The village head of Wang Village squeezed through the crowd as well.
Seeing the child lying there, neither alive nor dead, he slammed his walking stick heavily against the ground twice.
“Wang Cuihua, is this the good daughter-in-law you raised? Look at this—beating such a fine child into this state. Why haven’t you taken her to see a doctor yet?”
Wang Cuihua immediately washed her hands of the matter. “Old Village Head, that’s not quite right. My two sons have already split off into their own households.
What happens in their families isn’t something I can control, wouldn’t you agree? This child stole my youngest grandson’s corncake. Even if her own mother beat her to death, she’d deserve it.
In times like these, if everyone only cared about filling their own stomachs and stuffed whatever they found into their mouths, would the rest of the family still live?
I’m not wading into muddy waters. If you have something to say, go talk to my daughter-in-law.”
With that, she turned and went back inside.
At that moment, Wang Xianger arrived. Seeing her husband holding a child in his arms, she hurried forward.
Only when she got close did she recognize the little girl—it was the very child who had saved her young son’s life.
Her face filled with heartache as she rushed to Ye Sanlang. “What happened to this child?”
She quickly took the girl from his arms.
Ye Sanlang was puzzled—why was his wife so emotional at the sight of this child?
Wang Xianger saw the confusion on his face and explained, “Sanlang, do you remember what I told you two days ago?
Qing’an was abducted. It was thanks to a little girl passing by our door who mentioned that she saw an unfamiliar person carrying him away. That’s why you rushed out and managed to bring Qing’an back.
After he returned, I tried to find that child to thank her, but I couldn’t. So she’s from the Wang family…”
Looking at the pale little girl in her arms, Wang Xianger’s heart ached. If not for this child, her son would likely have been eaten alive by now.
These past few days, rumors had spread through the city—there was a group of people abducting children to cook and eat them!
They even boasted that younger children tasted the best, that their bones could be boiled until they crumbled, and that the meat would fall clean off the bone!
They specifically targeted children. If this little girl hadn’t spoken up, how could her Qing’an still be alive?
Only then did Ye Sanlang understand the full story. He immediately made a decision—the child would be theirs to raise.
Their branch of the family didn’t have many children to begin with. Other households had two or three sons. They only had Qing’an.
Even if they added one more daughter, they could manage.
Thinking this, he looked at Wang Xianger. “I want to adopt this child as our daughter. What do you think?”
Wang Xianger nodded firmly. “Alright. If her own family won’t cherish her, we will.
She’s so small—how much can she possibly eat?
If we each skip a bite or two, that’ll be enough to fill her stomach.”
After saying that, she hesitated. “But… will Mother agree?”
Ye Sanlang frowned. “Whether Mother agrees or not, we’re raising her. If not for her, Qing’an wouldn’t be alive.
This child is Qing’an’s savior—and ours too.”
They both understood clearly—if Qing’an had truly died, they wouldn’t have gone on living either.
He was their only precious treasure, so cherished they were afraid he’d fall if held in their palms, afraid he’d melt if kept in their mouths.
Just imagining him being boiled and eaten made Wang Xianger’s heart ache unbearably.
She looked at Li Zhaodi. “If you won’t treat this child, we will. We’ll raise her.”
Li Zhaodi’s eyes shifted as she heard this. “You want to raise her? Fine… but…”
She rubbed her hands together suggestively, clearly hinting for silver or grain.
The villagers immediately began urging her.
“Wang family’s daughter-in-law, you can’t do this!
No matter what, she’s your own flesh and blood. Give her a chance to live!”
“Yes, yes! The child is pitiful. If you don’t want to raise her, let someone else do it.
Are you really so heartless that you’d watch a small child die?”
“That’s right! Heaven sees what people do. Don’t go too far!”
Li Zhaodi spat hard onto the ground. “Pah! Mind your own business. Don’t pretend to be good people in front of me.
When the child had nothing to eat, I didn’t see any of you giving her a bite.
All talk and no action. Easy to speak when it’s not your own back that aches!”
The villagers fell silent, embarrassed.
With no grain at home and their own children going hungry, how could they feed someone else’s child?
The village head slammed his walking stick down repeatedly, wishing he could jab it straight into Li Zhaodi’s face.
“You won’t raise your own daughter because you’re reluctant to spare the grain, yet you’ll give her to someone else? All three children are your flesh and blood.
You may not like the eldest daughter either, but at least you give her a bite to eat. Why can’t you tolerate Little Ya at all?”
Faced with this questioning, Li Zhaodi felt a flicker of guilt—but then she seemed to recall something and stiffened her neck defiantly.
“Don’t lecture me. If you want the child, bring grain. No matter how much I dislike this money-losing girl, I carried her for ten months.
I’ve raised her for over three years. Isn’t she worth something?”
She then fixed her gaze on Wang Xianger. “Your mother probably still has some grain left. I don’t want much—just two small sacks of cornmeal.”
The crowd gasped. In times like these, even one small sack of cornmeal was a fortune.
And she wanted two sacks—for a girl whose survival wasn’t even certain.
When Wang Xianger remained silent, Li Zhaodi reconsidered. Two sacks might indeed be too much.
She changed her tone. “Fine, since we’re fellow villagers, one small sack will do.”
Wang Xianger shook her head. “We don’t have a sack of cornmeal. Half a bowl, maybe.”
Though she wanted the child dearly, her household truly had little grain left.
Her in-laws’ situation was even worse. She and her husband had returned precisely to borrow food.
Li Zhaodi eyed her suspiciously. “You’re not planning to trade half a bowl of cornmeal for my Little Ya just to hollow her out and roast her, are you?”
The crowd was stunned into silence.
Seeing their shock, Li Zhaodi snorted. “I’ve heard in other places they roast little girls to eat.
It’s only because our Village Head Wang is kind and forbids such things here. Who knows what it’s like over in Xinghua Village?
A money-losing girl can’t lift with her hands or carry on her shoulders. She can’t even manage household chores. If you buy her to raise, aren’t you just raising her to eat?”
In Wang Xianger’s arms, Ye Anran suddenly opened her eyes.