Chapter 18 – The Little Concubine-born Girl Enters the Town

“Big brother left already?”

Wei Ci had just gotten out of bed, her long hair falling loosely down her back. Dressed in a light pink cotton nightgown that swayed with the breeze, she stood there, gazing at her second brother with eyes full of grievance, looking as if she were on the verge of tears.

Wei Qingfeng’s scalp went numb, and he immediately raised his hands in surrender:
“Don’t cry! It really wasn’t on purpose that we didn’t tell you. They left at two in the morning. You had just fallen asleep not long before that, and big brother couldn’t bear to wake you up.”

Wei Ci instantly dropped her sad expression.
“You should’ve said so earlier.”

After saying that, she turned, ready to drift back to her room and continue sleeping. But in the next moment, she was grabbed by the back of her collar like fate itself pinching her neck. Before she could protest, Wei Qingfeng’s tempting voice sounded beside her ear:
“Ah Ci, want to go to the county town? I heard the supply and marketing cooperative has lots of good stuff.”

Wei Ci froze mid-struggle. County town? The supply and marketing cooperative?

Her mind squeezed out fragments of memory, bit by bit, like toothpaste being forced from the tube. She nodded eagerly and raised her hand to signal that she wanted to go.

The last time she had just transmigrated, she escaped from human traffickers, and when she came back from the county town she had no mood to look around. But now she had money and ration coupons in hand—of course, she ought to take a proper stroll.

When the siblings hurried to the village entrance, a tractor was quietly parked there. In the trailer sat four or five women with their heads wrapped in kerchiefs, their bodies thin and sallow-faced. Among them was Third Aunt Wei.

After just a few days, she looked even darker and thinner. Her head was wrapped thickly in gauze, and the features that once carried a hint of prettiness now looked sharp and mean. When her eyes landed on the siblings, they seemed to drip poison.

Wei Ci’s eyes rolled slyly. Pretending not to notice Third Aunt Wei’s expression, she put on her sweetest smile, bringing her rosy little face close:
“Third Aunt, in just a few days you’ve really become such a burden to the people and a drain on resources.”

Everyone: ? What does that mean?

Wei Ci’s head was pressed down, and behind her came Wei Qingfeng’s deliberately reproachful voice:
“Don’t say things people can’t understand. Third Aunt, sorry—what Ah Ci meant was, in just a few days, how come you’ve become so old and ugly?”

“Pfft—!”

The others couldn’t hold back their laughter. Though they quickly stifled it when they saw Third Aunt Wei’s darkening face, their shoulders still shook uncontrollably as they tried to hold it in.

“You ill-bred little wretch!”

These past two days, after being tormented badly by Wei Qingshan, Third Aunt Wei didn’t even dare curse too loudly. She could only grit her teeth and curse the eldest branch’s three brats bloody in her heart.

“Qingfeng, you’re taking your little sister into town?”

Among the group, the only plump-faced woman with short ear-length hair and bangs tied up with red yarn stretched out a hand to pull Wei Ci into the tractor:
“Come sit beside me. I’ve padded the seat with fertilizer sacks—it’s softer.”

Still smiling sweetly after her roundabout insult, Wei Ci nodded without hesitation. She plopped down and even waved for her brother to come sit.

Wei Qingfeng shook his head and thanked the woman politely:
“Thank you for looking after Ah Ci, Aunt Hua. I’ll sit up front.”

He patted Wei Ci on the head, his eyes signaling her to behave, then climbed onto the tractor seat beside the driver. From the look of it, the two seemed to know each other quite well.

The women in the trailer all turned their eyes on Wei Ci, scrutinizing her openly or covertly, their gazes meaningful. The eldest branch’s daughter of the Wei family had been dull-witted for over ten years. People had said she suddenly recovered overnight, and most thought it was a lie.

But now, seeing her clear eyes and every movement more graceful than the girls in town, they couldn’t help but click their tongues.

“So a fool really can turn normal again?”

Hearing this muttered remark, Wei Ci’s bright eyes shifted over—meeting directly the assessing gaze of the woman opposite her.

Wei Ci pursed her lips into a smile.
“Even monkeys can cultivate into spirits—why shouldn’t I be able to return to normal?”

The aunt sitting across from her froze, clearly not understanding.
Monkey? Who? The Monkey King?

Aunt Hua burst into laughter, patting Wei Ci’s hand. This child is really sharp-tongued—she’s mastered the art of cursing people in circles.

The truth was, the woman across from them really did look monkey-like: a sharp mouth, sunken cheeks, skin dark and thin, with a protruding jaw. At first glance, she did resemble a monkey.

Wei Ci looked innocent—she hadn’t said anything at all.

“If your parents could see that you’ve recovered, just imagine how happy they’d be…”

Her sigh was drowned out by the tractor’s putt-putt-putt. From the front came a gruff voice:
“Everyone hold on tight! The tractor’s moving. The road’s rough—if you fall off, don’t blame me!”

At first, Wei Ci didn’t think much of it. But after half an hour, her legs were numb, her rear aching miserably, and her stomach felt like it was turning inside out. Her little face went pale.

Why could she handle ox carts, horse carts, donkey carts—but not this tin can of a tractor?

She secretly gulped down several mouthfuls of spiritual spring water before finally calming her churning insides.

“How are you? You didn’t throw up, did you?”

Aunt Hua held her worriedly. She knew how awful motion sickness felt. The first time she rode a tractor, she nearly vomited up the food from the night before. Ah Ci was doing well—at least she hadn’t thrown up.

Wei Ci drooped weakly against the sidewall, eyes rimmed red, tears brimming as she looked pitifully toward her brother.

“Aunt Hua, I’m fine. You go take care of your business—my brother’s here.”

Aunt Hua hadn’t come to town for fun. She was here to buy fertilizer for the village, and if she delayed, the brigade leader would scold her.

Bidding the others farewell, Wei Qingfeng led his little sister toward the supply and marketing cooperative. From their backs, not a trace of her earlier discomfort could be seen—only lighthearted cheer.

In a shadowy alley, two men smoked as their eyes locked onto the siblings. Their stubbled faces were filled with malice.

“Old Seventh, is that the pair that woman told us about?”

One stubbed out his cigarette, lifting his chin to signal toward the striking brother and sister.

The man called Old Seventh raised his head. His venomous eyes, sharp like a viper’s, fixed on the smiling, radiant pair. His tongue pressed against his cheek, savoring an imagined taste of blood. With a cold laugh, his hoarse voice slithered out like a snake’s hiss:

“That’s them. Didn’t you hear everyone in the cart calling them Wei Ci and Wei Qingfeng?”

Judging from this, the girl was indeed the culprit who had caused his elder brother’s arrest. The boy must be the one that woman described—Wei Ci’s brother, Wei Qingfeng.

Originally, they thought they would have to make a special trip to capture them. Who would’ve thought the two would boldly stroll into town on their own? Such a perfect opportunity.

“Spread the word to the others. Tell them we’ve found the woman who got our brothers caught. Find a way to grab her and her brother. Do whatever you like with the girl once you get her. As for the boy—cripple him, dump him with the beggar gang, and let those bastards break his limbs so he’ll have to beg for food!”

The thought of his elder brother being sentenced to death made Old Seventh’s eyes blaze with fury, red-rimmed with rage.

Who would’ve thought that seasoned hunters like them would end up pecked blind by a sparrow? Most of their brothers had already been taken down. If they hadn’t slipped away along another route, they’d have shared the same fate. How could they possibly let the true culprit go free?

Biting down hard on his cigarette, Old Seventh gave a venomous grin.

Don’t blame us—blame your precious cousin. If not for her, how else would we have found out what was going on inside the police station?