He Caiwei thought that life for the two of them would continue peacefully like this, at least until they headed south.
Who would have expected them to run into someone unexpected?
That day, the rice and white flour they had bought a few days earlier had run out. It just so happened that a village market was being held on the outskirts of the city, so they decided to try their luck there—maybe they could buy a couple of half-grown hens. After all, they still had two months before leaving; raising a couple of hens would at least provide eggs for her daughter.
But not long after arriving at the market, they unexpectedly ran into the First Madam, Zhang Sumei.
He Caiwei was surprised when she saw her. Hadn’t the assistant said that after leaving the Qu family, they had gone to a small town called Heping Town? Why was she here at a rural market? And judging by her clothes, she looked even more destitute than the two of them, who were deliberately disguised.
He Caiwei spotted her first and tugged at her mother’s sleeve to point her out.
He Yuping, however, remained calm. She finished bargaining, paid for their purchases, and continued browsing as if nothing had happened. It wasn’t until half an hour later, when they ran into Zhang Sumei again, that He Caiwei truly admired her mother’s composure.
After leaving the market, the mother and daughter had bought ten jin of rice, ten jin of finely milled flour, two clucking young hens, twenty eggs, and one already-slaughtered old hen. They kept straight, expressionless faces all the way home. Only after closing the door did they finally collapse in relief.
“Whew, that was close! Good thing I had a sudden idea today and disguised you too. Otherwise, you would’ve been exposed,” He Yuping said, grateful for her impulse to make her daughter look plain. If they had been recognized, with the First Madam’s relentless nature, they would definitely have been stripped to the bone.
“Mom, you looked so calm just now. Why are your legs going weak now?” He Caiwei said with a laugh, taking the two lively hens from her mother and heading toward the chicken coop in the backyard.
Buying hens hadn’t been a spur-of-the-moment idea—they had already prepared a coop in advance.
“Mom, throw over those leftover vegetable leaves you bought today for the hens,” He Caiwei called out after settling the chickens, realizing she hadn’t prepared feed for them.
“Coming! Daughter, how did she end up here? Didn’t we hear they were going abroad? Why didn’t they leave? Running into them once or twice is one thing, but if it keeps happening, sooner or later they’ll recognize us. Maybe we should stop going to the village market from now on, just to avoid them,” He Yuping said, unwilling to invite trouble or get entangled with those people again.
“Maybe they don’t have enough money. I heard that going abroad requires taking a plane, and that costs a lot. How about we pack up and have Grandpa Lin hurry and help us check for train tickets? Let’s leave as soon as possible. Most of the houses have already been sold anyway.”
Over the past few days, they had gone to the neighborhood office and gradually sold off their properties. Only two larger courtyards remained unsold due to their higher prices.
From selling the houses, the mother and daughter now had another 3,640 silver dollars. Banks weren’t very safe these days, but the problem was that carrying such a large amount of silver would be extremely heavy.
“If we’re leaving, maybe we should just entrust the remaining two houses to Grandpa Lin…” He Yuping was thinking that if the houses weren’t sold before they secured train tickets, they could hand them over to Uncle Lin to deal with later—he could send them a letter once they were sold and transfer the money afterward.
Before she could finish speaking, there was a knock on the door.
The mother and daughter froze. As He Yuping walked toward the door, she lowered her voice and asked, “Who is it? It’s almost noon—why come visiting at this time?”
Her voice was deliberately low, almost like a man’s. Staying cautious, she didn’t open the door immediately, waiting instead for a response.
“Hello, may I ask if Madam He Youyou lives here?” Butler Hu had been wandering around this area for days. He had noticed someone with a figure similar to their Third Concubine, but each time she entered this alley, she disappeared. So he decided to knock and ask around.
The moment they heard Butler Hu’s voice, both mother and daughter were startled.
“Never heard of her. Everyone living here works at the textile factory or the soap factory. These courtyards are empty during the day. There’s no ‘madam’ living here,” He Yuping replied, suppressing the tremor in her heart. Her voice remained steady and hoarse.
In truth, her heart was pounding wildly. She had no idea when she had been exposed—or if these people had been lying in wait nearby.
“Sorry for the disturbance,” Butler Hu said before leaving.
Listening to his footsteps fade away, the mother and daughter’s legs finally gave out in fear.
They didn’t dare speak in the courtyard. Supporting each other, they hurried into the main hall, closed the door, and only after returning to their room did they begin whispering.
“We definitely can’t go out today. I’m afraid he’s watching us outside. I don’t even know if he believed what I said. I just don’t understand—where did I slip up?” He Yuping said anxiously. She didn’t dare step outside now. She wasn’t strong enough to fight a man, and she still had to protect her daughter.
“Mom… there’s actually something I’ve never told you…” He Caiwei hesitated. She didn’t know how educated her mother was or how she might react. But now wasn’t the time to worry about that—if they were discovered, she didn’t even dare imagine the consequences.
After all, anyone who could drug an entire household, render everyone unconscious, and then set the place on fire—what kind of conscience could such a person possibly have?
“Good girl, now’s not the time for that. We need to check if there’s a back exit or some way to leave safely,” He Yuping said, unable to focus on anything else but her daughter’s safety.
“Mom… I have a place where we can hide. As long as we don’t come out, no one will find us. But…” He Caiwei still felt uneasy.
“What place? If you can hide there yourself, then go now. I’ll handle things outside,” He Yuping said, grabbing her daughter’s hand, her voice filled with urgency.
She didn’t want her daughter to get hurt. Even if she herself were captured, it wouldn’t matter—as long as her daughter was safe.
“You can go too, Mom.” Not knowing how to explain, He Caiwei simply stopped talking. She grabbed her mother’s hand and brought her into the space.
Suddenly finding herself in a completely different place, He Yuping was startled. She clutched her daughter’s hand tightly, not daring to let go even for a moment.