Reincarnation and Rebirth

After Lin Nanxing drove the carriage from Baicaoting back to the Su family home, he immediately returned to his own house.

When Old Lady Su heard that Su Wan'er had returned, she disregarded her still-painful arm and ran out on tiptoe. "You brat, why are you only coming back now? How much silver did you get?"

Su Wan'er gave her a cold look. "I've gotten some medicine for you and Mother. There are still over 70 coins left."

"So much? No, you damned little hussy, how much silver did it cost to get the medicine? Who told you to get medicine for your penniless mother?"

"Grandma, didn't we agree before we left that I would go with Grandpa Lin to collect herbs and exchange them for some money to buy medicine for Mom? Oh, Grandma means that you don't need to buy medicine for me, right? Okay, then I'll go back and return it now."

"You brat, when did I ever say you didn't need to get my medicine? Now you think you're all grown up and want to cause trouble, huh?"

Seeing that Grandma Su was about to start her usual tantrum again, Su Wan'er rolled her eyes and called out to the door, "Dad, Grandma said we don't need to get medicine for your mother."

Su Youlu came out of the room with a gloomy face. "Mother, how long are you going to make a scene? The child's mother is still lying on the kang and can't move. The child is filial and sensible. He knows that the family is short of money, so he went up the mountain to collect herbs to exchange for money. He didn't forget your share. Why are you still making a scene?"

These words made the old lady roll her eyes. She had been having a particularly bad time lately. Her husband had been gone for several days and hadn't come back. She felt a chill down her spine whenever she thought about her younger days. Now, Su Youlu had changed his obedient attitude from before, which made her feel like she was losing control.

"Youlu, how can you say that about your mother? I raised you brothers with my own hands, and now that I'm old, I can't even say a few words to your wife and children?"

Oh, so when the hard approach didn't work, they switched to playing the family card.

Seeing that Su Youlu's expression softened slightly, Su Wan'er immediately said, "Grandma, my father entrusted all the money to you for safekeeping because he was filial to you. But look at us, and then look at the children in my eldest uncle's and youngest uncle's families. Everyone has seen what happened. Let's not dwell on the past. Now that there's no income at home, I went up the mountain to collect herbs to exchange for some money to buy medicine for you all. Why are you still not satisfied? Do you really want to see all of us from the second branch of the family die before you're satisfied?"

“You brats, when did I ever say you were going to die? I…”

"That's enough, Mother. If you're satisfied, take the rest of the money and go back to your room to rest. If you're not satisfied, then let our second branch of the family live separately, so we won't get in your way."

Su Wan'er looked at Su Youlu, pondering the truth of his words—was he just being stubborn, or had he truly fallen out of love with the Su family elders?

The old lady naturally didn't want the second branch of the family to be separated. Su Youlu had been diligent since childhood and was an excellent worker. Although Wang Shi had no family of her own, she was hardworking and obedient, and could be beaten and scolded by the old lady. She was also easy to control. In addition, these few good-for-nothings could work and earn money. Separate them? She would be crazy to agree to that.

"Alright, alright, children grow up and become independent. I'm old, and you all despise me now," she said, walking up to Su Wan'er and snatching the copper coins away. "You'll come with me to gather herbs again tomorrow. Winter is coming soon, and we haven't prepared enough food for the family."

"Second son, your wife is feeling better after taking the medicine. Why don't you go for a walk in the mountains tomorrow?"

Su Youlu lowered his head and mumbled a reply, "I'll take my fourth brother with me tomorrow morning."

Su Youcai from the fourth branch had been listening intently. When he heard that Su Wan'er had earned money, he couldn't sit still and wanted to come out, but Xiang Shi held him back. Now that he heard that he also had to go to work, he became even more restless. Why should he have to do all the housework himself?

Xiang held him down tightly and whispered, "It's a good opportunity for you to watch and learn how to pick herbs." As she spoke, she secretly winked.

Su Youcai understood and said excitedly, "My wife is so smart."

That was the end of that matter.

Under the eaves, there were balms made by the Chen family. Old Man Chen wanted fifty yuan for them. The Chen family was in a hurry to sell them, so they didn't make them very carefully. They looked rough and uneven. But that had nothing to do with Su Wan'er. When she made them last time, they were all watching her closely and didn't miss any of the steps. So if something went wrong later, she couldn't be blamed.

The day passed peacefully until evening. Su Wan'er took the initiative to go to the kitchen to help cook. When it was late at night and everyone was asleep, Su Wan'er focused her mind and made sure that the Su family members were all in a deep sleep. She quickly took advantage of the remaining time to enter her space to cultivate.

In the bandit stronghold of Bayi Mountain, six or seven men sat in the council hall. The leader was a man in his early thirties, with a muscular build and a scar running diagonally across his face, giving him a menacing look.

"Boss, that old man still hasn't made the deal as agreed, and the young one is almost gone."

"No rush. The Zhu family only has this one son, so they probably won't let anything happen to him. Let's wait a bit longer. I heard that old geezer is injured and might not have woken up yet."

"Hmm, it seems there's more than one person who wants that secret manual, but it doesn't matter. That person said that as long as we handle this matter well, he will give us what we want," the leader said with a stern face.

"Second Brother, why aren't you saying anything?" A handsome man looked at the man below the chief with a grin. If Su Wan'er were here, she would definitely recognize him. Wasn't that Su Yang, who had disappeared from Suhe Village?

The one who asked the question was the third leader, and behind him stood the masked man, whose figure indicated that he was no longer young.

Su Yang felt uncomfortable being stared at by the masked man, so he looked over and asked, "Third brother, the person behind you seems to know me?"

The masked man behind her swayed, then straightened up, lowered his head, and seemed lost in thought.

The third leader glanced at the man behind him and then laughed, "Perhaps it's because Second Brother is handsome."

Su Yang's face darkened. He looked away and said to the leader, "Brother, as we agreed before, the original purpose of the Black Tiger Gang was to eliminate corrupt officials and restore peace and prosperity to Ziyun Kingdom."

The leader's eyes darkened. "Second brother, what do you mean?"

“I’ve heard that our brothers in the city have kidnapped a lot of innocent women. Brother, I’m afraid this is not a good idea.”

“Second brother, I don’t agree with what you’re saying. There are so many men in our village who are of marriageable age. You can’t just watch them die without descendants.” Another man, who was extremely ugly and missing a finger, said noncommittally. “Our brothers risk their lives for us. We can’t sacrifice their happiness.”

"But that's not what we said before."

"Alright," the chief slammed his hand on the table with authority, "Second brother, let it go this time. After all, the village is really in dire need of men, and they also need to continue their lineage. I promise you, I will treat those women well and try my best not to do such things in the future."

Su Yang lowered his head. Although he was still unhappy, his elder brother was right. There were mostly young men in the village at the moment, who were full of vigor. As long as they could treat the women well, he would turn a blind eye.