He stopped at the courtyard entrance, dropping the wild boar on his shoulders with a heavy thud that kicked up a cloud of dust.
Then he raised his head, his gaze landing straight on Liu Yu’er, who was tied up and covered in tears.
He paused for a moment.
His sharp gaze shifted directly to Mrs. Zhao: “This fresh-killed boar, plus eight taels of silver. Is that enough to trade for her?”
The entire Liu family courtyard, along with the dozens of onlookers gathered outside, fell dead silent.
Only the wind sweeping through the bare treetops made a low, mournful wail.
Mrs. Zhao stood with her mouth open, still clutching the rope, unable to process what was happening for a moment.
Qin Zhan took two steps forward. With his long stride, he reached the center of the courtyard in a flash, standing right by Yu’er’s side. The aura radiating from him washed over the space—a mix of blood, saltpeter, pine resin, and the raw heat of a powerful male physique.
He looked down at Yu’er’s wrists, marked with red indents from the hemp rope, and then at her tear-streaked little face.
Then he raised his hand. His hand was large, with calloused knuckles and old scratches across the back. Using the pad of his thumb, he gently brushed away the drying tear stains under her eyes.
The gesture was as natural as if he had done it a thousand times before.
“Stop crying,” he said. His voice remained flat, yet it seemed a fraction softer than before. “Come with me. No one will tie you up ever again.”
Yu’er raised her head, looking at him through tear-blurred eyes. She could not read the complex emotions hidden in the depths of his gaze, but she could feel the intense warmth of that rough hand brushing against her cheek.
And more than that—he was standing between her and her stepmother.
Mrs. Zhao finally snapped out of her stupor, saying with a beaming smile, “Hunter Qin! W-what do you mean by this? We’ve already sold this girl to the Chunfeng House, and we even took the deposit—”
“Cancel it,” Qin Zhan interrupted. “I want this person. Untie the rope, right now!”
There was no room for negotiation in his tone.
At this moment, Liu’s father finally stood up, his lips trembling. “H-Hunter Qin, are you sure you want to buy this girl? This girl… her mind isn’t quite right, she’s a burden, you…”
“I want her,” Qin Zhan said concisely.
He bent down and pulled a short knife from the top of his boot. The blade was dark, the edge gleaming like snow.
Mrs. Zhao stepped back in fright.
Yet Qin Zhan didn’t even look at her. With the tip of the knife, he deftly sliced through the hemp rope around Yu’er’s wrists. The coarse rope fell to the ground, revealing the delicate, white skin chafed raw beneath.
He frowned as he straightened up and looked at Mrs. Zhao: “The deed of sale.”
Mrs. Zhao’s expression flickered, but under Qin Zhan’s emotionless stare, she reluctantly fished a crumpled piece of paper from her bosom.
Damn it all, Mrs. Zhao seethed inwardly. She had been planning to wait until the dead girl started entertaining guests before shaking her down for more money anyway.
Qin Zhan snatched the deed of sale from her hands and tore it ruthlessly into tiny fragments until it was impossible to piece back together. He then crumpled the scraps into a ball and tossed them aside.
Finally, he looked back at Liu Yu’er.
She was still crying, but her sobs were quieter now. Her shoulders hitched, and her eyes and nose were red and swollen, making her look like a deeply wronged little rabbit.
Qin Zhan stood in silence for a moment, then suddenly bent down, slipped one arm under the bend of her knees and the other across her back, and scooped her up horizontally into his arms.
The crowd let out a low gasp.
Liu Yu’er was feather-light, forming a tiny bundle against his chest. She was so startled she forgot to cry, instinctively reaching out to grab the front of his fur tunic, her fingers curling tightly with whitening knuckles.
Just as Qin Zhan turned around to take Liu Yu’er home, she began to struggle wildly.
“Let me go! I want my little brother! I’m not going anywhere, I don’t want to leave home! Sob, sob, sob…”
Little Liu lunged forward in front of Qin Zhan, grabbed Liu Yu’er’s hand, and choked out through his tears: “Elder Sister! Just go with Brother Qin… Once you go with him, you won’t have to get up before dawn to do chores anymore… You won’t be sold into a brothel… You’ll finally be able to live a good life, and I… I can finally have peace of mind! Sob, sob, sob… My poor, suffering sister!”
Little Liu’s words once again stirred waves of sympathy from the onlookers.
“Old Liu’s heart is truly ruthless. Just for the sake of his stepson, he’d actually sell his own biological daughter…”
“Ain’t that the truth? Once you get a stepmother, you get a step-father.”
“Truly pitiful, these two motherless children.”
Normally, Liu Yu’er obeyed her younger brother’s words above all else. Seeing Little Liu crying so heartbreakingly, she stopped struggling, burying her face deep into Qin Zhan’s chest.
Qin Zhan announced in a ringing voice: “Today is the joyous day of my wedding with Yu’er. Because it was rushed, we didn’t have time to hold a banquet. On the eighth day of the first lunar month, I, Qin, will definitely host a banquet to invite all you kind-hearted villagers.”
Immediately after, wearing what he thought was a gentle expression, he looked down at Little Liu: “Your sister and I will come back often to check on you.”
Little Liu fiercely wiped away his tears: “Brother-in-law, wait a moment! Put my sister down for a second, I need to go get something.”
With that, without looking back, he dashed into the dilapidated cattle shed and retrieved a small bundle from underneath a makeshift bed frame.
“Inside here is the last piece of clothing our mother left behind that doesn’t have patches on it. And there’s also the dowry our mother left for my sister—a silver bracelet.”
Mrs. Zhao burst into a furious rant: “You little beast!…”
Before she could finish her sentence, a single glance from Qin Zhan swept her way, and she was frightened instantly into silence.
Qin Zhan took the bundle from Little Liu’s hands.
“Don’t worry. With me, your sister will never suffer another grievance or hardship. I will use my life to treat her well.”
Little Liu wept tears of joy: “I know. Brother-in-law is a good man.”
“Take care of yourself.”
With those words, Qin Zhan scooped up Liu Yu’er in his arms and strode away toward his home.