Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 61

The middle-aged couple had no idea they were being followed. Even so, they remained cautious, glancing back from time to time. 

Carrying the child, they walked farther and farther off the main path, winding their way through several turns until they arrived at a remote and desolate courtyard. They knocked on the door. 

Before long, the gate opened, and a man poked his head out. He looked to be in his forties, with a thick beard that obscured most of his features. His build was solid and strong.

He gave a quick glance at the child in the couple’s arms and raised an eyebrow. The two of them hurried inside with the child. The bearded man scanned the surroundings cautiously before shutting the gate.

Soon after, the courtyard filled with the sound of hushed voices and the muffled sobs of a little girl.

“Where did you get this child? Judging from her clothes, she doesn’t look like she’s from an ordinary family,” asked the bearded man, who had opened the door earlier.

The little girl’s hands and feet were tied, and her mouth was stuffed with a handkerchief. Her large eyes glared at the three adults with stubborn hatred as tears streamed down her face in the corner.

The woman in the couple lowered her voice. “We met her on the boat. She said she was going to Shili Town to find her father. If she were really the young lady of a wealthy family, she wouldn’t be traveling alone. That’s why we had the idea.”

The bearded man frowned. “Where did she board the boat?”

“We don’t know. She was already there when we got on. Why don’t we just ask her?” The middle-aged man suggested, looking at the little girl.

The bearded man narrowed his eyes, walked up to the girl, and yanked the handkerchief from her mouth. His face hardened as he demanded, “Where did you get on the boat?”

Grinding her teeth, the girl cursed, “You stinking traffickers, let me go right now! Otherwise, when my father comes, he’ll have all of you arrested and beaten!”

The bearded man slapped her across the face, snarling, “Behave yourself! Hurry up and tell me where you got on the boat!”

The girl’s face was still tender; the slap instantly left half of her face swollen. She cried harder, clawing at the man’s face in desperation, screaming like a banshee: “Daddy, come save me! Daddy, save me—”

Her nails scratched a long mark across the man’s face. Enraged, he raised his hand to strike again, but the middle-aged woman stopped him.

“Don’t hit her anymore. If she gets seriously hurt, she won’t fetch a good price,” the woman warned. She picked up the fallen handkerchief and stuffed it back into the girl’s mouth, silencing her wails.

“Have you searched her body?” The bearded man asked.

“Not yet. There were too many people on the boat, we didn’t dare do anything,” the woman replied. She searched the girl and finally found a jade pendant strung on a red cord around her neck.

The bearded man took the pendant and examined it carefully. Though he couldn’t discern its origin, his expression grew graver. “This jade is of excellent quality, not common at all. Clearly, this girl isn’t from an ordinary family. You two have stirred up real trouble this time.”

The couple exchanged glances, both their faces turning pale.

“Big Brother, maybe we should let her go?” The man suggested nervously.

“Let her go, my ass!” The bearded man gripped the jade tightly. After a moment of silence, he continued, “If this girl really has a powerful background, she’s already seen all three of our faces. Do you think we can still escape? After doing this for so many years, one more job won’t make a difference. I don’t believe our luck is that rotten!”

The couple quickly agreed. “Of course not! Besides, as long as we deliver her to Beishan, there’s no way she can escape. No one will ever trace it back to us.”

Hidden in the shadows, Ying Su frowned. ‘Beishan? What kind of place is that?’

In a flash, she appeared before them. The suddenness of it startled all three, and they stared at her warily.

“Who are you?” The bearded man’s hand went to the curved blade at his waist.

Ying Su smiled faintly, her elegant brows lifting slightly. Without a word, her figure blurred as she launched her attack.

The couple paled and scrambled to draw their weapons, rushing toward her. Before they could even get close, Ying Su lashed out with a sharp kick, striking both their wrists. Their daggers clattered to the ground before they had time to react.

With a sweeping kick, she sent them crashing to the ground, crying out in pain.

The bearded man’s expression turned grim at her display of skill. He suddenly spoke, “We didn’t recognize your greatness. Perhaps we can be friends instead? May I dare ask what business brings you here?”

Ying Su acted as though she hadn’t heard. With a light tap of her toes, she leapt forward, both feet striking directly at him.

Though he knew a little brawling, the bearded man was forced back two steps. Gritting his teeth, he tightened his grip on the curved blade and charged at her.

The blade came slashing recklessly toward her, but Ying Su nimbly dodged. Her hand shot out, seizing his wrist. With a swift over-the-shoulder throw, she slammed him to the ground.

Planting her foot on his wrist, she pressed down hard. With a cry of pain, the blade slipped from his grasp. Ying Su flicked her foot, sending the blade spinning upward. She caught it neatly in her hand and leveled it at his throat.

The couple froze in shock. As they scrambled up, they moved to rush her, but Ying Su pressed harder with the blade, drawing a thin line of blood across the bearded man’s neck. Terrified, the couple stopped in their tracks. The man quickly pleaded, “Please, don’t hurt our big brother!”

Without answering, Ying Su stomped down on the man’s knee. He howled in agony, his face going deathly pale.

Turning her gaze on the couple, she made them both shrink back. The woman stammered, trembling, “Y-you… do you want the little girl? Take her with you! Just let us go.”

Ying Su’s lips curved into a smile. With a flick of her wrist, the blade spun in her hand before she suddenly hurled it straight at them. The two shrieked and backed away, pressing against the wall.

The blade embedded itself into the wall between them, pinning their overlapping hems together. Cold sweat poured down their foreheads. They dared not make another sound.

Her precise skill alone told them this was someone they could never afford to provoke.

Ying Su turned her back on them without worry and strode over to the little girl curled in the corner. She untied the ropes on her wrists and ankles and pulled the handkerchief from her mouth.

The girl’s face was streaked with tears, her features blurred from crying. She looked timidly at Ying Su. Ignoring her, Ying Su walked back to the bearded man, squatted down, and asked, “What is Beishan?”

The man’s face shifted, his eyes flickering evasively. “N-nothing… Beishan is just a barren mountain.”