The husband I snatched halfway through his life is strange.

Chapter 11 Escape from Marriage
The Hu family's gate was open, and Wang Shi arranged accommodations in an unfriendly tone.

Xu's father and his two younger brothers huddled together on the floor in the kitchen.

She didn't want to associate with poor relatives, so she let Xu's mother, Xu's daughter-in-law, and their son stay in Xiao Xu's room.

"The only empty room in the house is Erlang's, but it contains precious items like writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. I rarely go in except to clean it. It's inconvenient for my in-laws to stay there, so I'm sorry to trouble them."

The Xu family's cotton-padded clothes were all patched. The children were filthy and ran around wildly in the Hu family's yard, but Xu's eldest daughter-in-law held them down and disciplined them.

Mr. Xu sat on the steps, his back hunched over.

"No, no."

There was resentment in Xu's mother's eyes.

Having a son who is a scholar is something to be proud of!
But she didn't dare offend them, so she smiled awkwardly and said, "We're all country bumpkins, big and rough and without any sense of propriety. What if we get them dirty or damaged?"

"Before we came, I told my child that Uncle Hu would become a scholar in the future, a very promising person."

These words were nothing short of flattery, and they pleased Wang Shi. She held her chin up arrogantly, her disdain impossible to conceal.

Yu Tingwan entered the courtyard at this time. Her dark hair was disheveled, and her clothes had several tears.

All eyes turned to them, and the dark-skinned man's eyes lit up.

"Cousin Yu, what's wrong? Do you need help?"

Yu Tingwan frowned and dodged his outstretched hand.

This is Xu's second brother, the most glib-tongued of them all.

Since the Xu family couldn't afford to marry him off, he started harassing girls everywhere.

Last year, he even went to propose marriage, but was chased away by Hu Dazhu with a broom.

Yu Tingwan slowly raised her eyes, a flash of disgust in them.

"Step aside."

Xu Fen's smile remained unchanged: "I didn't see you when I arrived, and only after asking did I find out you went to collect firewood. Look how frozen you are, your hands are all red from being tied up. I'm so worried about you."

The little girl was beautiful, with skin as smooth and delicate as porcelain. She had grown quite a bit, and Xu Fen was practically mesmerized by her beauty.

He knew the Hu family looked down on him. But so what?
Even if I can't marry Yu Tingwan, I'll be content just to be able to move in here and have her hold my hand and kiss my lips.

But Yu Tingwan avoided him like the plague.

Yu Tingwan sneered. Her memories of her past life were fragmented and incomplete; she knew nothing of Xu Fen's fate.

Xu Fen is a dissolute man who even seduces widows in private; he'll be doomed sooner or later.

Yu Tingwan said slowly, "You look rather unlucky."

!!!

Ms. Xu: !!!

Why are you saying this again?

She's traumatized!

Seeing that Xu Fen was still oblivious and leaning towards Yu Tingwan, she was afraid that something had happened to her second brother again, so she quickly pulled him back.

"I imagine your mother is tired and is eager to go back to her room to rest. Second brother, we can talk about it later."

She did learn her lesson.

Yu Tingwan's gaze swept over the people in the courtyard, finally lingering for a moment on the noisy Xu family boy before returning to the house.

The moment she closed the door, she heard Xu's mother complaining.

"My mother's temper has been getting worse and worse this night, and my second son is just trying to be kind."

Would Wang believe such things? But she was too lazy to expose her.

Yu Tingwan didn't care at all. As the door closed, she brushed the snow off her body and hid the remaining six coins.

Only then did he treat the wound.

It wasn't serious; it was just a scraped area with some bleeding.

She's been busy these past few days, but as a woman, her energy is limited, and she probably can't go out now. She needs to use firewood sparingly.

The room was damp and cold, so she didn't use firewood. Her hands were already numb from the cold. She took off her cotton clothes, which were not enough to keep her warm, climbed onto the bed, and covered herself with a thin quilt.

But it's still cold.

She covered herself with several clean clothes before scooping out some ointment and applying it evenly to her hands.

A soothing, cooling sensation relieved the itching.

She was extremely tired, and her eyelids grew heavier and heavier. As she drifted off to sleep, fragmented memories floated before her eyes. All she could hear was the deafening sound of gongs and drums, and the incessant crackling of firecrackers.

People passing by the Dong family in the county would stop and admire them.

A group of people were talking in one place.

"This old man Dong is old in years but young in heart. His wife's body was barely cold when he turned around and married another."

"It was matchmaker Liu who arranged the marriage, but we don't know which family's daughter it was. The Dong and Liu families are like thieves, keeping their mouths tightly shut and not revealing a single thing to the outside world."

"Hey, have you heard? The Hu family's niece has gone missing."

Someone inquired about it.

Which Hu family?

"My youngest son studies in our town and always gets the best grades. I heard he couldn't come home for the New Year, so Master Chu invited him to his home for New Year's Eve dinner."

Some people sighed.

“I’m from the next village, and I heard the news too. The road back to the town and county wasn’t reopened until after the New Year. Hu Dazhu carried big bags and small bags home, only to find out that his niece was missing. He cherished his niece more than his own eyes, and he was furious about it.”

"Now everyone in Xilin Village is helping to search, but there is not a single clue. They all say in private that he must have gone deep into the mountains and been eaten by wild animals."

Someone's eyes lit up.

"No, I feel something's fishy. Don't you think it's a coincidence that the Dong family's bride is..."

He was interrupted before he could finish speaking.

"Impossible, the Wang family wouldn't dare."

"If Hu Dazhu found out, wouldn't he beat her to death?"

"Besides, there's a student in the family. If she did something like that, not only would it ruin her son's reputation, but it would also destroy his future."

"She can't be that confused."

While the outside world was abuzz with discussion, the Dong family's inner quarters were in complete chaos.

The bride ran away.

Yu Tingwan had never been to the county before, and everything around her was unfamiliar, so she could only charge forward recklessly.

She was extremely panicked.

Feeling helpless and fearful.

But no one came to her rescue.

Unlike the Dong family's brightly decorated houses, another street was adorned with white silk hanging from every household.

This was the only route General Wei Zhao's coffin would take back to the capital.

The road was cleared, and amidst the intense sorrow, people on both sides covered their faces and wept.

These people had followed the funeral procession all the way from the border, accompanying the procession for miles until the soles of their shoes were worn out.

The whole world belongs to the king.

The people revered the emperor who sat on the dragon throne in the capital.

But with constant warfare raging on the border, the people only had eyes for the Wei family army that protected them.

Their lives were saved by Wei Zhao charging into battle and risking his life.

The soldiers of Wei's army were all dressed in plain clothes with white belts around their waists. They carried the coffin, overwhelmed with grief, and moved forward numbly.

"Stop! Don't run!"

"I advise the new mistress not to anger the master! In the end, you'll be the one who suffers."

"People from the countryside have no manners!"

Those who were chasing after Yu Tingwan were all servants from the Dong family.

With tears in her eyes, she ran with all her might toward the crowd, not daring to stop, regarding the people behind her as a raging flood.

Paper money flew in the air like whirlwinds, and funeral couplets and banners were posted everywhere on the street.

The sorrow of mourning is everywhere.

Until... a vibrant splash of red stumbled in amidst despair.

"Help."

(End of this chapter)