Qu Liushang yawned: "Brother Xu, I'm a little sleepy too, I want to go to bed too."
Seeing that Qu Liushang had also left, Sun Zhouwang and the others didn't want to stay any longer, turned around and left without even saying a word to Xu Jing.
Xu Jing staggered to the door, looked at the backs of several people with worried expressions.
He hurried to the door of Yan Shi's room again, knocked on the door hastily and said: "Brother Yan, Brother Hua, I have something to tell you."
Yan Shi and Hua Ling did not sleep when they came to the house, Yan Shi heard Xu Jing knock on the door, came over and opened the door: "What's wrong, Brother Xu?"
"Brother Yan." Xu Jing looked distressed, "It's not that I won't keep you, it's just that the situation is urgent and you have to leave here, you have to go now!"
"Why?" Hua Ling also came over upon hearing this.
"I should have thought of it, I should have thought of it..." Xu Jing looked a little dazed, and knocked his head with his hand, "I have read poetry and books for so many years, how can I still be so stupid! You go, if you don't go, I'm afraid I will die. That's too late!"
Qu Liushang leaned against the door frame at the back at some point and said, "What else can they do to us? I said Brother Xu, is your village still a wolf's den?"
"I..." Xu Jing didn't know what to say.
Yan Shi said: "Brother Xu, just say what you have to say, even if we have to leave, we have to go and understand." Yan Shi's voice was not high, but there was an undeniable affirmation in his voice.
"I'm just afraid that time is too late..." Xu Jing murmured.
Qu Liushang hugged his shoulders and said, "Didn't you ask us for something just now? And what's in your warehouse, why didn't you tell me?"
Yan Shi gave Xu Jing another reassurance: "Brother Xu, although our martial arts are not as good as peerless masters, it is not so easy for ordinary people to hurt us."
Hua Ling echoed from the side: "That Mr. Qu has a big bug, it's scary."
Xu Jing only knew that the big bug was indeed scary, but he couldn't help them defend against the enemy together. But Yan Shi's words really reassured him, and he said cruelly: "In that case, brothers and sisters, please come with me."
Xu Jing came to the door and went out, unexpectedly brought them to the barn, he took out the key from his waist, and opened the lock with a click.
Qu Liuzhang held a fire bag to illuminate Yan Shi, and when the door was opened, a layer of dust formed, and Qu Liuzhang coughed from choking, so he quickly dispersed the dust with his hands.
Xu Jing stepped in, Yan Shi and Hua Ling followed behind him, and Qu Liushang followed behind with a fire bag.
The warehouse is not big, and if there is light during the day, the contents inside can be seen at a glance, but now it is dark, and it can only illuminate the square inch in front of you.
"Sister Wenman?" Xu Jing called softly.
Immediately afterwards, I heard someone agree softly: "Xu Jieyuan, I am here."
Qu Liushang followed the direction of the sound and pointed the fire folder there, and saw a corner covered with a quilt on the ground, and a woman was sitting on it. Her hair was a little messy, far away, and the barn was dark. People can't see her face clearly, but the voice should be a very young woman.
Xu Jing said: "Sister Wenman, come out, I have something to tell you."
The woman whom Xu Jing called "Wen Man" naturally also saw Yan Shi and the others, and obviously flinched and remained silent.
Xu Jing said again: "Sister Wenman, don't be afraid that they are not bad people, you should come out first."
Wen Man heard what Xu Jing said, and then agreed: "Hey - wait for me for a while, I'll get up right away."
Immediately afterwards, she heard rustling sounds from the corner of the wall, and saw Wen Man walking over after a while, and she visibly shivered when she saw Yan Shi.
"Sister Wen Man, come into the house with me." Xu Jing said, Wen Man only felt a bit of peace of mind following Xu Jing's side.
Several people came into the house again, under the dim light, their expressions were unclear.
Hua Ling found a seat for Yan Shi to sit down, Xu Jing also found a seat for the woman to sit down, and gave her back
Poured a glass of water to warm her body, Hua Ling also poured a glass of water for Yan Shi not to be outdone, Qu Liuzhang saw that no one poured it for him, so he poured himself a glass of water for himself.
"Sister Wenman is the daughter-in-law of Li Er's family that was mentioned by Sun Si just now." Xu Jing said.
Hua Ling wondered, "Why is his wife at your house?"
Xu Jing didn't answer his question, but asked again: "I wonder if the young masters have noticed that they haven't seen any women in this village?"
Yan Shi nodded and said, "That's true." But he also knew that it was not that there were no women in Xiaxi Village, but that the women hadn't come out. When he visited Xiaxi Village at night last night, he heard women crying in several homes.
Xu Jing sighed and continued: "They say that Sister Wenman is the daughter-in-law of the Second Li's family, but that's actually just their side talk. In fact, Sister Wenman was abducted from outside and sold to the Second Li's family."
Xu Jing slowly revealed the secrets of Xiaxi Village. Xiaxi Village is located in a remote area with inconvenient transportation and barren land, and the people here are unwilling to go to other places. Families with daughters have married their daughters to other places, and they are unwilling to let their daughters continue to live a hard life here. And the women in other villages think that this place is poor, so they don't want to marry here.
There are more and more bachelors in Xiaxi Village. Later, in order to have a daughter-in-law, some people bought them from Paihua. After this beginning, the whole village followed suit.
Some quick-witted people in the village started the business of auctioning flowers, abducting women from outside to sell them.
Some people who can't afford money, or who don't want to spend money, will go outside to try to grab women by themselves. In their eyes, a woman is just a commodity. As long as they like it, it's theirs.
The roads in Xiaxi Village are difficult to walk, and there are people from house to house taking turns guarding the entrance of the village. If the government officials come, they will hide in the mountains. Therefore, Xiaxi Village has been safe and sound for more than a hundred years.
And Wenman was snatched back by Li Er. She stayed here for a few months, but at first she refused to obey, and was beaten and scolded by the Li family a lot. Later, she learned to be smart, pretended to obey them, and relaxed their vigilance. . After Wenman became pregnant, the Li family lost their vigilance towards her even more.
Later, Wenman finally found an opportunity to escape from the Li family. She only knew that there were guards at the entrance of the village to prevent abducted women like her from escaping, but she didn't know that there were also guards on the mountain closest to the village. Those people, one is to guard the abducted women, and the other is to prevent those who rescue these women.
Wenman's plan was very careful, but he was discovered by the Li family before he escaped from the village. She had nowhere to hide, and knew that if they caught her back, her fate would be even worse. After thinking about it, she came to Xu Jing in the dark. In her eyes, everyone in this village was of one mind. Although she had no relationship with Xu Jing before, she had heard that he was a juren, so she wanted to take a gamble to see if Xu Jing, a juren, was different from other people in the village, and she was right.
Yan Shi heard that she was pregnant, and only then noticed her slightly swollen belly.
"The reason why I told you to leave quickly is because they have already set their sights on you." Xu Jing said eagerly, "These people have never been to my house before, and they come as soon as you come, I think I think …”
"Do you think they treat us as goods?" Yan Shi took Xu Jing's words and said.
"I didn't expect that they would even want a man now." Xu Jing nodded and said, "To tell you the truth, I thought I would ask you gentlemen to report what happened here when you leave here, so as to save these poor men. I'm also stupid, even if they don't like a few of my dear friends, as long as they are related to me, they won't let them leave. "
Yan Shi frowned: "You can't leave this place?" He thought about why those men stopped Xu Jing from entering the mountain when they went hunting on the mountain today. He thought it was the rule here, but it doesn't seem to be the case. In addition to the women who were sold here, there was also Xu Jing.
Xu Jingdao: "I left home when I was young, and I didn't know about it at the time, but when I came back after I grew up, I realized that there were such shocking things in this village. At that time, I was young and energetic, and I didn't think about it so much. , then with him
They argued hard, and even clamored to report to the authorities. As a result... As a result, you also know it. "He was trapped in Xiaxi Village and was not allowed to go out.
"Back then, my father pointed his nose at me and scolded me, blaming me for betraying Xiaxi Village after studying for several years." Xu Jing said again, "It was only then that I found out that my mother was also kidnapped. At that time Her family suffered a disaster, and her relatives passed away one after another on the way to escape from the famine. She was the only one left and was sold to my father by a flower auctioneer. My mother is lucky, and my father treats her well." From the point of borrowing money to treat her illness It can be seen from above.
Hua Ling tilted her head: "You came back at the age of seventeen, but it happened after you turned seventeen, so how did you go to participate in the Qiuwei?"
"I rushed back because my mother was seriously ill. My mother died a few months later, but my father was still in the village at that time." Xu Jing explained, "When I went to participate in the autumn, they would not let me go Yes. I told them that Qiu Wei is a room for one person, and it is difficult to talk to others, and I can’t sue at all. Moreover, if I can pass the Jieyuan exam, the imperial court will send me Liudou every month Rice, I can give them five buckets of rice. In fact, I only thought that I was lucky if I could pass the Juren examination, but I didn’t expect to be able to pass the Jieyuan examination. They were tempted by the five buckets of rice, so they sent a few people to follow me But tell me, if I dare to play any tricks, they will kill my father, and my father is in their hands, and I have no choice but to honestly finish the Qiu Wei exam and come back."
Speaking of this, Xu Jing smiled wryly: "Next year's spring, I will not be able to go anyway." His father is dead, and there is no one who can blackmail him, not to mention that the imperial city is far away from the mountains and roads. Maybe send someone to follow him.
"Actually, when I first learned about the secrets in this village, I was really angry." Xu Jing looked into the distance, looking a little ethereal, "I yelled and said to report to the police. But even if I If I could really report to the government, I don't know if I would really report to the government. Back then, when my mother was seriously ill, they lent my family money, which allowed my mother to live for more than ten years. This kindness I can never forget, but looking at those poor women, I really feel bad."
"Hey!" Xu Jing sighed heavily, "What's the use of saying this, I can't get out. Brother Yan, I didn't expect to involve you in it. Sister Wenman, these days let you hide in the warehouse and suffer Don't worry, but don't worry, even if I risk my life, I will help you escape. Brother Yan, I think you and Brother Qu must be people with high martial arts skills. Why don't we go from the back mountain tonight? The protection of the mountain is lax, there are only a few people entering the mountain pass, if you can knock those people out, we can sneak away.”
Speaking of this, Yan Shi was not in a hurry to leave, he sat down and took a sip of water calmly, and tugged at Hua Ling's little hand: "Is Ming Ting afraid?"
Hua Ling shook her head: "With my brother around, I won't be afraid."
Yan Shi smiled slightly, but it was like a breeze blowing away the mist: "Okay, then let's not leave tonight. I want to see how filthy and filthy there are in Xiaxi Village."
"Brother Yan, you..." Xu Jing didn't understand, ordinary people would leave here in fear after hearing this, why this one wanted to move forward.
Qu Liushang smiled and said: "Brother Xu, don't worry, they won't be able to get into ours, and once we come, their good days will come to an end."
Xu Jing was still a little worried: "But..."
"Brother Xu, we are from the imperial city." Seeing Yan Shi's appearance at this time, Qu Liushang knew that he wanted to reveal his identity, so he said for him.
"Imperial City?" Xu Jing murmured, and suddenly his eyes opened a lot, as if a ray of light came out from inside, he looked at Yan Shi's face full of shock, "Yan...Brother Yan...but the prince?"
Yan Shi didn't hide his true identity anymore, and explained his identity and purpose of coming one by one. Xu Jing was really surprised and delighted. Wen Man also had tears in his eyes after hearing this, for he was really saved this time.
Almost as soon as Yan Shi finished speaking, there was a loud sound of footsteps outside, which seemed to be coming in the direction of Xu Jing's house. Several people looked at each other, this must be directed at Yan Shi and the others, they can't even wait for tomorrow morning, they are going to get them away overnight
In fact, this person is indeed Chong
They came after Yan Shi, but they weren't those people just now. It was only a young man who came, with an anxious expression on his face, and he yelled before entering the room: "Xu Jing, I heard that a doctor came to your house, where is he? My mother-in-law can't give birth , let him and I go and have a look."
During the daytime, Qu Liushang told the group of men guarding the mountain pass that he was a doctor. Stories in the village spread quickly, and it was not uncommon for this man to know about it.
But Xu Jing didn't know that Qu Liushang could be a doctor, and when he was about to ask Qu Liushang, he saw Qu Liushang came over with a medicine box on his back: "Brother, please lead the way, I will go and have a look with you."
Wen Man had already hid behind Yan Shi and Hua Ling after hearing Liu Er's voice, and Liu Er hurried in and out, so he really didn't notice her.
Yan Shi didn't want to join in the fun when they gave birth to a child, but Xu Jing seemed very anxious, and urged them: "Brother Yan, let's go and see, if the second Liu's family gave birth to a girl, the girl will probably die." killed."
"What do you mean by that?" Yan Shi was a little puzzled.
Wen Man took over the words and said, "Master Yan doesn't know, but all girls born in Xiaxi Village will be killed."
Several people left while talking, but Wen Man didn't go, and hid in Xu Jing's house.
The night in Xiaxi Village was very dark, but luckily Yan Shi prepared a fire bag, which added some light to the dark night.
Along the way, Xu Jing roughly talked about what happened in Xiaxi Village, but almost all the girls born in Xiaxi Village were not killed, for no other reason, and women cannot carry on the family line, so keeping them is a waste of food.
Yan Shi looked surprised: "There are only men, but how can the blood be passed on without women?"
Xu Jing smiled bitterly: "There are no women in Xiaxi Village, but there are other places."
While speaking, Liu Er's family was close in front of his eyes, and the wailing sound could be heard from such a distance. When he got here, Yan Shi regretted letting Hua Ling come with him.
Hua Ling seemed to have seen his thoughts, and held his hand even tighter: "Brother, I'm not afraid."
Yan Shi finally gritted his teeth and walked in. The door was open, and they walked inside smoothly. Liu Erzheng was squatting in the yard, and saw them coming at a glance.
"I'll take a look too." Xu Jing nodded at him.
Liu Er opened his mouth and said nothing.
"Why don't you go in and help?" Hua Ling asked.
"She gave birth to a woman, what can I, a man, do to help? Isn't it enough to have my mother in there?" Liu Er said gruffly, "Besides, which man did you see enter the delivery room? It will be bad luck in the future.”
Xu Jing hurriedly pulled the words over: "Second brother Liu, how long has it been since my sister-in-law was born? Is it because she has no strength, why don't you cook something for her? I still have some meat at home, I'll cook it for her Have some broth."
When Liu Er heard about the broth, Liu Er swallowed, but waved his hand again: "No need, make some broth to drink. Which woman does not have children, and I have never seen anyone so hypocritical to her. Other women keep giving birth. She gave birth without looking for a mother-in-law. She was lucky. Since the birth last night, I have found a midwife for her this afternoon. I also found a doctor for her just now. What would she want? What if she gave birth to a boy? Forget it, if you give birth to a girl, hehe." Liu Er did not continue with the next words.
Just as Hua Ling opened his mouth to say something, Yan Shi suddenly tugged at his sleeve, and Hua Ling didn't say any more. This kind of person is stubborn in thinking, and if you say it out of the blue, he will have his own fallacies, and he will make you very angry. Yan Shi didn't want the little princess to be angry with such people.
Xu Jing walked a few steps forward and walked to the door. Seeing that the door was opened a crack, he called Yan Shi softly. Yan Shi understood, and went there, Xu Jing showed Yan Shi the gap, and what he saw through the gap was the kitchen, he whispered, "Did you see that bucket of hot water on the ground?"
Yan Shi saw a wooden bucket on the ground, and the hot water in the bucket was steaming, and the lid of the big pot in the kitchen was still lifted, and there was also a pot of steaming hot water inside.
Xu Jing whispered: "The hot water has two uses, one is for giving birth to the mother, and the other is for drowning.
for newborn baby girl. As long as the baby is a girl, after the umbilical cord is cut, it will be thrown into the barrel and drowned. That hot boiling water..." Xu Jing didn't say anything more after talking here.