much food, but she doesn’t share any with us. She’s too selfish. What’s wrong with taking some of her food? Should we starve while she lives a good life?”
Upon hearing that, her daughter opened her mouth but did not know what to reply.