Hearing these words, most of the Shen family members turned their eyes toward Old Man Shen and Old Lady Shen.
Although they didn’t want to sell little Xihe either, she would indeed have to suffer a great deal of hardship following them on the road.
If little Xihe could be adopted by the Young Mistress the man spoke of and become a young lady in a wealthy household, she wouldn’t have to live a hard life of wandering and displacement anymore…
Only Gu Hanmei silently hugged little Xihe tighter in her arms.
Shen Gui also gripped his woodchopping knife and stood firmly in front of his wife and daughter.
As for Shen Yuheng and Shen Changgeng, no matter what the leader said, they never once entertained the thought of selling their own little sister.
Old Man Shen and Old Lady Shen exchanged a glance and spat without a moment’s hesitation, “Not for sale!”
They had both just seen that young boy’s mother slam herself to death on the iron cage, only for these men to drag her corpse away with total indifference.
They didn’t believe a single word the leader said!
Besides, they firmly believed that the hardships they were facing now were only temporary. Once they found a place to settle down, they could give their precious darling a good life too!
Seeing that the Shen family still refused to sell little Xihe even after his explanation, the leader’s face instantly turned dark and cold.
Glancing at the woodchopping knives in the hands of the Shen family men, he turned to the other burly men and said in an icy tone, “Since they aren’t willing to sell, then forget it. Let’s go!”
Hardly had his voice fallen when Wang Juhua couldn’t help calling out, “Wait!”
Hearing Wang Juhua call those men back, every member of the Shen family looked at her.
Shrinking her neck under their intense glares, Wang Juhua muttered softly, “Guibao is only suffering along with us. It would be better to sell her to them first.”
“Once we make enough money, we can find a way to get her back…”
Before Wang Juhua could finish her sentence, Old Lady Shen was so furious that she snatched the woodchopping knife held by her eldest son, Shen Qiang, who stood beside her, and swung it wildly toward Wang Juhua.
Terrified, Wang Juhua took two steps backward, tripped over a stone on the ground, and fell flat on her bottom.
Old Lady Shen took two big steps forward as well, the wind whistling off the swinging blade scaring Wang Juhua’s face deathly pale.
Just as the knife was about to strike Wang Juhua’s shoulder, Old Lady Shen halted it precariously in mid-air and said in a frigid tone, “Third’s wife, if you dare say such words ever again, I will have Third divorce you immediately!”
With that, Old Lady Shen turned to Shen Fu and barked, “Third, if you won’t divorce her, then pack up and clear out with her!”
Shen Fu immediately declared his stance: “Mother, I don’t agree to selling Guibao either. If Juhua ever mentions selling her again, I will divorce her right away!”
Only then did Old Lady Shen return the knife to her eldest son, Shen Qiang, next to her. She turned to look at the burly men who had paused because of Wang Juhua’s interruption and said, “Even if I die, I will never sell my granddaughter!”
The leader hadn’t expected an old woman like Old Lady Shen to control the descent of the blade with such precise mastery.
If the knife in her hand had gone just one inch lower, it would have sliced right into Wang Juhua’s shoulder.
He had no idea that Old Lady Shen’s father was a butcher. Having grown up watching her father slaughter pigs, she possessed immense raw strength.
Furthermore, before marrying Old Man Shen, she used to help her father sell pork. Whenever customers asked for a specific weight, Old Lady Shen could slice through the meat in a single chop, cutting the exact requested amount down to the ounce.
Not a single ounce more, nor a single ounce less.
That was how she managed to terrify Wang Juhua with the knife just now without actually hurting her.
…
Only after those men had departed did Old Lady Shen gently scoop little Xihe out of Gu Hanmei’s arms and ask in a soft, soothing tone, “Guibao, you weren’t scared just now, were you?”
Nuzzling into Old Lady Shen’s chest, little Xihe looked up at her with complete trust and answered, “Grandma, Guibao wasn’t scared at all.”
“Because Guibao knows that Grandma, Grandpa, Father, Mother, and my brothers would never agree to sell Guibao.”
Knowing she wouldn’t be sold, she wasn’t frightened in the least.
Hearing her words, Old Lady Shen and Old Man Shen felt even greater heartache and fondness for their sensible, sweet little granddaughter.
Noticing the glistening tears welling up in their eyes, little Xihe raised her tiny hands to wipe Old Lady Shen’s tears away.
“Grandma, don’t cry!”
“Oh right, Guibao also promised Grandma earlier to ask Brother Lu if he could lend us some silver!”
At her reminder, the eyes of the rest of the Shen family instantly lit up—especially Wang Juhua, who was still holding a grudge against Old Lady Shen.
They had actually forgotten that Guibao could talk to the “Pot Immortal”!
Since the “Pot Immortal” was willing to give Guibao food so their whole family wouldn’t starve to death, he should be willing to lend her some silver too, right?
Hearing their darling say this, Old Lady Shen and Old Man Shen also recalled that they had rushed over to this secluded spot precisely so no one would see Guibao speaking to the “Pot Immortal.”
After all, if the “Pot Immortal” agreed to lend Guibao silver, the money would likely appear directly inside the large iron pot.
Outside the city gates, with so many people around and eyes everywhere, someone might spot it.
That was why Old Man Shen had led the family to this deserted area.
Looking at the precious child held in her arms, Old Lady Shen spoke in an extraordinarily gentle voice, “Guibao, if the Pot Immortal is willing to lend you silver, you must thank him properly.”
“If he isn’t willing, once you’ve asked, do not pester him again, lest you make him angry. Do you understand?”
Had they not been utterly penniless with no other way to earn money, Old Lady Shen and Old Man Shen would never have asked Guibao to borrow money from the “Pot Immortal.”
Even though they both called the “Brother Lu” in Guibao’s mouth a Pot Immortal, neither of them had ever heard of a Pot Immortal before, and they were both secretly worried that this entity might be some kind of spirit or demon.
If not for the fact that the entire family couldn’t survive without his help, they would never have allowed Guibao to have too much contact with this “Pot Immortal.”
Unaware of the worries in Old Lady Shen’s mind, little Xihe nodded obediently and looked at her, answering, “Okay, Grandma, Guibao understands.”
Seeing little Xihe’s response, Old Lady Shen carried her over to the iron pot and set her down on her feet.
Standing before the iron pot, little Xihe closed her eyes and called out in her heart: *Brother Lu! Brother Lu! Are you there?*
At that very moment, Lu Zhuoyuan had just used a hunger strike in protest, forcing Lu Yao to agree to let the nanny move the iron pot back into his bedroom.
Lu Yao looked in confusion at his son, who hadn’t spoken a single word since birth, and couldn’t help dialing the doctor specializing in treating his son’s autism.
“Doctor Luo, Yuan’er still hasn’t spoken, but he actually used a hunger strike to express his desire to put an iron pot in his room.”
On the other end of the line, Doctor Luo was stunned for a moment before asking in bewilderment, “Mr. Lu, how do you know that his refusal to eat was because he wanted a pot placed in his room?”
Seeing Lu Zhuoyuan actively sit down at the dining table to eat after the nanny placed the iron pot back in the bedroom, Lu Yao replied to Doctor Luo on the phone, “Because I saw it with my own eyes.”
“After I had the nanny remove the pot from his room, he stopped eating entirely and stood in the kitchen, staring at that pot the whole time.”
“Just now, as soon as I had the nanny put the pot back in his room, he started eating on his own initiative.”
Hearing this, Doctor Luo said in complete disbelief, “Is that true? This might be the breakthrough opportunity to heal his autism! I’ll drive over right away to check on him!”