Chapter 8: Malicious Intentions

So Luo Qiao quickly left the space, planning to come back and explore properly at night.

When it got dark, Lu Yichen returned. He knocked on the door and handed Luo Qiao a household registration booklet. Luo Qiao took it with surprise and said, “Thank you. I didn’t expect it to be processed so quickly.”

Little did Luo Qiao know, obtaining this household registration was not easy, especially since she was a minor seeking independent registration. Lu Yichen had used his connections to expedite the process for her.

Lu Yichen didn’t know why he felt the urge to help her get it done sooner, but he feared delays might lead to unforeseen complications.

Luckily, Lu Yichen had taken care of the matter himself in the afternoon. If they had waited for the village chief to find time, it might have taken ages.

Lu Yichen continued, “Tomorrow, someone from the village will help you organize things at the Youth Courtyard. If you’re feeling better, you can go pick which room you want to live in.”

Gratefully, Luo Qiao replied, “Thank you, Big Brother Lu.”

Just as they finished speaking, they heard someone entering. Lu Yichen said, “Auntie Gao is here.”

Introducing her to Luo Qiao, Lu Yichen said, “This is Auntie Gao from the village chief’s family. She has been taking care of you all this time.”

Luo Qiao expressed her gratitude, “Auntie, I’m sorry to have caused you trouble.”

Meanwhile, at the Zhao family’s home, Zhao Pulin’s elder brother, Zhao Changlin, his sister-in-law, Liu Fang, his younger sister, Zhao Chunli, and her husband, Jia Mingshan, were discussing Luo Qiao’s situation.

Zhao Changlin said, “This is a big matter. Why did you make a decision without discussing it first? Yesterday, in front of the whole village, you accepted money from the Luo family and promised to take care of Luo Qiao. Now overnight, everything has changed. The entire village knows you don’t acknowledge Luo Qiao. If one day the Luo family comes back to see Luo Qiao, how will you explain yourselves?”

Gao Suhua replied, “Big Brother, if the Luo family valued her, they wouldn’t have left her in the village. We already have six daughters in our family. We truly can’t afford to raise one more.”

Zhao Chunli said, “Second Sister-in-law, is Luo Qiao really not our Zhao family’s child?”

Gao Suhua replied, “Indeed. At that time, I had a miscarriage due to complications, and the child was very weak. Besides, knowing it was another girl, I didn’t have the heart to care for her, so she couldn’t survive.

Your second brother had gone back to the village to borrow a cart to fetch us. Coincidentally, the couple in the same hospital room abandoned Luo Qiao. I thought, if all else failed, we could raise her.

But unexpectedly, before I could discuss it with your brother, the Luo family proposed swapping daughters since they wanted a girl.”

Zhao Chunli asked, “So, the Luo family doesn’t know that Luo Qiao isn’t our Zhao family’s daughter?”

Gao Suhua affirmed, “Yes, they don’t know.”

Zhao Chunli continued, “Second Sister-in-law, are you confused? Luo Qiao is already fifteen. If we raise her for another two or three years, we could marry her off to someone. A girl this age can also help with household chores.”

Gao Suhua responded, “Forget it. Haven’t you seen that she’s as thin as a bamboo pole? And she lost so much blood yesterday, nearly didn’t make it. The doctor said she’s very frail and even if she recovers, she can’t do any heavy work.

Luckily, the doctor said it’s best for her not to move after injuring her head yesterday, so we didn’t bring her home. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have been so easy to handle.”

Zhao Chunli thought her sister-in-law was a bit simple-minded and couldn’t understand the situation clearly.

Glancing at her elder brother and sister-in-law in the room, Zhao Chunli whispered, “Second Sister-in-law, let me tell you, there’s a family in Beipo Village looking for a wife for their son who broke his leg. They’re offering fifty yuan. If you bring her back and take care of her for a few days, you could earn fifty yuan.”

Gao Suhua was intrigued and looked at her husband sitting beside her, then asked her younger sister-in-law, “Is it true?”

Zhao Chunli replied somewhat displeased, “How could it be false? I heard about it just a few days ago. They really want an obedient girl who can take good care of their son.”