Divorced woman with child travels through time

Feeling exhausted, Chen Wenfang cooked wild boar meat directly. When Aunt Liu came in and chatted with Chen Wenfang, she noticed that Chen Wenfang was in a low mood.

Aunt Liu asked, "Fang'er, what's wrong?"

Chen Wenfang remained silent, unsure of what to say. After Aunt Liu pressed her repeatedly, Chen Wenfang went to the stove, nestled in her arms, and sobbed softly, recounting what had happened that day.

Aunt Liu wiped away her tears and hugged her, comforting her, "They're all heartless bastards. It's good that you're alright. It's good that you're alright. Give him the money, give him the silver, it's good that you're alright. I'll go to the government office to report this tomorrow. Why is our Fang'er so unlucky? Let's go pray to the Buddha later to get rid of the bad luck."

After crying for a while, Chen Wenfang gradually calmed down. She said, "I'll go with Erniu tomorrow. You stay home and look after the children for me. I need to exchange some money to buy some things."

Aunt Liu nodded and said, "Okay, don't worry, I will definitely keep an eye on them."

Chen Wenfang composed herself and continued cooking. She cut off a quarter of the pork, salted the rest to make cured pork, and then made soup with the pork liver. She braised the large intestine and made a braised pork hock and braised pork belly. She also braised these thick slices of meat with dried eggplant to make a steamed pork belly dish. She also made a soup for a dish called "pig butcher's stew".

Rabbit is also especially delicious, and Chen Wenfang used a lot of spices. She made a cold-served rabbit dish, and even added a few very precious chili peppers.

The staple food was still steamed buns; since there were so many people, four batches were steamed. Two tables were set up for the meal, and it was quite lively.

Wang Erniu didn't tell Uncle Liu about Chen Wenfang, as it wasn't appropriate for a man like him to discuss such matters. He figured Chen Wenfang would probably tell Aunt Liu. At the dinner table, everyone was in a good mood. After crying, Chen Wenfang seemed a little better. It was hard to tell what was wrong, but Aunt Liu wasn't very happy and had a poor appetite. Uncle Liu wanted to ask, but kept quiet because there were so many people around.

After finishing her meal, Chen Wenfang took another piece of meat and gave it to Aunt Liu to take home. She then returned to the inner room, intending to finish making the jacket. Seeing that Chen Wenfang wasn't in a good mood, Wang Erniu took the children to the wasteland and taught them to pull weeds and collect stones. They planned to turn the land over during winter so that next year they could plant crops on it all.

As soon as they left Chen Wenfang's house, Uncle Liu Hai asked Aunt Liu, "What's wrong? Why did you look so pale?" Shi Tou and Da Zhuang, who were standing nearby, also looked at her. Aunt Liu looked at the children and said, "Nothing, my stomach is a little upset." Seeing her expression, Uncle Liu Hai figured there were some things he couldn't say in front of the children, so he didn't press further, only asking, "Are you feeling better now?" Aunt Liu replied impatiently, "I'm fine now!" and hurried home.

That night, when they went to bed, Aunt Liu told Uncle Liu about what had happened. Uncle Liu got furious after hearing it and said, "These heartless bastards, aren't they just bullying these orphans and widows?"

Aunt Liu felt sad too, and wiped away her tears, saying, "Who says it isn't true? She really has a hard life, why does she always have to get into these kinds of troubles?"

Uncle Liu Hai said, "The children are still too young. It would be better if she had a man. At least there wouldn't be so many problems in public. Do you think Wang Erniu could marry her?"

Aunt Liu stopped crying. "You're right, Dad. I'll sound Erniu out later."

Uncle Liu Hai nodded, and the matter was dropped.

Early the next morning, Aunt Liu brought Shitou over. Cheng Wenfang prepared breakfast for them, took a few steamed buns with her, and set off with Wang Erniu to the town.

Along the way, it was clear that Wang Erniu really wanted to chat with Chen Wenfang, but after several attempts, all he could say was, "Chen Niangzi, are you full?" "Do you want more? I haven't eaten my steamed bun yet, do you want some of mine?" He wouldn't talk about these things anymore.

Chen Wenfang found it somewhat amusing, so she initiated a conversation with him. She asked, "Brother Aniu, how did your wife get lost?"

Wang Erniu pondered, "Ahao was born just over three months ago. We went to the market once, and in the crowded market, she disappeared in a flash. We searched every street in the market, but couldn't find her. I haven't been able to find her since. For the past three years, whenever I hear news of her, I take Ahao and go to check, but I can't find her, no matter what I do. It's like she's hiding." Wang Erniu smiled bitterly and said, "The ridiculous thing is, I don't even know how she disappeared."

Chen Wenfang sighed and asked, "Should we still look for it now?"

Wang Erniu said, "I'm not looking anymore! I decided to stop looking after I came back this year. It's been three years, and I've searched all over this southern land, but I still can't find it. I guess I can't find it anymore. Ahao has suffered a lot with me, and we have nothing at home. I have to think about my child. I need to cultivate the land and live a good life in the future."

Chen Wenfang nodded, then changed the subject, saying, "Brother Erniu, what kind of prey do you see in this forest?"

When Wang Erniu started talking about this, he became very enthusiastic, listing them off as if they were his own treasures: "There are quite a lot of things, basically wild boars, rabbits, deer, squirrels, wolves, bears, and even big insects. But you still have to be careful and not walk alone on mountain paths." As he spoke, Wang Erniu was confident and enthusiastic, as if he were shining.

As Chen Wenfang looked at him, she smiled and said, "I've never eaten venison before. Is venison delicious? Can it be made into jerky?"

Wang Erniu chuckled and said, "They're all about the same. I can't really tell the difference, and I don't know how to cook them. If you made them, they would definitely be delicious. The wild boar meat you stewed yesterday was especially delicious. I'll hunt a deer for you to try later."

Chen Wenfang smiled and said, "Okay." The two chatted and laughed as they walked to Lijia Town.

The two then went directly to the county government office. Chen Wenfang told the yamen runner at the gate, "I'm looking for Lord Ma Liu, please inform him."

The yamen runner quickly went in to report, and just then Ma Liu, who was in the county yamen on official business, came out to see her.

After exchanging greetings, Chen Wenfang recounted the events to Ma Liu, emphasizing the appearance of the two men.

She recounted in detail how she had faked urinary incontinence to escape danger, proving that these two people were capable of murder for money, and more importantly, of killing someone. After all, in ancient times, if a woman was violated, it was no different from being dead. Chen Wenfang had the mindset of a modern person, and having lived two lives, her mental state was naturally quite strong.

Wang Erniu listened from the side, feeling a great sense of relief. He had actually been hesitant to ask her about that kind of thing, afraid of hurting her feelings, and besides, it wasn't appropriate for a man like himself to ask. Now it seemed that Madam Chen was truly an extremely intelligent woman.

After hearing this, Ma Liu was also very impressed. Madam Chen was truly an extraordinary woman, so clever, to have thought of such a way to escape this predicament. Ma Liu immediately said, "Madam Chen, don't worry, I won't tell anyone about your situation. These two people will definitely be caught, you can rest assured." After all, this matter concerned Chen Wenfang's reputation, and Ma Liu certainly wanted to give her a guarantee.

Chen Wenfang nodded, thanked Ma Liu, and then said goodbye to him along with Wang Erniu.