After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 588 The Lucky Hu Brothers and Sisters

When the first snow of this winter began to fall in Chang'an, news came from the villa of the third branch of the Zhou family that the Zeng brothers and sisters had already reached Shaanxi, not far from Chang'an.

Although Zhou Shigong was full of resentment, he still sent people to clean the house in the small village where his younger brother and eldest son were temporarily living, and cleared out an empty courtyard with two entrances for his two nephews to live in. Even the place where his sister Zhou Shuyi would be buried, the necessary offerings for the burial ceremony, and the monks and Taoist priests who would perform the ritual for her soul-saving were all arranged in advance, waiting for the coffin to arrive.

Zhou Shicheng and his wife also prepared two empty rooms in their residence, in case their two nephews had just arrived and were not used to life in Chang'an, they could stay in their home for a while. This was also to prevent Zhou Jinpu from being too harsh and harassing the two children if he did not get a satisfactory response from Zhou Shigong.

Zhou Shicheng's wife even prepared servants for the two nephews, to prevent the people surnamed Zeng they brought from the capital from being instigated by the male master to be disrespectful to the young master, or to sow discord in front of the young master and destroy their relationship with their uncle's relatives.

Zhou Shigong sent someone to inform his wife of the news. Although he knew that Zhou Ma returned to the city to avoid idleness, he still hoped that when his nephews and nieces came to Chang'an to bury his sister's coffin, his wife would be present, so as not to let his nephews see any discord within the third branch of the Zhou family.

After receiving the letter, Zhou Ma felt very upset and complained to her son, daughter-in-law and eldest granddaughter. She also sent a letter to her sister Ma, saying many sarcastic words.

However, although she was full of resentment, after venting it, she still sent someone to deliver a letter to her husband, saying that she would attend, but her husband had to discipline Zhou Jinpu first and not let him make trouble in front of others. Otherwise, even if she, the mistress of the third branch of the Zhou family, let go of the grievances she had suffered in the past, acted virtuous in front of her nephews, and did not treat them coldly because of her hatred for the mother of two children, she could not stop Zhou Jinpu from tearing his face on the spot and letting the Zeng family laugh at the joke of the third branch of the Zhou family.

No one knows what Zhou Shigong felt after receiving the letter, but after Ma knew her eldest sister's decision, she often complained about her hypocrisy in front of her family. She was obviously unwilling in her heart, so why did she have to force herself? For the sake of a reputation of being virtuous, she was suppressed by her stepmother-in-law and her followers for more than 30 years, and she didn't have a good reputation. Now her granddaughter is about to get married, and her grandson will also be married in a few years. She might as well let go of those shackles and let herself live a few more years of comfortable life.

Ma kept talking about this matter, and she was very disappointed with her elder sister. Hai Xiya finished his dinner, drank a sip of tea and rinsed his mouth, then said he wanted to go see his cousin, and then he got up and went out.

The busy work came to a temporary end. He didn't have to stay in the yamen to work overtime today. He returned home before it was completely dark. He hadn't chatted with his cousin and friends for many days, so he went next door to digest his food and avoid his wife's nagging.

Haijiao and Haitang were also very tactful and found excuses to leave the upper room, leaving Nanny Cui and Nanny Ma to continue chatting with Ma, so that they could have some peace and quiet.

The brother and sister walked around the yard for a few times, then hid in the west wing study. Haitang told Haijiao: "Today I accompanied grandma to the Jin family to sit for a while, and talked with Mammy for a while. At that time, Brother Jin was not at home, he should still be in class, and Guard Lin also accompanied him. Someone came to report to him, and seeing that he was not there, he went to ask Mammy for instructions. When Mammy went out, I heard a few words at the window, it seems that the Hu family brothers and sisters have been found."

Hai Jiao was surprised: "Ma Shangyi promised Xiao Jin to help find someone, and it has been half a month now, right? Is there news so soon?"

Half a month is almost enough. Lantian County is only a hundred miles away from Chang'an. Guard Lin's men had inquired about the news and knew that Jin Xin's family was separated from the Hu brothers and sisters in Lantian County. Before entering Lantian County, they stayed in a village for two days, and when they entered the city, only three people were left. Now that Ma Shangyi and Guard Lin want to find the Hu brothers and sisters, they only need to send people to the village where Jin Xin's family stayed to inquire, and they will most likely be able to find out where the Hu brothers and sisters are.

The Hu siblings were lucky. They were indeed sold by Jin Xin and his wife in that village to a passing matchmaker. The matchmaker and her accomplices passed through the area with a group of little girls and boys they had bought, preparing to take them to Huazhou to resell. When they stopped in that village, several children fell ill. Because they were afraid that they would get seriously ill and die on the road, causing them to lose their capital, they decided to rent two houses in the village for a few days and invite a village doctor to treat the children. They would set off again after they recovered. Jin Xin also decided to stay in the village for two days because he saw the identity of the matchmaker and her gang. In order to sell the Hu siblings for a good price, he spent a whole day bargaining with them!
When the Hu brothers and sisters were sold, they were still confused. They thought they were sent to do some odd jobs for their uncle and aunt's new friends, boil water, boil medicine and take care of the patients. When they returned to their temporary residence at night, they found out that their aunt's family had left, leaving them alone and selling them to someone else.

They tried to escape, but were beaten up. Hu Yingyuan's face was not injured, but his body was hit by many punches and kicks. Although Hu Yuzhi was not beaten, she was also frightened and starved for two days. After the two days of suffering, the two children were subdued and stopped crying. They honestly did odd jobs and took care of the patients. It was precisely because the sick children recovered slowly that the journey of the matchmaker and his group was delayed. It was not until eight days ago that they loaded all the children into the car and set off.

When Guard Lin's men returned to the village, they had just left a few days ago and were walking on a main road, so they caught up with them without much effort. The matchmaker saw that they had specifically chosen the Hu brothers and sisters to buy and wanted to raise the price, so Guard Lin simply sent people to the Huazhou government to sue them for selling good women for cheap, and sent them all to jail. As for the half-grown children who were rescued, the Huazhou government arranged for them to be adopted by good local families, which was also considered a good deed.

Haitang told Haijiao: "According to the messenger, the Hu siblings suffered a lot on the way. When they heard that the people who rescued them were sent by Brother Jin, they were relieved and then both fell ill. Guard Lin was worried that they would get hurt if they were sick on the road, so they let them rest in Huazhou for two days, and invited a doctor to see them and give them medicine. They also settled the other rescued boys and girls, and then set off with the Hu siblings back to Chang'an. They are still on the road now, and they will arrive in three days."

Hai Jiao couldn't help but sigh, "How lucky they are... They weren't sold to the village, but to a passerby. If the passerby had left the village a few days earlier, or if Guard Lin's men had gone two days later, and the passerby had sold them in Huazhou, it would have been extremely difficult to find them later. The Hu brothers and sisters are really lucky!"

However, it turned out that it was not only Jin Jiashu who knew that the Hu brothers and sisters had no clear ill will towards him, but the Hu brothers and sisters also knew that Jin Jiashu had no ill will towards them. Otherwise, why would they be so relieved when they heard that the person who came was commissioned by Jin Jiashu to save them?

It was all the fault of the Jin family's second branch! Otherwise, how could these three children who lost their mothers at a young age be hostile to each other?
Haijiao sighed a few times and then asked Haitang: "Did Mama Ma ever mention how she plans to settle the Hu brothers and sisters?"

(End of this chapter)