A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

Chapter 242 A Story Outside the Main Character's Line

Zhao the matchmaker was originally a famine refugee who fled from a mountain valley further north more than twenty years ago.

Because of the passage of time, she couldn't remember where her hometown was, nor could she pinpoint the exact year she escaped.

She didn't know her parents' original surnames, nor did she have a name of her own.

She only knew that she was the second girl in her family, and her parents called her Er Ya.

That year, Er Ya had just turned twelve. She was dressed in tattered clothes and was so thin and dark that she was just a skeleton.

She lay motionless by the roadside, and half a day passed without attracting any human traffickers. When she was on her last breath from hunger, she finally encountered a kind young man.

Let's call this young man Old Zhao for now.

The girl was too thin and weak. Old Zhao carried her on his back several times, but she slipped off each time.

There was nothing else Old Zhao could do but pick her up.

Old Zhao's way of holding people was strange. He refused to hold the little girl in his arms, but instead lifted her up with both hands, as if he were carrying a table.

This naturally made it more strenuous, causing Lao Zhao to walk with a strange stiffness.

Seeing Er Ya open her eyes, Old Zhao laughed and said, "How long have you been hungry? You're so light when I pick you up, I'm not tired at all."

Old Zhao wasn't handsome, and his smile even looked a bit simple-minded.

But at that moment, that smile was etched into Er Ya's eyes.

Er Ya looked at the stranger, but she wasn't afraid.

She didn't know if he was a good person or a bad person, or where he was taking her.

For her, what could be more terrifying than starving to death?

At least for now, she knows she's saved and might be able to eat soon.

Old Zhao comforted Er Ya, "Don't be afraid, he's not a bad person. My name is Zhao Lei, and I live in Zhaojiapo Village up ahead. I also have an old mother at home, and she's a very nice person."

Er Ya glanced at Lao Zhao and thought to herself, "He probably thinks she's dirty and doesn't want to get his clean clothes dirty."

They met people after entering the village.

Upon learning that Zhao Lei had saved a little girl who was about to starve to death, some people were also puzzled by the way he held her.

"Lei Zi, aren't you tired of carrying that all the way?"

Zhao Lei smiled sheepishly, "After all, she's a young lady, so we should avoid suspicion and prevent tarnishing her reputation."

Er Ya was taken aback. Wasn't he looking down on her?

The man sized up Er Ya and said disdainfully, "She's filthy and smelly, so skinny she doesn't even look human anymore. Who could tell she's a woman? You're just being picky!"

Zhao Lei just smiled sheepishly.

Zhao Lei's family consists of only his widowed mother, and the two of them have been making a living by tending two acres of meager land for many years.

Zhao's mother had been in poor health for many years, but Zhao Lei was a well-known filial son in the village. He would often seek medical treatment and medicine for his mother, which made their already meager life even more difficult.

Fortunately, Zhao Lei has a skill in running through the mountains, and occasionally he can find some wild honey, bee pollen, and the like, which he can sell to supplement his family's income.

When Zhao's mother saw Er Ya, she didn't say much and told her son to put her on her kang (a heated brick bed).

I quickly cooked half a bowl of thin batter and added a spoonful of honey.

Zhao's mother sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and fed Er Ya herself.

The long-awaited food tasted so good that Er Ya couldn't stop swallowing bite after bite, her eyes filled with anticipation.

Zhao's mother smiled and said, "Eat slowly. You've been hungry for too long. You can't eat too fast or too much the first few times."

Er Ya was very well-behaved. She glanced at Zhao's mother and slowed down her swallowing.

Zhao's mother asked, "Girl, what's your name?"

Er Ya shook her head; at that time, she didn't know that people needed to have names.

Zhao's mother looked at her with pity, "Oh, poor girl, eat up."

After finishing the porridge, Zhao's mother asked Zhao Lei to leave so she could wash and wipe Er Ya's body, and then change her own clothes.

Er Ya lay on the kang (a heated brick bed), and fell into a deep sleep, smelling the soap pods on her body.

A few days later, as soon as Er Ya had the strength to stand up, she got off the kang (a heated brick bed) and helped Zhao's mother with chores.

She worked tirelessly, but never asked for a second bowl of food.

Finally, Zhao's mother softened, sighed, and took the initiative to tell Er Ya that she could stay in the house from now on, and no one would drive her away again.

And so this girl, whose name and origin were unknown, became Zhao Lei's younger sister.

She naturally took Zhao Lei's surname, just as the buckwheat planted at home was in bloom.

Looking at the snow-white buckwheat flowers, Zhao Lei smiled and said, "You can call yourself Buckwheat Flower, Zhao Buckwheat Flower."

Zhao Lei was 22 years old at the time, exactly 10 years older than Qiaohua.

Three years have passed in the blink of an eye. Qiaohua has grown into a beautiful young woman with a slender figure and delicate features.

She's much more lively than when she first arrived, and she has a sweet tongue; everyone in the village likes her.

When he was fifteen, a family came to Zhao's mother's house to propose marriage.

However, Qiaohua firmly refused, arguing that her brother had not yet married his sister-in-law and that she needed to stay at home for two more years to take care of her mother.

It was because she had overheard Zhao's mother telling Zhao Lei, "You're twenty-five now and still haven't gotten married. In my opinion, we could arrange for Qiaohua to be your wife."

Qiaohua's heart skipped a beat, and a vague expectation rose within her.

But then Zhao Lei said sternly, "Mother, what nonsense are you talking about? Qiaohua is my sister. Although she's not my biological daughter, we raise her as if she were."

"How could I possibly marry her? No way, you can forget about it, and you absolutely mustn't tell Qiaohua, lest you scare her!"

After a moment of sadness, Zhao's mother said, "I also feel sorry for Qiaohua."

"In the end, it's your mother who's a burden to you. She saved up all her money for my medical treatment, and she can't even afford your dowry..."

Zhao Lei carefully comforted his mother, and their conversation gradually subsided.

Qiaohua stood there for a moment, lost in thought.

The sense of loss she felt suddenly made the young girl fall in love.

She seemed quite happy when she heard her mother ask her brother to marry her.

That winter, Zhao's mother fell ill and died on a snowy day.

As soon as Zhao Lei emerged from his grief, he began arranging a marriage for his younger sister.

But when he approached several matchmakers, they all shook their heads at the conditions Qiaohua proposed.

"With your family's circumstances, you still want to find a scholar who is young and unmarried?"

"Want to be an official's wife? Dream on!"

Later, Zhao Lei also advised his sister to lower her demands a bit.

Qiaohua, however, pretended to be willful and said that she would not marry anyone but a man like that.

Zhao Lei just thought his younger sister had high standards and couldn't bear to pressure her too much.

Two more years passed as time went on.

Qiaohua was seventeen years old, and she was content with her life, thinking that she could stay with Zhao Lei like this until she grew old.

Zhao Lei was carried back by a group of people.

He fell from a high cliff while collecting honey and died the night he got home.

Zhao Lei's eyes were unfocused, as if he had seen something, and he said with a smile, "Qiaohua, I can't take advantage of you in your time of need and ruin your life."

“I’ve saved up some money over the past two years. It’s at the bottom of Mom’s trunk. It’s for you.”

"Now that your brother is gone, you should find someone to marry."

Qiaohua felt as if she had been struck by a heavy hammer, and tears welled up in her eyes.

he knows.

So it turns out my brother knew all along.

Zhao Lei seemed to regain some consciousness, but his breath was weak. "Qiaohua, I want to eat the buckwheat noodles you make."