The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

"Yaozu, Man'er, you mustn't put out the traps, or you'll get your hands caught."

When Tong Huaqiong saw Man'er and Yaozu arrive at the wasteland with animal traps and discuss how to set them, she quickly stopped them.

Liu Tielian was skilled at setting animal traps. He walked over and took the trap from Man'er's hand.

Man'er and Yaozu were discussing whether to braise or stew the wild rabbit they caught.

He Chao and Boss Qian stood amidst the vines and weeds, discussing how to build the house, how to construct the yard, and how to open the gate.
Everyone was busy with their own things, and no one paid attention to the Hong family except for Tong Huaqiong.

Standing beside Tong Huaqiong, Hong noticed that she hadn't uttered a word since arriving in the wasteland, her eyes fixed on a crooked tree in the middle of the wasteland.

Tong Huaqiong thought she was frightened.

After all, Liu Tielian had just pointed to that crooked-necked tree and said that a family from Shengjing had been hanged by the rebels under that tree, and that when Boss Qian and He Chao performed the rites of deliverance, they should focus on giving a proper rite of deliverance to that family who died unjustly.

Not to mention that Mrs. Hong was frightened, even Tong Huaqiong felt a chill.

At this point, she even wondered if He Chao and Boss Qian were out of their minds to buy this land.

It made her want to move.

Tong Huaqiong asked Hong Shi with concern, "Sister Hong, what do you think of this place? If you don't like it, we can look at other homesteads."

Anyway, there are other homesteads in the village, it just costs some money.

Mrs. Hong smiled and said, "It's nothing. I think it's quite nice here."

Tong Huaqiong felt that her smile was very forced.

Suddenly, a plump wild rabbit darted out of the bushes and darted past Hong Shi, diving headfirst into the animal trap. Hong Shi screamed in fright and almost fell over.

Tong Huaqiong, who was standing to the side, steadily supported her.

"What's wrong?" He Chao asked nervously.

"A rabbit just darted out and startled Sister Hong," Tong Huaqiong said.

Hong coughed a few times, and his face turned pale.

Tong Huaqiong said, "Why don't we go back? It's a bit windy here."

Madam Hong shook her head, clutching her handkerchief, and said, "I'm fine."

Tong Huaqiong noticed that her eyes were fixed on the crooked locust tree.

There must be some story behind this.

Tong Huaqiong's intuition told her that Hong's reaction must be related to that crooked tree.

Could it be that the family that was hanged is related to the Hong family?
Having known Hong for some time, Tong Huaqiong seemed to have never heard her mention her parents or relatives, and her accent was also very different from that of the Pingchuan County area.

Ignoring the presence of Boss Qian and Tong Huaqiong, He Chao reached out and touched Hong's hand. Finding it a little cold, he worried that she might have a fever and decided to take her back to Tong Huaqiong's house.

Hong stood still.

Tong Huaqiong couldn't help but ask, "Sister Hong, does that crooked tree remind you of anything?"

She doesn't like riddles; if she has doubts, she wants to find out the answers.

If things were really as she thought, she didn't believe the Hong family couldn't handle it.

Why did the Hong family come to Qinghe Bay? And why was this wasteland waiting for her? If it's really related to her, then it's all fate, and no one can escape it.

Just like when she became Tong Dajiao, she couldn't escape it!
If that family is indeed related to the Hong family, or is her relative, finding their remains and letting them rest in peace would be a comfort.

When He Chao heard Tong Huaqiong ask this question, he noticed that Madam Hong had been staring at the crooked tree.

"My wife, what's wrong?" He Chao said softly. "We're all family here, so you can tell me if you have anything to say."

Hong's eyes suddenly reddened, and she pointed to the crooked locust tree, saying, "...The family the village chief mentioned who was hanged...that's my parents and brothers...waaaaah..."

Mrs. Hong clutched her handkerchief and began to cry.

Tong Huaqiong was right as expected.

"This...this..." Boss Qian stamped his foot.

This touched on a sore spot for the Hong family.

He Chao was completely stunned.

Tong Huaqiong observed coldly, realizing that this was probably the first time He Chao had heard about this. Tong Huaqiong decisively said, "Let's talk about it when we get home."

The wind was strong in the wasteland, and Hong's emotions suddenly found an outlet. She was already crying so hard that she could hardly breathe. Tong Huaqiong was worried that she would catch a cold and faint from heart palpitations.

They suggested taking her home immediately.

If she falls ill at home, Tong Huaqiong can ask Man'er to fetch medicine from her spatial dimension.

He Chao and Tong Huaqiong helped Mrs. Hong home, one on each side.

Boss Qian followed closely behind to Tong Huaqiong's house.

Liu Tielian was caught in a dilemma, unsure whether to stay or leave. He hadn't expected that the family he had mentioned who had been hanged was actually a member of the Hong family.

Tong Huaqiong said to Liu Tielian, "Brother Liu, could you please tell everyone that those who are coming to work at my house should come a little later? Also, please gather everyone together and distribute the pesticides for disinfection and insecticide."

Liu Tielian agreed and left the Gu family.

He was still lamenting to himself, fearing that the two plots of land for building houses would be abandoned.

After Hong was helped into the house, Tong Huaqiong gave her a cup of hot tea and lit a calming incense stick.

Hong's emotions gradually stabilized, and she began to tell her story.

More than 20 years ago, before the rebels stormed Shengjing, eight-year-old Hong and her family fled Shengjing with the crowd.

They walked for several days and nights until they arrived at a village.

The heavy rain made it impossible for them to walk any further, so they decided to stay in the village.

Unexpectedly, they encountered a group of rebels. Upon hearing the Shengjing accent and seeing the wagons loaded with goods, the rebels attacked them.

Hong's father stood up to protest and was hanged.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Hong's mother stuffed her under the dead body.

Hong hid under the corpses and watched helplessly as her mother and younger brother were hanged together.

She fainted from fright.

Perhaps the trauma was too great, because she forgot the memory after waking up and wandered around alone.

Later, while working as a maid, he met He Chao.

Because she had forgotten the tragic deaths of her parents, even He Chao was learning about this painful memory for the first time.

Today, the crooked locust tree suddenly activated Hong's memories.

Because her father, mother, and younger brother were hanged from this crooked tree, this crooked tree always appears in her dreams.

She used to dream of sounds of killing and crooked trees for some reason.

I only understand it today.

Yes, they were attacked and killed by rebels in Qinghewan, and she didn't know the name of the village at the time.

Later, after she woke up, she desperately ran towards the mountains and encountered a group of boys and girls chopping wood. They gave her steamed buns to eat and water to drink. From them, she learned that the village below was called Qinghewan.

Later, she even deliberately forgot the name Qinghewan.

"I never imagined that my father-in-law and mother-in-law would suffer such a tragic fate."

He Chao looked at the Hong family with a pained expression.

Hong grasped He Chao's hand in return.

"Master, I met you when I was wandering in the mountains later, do you remember me?" After calming down, Madam Hong wiped away her tears and asked Tong Huaqiong.

Tong Huaqiong thought to herself, how could she possibly remember that?

Because she is not Tong Dajiao.

She searched her memory and vaguely recalled a time when she saved a little girl who had crawled out of a pile of dead bodies. Perhaps because it was so long ago, there were only scattered fragments.

Tong Huaqiong said, "It's been too long, I've forgotten."

With tears in her eyes, Mrs. Hong said, "I shouldn't have forgotten." (End of Chapter)