Chapter 9

On the way, Shen Xi's eyes feasted on the beautiful scenery, and his mind was filled with all sorts of chaotic thoughts. Unconsciously, two hours passed, and the mother and son finally arrived at the foot of Peach Blossom Mountain. Shen Xi estimated that it was only about twenty miles, indicating that Peach Blossom Mountain was not very large.

In that case, the villagers of Peach Blossom Village were not mountain people. This could be concluded from the Shen family's background. A scholarly family, even if they had fallen on hard times, would not mingle with mountain people. Moreover, the houses and fields in Peach Blossom Village were all acquired when the Shen family was prosperous.

After crossing a stone slab bridge, the two entered Shuangxi Town.

It must be said that Shuangxi Town was much more prosperous than Peach Blossom Village. It was market day, and villagers from nearby villages were driving ox carts and donkey carts, creating a bustling scene of stability and prosperity.

Seeing the town's prosperity, Shen Xi felt somewhat relieved. It seemed that the country had been at peace for a long time, and the people had surplus wealth, which explained this scene.

Zhou Shi led Shen Xi along the bustling main street of the town, heading south. Zhou Shi tightly held Shen Xi's hand, occasionally tugging at his collar, her eyes never leaving him for a moment, fearing he might get lost.

On both sides of the street, shops were densely packed, and many vendors had set up stalls. Most of them were villagers from nearby mountains selling vegetables and fruits.

In June, cherries, lychees, and apricots were already in season, looking fresh and inviting. However, what caught Shen Xi's eye the most were the food stalls selling buns, meat pies, fish balls, and mixed noodles. Having not eaten meat for half a year, the smell of meat made his mouth water.

However, Zhou Shi had no spare money to satisfy her son's appetite. As they left the town, Zhou Shi let out a sigh of relief, glanced at the sun that was almost directly overhead, and squatted down, saying, "Little one, are you tired? Do you want me to carry you for a while?"

Shen Xi, of course, could not let Zhou Shi, who was already carrying a bundle, carry him as well. That would be too much of a burden... There were still over forty miles ahead, and if he exhausted his mother, it would be a real problem!

Just as Shen Xi was about to shake his head in refusal, he noticed a girl kneeling by the roadside, sobbing. He was taken aback and pulled Zhou Shi's hand, indicating that they should go over and see.

Hearing this, Zhou Shi looked over and was also very curious about the little girl kneeling by the roadside, tears streaming down her face. She pulled Shen Xi a few steps closer and saw that the little girl's face was covered in dirt, wearing dirty and tattered clothes, and her feet were in shoes with broken seams, clearly from a poor family.

Although Zhou Shi was known for her fiery temper, Shen Xi knew that she, like his third aunt Sun Shi and fourth aunt Feng Shi, had a soft heart. Sure enough, seeing a little girl kneeling helplessly and sobbing, Zhou Shi quickly approached and asked, "Little one, why are you crying? Where are your parents?"

Hearing this, the little girl cried even harder, wiping her tears but not speaking, continuing to cry on her own.

Zhou Shi shook her head slightly, sighed, and put down her backpack. She opened it, took out a rice ball wrapped in lotus leaves, and handed it to the little girl, "You must be very hungry, have something to eat!"

Shen Xi watched Zhou Shi's actions without a word, but inwardly he was wondering... This place was not remote, and there were many passersby. A little girl crying by the roadside, yet no one came to help, and it just happened to be them. Was this too coincidental?

Could there be something fishy going on?

Thinking this, Shen Xi felt he couldn't be too careful. He quickly picked up the backpack Zhou Shi had put down, held it tightly in his arms, and stared at the little girl, fearing she might suddenly grab the backpack.

The little girl looked at Zhou Shi timidly, her bright big eyes full of tears. Zhou Shi waved the rice ball again, speaking kindly, "It's okay, eat it."

The girl hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to take the rice ball. Seeing this, Zhou Shi took a few steps forward, gently stroked her head, and asked tenderly, "You must have suffered a lot, have some rice to fill your stomach!"

The little girl finally took the rice ball from Zhou Shi, carefully peeled off the lotus leaves, and took a bite. After chewing for a moment, she looked up at Shen Xi, who was watching her vigilantly, stood up, and extended her dirty hand holding the rice ball, not saying a word, just looking at Shen Xi.

Shen Xi was taken aback, not understanding why she would do this. Seeing her dirty hands, he shook his head and said with a bitter smile, "I just ate, you eat it."

The girl hesitated for a moment, then looked down at Zhou Shi and offered the rice ball to her.

Zhou Shi was puzzled. The little girl must have been hungry for days, and although she offered the rice ball, her clear eyes were still fixed on it, clearly very hungry.

Zhou Shi shook her head gently, "You eat it, I have more. If it's not enough, I'll give you another one."

The little girl nodded gratefully at Zhou Shi, brought the fragrant rice ball to her mouth, and took a big bite, completely different from her previous polite demeanor.

Seeing her wolf down the food, Zhou Shi's maternal instincts kicked in. She didn't care about the girl's dirty clothes, gently patted her back, and asked kindly, "Little one, can you speak?"

The girl did not respond to Zhou Shi, just kept her head down and continued to eat the rice ball.

Shen Xi nodded slightly. This little girl seemed to be mute. If so, it was no wonder no one had taken her in. A mute, even if raised at home, would likely not be able to marry, and in the end, it would just cause more trouble.

The little girl had very neat teeth, which contrasted sharply with her dirty face and tattered clothes. Zhou Shi, watching her eat with a certain grace, suddenly looked back at Shen Xi, who was hugging the backpack tightly, and had a thoughtful expression.

Shen Xi, of course, didn't know what his mother was thinking. As he pondered the girl's identity, he heard Zhou Shi ask affectionately, "Little one, why were your parents so heartless to leave you here alone?"

The little girl had finished the rice ball and was now holding the hem of her dirty skirt, looking frail. Hearing Zhou Shi's question, she shook her head firmly, still not speaking.

Zhou Shi sighed deeply, a look of pity in her eyes, "I'm not from a wealthy family. At home, my son eats wild vegetables and roots every day, and we can barely make ends meet. Sigh... This world is truly cruel."

With that, Zhou Shi took out three rice balls from her backpack, stuffed them into the girl's clothes, and said regretfully, "Take these rice balls with you. Don't let other children see them, or the bad boys will take them, and you'll go hungry again. This is the largest town for dozens of miles, with the most people. Don't wander around here, you might meet a kind person who will take you in."

The usually fiery-tempered Zhou Shi sighed deeply, took the backpack from Shen Xi, and slung it over her shoulder, ignoring Shen Xi's stumble, and said, "Little one, follow me."

Shen Xi, barely standing steady, said angrily, "Mother, I'm your real son, right? How can you be like this?"

With that, he followed Zhou Shi. They had walked less than ten steps when they heard footsteps behind them. Shen Xi turned around and saw the little girl running up.

Zhou Shi stopped, turned to look at the little girl who had run up, and said with a difficult expression, "Little one, it's not that I don't want to help you, but I really can't. Even if I take you home, I can't support you, and it would only make you suffer more."

Before she could finish, the little girl shook her head, took out the three rice balls from her chest, put one back, and then offered the other two to Shen Xi, swallowing hard and biting her lip, "Brother."

Shen Xi and Zhou Shi were both taken aback, not expecting the little girl to speak.

Zhou Shi was the most delighted. She squatted down, hugged the little girl, and said joyfully, "Little one, you can speak?"

The girl nodded but didn't speak again.

Zhou Shi pretended to be angry, "You look like you're about eight or nine years old. Why are you so shy? I thought you were mute."

The little girl hesitated for a moment and said softly, "Thank you, Aunt."

Zhou Shi was even more delighted and lovingly stroked the little girl's dirty face, looking at her for a long time.

The little girl, feeling a bit at a loss under Zhou Shi's gaze, twisted her hands, making her even more pitiful.

"Little one, it's good that you're not mute... Not being mute means everything is possible! Come, I'll teach you. When you see a kind-looking person passing by, go up to them, grab their pants, and say, 'Uncle, Aunt, please help me,' understand?"

The little girl shook her head in refusal.

Zhou Shi became anxious, "Hey, little one, I thought you were obedient, why are you being so unreasonable?"

After being scolded by Zhou Shi, the little girl's big eyes filled with tears again. Zhou Shi quickly hugged her, feeling guilty, "Look at me, I have a naughty son at home who always makes me angry, and I almost forgot you're a little girl... Don't be sad, I was just used to it, I didn't mean to hurt you!"

The little girl, hugged by Zhou Shi, didn't know whether she was sad or moved, and tears rolled down her cheeks again.

Shen Xi couldn't bear to see this and finally spoke, "Mother, why don't we take her in? Look how pitiful she is. One more person is just one more mouth to feed, and a little girl won't eat much."

The little girl turned to look at Shen Xi with immense gratitude and then looked up at Zhou Shi expectantly.

Hearing this, Zhou Shi's eyes twinkled, and she stood up mysteriously, looking around. She saw a small river behind the forest by the road, smiled, and called, "Follow me." She then picked up the little girl, slung the backpack over her shoulder, and walked through the forest toward the river.

Shen Xi, puzzled by his mother's behavior, had to run to keep up and enter the forest.

When they reached the river, Zhou Shi waved her hand, ordering Shen Xi to turn around and not to peek.

Shen Xi, helpless, had to turn around.

He heard Zhou Shi whispering to the little girl, followed by a few soft sounds. After a long while, Zhou Shi lifted the ban on Shen Xi.

Shen Xi turned around and saw the little girl facing away from him, feeling even more curious. He asked, "Mother, what were you doing?"

Zhou Shi was beaming, seeing Shen Xi's impatient look, she huffed, but couldn't help smiling, and said to Shen Xi, "Brat, you're in luck now."

Shen Xi was full of doubts and was about to ask when Zhou Shi made the little girl turn around.

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PS: The Emperor's new book is out! Brothers and sisters, please give recommendations, donations, and collections!

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