vrcanaries Chapter 278 Colluding with each other
Chapter 278 Colluding with each other
This was the first time Lin Chang'er had seen this little girl, but for some reason she felt that she looked somewhat familiar.
I got up from my seat, pushed through the crowd to greet them, and Sister-in-law Gu and Xiaoqi also came running over with the little girl.
Once the two sides met, Lin Chang'er hurriedly asked, "Sister-in-law, what happened? Who is this young girl?"
The little girl struggled to lift her head from Xiao Qi's back, and cried out with tears in her eyes, "Third Aunt, save my father."
Lin Chang'er was stunned and didn't realize for a moment that she had gained another niece.
Sister-in-law Gu hurriedly explained, "Brother Li Mian was falsely accused of theft by the wealthy family he was teaching. This is Li Mian's eldest daughter, Li Qingning, who ran more than ten miles to find him."
"Wu Daxian took his second brother and Xiao Ba and the others over first. Dalang was worried that they would suffer losses, so he asked me to come to you for advice."
Li Mian stole? Lin Chang'er was shocked. Although she had only met Li Mian once, she knew that his family had taken good care of her second sister-in-law over the years.
His character is evident from his actions last time, such as speaking up for his second sister-in-law and daring to follow up and finish off pirates when they entered the village.
Furthermore, she and Wu Qingfeng covered all of Grandpa Li's consultation fees and medicine costs. Every three days, she would have Liu Zi take the doctor over for a check-up, and each time they would bring some food with them.
Although they didn't become rich overnight, having enough to eat was definitely not a problem.
Why did Li Mian steal it?
There must be some shady dealings involved that the young girl is unaware of.
Wu Qingfeng's handling of this matter is part of his job, and it's a job that matches his expertise.
However, he didn't bring any constables with him today. Those who dare to do such things are mostly local bullies, so his elder brother's worries are not unfounded.
But he's already gone, so it doesn't matter if she delays a little longer. She has to settle the little girl first!
Looking up again, she saw that the little girl looked about 50-60% like her younger brother, Li Qingyang. No wonder she looked familiar. Come to think of it, Liu Zi had mentioned this little girl to her before.
The seven-year-old girl dared to say she came to work; she had always thought she was a little tiger.
Now that I've seen her, I see a delicate-looking girl. Because of the long journey, her hair tie is half loose, and her two little pigtails hang limply on her head. Her face is pale, her eyes are red and swollen, and her straw sandals are worn out and stained with blood.
Lin Chang'er gently touched her little face with heartache, "Did you come here alone?"
Li Qingning nodded, her voice weak and listless, "The door was blocked, so I crawled out through the dog hole. My brother said that my aunt lives in Linshui Village, and there is a big camphor tree at the entrance of the village. You can find it by following the main road, so I came here."
"Auntie, my father would never steal anything. They're going to sell my brother. Auntie, please save my father and my brother!"
Lin Chang'er frowned. These damned bastards, they even want to sell children, they're simply beasts.
Lin Chang'er comforted her, "Qingning, don't worry. Lord Wu has already gone over. Your aunt will bring a few more uncles to help later."
"I definitely won't let them sell your brother or bully your father."
"Qingning, just stay home and wait for your aunt to come back, okay?"
Li Qingning raised the back of her hand to wipe the corner of her eye, and asked through a sob, "Really?"
Lin Chang'er smiled slightly, "Of course, Auntie is very good at cursing, and Auntie also has many uncles who are very good at fighting. She can definitely save your father and brother. Don't worry!"
"Mother, sister-in-law, please take care of Qingning. I'll go ask Uncle Hai for a few people to go over there right now."
Aunt Gu and Sister-in-law Gu nodded in unison, and Lin Chang'er then called out to Liu Zi, "Brother Liu Zi, hitch up the cart, let's go punish evil and promote good!"
"They're here!" Liu Zi shouted in response. "Big brother, second brother, let's go!"
The group hurriedly left the workshop, and Xiao Qi quickly turned Li Qingning off his back, put her in his arms and handed her to Sister-in-law Gu, then ran after them.
Most of the people buying fabric were women, and most of them had children at home. Seeing the little girl looking so pitiful, they all gathered around.
"The little kid looks about six or seven years old, right? He must have suffered a lot traveling all that way by himself."
"Look at her feet, the blisters are all broken and bleeding, it must hurt so much!"
"Her lips are so white. Is there any water? Let's give her some water first! Is there any food? Let's get her some too."
A group of women were making arrangements, all talking at once.
Aunt Gu made the final decision, "Everyone, I'm afraid I have to apologize today. You've all seen the little girl's condition."
"Erlang's wife is still in her postpartum period, so I have to go back with Dalang's wife to take care of the baby."
"For those villagers who haven't bought fabric yet, I'm afraid you'll have to make another trip tomorrow."
The women looked at the child and felt a pang of sadness, so they didn't say anything.
The cleaning work in the workshop was almost done, so Aunt Zhou and Sister-in-law Zhou went back to help.
At this moment, in Lijia Village, at Li Qiulan's house next to Li Mian's house.
Li Qiulan, Li Da, their eldest daughter-in-law, and their grandson were eating wild vegetable porridge across the wall.
From time to time, the sounds of men banging on the door and shouting could be heard outside, along with the cries of women and children coming from the neighboring yard.
Because of Aunt Li's secret help to Third Sister Li, the two families were already on bad terms.
Furthermore, because Li Mian's family testified on Li San Niang's behalf during the separation of the family, Li San Niang was able to successfully sever the ties.
The two sides have now formed a deadlock.
Seeing Li Mian's family suffer such a calamity, Li Qiulan and Li Da felt extremely happy.
Li Qiulan slurped up a big mouthful of wild vegetable paste and spat towards the other side of the wall, "Serves them right, for siding with that little slut Li San Niang and being disobedient and unfilial."
"See, isn't this karma coming true?"
Li Da agreed, "Mother, this is nothing. Just you wait, they definitely won't be able to hold out for long and will hand over that little bastard Li Qingyang."
Li Qiulan said, "Then Li Mian can come back?"
Li Da waved his hand, "Mother, what are you thinking? If you offend the wealthy man, do you think you can come back unscathed? You'll be crippled even if you don't die."
"But it's too good for him. Without a wealthy man to support his family all these years, they would have starved to death long ago."
Li Qiulan didn't care about any of that; she was just happy that Li Mian's family was unlucky.
Li Da added, "That Lin fellow has been sending them good things every now and then these days. I've seen that little bastard Li Qingyang eat meat several times. Mother, he definitely hasn't finished eating all that stuff yet."
"Then, what about us?"
Li Da raised an eyebrow. Li Mian's family would definitely be reluctant to part with this grandson. Wouldn't Li's wife and Li Mian's wife cry themselves to death?
That little girl Li Qingning is nothing to fear, and Old Man Li is currently a cripple.
If he were to sneak over and get something at this point, wouldn't he be able to take whatever he wanted?
As expected of mother and son, Li Qiulan could tell what color his poop was just by the way Li Dayi bent over.
Once their eyes met, how could they not see through the little scheme in this big boy's mind?
The thought of the aroma of meat wafting from the neighbor's yard every now and then these days made her grit her teeth in hatred.
These things should have originally been given to them by Third Sister as a token of respect.
The Li family obtained these benefits by betraying them.
So, the eldest son was just going to take back what originally belonged to them.
Li Qiulan not only didn't stop them, but also offered suggestions, "I think there must be a lot of good stuff. It wouldn't be good to make a fuss in broad daylight. Let's go when it's late at night and everyone is quiet." So that they could go without anyone noticing.