How can someone travel through time and space and become a beggar?

Cuihua shuddered when she heard this and raised her hand to touch her face. How painful must that be?

Xia Chu frowned and sighed. For the sake of freedom, he'd disfigured himself. What a fiery temper! But Xia Chu admired him deeply. If he was good at growing flowers, perhaps he could be hired as a gardener at Yin Ge Garden. She'd initially considered Grandma Chang's son, but on second thought, that wasn't the right approach. Yin Ge Garden was populated entirely by women, and even though he was a gardener, it wouldn't be convenient for a man to come in and out.

"We're here." Grandma Chang stopped and saw a bamboo fence in front of her.

The courtyard was clearly visible. The front was small, with a vegetable patch on the left. There weren't many vegetables, but they were lush and green. On the other side was a chicken coop, and two hens were strolling leisurely in the yard, occasionally pecking at the ground.

The house wasn't big, with yellow mud walls and a thatched roof. A skinny child was squatting on the ground, holding a few stones in his hands, seemingly arranging some pattern.

"Zhuangzhuang, where is your mother?" Grandma Chang shouted towards the yard.

The little boy raised his head, revealing a fair little face, and saw that the group of them were so scared that they sat on the ground.

"Zhuangzhuang, don't be afraid. I'm Grandma Chang. Don't you remember me?" Grandma Chang smiled kindly. "Is your mother home?"

Zhuangzhuang looked at Grandma Chang and seemed to recognize her. He pointed to the backyard, then got up and ran to the back, "Mom, mom, Grandma Chang is looking for you."

"Here you come, run slower and don't fall." A gentle female voice sounded.

"So many people! So many people!" said Zhuangzhuang.

"Don't be afraid, it might be a guest brought by Grandma Chang." Madam Hua comforted.

Perhaps hearing the noise, a young man walked out of the room. He was tall and thin, like a bamboo pole. Seeing them, he showed a wary look, "Who are you?"

"Xiao Chong, this is a guest I brought here to buy flowers from your house, so you can't be impolite." Grandma Chang said.

Jiang Zhong was startled. Just then, the flower lady from the backyard emerged. She was equally frail, her hair neatly tied up. Her clothes, though patched, were cleanly starched. Her beautiful face was marred by a hideous, twisted scar on the left side.

"Aunt Chang is here. Is this young lady here to buy some flowers? Please come in." The flower lady put on her untied coat, revealing only a pair of warm eyes. She opened the fence gate and said, "The flowers are in the backyard. I'll bring them to your home if you choose them."

Xia Chu was startled. She'd thought it was just a gentle cut, a disfiguring sight. But seeing the scar, she knew how much effort Hua Niang had put into it. It wasn't even a scissor-width cut, but a twisted, almost chin-reaching cut. One could imagine her stabbing the scissors into her cheek and then slicing it down with force.

How painful would this be? Just imagining it made Xia Chu feel her heart tighten. She lowered her eyes and tried to maintain a normal expression. Fearing that showing surprise would offend others, she whispered, "Please lead the way." After that, she turned around and said to the two guards, "Don't come in, just wait outside."

"Yes." The two guards looked into the yard and saw only women and children. But to be cautious, they followed them around to the backyard.

The backyard was filled with flowers, not many varieties, not as many as those at Grandma Chang's house, but they were lush and flourishing, and indeed looked good.

Xia Chu walked around the flower field. She also grew flowers. Judging from their condition, she knew they were all healthy. She nodded and said, "I'll take them all."

"That's great, Madam Hua. Why don't you thank Miss Wang?" Grandma Chang poked the stunned Madam Hua.

Madam Hua quickly thanked her and looked at Grandma Chang with gratitude.

"Calculate the price and send it over together with Grandma Chang's." Xia Chu looked at it calmly. There was an old cart in the backyard. Clay flower pots were piled in a corner, but they were all neatly arranged.

Lady Hua was overjoyed. She knew all the flowers in the garden by heart, so she quoted a price immediately. Five pots of flowers were not included in the price, so they were considered as gifts from her.

"Pay the deposit first, and the final payment after the goods are delivered." The deposit is one-fifth, and this is also how Grandma Chang's family charges.

"No problem." Madam Hua happily took the money and sent the person to the door.

Xia Chu also gave Grandma Chang the money and told her the address of Yin Ge Garden, hoping that it would be delivered within ten days.

Grandma Chang naturally agreed without hesitation. It takes seven days for the fresh flowers to acclimate after being dug out, so they can definitely be delivered within ten days.

On the way back in the carriage, Cuihua couldn't help but frown and said, "Miss, that Hua Niang was really cruel to herself."

"If it weren't for this, as a widow with no adult male in her family, I don't know what she would have experienced." Xia Chu sighed, thinking of a case she had heard Wang Yong talk about.

There was once a widow who lived with only her mother-in-law and a daughter. In the middle of the night, someone broke into her house and bullied her. The man got the upper hand once and then climbed over the wall again and again.

The poor widow wanted to hang herself the first time, but seeing that her elderly mother-in-law and ignorant daughter survived, she naturally did not dare to tell anyone.

At first, she might not know who he was, after all, poor people don't light up their homes at night. But after seeing him many times, the widow finally realized that this man lived nearby! And he had a wife at home!

She had originally thought of marrying this man; it was better than being insulted for no apparent reason. But he already had a wife, so how could he marry her? That man was even worse than a beast. He had taken advantage of her and even brought his cronies with him!

An old man who couldn't even straighten his back, a little girl who was not even as tall as a man's thigh, and a skinny woman, no one could stop those three beasts.

After being insulted by everyone, the widow died in dishevel at the door of the first man who came to her house early the next morning.

This incident caused a lot of uproar at the time. After receiving the report, Wang Yong and his team arrested those beasts.

The old man couldn't bear the shock and fell ill. Perhaps knowing he would not survive, he crawled to the man's house and died at his doorstep.

The family was already ashamed to see people because of such a beast. Now it was even more miserable. People often threw feces at the door and yard, and pointed at their noses and scolded them when they left the house. Finally, they moved away in disgrace.

Because two people died, the people who committed the crime were sentenced to heavy penalties and exiled to the northwest.

"What about the widow's daughter?" Cuihua asked.

"She was taken away by a neighbor to be raised." Xia Chu didn't know whether the little girl knew what her mother and grandmother had been through. If she knew, she would probably never be able to get over it.

"Those people were not beheaded!" Cuihua said angrily.

"I think death is too easy for them. Living is torture." In ancient times, many exiles died on the road. Even if they arrived at the destination, they were still sinners and had to work to atone for their sins.