Chapter 285

Late at night, a merchant ship docked on the riverbank.

A seven-year-old girl huddled at the stern of the boat. Though exhausted, a nameless fear gnawed at her heart, keeping her awake even as her eyelids drooped.

She pressed her hands tightly over her ears, but it did nothing to block the sounds coming from the next room.

The thudding against the wall, the man’s heavy panting, that laughter. And then, there was her mother… her muffled sobs.

The girl’s name was Li Da Niu.

Her mother, Tan Shuya, possessed delicate features and a beautiful name, but it couldn’t withstand the decline of their family fortune. At seventeen, she was pawned off to Scholar Li by her gambling and alcoholic father, to bear a son for the infertile Madam Li.

In truth, Madam Li was born a Li, while Scholar Li was the one who married into her family. It was the Li family that had supported him through his studies to become a scholar.

Therefore, even though his wife was unable to bear children, he dared not complain.

Madam Li, seeing that she was well into her thirties with no sign of pregnancy, finally gave up hope. She came up with an idea: pawn a pure girl, have her bear a son, and then send her away.

As for her husband taking a concubine, that was out of the question.

No sooner said than done, she set about searching and chose Tan Shuya, spending fifteen taels of silver to pawn her.

As expected, the idea worked. Within a year of entering the household, Tan Shuya gave birth to a chubby baby boy.

Madam Li held him in her arms, overjoyed. But then her eyes fell on her husband, who seemed to have developed feelings for Tan Shuya.

How could she tolerate this?

With a casual gesture, she sent Tan Shuya off to Li Yin, a lonely old bachelor from her own family who couldn’t find a wife.

Tan Shuya dared not utter a word of protest because Madam Li had warned her: if she caused any trouble, she would be thrown into a brothel!

Li Yin was poor, and there was a reason for his poverty. He was lazy, bad-tempered, petty, and full of himself. One would think that getting such a beautiful wife without spending a single copper coin was a blessing from heaven!

But he thought, “They gave her to me because they were done with her. This is an insult to me!”

“A woman who has already given birth is my wife? This is an insult to me!”

Though he thought this way, he didn’t refuse. He wasn’t completely stupid after all…

But he would never treat Tan Shuya well. Her nightmare began.

From the moment she entered his house, she worked from dawn till dusk, constantly beaten and scolded, never having enough to eat or wear. A year later, she became pregnant, only to be beaten by Li Yin and miscarry.

It was a son.

Seeing his son lost like this, Li Yin felt some remorse and treated her slightly better.

Tan Shuya’s health suffered from the miscarriage, and without money for treatment, it took her four or five years to conceive again.

This time, she gave birth to a daughter.

Li Yin was furious, believing Tan Shuya was deliberately going against him. “When I beat you, you carried a son. Now that I don’t beat you, you dare to give me a useless girl?”

And so, a new round of beatings and scoldings began.

The little girl had no name. Tan Shuya called her Niu’er, Li Yin called her “little bastard” and “money-loser.” Outsiders called her Li Da Niu.

And so, that became her name.

Before she could even walk steadily, Li Da Niu would help her mother carry firewood. At three or four years old, she could wash dishes without dropping them. She had only broken one bowl, and never again, because her father would beat her…

Tan Shuya was actually quite skilled and did good work. If she could take on some work from outside, their life could be a little better.

But Li Yin refused! He was worried that if “Scholar Li” saw her, it would be a loss of face for him.

No one knew why he thought this way…

The hard days passed by one after another. At seven years old, Li Da Niu could chop wood, cook, catch loaches in the river, and help others mix mud to make adobe bricks. She could do it all.

✿✿✿

It seemed like their life might finally improve.

One day, a woman dressed in silk and adorned with flowers came to the village. She looked around and her eyes landed on Li Da Niu.

Though thin and sallow, with a large head on a small body, her head shape, hair volume, eyebrows, sloping shoulders, and slender limbs set her apart from the other simple girls in the village!

The woman strode over and, without hesitation, pinched open Li Da Niu’s mouth to check her teeth. “…Tsk tsk, they’re quite straight. She’s really good material!”

She then examined her hands and feet… and frowned.

Li Da Niu’s hands were used to wielding a knife to chop wood—the same knife passed down through generations in her family, dull as a toothless old woman. Without using force, she couldn’t chop anything. So, her hands were covered in thick calluses, her fingers deformed.

“What kind of family is this! They’re ruining such a pretty girl!?”

Li Da Niu stared blankly at the woman. How could someone be so beautiful? And smell so good… She reached out to touch the woman’s clothes… so soft and smooth, her hand almost got caught in the silk!

As expected, the woman swatted her hand away. Tan Shuya was busy working, but hearing the commotion, she hurried over, pulled Li Da Niu away, glared at the woman, and left with her daughter.

Li Da Niu kept looking back as they walked away…

Once someone had caught this woman’s eye, how could she easily let go?

After some inquiries, she went straight to Li Yin. She offered ten taels of silver to buy Li Da Niu!

Li Yin’s jaw almost dropped. How much? That money-loser was worth ten taels of silver?

But he was a little cunning and didn’t show any reaction…

The woman, thinking he was unwilling, tried to persuade him, “That little girl, if she stays with you any longer, her looks will be completely ruined. I’m afraid no wealthy family will even want her as a maid. Look at her hands, they’re deformed! How did you raise a perfectly good girl like this?”

“With a dark face, yellow hair, and smelling bad. Ten taels is a great price, I wouldn’t even consider it if my luck wasn’t so bad this time. Even if I did, it would be five taels at most!”

Li Yin, seeing the woman, knew what she did. He didn’t feel offended, but instead said, “Ten taels? My daughter, in all the villages around here, is there a single girl who can compare to her beauty? I love her to death… You want to take her to that kind of place with just this little silver? What are you thinking?”

The woman was unconvinced and continued to persuade him, both praising and belittling Li Da Niu… She was very eloquent.

But Li Yin was no fool. Now that he knew about this way of making money, he was in no hurry. If not your establishment, then there were others! That money-loser… no, no, she wasn’t a money-loser anymore! She was only six or seven years old, it was still early! He could definitely find a good place for her!

Seeing him truly unhurried, the woman became more interested. She had been wandering around for days and hadn’t found anyone suitable!

So, she raised her offer, and the two bargained for a long time, finally settling on thirty taels of silver.

Li Yin reached out for the silver, but the woman said, “Do you think I carry dozens of taels of silver with me? I’m not afraid of being robbed?! Either you bring the girl, or I’ll come back to pick her up. But remember, once we have an agreement, it’s final. Don’t think I’m someone to be trifled with!”

The woman raised her eyebrows, looking fierce.

Li Yin was a little scared and nodded in agreement. As she left, the woman reminded him, “Clean the girl up, and don’t hurt her these next few days!”

Tan Shuya led Li Da Niu back, warning her, “That woman is not a good person. Next time you see her, hide! If she tries to grab you, bite her!”

Li Da Niu didn’t understand. “Mother, why were her clothes so shiny?! They were so beautiful! So thin and soft, when I touched them, I almost got stuck.”

“Don’t look at them again! Those clothes were ill-gotten! If you look again, I’ll beat you!”

“Oh.” Li Da Niu fell silent. But then she remembered something else, “The flower on that woman’s head looked just like a real flower from the field. I’ve tried putting those in my hair, but they wilt after a while. And hey, there was something shiny on her head too, was that silver?”

The two walked home, talking, passing a small grove of trees. They didn’t notice a boy of about ten years old standing behind a tree.

He was handsome and dressed in clean clothes, looking like a scholar. He was staring intently at Tan Shuya…

After they passed, the boy’s servant, who had been following him anxiously, said, “Young Master, let’s go back! If Madam finds out, I won’t survive. You’ve seen her, haven’t you?”

The boy said, “Are you sure this is her? Why does she look so old? Didn’t they say she was much younger than Mother?”

“She has a hard life here! Look at what she’s wearing! She’s out in the sun and wind all day…”

“Was that little girl her daughter too?”

“Yes, her name is Li Da Niu! Young Master, let’s go back! Please don’t let Madam find out…”

This was a glimpse into the past.