The Cold-Hearted Princess Who Transmigrated Here

At this moment, people downstairs were eating. Twenty or thirty people were gathered around a long rectangular table. There were four rows of tables in total, and it looked like there were more than a hundred people. Each person had half a bowl of mixed grain porridge, which contained green wild vegetables and some coarse grains.

The bowls, chopsticks, tables, chairs, and benches were all simple and rough wooden products.

They are mostly elderly, with very few young people and children, and even few middle-aged men and women.

Their clothing was mainly made of cotton and linen, and it was worn and old. In particular, many elderly people wore clothes with new patches on top of old patches. Some of the patches were of different colors, and the original appearance of the clothes could no longer be seen.

"The kid Uncle Ming brought back today looks pretty good; everyone's going to want him."

"Yeah, yeah, I wonder who will benefit in the end."

"Don't try to take it from me later!"

"Pfft, there are so many people, do you think you can even get one?"

……

What do you mean?

Did they go to such lengths to bring Mingzhe here just to use him as a tool that everyone is vying for?

Wang Xiyue's aura turned several degrees colder. If these people hadn't seemed less vicious, she would have gone on a killing spree.

She had just checked from several different angles but couldn't find Mingzhe. Clearly, he was being held in solitary confinement elsewhere.

Judging from their conversation, could they be planning something to do to Mingzhe? He's her man, how can she let someone else take him away?

She had promised to protect him, and she lost him in just one day; it was simply unacceptable.

She leaned close to Shadow's ear and whispered, "Shadow, you stay here and keep watch. I'll go find Mingzhe elsewhere."

Dongfang Yu's ears were instantly brushed by a warm breath, and a tingling sensation ran through his body. "..."

Turning his head to meet Xiyue's anxious expression, he regained his composure. "No, I'll go. My lightness skill is better."

He didn't want her to go into danger alone.

Wang Xiyue looked up at the gentle yet dark-eyed shadow, ignoring the other features. If she only looked at the eyes, she suddenly felt like she was facing Xiao Ge.

Before she could even confirm it, Shadow used the momentum to leap out of the window and was gone in the blink of an eye.

She shook her head, forcefully banishing all the distracting thoughts from her mind.

After regaining her senses, she once again marveled at Shadow's unpredictable lightness skill; her own martial arts were truly no match for the group of experts from the Prince Xian's Mansion.

It's not just her brother who needs to improve; she needs to grow as well.

After a while, Wang Xiyue saw that many people downstairs had finished eating, but were still sitting and waiting.

Inside the room, there was a separate high seat where a young man in his thirties sat, looking like a leader.

This man was quite burly, with a full beard, and his clothes looked the best among the group, being relatively new and without a single patch. He exuded a menacing aura and was the only one who most resembled a bandit.

Seeing that everyone had almost finished eating, Li Xiong stood up and waved his hand to silence the crowd. He then announced, "Uncle Ming brought a boy back today. He's about fourteen or fifteen years old and in good health."

"Now, you can share your thoughts."

Li Xiuhua was the first to know the news, since she happened to see Uncle Ming bringing his men back today.

So she had already made her family finish eating quickly, waiting for this moment. "Chief, this child is the same age as my Meihua, you can give her to our family."

When Liu Meihua heard her mother speak so eagerly, she felt both anticipation and inferiority, after all, she was not very good-looking.

She also saw the little beggar from out of town. Although he was very aloof, he was really good-looking. He was the kind of good-looking that made people reluctant to look away, afraid to get close yet unable to resist wanting to approach him.

At this moment, a man who looked to be in his forties or fifties hurriedly interjected, "Chief, our Lanhua is almost eighteen years old. If she isn't given to us as a son-in-law soon, she'll be an old maid."

A villager nearby jokingly chimed in, "Old Cai, do you still want your daughter to date a much younger man?"

"Aren't you ashamed?"

Uncle Cai rolled his eyes and retorted, "A woman three years older than you is like a gold brick in your heart, don't you know that?"

A village woman hurriedly chimed in, "My daughter is eight years old, the perfect age match for him. Chieftain, it would be most appropriate for you to give him to our family."

"The two grew up together since childhood, they are childhood sweethearts, they will definitely have a deep marital relationship in the future, and they will definitely have many children and grandchildren."

An old man, probably in his sixties or seventies, also voiced his opinion: "Chief, give me the children to be your sons. I live alone and am getting old. I need someone to take care of me in my old age."

Li Xiuhua, who was the first to speak, was furious when she saw her silent husband and daughter, who weren't saying a word in her defense.

She was clearly doing it for the good of the family, but the way the father and daughter were behaving so strangely made it seem like she was trying to take it for herself.

One villager chimed in, "Chief, why don't we let the families who want them draw lots?"

"Wouldn't it be better if fate were determined by heaven? That way, no one would dare to object."

Li Xiuhua was actually an outsider. She was originally going to be sold to a brothel by her parents to raise money. Because there were many sisters in the family, the daughters could be bought and sold at will.

She had heard that the brothel was a haunted house, which is why she desperately escaped into the deep mountains and forests before being sold.

She thought she would be eaten by wild animals, but she happened to meet her current husband. He treats her very well. However, life in the mountains is very hard and she cannot go out. She is unwilling to be trapped here for the rest of her life, but she can't change anything.

Over the years, she has given birth to a daughter and a son, but even in despair, she still hopes that her life can be different.

With the battle for her son-in-law so fierce and her family not helping her, she probably doesn't stand a chance. Faced with her husband's silence, she felt wronged and sad, and finally decided to give up and let fate decide.

Li Xiong raised both hands to signal everyone to sit down, "Everyone, please be quiet."

"Then let's decide where this child goes by drawing lots!"

"Whoever's family I draw next, that's where the child will go."

Upon receiving a signal from his boss, Li Can, the deputy, immediately began preparations: "Which companies need people? Come and sign up quickly."

After a flurry of activity, Li Can wrote the corresponding names on ten small wooden pieces with charcoal, and then put them all into a wooden box about one foot square.

Wang Xiyue saw that the chieftain, in order to show fairness and impartiality, deliberately lifted the box and shook it left and right and up and down many times.

Unfortunately, all their efforts were in vain.

Without the consent of the party in question, no matter how fair the matter may seem, it cannot conceal the fact that it is essentially a form of confinement and deception.

And no matter who they draw, she won't agree.

Since Mingzhe hasn't been found yet, she'll just treat this as watching a boring game.

The villagers held their breath, waiting for the village chief to pull out the wood chips.

The results came out quickly.

“Cai Dayou”.

As the chieftain's announcement ended.

Cai Dayou was so happy that he danced with joy, "Hahaha... Look how lucky I am today! I always say that a woman three years older than a man brings good fortune, and this has come true!"

Many villagers immediately shouted, "Congratulations, Old Cai! We're also celebrating the addition of another bloodline to our village!"

"In two more years, when the child is a little older, he can get married, and your family will have a new member."

"congratulations!"

……

Seeing such unrealistic congratulations, Wang Xiyue felt sorry for them.

Mingzhe is at most sixteen years old now. Even if they are in a hurry to get married, they should wait a year or two. Aren't they afraid that he will run away during this time?

Are they so sure that Mingzhe will obediently marry that stranger?

Wang Xiyue wasn't the only one with this idea; Li Xiong thought the same way.

That little beggar seemed very smart and opinionated. The reason he came back with them was probably because he had nowhere else to go for the time being.

If he discovers that they are forcing him to marry, he will definitely resist, and it is very likely that they will fight to the death.

No man with any sense of decency would allow others to dictate his life, especially when it comes to such a life-altering event as marriage.

He himself is a rebellious person who doesn't believe in fate. Judging others by his own standards, how could he possibly allow such a difficult thing to happen?

But this village has an unbreakable connection with him, and he is now in a dilemma.

Li Xiong frowned almost imperceptibly. He could only take things one step at a time, and all he could do was try to prevent innocent people from hurting each other.

"Alright, that's enough about that. Now let's discuss who will go hunting tomorrow."

The crowd, which had been excited moments before, suddenly fell silent again. This time, the silence wasn't because the chieftain wanted them to be quiet, but because the event itself forced them to calm down.

Li Xiong knew that hunting was always a heavy topic, but he had to mention it because a collective hunt had to be held every month so that the people here could survive.

Hunting large animals in the forest is bound to be dangerous, and there's no guarantee of success each time you go out, but the danger never diminishes.

If the arrival of a new family member is a joyous occasion, then this hunting trip is comparable to a funeral.

After all, every month's hunts always results in injuries, and in worse situations, some people may even lose their lives and never return.

They have no fixed income here; they can only exchange hunting or selling wild mountain products for coarse grains.

The village has a large population, and most of the residents are older, with few able-bodied young people. Li Xiong has already gone to great lengths to support everyone, and with people dying from time to time, the hunting has become increasingly difficult over the years.

That's why he often had to send his trusted men to the city disguised as beggars to secretly find orphans or homeless young men and women to bring back, so as to supplement the labor force and leave some hope for the village to continue its lineage.

Wang Xiyue clearly sensed the sudden shift in the atmosphere downstairs.

These people are not bad people; their thinking is too simplistic and rigid due to long-term isolation.

It is indeed quite difficult to fundamentally change them.

They have always lived a hard and simple life, perhaps because they don't want to leave, or perhaps because they can't escape.

At this moment, many of them had faces filled with sorrow and helplessness, especially the older ones.

Perhaps they only have some hope in their dreams!

This is a place filled with decay and despair.

Li Xiong was used to everyone's reactions and continued to shout coldly and indifferently.

"We're going with six people tomorrow. Besides me and Li Can, we need four more."

"Uncle Liu and Uncle Cai, it's your turn this time."

"We're still short two people. Are there any volunteers?"

No one in the crowd spoke; the fear of death is an animal instinct, and it includes humans.

It is human nature to avoid danger.

Upon hearing her husband's name, Li Xiuhua was overcome with grief. Her resentment and disappointment towards him were now replaced by heartbreak and despair. Faced with the cruel reality, all she could do was cry.

Uncle Liu looked at his wife, who was sobbing softly beside him, and felt helpless. He simply patted her shoulder and offered a dry word of comfort: "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

And you and the children are waiting for me at home. I won't die.

I haven't given you a good life yet, I won't die.

I also want to take you and the children to stroll along that legendary, most bustling street.

Eat whatever you want, buy whatever you want.

……

These were wishes that Uncle Liu could not tell his wife.

He knew he had almost no chance of doing it in his lifetime, so he never told anyone, only occasionally dreaming at night about fulfilling his wife and children's wishes.

Seeing no one respond, Li Xiong continued to give the order with a blank expression: "Then let's do it the same as before, draw lots!"

Li Can understood, and wrote down the names of all the able-bodied young men in the village who were still able to hunt on a small pile of wooden pieces.

There are only eight people to choose from in total.

It's unknown which two people will suffer this tragic fate.

Seeing this lifeless scene, Wang Xiyue was no longer indifferent as she had initially been.

She now feels more sympathy and pity; her previous spectator mentality has long since changed.

She originally only wanted to save Mingzhe, but now, looking at these people with no future, she couldn't remain indifferent.

A person's life should not be meaningless.

As soon as Dongfang Yu returned, he saw Xiyue's solemn expression and hurriedly asked with concern, "What happened?"

Wang Xiyue asked in surprise, "Why did you take so long?"

Where is Mingzhe?

Almost half an hour has passed. Even if there are thirty or forty wooden houses here, and he had to check each one, it shouldn't have taken this long given his abilities.

Besides, the two of them had already checked most of the house when they arrived and found nothing unusual.

Dongfang Yu felt very wronged. After working so hard for so long, Xiyue didn't care whether she was tired or not, but only cared about that brat's safety.

He answered dejectedly, head bowed: "Mingzhe is fine. I've already taken him out and handed him over to Moyun and the others. They're probably on their way down the mountain now."

Looking at An Ying's pitiful appearance, Wang Xiyue felt that her attitude might have been a bit too harsh.

She realized she had gone too far with her words, so she reached out and pinched his sleeve, shaking it a couple of times, and softened her voice, "Um, I'm very sorry, I was just in a hurry, I didn't mean to criticize you."

"Hey, don't be angry, let's leave quickly!"

Seeing that her act of feigning helplessness had succeeded, Dongfang Yu was no longer angry. "Okay, let's go!"

He instantly reached out and grabbed the person next to him around the waist, giving her no chance to escape.

He grabbed her waist, leaped out of the window, and landed—all in one fluid motion.

By the time Wang Xiyue reacted, she was already on the ground. Shadow didn't give her a chance to speak, and once again grabbed her hand and used his light-footed skills to move and shift, the two of them flying through the gaps between the wooden houses like birds.

In the blink of an eye, the two had already left the back gate of the village.

Wang Xiyue looked at the shadow that had suddenly stopped, puzzled. "What's wrong?"

Dongfang Yu turned his head to ask for instructions, "Should this restriction be restored to its original state?"

Wang Xiyue immediately shook her head: "I will come to this place again. It would be too troublesome to solve the puzzle every time I come."

Dongfang Yu didn't ask why he had to come back. He simply replied "okay" and took Xiyue's hand again, preparing to leave.

Wang Xiyue pulled An Ying back, "Wait."

“There are countless wild animals in the mountains, so I need to take some precautions.”

She scattered all the animal-repelling medicine she had on her at the back gate of the village. The area was a bit too large, so she didn't have enough medicine and had to sprinkle another circle of strong sedative medicine around the outer edge of the pool.

By the time Wang Xiyue finished doing all this, it was already past 7 PM. If they didn't leave soon, it would be completely dark, and traveling through the mountains at night was not a good idea.

So Dongfang Yu didn't hold back at all and used his internal energy to rush down the mountain with Xiyue at full speed.