Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 5 North

Li Hong has lived in Beitian Village for seven or eight years, spending most of her time working at home and taking care of her younger siblings.

The land we own was cultivated little by little by my father and the rest of the family when he was young.

There was an older brother who was later conscripted into the army and died there. The imperial court provided some compensation, which is why we have more than 20 acres of land and a house today.

During the few years Li Hong lived here, she also got to know other children her age in the village, but they rarely had time to go out and play.

My memories of Beijiwu are limited to playing with him when I was a child, and occasionally seeing him a few times when I walked around the village. I knew that such a person existed.

One lived in the east of the village, and the other in the west. If it weren't for the last time they went to the river to wash their faces, they probably wouldn't have passed by each other's fields, nor would they have thought of such a person.

In that case, for the sake of his younger siblings and family, he might obediently go to the county town.

Li Hong had nowhere to go if she didn't listen to her parents. She had no relatives in the village to rely on, and no one in the village would take care of someone else's daughter.

Living in darkness all the time makes you adapt to it, but if you can see a glimmer of hope, you'll remember that light all the time.

"sister!"

When Li Hong heard her sister's voice, she turned around and saw her sister chasing after her.

Many people nearby looked over, their mothers and fathers chasing after them.

"Let's go!" Li Hong knew that she and her sister had to keep running!
Two young girls put all their strength into chasing hope, followed by an elderly woman who could no longer run, and an equally aged man.

"Seize those two unfilial, lowly maids! Let's see where they run to today!"

Old Man Li kept shouting, calling for the others to come and help.

Upon hearing this, almost everyone in the village came over and shouted, "What's going on?"

Li Niu shouted, "Those two are trying to run! Catch them!"

Just then, a man in his twenties from nearby mounted a horse and declared, "I'll bring them back!"

This area is close to the grasslands, and many people ride horses here.

Horses are also great helpers when it comes to work; even this inferior horse runs faster than the two women.

It wasn't just the men on horseback; many young and middle-aged people working nearby also came to help.

Everyone chased after the fleeing sisters.

In less than a minute, Beigong Dingbian, on horseback, caught up with the two girls.

Bei Gong Dingbian was in no hurry to arrest people; he rode on his horse and shouted.

"Drive! Drive!"

The two women heard the sound behind them and saw a man on horseback chasing after them.

In his haste, Li Bing lost his balance and fell to the ground.

"Ahhh!" Li Bing cried out.

Li Hong glanced back and continued running, "I'm going to find Arctic Martial!"

"Go find him! Run!" Li Bing placed all his hopes on Li Hong.

At this moment, Beigong Dingbian reined in his horse and slowed down to approach Li Bing.

The horse got tired after running for a while and slowed down to catch its breath.

Bei Gong Dingbian controlled the horse's direction, guiding it to pass by Li Bing.

"What do you want with Arctic Martial Arts?"

Bei Gong Dingbian asked from his high vantage point.

There are no people with the surname Beiyuan in Beitian Village, nor in Beiyuan County, but there are quite a few people with the surname Bei, such as Beigong, Beihai, Beixiang, Beimen, and Beiye.

Today, Beitian Village has three surnames that begin with the surname Bei: Beigong, Beitian, and Beiji.

Because their surnames are similar, the three families have some contact with each other and pay attention to each other's situations.

Beijiwu is someone who easily offends people; his personality is somewhat unlikable, and he is selfish.

However, the fact that he wasn't beaten in this place with its fierce local customs only shows that he has the ability to beat others.

In the village, connections don't really matter; power is what matters. "Speak! I'm asking you, what do you want with Arctic Martial Arts?"

Bei Gong Dingbian was getting impatient, but this impatience and annoyance did not all come from the silent woman in front of him.

Li Bing stood up and looked at her family members who were approaching from a distance.

“My parents were going to sell us to a brothel, so my sister and I went to Beijiwu and begged him for help.”

"Tch!" Bei Gong Dingbian let out a disdainful laugh, as if he had encountered something ridiculous. "That man would help you? His brother asked him for money, but he refused. My sister tried to talk to him, but he beat her and her horse with a few sticks."

Bei Gong Dingbian didn't believe the Arctic Martial Arts Association would help the two sisters; that guy was a beast.

Selling daughters to brothels is nothing unusual for these people, who are all descendants of refugees. Let alone selling sons and daughters, they are almost all descendants of those who survived by eating human flesh during the centuries of chaos.

The bottom line is that there is no bottom line. The fact that Bei Gong Dingbian didn't take advantage of the situation and then return the favor, or even didn't arrest anyone, only shows that he encountered a tough opponent that he dared not touch.

Seeing this, Li Bing quickly ran outside, saying, "I'm going to find him right now, you can come with me if you don't believe me!"

Li Bing had already run out because his parents had arrived in a menacing manner.

Upon seeing this, Bei Gong Dingbian rode up and followed.

"Fine! I'll see! I'll show you what kind of beast that is!"

Beigong Dingbian appears to have been humiliated by Beiji Wu.

Li Hong, who runs fast, has already reached the land of Beijiwu.

Thank goodness, Beiji Wu was pulling a bundle of wheat that was almost two meters high out of the field.

"My benefactor!" Li Hong quickly ran to Bei Jiwu and knelt down, pleading with him, "Please save my sister! My parents are going to sell my sister and me to a brothel in the county. If you can buy us sisters for five taels of silver, I'm willing to be your slave for life!"

Arctic Martial pondered for a moment.

"Five taels of silver is the harvest from ten acres of land. Can that really buy you and your sister? Are you telling the truth?"

Beijiwu felt that whether it was five taels of silver or the harvest from ten acres of land, it was a good deal. The two sisters were hardworking and beautiful, so it didn't seem like a bad deal.

I'd hesitate for a while before deciding to become a wife; I haven't made up my mind yet.

But working like an ox or a horse only costs five taels of silver, which seems like a great deal.

Li Hong had no room for bargaining. She kowtowed urgently, "It's true! Please, benefactor, save my sister! She's right behind us!"

Beijiwu looked into the distance and gently pulled the car over.

"Your sister is here, let's go over."

Li Hong quickly got up and finally breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her younger sister running over as well.

The Zhang family, who lived nearby, also stopped working and came over to watch the commotion.

"Arctic Martial Arts, what's wrong?" Old Zhang asked loudly.

Beijiwu calmly said, "This is none of your business. Get back to work."

Upon seeing Beijiwu and Li Hong, Li Bing excitedly shouted, "Sister!"

Li Hong also called out, "Sister! It's alright now!"

Bei Gongdingbian looked at the young man slowly walking over, pulling a two-meter-high haystack, and felt very uncomfortable.

He wasn't telling the truth just now.

Not only was his sister beaten, but his brothers were also beaten when they stood up for their sister; it was a very humiliating beating.

In rural areas, whoever can fight is considered powerful.

Li Bing ran to Li Hong's side, panting as she looked at Bei Jiwu, wanting to speak, but her throat hurt.

Bei Jiwu put down the car and asked Bei Gongdingbian, "What are you planning to do now?"

Bei Gong Dingbian didn't want to fight with Bei Ji Wu here, and said defiantly, "I'm just watching the show. Their parents are coming."

A quarter of the people from Kitada Village gathered here.

There were probably more than twenty people.

(End of this chapter)