Chapter 2: Wanting to Sell the Granddaughter

It was at the very moment this wicked woman drew her last breath that Tong Huaqiong transmigrated into her body, reborn at the exact moment the woman was continuing her villainous ways.

That such a person could cause her to be reborn like this.

Tong Huaqiong felt that transmigrating into such an evil woman was a sign that Heaven was blind and had punished the wrong person.

Hadn't she simply refused a male classmate's confession before she transmigrated? Was it really necessary for Heaven to punish her so cruelly?

"Mother, are you alright?"

"Mother, I've been scared to death these past two days."

The two "wicked bamboos" beside her propped Tong Huaqiong up to sit, calling her "Mother" every other word in a way that grated on the ears.

Tong Huaqiong leaned against the pillow with a dark expression.

The young woman who had been protecting the little girl from being beaten—the daughter-in-law, Chen Sufen—walked into the room trembling, carrying a bowl of medicine.

"You're so slow even with a bowl of medicine. Do you want Mother to die?" Gu Dashu spoke without a single kind word the moment he opened his mouth.

The large, plump daughter, Gu Taohua, snatched the medicine bowl from Chen Sufen's hands and, without a word of explanation, poured it into Tong Huaqiong's mouth.

The medicine was so bitter that Tong Huaqiong's gaze grew even darker.

In Chen Sufen's eyes, this looked like the mother-in-law was about to fly into a rage.

Terrified, Chen Sufen fell to her knees by the bed, sobbing uncontrollably: "Mother, I shouldn't have pushed you. You can hit me or scold me, but I beg you, please don't send Man'er to the Zheng family. That is a pit of fire!"

Before Tong Huaqiong could even figure out how to react, the third generation of these wicked bamboos—the grandson Yaozu—entered the room clutching his granddaughter, Man'er.

Yaozu forced Man'er to kneel beside her mother, Chen Sufen. The little girl's tiny body was trembling, her face covered in tears.

*That old, dying, wicked woman!*

*She's simply inhuman!*

A six-year-old girl, as thin as a bean sprout, was actually being sold to the Zheng family to be a bride.

This matter all started with the Gu family's youngest son, Gu Jingzhe.

Gu Jingzhe possessed a certain talent for studying. In the recently concluded county exam, he had passed as a *tongsheng*. For the Gu family, who had been farming for eight generations, this was as if their ancestral graves had emitted auspicious smoke; it made Tong Dajiao boastful to no end.

Gu Jingzhe was also full of himself. Suddenly, he felt that the private school in town could no longer contain his "great koi" destiny, and he insisted on going to Wanliu Academy in the prefectural city to study.

The tuition at Wanliu Academy was not low, and the Gu family could not afford it.

Gu Jingzhe painted a grand picture for Tong Huaqiong: Wanliu Academy was renowned throughout the Great Yan Empire, and half the world's talents came from there. If he could study in such a place, setting aside the quality of the teachers, the seniors and juniors from Wanliu Academy would become a powerful network for him when he took the imperial examinations in the future.

Without connections in the imperial court, even if he became a top scholar, he might be assigned to a remote, harsh region. How could his dream of becoming a high-ranking official and earning a title for his mother be realized quickly without them?

Upon hearing this, Tong Dajiao slapped her thighs in excitement, declaring that since her son was so filial that he wanted to earn a title for his mother, he absolutely had to go to Wanliu Academy in the prefectural city.

Even if they didn't have the means, they would create them.

Tong Dajiao calculated the family assets. They couldn't sell the few mud houses—where would the family live? They couldn't sell the few acres of land—would they live on wind? The only things the family could sell were a pig, a flock of egg-laying chickens, and a dozen loads of grain, but even all of that combined wouldn't cover half a year's expenses for her son at Wanliu Academy!

Gu Jingzhe stated that raising the money wouldn't be difficult; they just needed to marry off his sister to earn a large dowry.

Tong Dajiao loved her daughter, but she loved her son even more. She was tempted by Gu Jingzhe's suggestion. However, Gu Taohua had a build like a stone pillar and a temper that exploded at a touch; even matchmakers would pay money just to avoid arranging a marriage for her.

Gu Jingzhe said this wasn't hard. If good families wouldn't look at Gu Taohua, then they would look at a lesser family. He had already looked into a suitable match: the eighteen-year-old son of Scholar Zheng in the county, who had contracted tuberculosis. The family was willing to pay a heavy price to marry someone off to "ward off the illness" through luck.

When Gu Taohua learned that her brother was targeting her to be married off to a consumptive man to bring luck, she chased Gu Jingzhe for two miles with a knife.

Tong Dajiao was unwilling to marry her daughter to a man with tuberculosis, so she turned her sights on Man'er.

She had originally planned to sell Man'er to a wealthy household as a maid once she was a few years older.

Now, sending Man'er to the Zheng family to ward off illness—wasn't that even better than selling her as a maid?

"Warding off illness" meant a marriage, and since the Zheng family was willing to spend money, the bride price alone would be enough to send Gu Jingzhe to Wanliu Academy.

Man'er was a bit young, but being young meant she was easy to manipulate.

The Zheng family quickly placed the order. Tong Dajiao took two hundred taels of silver, four pieces of gold, and various fabrics from the Zheng family, intending to shove Man'er over to them as quickly as possible.

Seeing her daughter about to enter a pit of fire, the usually submissive Chen Sufen finally found some backbone, blocking the door to prevent Man'er from leaving the Gu household.

Tong Dajiao slapped Chen Sufen twice across the face. For the sake of her daughter, Chen Sufen threw herself forward, slamming into her mother-in-law and knocking her against the doorframe.

Tong Dajiao was knocked unconscious immediately.

"Sister-in-law, don't be ungrateful. Man'er going to the Zheng family is a blessing from our ancestors. Once she goes there, she'll live a life of gold and silver, surrounded by servants. How is that a pit of fire? It's a nest of fortune!" Gu Taohua swept a cold gaze over her sister-in-law, Chen Sufen.

"Taohua is right, the Zheng family is a nest of fortune. Sister-in-law, where did you hear such nonsense about pits of fire? If it weren't for Jingzhe passing the exam, this marriage wouldn't have come to our Gu family. You're still complaining? If my Yaozu weren't a boy, how could Man'er have the chance to climb into such a good marriage?"

Gu Dashu glanced at his son, Yaozu; he truly regretted that Yaozu wasn't a girl.

Otherwise, he would be the father-in-law of the Zheng family's eldest son.

So what if the girl was young? So what if she became a widow after marrying?

She would still be living a life of luxury.

The sister-in-law was just being narrow-minded.

"Exactly, other people would love to marry in but can't," Gu Taohua chimed in.

What a pity!

If the Zheng family's eldest son didn't have tuberculosis and she wouldn't have to become a widow shortly after marrying, she would have clung to him no matter what.

What to do now?

Chen Sufen was blocking Man'er from going to the Zheng family; if the Zheng family got angry and called off the engagement, how would they settle it?

She didn't care about the future of her brother-in-law, the twin Gu Jingzhe; she cared that if things fell through and the Zheng family demanded the engagement gifts back, her new clothes were made from the fabric the Zheng family had already ordered.

She had even planned to use the gold from the engagement to make one necklace and two bracelets.

Because of her sister-in-law's outburst, the jewelry in her hands was about to fly away.

Chen Sufen took a breath. Her sister-in-law spoke so beautifully—if the Zheng family was such a nest of fortune, why didn't *she* marry into it?

She could only think this; she didn't dare say it. If she did, Man'er probably wouldn't even stay in the Gu house until tonight.

"Mother, Man'er must go to the Zheng family. Our family has already accepted their gifts. If Man'er doesn't go, I'll have to return these clothes, and I've already told the town's jewelry shop to prepare the gold for smithing in two days."

Gu Taohua's small mouth moved incessantly on her plump face, making the buzzing Tong Huaqiong's head ache.

"Furthermore, the Zheng family's steward has invited me to work as a manager at their shop, and Yaozu is to be a study companion for the Zheng family's youngest son. If anyone ruins the future of my branch of the family, I will settle the score with them!"

"This marriage cannot be canceled! Since Big Brother isn't home, I, as the uncle, will make the decision!"

Gu Dashu threatened Chen Sufen with a rogue's expression.

Chen Sufen held Man'er, who was kneeling beside her. The mother and daughter were pale, collapsing onto the floor in tears.

Tong Huaqiong wanted to slap both of these "wicked bamboos" in the face.

In a matter of life and death, one of these wicked ones only cared about clothes and jewelry, while the other only cared about her own and her son's future.

Unfortunately, she had just woken up, and she couldn't muster the strength to lift her hands.

She deeply regretted not transmigrating when these two were just born; she would have drowned them in their chamber pots without hesitation.

"Shut up!"

Tong Huaqiong mustered all her strength and roared.