The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 164 Kick Them All Out (9)_1

Chapter 164: Chapter 164 Kick Them All Out (9)_1

Lady Fang suddenly felt a deep pang of heartache for her daughter, for her children.

"Are you hungry? Mother will cook for you!" Lady Fang’s voice was somewhat hoarse.

Pei Qin intuitively felt something was wrong. After people suffer a great shock, they can fall apart, become mentally unstable, and Lady Fang was acting like this...

Lady Fang, having said that, had already entered the kitchen to start making dinner, kneading the dough. Qinqin loved to eat the steamed, unleavened onion pancakes with extra baking soda.

The pot on the stove contained congee made from the leftover Laba rice from two days ago. It hadn’t been soaked beforehand, but with additional water and a longer cooking time, it would also be soft and delicious.

After preparing the pancakes and setting them to steam, Lady Fang took out some meat, sliced it, and chopped two winter bamboo shoots as well, then began to stir-fry them in the wok.

The stir-fried meat and bamboo shoots were ready, then she fried some eggs, and made a cold dish with cabbage hearts and beef.

The onlookers outside were waiting to revel in the excitement, waiting to see Lady Fang in despair, to watch how she and her daughters would make a scene, to see how Old Pei’s House would handle it! But the scent of meat wafted from the courtyard, they were actually making meat at home, eating a meal!?

Eyeballs dropped to the ground en masse as they all speculated that Madam Fang and her daughters must have climbed up the social ladder, come into money, too high and mighty for Old Pei’s House now, eating a good meal before planning to leave Taiping Town. In fact, staying in Back Mountain Village was no longer tenable! How could they go on under these circumstances?

The meal was ready, steaming hot as it was served on the table. That old table, previously a broken door cut in half with four legs attached, was somewhat uneven and looked simple. Yet, this table had gradually witnessed their meals improving over time.

"Eat up!" Lady Fang served Pei Qin some dishes and did the same for San Ya and the others.

San Ya held a pancake, her eyes brimming with tears, and a faint, indistinct fear.

In silence, they finished the meal with plenty of dishes left over. Lady Fang urged Pei Qin to eat more, and the same for San Ya, Si Ya, and Pei Wendong.

Pei Qin thought she might do something foolish, and watched her all night.

Only after washing the pots, cleaning the dishes, and tidying up, did Lady Fang say to everyone, "Let’s go! Let’s leave Back Mountain Village!"

There is no greater sorrow than a dead heart. Pei Qin did not speak but simply nodded. They now had more than twenty taels of silver in their hands, enough to leave this place, and out of sight would be out of mind!

Seeing everyone nodding, Lady Fang tenderly touched their heads with heartache and urged them all to sleep early, "We leave tomorrow!"

"Alright! We’ll leave here tomorrow!" San Ya wiped her tears and got ready for bed.

Fearing her mother might lose hope, Pei Qin stayed awake through the night, not daring to sleep.

But after several days, utterly exhausted and drowsy, and with Lady Fang remaining quiet, she drifted off into a sleep.

When she awoke with a start and sat up, she found that Lady Fang was gone. She leaped out of bed, pulling on her cotton pants and jacket, woke San Ya, Si Ya, and Pei Wendong, and ran out to look for her.

"Mother isn’t at home! Where has Mother gone!?" Si Ya’s voice fell, and as she followed Pei Qin’s gaze at the entrance of the alley, her blood froze.

"Ah—Mother!" Pei Wendong cried and rushed forward.

"Mother..." San Ya hurried over, kneeling at the entrance of the old house.

Dawn was just breaking when their piercing cries rang out, drawing the villagers out of their homes in a rush to see.

The doors of Old Pei’s House swung open with a clang as Pei Houli, not fully dressed, ran out in a panic, followed by Lady Zhu and Old Pei.

Upon opening the door and seeing the scene before them, their faces turned pale.

Lady Fang lay by the wall outside the main gate, deep red blood trailing from the wall to the ground, a large patch that was already darkening and about to congeal.

And the person, she had long since taken her last breath.

San Ya and Pei Wendong wept incessantly.

Si Ya clenched her fists in anger, teeth bared, her eyes dark with hatred as she glared at Pei Houli and Old Pei, Lady Zhu, and the others. It was them, they were the ones who killed her mother!

Pei Qin looked expressionlessly at the blood letter nailed to the wall with a twig, intended for Pei Lizheng. It wasn’t to entrust them with her care or to seek justice. It contained only a few short sentences, revealing how she was forced by Old Pei and Lady Zhu to kneel and beg to take on Jian Xiao, how Pei Houli made her drink three bowls of liquor and forced the matter, and how Old Pei and Lady Zhu begged her to leave a heritage and accept the fact of Jian Xiao. She requested Pei Lizheng tell everyone that she died as atonement for her past sins, to spare Sister Peiqin and her three siblings from public judgment, that all the scandal and vile slander be on her, beseeching everyone to be kind in their speech, to show mercy and spare her children.

Old Pei, who could recognize a few characters, upon seeing the blood letter on the wall, didn’t read the content but immediately felt something terrible had happened and rushed forward to tear it down.